PVR MOVIES FIRST VOL. 21
YO U R WI ND O W IN TO T HE WORL D OF CIN EMA
JULY 2017
TOTAL RECALL:
Through The (Magnifying) Glass, Darkly 7 Best Detectives of Cinema
st gu ev i ew i nter
na a h Aa mra Ku
THE BEST NEW MOVIES PLAYING THIS MONTH: MOM, HASEENA, MUBARAKAN, Jagga Jasoos
GREETINGS ear Movie Lovers, Here’s the July edition of Movies First, your exclusive window to the world of cinema. The world’s best-loved wall-crawler is back! Tom Holland swings on to the screen and into your hearts with “Spiderman: Homecoming.” steely Sridevi takes on her daughter’s kidnappers in “ A Mom.” Aahana Kumra, who plays a lead role in “Lipstick Under My Burkha,“ lifts the veil to reveal what makes this a landmark film.Ranbir Kapoor plays a stuttering detective in Anurag Basu’s “Jagga Jasoos.“ Speaking of which, we focus our lens on filmdom’s 7 best detectives—a treat for mystery mavens.
evisit Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece “Vertigo,“ which R touched the dizzying heights of success. Take a peek at the life and films of legendary filmmaker Sidney Lumet, and join us in wishing Oscar-winning superstarTom Hanksa Happy Birthday. We really hope you enjoy the issue. Wish you a fabulous month of movie watching. Regards
Gautam Dutta CEO, PVR Limited
USING THE MAGAZINE We hope youa’ll find this magazine easy to use, but here’s a handy guide to the icons used throughout anyway. You can tap the page once at any time to access full contents at the top of the page.
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CONTENTS
Come onboard as Star-Lord and his band of misfits head off to another adventure in the galaxy.
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Movie of The Month
GUEST INTERVIEW
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MUST WATCH
FESTIVAL FLASH
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Architects of Cinema
Total Recall
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RELEASING THIS MONTH
A sneak-peak into the big release of the month!
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JAGGA JASOOS
Enter the world of Jagga now!
The last time Anurag Basu and Ranbir Kapoor came together for a movie, it ended up being India’s official entry to the Oscars. The movie, “Barfi” which released in 2012, became a critical and commercial hit and went down as one of the finest performance by Ranbir. The very next year, Anurag Basu announced his second collaboration with Ranbir – an adventure comedy titled “Jagga Jasoos.” Joining Ranbir in the lead is Katrina Kaif, his co-star from “Rajneeti” and “Ajab Prem Ki Gajab Kahaani.” The news only increased the buzz around the movie.
(Katrina Kaif) as his accomplice. What unfolds are a series of adventures and findings for the young boy Jagga. “Kahaani” fame Saswata Chatterjee plays Jagga’s father while Sayani Gupta, Adah Sharma, and Saurabh Shukla would be seen in crucial roles.
es, ‘Jagga Jasoos’ is a full-on musical and everything in the film is said in a musical form. – Anurag Basu, Director
The film narrates the story of a young detective Jagga who is in search of his missing father with Shruti PVR MOVIES FIRST
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THE COLLECTION DID YOU KNOW? Ranbir Kapoor’s hairstyle from “Jagga Jasoos” is an ode to his favourite comic series “Adventures of Tintin.”
Dubbing the movie as a musical, Anurag Basu has attributed “Jagga Jassos” to be more of Pritam’s movie than his. This, is in fact their fourth movie together. Here is a sneak-peek of their previous collaborations:
Ravi Varman who was also the cinematograher for “Barfi” and “Tamasha” has shot the film in the beautiful landscapes of South Africa, Thailand, and Morocco. The music, which is very central to the film, is composed by Pritam and has already struck a chord with the listeners.
Reason to Watch:
Gangster (2006)
A musical comedy, the film will have a total of 29 songs woven as a part of the narrative. Ranbir Kapoor will be seen singing most of his dialogues rather than say them.
Life in a...Metro (2007)
JAGGA JASOOS RELEASE 14 JULY Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Mystery Language: Hindi Director: Anurag Basu Cast: Katrina Kaif, Ranbir Kapoor, Sayani Gupta Studio: Disney India, Picture Shuru Entertainment, Ishana Movies Pic Courtesy: Picture Shuru Entertainment
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Barfi! (2012)
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SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING (2017)
Tagline: ‘HOMEWORK CAN WAIT. THE CITY CAN’T’ Director: Jon Watts Star Cast: Tom Holland as Spider-Man, Zendaya, Robert Downey Jr., Michael Keaton, and Marisa Tomei. Genre: Superhero, Action-Adventure, Comicbook Movie Studio: Columbia Pictures (Co-produced by Marvel Studios)
With a historical tie-up between rival studios Marvel and Sony, Spider-Man gains a friend in none other than billionaire-philanthropist-playboy-genius Tony Stark himself. The result is Spider-Man: Homecoming, a fresh take on the world’s friendly, neighborhood web-slinger. The Plot: Peter Parker is a bright young teenager from Queens, New York. Several months after the events of Captain America: Civil War, Parker – with the help of his mentor Tony Stark – must learn to balance his life as a high schooler with his life as a masked vigilante known PVR MOVIES FIRST
MOVIE OF THE MONTH
as Spider-Man. Peter’s world is ripped apart when a menacing new villain, called The Vulture, emerges.
e really pushed Spider-Man to new limits, and there are things we definitely have not seen before. Some of the abilities. We trained and trained on the stunts for a month, and I’m definitely excited for you guys to see stuff that Spider-Man has never done before. – Tom Holland, Lead Actor
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hat’s great about Spider-Man is that he’s a regular kid. By showing his story you also get to show what the ground level is like in a world where The Avengers exist. – Jon Watts, Director
The Cast: Tom Holland debuts as Peter Parker, in the third take on the iconic superhero. Producers Kevin Feige and Amy Pascal were both impressed by Holland’s work in films in In The Heart of the Sea, The Impossible, and Wolf Hall, and even more so by his numerous screen tests for the role of Peter Parker. A natural athlete and acrobat, Tom’s enthusiasm and athleticism were both in sync with what the role demanded. While the role was previously played on film by both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, Holland says his version of the character is “completely different,” especially this is the first film to portray Peter as a kid, not a young adult.
in New York. Scouting for new business, he randomly chances upon Chitauri technology in the wreckage of the Avengers’ infamous Battle of New York. Forging a mechanical suit from the superior alien tech, Toomes becomes The Vulture, somewhat of a dark Tony Stark, a character obsessed not with money, not with power, but only with a shot at the good life.
Robert Downey Jr. returns as Iron Man, this time as a mentor to Peter Parker. RDJ’s trademark wit is on clear display in the film’s trailers so far, and we can also look forward to many quotable one-liners and jaw-dropping action sequences. His chemistry with Tom Holland is already the talk of tinseltown. Michael Keaton needs no introduction. He’s already played billionaire vigilante Batman, down-and-out screen superhero Birdman, and now he’s playing the eccentric, evil Vulture. As one of the most versatile actors currently working, Keaton’s take on the Vulture is going to be one of the highlights of Spider-Man: Homecoming. The Villian: Adrian Toomes, aka The Vulture, is one of Spider-Man’s most iconic villains. Toomes is a scrounger, a shady businessman who runs a small salvaging company PVR MOVIES FIRST
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TRIVIA 01
One of the last shots of the movie is Spidey chasing a bus, and Tim Holland just couldn’t do it. Finally, his best friend Harrison was dressed up like him and made to do the sequence.
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This time, Spiderman has a little friend—a nifty little surveillance drone. Tom Holland says it has been made to do “10,000 things” in the film!
03
This is the first time (on screen) that Spider-Man’s signature redand-blue suit will meld with Iron Man’s technology; the result is a computerized, mechanized suit that comes not only with its own parachute, but also turns into a wingsuit at the touch of a button, allowing Spider-Man to perform even greater feats of daring.
The Director: Hailing from the peaceful town of Fountain, Colorado Jon Watts is a young director with great vision. He won the gig for directing “Spider-Man: Homecoming” after the producers saw a screening of his well-reviewed police dramedy “Cop Car” (2015). When he realized he was in contention for Homecoming, he went the extra mile by getting a Spider-Man tattoo on his chest to “stand out in the field.” PVR MOVIES FIRST
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Through The (Magnifying) Glass, Darkly
Total Recall
7 Best Detectives of Cinema 1941: Sam Spade (The Maltese Falcon)
Humphrey Bogart plays Sam Spade in John Huston’s directorial debut. The film pits Spade against a variety of odd, ominious characters, including a trio of eccentric criminals and a gorgeous liar, all of whom are after the priceless artifact known only as the Maltese Falcon. The film was received great reviews, citing Huston as a master filmmaker and sealing Bogart’s status as one of Hollywood’s suavest heroes.
1973: Claude Lebel
1990: Dick Tracy (Dick Tracy)
Director Warren Beatty brings the 1930s comic book detective to life in this delightful action-comedy. Faced with the sensuous advances of femme fatale Breathless Mahoney (played by a very campy Madonna) and the sinister attention of gangster Big Boy Caprice, Dick Tracy digs deep to weed out the problem.
1995: Vincent Hanna (Heat)
(The Day Of The Jackal)
Michael Lonsdaleplays Claude Lebel, a French deputy commissioner who’s brought on to protect President Charles De Gaulle after an assassin named ‘The Jackal’ is hired to assassinate him. Lebel uses his astute powers of observation and detection to get to the bottom of the case, even as The Jackal tries every trick in the book to stay one step ahead.
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Michael Mann created cinema’s greatest singularity when he cast Al Pacino and Robert De Niroopposite each other in Heat, quite possibly the greatest heist movie ever made. Pacino plays Vincent Hanna, a tired, angry and battered homicide detective who becomes obsessed with catching bank robber Neil Macauley, played by a simmering De Niro. Drawing parallels between cop and criminal, Mann’s film PAGE 10
is so influential that director Christopher Nolan cites it as the number one reason he became a filmmaker.
2005: Gay Perry (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang)
tattooed hacker with a violent, cruel past. She teams up with journalist Mikael Blomkvist when he approaches her with a very unique, very puzzling problem – and unboxes a mystery that shakes the foundations of her entire belief. Is there anyone more versatile than Val Kilmer? Seriously, he’s played an Air Force pilot in Top Gun, the Caped Crusader in Batman Forever, and an irritable, violently gay detective in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Shane Black’s neo-noir, satirical take on buddy-cop films is a platform for Kilmer to remind us why he’s considered one of the best actors Hollywood’s ever churned out.
2007: Nicholas Angel (Hot Fuzz)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Tom Hanks One of the most beloved actors of his generation, Tom Hanks is known for his powerful performances in blockbusters like “Big,” “Sleepless in Seattle,” “Philadelphia,” “Forrest Gump,” and “Saving Private Ryan” Here are a few fun facts about the actor, who celebrates his 61st birthday this month. The first film in director Edgar Wright’s Cornetto Trilogy is the hilariously dark (or is it darkly hilarious?) Hot Fuzz, which introduces us to Sergeant Nicholas Angel, played to perfection by Simon Pegg. Angel is the brightest jewel in the British police force’s crown, at least until he’s transferred to the sleepy, boring village of Sandford, where nothing seems to happen and no one is happening. But things aren’t even close to what they seem, and Nicholas must use every ounce of his experience just to stay alive.
2011: Lisbeth Salander (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo) This was the film that proved Rooney Mara wasn’t just a pretty face. In fact, director David Fincher took this so seriously that he had Mara cast against type. She plays Lisbeth Salander, a PVR MOVIES FIRST
1. Tom Hanks is the only actor after Spencer Tracy to win back-to-back Best Actor Oscars for his roles in 1993’s “Philadelphia” and 1994’s “Forrest Gump.” 2. Tom Hanks is the third cousin, four generations removed, of former US President Abraham Lincoln. Their common ancestor is John Hanks (1680 - 1740), who was the great-great-grandfather of Lincoln and the six-time great-grandfather of Tom Hanks. 3. Before Tom Hanks kicked off his acting career, one of his jobs was of a hotel bellman. Some celebrity guests whose bags he carried were Cher, Sidney Poitier, Slappy White, and Bill Withers. 4. Tom Hanks is an avid collector of typewriters. He has purchased over 80 typewriters from around the world. 5. Hanks, who originally wanted to be an astronaut, has the asteroid “12818 Tomhanks” named after him.
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MUST WATCH BOLLYWOOD BLOCKBUSTERS JULY
MOM
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Genre: Drama Language(s): Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malyalam Director: Ravi Udyawar Cast: Sridevi, Akshaye Khanna, Nawauddin Siddiqui Studio: MAD Films, Third Eye Pictures Pic Courtesy: © MAD Films
When a woman is challenged...
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JULY
GUEST IIN LONDON
Genre: Comedy, Family Language(s): Hindi Director: Ashwani Dhir Cast: Kartik Aaryan, Paresh Rawal, Tanvi Azmi Studio: Panorama Studios Pic Courtesy: © Panorama Studios
The atithi is back!
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07
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Movie Plot: An unfortunate incident distances Devki (Sridevi) from her daughter Arya to a point of no return. In such a situation, she has to make a choice between what is right and what is wrong.
Movie Plot: A young couple in London struggle to
Reason to watch: A taut thriller, “Mom” is Sridevi’s 300th film and is being released in the 50th year of her film career.
Reason to watch: A comedy of errors, watch it for
Did You Know: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who is doing a cameo in the film, will be seen in a chilling disguise that makes him almost impossible to recognise.
Did You Know: The movie is a sequel of 2010 hit
live with their estranged aunt and uncle, who overstay their welcome.
Paresh Rawal’s brilliant comic timing.
“Atithi Tum Kab Jaoge?”
JULY
SHAB
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The queen of Mumbai Genre: Drama, Romance Language(s): Hindi Director: Onir Cast: Raveena Tandon, Ashish Bisht, Arpita Chatterjee Studio: Anticlock Films, WSG Pictures, Surya Entertainment Pic Courtesy: © Anticlock Films
Movie Plot: “Shab” is a story that revolves around multiple characters’ search for happiness and love in a complex, unforgiving, and cold city. Reason to watch: Raveena Tandon, who was last seen in a guest appearance in “Bombay Velvet”, will make a full fledged comeback with this film. Did You Know: The film was originally written in 2001 keeping Raveena Tandon and Sunjay Suri as the lead pair in mind. PLAY TRAILER
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MUST WATCH BOLLYWOOD BLOCKBUSTERS JULY
MUNNA MICHAEL
Genre: Action, Musical Language(s): Hindi Director: Sabbir Khan Cast: Tiger Shroff, Nawazuddin Siddiqui & Nidhhi Agerwal Studio: Eros International, Next Gen Films Pic Courtesy: © Next Gen Films
MJ lives on forever
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The Last King of Punjab
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Movie Plot: The story of a young man from the streets, called Munna (Tiger Shroff), who is trying to follow the footsteps of his idol, The King of Pop, Michael Jackson.
JULY
THE BLACK PRINCE
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Genre: Drama, History Language(s): English, Hindi, Punjabi Director: Kavi Raz Cast: Jason Flemyng, Amanda Root, Atul Sharma Studio: Brillstein Entertainment Partners Pic Courtesy: © Brillstein Entertainment Partners
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Movie Plot: The true story of Queen Victoria and the Last King of Punjab, Maharajah Duleep Singh and his lifelong struggle to regain his Kingdom.
Reason to watch: Packed with incredible action and dance sequences, the movie presents the intense Nawazuddin Siddiqui in a fun role
Reason to watch: The movie brings to light one of the most important chapters in the colonial history that has remained untouched and unknown for many Indians who do not hail from Punjab.
Did You Know: This film will mark Tiger and Sabbir’s third collaboration together, after “Heropanti” and “Baaghi.”
Did You Know: The film will also depict how the precious Kohinoor diamond was deceivingly snatched away from the young king.
JULY
LIPSTICK UNDER MY BURKHA
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4 Secret Lives. 4 Secret Fantasies. Genre: Drama Language(s): Hindi Director: Alankrita Shrivastava Cast: Konkona Sen Sharma, Ratna Pathak Shah, Aahana Kumra Studio: Prakash Jha Productions Pic Courtesy: © Prakash Jha Productions
Movie Plot: Set in the crowded by-lanes of small town India, “Lipstick Under My Burkha” chronicles the secret lives of four women in search of a little freedom. Reason to watch: Through the kaleidoscope of the veiled dreams and pulpy fantasies of these four lovable and quirky women, the film speaks of the pulsating spirit of rebellion. Did You Know: The film premiered at the Tokyo and Mumbai Film Festivals, where it won the Spirit of Asia Prize and the Oxfam Award for Best Film on Gender Equality. PLAY TRAILER
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MUST WATCH BOLLYWOOD BLOCKBUSTERS JULY
INDU SARKAR Witness a black chapter of Indian history
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Genre: Drama Language(s): Hindi Director: Madhur Bhandarkar Cast: Anupam Kher, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Kirti Kulhari Studio: Bhandarkar Entertainment Pic Courtesy: © Bhandarkar Entertainment
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Reason to watch: Directed by National Award winner Madhur Bhandarkar, this film promises to be everything – interesting, intriguing and entertaining. Did You Know: Neil Nitin Mukesh, who is playing Sanjay Gandhi in the film, has undergone a complete makeover to closely resemble the former Indian politician.
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Traitors or Heroes?
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Movie Plot: “Indu Sarkar” is the story of the general public who for no fault of theirs were made to suffer during the 1975 Emergency. When the water reaches the brim, a woman decides to raise her voice.
JULY
RAAG DESH
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Genre: Drama, History Language(s): Hindi Director: Tigmanshu Dhulia Cast: Kunal Kapoor, Amit Sadh, Mohit Marwah Studio: Tigmanshu Dhulia Films Pic Courtesy: © Tigmanshu Dhulia Films
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Movie Plot: The story of three leading officers of the INA: Colonel Prem Sehgal, Colonel Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon, and Major General Shah Nawaz Khan, and their trial at the Red Fort. Reason to watch: “Raag Desh” brings to life the epic trial that paved the way for India’s freedom in those meteoric times. Did You Know: The trailer of “Raag Desh” will be the first film trailer to be launched in the Indian Parliament.
JULY
MUBARAKAN
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Double trouble Genre: Drama Language(s): Hindi Director: Anees Bazmee Cast: Anil Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, Ileana D’Cruz Studio: Sony Pictures Networks Productions Pic Courtesy: © Sony Pictures Networks Productions
Movie Plot: “Mubarakan” is a rom-com set around a Punjabi wedding in London. Arjun Kapoor plays the double role of two brothers Karanveer Singh and Charanveer Singh and Anil Kapoor plays their uncle Kartar Singh. Reason to watch: Watch it for Anil Kapoor’s splendid comic timing and his chemistry with his real-life nephew Arjun Kapoor. Did You Know: This is the second time Arjun Kapoor is playing a double role, the first being in “Aurangzeb.” PLAY TRAILER
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MUST WATCH HOLLYWOOD BLOCKBUSTERS JULY
WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES
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Witness the end Genre: Adventure, Drama, Sci-fi Language(s): English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu Director: Matt Reeves Cast: Judy Greer, Woody Harrelson, Andy Serkis Studio: Chernin Entertainment Pic Courtesy: © Chernin Entertainment
Movie Plot: After the apes suffer unimaginable losses, Caesar wrestles with his darker instincts and begins his own mythic quest to avenge his kind. Reason to watch: Reeve’s filmmaking prowess, the great acting from the ape and human casts, and an emotional narrative Did You Know: Andy Serkis, Terry Notary, and Karin Konoval are the only actors to be in all three of this Planet of the Apes trilogy. PLAY TRAILER
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JULY
DUNKIRK
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Hope is a weapon. Survival is victory. Genre: Action, Thriller Language(s): English Director: Christopher Nolan Cast: Tom Hardy, Kenneth Branagh, Cillian Murphy Studio: Syncopy Inc. Pic Courtesy: © Syncopy Inc.
Movie Plot: Allied soldiers from Belgium, the British Empire, Canada, and France are surrounded by the German army and evacuated during a fierce battle in World War II. Reason to watch: The movie is themed around the Dunkirk Evacuation, a crucial moment that changed the fate of World War II. Did You Know: Christopher Nolan decided to use the real naval destroyers instead of CGI for sea battle sequences in this film. PLAY TRAILER
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MUST WATCH HOLLYWOOD BLOCKBUSTERS JULY
VALERIAN AND THE CITY OF A THOUSAND PLANETS
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A universe without boundaries needs heroes without limits. Genre: Sci-fi, Action, Adventure Language(s): English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu Director: Luc Besson Cast: Dane DeHaan, Cara Delevingne, Clive Owen Studio: EuropaCorp, Fundamental Films, BNP Paribas Fortis Film Finance, Universum Film, Gulf Film, River Road Entertainment, Belga Films Pic Courtesy: © EuropaCorp
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Movie Plot: In the 28th century, Valerian and Laureline are a team of special operatives charged with maintaining order throughout the human territories. Under assignment from the Minister of Defence, the two embark on a mission to the city of Alpha-an ever-expanding metropolis where species from all over the universe have converged over centuries to share knowledge, intelligence and cultures with each other. There is a mystery at the center of Alpha, a dark force which threatens the peaceful existence of the City of a Thousand Planets, and Valerian and Laureline must race to identify the marauding menace and safeguard not just Alpha, but the future of the universe. Reason to watch: Luc Besson first premiered some footage of the movie at the 2016 San Diego Comic-Con. This footage received a standing ovation from the crowd. Did You Know: • The film is based on the French science fiction comics series Valérian and Laureline, written by Pierre Christin and illustrated by Jean-Claude Mézières. • For years, Luc Besson had wanted to adapt the “Valérian and Laureline” comics, this being a pet project and his ambition. • The Original Comic For Valerian Inspired Other Movies Such As The Fifth Element and Star Wars TO BOOK TICKETS GO TO PVRCINEMAS.COM OR DOWNLOAD OUR MOBILE APP. AVAILABLE ON PVR MOVIES FIRST
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a n a h a A mra u K N
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Aahana Kumra
GUEST INTERVIEW
Spearheaded by a woman director and a strong cast, “Lipstick Under my Burkha” has won dozens of awards and created massive curiosity even before its release. Aahana Kumra, who plays one of the movie’s four lead characters, tells us about the movie and her role in it.
Tell us about the setting and tone of “Lipstick…” It’s a movie that echoes reality. The film is set in Bhopal, and tells the stories of four women—two Hindu, two Muslim. I watched it for the first time in Tokyo, with a Japanese audience, and was delighted to realise how entertaining it has turned out to be!
What makes “Lipstick Under my Burkha” an important film? I think this is the first ever film in Indian cinema to bring female sexuality to the fore in so forthright a manner. There is nothing superficial in the film’s treatment of the subject—we have dared to delve deep.
So, it presents reality with a light touch? Absolutely. This is a film with many colours. Apart from its subject and vision, it is at its heart a bunch of stories that will speak to you and stir something in you.
Key takeaway from the film... The film will start a dialogue, on an issue that needs talking about. Already, at press conferences, we’re getting women-centric questions and debates that push the envelope. PVR MOVIES FIRST
A character in the film that really speaks to you I have to say it is the role that has been beautifully essayed by Ratna Pathak Shah. Her story deals with the hitherto untouched subject of an older woman’s sexuality. I consider myself a liberal-minded Mumbai girl, but while doing the film, it hit me that even people like me somehow don’t think about these taken-forgranted issues that bubble under the surface. PAGE 22
THE LIFE OF A LEGEND:
Sidney Lumet PVR MOVIES FIRST
ARCHITECTS OF CINEMA
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SIDNEY LUMET
Sidney Lumet was a visionary filmmaker. He had a unique gift with actors, an unusually dynamic feeling for drama, and a powerful sense of place, especially his beloved New York. He was also one of the few directors whose films garnered nearly 50 Oscar nominations. Lumet’s complex and emotional films put him on par with contemporary New York directors Woody Allen and Martin Scorsese. In his long career, he worked with the most accomplished actors in motion picture history—Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Katherine Hepburn, Paul Newman, Sean connery, Henry Fonda, Sophia Loren and Vanessa Redgrave. Top among his 40+ films are Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon, The Verdict and of course, 12 Angry Menrly Li Early Life: Born on June 25, 1924, in Philadelphia, the son of actor Baruch Lumet and dancer Eugenia Wermus Lumet, young Sidney made his stage debut as an actor at the tender age of four, at the famous the Yiddish Art Theatre in New York. Lumet continued to act throughout the 1930s. With World War II in full swing by 1939, young Sidney’s acting career screeched to a halt, and he enlisted as a radio repairman in the US Army. He returned to America in 1945, after spending three years stationed in India and Burma. Soon after, he started an off-Broadway acting troupe. But he was always more interested in the story behind the act, and soon switched roles to become the director of many television shows.
ARCHITECTS OF CINEMA
His Films: Sidney Lumet made his feature film directing debut in 1957 with 12 Angry Men, which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival and earned three Academy Award nominations. Starring Henry Fonda in his most recognizable role, the courtroom drama takes place almost entirely in a single jury room, a remarkable feat of technical and creative brilliance. For these reasons, the film is widely regarded as one of the greatest films in history.
or any director with a little lucidity, masterpieces are films that come to you by accident.
From his debut in 1957, Lumet would go on to release almost a film a year right up until 2007, making him one of the most prolific directors ever. PVR MOVIES FIRST
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DID YOU KNOW? • Although he grew up poor, Sidney Lumet recalls earning $35 a week for their family’s radio gig, which was much more than most families earned in his New York ghetto. • He directed his father, Baruch Lumet, in two films: “The Pawnbroker,” and “The Group.” • For “12 Angry Men,” Lumet kept the entire cast cooped up in a rehearsal space all day every day for two weeks, to give them a sense of what jury duty was like. • Lumet said the secret to his consistency was grabbing a quick nap after lunch. He would go into his trailer, nibble on a sandwich, and doze off until his break was over. • Legend has it that his discipline was so strong that he never had to set an alarm.
Lumet then got the chance to direct the great Marlon Brando in The Fugitive Kind, an imperfect but powerful adaptation of Tennessee Williams’ Orpheus Descending. Another film, The Pawnbroker, is arguably one of the greatest movies Lumet made early in his career; it tells the story of a Holocaust survivor who lives in New York and can’t overcome his trauma in the Nazi concentration camps. His career suffered a setback after the overly talky drama, The Group (1966) and the stylish spy thriller The Deadly Affair (1966). But Lumet continued to make one film a year, and made a strong comeback with the box office hit The Anderson Tapes (1971), starring Sean Connery as a jailed mafioso who aims to settle a debt after being released from prison. Serpico (1973), starring Al Pacino, is perhaps Lumet’s most well-known film after 12 Angry Men. The terrific cop thriller about police corruption in New York City became one of his biggest critical and financial successes, mainly for Al Pacino’s fascinating portrayal of the real-life cop Frank Serpico. Pacino received a Golden Globe and the movie earned two Academy Award nominations. Lumet’s complex crime thriller Dog Day Afternoon (1975) starred Al Pacino as a bisexual man who tries to rob a bank to finance his lover’s sex change operation. In 1976, Lumet directed Network, one of his most revered films. Starring Robert Duvall, Faye Dunaway, and Peter Finch, is a forward-thinking film about how a famed television network milks its former anchor’s mental breakdown for its own benefits. Lumet’s last film Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead (2007), starred Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Albert Finney, and Marisa Tomei. It was tremendously wellreviewed, with critics hailing the thriller as a triumphant return to form. PVR MOVIES FIRST
Awards: Sidney Lumet’s films have been nominated a total of 46 times for the Academy Awards, with his film Network alone garnering 10 nominations. Lumet was nominated for a total of four Best Director Academy Awards (The Verdict, Network, Dog Day Afternoon, and 12 Angry Men) and one Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award (Prince of the City).
QUICK FACTS BIRTH NAME: Sidney Lumet _______________________ OCCUPATION: Director, Producer, Screenwriter _______________________ BIRTH DATE: June 25, 1924 _______________________ PLACE OF BIRTH: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA _______________________ Died: April 9, 2011 _______________________ YEARS ACTIVE: 1939–2007
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HISTORY
THIS MONTH 59 YEARS AGO
Vertigo: 1958 *James Stewart, Kim Novak, Barbara Bel Geddes, Tom Helmore DIRECTOR: Alfred Hitchcock
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HISTORY Based on Boileau-Narcejac’s 1954 novel D’entre Les Morts (From Among The Dead), Alfred Hitchcock’s “Vertigo” is a timeless classic. Received with a mixed response upon release, it has garnered enough momentum over the years to be known as one of Alfred Hitchcock’s best films, if not his absolute best. The film is a mesmerising romantic suspense thriller about a doomed romance—a man’s desperate love for an illusion. Hitchcock, perhaps the most influential director of his time, was a master of technique, inventing camera gimmicks far ahead of his time. In “Vertigo,” he introduced us to the popular ‘Hitchcock Zoom’ – an in-camera effect which distorts the foreground and background of a shot while keeping the subject at the same distance, creating an uncomfortable atmosphere. Hitchcock used this to effectively convey his protagonist’s acute acrophobia (fear of heights), a key element in the suspenseful story. “Vertigo” displays some of Hitchcock’s most memorable location photography, with one of cinema’s most indelible portraits of San Francisco, and movie lovers often hit the tourist trail to visit locations shown in the film. The Empire Hotel, where Scottie tracks down Judy, was renamed the Hotel Vertigo in 2009. Plot: James Stewart plays John “Scottie” Ferguson, who retires from the police force after an accident leaves him with a fear of heights and the titular affliction of vertigo, a false sense of spinning and falling when looking down from those heights. An acquaintance
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THIS MONTH 59 YEARS AGO
named Gavin Elster hires Scottie, now a private eye, to follow his wife Madeline (played by Kim Novak) and find out why she’s acting so strangely. From there on, you get classic Hitchcock—suspense, mystery, romance, all wrapped around twisted human psychology. Hitchcock’s masterpiece was the recipient of only two Academy Awards nominations, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, and Best Sound. Although bypassed for the major awards, the film’s leads delivered performances rarely matched in cinema history. Stewart is terrific as the good-natured guy who learns too late that he’s been set up. Kim Novak is also eerily convincing in a difficult role, and Barbara Bel Geddes is irresistible as Midge Wood, the woman Scottie would be in love with if he knew what was good for him. The colours are dazzling, and Bernard Herrmann’s extraordinary score is crisp and haunting. Fun Facts: 1. Vertigo is the first ever film to have used computergenerated graphics. 2. An obsessive perfectionist, Hitchcock reportedly spent a week shooting a single scene just to get the lighting exactly right. 3. Hitchcock blamed James Stewart for the film’s average box office performance. He felt Stewart looked ‘too old’ in the film. Vertigo was the last collaboration between Hitchcock and Stewart, who had previously done three films together. 4. The word “vertigo” is spoken only once in the film, and never uttered again.
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FILM FESTIVALS 52st Karlovy Vary International Film Festival Festival Date: June 30 – July 08, 2017 Venue: Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic Acclaimed Movie JUZE
driving around L. A. in a battered Volvo station wagon, figuring out how to get their drugs for the day. As plans A, B, C, D and E fall through, the trio starts to come apart at the seams. When Blake brings up the idea of violently robbing a drug dealer friend of Tommy’s, we find out who these three really are and what they are willing to do to get what they need. A “drug” movie with no drugs, and a “road” movie that goes nowhere, A Thousand Junkies is a dark, visceral comedy about the 9 to 5 job of being a junkie, and the strange bonds that are formed between addicts. MOVIE INFO Directed By: Tommy Swerdlow Written By: TJ Bowen Cast: T.J. Bowen, TJ Bowen, Patricia Castelo Branco Genre: Comedy, Drama
New Zealand International Film Festival, 2017 Plot: If gifted teenager Santosh is to achieve independence, finish school, and escape the trap of slave-like migrant field labor, he has to overcome one main obstacle: the cruel paymaster Juze. In uncompromising terms, the film unmasks the dire poverty hidden only a short distance from the tourist resorts of India’s Goa state.
Festival Date: July 20 – August 06, 2017 Venue: Auckland, New Zealand Acclaimed Movie BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL
MOVIE INFO Directed By: Miransha Naik Written By: Miransha Naik Cast: Rushikesh Naik, Prashanti Talpankar, Sudesh Bhise Genre: Drama
Marfa Film Festival, 2017 Festival Date: July 12 – July 16, 2017 Venue: Marfa, USA Acclaimed Movie A THOUSAND JUNKIES
Plot: Manji, a highly skilled samurai, becomes cursed with immortality after a legendary battle. Haunted by the brutal murder of his sister, Manji knows that only fighting evil will regain his soul. He promises to help a young girl named Rin avenge her parents, who were killed by a group of master swordsmen led by ruthless warrior Anotsu. The mission will change Manji in ways he could never imagine.
Plot: As Los Angeles wakes up and goes to work, so do TJ, BLAKE and TOMMY, three junkies whose workday consists of PVR MOVIES FIRST
MOVIE INFO Directed By: Takashi Miike Written By: Hiroaki Samura, Tetsuya Oishi Cast: Takuya Kimura, Hana Sugisaki, Sôta Fukushi Genre: Action, Drama PAGE 28
Out This JULY MOVIE NAME (LANGUAGE)
GENRE FORMAT
MOM (HINDI / TAMIL / TELUGU / MALYALAM)
DRAMA
icons
ATMOS
RELEASE DATE
07 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ GUEST IIN LONDON (HINDI)
COMEDY
07 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ SPIDERMAN : HOMECOMING (ENGLISH / HINDI / TAMIL / TELUGU)
ACTION / SCI-FI
3D / IMAX / 4DX
07 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ JAGGA JASOOS (HINDI)
DRAMA
ATMOS
14 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ SHAB (HINDI)
DRAMA /ROMANCE
14 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ WAR OF THE PLANET OF THE APES (ENGLISH / HINDI / TELUGU / TAMIL)
ACTION / ADVENTURE
3D / IMAX / ATMOS
14 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ MUNNA MICHAEL (HINDI)
ACTION / MUSICAL
ATMOS
21 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ LIPSTICK UNDER MY BURKHA (HINDI)
DRAMA
21 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ DUNKIRK (ENGLISH)
ACTION/ DRAMA
IMAX
21 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ THE BLACK PRINCE (ENGLISH / HINDI / PUNJABI)
DRAMA/ HISTORY
21 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ INDU SARKAR (HINDI)
DRAMA/ HISTORY
28 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ MUBARAKAN (HINDI)
COMEDY
28 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ RAAG DESH (HINDI)
DRAMA/ HISTORY
28 JUL
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ VALERIAN AND THE CITY OF A THOUSAND PLANETS (ENGLISH / HINDI / TAMIL / TELUGU) PVR MOVIES FIRST
ACTION
3D/ IMAX
Subject to release at PVR. Movie schedule is subject to last minute change.
28 JUL PAGE 29
IN THE NEXT ISSUE:
EDITOR HARSHVARDHAN CONSULTANT EDITOR SHUBHRA DESIGNER VIJAY FEATURES WRITERS SIDDHARTH Conceptualized by Ranjeet Ahluwalia The views, ideas and content of this magazine are not of PVR’s. PVR shall not be held responsible for the outcome of any action or decision based on the information contained in this publication. PVR does not give any warranty for the completeness or accuracy for this publication’s content, explanation or opinion. To share your feedback about the magazine, write to us at pvrmoviesfirst@gmail.com
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