I updated my list of Bollywood movies on Netflix to reflect two changes. Bol Bachchan is gone, but director Deepa Mehta’s 2005 Oscar nominee for Best Foreign Language Film, Water, is now available for streaming.
On Friday, January 2, 2015, PK extends its impressive run for a third week at the following Chicago area theaters:
I guess I was a little conservative regarding PK‘s North American box office prospects after its first weekend. During the weekend of December 26-28, 2014, PK added another $1,642,262 from 289 theaters ($5,683 average), bringing its total to $7,785,486. That’s easily the best performance by a Hindi film in United States and Canada in 2014.
In fact, as of Wednesday, December 31, PK‘s total earnings stand at $8.3 million (according to SIMoviesUSA). That already puts it ahead of Dhoom 3‘s North American total of $8,090,250. Considering that PK won’t face competition from any new Hindi films until Tevar opens on January 9, $10 million seems within reach.
I updated my list of Bollywood movies on Netflix to reflect one change. After one week, Mardaani has been pulled from the streaming service. I’ll update my list when the film is reinstated. Also, tonight is the last night to stream Bol Bachchan, which was a lot funnier than I expected it to be.
1 Star (out of 4)
Buy the DVD at Amazon
Buy the soundtrack at Amazon
When film composer Himesh Reshammiya wrote the screenplay for The Xpose (also written as The Xposé, but pronounced without the accent), did he realize the character he created for himself to play was such a jerk?
If not, it points to a serious difference in the way Reshammiya interprets characters versus the way the audience does. This is important, given the moral assumptions present in The Xpose. If Reshammiya didn’t realize he was writing a loathsome protagonist, he probably also didn’t realize how condescending and paternalistic The Xpose is.
The framework for Reshammiya’s lecture on morality is a Bollywood murder mystery set in 1968 (“Inspired by real incidents,” according to onscreen text at the start of the film). The movie opens with an actress named Zara (Sonali Raut) falling to her death at an award show after-party. Her final swan dive is replayed a number of times throughout the narrative, complete with “splat” sound effects.
For twenty minutes, Irrfan Khan — whose character is totally unnecessary — introduces the audience to the main suspects in Zara’s death: sleazy film composer KD (rapper Yo Yo Honey Singh); his wife, Shabnam; rival actress Chandni (Zoya Afroz); Chandni’s boyfriend, actor Virman; Chandni’s director, Bobby Chadda; Zara’s director, Subba Prasad (Anant Mahadevan, who also directed The Xpose); and ex-cop-turned-superstar-actor, Ravi (Reshammiya).
Ravi is smug and annoying. His diva behavior on a movie set includes refusing makeup — “God took care of that” — and making up his own lines: “Whatever I say becomes the script.” Instead of shaking hands with his co-star, Virman, Ravi pats him on the cheek like a child.
Ravi’s condescension extends into his romantic life as well. He falls in love with Chandni while rescuing her from a fire (the point of the rescue attempt actually being to prove his manly superiority to Virman). Ravi shows his interest by chastising Chandni for smoking cigarettes and kissing her on the forehead. If he wants to be her boyfriend, why does he act like he’s her dad?
He’s downright nasty to Zara, calling her a whore and sneering at her clothes. After she dies, Ravi tells Chandni that Zara had it coming.
Normally, it’s unfair to equate an actor’s offscreen self with the part he or she is playing. But Himesh Reshammiya wrote the part of Ravi for himself, and his father, Vipin, produced The Xpose. Since Ravi is supposed to be cool — and not the douchebag he actually is — one can’t help but wonder if the character is a window into Reshammiya’s own ego and views on gender.
Reshammiya’s blindness regarding his protagonist results in an unintentionally hilarious climax in which Ravi takes control of a courtroom, against every rule of law. The judge pardons one suspect and convicts another on the spot, almost entirely on Ravi’s word. It’s so stupid that it’s laugh-out-loud funny.
Put aside the fact that the courtroom sequence isn’t remotely realistic. No one wants to turn over complete moral and legal authority to a man who — in response to Bobby Chadda’s statement that he doesn’t fear bloodshed — issues this threat: “The blood in your body won’t match what I pee once in a day.”
The quality of the acting in The Xpose is on par with the quality of the writing. Reshammiya is bland. The two female leads are dull, only showing sparks when asked to catfight in strapless dresses that threaten to fall off at any moment (they don’t).
Yo Yo Honey Singh is such a terrible actor that it almost seems deliberate. Maybe he’s doing some kind of anti-acting performance art, providing commentary on the ridiculousness of the script. More likely, he’s just a lousy actor.
Despite having two professional musicians in the crew, the music in The Xpose is horrible. Another instance of unintentional comedy is a romantic number between a man and a woman — and yet the visuals consist almost exclusively of shots of Reshammiya by himself. That scene says it all.
Links
With 2014 winding down, let’s look ahead to the Hindi movies likely to open in American and Canadian theaters in 2015. Keep in mind that these are educated guesses on my part. There’s always a chance some random family film starring Sharman Joshi will open in 75 theaters, despite the fact that he’s not a box office draw here. Also, I consider Bollywood release dates tentative until the film is actually in the theater. Expect many of these dates to change.
January
The new year of Bollywood movies starts with Tevar on January 9. It’s Arjun Kapoor’s turn to rescue Sonakshi Sinha from some guy she doesn’t want to marry. Even with Manoj Bajpayee as the villain, I can’t get excited for this one.
Bipasha Basu’s horror movies rarely open in North America, but I would LOVE to see Alone on January 16.
The following weekend sees the release of the Akshay Kumar spy thriller Baby…
…and Dolly Ki Doli, starring Sonam Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao.
Long shot releases on January 30 include Ayushmann Khurrana’s Hawaaizaada and Ali Fazal’s Khamoshiyan.
February
February 6 sees the possible release of two films: Amitabh Bachchan’s Shamitabh and John Abraham’s Rocky Handsome. I am filled with dread at the thought of John Abraham starring in a remake of The Man From Nowhere, a Korean movie I love. Ranbir Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, and Jacqueline Fernandez come to the rescue on February 13 with Roy.
One of my most anticipated movies of the year is the action-packed February 20 release Badlapur, starring Varun Dhawan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, and my girl Huma Qureshi.
Though no date has been set, the sequel to 2012’s surprise hit OMG: Oh My God is planned for release in February.
March
March is front-loaded, with three potential candidates planned for March 6, and nothing else until April (except possibly Randeep Hooda’s Main Aur Charles on March 13). Movies scheduled to open on March 6 include Y-Films’ Bank-Chor; Anushka Sharma’s NH10; and Emraan Hashmi’s Tigers.
April
After two slow months, a flurry of notable titles come out in April. The month kicks off on the 3rd with two action flicks: Gabbar, starring Akshay Kumar and Shruti Haasan, and Phantom, starring Saif Ali Khan and Katrina Kaif.
Another film I’m really excited about releases April 10: Detective Byomkesh Bakshy, starring Sushant Singh Rajput.
The following week sees the release of Excel Entertainment’s Bangistan, along with Emraan Hashmi’s thriller Mr. X. April closes out with Yash Raj Films’ Dum Laga Ke Haisha on the 23rd and Piku — starring Amitabh Bachchan and Deepika Padukone — on the 30th.
May
From May onward, details on release dates are sparse. For example, the month kicks off with a film Bollywood Hungama has tentatively titled “Kajol-Ram Madhwani’s Next“. The surer bets are director Anurag Kashyap’s long-awaited Bombay Velvet on the 15th and the comedy sequel Welcome Back on the 29th.
June
I’m really looking forward to June 5, which sees the release of Dil Dhadakne Do, director Zoya Akhtar’s star-studded film about “a dysfunctional Punjabi family on a cruise” (according to Wikipedia). Vidya Balan and Emraan Hashmi star in the romance Hamari Adhuri Kahaani, releasing on the 12th. Much to my delight, the dance flick ABCD 2 hits theaters on June 26.
July
Amitabh Bachchan’s All Is Well opens on July 3, in time for Independence Day in the U.S. On the 16th, Salman Khan’s Bajrangi Bhaijaan — co-starring Kareena Kapoor Khan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui — opens in time for the end of Ramadan. Another remake already making me cringe is Brothers, Akshay Kumar’s rendition of the riveting 2011 film Warrior. Brothers opens on July 31.
August
Shahrukh Khan claims the Indian Independence Day audience with Fan, opening on August 14. Then on the 28th, Ranbir Kapoor plays a teenage detective (Seriously? He’s 32!) in Jagga Jasoos.
October
There’s no news yet about September, but October 2nd sees the release of the unnecessary sequel Singh Is Bling. The fact that Prabhu Deva is directing it just makes it worse.
November
Salman Khan and Sonam Kapoor star in the November 1 release Prem Ratan Dhan Payo. No word yet on which superstar will claim the Diwali holiday release window during the middle of the month.
December
A big battle is scheduled for Christmas day between two movies starring Deepika Padukone. Bajirao Mastani features Deepika alongside Ranveer Singh and Priyanka Chopra in a historical romance directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Tamasha features Deepika opposite Ranbir Kapoor in a romance directed by Imtiaz Ali, with a score by A.R. Rahman. There’s no way these two films will actually face off, so let’s see who blinks first and changes dates.
Sources: Wikipedia’s list of Bollywood films of 2015 and Bollywood Hungama’s regularly updated list of Hindi movie release dates
I updated my list of Bollywood movies on Netflix to reflect two changes to the catalog. The enjoyable 2012 comedy Bol Bachchan will expire on January 1, 2015. More importantly, the 2014 thriller Mardaani is now available for streaming. Watch it for Rani Mukerji’s terrific performance as a tough cop.
For everything else new on Netflix, check Instant Watcher.
I updated my list of Bollywood movies on Netflix to note that Heroine is back on the streaming service after a three-week hiatus.
This weekend’s new theater schedule starts on Thursday, December 25, 2014, to take advantage of the Christmas holiday. The following local theaters hold over PK for a second week (note that, starting Thursday, the only showings of PK at the Marcus Addison and Crestwood 18 are scheduled after 9 p.m.):
Other Indian movies showing in the Chicago area on Christmas include Mukunda (Telugu w/English subtitles) and Chinnadana Nee Kosam (Telugu w/English subtitles) at the Cinemark at Seven Bridges in Woodridge and MovieMax, which also carries Cousins (Malayalam) and the Tamil films Kayal, Kappal, Meaghamann, Pisasu, and Lingaa.
Update: Box Office Mojo lists PK‘s North American earnings as $3,565,258 from 272 theaters ($13,108 average). The movie finished in ninth place overall in the weekend rankings, just behind Top Five and ahead of Penguins of Madagascar.
Aamir Khan’s PK just posted the biggest opening weekend for a Hindi film in North America in 2014. During the weekend of December 19-21, 2014, it earned $3,508,980 from 296 theaters ($11,855 average). That total already puts it in third place for the year behind The Lunchbox and Happy New Year. PK will claim the top spot in a matter of days.
What remains to be seen is how close PK can come to matching the remarkable success of last year’s Dhoom 3, which earned $8,090,250 during its seven-week run in the United States and Canada. A more attainable goal is the $6,533,849 earned by 2009’s 3 Idiots, the previous collaboration between Khan and director Rajkumar Hirani.
Action Jackson closed out its three-week run by adding $179 from three theaters ($60 average), bringing its North American total to $256,872.
Sources: Box Office Mojo and Rentrak, via Bollywood Hungama