Vishal Menon and Sudhir Srinivasan bring you the summer-time movie releases to watch out for in Hollywood, Bollywood and Kollywood.
Tomorrowland
Genre : Sci-fi adventure; Director : Brad Bird.
The director of acclaimed films such as Ratatouille and The Incredibles , Brad Bird has come up with an ambitious story of a teenager (Britt Robertson) and a former inventor (George Clooney) uniting to discover the secrets of a fantasy land. The visuals look incredible. You have space ships, guns that seem straight out of Unreal Tournament, and giant machines beating the metal out of each other. Tomorrowland has all the ingredients for a summer blockbuster — a big budget, enterprising ideas, and much ambition.
Mad Max: Fury Road
Genre : Post-apocalyptic action; Director : George Miller. Everything about Mad Max: Fury Road is summarised by one scene of its trailer. There’s mayhem on an open field. Trucks and cars in a post-apocalyptic world are running amok. Its drivers are equipped with guns and bazookas. And a bald man, with glee on his face, says, “Oh, what a lovely day!” Mad Max: Fury Road , the fourth instalment in George Miller’s Mad Max series, is that kind of a film. It’s violent, it’s brutal, and it’s beautiful.
Jurassic World
Genre : Sci-fi adventure; Director : Colin Trevorrow. Dinosaurs. Enough said. The story supposedly unfolds 22 years after the events of Jurassic Park . the cast includes Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Vincent D'Onofrio, Jake Johnson , Nick Robinson among others.
Terminator: Genisys
Genre : Sci-fi action; Director : Alan Taylor. Yes, yes, the Terminator franchise is back with a film, but this time, guess who else is back after 12 years? The original Terminator — Arnold Schwarzenegger. The franchise needs renewed life, especially after the failure of its last film, Terminator Salvation . It could well come in the form of Arnie.
Inside Out
Genre : Animated comedy; Director : Pete Doctor, Ronaldo Del Carmen. “Do you guys ever look at someone and wonder what’s going on in their head?” Pete Doctor, the writer of films such as Monsters, Inc. , WALL-E , and Up , develops this question into a film in which the emotions of the characters are shown as characters themselves. Intrigued? We sure are.
Piku
Genre : Road movie; Director : Shoojit Sircar. Here’s the cast: Amitabh Bachchan (speaking in a Bengali accent), Deepika Padukone and Irrfan Khan. We can’t wait to see what this stellar cast will conjure up when restricted to a car trip to Kolkata.
Bombay Velvet
Genre : Action; Director : Anurag Kashyap. Arguably the most exciting Hindi film of the year, noirish Bombay Velvet merges two of the most exciting talents of today — Ranbir Kapoor and Anurag Kashyap. Kashyap, the father of gangsta flicks, sets this film in the 40s Bombay. We even have Karan Johar playing the villain. Let the Tommy Guns unleash mayhem.
Tanu Weds Manu Returns
Genre : Comedy; Director : Anand L. Rai. Anand L. Rai is a hot young talent, having delivered with both Tanu Weds Manu and Raanjhanaa . Despite its odd title (are they getting married again?), the film that features Kangna in two roles — this time, in an all-new Haryanvi character — will no doubt be a rollicking comedy.
Welcome Back
Genre : Comedy; Director : Anees Bazmee. Nana Patekar and team Welcome are back after eight years with Welcome Back . Anees Bazmee, like it or not, has a fan following and how can it not be when he has Nana Patekar playing a funny psycho? We also have John Abraham and Shruti Haasan to spice things up.
Dil Dhadakne Do
Genre : Drama Comedy; Director : Zoya Akhtar. Your travel plans can wait. If you thought Spain looked heavenly in Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara , wait till you catch a glimpse of the Mediterranean in Dil Dhadakne Do . Set on a cruise, the film lets you in on the problems of high-flying South Mumbaikars. Just hope this film is more than just a pretty postcard.
Vaalu
Genre : Action comedy; Director : Vijay Chandar. Pinch yourself, for Vaalu may finally see the light of day this May, marking Simbu’s first release since Poda Podi in 2012! Mind you, this is a movie whose shooting began as early as in 2012. While it remains to be seen if the film will remain relevant after such a long wait, it marks the return of the Thaman-Simbu combination, which did wonders for both in Osthe . So, there’s cause for excitement.
Rajini Murugan
Genre : Romantic comedy; Director : Ponram. Ponram joins hands with Sivakarthikeyan again after their hit collaboration in Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam . If their previous film was any indication, it’s safe to assume that this again will be an intermingling of romance, action and comedy. The crosshairs will be focussed not on critical acclaim, but on the cash registers. As long as it entertains, who’ll complain?
Masss
Genre : Horror comedy; Director : Venkat Prabhu. Both Venkat Prabhu and Suriya have a point to prove with this film after Biriyani and Anjaan , respectively. From its trailer, Masss looks like a genre-bending flick that melds action, comedy and horror. You can safely conclude though that there will be plenty of laughs, with the cast including Premji ‘ Enna Koduma Sir Ithu ’ Amaren.
Kaaka Muttai
Genre : Drama; Director : M. Manikandan. This double National-Award winning children’s film is about two slum boys and their dream to taste pizza. With such a heart-warming plot, it won’t be any surprise to see family audiences flocking to theatres, just as they did to Goli Soda last year.
Purampokku Engira Podhuvudamai
Genre : Action drama; Director : S.P. Jananathan. The director of critically acclaimed films such as Iyarkai and Peranmai returns with Purampokku Engira Podhuvudamai , a film set predominantly in a prison. With the cast boasting of big names such as Arya and Vijay Sethupathi, the film looks set to attract both the masses and the classes.