Oscars Archives

Why Bittu, the Live Action Short Film Shortlisted for the Oscars, Deserves All Our Love

Bittu is a touching story of friendship between two school girls in a village. The film which has been shortlisted for the Oscars has no big stars. Instead, director Karishma Dev Dube went to local communities and government schools in the rural areas to pick her cast.

Arré Bench July 15, 2016

Modern Family

My Sister, the Lady Bird and the Everyday Drama with Mama

I watched Saoirse Ronan perfect the role of Christine aka Lady Bird in the movie by the same name and couldn’t help but feel a surge of warmth and stress through my veins. I know this story of the mama-daughter drama too well.

Runa Mukherjee July 12, 2016

Pop Culture

India’s Slumdog Fireflies

Lion’s Sunny Pawar had the night of his life at the Oscars, the biggest stage in the world. The question is, would this be the highest he’d soar?

Poulomi Das June 29, 2016

Pop Culture

A Good Time To Be Robert Pattinson

Pattinson’s live-wire turn as Connie in Good Time – his best showing by some measure – is the most tragic character played on film last year. But does it compare with the two leading contenders for the Best Actor Award at the Oscars?

Manik Sharma June 23, 2016

Gender

Do the Oscars Have a “Female Director” Problem This Year?

In endorsing the superhero spectacle, Black Panther for “Best Film”, the Academy has responded to today’s age and yet, its crusade to popularise aberrant films is still catalysed by the dominance of the male genius. What else explains the exclusion of female directors from the Best Director race this year?

Manik Sharma June 8, 2016

Pop Culture

Parasite is On Amazon Prime: This Oscar-Winning Film is Mandatory Viewing for Quarantine Friday

Bong Joon-Ho’s Parasite is an acidic horror comedy that points a sharpened knife to the biggest parasite of them all – modern society. Much of the film is a reflection on the aftermath of the unequal distribution of wealth that creates competition even between shades of poverty.

Poulomi Das May 24, 2016

Gender

Oscars 2019: Will Films Like Period. End of Sentence. Rid Us of Taboos Around Menstruation?

Periods are used as convenient tools to dismiss and overpower women. This experience is so common to patriarchal societies that frankly, I was baffled that a documentary as simplistic as Period. End Of Sentence. was considered insightful enough to earn an Oscar. Perhaps that’s what makes it relevant.

Sonali Kokra May 12, 2016

Pop Culture

Olivia Colman’s Best Actress Speech is the Realest Oscars Moment in Years

At a time when award ceremonies – especially the Academy Awards – are proving to be woefully predictable while striving only for political correctness, the unrehearsed-ness of Olivia Colman’s winning moment felt a little too precious. The Oscars still continue to appeal because they promise us surprising moments like these.

Poulomi Das May 2, 2016

Pop Culture

Christopher Plummer Saves All the Money in the World

Ridley Scott’s gamble to replace Kevin Spacey in All the Money in the World in the wake of sexual assault allegations, pays off. Christopher Plummer is unforgettable as the icy-cold oil baron J Paul Getty.

Poulomi Das April 20, 2016

Pop Culture

Give Benedict Cumberbatch an Oscar Already

Over the last decade, Benedict Cumberbatch has casually put together a body of work that puts him into a rare category of actors who straddle heroism, genius and vulnerability with equal command. If he wins an Oscar for The Power of the Dog, it’ll only be confirmation of his now established stature.

Runa Mukherjee April 4, 2016