Wonder Woman (4/4) | DC finally cracks the MARVEL code... or does it even better?

So far, it's almost been uncontested that MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) is far better than DCEU (DC Extended Universe). But finally comes a film, that not only questions that, but almost reverses the position. Wonder Woman releasing this Friday, is a marvel in many ways (pun intended!). A major studio superhero film, lead by a female superhero - Wonder Woman, and directed by a woman - Patty Jenkins. This makes Wonder Woman the first summer tent pole superhero film directed by a woman, and Jenkins is the first woman to direct a superhero film with a female protagonist. And so far, it's the highest rated superhero film on Rotten Tomatoes , at 94%, beating all previous DC and Marvel films. 

In the film, American pilot Steve Trevor crashes on the island of Themyscira and tells Diana Prince (Wonder Woman) about World War I, Diana leaves her home to try to stop the war and becomes Wonder Woman. Sounds simple, for a superhero origin story? It is. But it's also truer to its origin material, aka the DC comics. The setting from World War II, is changed to World War I. And it follows the new storyline to tell that Diana is daughter of Zeus and Hippolyta. There is a reference to her being made from clay, and given life by Zeus, to honor the original storyline, and it also serves as a plot device. Her life-mission is to stop and destroy Ares, the god of war. So she spends the film searching for him, eventually finding him and fighting him, and maybe destroying him.

What makes this film stand out is the tone of the film first. Thankfully it doesn't follow on the footsteps of Zack Snyder's Man of Steel or Batman v Superman. Patty Jenkins proves that DC films can be cool, funny, spirited, and not-superdark but still full of kickass action & fun. She sets up a new tone and new standard for DC films. This film is reminiscent of the first Captain America film or even Avengers, in that sense. The storytelling is crisp, with lot of humor, emotion and amazing action. There is frequent commentary on several social issues from gender bias (the amazing scene with Diana trying several dresses in UK, or going into parliament, or springing to action in war), racial issues (being brown or indigenous) , war and peace etc etc. The film does not become preachy though, but just presents those issues as part of the narrative.

Witness the rise of a Warrior. Watch the NEW #WonderWoman trailer now! -- WONDER WOMAN is in theaters June 2, 2017. From Warner Bros. Pictures and DC Entertainment comes the epic action adventure starring Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen and Robin Wright, directed by Patty Jenkins.

In the center of all this is our lead, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman aka Diana Prince. This is undeniably a shining star under her belt (pun intended, again!). Whether its being a fierce warrior, or naive princess, or a fresh off the boat immigrant in London, she rocks in every scene. Her performance makes the film better than what it already is.  Chris Pine as Steve Trevor is a close second. He's charming, worldly, impressive and definitely above-average (in his own words, seriously!). Rest of the cast is pretty well cast, and does a great job as well. The 2 actors to definitely point out will be Elena Anaya as Doctor Maru / Doctor Poison and Lucy Davis as Etta Candy.

Good:

• Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman. Chris Pine as Steve Trevor. Practically, the entire cast!
• The humor. Thanks to good writing, and performances by Gal, Steve, Lucy and Said, to mention a few, the film is funny, really funny.
• The action. Not surprising for a DC film, but it is good.
• The social commentary. Not preachy, but important for film's spirit. Congrats Allan and Patty!

Not-so-good:

• The accents of Amzonians. I mean, were they all immigrants with different accents? I guess so. But the accent also keeps changing, as they talk. Hello Robin and Connie?
• The length of the film. At 141 minutes, it's not awful, but for some it maybe lil too long. I found it short though.
• It's too damn good? Just kidding!

Watch the film if you enjoy good action films, with humor and a heart. Don't watch, if you want to miss one of the best superhero films.

Amir Motlagh - "There has never been a better time to start than now!"

Amir Motlagh is an actor, musician, filmmaker and storyteller. With a resume of over 15 films, his inspiration and zeal to make meaningful films that tell stories about human connection, is honest. When he saw the limited work he was getting offered in the entertainment industry, he decided to take matters in his own hands and start his journey as his own storyteller. He's currently running a crowdfunding campaign on Indigogo, looking for support from all film lovers. We had an opportunity to talk to him, and here are the excerpts.

· What inspired you to become a filmmaker?

A combination of things. First and foremost, my mother is a cinephile, and she absolutely adores the cinema and going to the movies as far as I can remember. It’s a passion of hers. She has quite a photogenic memory of movies she’s seen, along with names of actors, directors and anything related to film. This, of course, includes a love of foreign film, in the context of American dominant cinema.

Second, I trained as an actor, and at that time, I became fed up with the process of reading for certain types of roles, and also, I just was never that interested in the material that was available for me. The construction, the building of things was always more my interest, and so, I just gravitated towards things that I could structure myself. I’ve always been driven by the idea that It’s my responsibility to tell my own story, my own perspective on what the world is, and how the world works.

· What's the best thing you like about being a filmmaker?

My favorite thing about filmmaking is the power to craft your perspective about the world into a format that is a shared experience. Simply, it's our most advanced technology for communication in the arts at the moment. It probably won’t be in the nearing future, but for now, it's still our preeminent art. One the simple level, I love the collaborative process. There is not one single most important person in filmmaking. It’s a shared experience and this is what makes it unique.

· Talk to us about your latest projects.

I have two new feature films that I’m currently raising finishing funds on IndieGoGo. Principal photography and picture locked edits are in place for both films.  One is called THREE WORLDS and the other is MAN. These are a bit difficult to talk about in a straight sense since the universe they exist in is very much enclosed within itself. Meaning, they are just not that easy to reference in relation to more mainstream films. These two films are part of a series of works called THREE MARKS, TOO MANY SIGNALS. This includes the two feature films, and a visual album I released in 2016 called CANYON.  

THREE WORLDS is at the core, a drama that delves into a character's multiple perspectives in different points of space and time. Our main character is trying to find something, that perhaps he has lost at some point. The story is elliptical and takes place through a long span of time. It’s an experience-centric film, that unfolds itself to you without relying on usual tropes. This is how all three films in the THREE MARKS, TOO MANY SIGNALS series were built.

MAN is a semi-scripted, slice of life story told in a way that should feel both familiar, but very unusual. We explore a man’s relationship in the world that’s technology dominant. This is the more experimental of the three works.  

· Which films and filmmakers inspire you, and why?

Modern filmmakers & studios whom I really enjoy include Jacques Audiard, who has done films like, THE BEAT THAT MY HEART SKIPPED, A PROPHET and RUST & BONE among others. Anything STUDIO GHIBLI puts out, and dramatist masters like Asghar Farhadi. I really enjoy Denis Villeneuve’s work on the strictly technical directing sense, and Jeff Nichols, who is as close to an American version of an Auteur as we can get in the modern era. 

A bit of an odd mix, but, all present a cinema whose language is unique to their viewpoints about the world. This list would take forever though if I were to talk about the past as well, so, this is just stuff I’m joining currently, or that has held my attention for some time. Audiard is a mix of two of my favorite things about filmmaking.  His compositions start genre based, but his work has flexibility and they grow out of their tropes, and I really like that. In terms of directors overall

What are your thoughts on diversity and inclusion in Hollywood?

Diversity is something that will naturally happen as both a demographic shift and the fact that it’s a majorly discussed issue. If the pressure holds, change happens. It’s whether the timeframe that this shift occurs is a right one for the individual who wants to be involved in the business. An equal responsibility is shared by groups gunning for this diversity. We have the tools, so we should all get to work.

· What is your message to other aspiring filmmakers & storytellers?

You simply have all the tools at your disposal. You have distribution at your fingertips. You have possible money available through crowdfunding. There will never be a better time to start than now, and there has never been a better time to start than now. The landscape is changing in incredible ways. New mediums are on the horizon like VR/AR and platforms like Youtube and Snapchat are creating stars out of people who want to share with the world. 

Now, this might not necessarily look like the cinema of old, but the opportunity to tell stories is right at your fingertips. So, find your lane. If its Hollywood, that’s one way. But, there is many other ways to find your own lane nowadays. Test everything out and pivot. Don’t go to film school (for the most part). Make friends who are making movies. Build a team. Write. Shoot. Edit. Act. Have fun and keep doing. Write daily. Just do it. On the side, learn to code. You got a good escape plan. And still then, you can keep doing it.

Sounds like good advice. Thanks for talking to us Amir. And all the best!

Please visit the Indigogo page below to support Amir's upcoming projects
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/three-worlds-and-man-2-new-films-by-amir-motlagh-losangeles-drama#/

SNATCHED | Could it be your Mother's Day movie?

Can a female lead comedy deliver at box office? Well, the casting is pretty stellar, so expectations would be high. But can Amy recreate her Trainwreck magic, or was it beginners luck? Can Goldie Hawn still deliver the goofball comedies she's known for? That's already a lot of pressure for any movie to handle. And as far as this movie goes, the wonderful cast and talented director Jonathan Levine do their best to deliver you as good product as possible. 

Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn, playing daughter & mother, who go on a vacation to Ecuador, where they end up getting "snatched", and there adventure begins through the jungles of Amazon. That does sound like a sellable & interesting premise, with such sellable & interesting cast as well. However, that's where the problem begins. With such team, you expect a lot. And unfortunately, you may not get as much as you want. But you do get a lot!

The film opens with a hilarious tone, where Amy plays your most annoying customer at a clothing store, who turns out to be a salesgirl (yes, that scene is very Amy, and very funny!). After getting dumped by her boyfriend, she has no one else to go her non-refundable vacation to Ecuador. So she guilts and forces her mom, played by Goldie Hawn, to join her. The mom is super annoyed at every opportunity she gets, and just wants to stay at the hotel. The daughter wants to go out & explore. She meets this handsome & charming British man, who takes her to places under the radar, the real Ecuador. Next day she pulls her mom with her, and they end up getting kidnapped, thrown in a cell with a scorpion, and blood on the walls (after all, it's South America!).

After her boyfriend dumps her on the eve of their exotic vacation, impetuous dreamer Emily Middleton (Amy Schumer) persuades her ultra-cautious mother, Linda (Goldie Hawn) to travel with her to paradise. Polar opposites, Emily and Linda realize that working through their differences as mother and daughter - in unpredictable, hilarious fashion - is the only way to escape the wildly outrageous jungle adventure they have fallen into.

This is where the real adventure starts. They try to escape, where Amy's killing spree starts, which of course annoys her mom more. They meet a small town store-manager turned explorer/adventure (played marvelously by Christopher Meloni), who's trying to help them escape. One the other hand, her super annoying and man-child brother is stalking the state department to coerce them into finding his mama & sister. This whole bit is definitely funny. And so is the scene where a doctor tries to pull out a tapeworm out of Amy, the "old school way". The adventure continues, of course leading them to discover who they are, and find a new love & admiration for their mom/daughter.

I have to say that film is beautifully shot. Almost too beautifully for a comedy like this. Amazon jungle looks lovely, and Ecuador looks inviting (if we keep the kidnappings aside).

That leads to some of the problems in the film. It's filled with stereotypes (gun toting, long haired Colombians). Even though Amy and Goldie do there best to split you up (Amy's scene of trying to "clean herself up" in the bathroom, to get ready for a possible "get together" with James, is joint point blank hilarious AF), there's just several times that the premise is not supporting those jokes. So... Too many cliches & stereotypes? Yes. Does it get boring or annoying? Yes. But is it also funny? Yes, yes. At several places. So should you watch it? That's up to you.

After her boyfriend dumps her on the eve of their exotic vacation, impetuous dreamer Emily Middleton (Amy Schumer) persuades her ultra-cautious mother, Linda (Goldie Hawn) to travel with her to paradise. Polar opposites, Emily and Linda realize that working through their differences as mother and daughter - in unpredictable, hilarious fashion - is the only way to escape the wildly outrageous jungle adventure they have fallen into.

It is Mother's Day weekend, so if you have nothing better planned. Amy & Goldie say, you should go watch SNATCHED. ;)

Production companies: Chernin Entertainment, Feigco Entertainment, Twentieth Century Fox
Distributor: Fox
Cast: Amy Schumer, Goldie Hawn, Joan Cusack, Ike Barinholtz, Wanda Sykes, Christopher Meloni, Tom Bateman, Oscar Jaenada, Randall Park, Bashir Salahuddin, Al Madrigal, Kevin Kane
Director: Jonathan Levine
Writer: Katie Dippold
Producers: Peter Chernin, Jenno Topping, Paul Feig, Jesse Henderson
Executive producers: Kim Caramele, Tonia Davis
Production designer: Mark Ricker
Director of photography: Florian Ballhaus
Music: Chris Bacon, Theodore Shapiro
Editors: Zene Baker, Melissa Bretherton

Rated R, 91 minutes

Amit Masurkar tells tale of Indian elections with NEWTON. #Tribeca2017

India is world's largest democracy, and indian elections play a huge role in that. Amit Masurkar's film NEWTON is a satire, which shows a face of that election process. The good thing is the film is able to present that with lot of humor, clubbed amazing performances. the film is also beautifully shot, in some remote parts (actual locations) of India, which gives it lot of authenticity. Rajkumar Rao, who has become a powerhouse in Indian independent cinema now, is quiet wonderful as the righteous, strength and no-nonsense election officer. His nuanced performance is wonderful to watch. But the biggest hook of the film is it's beautiful story, told quite spectacularly by the director Amit V Masurkar. The film acts as a comedy, a thriller, a drama and a political commentary, all-in-one!

The film is story of Newton, who is a stickler for principles – whether with respect to his unusual name or the not entirely orthodox way in which his arranged marriage has been handled. He’s given the job of a volunteer election worker and entrusted with a mission that demands the utmost flexibility if it’s to succeed. Newton is flown by helicopter into the jungle. The village where he’s to make sure that the election is carried out properly turns out to be a democratic stress-centre, where he must keep devious military personnel and oddball bureaucrats in check – even as the voters, the very people the whole thing is about, remain strangely absent. The Adivasi – as the indigenous people of India are called – are wise to keep their distance from this staged spectacle of democracy and put up resistance with a cunning game of hide-and-seek. Newton remains true to his principles. When a foreign election monitor arrives, the tide turns in his favor – but only temporarily.

With a feel for the special, multifaceted humor of his compatriots, Amit V. Masurkar succeeds in making Newton into a black comedy about the pale specter of democracy in dark times. We had a chance to talk to Amit. You can watch it here:

Uploaded by MyNewYorkEye on 2017-04-27.

Amit V. Masurkar was born in Bagalkot, India in 1981. He studied Engineering at the Manipal Institute of Technology in Karnataka, India from 1999 to 2002. He then worked as an assistant director on films made for television, before writing comedy sketches for TV and film screenplays starting in 2003. From 2003 to 2006, he also studied History at the University of Mumbai. NEWTON is Amit V. Masurkar’s second film after the sleeper hit SULEMANI KEEDA in 2014. 

NEWTON was part of the Co-Production Market (CPM) at Film Bazaar 2015 and also one of the Film Bazaar Recommends titles at Film Bazaar 2016.

About Drishyam Films
Drishyam Films aims to build a platform for unique voices of Indian independent cinema and create global content with rich Indian flavours. The company's filmmaking journey started with the award-winning film Ankhon Dekhi directed by Rajat Kapoor. Its success was followed by Umrika directed by Prashant Nair which premiered at Sundance Film Festival 2015 and bagged the Audience Choice Award. Soon after, Dhanak directed by Nagesh Kukunoor won the Grand Jury prize at Berlinale 2015, and Masaan directed by Neeraj Ghaywan picked up two big awards at Cannes 2015. Drishyam’s next film Waiting directed by Anu Menon, premiered at the prestigious Dubai International Film Festival. All their films have been released theatrically to universal critical acclaim. Their upcoming productions include Atanu Mukerjee’s Rukh starring Manoj Bajpayee and Amit Masurkar’s Newton starring Rajkummar Rao. Drishyam Films had partnered with the Sundance Institute, USA between 2015 to 2016 to organize Screenwriters’ lab for Indian writers in its endeavor to promote content-driven cinema. They have set up a VFX studio specialising in post-production and visual effects for feature films and commercials. Drishyam VFX has provided end-to-end VFX services for tent-pole Bollywood films such as Abhishek Kapoor's Fitoor, Ashutosh Gowariker's Mohenjo Daro and Vishal Bharadwaj's upcoming feature Rangoon, among many others.