Opening July 25: Kick

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Salman Khan’s latest action film, Kick, opens in the Chicago area on July 25, 2014. A cast that includes accomplished actors like Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Randeep Hooda and a screenplay by novelist Chetan Bhagat lend Kick an air of sophistication.

Kick opens on Friday in six local theaters: AMC River East 21 in Chicago, Regal Gardens Stadium 1-6 in Skokie, AMC Showplace Niles 12 in Niles, AMC South Barrington 30 in South Barrington, Regal Cantera Stadium 17 in Warrenville, and AMC Loews Woodridge 18 in Woodridge. It has a listed runtime of 2 hrs. 30 min.

The cute romcom Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania gets a third week at the South Barrington 30, Cantera 17, and MovieMax Cinemas in Niles.

Other Indian movies showing in the Chicago area this weekend include Drushyam (Telugu w/no subtitles) at the Cinemark at Seven Bridges in Woodridge and MovieMax, which is also carrying Thirumanam Ennum Nikkah (Telugu), Alludu Sreenu (Telugu), Sathuranga Vettai (Tamil), Velaiyilla Pattathari (Tamil), and Bangalore Days (Malayalam).

New Trailers: July 23, 2014

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The full trailer for Priyanka Chopra’s Mary Kom released today. This movie looks badass. I can’t wait to see it on September 5.

Today also marked the release of the teaser trailer for Bang Bang, which hits theaters on October 2. It also looks like a lot of fun, and I want Hrithik Roshan’s underwater rocket boots.

New Trailer: July 21, 2014

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The trailer for Khoobsurat released today. This fish-out-of-water tale starring Sonam Kapoor looks like it could be cute, and Disney’s name above the title should at least ensure high production values. Khoobsurat hits theaters on September 19.

Bollywood Box Office: July 18-20

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Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania continued to captivate North American audiences over the weekend of July 18-20, 2014. In its second weekend of release, HSKD earned $201,601 from 89 theaters: a per-screen average of $2,265. Its total earnings in the U.S. and Canada stand at $727,229.

What makes this performance so impressive is that, in its second weekend, HSKD earned 53% of what it earned in its first weekend in theaters ($376,962). Hindi movies in North America virtually always lose more than 50% of their business from Week 1 to Week 2. HSKD‘s retention rate is third highest for the year, after The Lunchbox and Queen: two movies that actually increased their grosses and theater counts from Week 1 to Week 2. The fourth highest retention rate in 2014 is Hasee Toh Phasee, which held onto 45% of its first-weekend earnings in Week 2.

It will be interesting to see how HSKD fares in its third weekend when up against Salman Khan’s Kick. Based on this retention rate, I’m optimistic.

Now in its fourth week, Ek Villain earned $4,986 from nine theaters, bringing its total earnings to $766,632.

The Lunchbox added another $3,724 from five theaters to bring its total to $4,016,849.

Here’s a mystery worthy of Bobby herself. Bobby Jasoos earned $1,260 from five theaters to bring its total earnings to $212,615. Bollywood Hungama lists U.S. and Canadian earnings separately, and the share of the weekend’s profits that came from Canada was $8 from one theater.

That means that over the course of the whole weekend of July 18-20, 2014, just one Canadian went to see Bobby Jasoos in the theater. Who is this lone Canuck? I’m dying to know!

Source: Rentrak, via Bollywood Hungama

Pretentious Movie Reviews

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Because of my love for the movie Gunda, several people directed me to “Pretentious Movie Reviews” on YouTube. Kanan Gill and Biswa Kalyan review terrible Hindi movies, and the best of the best — or worst of the worst, depending on your point of view — is naturally Gunda. One need not have seen Gunda to find this video review totally hilarious.

Though Gill and Kalyan switch between English and Hindi, one needn’t understand Hindi to appreciate the videos and get most of the jokes. For example, check out their riffing on a ridiculous conversation in Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon.

Their other movie reviews are just as funny as these two. Check out the Movie Reviews playlist at Kanan Gill’s YouTube page, and laugh yourself silly.

New Trailers: July 18, 2014

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Emraan Hashmi plays a con man in Raja Natwarlal, releasing August 29, 2014. The trailer didn’t provoke strong feelings for me either way, but I have enough faith in Hashmi to give this one a chance.

Two brief movie teasers were released today as well. First up is September 5’s Mary Kom.

The first look at Khoobsurat is also out. The romantic comedy releases on September 19.

In Theaters: July 18, 2014

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No new Hindi movies are opening in the Chicago area on July 18, 2014, thanks to the force field that surrounds every new Salman Khan movie by one week on either side of its release. None of the Hindi films opening in India this Friday are high-profile enough to warrant a significant international release, so we are left with older Bollywood fare for the moment.

As of Friday, Chicagoans will have three Hindi films to choose from. Last weekend’s new release — Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania — gets a second week at the AMC River East 21 in Chicago, MovieMax Cinemas in Niles, AMC South Barrington 30 in South Barrington, and Regal Cantera Stadium 17 in Warrenville. MovieMax gives a third week to Bobby Jasoos, while the South Barrington 30 holds over Ek Villain for a fourth week.

Other Indian movies showing in Chicago this weekend include Drushyam (Telugu w/no subtitles) at the Cinemark at Seven Bridges in Woodridge and MovieMax, which is also carrying Velaiyilla Pattathari (Tamil), Sathuranga Vettai (Tamil), Angry Babies in Love (Malayalam), and Bangalore Days (Malayalam).

New Trailer: July 16, 2014

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Dear T-Series:

Please, please, please release Creature 3D in the U.S. on September 12.

Sincerely,
Kathy Gibson

Streaming Video News: July 16, 2014

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Netflix added two more Hindi movies to its streaming catalog, including last year’s terrific heist movie, Special 26. The film is full of great performances, mostly notably by Anupam Kher, Jimmy Shergill, and Manoj Bajpayee.

If you can’t wait until the release of P.K. on December 19 to get your Aamir Khan fix, 1994’s Andaz Apna Apna is now available on Netflix.

To see what else is new on Netflix, check out Instant Watcher.

Bollywood Box Office: July 11-13

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Alia Bhatt appears to be box office gold in North America. Over the weekend of July 11-13, 2014, her new film — Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania — posted the seventh highest opening weekend returns of the year so far in the U.S. and Canada.

From 100 theaters, Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania earned $376,962 ($3,770 average). In February, Bhatt’s Highway earned $325,522 from 93 theaters ($3,500 average) in its first weekend. Her next film — April’s 2 States — still has the best opening weekend for any Hindi film in North America this year: $1,026,353 from 131 theaters ($7,835 average).

Whether it’s Bhatt’s appeal specifically or her knack for choosing the right projects, filmmakers should pay attention to her. There aren’t many actors who can guarantee first-weekend earnings in excess of $300,000 in the U.S. and Canada, but Bhatt has done it three times this year.

Bobby Jasoos fared poorly in its second week in theaters, with business dropping off almost 85% from last weekend. The Vidya Balan detective flick earned $22,827 from 41 theaters ($557 average), bringing its total earnings to $202,746.

Ek Villain, on the other hand, held up well in its third week. From 29 theaters, it earned $22,730 ($784 average), bringing its total to $747,751.

The Lunchbox soldiered on into its twentieth week, adding $3,015 from seven theaters. Its total stands at $4,010,655.

 Source: Rentrak, via Bollywood Hungama