Member Reviews

A standalone followup to Khakee: The Bihar Chapter, this new instalment is set in Kolkata, with the only similarity being a cop bringing down a crime nexus. In Khakee: The Bengal Chapter, the corruption is deep-rooted, wherein the politicians in power already have an alliance with gangsters. The Hindi series, created by Neeraj Pandej, boasts of a star-studded cast who fill out the erractic narrative in which every man and woman is out for themselves. The crime thriller is set in the early 2000s, with Parambrata Chatterjee playing an honorable cop who sets out to break up the lawlessness in the city. However, his death sets off a chain of events that leads to the downfall of the whole criminal alliance between the ruling party, the cops, and the top crime lord Bagha (Saswata Chatterjee). Afterwards, the balance of power continues to shift as everyone tries to make a play. But with a new man on the scene with IPS Arjun Maitra (Jeet), it starts off a bloody game of chess.

There have several documentaries and series dissecting the curious case of Natalia Grace, a young Ukrainian girl with dwarfism adopted by an American couple. Later, the couple, Kristen and Michael Barnett, allege that they’ve been misled and Natalia is actually an adult. The adoption drama, which later escalates into a legal trial, is detailed in the new JioHotstar series, Good American Family, led by Ellen Pompeo and Mark Duplass. The tone of the series feels similar to a horror film or a car crash, when you know that the inevitable is upon you soon. Kristen (Ellen Pompeo) and Michael Barnett (Mark Duplass) already have a strained marriage, raising three boys, including one with autism. They are seeking to adopt a young girl to complete their family. Kristen is shown as a selfless Midwestern mother, running a rec center for special needs and raising her autistic son, who is considered a prodigy. Meanwhile, Michael is shown as slightly more needy and unable to handle the larger pressures of life. Their marriage is one crack away from splitting when Natalia Grace (Imogen Faith Reid) enters their home.

Yet another remake of yet another often retold Disney classic is revisited as the Marc Webb-directed musical Snow White. Featuring a mix of new and old songs, a fresh cast, the same story by the Brothers Grimm rehashed by writer Erin Cressida Wilson, and some new but questionable creative ideas. Snow White is thus named by her perfect parents, the King and Queen, because she was born on a snowy night. They lead a happy life, spreading joy among their happy subjects. Young Snow White (Emilia Faucher) makes delicious apple pies for all the townspeople as they sing along merrily. But after her mother dies, her father remarries a beautiful woman who turns out to be singularly evil. This spells the end of the kingdom’s days of plenty, and long-term servitude for Snow White. Gal Gadot, with all the regalia, is the menacing Evil Queen, adorned in gems and drenched in complex vanity and greed. She repeatedly seeks validation from the magical mirror. But her evil reaches a new high when she is threatened by Snow White’s beauty and grace, condemning her stepdaughter to death. However, Snow White manages to escape and finds shelter in the unlikely company of seven dwarves.

Second time within months there is an Aurangzeb reference in a Hindi film. If the Mughal ruler was vilified in Laxman Utekar’s Chhaava then he is freshly referenced in Vikram Bhatt’s Tumko Meri Kasam. A character wickedly says he can do anything to sit in the seat of power, like Aurangzeb. But neither the man saying it is particularly odious nor is the outcome of the mention a disaster. One can argue about the overall ineffectiveness of Bhatt’s new work, but, in reality, Tumko Meri Kasam harks back to the good old time in Hindi cinema when films were made without agenda and motives, and scenes were allowed to breathe and not spliced together by furtive video-game editing. Well, one part of this is more true than the other. Scenes go on unendingly in Tumko Meri Kasam (endearing at first and grating soon after) as the narrative veers towards propaganda. Except, Bhatt’s film props up a man and not a nation. But given that it props at least something up, Anupam Kher features in a central role and does everything. He stands in court as the accused; he argues as his own lawyer and doubles up as a detective to find loopholes in the case even as police officers remain conspicuously absent like what we are watching is a figment of someone’s imagination.

Nimma, a Punjabi immigrant, faces racism, forcing him into Sarab’s gang. He rises quickly, but Rawat’s mole threatens their empire. Gang wars erupt, demanding Nimma’s fierce loyalty. Sarab’s arrest leaves Nimma vulnerable, surviving an attack. A coma, addiction, and betrayal follow. Sarab escapes, leading to a vengeful confrontation between him and Nimma, fuelled by chaos and loss. Parmish Verma, the popular musician, bares his heart out to portray the angst and the chaos within Nimma. However, with more effort to internalise the role, he could have created a more lasting impact. Aadar Malik, as Nimma’s on-screen bestie and musician, has an impressive screen presence, helping him emote with precision. Kanneda is an important show, capturing the immigrant experience through an insider’s lens, reminding us that Indian stories needn’t always be home-soil bound. The series serves as a cautionary tale, depicting a 90s Punjabi life in Canada gone wrong – a musician lost in drugs, crimes, and gangs. Despite everyone’s attempts to help and transform him, redemption eludes him.

Latika and Palash, siblings in Purulia, a small West Bengal town, attempt a bank robbery to prevent the loss of their ancestral home. Their plan quickly spirals out of control, attracting gangsters, police officers, and robbers. Hidden secrets from their past resurface, creating further chaos. They navigate a treacherous landscape of betrayals and altering alliances and face tricky situations. Tanya Maniktala is undoubtedly a promising young talent in the digital space, but one wonders if she’s consistently underselling herself by picking a series of mediocre projects (how good was she in A Suitable Boy and Kill?) She’s good in Loot Kaand, but can’t salvage it from its chaotic execution. Sahil Mehta, as the on-screen sibling, is effective, reflecting his evolution with every opportunity. Loot Kaand, as the title suggests, is the drama woven around a robbery. Director Ruchir Arun and the writers create a situation where two flawed protagonists – siblings Latika and Palash – resort to a crime out of financial necessity, only to realise they’re not alone. They find themselves entangled in a web of an arms scam, a kidnap and run for their lives amidst deceitful, dangerous men.loot-kaand

Ruffians in Kolkata kidnap a noted politician’s grandson. A sincere officer Saptarshi comes on board to resolve the issue, seemingly linked to a dreaded gangster Bagha. While the boy is released, tensions erupt between Bagha and his henchmen, eventually leading to twin murders. A new cop Arjun Maitra comes on board to clean the mess. Jeet holds his own as a police officer with a conscience. He plays a straightforward character (sans much evolution), ensuring restraint and keeping his emotions at check. Prosenjit Chatterjee is perfectly cast as a crooked politician. The performer uses all his experience well, bringing a method to the madness. Chitrangada Singh, despite a late resurgence, is wasted in a one-note role. Playing friends-turned-foes, both Ritwik Bhowmik and Aadil Zafar Khan display adequate spunk and verve in their portrayals. Parambrata Chatterjee and Saswata Chatterjee don’t get to do much in the ‘basic’ roles. Amidst the heavyweights, Aakansha Singh holds the fort, performing a crucial role with composure. Mimoh Chakraborty tries to make the most of a well-etched character. Shraddha Das looks like a dream in a brief appearance.

The second outing of a well-made franchise is a tough nut to crack. ‘Khakee: The Bengal Chapter’, a standalone sequel to Neeraj Pandey’s acclaimed series ‘Khakee: The Bihar Chapter’, faces the same acid test of great expectations. The anticipation is high, but can the master of thrillers up the game once again, or ends up delivering more of the same? Showrunner Pandey’s creative signature is writ all over as the series brims with immense possibilities. Only, these mostly remain unrealised. The subject at hand, a self-righteous cop pitted against the politician-gangster nexus, is nearly on the same lines as ‘The Bihar Chapter’, which was based on the memoir, ‘Bihar Diaries: The True Story of How Bihar’s Most Dangerous Criminal Was Caught’, by Amit Lodha. ‘The Bengal Chapter’ is a fictional story written by Pandey, Debatma Mandal and Samrat Chakroborty.

Perhaps the single greatest scene in any movie released last year was the one where Colman Domingo’s character — a convict named Divine G — pleads his case during a clemency hearing in the startling prison drama Sing Sing. He tells the examining committee about the theatre programme that he has spearheaded at the facility, and how uplifting the experience has been not just for him, but each and every prisoner who has participated in it. The scene purposefully recalls the many similar moments in The Shawshank Redemption, in which a hopeful Red, played by Morgan Freeman, desperately begs for mercy. It isn’t a flashy scene, but one that relies almost entirely on Domingo’s (mostly reactionary) performance — easily the best that he has delivered in his career. The same is true of the film itself. Directed by Greg Kwedar, Sing Sing debuted on Max after a negligible theatrical run abroad. Based on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts programme that is conducted at the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York, the movie features a handful of ex-convicts playing semi-fictionalised versions of themselves. This gives it a layer of authenticity that would’ve been difficult to achieve with professional actors. There’s a rawness to the drama that’s mostly missing from mainstream American cinema these days, although Sing Sing — the movie premiered at Sundance in 2023 — doesn’t exactly qualify as mainstream.

The Studio has two things going against it. Films and shows about the entertainment business often struggle to crawl out of their niche corners, unless, of course, they’re packaged like Argo. Second — and this might be a bigger problem — The Studio is on Apple. Nobody watches stuff on Apple. At most, they watch Ted Lasso and Severance and swiftly cancel their subscriptions. The best that The Studio can hope for is to organically find an audience like those flagship shows did, because it certainly deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as them. Clever, crafty, and caustic when it needs to be, it’s the best new comedy series of 2025 so far. The Studio features Seth Rogen in the lead role of Matt Remick, an executive who lives and breathes cinema, and harbours a long-held dream of becoming a studio head. In the first episode, he’s handed the proverbial keys to the castle on a conditional basis by the head honcho of Continental Studios, played by Bryan Cranston in a performance so boozy that it might require a breathalyser test. Tasked with fast-tracking a movie based on the beverage brand Kool-Aid — you read that right — and turning it into a billion-dollar hit akin to Barbie, Matt finds himself torn between his artistic aspirations and the primal impulses of his lizard brain.