Smorgasbord Fantasia

Tovino Thomas is one of the most charming popular 'heroes' in the Malayalam film industry having played many a winning-roles in blockbuster movies (That reminds me, can't wait for his superhero movie, "Minnal-Murali" to be released). But keeping in with the modern times and the amazing revival that this movie industry is going through, he has also turned experimental . To the extent of putting his skin in the game, by backing and producing this new movie called Kala - that released in theaters a couple of months back and is now on Prime Video .  Kala is a reference to the weeds, the unwanted plants in our gardens. It also means "to remove or weed out the unwanted" While I am still puzzling out the significance of the title with respect to the movie, but it possibly could be referring to the intriguing message about weeding out negativities like ego, toxic masculinity, vanity etc.  Let me get this out of the way first. Kala is an audio-visual spectacle. ...

 A John Gwynne book is a matter of celebration. Period.  Because with John, you know what you are getting into. Heroic Fantasy built on the back of some brilliant world building, amazing cinematic fight sequences, well-rounded characters you will love to follow unto the depths of hell, non-stop pacing and the pulse-pounding gut-wrenching action. Did I mention action ? Maybe I didn't. So let me state that clearly for you - John writes the best fantasy action sequences ever.  With the new book, The Shadow of the Gods , John has clearly outdone himself and I am so so so...much in awe of his writing. This one's the opening salvo in a trilogy named Bloodsworn - and right there, in the name itself, John has made it very clear that this one's going to be bloodier, darker and colder. Set in a Norse-mythology inspired fantasy world called Vigrid, men and women live in the shadow of Gods. Because eons ago, the Gods died in a brutal destructive war. It's the kind of war where s...

 Happy Labour Day everyone!  So Yesterday I happened to watch the bone-chilling suspense thriller Us - that finally released on Netflix India.  This is the talented Jordan Peele 's sophomore effort, and unlike his startlingly good "Get Out", this movie Us is lot more commercial, yes - but still retains his signature style of blood curdling horror set against the backdrop of an America that we don't know. It's unsettling, an allegory on the political situation in the United States yes, but what really works is that it's an unflinching, tightly wound horror story that starts off as a home-invasion story that soon unravels into an all-out horror-fest that is a fine example of studio filmmaking.  The movie starts out with an ominous call out to the miles of un-used underground mine-shafts and tunnels running under the cities and towns of America. Then we switch back to 1986, where Addie - a young girl is walking excitedly through the Santa Cruz Boardwalk town-fet...