Saturday, March 5, 2016

Bollywood Cross Over


Bollywood- the film industry of India, continues to strive and compete with Hollywood. In fact, the majority of actors in Bollywood hate the term "Bollywood".  They prefer to be called "The Indian Film Industry". The exposure of Bollywood films to the global audience is growing by leaps and bounds.

From Germany to the US.....to far away Finland, these men and women manage to make Bollywood a very important part of their lives.

German-based Birgit Pestal, author of a book called Fascination Bollywood, analyses the impact Bollywood has had on the region. Pestal estimates that there are 50,000 viewers of Bollywood films in Austria and Switzerland and one million viewers in Germany.

Interestingly enough, Bollywood has produced many movies in which the theme, concept and storyline was replicated from Hollywood.  Regardless of the global reach of Bollywood movies, many of the A-list actors and actresses have made attempts to star in Hollywood movies.  Yet, their transition or entry to Hollywood was not successful. 

Amitabh Bachchan – The Great Gatsby (2013)
Bachchan with Maquire and DiCaprio in the Great Gatsby


Mega star, Amitabh Bachchan a.k.a Big B, has acted in “The Great Gatsby” which starred Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead role. The angry young man played the character of a Jewish gambler Meyer Wolfshiem. The movie also stars Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan and Joel Edgerton in strong roles. It was a decent hit..Bachchan had a tiny role..

Mallika Sherawat - Hisss (2010)

Mallika Sherawat is one of those stars whose news of Hollywood acting made quite a buzz in the town. Famous for controversies, she has acted in many Hollywood movies and has even played a lead role in one. She acted in a movie called Hisss, in which she played the lead role and character of a snake woman. The movie also stars Irrfan Khan. She acted in movies like Politics of Love and The Myth as well. Hollywood Movies: The Myth (2005) Hisss (2010) Politics of Love (2011)

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan – The Mistress of Spices (2005)

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan ( Daugther in law to Big B)  is one of the most beautiful women in the world and has acted in many Hollywood movies. She played the character of criminology expert Sonia Solandres in Pink Panther 2. In “The Last Legion”, she played the role of martial arts expert, Mira. She played the role of a Punjabi Woman in the movie “Provoked” (2006). Other Hollywood movies which feature Aishwarya Rai Bachchan are “The Mistress of Spices” (2005) and “Bride and Prejudice” (2004). Hollywood Movies: Bride and Prejudice (2004) The Mistress of Spices (2005) Provoked: A True Story (2006) The Last Legion (2007) The Pink Panther 2 (2009)

Anil Kapoor - Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011)

Anil Kapoor made headlines when he acted in movies like Slumdog Millionaire and Mission Impossible. The actor even shared the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. He is more famous for playing a major role in English T.V series “24”. He is also the first Indian actor to be invited for a special segment, “In conversation”, at the Toronto International Fil Festival. Hollywood Movies: Slumdog Millionaire (2008) Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011)

Om Puri – The Ghost and the Darkness (1996)
Om Puri is considered as one of the finest actors in Bollywood which is the reason that he has acted in so many Hollywood Movies. His Hollywood movies include “City of Joy” (1992), “My Son the Fanatic” (1997), “East is East” (1999) and “Wolf” (1994). Hollywood Movies: City of Joy (1992) Wolf (1994) The Ghost and the Darkness (1996) My Son the Fanatic (1997) East is East (1999) Charlie Wilson’s War (2007) The Hundred-Foot Journey (2014)

Kimmel In Batman v Superman! Too Funny- Watch Now

Sunday, December 27, 2015

Bollywood's Biggest Star Celebrates his 50th Birthday- Happy Birthday Salman Khan





Gone are those day that the 20 or 30 year old male actors entering the game and taking it over.  Similar to Hollywood, Bollywood is also led by the elder statesman. If Hollywood has Cruise, Washington, Hanks, Pitt than Bollywood has Shahrukh Khan, Aamir Khan, and Salman Khan.   One would think that by the age of 50, one would slow down as the film industry tends to hawk on beauty and youth but that's not the case any more.




Bollywood's biggest bad boy actor (a mix of Stallone, Cruise and Sean Penn) celebrates his 50th.  He delivered Bollywood it's 2 biggest hits of the year and 2016 is not slowing down for him.




He's known to have a temper and he never holds his words back, yet the man has a heart of gold. He's the founder of BEING HUMAN- a charity foundation that helps millions.  He's known to help newcomers find movies, and the right projects.






 He's launched the career of many male and female stars...






He's made the list of Forbes highest paid actor as he beat DiCaprio, yet he lives in a 1 bedroom apartment near his parents.




Film Junkeez wants to wish the bad boy of Bollywood a happy birthday!





 








Friday, December 18, 2015

Big Weekend- Across the World




It's the weekend that many moviegoers and film buffs have been waiting for.  Personally, I'm not a big fan of the Star Wars series, yet i'm probably the only one of the few that doesn't care for the movie.  Millions of people around the world are jumping with joy as J.J. Abrams taking the director's seat from Lucas.  
For the record, I consider Abrams to be one of the best directors of my generation. This man has proved himself over and over and I have no doubt that he's going to kill it with the Force Awakens.  
As huge Star Wars is, Bollywood is becoming a force itself, and fans of Bollywood movies are not only the great people of India and Pakistan, but from all over the world.   




This weekend, the King of Bollywood- Shahrukh Khan is returning in "Dilwale" with co-star and love interest from the classic Bollywood movie "Dil Wala Duniya le Jayenge". Kajol and Shahrukh are the equivalent of the Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan onscreen couple.  SRK ( nick of Shahrukh) and Kajol bring magic to the screen for the bollywood lovers.  




 But the fight doesn't stop here as on the other side of the ring comes the magnum opus " Bajirao Mastani" directed by the highly acclaimed director - Sanjay leela Bhansali.  Bhansali is known for taking it to the next level with each of his movies.  This director is synonymous with grandeur and style, and his films are always larger than life. 




















Recap
Star Wars - with J.J. behind the camera, I smell a winner
Bajirao vs Dilwale? Can Bhansali take SRK's star power and give it the 1-2? Yes, I think Dilwale has a killer combo yet early reviews state the movie lacks substance and Bhansali's Bajirao has nothing but substance!  But, let's not forget that SRK and Bhansali battled it out a few years back with SRK in Om Shanti Om and Bhansali's Saawairya and SRK hit it out the park!

Check out the trailers below for both films- what are you thoughts?
Please leave your feedback below! 





Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Charlie Sheen - Career Perspective & Future....






Born as Carlos Irwin Estévez before changing his name to Charlie Sheen.  Charlie is the youngest son to actor Martin Sheen and artist Janet Templeton.  Sheen's brother, Emilio Estevez was also a famous actor in the 80's and 90's.  Charlie gained great success and fame as he starred in Platoon in 1986.  Platoon is a movie directed by the infamous director- Oliver Stone and starred Tom Berenger,



Willem Dafoe and Charlie Sheen.  Platoon was the first of trilogy of warm film ( Vietnam).

Sheen than went onto Wall Street in 1987 also directed by Oliver Stone, Young Guns, Major League and Hot Shots!.  
Charlie Sheen and Oliver Stone on the sets of Wall Street




Sheen was carving a name for himself in drama and comedy.  In the times of Michael J. Fox and Tom Cruise, Sheen wasn't too far back as being a heartthrob actor. He's buddies in high school were Rob Lowe and Sean Penn.

Robert Downey Jr, Charlie Sheen, Rob Lowe



As per Sheen, it was during the filming of Wall Street, that he started to enjoy the party life with a close association to high end call girls and illegal drugs. 


Charlie Sheen and Johnny Depp

Charlie Sheen, Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise





Sheen went through a list of movies that bombed and his career took a huge noise dive until an opening for replace of Michael J Fox came up on the hit show "Spin City" The series ended in 2002.





In 2003, Sheen was hired to star in CBS sitcom 2 and Half Men.  The show was a hit and made Sheen the highest paid actor on TV as he earned 1.8 million per episode.
Yet with the string of failed marriages and divorces, Sheen's personal life was unstable as usual. In 2011, Sheen was fired from the show due to his personal life in the media and Sheen took a fighting stance against the producer, Chuck Lorre and Warner Bros.  Sheen was replaced by Ashton Kutcher and that was the end of that.



In 2012, Sheen returned to T.V. with the sitcom Anger Managment for which lasted 2 years.
n November 17, 2015, Sheen publicly revealed that he was HIV positive, having been diagnosed roughly four years earlier.In an interview, he referred to the phrase HIV as "three hard letters to absorb".  He manages his condition with a triple cocktail of antiretroviral drugs, and said that it was impossible that he could have infected any of his partners.





How does this affect Charlie's acting career? As of now, there's no upcoming projects on IMDB.  Nor as any major movie studio confirmed discussions, yet Sheen did mention that he and SONY were in the midst of taking about a sitcom. 

This can go in many ways 
1. Sheen let's the noise die out, and find a 3rd come back with major network sitcom.  The HIV element can help fans feel sorry for him as that can help viewership.  
2. Sheen goes down faster than we expected.  The long lines of people with lawsuits, studios backing off due to the history of Sheen with CBS.

Either way, we wish Sheen the best of luck!




Monday, November 16, 2015

Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice- The end result can go in any direction..


 Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice- The end result can go in any direction
The initial response from fans when hearing that Zack Snyder is directing the Man of Steel movie brought mixed reviews. Some enjoyed and were big fans of his slow motion action sequences ( 300, Watchmen) and the others had zero hope.  End result? mixed...Man of Steel didn't bring in the same mania as the Nolan Batman Trilogy. 
Years later, Warner Bros announce Ben Affleck as the next choice for the role of Gotham's favorite.  That, more than Snyder, brought negative press and tons of anger from fans.  Most fans remember Affleck as Daredevil and can't forgive him for the movie.
Yet, few months ago as Warner Bros release the trailer of the upcoming Batman v Superman movie, fans ( the haters and the optimistic) went crazy ( in a good way).  It took away of the nervousness and it brought great hope that Ben may do it a great job.
Where does this take us? let's stay tuned and keep our fingers crossed-remember, Daniel Craig was first shunned as he was announced to take over the James Bond movies and so was Heath Ledger for the Joker.