Chrisophe Barratier’s directorial debut The Chorus became an acclaimed masterstroke worldwide. About an inspirational music teacher who comes to teach at a boarding school for rebellious children, Les Choristes, was inspired by a little known French film La Cage aux Rossignols (The Cage of Nightingales). A deeply moving psychological film on childhood, The film is about the early feelings of injustice and abandon; the inbuilt sense of fright together with those rebellious impulses that lurk…

Vanaja (2006) is a quiet little film that has conquered its own domain, won its own set of hearts with its sheer brilliance in thematic and visual execution and perhaps gained an entry to the list of best films of that year. Mamatha Bhukya’s stellar performance elevates the film to extraordinary levels and it is evident that she can teach any so-called-veteran mainstream actresses a thing or two. The film carefully avoids all clichés and shows us that one need not treat independent films condescendingly.

Nada+ is “Cuba’s answer to Amelie”, commented Miami Herald, and that’s the best way to sum up the movie from a review point of view. So what’s common between Amelie and Nada+ – they are both stories about girls on a mission to straighten up people’s lives when their own lives are a bit chaotic. But to think of Nada+ as a replica of Amelie would be a mistake. Every film has its own soul, even though it may appear similar to another on the surface, and Nada+ has its own…

The official entries for the Academy Award have been made and as many as 67 countries are vying for the coveted award this year and the Italian entry is already making waves and being termed as one of the best crime dramas from the country. With the Academy’s policy towards violent and brutal films drastically changing, Gomorra may well cruise through to the last five and one can be sure that the weak Indian entry Taare Zameen Par has one less slot to compete for.

It’s monsoon season in Delhi and the extended Verma family reunites from around the world to celebrate the arranged marriage of one of their daughters – This vibrant wedding turned out to be one that the world of cinema eagerly watched and joyously celebrated. After the universal success of Salaam Bombay and Kamasutra: A Tale of Love, Mira Nair came up with the glamorous Monsoon Wedding and struck a cord with Indian and Western audiences alike. The film shows four days and nights leading to an upper class Punjabi Wedding…

“The reason women don’t play football is because eleven of them would never wear the same outfit in public”, goes a famous quote about football and women. Jafar Panahi’s football based flick Offside is about six women who surely don’t have the luxury of that… it shows an Islam dominated country where women need to conceal their femininity in entirety, to merely catch a glimpse of a sport they so fervently admire – let alone indulge in such finicky femininities. Here, six Tehrani women sloppily slip into the loose, unfitting clothes of men…

There are some films that perhaps may not be of much value in terms of contribution to the evolution of cinema, but they are simply great because they make the writing on the wall more prominent than ever before. A Wednesday is one such thought provoking film that is bound to make the common man think – to purge ourselves of the habits of making compromises, surrendering to our fates and giving up on ourselves as the initiators or drivers of a change badly needed.

Arguably Truffaut’s most audacious and experimental work, it is a loving homage to and a fascinating pastiche of American genre movies, especially but not limited to, film noirs, gangster films and B-movies. The story of a washed out protagonist trying to escape his past, comical shady thugs, and love on the run might be straightforward; but the array memorable dialogues, brilliant comical interludes, moments of heart-touching delight and humanism, unabashed self parody, and marvelous turns by the leads, truly makes this a great cinematic achievement…

The land of China is ruled by six different dynasties that are embroiled in never ending conflicts with each other. Out of these the Qin dynasty, ruled by Emperor Qin Shi Huang, is the most powerful. However, constant attempts are made to assassinate Qin, who is spending sleepless nights fretting over his life. Among all the assassins, Qin is particularly mortified of Broken Sword, Flying Snow and Long Sky (Cheesy names, I know!), who are supposedly the best warriors (and I really mean best – they are oblivious to concept of gravity or physical constraints)…

An oddly lovable film about a subject as somber as transexuality, Alain Berliner’s Ma Vie En Rose (My Life in Pink) is an engrossing fairy tale like movie about Ludovic , (Georges DuFresne ) a seven year old delectable boy, who wishes to swap from the blue for boy, to the pink for princess way of life. A gleaming casket of first-rate performances, picture-perfect cinematography and realistic circumstances, My Life in Pink is a cinematic must watch and a heartfelt directorial debut by Berliner.