First Day First Show | Reviews of ‘Chhaava’ and ‘Captain America 4’-OxBig News Network

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Bollywood

‘Deewaar’ at 50: The stories behind the wall

Saif Ali Khan opens up about attack, reveals son Taimur’s response

Salman Khan-Aamir Khan’s ‘Andaz Apna Apna’ to re-release in theatres

Ranveer Singh and Sara Ali Khan reunite for 2025’s ‘biggest love story’ in new Rohit Shetty teaser

Vicky Kaushal reaches Prayagraj for holy dip at Maha Kumbh, says feeling fortunate

Hollywood

‘Anora’ wins top Hollywood producer and director prizes

‘Captain America: Brave New World’ boycotted by pro-Palestine protestors at premiere

‘Interstellar’: Christopher Nolan’s film sets record for biggest opening weekend for a Hollywood film re-release in India

John Lithgow in final talks to play Dumbledore in HBO’s ‘Harry Potter’ series

Prime Video announces season 3 of ‘The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power’

Regional Cinema

Chiranjeevi faces backlash over sexist remark at ‘Brahma Anandam’ event

Rajinikanth’s team condemns derogatory remarks against Vijay

Madhavan reunites with team ‘Rocketry’ for biopic on GD Naidu

Nayanthara joins the sets of Mammootty-Mohanlal film ‘MMMN’

‘Suzhal – The Vortex’ Season 2 locks premiere date on Prime Video

World Cinema

Takashi Yamazaki confirms working on ‘Godzilla Minus One’ sequel’s screenplay and storyboards

Netflix unveils epic samurai battle royale series ‘Last Samurai Standing’ in 2025 Japan slate

Trailers

Pradeep Ranganathan is a fiery youngster in the trailer for ‘Dragon’

Radhika Apte stars in dark newlywed comedy in the trailer for ‘Sister Midnight’

 Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd bring chaos to suburban bromance in the trailer for A24’s ‘Friendship’

Rosamund Pike returns as Moiraine in the trailer for ‘The Wheel of Time’ Season 3

Dhanush calls his upcoming directorial a ‘usual’ love story in the trailer for ‘Nilavuku En Mel Ennadi Kobam’

‘Jiiva is stuck in a battle between angels and a demon in the trailer for ‘Aghathiyaa

Essential reading

1) Wim Wenders: Turning routine into a piece of art

>> Wim Wenders sits down for an interview in Trivandrum amid his ‘King of the Road’ India tour and retrospective, organised by the Film Heritage Foundation with the Goethe-Institut

2) Natesh Hegde on Berlin-bound ‘Vagachipani’ (Tiger’s Pond) and teaming with Anurag Kashyap

>> Director Natesh Hegde talks about the first Kannada film ever to have its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival

3) The time-bending triumph of ‘Interstellar’ in India

>> In a country where Christopher Nolan’s films are less watched than worshipped, the beloved sci-fi spectacle’s prodigal return to theatres felt like a second coming

4) Sharan Venugopal: The response to ‘Narayaneente Moonaanmakkal’ is validation after the occasional self-doubt

>> The director talks about how the space came first followed by the story and characters who organically grew into it in his debut feature film

5) Oscars 2025: How ‘Anora’ is leading the Best Picture race by simply outlasting the wreckage

>> In the trainwreck of this awards season, Sean Baker’s Cannes-winner has now emerged as the unexpected favorite to win the top prize at the Oscars 2025

6) Fifty years of ‘Deewaar’: No wall so high 

>> The iconic film’s social conflict hasn’t faded, and its emotional tapestry hasn’t worn out

7) Shyam Benegal: The maestro of Indian parallel cinema

>> Padma Bhushan winner Anant Nag, Suchitra FIlm Society founder, Narahari Rao and Shridhar Iyengar remember visionary filmmaker Shyam Benegal and his legacy

What to watch

1) Harrison Ford thunders to the rescue in ‘Captain America: Brave New World’

Read the full review here

2) Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna jostle for attention in ‘Chhaava,’ an uneven sketch of a Maratha legend

Read the full review here

3) Yami Gautam, Pratik Gandhi are ineffective in the screwball comedy of ‘Dhoom Dhaam’

Read the full review here

4) ‘Laila’ features a troublesome, crass narrative

Read the full review here

5) Himesh Reshammiya fights, sings and romances his way through the over-the-top masala film, ‘Badass Ravi Kumar’

Read the full review here

6) Jai’s ‘Baby and Baby’ is high on errors, low on comedy

Read the full review here

7) Forced humour and shoddy writing makes ‘Painkili’ fall flat

Read the full review here

8) ‘Brahma Anandam’ is a half-baked dramedy

Read the full review here

9) ‘Sidlingu 2’ is a bland, befuddling sequel

Read the full review here

10) ‘Kaadhal Enbadhu Podhu Udamai’ is an admirable queer drama that rises above its flaws

Read the full review here

11) ‘The Greatest Rivalry: India vs Pakistan’ is a nostalgia trip for 90s kids, but with few too many omissions

Read the full review here

12) Sanya Malhotra powers this poignant ‘The Great Indian Kitchen’ remake in ‘Mrs’

Read the full review here

13) ‘Narayaneente Moonnaanmakkal’ is a character-driven drama marked by its remarkable restraint

Read the full review here

14) Kishore, Harshil Koushik anchor an engaging, ‘Vikram Vedha’-esque thriller in ‘Anamadheya Ashok Kumar’

Read the full review here

15) Junaid Khan and Khushi Kapoor toil in ‘Loveyapa’

Read the full review here