Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, written by Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, and Arjun Varain Singh, promises to be a look into the lives of young people today and the complications they face. The opening line of the trailer makes it clear right away that social media will be at the forefront of this film. Social media is the villain of the film, and this makes us wonder whether Zoya Akhtar is losing her touch. When she gave us films like Luck By Chance, Dil Dhadakne Do, or even the classic Zindagi na Milegi Dobara, she established herself as a new-age director who could make films like no other that appealed to the younger generation. Yet, when she actually tries to make a movie centered around ‘youth’, be it The Archies or now, Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, it becomes clear that she doesn’t respect them one bit. We want to know who in the writing team decided to include the line in the film about being alone in a hyperconnected world. It may be true, but that line has been doing the rounds on social media for a few years. When did Zoya Akhtar accept this unoriginality in her films? We are also reminded of a line from The Archies about common sense leaving the body, and even that is pasted right from a meme page on Instagram. Zoya Akhtar has gone on record to admit that she has a habit of literally translating English jokes and sentences to Hindi without a thought for the context. Strangely, that worked for her earlier films, but she has failed to notice that it is not working anymore. Considering all these factors, our expectations for Kho Gaye Hum Kahan are drastically low, and the trailer has not helped the film’s cause.

Cast and characters

Frankly speaking, none of the cast is challenged by the characters they are playing, which means that there will be nothing to complain about in terms of their performances. Regardless, let us start with Ananya Pandey, who plays Ahana. Frankly, the character is right up her alley. Ahana is an urban girl who is dealing with some relationship troubles and uses social media to cope with it all. This fits the image of Ananya Pandey that has been created by the trolls who love to hate her. However, it is undeniable that the actress has started imbibing a certain amount of trust in the audience about the credibility she can bring to a film. We are not saying that she doesn’t do bad films or always gives excellent performances, but she has managed to make choices that have become a relevant part of pop culture. Additionally, she knows her strengths and works accordingly, be it Ahana in Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, Tia in Gehraiyaan, or, surprisingly, Pari in Dream Girl 2. She is playing to the strengths of her acting range, however limited it might be, which indicates good business sense, just like her character in this film. We would always want to watch all her work.

Coming to Siddhant Chaturvedi, it is surprising how this actor, who was cool for one minute after “Gully Boy,” has managed to get typecast. He is forever stuck playing that ‘enigmatic, charismatic guy who likes artsy women’. Even his social media handles push this image. That means that though he is a good actor with potential, Kho Gaye Hum Kahan is not a challenge for him. However, we wish his jokes (as a stand-up comic in the film) were actually funny. The laughter of the audience is more painful to hear than the fake laugh tracks in actual stand-up specials on Netflix. Either way, he plays a commitment-phobic man with whom Kalki Koechlin’s character breaks up because he is still on many dating apps despite being serious with her. Additionally, his comedy comes from his sadness. Zoya Akhtar should have done better than this.

Finally, we see Adarsh Gaurav as Neil Perreira, who is dating an influencer. He lives with his parents and is constantly at odds with them because of their lifestyle choices. He plays the most relatable character for the audience and, frankly, is the least cringe-worthy of all. We would also say that he is the only one who successfully acts out the insecurities raised by social media, and he does it with his silence more than his dialogue.

What can we expect from the film?

Spoiler alert: Orry is in the film. Other than that, we must say that the music is not very exciting, though it always fits the mood of the scenes. This is a story about friendship and how the three friends are there for each other despite the problems they create for themselves due to social media. Ahana’s boyfriend takes a break from her, and she can’t stop vying for his attention. Imaad makes some jokes about Neil’s dating life, and that causes a rift in the friendship when the latter points out Imaad’s inadequate emotional capabilities. Kalki Koechlin plays a photographer, and she is another actor who has been typecast in a similar type of role. These friends are having fun all over the city through these issues. But there may be troubles with the friendship as well, since they are all consumed by the ‘pitfalls’ of social media. The story will no doubt end with all of them coming back together after some major problems.

Also, we know that Zoya Akhtar loves a good family moment, so perhaps Neil’s differences with his parents will also be resolved. There are also some generic lines thrown into the mix once in a while, so we are guessing that Ahana grows out of her relationship with her boyfriend. Neil’s girlfriend, who is an influencer, will be painted as someone superficial, yet that will be an instrument of growth for Neil since the story is about him. Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti used to be good with their understanding of the complications of characters. When did they end up missing the point with what they wanted to say about the youth? Sadly, it is hard to be excited about Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, but we know we will be watching it.

When And Where To Stream

The multi-starrer film is releasing exclusively on Netflix on December 26, 2023. The Indian viewers can stream the film from 1:30 p.m. onwards and experience the crazy journey of the three best friends as they hop on a roller coaster of emotions.

Did we ever mention that Park Seo Jun seems to have a Midas touch of sorts? It is impossible to name a single unsuccessful venture of his. As for Han So Hee, the actress has only gone from strength to strength. It is our faith in their ability to pick a good script that has us interested in Gyeongseong Creature. The first part of the series will be released on December 22nd, 2023, and the second part will come on January 5th, 2024. Before its release, Netflix’s promotions for the show are decent and basic, but considering what they have on hand, the streaming platform should be doing a lot more. We do enjoy the ‘truth and dare’ games of Korean actors and a look into the makeup secrets or set design ideas that go into the construction of the show. (That was not sarcasm.) But more than anything, we are interested in watching the ‘behind the scenes’ footage of the series. Knowing how the actors trained for their parts and the way they understand their characters is interesting. We still remember how enjoyable the BTS of Song of the Bandits was.

Coming to a different point, it is questionable whether Park Seo Jun has something to prove or not after his stint at Marvel. His character was extremely hyped about but was also subject to subsequent trolling when people saw that it was a blink-and-miss role. However, Park Seo Jun’s stardom cannot be questioned, since the limited role was the basis for a huge chunk of the marketing of the film. Meanwhile, Han So Hee has also found a new fanbase after her appearance in Jungkook’s music video. She had already become a household name with her character in My Name, so we know that the screen will be overflowing with star power.

Cast and characters

Park Seo Jun and Han So Hee have dominated the trailers and teasers, so everything we know about Gyeongseong Creature comes from what we know about their characters. We also caught a glimpse of Wi Ha Joon, and he looks very stoic, so maybe he is playing a sober role for a change.

Park Seo Jun plays Jang Tae Sang, and he is a self-made man in Gyeongseong. He also has the reputation of being a jack of all trades, which is how he seems to have made his money. It is also this very reputation that is about to take everything away from him.

Park Seo Jun is threatened by a police officer that unless he finds a girl before the cherry blossoms fall (before spring arrives), all his wealth will be seized. There is a constant mention of some ‘House of Golden Treasure’, and it must be a landmark of the city. Our guess is that this is why there is so much distaste for Tae Sang from the officers: he is some sort of ‘new rich’ person who is flashing the money he has made by undermining law enforcement authorities.

Next is Han So Hee, who plays Yoon Chae Ok, a detective who tracks down missing people. Maybe Tae Sang hires her services, or maybe someone else interested in the missing girl has put Chae Ok on the job. Either way, Chae Ok and Tae Sang join hands, and a romance develops for sure. It makes sense that Mr. Omniscient (Tae Sang’s nickname) and a detective come together. Tae Sang mentions that Chae Ok gets on his nerves, and we know what it means when a man in a K-drama says that.

Another character that we know about is Lady Maeda, played by Kim Soo Hyun (Claudia Kim). Her husband is Ishikawa, and her father is General Maeda. Yukiko Maeda effectively controls the Gyeongseong area, so whatever the mystery is, she probably knows a fair bit about it.

There is also supposed to be a child called Beom O, who is a thief, and Tae Sang probably takes care of him. Kim Hae Sook plays Na Wol Daek, the Alfred in Tae Sang’s Batman. Wi Ha Joon is Kwon Jun Taek, and he is Tae Sang’s friend and a soldier, so he might be the key to revealing why the officers enlisted Tae Sang’s help in tracking down the girl.

What can we expect from the series?

The cast has repeatedly said that this is a story of ‘youth’ and the lives of people in a different time. We are assuming that it is a cryptic statement that hints at the criminal discrimination that arises due to class differences. The reason we say that is because of the central mystery, which is the patients that disappear without a trace from Ongseong Hospital. When Chae Ok tells Tae Sang about it, he is surprised, which means that this is all happening under wraps and that it is only possible if the people disappearing are not prominent members of society. These are the disappearing young people (probably), and perhaps the missing woman was an accidental victim, which has brought attention to the hospital. There is an evil-looking doctor who may have also been the person who created the creature. He is most likely working with some powerful forces in the government to have been able to do that. If the government is involved, that further explains why this is called a story of the youth, because they are the ones considered the caretakers and guiding forces of young people. 

Gyeongseong Creature‘s story has also been associated with destiny and karma, so maybe the creature was born due to some unspeakable crime. This would give an emotional angle to the story and the way they deal with the creature. Perhaps they find that they can communicate with it and ask the creature to show forgiveness or move on to the afterlife. But if the heap of bones shown in the trailer are any indication, killing the creature is the only way out. We must consider whether the missing woman is the one who turned into the creature. Or she may be the one being held captive by the creature or hiding in its lair for survival. There are a number of ways in which this could go, but we are guaranteed to have a good time.

As soon as the first teaser of Animal was released, we realized that Sandeep Reddy Vanga had lived up to his promise that the film was going to have bloodshed and violence like no other. The director has a knack for creating characters that are loathsome and are an embodiment of toxic traits, yet he somehow finds a way to glorify them and show them in a good light. But even when we say that, we cannot deny that Sandeep Reddy Vanga knows the nerves of the masses, and the controversial Kabir Singh was a proof of that. So, let’s try to decipher, by looking at the trailer, what the probable story of Animal could be and what to expect from the various characters.

Spoiler Alert

Story and Plot

The first look at Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Animal made it pretty clear that it was going to be a violent revenge drama, where we would see the protagonist shedding blood and trying to make the people responsible for hurting his father pay for their acts. One of the prominent themes of Animal, as we clearly saw in the trailer, was the father-son relationship and how the son, the entire time, tried to get validation from his father. Ranbir’s character, since his childhood, had craved attention, specifically from his father, but he seemed to have no time for him. Maybe he was busy creating his own empire, as we saw that he was some sort of business tycoon who had multiple factories. Though the central theme has a lot of potential, it would also be interesting to see the kind of subplots that Vanga weaves into it and if Ranbir’s character is able to accomplish what he had set out for.

Cast and characters

We cannot write a trailer breakdown without commenting about the first few seconds that completely shook us to the core. It was not only Ranbir Kapoor and Anil Kapoor (who plays his father in the film) performances that stirred us from within, but the entire scene where a son asked his father to play him and vice versa, just to make him understand what he went through. It personally broke my heart, and it set the tone for the rest of the trailer. Those first few seconds were enough to lure me in, and I do believe that such an impactful trailer is definitely going to boost the business that the film is going to do. Ranbir endlessly tried to get the validation of his father, but he probably never got it in the end, which is why, as a last resort, he just wanted to make his father go through a similar feeling that he had gone through years ago. The role reversal, the shocked and miserable look on Anil Kapoor’s face, and obviously the tormenting roar of Ranbir’s character made it very clear that the film is going to unabashedly go into very dark places. The way Ranbir sought his father’s approval, be it by cutting his hair or growing it back, made us realize how desperate he was for it.

It became evident through the trailer that Ranbir’s character is very protective of his father, even when he has been literally ignored by him his entire life. He tells his wife Geetanjali (Rashmika Mandanna) in one of the teasers released earlier to question anything that he does but not to say a word against his father. The kind of protectiveness and toxic love he had for Balbir Singh made us realize that he was not in a stable state of mind. Probably, he was too soaked in toxic masculinity to embrace his own feelings, but it not only had an adverse impact on him at a later stage, but it completely ruined the lives of the people around him. We realized, looking at the trailer of Animal, that every other character revolved around this central plot. After his father got shot, obviously, the protagonist reacted in the most extreme manner and built an army, and seeked allegiance from people who were ready to kill or get killed. The blood bath that ensued wreaked havoc on the lives of people whom the protagonist considered to be responsible for hurting his father.

Obviously, it was expected that Rashmika’s character would be devoid of any sense of agency. There is no doubt about the fact that, be it Kabir Singh or Animal, the director has a knack for glorifying patriarchy. No one can take any credit from Sandeep Reddy Vanga for being an exceptional director who knows how to create gut-wrenching moments, but it is a matter of fact that his lead man is always a toxic person, and the narrative not only tends to venerate his actions but also somehow manages to show some empathy for him. We understand that films do not have any moral obligation to give the right message, but considering the impact a film has on people in a country like India, it wouldn’t take much to not laud the patriarchy if not condemn it explicitly.

As far as the trailer goes, Rashmika evidently felt miserable, as her husband was adamant about ruining his life for nothing. She tells him that he was chasing ghosts and how she wished that her father had died that day when he was shot, but nobody could deter the protagonist, who, in a real sense had transformed into an Animal. Throughout the trailer, we saw Rashmika’s character get dominated by the protagonist, and we believe that in the end, she would have to accept her fate as her husband looked relentless in his pursuit and was not going to stop until he found and killed his enemy. 

From the trailer, it looks like Bobby Deol’s character in Animal is the one who ordered the attack on Balbir Singh to be carried out. As of now, we do not know why he was after Balbir Singh, but one thing is clear: because of it, the Grim Reaper was after his life, and during the end of the trailer, we saw both brawny men enter into deadly combat. We have to say here that Bobby’s entire demeanor, from his attire to his physical features, captivated our attention. Apart from these prominent characters, we also caught a glimpse of Tripti Dimri, Shakti Kapoor, and Suresh Oberoi in Animal‘s trailer.

When And Where to watch

With a runtime of over 200 minutes, Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s magnum opus is going to be released on December 1 in your nearest theaters.

We never thought the day would come when we would see “The Devotion of Suspect X” by Keigo Higashino, adapted into a Bollywood movie. People who have read the author’s work know that this is his most acclaimed work, though a personal favorite of ours is “Salvation of a Saint.” Regardless, this is something to look forward to, and for those who haven’t read the book, the cast of the movie is what is exciting. It looks surprisingly fresh, with Jaideep Ahlawat and Vijay Varma being the actors they are, which comes together with Kareena Kapoor Khan’s enduring star quality. There is absolutely no scope for this film to be mediocre. It will either knock it out of the park or be a huge disappointment. The autotune of the main song, Jaane Jaan, has already served as a letdown of sorts, but luckily, that has not affected our hopes for the film. As we discuss how the story by Keigo Higashino has likely been adapted for the screen, we will make it a point to keep the narrative of the book away from it.

Story And Plot

True to its name, the Jaane Jaan trailer promises a lot of love among the three people: Maya D’Souza, Karan Anand, and Naren. From what it looks like, Karan and Maya seem to be attracted to each other, while Naren definitely likes Maya. The way Karan tells Naren in the trailer that there is nothing between him and Maya, we suspect that at one point, Naren gets serious about Maya and the possibility of there being something between them. He must have told this to Karan for the latter to look so guilty while denying it. Or it could be that Naren and Maya are actually together, and this would tie in with the hints that Maya D’Souza is some sort of femme fatale. Naren says that he knows what he saw. This was in an interrogation room, from what we could perceive. He was either talking about something related to the case at hand or this could be the accusation against Karan. In the case of the former, for him to get that angry and stern, he was either defending Maya or himself.

This brings us back to the first thing that we see in the trailer, which is the cockroach scene. Maya D’Souza has definitely killed or hurt someone, or maybe there has just been a scuffle, though that doesn’t seem likely since we see a charred dead body at a later point in the trailer of Jaane Jaan, and we believe that it must be the victim. Our point is that Naren had said that he ‘knew what he saw,’ so did he see how Maya was disposing of the body or some other hint of it? Or did she come up with an elaborate ruse to throw him off so that he would become her alibi if needed? Naren is obviously playing the role of the gentle professor, and in literature, these are people with supposed hidden depths of intensity and cruelty.

If we are going by this stereotype, then maybe Naren is more than an obsessive lover and innocent bystander. Perhaps he helped Maya get rid of the body, or even better, maybe he was the one to kill him. The latter situation could play out in two ways. We saw in the trailer that Maya demanded to know from someone how they found her. Perhaps she is on the run from someone after doing something bad, which could also imply that she is living in Kalimpong under a fake identity. That is why, when the person found her, she did not ask for help and said that she was dealing with a cockroach.

Maybe after the man left her house, Naren followed and killed him because he did not buy the cockroach story. Or maybe he heard the man inside, and when he went to investigate, that person tried to attack Maya or say something derogatory, and Naren killed him in a fit of rage. Now, Maya has to help him because she can’t have her secret revealed. This would imply that she is trying to flirt with Karan Anand because she wants a way out of the situation with Naren. Perhaps, at the end of it all, we will be told that right from the beginning, she played this game to get away with whatever she was planning. Basically, we are expecting a gracefully convoluted plot, and we are not ready to be let down.

Cast And Characters

We never realized how much we wanted to see Vijay Varma and Jaideep Ahlawat together until we actually saw them in the trailer. While the camera will always love Kareena Kapoor, it is her co-stars who are expected to be the highlight of the show. Vijay Varma plays the cop who is investigating a missing person case, and Kareena Kapoor Khan is the singer with bad autotune who is at the center of the mystery. Then there is Jaideep Ahlawat as Naren, the silent man with oceans of emotions underneath the surface who is expected to dictate the narrative of the movie in his own way. This is an exciting team, and we cannot wait for it.

When And Where to Watch

Netflix did something good by buying the rights to this book by Keigo Higashino and turning it into a film for their platform. While it releases on September 21, 2023, we hope that if it is a success, perhaps the platform will release it as a series as well at a later date.

Final Thoughts

It will be hard not to compare this film to the book “The Devotion of Suspect X” because of how iconic the latter is. Expectations are already high, for the readers and the non-readers, even though it is for different reasons. There also seems to be an awareness of the harsh standards that are being imposed on this film, which may invite criticism and forgiveness in equal measure. Jaane Jaan has big shoes to fill, and looking at the cast, it seems to be halfway there. Then, it takes a step back with its poor choice of music. Were Sunidhi Chauhan or Shreya Ghoshal really not available? Was there no other option other than autotune? We hope that such terrible creative liberties were not taken with the story itself because there will be no excuse for it. We just hope to have a good time with this.

The Other Black Girl, by Zakiya Dalila Harris, was a runaway hit in the book world, and choosing to pick it up for a series so soon after its release was a wise decision. We are aware of the basic premise of the book, and watching the trailer tells us that it is going to be just as captivating, if not more so. The title kind of reminds us of a movie called The Other Boleyn Girl. We know there is no connection between the two stories, and Zakiya Dalila Harris was also probably not inspired by that name, but the similarity makes us think of only one thing: that there was a black girl in a place, perhaps the only one, and then came another. As expected, the trailer for The Other Black Girl suggests the same. 

Story and Plot

Nella is working at an office, and seeing how she is constantly asked for coffee by who we are presuming is her boss, we would say that it is not a part of her job but something she is being bullied into doing. Being the only black person in a completely white office must have its challenges. There isn’t a strong enough voice for representation, and if you do call out any micro or major aggressions, you are at risk of losing your job. After all, there is no way you can count on anyone else to understand your point of view. Nella is dealing with similar stuff at her office.

From what we have read about the story, it has been described as a stylish thriller with elements of Get Out in it. Before we get to that part, we would like to talk about why this show is said to have elements of The Devil Wears Prada. From what we saw in the trailer, the color scheme for the publishing office is mostly black, white, and gray. But in essence, maybe they are referring to the absolute madness of the world, implying that we get a look at what makes the people of the book world tick and how they judge the books, in a Miranda Priestly manner.

As for Get Out, we see in the trailer that Nella starts seeing a different woman in her reflection. These reflections are not in a mirror but on blurry surfaces like the laptop screen or the lift doors. This may be a deliberate choice to be able to play with the thriller genre without taking it outright into horror. But considering the politics of the show, which we will discuss in a minute, we must say that there may be an intersection between them and the Get Out elements. 

Characters

Employment of people of color is not because employers are looking for diversity and merit but because they are trying to fill a quota. The fact that there were only one or two black women in the publishing house in the series is not a simple coincidence but a racist one. This implies that before Nella joined the team, there must have been another black woman like her. Possibly, like her, even she was edged out of the company, and now Nella is in her shoes with the arrival of Hazel. We have repeatedly heard it said that the publishing house had a dark past. It has to be a racist one.

A murder is the most likely theory, but perhaps it takes on an emotional angle? Maybe it will say that the work culture “murdered” her spirit and joy, and that is what is trapped in those computer screens and lift doors. Nella can see it right now because she is next, and this is what is happening to her. This brings us to the aforementioned politics and what we think is going to happen in the office with the arrival of Hazel. From the trailer for The Other Black Girl and the blurb on the book on which it is based, we know that Hazel becomes the office darling while Nella keeps getting sidelined as a result. Her position worsens after Hazel comes on board, and we are going to break down how that happens.

When & Where to Watch

The Other Black Girl will be released on 13th September 2023, on Hulu. There is a stellar team behind it and our expectations are sky high.

Final Thoughts

Navigating your way as a minority often involves masking parts of your identity—things that make you too “other” for them to accept or that trigger dormant stereotypes against you. To avoid this discrimination means walking a thin line of shaping your identity in line with the standards set by a select few. One of the more insidious parts of it is the discrimination that it spews from the minority towards themselves and others like them. This is what we call internalized racism, which translates into throwing others like them under the bus to get forward as an individual.

We see it happening with different groups, be it women being sexist towards other women or people of a particular country trying to sound as English as possible to set themselves apart from others in their community. Politics like this within the community is what gives rise to phenomena like ABCDs, or “not like other girls,” and we believe that in The Other Black Girl, Hazel does the same thing with Nella. She becomes that black girl who is white on the inside, unlike Nella, and this helps her get ahead in a way Nella wasn’t able to. That is when Nella found her world spiraling. However, we don’t want to think that Nella was just that naive. Could it not be a possibility that she did the same thing to her predecessor, meaning that the other black girl was Nella before it was Hazel? Or it could be that Hazel is there to get some revenge by dishing out what the woman before Nella had to endure. That is what makes the plot about her, and that is why the show hints that she is the catalyst for everything. There are a number of ways in which this series can go, and we have high hopes because of how successful the book was. We haven’t read a single negative review about it, and we hope the same for the series.

It might just be the week of remakes, with A Time Called You, which is a remake of the immensely popular Taiwanese drama named Someday or One Day, following close on the heels of another series titled 6ixtynin9, which is being remade from its 1999 version. But this one is a romance, and we know there is no one doing romance like Korean dramas. In many ways, it seems like they are the only ones who care about this genre anymore, which is why we are delighted at the choice of Ahn Hyo Seop to take on this task as one of the actors. Even Jeon Yeo Been’s return to the screen feels like it is happening after a long time. We have absolutely never forgiven the makers of Vincenzo for treating her role so irrelevantly, but now that she is heading a drama, we will get to see what she is actually like. She has a lot of energy and dedication that felt like it was too much for her Hong Cha Young, but in A Time Called You, it seems like there will be a whole other persona to her.

Story and Plot

The basic premise of this drama is that Jun Hee has been mourning the death of her boyfriend for over a year when she suddenly finds herself transported back into the body of a teenager with a boy by her side who looks like her deceased boyfriend’s younger version. It sounds complicated, and that means that there are going to be many past links to navigate, including a heavy dose of mystery.

From what we saw in the trailer, it feels like Jun Hee may do a little back and forth between the two timelines. Whatever she discovers as the connection between her dead boyfriend and the boy she knows from 1998, she will have to manipulate it to get whatever it is that she wants in the present day.

A few guesses would be that Yeon Jun (present-day Ahn Hyo Seop) and Si Heon (1998 Ahn Hyo Seop) are long-lost twins. Maybe the accident that transports Jun Hee into Min Ju’s body has something to do with what happens in the future with Yeon Jun. Maybe Min Ju and Jun Hee are connected in some way. And since there are multiple timelines here, we expect a first love, a childhood meeting, or a past-life connection angle. Now that we have said these words, we are reminded of the recent See You In My 19th Life on an unrelated note.

Either way, Korean dramas have this thing where they balance heavy emotions with equally light-hearted comedy. Therefore, we expect to see some very wacky characters in the show. Not to mention that the past timeline is from 1998, so probably a lot of past slang, references to what was popular then, and jokes about technology will be present.

The start of the trailer talks about Yeon Jun’s love for time travel movies, so maybe we will see some references to such stuff in the series. We would give anything to see Outlander get some representation instead of just the regular About Time, The Time Traveler’s Wife, or maybe The Lake House. We want some Jaime and Claire representation, and it also feels apt looking at the fact that despite having the same face, there are two separate boys, and there is a love triangle as well to answer for. However, the trailer makes it clear that the story is about Jun Hee’s chance to save Yeon Jun.

We believe that the glimpse we got of the bus accident is how Yeon Jun ended up losing his life. He and Jun Hee were sulking and sitting separately at that time, which means that they must have had a terrible fight. It would imply some serious issues in their seemingly picture-perfect romance that would probably be known to us with time. Therefore, protecting her love by changing the past would also mean altering the source of their fights or coming to terms with them in some way. After all, wasn’t it somebody from the Marvel series who said that “grief is love enduring?” It makes us think of the things that Jun Hee must be grieving for. Her love for Yeon Jun aside, she must also be feeling guilty for whatever she said to him before his last moments, which makes this time travel endeavor so important for her.

Cast and Characters

When we were going through the interviews of the screenwriters of Someday or One Day, which is the source drama for A Time Called You,”they said that at the heart of it, this is a story about the grief that is born when adolescents don’t get the time to understand themselves and their place in the world. This makes us believe that the 1998 timeline is going to constitute the bulk of the story. More than Yeon Jun, Ahn Hyo Seop will be playing Si Heon, and Jeon Yeo Been will be playing the adult stuck in a child’s body when she is not in the present day. As for Jung In Gyu, played by Kang Hoon, we don’t know what to expect. We just hope that this part of the love story is handled with care since there is an age and mentality difference between the characters.

When And Where To Watch

A Time Called You will be released on Netflix on September 8th, 2023. People are excited enough that a highly sentimental Korean drama is about to come out, but the excitement is even greater since we know that it is based on an already-hit story. That has the attention of everyone, and there will be a lot of comparisons that we can expect to see happen.

Final Thoughts

It is a given that the two dramas will have their differences from each other. But that was never a problem for us. This is a highly emotional love story, and grief is at the center of it all. Therefore, we cannot start watching it unprepared. Just be ready to cry a lot for a few hours before you start this.

Burning Body, the limited series that is going to release this Friday, looks quite promising, through whatever sneak peak we were able to get from the trailer. Murder mysteries are hard to pull off, and amidst the bunch of them that get made every year, only a few are able to leave a mark. The biggest vice of any murder mystery is losing its authenticity and falling into the trap of incorporating the same old troops that we have seen a million times. The series has a very David Fincher-ish vibe to it, and we do hope it is as captivating as his films. It looks like the kind of series where we would get to delve deep inside the psyche of the people involved and witness how they try to manipulate others, how they try to save themselves from the clutches of the law, and to what extent they are ready to go to get what they want. We hope that in their quest to stylize the narrative, they don’t lose out on the rawness and effectiveness of the narrative, as the premise does seem to have a lot of potential if executed in the right manner.

Spoiler Alert

Real Story and Plot

Burning Body is inspired by true events that shook the city of Barcelona back in May 2017, when the charred body of a police officer named Pedro Rodrigues was found in the trunk of a burned car. Through the trailer and reading whatever information we had about the case on online portals, we got to know that we are dealing with people who are reckless, highly impulsive, and didn’t think twice before taking the law into their own hands.

As of now, we do not know how much creative liberty would be taken by the makers or what elements they would add to dramatize the narrative and elevate the entertainment quotient. As far as the real-life case against the police officers from the Guardia Urbana is concerned, it is quite an interesting one, where we would get to see a battle of narratives. Pedro’s body was found near the Foix Reservoir in Barcelona, and though the car was fully burned, the police officers were able to ascertain the identity of the victim through the chassis number. Soon, two people were taken into custody: Pedro’s girlfriend and colleague, Rosa Peral, and another police officer named Albert Lopez, who used to be Rosa’s partner in the past before she met Pedro. There were rumors that Albert and Rosa were having an affair behind Pedro’s back, and once he got to know about it, they conspired to kill him.

During the initial investigation, both suspects accused each other of the murder. Rosa testified that Albert had come to her house and killed Pedro in cold blood, and he threatened Rosa not to go to the authorities if she wanted her children to stay alive. According to Rosa, Albert had asked her to help him dispose of the body, and because she was scared for the safety of the children and had seen what Albert was capable of doing, she agreed to do the needful. They then put the dead Body of Pedro Rodrigues inside the truck and decided to park it in an isolated area and burn it down so that no evidence could be recovered by the law enforcement authorities. However, according to what we read on various news portals, we came to know that Albert had a totally different story, and he claimed that whatever Rosa was saying was a complete lie. He said during the interrogation that he and Rosa had once again rekindled their spark and started getting involved in each other’s lives.

Rosa wanted to be with Albert, but she couldn’t do it because she was scared of how Pedro might react once he learned about it. Some sort of altercation might have happened between Pedro and Rosa, and Albert claimed that when he reached the house, Pedro was already dead. Albert told the authorities that he agreed to help Rosa out because he loved her and was ready to do anything to keep her out of prison. After conducting the preliminary investigation, the police officers got to know that the night before the murder, Albert and Rosa were constantly in touch with each other as they had exchanged several calls. Albert had come to Rosa’s quite early in the morning and that’s when they had made a plan to dispose of the body. 

After the lower courts ruled against them, Rosa and Albert appealed to the Supreme Court as a last resort. But even the apex authority found them guilty of murder and sentenced Rosa to 25 years and Albert Lopez to 20 years.

Cast and Characters

Burning Body, directed by Jorge Torregrossa, stars the enigmatic and vivacious Ursula Corbero as Rosa Pearl, the partner of the victim and the prime accused in the case. Together with Rosa, the other suspect was Albert Lopez, who, as stated earlier, was also called into questioning by the law enforcement authorities since he also shared a past with Rosa, and both of them were in a romantic relationship before Rosa met the victim. The character of Albert Lopez has been played by Quim Guitierrez in the series.

The trailer looks engaging, and we are glad that Ursula Corbero gets to play a character that, at least on paper, has a lot of potential. It’s an actor’s delight to play such convoluted and grey characters where the people never get to know what’s actually going on inside their minds. People like Rosa Peral are like conundrums in themselves, and one never gets to know what drives their motivations or to what extent they are capable of going. 

Where to Watch

Burning Body is a limited series that is going to be released on Netflix on September 8th, and it is already creating waves and promising to be a nerve-wracking murder mystery.

Final words

We are excited to watch what Jorge Torregrossa and his entire team bring to the table. These real-life characters were quite multifaceted, complex, and eccentric in their own way, and it’s a tricky job to be able to encapsulate all those intricacies and details and bring them on screen as unadulterated as possible. They were police officers, yet all of them, at some point in time, had been accused of misconduct and had abused the powers that were vested in them by the state. Even after the final judgment was given by the Supreme Court, there were a lot of things that couldn’t be explained. It would be interesting to see if the director takes a stand or gives equal weightage to both sides without being prejudiced, leaving it up to the viewers to formulate their own opinions.

Jawan became one of the most anticipated movies of the year as soon as it was announced because the one and only Shah Rukh Khan was collaborating with Atlee, the director who had given hits like Mersal, Theri, and Bigil. The buzz only grew with the casting of Nayanthara and Vijay Sethupathi. Set photos, concept art, and brief snippets of fight sequences hit the internet, and people were beyond excited. But it wasn’t until July 10 that the world got to watch the official teaser of the film and let me tell you, everyone collectively lost their minds. Red Chillies Entertainment followed that up with three songs—”Zinda Banda,” “Chaleya,” and “Not Ramaiya Vastavaiya”—and they went viral almost instantly. However, since the internet was refusing to walk into the week of release without a trailer, Khan and his team obliged and blessed us with an extensive peek into the world of Jawan.

Story and Plot

The official synopsis that was published along with Jawan’s CBFC certificate was vague as hell. It talked about an “emotional journey,” revenge, romance, the past catching up with Shah Rukh Khan’s character (or one of Shah Rukh Khan’s characters), and more. Now, despite being 2 minutes and 45 seconds long, this trailer isn’t very clear. Personally speaking, I like that because I don’t want to know a lot about a film before watching it. But, for the sake of this article, let’s sit down with it and try to figure out what’s going on. The preview begins with shots of a fighter plane flying through a valley and a figure floating through a river, which I’m assuming is Shah Rukh. He is rescued by the locals and wrapped in bandages. Khan’s voiceover talks about a king who lost numerous battles, and hence, he angrily roamed through the jungles. As the scene shifts to Mumbai and the hijacking of a subway train occurs, it’s possible that, in order to get back at whoever shot him down and maimed him, Khan’s character creates a hostage situation to bring out the villain of the story.

Here’s where it gets confusing: There’s one character played by Shah Rukh Khan, who is a police officer (I couldn’t figure out his name) and is in a romantic relationship with Nayanthara’s character. There’s another character played by Shah Rukh Khan (the one with the mustache), Vikram Rathore, who is in a romantic relationship with Deepika Padukone’s character. Nayanthara’s character, who is a police officer herself, is after one of these Shah Rukh Khans or both of them. We see her fighting with the half-masked version of Khan, and we see that she’s negotiating with the bald-headed version of Khan, which is probably Rathore. So, my best guess is that the clean-shaven, police officer version of Khan was abandoned by Vikram in jail. He grew up there, fell in love with Nayanthara, and was killed by Kalee (Vijay Sethupathi’s character). Vikram, i.e., the father of the deceased version of Khan, was either in exile or hiding. After learning about the death of his son, he came out into the open to wreak havoc on Mumbai and Kalee.

By the looks of it, Kalee and Vikram have a history as well. We see Vikram talking to a young Kalee about a deal that will hurt the country in some way. Going by the coughing, plundering, death by suicide, and brief glimpses of the word “chemical,” I am guessing that Kalee is some kind of merchant of death who wanted Vikram to look the other way while he partook in illegal activities. Vikram didn’t budge. So Kalee not only put him out of service, but he went after his son as well. I’m going to go out on a limb since Atlee has a habit of fridging female characters and say that Deepika Padukone’s character was collateral damage in this enmity between Vikram and Kalee. Therefore, Vikram teams up with his son’s team of girls and turns them into weapons of mass destruction. Although the trailer for Jawan features a lot of bombastic action sequences, I don’t think any one of them is the concluding set piece. I believe the third act is going to take place entirely in that subway, and the film will end with a final altercation between the bald-headed Vikram and Kalee.

The Cast and the Characters

The trailer for Jawan reveals a total of two names: Vikram Rathore and Kalee. Vikram is played by Shah Rukh Khan. He is the titular soldier who can be seen fighting for his country in a generic Middle Eastern place, wrestling with Deepika Padukone (who is his romantic interest), dying, resurrecting, and then seeking vengeance. Kalee is played by Vijay Sethupathi, and he looks like a gangster who rises through the ranks to become one of the most famous arms dealers. He is extremely territorial, and at one point, we can see him dealing with the loss of one of his loved ones. It’s possible that Vikram and his girls have done that in order to rattle Kalee. By the way, I have to say that the white wig that Sethupathi is wearing is awesome. It’s ridiculous, but it’s awesome. The same can be said about Shah Rukh’s mustache. The bearded look is natural. But I don’t think that the mustache is natural. I mean, they had to do something to differentiate between the timelines, the two Shah Rukh Khans, and the chaotic shooting days. It’s understandable.

As mentioned before, Jawan features Deepika Padukone. I’m guessing she’s going to bite the dust in a flashback sequence. She has a dance sequence with Khan, and it hasn’t been released on the internet yet. Maybe we’ll see it directly in theaters. Then there’s Nayanthara, who is a police officer and the relatively younger Khan’s love interest. Her character will be going after Vikram when he begins to terrorize Mumbai.

Sunil Grover is in the film, and he seems to be Nayanthara’s assistant or colleague. And he’ll be working alongside her, thereby going up against Vikram. We get a brief glimpse of Riddhi Dogra as an elderly lady. I guess she is Vikram’s old friend or relative, and she is the relatively younger Khan’s local guardian or something. Priyamani, Sanya Malhotra, Lehar Khan, Sanjeeta Bhattacharya, and Girija Oak are the girls who have apparently grown up with the police officer version of Khan. They’ll be working with Vikram to seek revenge for their deceased friend or brother. We get a glimpse of Eijaz Khan, who is probably Kalee’s henchman. The film apparently features Yogi Babu and Thalapathy Vijay. Yogi Babu makes a brief appearance in the Tamil and Telugu trailers but not in the Hindi trailer, while Vijay is absent from all of them. So, we have to wait to know the extent of their roles.

In addition to all that, there’s this bald-looking dude in a Bane-esque mask and a cheetah as a pet. Based on IMDb, I am guessing that that is Benedict Garrett. His role is probably incredibly brief, but he looks so cool that he is in the trailer. Good for him.

Where to Watch

Jawan is a Red Chillies Entertainment production, and it’s being distributed by Pen Marudhar, Red Giant Movies, and Sri Venkateswara Creations in India and by Yash Raj Films internationally. So, if you want to check it out, you have to go to your nearest theater on September 7, 2023. I am sure it will eventually get an OTT release. But why wait that long and waste the chance to celebrate Shah Rukh Khan on the big screen? Am I right?

Final Thoughts

In the past year, I’ve been on a journey through Shah Rukh Khan’s filmography in order to prepare myself for the three films that he’s releasing this year. Despite Pathaan’s flaws, it offered us a very entertaining time at the theater. I kept going back just to watch the reactions of the different kinds of audience. And I think Jawan is going to be a similar type of beast. Yes, I am confused about what’s going on with the story, but I’m not ready to be blown away by the plot. I will be there for the first screening of the film to watch Shah Rukh Khan in dual roles, creating ripples through the theater with his screen presence. I am interested to see what the rest of the cast brings to the table. Vijay Sethupathi and Nayanthara have a good chance of overshadowing Shah Rukh Khan, and I’m saying that as a fan of SRK. But it’s Shah Rukh Khan we are talking about here. I’m pretty sure that by the time the credits roll, we’ll be chanting his name and booking our tickets for the rewatch.

Burn The House Down, a Japanese series on Netflix, is based on a drama of the same name that was released from 2017 to 2021. One thing we can say for sure is that when the Japanese decide to take their time to explore the thriller genre, they are pretty much unbeatable. The trailer looks like it has mostly stayed faithful to the manga, from the story to the dialogue to how the characters even look. The manga comprises just 39 chapters; therefore, we don’t expect it to be a long series unless the story has been built upon or there are some new twists that were not present. Additionally, though there was only a glimpse of it, we wish that the scene where Shizuka is manhandled, likely by one of Makiko’s sons, had been done away with. The concept of Kabedon has always made us uncomfortable, no matter what it is supposed to indicate, and it doesn’t deserve to continue being shown on screen.

One thing that we can expect from this drama is the gradual unfolding of the layers, like with any mystery. The villain, the victim, and the revenge-seeking party are clear to us right off the bat like they were in the trailer. What follows are plenty of flashbacks and how the memory of a child has continued to affect her into adulthood. When she was young, she couldn’t voice her opinions or tell her father or other people why she felt a certain way. As a grown woman, she knows she is right and is out to fix the things that went wrong.

Something that you will notice here is how domesticity is at the heart of the series. Makiko and Satsuki meet as friends, and the former gradually integrated herself into the latter’s life as an acquaintance, as an admirer of her life, and eventually, as someone who will take everything she has for herself. Each and every one of these interactions happens in the domestic sphere, mostly in the very house that has proved to be a catalyst for change in Shizuka’s life. Pitting women against each other will never get old, and it doesn’t matter how much we try to show them as “powerful in the domestic setting” or “capable of pulling the strings from behind the scenes” because the keyword remains “background,” which brings with it a special kind of frustration that is only associated with such stories, no matter how good they are. On that note, we expect Burn The House Down to be extremely intriguing, whether or not you have read the manga. There is a certain atmosphere building with the sound and moving visuals that happen only in live-action remakes. That is the exact reason we are excited about this, despite our usual wariness regarding adaptations.

The premise of the story is that Shizuka’s house burned down 13 years ago, and her mother took the blame for it. Her parents divorced soon after, and Shizuka’s father remarried Makiko, whom Shizuka believes is the real culprit behind that incident. Additionally, Satsuki is in the hospital suffering from stress-induced amnesia, and the doctor believes that tokens of her past can help restore her memory. The mystery here is that Satsuki believes that she was the one to set the fire, and Shizuka must get to the bottom of the incident if she wishes to save her mother. There may or may not be some romance with Kiichi Mitarai, depending on whether the series stays faithful to the manga or not. Yuzu Murata might also take an active role right from the beginning instead of being a silent supporter of her sister from the background.

We also expect some serious commentary on the prevalence of the influencer lifestyle. It is no secret that people love to hate them, and our villain, Makiko Mitarai, represents everything wrong with them, right from the lies to the faking of lifestyles and curating an incorrect image. In fact, that is how Shizuka is going to target her to begin with: by exposing all of her lies. Makiko’s influence is in the home and lifestyle space, and Shizuka is the housekeeper, aka the person doing the actual work.

We also expect some exploration of the people known as “hikikomori,” otherwise known as someone who shuts themselves in their room for long periods of time and refuses to come out. Kiichi is one, and since the series will be watched by an international audience, knowing more about this will give an insight into some of the lesser-talked about Japanese concepts.

We have noticed that the most successful non-English-language movies and series have been those that have not tailored themselves to an international audience but retained the regional essence of the stories. Some prime examples are “Money Heist,” one of the many Korean dramas out there, or even some of the more successful Colombian dramas like “The Marked Heart.” One of the reasons expectations remain so high from Japanese or East Asian content is not just because of this but also because they are known to very cleverly intertwine the progressive fantasy with the deceit of traditionalism, and they seldom try to whitewash it unless it is a romantic fantasy of sorts. That is the reason we expect Burn The House Down to be so good.

We recently watched an anime called Kotaro Lives Alone and its live-action remake side by side. There were significant similarities within the story presented, and strictly going by that, we believe that Burn The House Down would be pretty much similar to the manga, except that a few new scenes might be introduced to enhance the story. This is our assumption based on what little the trailer has offered us. Maybe that was for the fans of the manga itself, and for those who haven’t read it, the premise is intriguing enough. We are certainly tempted to check out what the show is going to offer us. Honestly, we just expect some seamless entertainment for a few hours, and we also predict a binge-able quality to it. We are keeping our fingers crossed that we are not disappointed with this.

Mickey Haller, aka the Lincoln lawyer, had a reputation for finding details and looking into blind spots like no one else could. Well, that is what being a lawyer or an attorney is all about. It is said that evidence is always in front of you, and you just need to have an eye to see it. There can be a near-perfect crime, but it is still a fact that no matter how efficient the perpetrator is, they leave some sort of trail behind. With the trailer for the second season out, there is a lot of anticipation among the fans, and we, too, are eager to know what kind of case our Lincoln Lawyer gets entangled in this time around.

We believe that Haller got an edge above the rest because, apart from looking into documented evidence, he also made sure that he studied the mannerisms, behaviors, and entire physical demeanor of both the opponent and his client. This knack for spotting what looks like seemingly inconsequential details at first is what made him crack the case of Trevor Elliot in the last season. Also, one more thing that makes Mickey Haller different is that he is not afraid to scrutinize his own actions, and in court, being pompous about one’s opinions and deductions can often mislead you and prevent you from seeing the truth. It is probably the most difficult task to base one’s perception on solid evidence and then try to rebut it and find contradictory evidence that supports the other narrative.

Something similar happened in the first season when Mickey found out that his entire 7-minute theory about Trevor Elliot was probably not right. Mickey, for the longest time, had thought that it was not possible that someone could dispose of the murder weapon, hide the evidence, and clear the place in just 7 minutes, but he was wrong as he got to know that Trevor used a drone to dispose of the incriminating items. Had Mickey not been open to scrutinizing his own theory, it wouldn’t have been possible to find out what had actually happened in Trevor’s case, in addition to finding out the truth about Judge Holder and how she was running a scam by rigging the jury. Also, Trevor’s story about the Russian investor was very convincing, and Mickey had to actually go into every bit of detail to find out that it was a sham. Mickey trusted his instincts, and he would be seen doing the same in the second season too.

At the beginning of the trailer for The Lincoln Lawyer Season 2, we see that Mickey is attacked by two men, once again, in the parking garage. Even the narrator recognizes this fact: Mickey had some deep connection with the parking lot, as back in the day, even Jerry Vincent had been shot there. Jerry had handed over his entire practice to Mickey, and that had changed his life, to say the least. It was one of those events that Mickey could probably not forget for an entire lifetime. After solving the case of Trevor Elliot and getting Judge Holder convicted for her crimes, Mickey got a lot of media attention. We saw him in the trailer for season 2, finding time to give interviews to media houses, though he was very cautious not to let all the attention and fame get to his head. He still had to focus on his cases and make sure that justice was served.

In the trailer, we witnessed that Haller met a woman named Lisa Trammell, and it did seem like our Lincoln lawyer got infatuated with her. Not a lot of things are disclosed about Lisa, apart from the fact that she was very evidently flirting with Mickey, and it did seem like it was not pure attraction, but she had some ulterior motives that were driving her actions. Mickey seemed to like the attention that he was getting from Lisa, but it was very evident that she is not the person she is pretending to be. Maybe Lisa knew that she would be convicted of the crime in the future, and that is why she came so close to Mickey on purpose. At the end of the trailer, we saw Lorna saying that Mickey was once again fighting Lisa’s case pro bono, i.e., he was not taking any money for his services. This could have been one of the biggest reasons why Lisa tried to woo him because, though she didn’t have any money, she must have known that she would need the best in the business if she wanted to get acquitted of her charges.

We believe that even though Mickey had accepted Lisa’s case, he would find some evidence that would prove that Lisa was not as innocent as she was pretending to be. It is quite possible that, just like Trevor Elliot, she was also hiding the truth, and she wanted to hire an exceptional lawyer so that if there were any flaws in her theory, then our Lincoln lawyer would try to make up for them. But she forgot that Mickey Haller was not afraid to put his own beliefs under scrutiny, and that would mean that he wouldn’t mind losing if he found that Lisa was playing with him. In the last season, we caught a glimpse of the man with a tattoo who was the real perpetrator in the Jesus Menendez case, and it is possible that season 2 delves more into that subject matter. It is possible that the man with a tattoo might be related to Lisa Trammell in some way or another, and Mickey, while investigating and doing research on Lisa, might bump into some information that would reveal the identity of the tattooed man.

We are absolutely sure that Mickey Haller would once again listen to his conscience, just like he did in Jesus’ case, and try to do the right thing. Walking on the righteous path is often not easy when the entire system is rigged, but if Mickey didn’t hold himself back from messing with Judge Holder and holding her accountable for her crimes, then we don’t think that anybody or anything could hold him back in season 2 either.