Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to do a high five! Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the wild ‘n wacky “A Minecraft Movie,” the doggie drama of “The Friend” and the rom com “A Nice Indian Boy.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: In “A Nice Indian Boy,” a new rom com starring Karan Soni and Jonathan Groff, and now playing in theatres, an Indian American doctor introduces his white boyfriend to his traditional parents.
CAST: Karan Soni, Jonathan Groff, Sunita Mani, Zarna Garg, Harish Patel, Peter S. Kim, Sas Goldberg. Directed by Roshan Sethi.
REVIEW: Adapted from the 2014 play of the same name by Madhuri Shekar, “A Nice Indian Boy” feels like “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” with a cultural twist.
You may get a sense of déjà vu while watching the set up for “A Nice Indian Boy,” which takes a handful of rom com conventions and molds them into something that feels new, yet old-fashioned.
Karan Soni plays Naveen, the kind of rom com character we’ve seen many times before as the story’s anchor. He’s a timid Indian American doctor, from a traditional family, who spends his off hours obsessing about his exes. “I guess you’ve been eating an apple a day because you’ve kept this doctor away,” he says in a message to a former fling.
He’s given up on finding love—”I don’t want to hear sweeping notions of love. It’s 2024, the world is burning!”—until he’s booked with photographer Jay (Jonathan Groff) to update his hospital headshot.
Jay, a white man adopted and raised by an Indian family, hence his last name Kurundkar, just may be the one to crack the shell Naveen has constructed around himself.
First though, the new couple must meet Archit and Megha (Harish Patel and Zarna Garg), Naveen’s traditional parents.
The basic plotting and romantic hurtles Naveen and Jay must traverse are straight out of Rom Com 101. But what sets “A Nice Indian Boy” apart isn’t just the queer and South Asian twists, but the warm hearted brush with which Calgary born director Roshan Sethi paints this portrait of love and family.
Soni and Groff have great chemistry and are ably supported by a cast who add comedy to the romance. As Naveen’s BFF Peter S. Kim is the perfect foil to friend’s shyness. As his sarcastic sister, “GLOW’s” Sunita Mani provides a few laughs and a poignant pregnancy subplot. But it is Patel and Garg as his parents, the latter of whom hilariously explains the meaning of the film “Milk” to her gay son, who steal the show.
“A Nice Indian Boy” doesn’t go anywhere you don’t expect it to go, but despite its predictability, it’s a charming sit-commy diversion.
Richard Crouse and “Eternals” star Lia McHugh talk about her mother accidentally hanging up on a very important phone call, the influence of director Chloé Zhao on the story and cast and how she auditioned for the movie, even though she didn’t know what exactly what part she was trying out for.
Watch the whole thing HERE!
The Marvel Cinematic Universe expands this weekend with the theatrical release of “Eternals,” a star-studded superhero film with thousands of years of backstory and 10 new-to-the-big-screen superheroes.
For the uninitiated, those who don’t know their Jack Kirby from their Bruno Kirby, the Eternals have existed in comic book form since 1976.
They are 10 immortals lead by matriarch Ajak (Salma Hayek) and Ikaris (Richard Madden). Rounding out the diverse cast (who are often lined up on-screen like they are posing for a 1980s album cover shoot) are matter manipulator Sersi (Gemma Chan), Thena (Angelina Jolie), a warrior with super strength and the ability to fly, strongman Gilgamesh (Don Lee), Makkari (Lauren Ridloff), the fastest woman in the universe, Bollywood star Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani) who can shoot fireballs from his palms, the childlike ancient Sprite (Lia McHugh), master inventor Phastos (Brian Tyree), mind control expert Druig (Barry Keoghan) and Sersi’s human (or is he?) boyfriend Dane Whitman (Kit Harington).
Pay attention. You may need a scorecard to keep track.
7000 years ago they were sent to Earth by the all-powerful Prime Celestial Arishem (voiced by David Kaye) to keep humans safe from evil killer creatures called Deviants. Over the years they have been present at many defining world events, from ancient battles to Hiroshima. They live by a strict set of rules, including one, a prime directive of a sort, that instructs them to only protect humans from Deviants. That means no man-on-man conflict. If they interfere with earthly concerns, Arishem says, humans will never figure out how to protect themselves.
When the Eternals vanquished the Deviants, they went undercover, blending in with the normies for eons.
Now, in present day, the Deviants are back and badder than they ever were—this time around they can heal themselves—but can the Eternals battle the deadly invaders while pondering the real reason Arishem put them on earth in the first place?
The 25th epic in the Marvel Cinematic Universe spans millennia but tackles many current issues. Themes of unity and the power of connection are woven into the story, topped with messages of self-awareness and being who you are. The ten new superheroes are more introspective than your run-of-the-mill superbeing, expressing their innermost feelings when they aren’t grappling with the existential threat posed by the Deviants. I mean, when was the last time you saw a superhero cry? The ideas expressed regarding sacrifice, interventionism and purpose of mission are endlessly replayed but never truly explored. It is pop psychology disguised as depth.
But, nonetheless, they take the time to pontificate. At two hours and thirty-seven minutes, “Eternals’” story doesn’t exactly feel like it takes an eternity to tell, but it does feel long, especially if you stay to the end to see the two post credit scenes.
Oscar winning director Chloé Zhao, who also co-wrote the script, brings humanity to these alien creatures, but the blockbuster style action, endless exposition and humanist musings sit uneasily beside one another. It’s ambitious, but tonal shifts abound and by the time the CGI orgy of the finale gets underway, “Eternals” simultaneously feels like too much and too little.
