Thursday, August 13, 2015

Dinesh Kamath’s column ‘New movies released in Navi Mumbai’ (Brothers, Gour Hari Dastaan – The Freedom File, Shaun The Sheep and Vacation) that was published in Newsband


New movies released in Navi Mumbai
By Dinesh Kamath
Brothers

Brothers is an Indian action-drama film, based on Mixed Martial arts (MMA) directed by Karan Malhotra and produced by Dharma Productions, Lionsgate Films and Endemol India. The film is an official remake of the 2011 Hollywood film Warrior. It stars Akshay Kumar, Sidharth Malhotra and Jacqueline Fernandez in leading roles, while Jackie Shroff and Shefali Shah play the supporting roles.
Characters:
Gary
A former alcoholic and street-fighter, he was once well-known in the underground street fighting nexus in Bombay. Due to certain events that transpired, he was sentenced to 10 long years in prison. He has now returned home to find that the ghosts of the past still haunt his present.
David
David is an ex-fighter turned school teacher. He is Gary's elder son, and has a bitter estranged relationship with his father and younger brother. Married to Jenny, he works hard to make ends meet and to provide the best for his family. Extremely troubled financial circumstances drive a desperate David to return to the world of street fighting. When the arrival of the biggest international event in mixed martial arts history is announced in India, David channelizes all his focus and energy in to training hard for this winner-takes-all event. He pummels all his opponents one by one to find his rightful place in the finals of this mega-event.
Monty
A loner and an alcoholic, Monty struggles hard with his complex existence. He shies away from crowds and he does not have any friends. He is active in the world of Underground Street fighting, but he lacks a winner's attitude. He strongly yearns for the acceptance, love of his family. This yearning for approval and respect leads him to find the needed focus and determination to make it big in the street fighting circuit. When the 'Right to Fight' is announced, he makes it his life's mission to win it to earn respect and to find his rightful place in the world.
Jenny
Jenny is the ray of hope in David's life. She anchors him and brings faith and belief back into his life. She works at a bakery, but today, she is essentially a homemaker. Due to the dire financial conditions of the family she has to continue to work. She is David's pillar of strength and a nurturing mother to Poopoo. Aware of the differences between David and his family, she stands by David and respects him, but she also empathizes with Gary and Monty.
Poopoo
She is David and Jenny's daughter. The apple of her parent's eyes, she completes them and is the beacon of happiness in their little family. She is diagnosed with a critical kidney condition. Devastated with these turn of events, David and Jenny fight every odd to make ends meet and to provide the best for Poopoo.
Maria
Gary's wife and the mother of David and Monty (we see her in the flashback portion of the film, when the boys are young). The Fernandes' household falls apart the day Maria learns about her husband Gary's extra marital affair and Monty, his son from another woman. Despite the circumstances, Maria holds the family together. She accepts Monty and raises him like her own son. For the boys - she is the face of gentleness and love - the only stabilizing factor in their lives.
Briganza
He was a famous ex-fighter. He has a larger than life personality. In a way, he is the pioneer of the underground fighting scene in India, and he is also the forerunner for popularizing mixed Martial arts in the country. He is also the man responsible for bringing 'R2F' to India - the biggest event in mixed martial arts history.
Paasha
He is one of the most notorious brokers of the underground fighting syndicate. His father was a fighter and died during a brutal street fight. Paasha runs a make shift gym/ training space for the underground fighters. He also helps David train for R2F.
Kalu
An old friend and associate of Gary's, he is like a guardian for Monty. In his past, he was a top notch broker like Paasha, but his days of glory are now behind him. He's trying to stay connected to that world through Monty. Being a good friend of Gary's, he's stood by him through thick and thin. He also helps Monty prepare and train for R2F.
The film tells the story of a broken family, set in the world of mixed martial arts and underground street fighting.
Gary Fernandes, a former alcoholic and street-fighter, returns home after serving a prison sentence of 10 long years to find that the wounds of the past still haunt his family. His two sons, David and Monty, who had parted ways as kids, are grown men now, but are still bitterly estranged. Gary himself carries the burden of his guilt. His elder son, David is an ex-fighter turned school teacher. He and his wife Jenny work hard to make ends meet and to provide the best they can for their ailing daughter Poopoo. Troubled financial circumstances drive a desperate David to return to the world of street fighting. While, Monty struggles with his lonely complex existence. An alcoholic, he is active in the world of street fighting, but lacks focus and determination. He strongly yearns for the acceptance, love and respect of his family. As the story unfolds, we see the journey of these three men, as they seek to find redemption and healing.
Meanwhile, the arrival of 'Right to Fight' is announced in India - the biggest international event in mixed martial arts history. Both brothers, at the crossroads of their lives, end up enlisting to fight in this 'Winner-takes-all' event. And it is here after an age of estrangement, unknown to the two siblings, they finally stand to face off with each other and against their personal demons, in the ultimate final battle.
It is said, that when a deep injury is done to us, we can never recover until we forgive. Will this final battle between the two brothers repair old wounds?
The film has Akshay Kumar as David Fernandes, Sidharth Malhotra as Monty Fernandes, Jacqueline Fernandez as Jenny Fernandes, Jackie Shroff as Gary Fernandes, Shefali Shah as Maria Fernandes, Ashutosh Rana as Umesh, Kareena Kapoor as Special appearance in song "Mera Naam Mary" and Kiran Kumar as Peter Bregenja a Former Mixed Martial Art Champion.
The soundtrack of the album is composed by Ajay-Atul while the lyrics are written by Amitabh Bhattacharya. The film has songs like "Brothers Anthem" sung by Vishal Dadlani, "Gaaye Jaa (Female Version)" by Shreya Ghoshal, "Sapna Jahan" by Sonu Nigam, Neeti Mohan, "Mera Naam Mary" by Chinmayi Sripada and "Gaaye Jaa (Male Version)" by           Mohammed Irfan

Gour Hari Dastaan – The Freedom File

The film is a social drama produced by Sachin Khanolkar and Bindiya Khanolkar and directed by Ananth Narayan Mahadevan. Music Director is Dr L Subramaniam.
The movie is about Gaur Hari Das who loved to talk about his adventures as a freedom fighter...a favourite used to be, how at the age of eighteen, he was asked to deliver letters as a messenger of the "vanar sena". He used to be on the run at nights, along railway tracks, using the headlights of approaching trains to find his way in the darkness.
But soon he realized that people and kids were sniggering behind his back, dubbing him a fibber. It hurt, but he never craved to prove himself right. Until one day his son sought admission in the Victoria Jubilee Technical Institute in King Circle, and Das was told that a freedom fighter's certificate would facilitate an entry into the institute.
Das had his first brush with bureaucracy when he was told that he could not obtain a certificate from Maharashtra, as he had fought from the state of Orissa which forced him to point out that he hadn't fought for a state, but for the country!
Disillusioned, Das backed out and refused to pursue the matter anymore. Even his family discouraged him. His wife and children told him not to fight the government for recognition...they said he'd get nothing. He could see that today's generation was fast losing faith. He shuddered to think of their future...It was then that a friend, Rajeev Singhal suggested that he meet Mohan Joshi, an advocate with conviction and a tough man who wouldn't fall for any smooth talk. If Das could convince Joshi of his intentions, then maybe Joshi could find a way out...
Before he met Joshi, there were even offers for a certificate and higher pensions if Das greased a few palms. But he hadn't braved the British, and spent time behind bars for 180 days to succumb to red tapism now.
The utter callousness of the officials was an eye opener to Das. And a new Das was born... He suddenly realized that this wasn't the country he had fought for. And this was the country he couldn't abandon either! He was determined not to let the sacrifices of his ilk be squandered by a set of people out to erode a value system they had upheld in the face of near impossible situations. He is surprised to discover that today's youth have either no idea of independence or scant respect for freedom. There was a time when bombs were manufactured by them to blow up bridges constructed by the British. Today's youth had militant leanings, destroying the very fabric that Gaur and innumerable others had fought to build.
And not unexpectedly, the fight against his own countrymen was getting tougher. The law at one stage even accused him of being a fraud trying to cheat the government for pension. When he asked them to stand by their theory, go ahead and arrest him, they just did not react. At least the British showed some self respect – not the Indians.
Today there is no powerful ruling party or even a strong opposition in the country to raise and solve the real problems of the citizens" Standing on a bridge that connected the past with the present, Das waged a 30 year battle to prove his credentials - a battle strewn with the bodies of a decaying system, a fumbling democracy and guilty consciences. And then the struggle bore fruit...he won!...And as he walked out of the government office, clutching the precious certificate that proclaimed him to be a freedom fighter, he turned back for the most scathing famous last words..."the fight with our own people was tougher...we were better off in the Raj era!!".
Thus Gour Hari Dastaan - The Freedom File based on Hari Gaur Das' memoirs, is a telling comment on a country's present that has failed to justify the past. It's the dramatic tale of two generations locked in a see-saw battle... one extolling values, the other groping in the dark. And it's the future that's at stake!
The film has Vinay Pathak as Gaur Hari Das, Konkona Sen Sharma as Laxmi Das, Tannishtha Chatterjee as Anita, Ranvir Shorey as Shankar, Divya Dutta as Neha Das, Rahul Vohra as Bombay Post Editor, Upendra Limaye as MLA Walve, Parikshat Sahni as Principal, Murli Sharma as Godbole, Asrani as Khadi Commission Boss, Siddharth Jadhav as Tought, Sagar Salunke as Young Passenger in Train 1, Neena Kulkarni as Ms. Apte, Vipin Sharma as Ahirkar, Bharat Dabholkar as Cammando 1, Vinay Apte as Jail Chief, Surendra Rajan as Gandhiji, Vikram Gokhale as Chief Minister, Sandeep Kulkarni as Home Minister, Suhas Palshikar as 1st Gandhiwadi, Kishore Pradhan as Retired Postman, Viju Khote as Grossary Man, Jackie Shroff, Ganesh Yadav, Achint Kaur and Ananth Narayan Mahadevan.

Shaun The Sheep

Shaun the Sheep Movie is a 2015 British stop-motion animated comedy film produced by Aardman Animations, based on the Shaun the Sheep television series, starring a character introduced in the 1995 Aardman Wallace and Gromit short "A Close Shave". The film is written and directed by Richard Starzak and Mark Burton. Financed and distributed by StudioCanal,
The film stars John Sparkes, Justin Fletcher, Kate Harbour, Omid Djalili, Richard Webber
The film has an interesting story. When Shaun decides to take the day off and have some fun, he gets a little more action than he bargained for. A mix up with the Farmer, a caravan and a very steep hill lead them all to the Big City and it's up to Shaun and the flock to return everyone safely to the green grass of home.

Vacation

Vacation is a 2015 American comedy film directed and written by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein (in their directorial debuts). It stars Ed Helms, Christina Applegate, Leslie Mann, and Chris Hemsworth. It is the fifth theatrical installment of the National Lampoon's Vacation series, being loosely inspired by the original 1983 National Lampoon's Vacation film.

The film has an interesting story. Following in his father’s footsteps and hoping for some much-needed family bonding, a grown-up Rusty Griswold (Ed Helms) surprises his wife, Debbie (Christina Applegate), and their two sons with a cross-country trip back to America?s “favorite family fun park,” Walley World. The film is a sort of sequel to “National Lampoon’s Vacation,” the 1983 comedy in which Chevy Chase played Clark Griswold, a father determined to drag his family across the country for a vacation at an amusement park called Walley World. One of those children, Rusty, has grown up and now embarks on the same ill-advised odyssey with his wife and two sons.

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