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STAR Movie Review

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Kavin, the talented actor, consistently showcases his skills in portraying both adorable expressions and serious situations. In ‘Star’, he excels in these aspects. However, director Elan attempts to portray him as the ultimate romantic heartthrob, with girls swooning over his cuteness. Unfortunately, this portrayal falls short, as Kavin possesses much more potential beyond this image. Another noteworthy performance comes from director Lal, whose character is inspired by Elan’s own father. The father-son moments are deeply touching. However, Elan falters when he tries to incorporate commercial elements of romance. The first half of the film progresses flawlessly, but the second half becomes burdened with clichés, faintly reminiscent of ‘Vaaranam Aayiram’ and ‘Mayakkam Enna’. Preity Mukundan delivers a commendable performance in her role, and Aaditi Pohankar is also good, although her character falls into the typical Tamil cinematic trope of a girl who falls for the hero.

There are several instances where Elan could have earned extra points. For example, the characters Kavin encounters during the montage song (a delightful surprise for Yuvan fans with the reprisal of ‘Orey Naalil’ from ‘Pudhupettai’). If Elan had managed to showcase the emotions and values imparted by these characters, which shape and mold Kavin as both a person and an actor, it would have added more depth to the narrative. Unfortunately, he falls short in this aspect.

Yuvan Shankar Raja’s soulful contribution to the film is evident in the captivating background score, demonstrating his complete dedication to the project.

Overall, ‘STAR’ is a film adorned with emotions, and despite its minor flaws, this coming-of-age movie manages to overshadow them with its fantastic performances.

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'Star' movie review: A bid to deflate myths

Star , Malayalam’s first release after the Covid lockdown, is a mystery drama that attempts to deflate myths.

Myths in most spooky movies are a mix of celestial movements, folklore, and supposed paranormal activity. And so is eponymous Star , starring Joju George, Sheelu Abraham, and Gayathri Ashok, with Prithviraj Sukumaran coming up with a climax cameo.

Prithviraj, Joju George join for 'Star'

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So in tune with the interplay of celestial movements and myths, our protagonist, Aardra, is seemingly out of touch with the 'normal' from scene one.

Then her behavioural pattern gets as weird as it can get as the plot struggles to unfurl along with her demons of which her doting husband, Roy, and their children have no clue.

Their inferences are mainly woven by the folklore revolving around the sacred groves surrounding her ancestral home, which is served on a platter by their housemaid, who is also from the same place.

So the children and her hubby struggle to come to terms with her peculiar behaviour, which is initially triggered by a dream in which she sees the sacred groves. That is a bad omen, the maid tells us.

And Aardra wants to visit the place.

The events which unfurl during and after the visit forms the crux of Star .

The acting prowess of Joju is the takeaway from Star , directed by Domin D’Silva.

The music is composed by M. Jayachandran, Ranjin Raj, and William Francis, who has done the background score also. Harinarayanan has penned the lyrics.

Theatres in Kerala were shut in March 2020 in the aftermath of the pandemic, and reopened in January this year. However, they had to be closed again in mid-April, following the second wave of COVID-19. How Star  can pull the crowds to the cinema halls will be definitely a mystery.

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The Star (2017)

NA / English / Animation / Not Available

In Sony Pictures Animation's THE STAR, a small but brave donkey named Bo yearns for a life beyond his daily grind at the village mill. One day he finds the courage to break free, and finally goes on the adventure of his dreams. On his journey, he teams up with Ruth, a lovable sheep who has lost her flock and Dave, a dove with lofty aspirations. Along with three wisecracking camels and some eccentric stable animals, Bo and his new friends follow the Star and become accidental heroes in the greatest story ever told - the first Christmas.

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Movie review: Malaysian film Guang shines with solid lead performances and impressive visuals

89 minutes/Opens on March 14

The story: An autistic man, Wen Guang (Kyo Chen), is sent out to look for work by his brother (Ernest Chong), known only as Didi (younger brother in Mandarin). But those attempts at getting hired fail. Wen Guang is compulsively drawn to objects that produce musical notes, or behaves in a way that causes potential employers to reject him. His brother, who has raised him since the death of their mother, resents postponing his ambitions to look after the selfish, child-like man.

There is something about autistic savants. From Rain Man (1988) to the hit television series The Good Doctor (2017 to present), now in its second season, savants are shown to be superheroes with tragic frailties.

We now know that this fascination is troubling because savant abilities are rare in the autistic population. It distracts public attention from painful issues those with autism face every day.

This film gets a pass for two reasons.

Firstly, this story is semi-autobiographical, and secondly, Wen Guang's (Chen) skills are useless in real life. He cannot diagnose illnesses the way Freddie Highmore's character can in The Good Doctor, nor can he employ them in a casino, the way Dustin Hoffman's character does in Rain Man.

In fact, Wen Guang's sonic super-power hurts him and his brother (Chong), because it is also a full-blown compulsion. It overrides any instruction from his exasperated brother.

The film digs into the idea of being born a brother's keeper and the pain that it causes when the one being cared for seems to understand wrong from right, but does wrong anyway. Such is the dilemma of being a moderate to high-functioning person with autism, the film seems to say.

Wen Guang looks capable of holding down a simple blue-collar job, but it feels as if he is wilfully ignoring his brother's pleas for him to follow basic social norms.

Both Chen and Chong, as the autistic man and his brother respectively, emanate authenticity. The performances are naturalistic and so good, they help the film bounce back from its third-act descent into sentimentality.

Film-maker Quek Shio Chuan, who co-wrote the screenplay based on his real-life experiences with his brother, has coaxed gut-wrenching portrayals from the two actors, while at the same time never losing a slightly acerbic comic tone.

Wen Guang is the picture of child-like innocence, but around him are supporting characters who nail their portrayals of cynical Kuala Lumpur types with a few pithy lines.

Working with cinematographer Eric Yeong, Quek has taken great care in how the film looks, from the interiors of Wen Guang's well-worn flat in KL's Pudu district to its coffee shops and street life, the film's visuals are a guilty pleasure.

Yes, the images lean towards romanticised squalor, but the craft is undeniable and arresting.

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Sweet Nativity story told from animals' perspective.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Introduces the basic elements of the biblical Nati

Positive messages include the power of generosity,

Mary and Joseph are faithful, loving, and caring -

A sequence between Herod's enforcers and a village

Mary and Joseph are affectionate.

Parents need to know that The Star is an animated, faith-based take on the Nativity story that's told from the perspective of the animals that accompanied Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem. There's nothing too scary or iffy for young kids, except for a scene in which a big, scary animal charges people and other…

Educational Value

Introduces the basic elements of the biblical Nativity story.

Positive Messages

Positive messages include the power of generosity, integrity, and compassion; the importance of protecting others; the importance of following through on your duty/responsibilities; and faith that the journey toward Mary and Joseph (and baby Jesus) had an important purpose. Promotes the idea that friends support and help one another.

Positive Role Models

Mary and Joseph are faithful, loving, and caring -- Mary in particular cares about the animals that turn up on the couple's journey toward Bethlehem. Bo starts out dreaming of glory and adventure and then finds his purpose through staying with Mary and helping her and Joseph. Many of the animals feel strongly convicted to follow a particular path. Some of the dangerous animals redeem themselves after Jesus' birth. King Herod is cruel and selfish, but he and his minions are clearly portrayed as bad guys in the wrong. Mary doesn't look particularly Middle Eastern.

Violence & Scariness

A sequence between Herod's enforcers and a village includes peril and some frightening animals (including angry dogs), but no one is seriously hurt. Characters navigate some perilous paths and cliffs on their journey. Bo's initial companion sacrifices his safety so Bo can escape. Herod plots against Mary and Joseph; his minions can be intimidating.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that The Star is an animated, faith-based take on the Nativity story that's told from the perspective of the animals that accompanied Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem. There's nothing too scary or iffy for young kids, except for a scene in which a big, scary animal charges people and other animals (no one is seriously hurt). There are also two intimidating attack dogs that end up temporarily incapacitated before they can do any harm, and a few other scenes of peril. King Herod is cruel and selfish, but he's clearly a bad guy -- as are the minions he sends after Mary and Joseph. Expect strong, clear messages about Christmas, family, and faith; obviously the movie aligns with the Christian belief in Jesus' virgin birth (although that detail isn't lingered on). It also has themes of compassion and integrity. Moviegoers of all backgrounds will recognize many of the voice actors (including Keegan-Michael Key , Oprah Winfrey , and Zachary Levi ), but the film is likely to have the most appeal for Christian families. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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Community Reviews

• Parents say (56)
• Kids say (22)

Based on 56 parent reviews

Nice ending but a lot of violence

Great intro to nativity and being a good friend, what's the story.

Inspired by the Nativity story, THE STAR follows Bo the donkey (voiced by Steven Yeun ), who dreams of escaping his dull duties working for the village miller and finding glory and adventure in the outside world. One day he manages to escape and eventually teams up with Ruth ( Aidy Bryant ), a sheep who's lost her flock, and Dave ( Keegan-Michael Key ), a wisecracking dove. The trio begins an action-packed journey to follow a star that's leading them toward young, pregnant Mary ( Gina Rodriguez ) and her husband, Joseph ( Zachary Levi ), who've been forced by royal decree to travel to Bethlehem. Meanwhile, King Herod's ( Christopher Plummer ) henchmen, armed with a few scary attack animals, are on the lookout for pregnant women like Mary -- but Bo and his friends are ready to protect their human friends.

Is It Any Good?

With a great voice cast and cute character animation, this religious tale is just funny and entertaining enough to amuse most families who celebrate Christmas, not just devout church-goers. The Star manages to finely balance the biblical aspects of the Nativity story with the sillier elements associated with animated talking-animal movies. TV star Yeun ( The Walking Dead ) plays Bo with an earnest hopefulness, which is balanced well by Dave, the knowing, joke-cracking dove voiced by comedian Key. Kids will likely connect with the animals more than they do the biblical adults, who are well acted but far more serious, considering everything that a heavily pregnant Mary (who for some reason has pretty pale skin and huge blue eyes) and Joseph (who at least looks Middle Eastern) are going through to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

Although the movie's subject matter is clearly religious, it isn't overtly preachy (unlike many other faith-based films). Still, it's definitely aimed at families that already celebrate Christmas. But it's light enough to amuse kids, and parents will get a kick out of the cast, which also includes turns by Oprah Winfrey , Tyler Perry , Kristin Chenoweth , Anthony Anderson , Tracy Morgan , and more. The catchy soundtrack includes a variety of secular, gospel, and Christian superstars -- including Mariah Carey (who sings the theme song), Kirk Franklin, Casting Crowns, and Pentatonix -- singing a mix of classic and contemporary Christmas songs like "We Three Kings" and "Breath of Heaven (Mary's Song)." Bottom line? The Star will definitely appeal to Christian families with young kids as a holiday season pick.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the messages of family, faith, and friendship in The Star. What does Bo learn on his journey that leads him to Mary and Joseph? How does he change over the course of the movie?

How do some of the characters exemplify integrity and compassion ? Why are those important character strengths ?

Who's the target audience for this movie? Do you need to be Christian to appreciate its story and themes/messages?

Why do you think movies about talking animals are so fascinating and funny to kids?

Movie Details

• In theaters : November 17, 2017
• On DVD or streaming : February 6, 2018
• Cast : Steven Yeun , Gina Rodriguez , Keegan-Michael Key
• Director : Timothy Reckart
• Inclusion Information : Asian actors, Female actors, Latino actors, Black actors
• Studios : Columbia Pictures , Sony Pictures Releasing
• Genre : Family and Kids
• Topics : Friendship , Holidays , Wild Animals
• Character Strengths : Compassion , Integrity
• Run time : 86 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG
• MPAA explanation : some thematic elements
• Last updated : December 8, 2023

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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The personal essay film is a tricky genre, because when you get right down to it, who cares? Sure, there is a brotherhood of man and all that, but is it such that we’ll be interested enough in a brother’s struggles that we’re willing to sit with them for a while in a movie theater, not to mention shell out money for the experience?

These questions represent perhaps crass generalizations that crowd out the potentially dire and potentially universal themes and narratives that a personal documentary can encompass, but you get the idea. And the idea applies with particular pertinence to this movie, “Flipside,” which winds up making us care about the existential crisis of a white, possibly upper-middle-class male with no health issues, an apparently lovely family, a high-end profession in a form of filmmaking, and a lot more to be happy about.

The writer-director of “Flipside,” Chris Wilcha , pulls us in through indirection. He starts the movie with a portrait of Herman Leonard, a music photographer, who sits in a gallery surrounded by his portraits of the likes of Nat “King” Cole and Chet Baker and muses that “every life is a trip” and “you are the captain of your boat.” These platitudes gain some real weight when Leonard tells us he’s dying. Wilcha then informs us that the footage we’re watching is from a documentary he started but never finished. Turns out he's got a bunch of them.

“Flipside” then depicts how this state of affairs came to be. Wilcha presents a brisk account of his early years, the no-sell-out grunge ethos he grew up with as a Gen Xer, and how, upon taking a corporate job at Columbia House, he interrogated a system he despised from the inside, actually finishing an eventually well-regarded 2000 documentary “The Target Shoots First.” Predictions that he could be the Gen-X Michael Moore ran headlong into Wilcha’s need to make a living, which led to ostensibly meaningful jobs like a gig at “This American Life.” But largely, Wilcha made commercials. Becoming the thing he beheld and disdained.

Seeking something like redemption or legitimacy or ... well, meaning, Wilcha found his way back to a record store in Pompton Lakes called Flipside, where he had a job as a teenager. (A Jersey boy myself, I’ve actually set foot in the joint at least once.) Its proprietor, referred to throughout only by his first name, Dan, is, like Wilcha, something of a hoarder. This gives the spot its distinct flavor but also makes it an awkward business in the digital age. Wilcha’s initial resolve to make a film to help the business diffuses over time and becomes another unfinished project.

Given that this is a finished movie, there is a story here, one with a conclusion. And one that pulls in a lot of notable names. Judd Apatow , also the movie’s executive producer, is here. He’s the guy who got Wilcha to move to Los Angeles in the first place, inadvertently setting the filmmaker’s boat in the direction of advertising work. (He also provides one of the movie’s paradoxical axioms: “It’s not hoarding if all your shit is awesome.”) “Deadwood” creator David Milch figures. So does Floyd Vivino, aka Uncle Floyd, the Jersey cult legend whose oddball VHF television show entranced the artistic cognoscenti across the Hudson to the extent that David Bowie , seen here in archival concert footage, wrote a song in which Floyd and his puppet Oogie are talismanic personae. All of whom address, in some way or another, the question of how one does work that’s meaningful in a world that often seems hell-bent on squelching meaning. Whatever “Flipside” ultimately “means,” it’s ninety minutes well, and often amusingly and movingly, spent.

Glenn Kenny

Glenn Kenny was the chief film critic of Premiere magazine for almost half of its existence. He has written for a host of other publications and resides in Brooklyn. Read his answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here .

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Wira Review: Meet the Next Martial Arts Movie Star

Malaysia cinema brings a new martial hero to Netflix with Hairul Azreen in Wira.

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The hottest fight scenes are coming out of Southeast Asia right now. And fresh off the boat is the Malaysian actioner Wira , now available on Netflix and starring a bright young martial star named Hairul Azreen. The Southeastern charge into martial arts movies began in 2011 with the Indonesian breakout film, The Raid: Redemption . The sequel, The Raid 2 , picked up the action right where the first film left off and a new vision for ultraviolence was born. Fight choregraphy turned visceral, merciless, and totally awesome.

The Raid films introduced the world to fight scene game-changers Iko Uwais and Yayan Ruhian, who rose to such cult status in stunt person circles that they scored superfluous cameos in Star Wars: The Force Awakens .

Now Malaysia, which is just across the ocean from the Indonesian islands, is picking up the martial mantle with its own keen take on cinema. Wira tapped Ruhian as the villain to oppose the new kid Azreen, but it’s not like the newbie establishing himself by besting a fading predecessor as imagined in Once Upon a Time … In Hollywood . Ruhian is still at the top of his game and he also sits in the most critical chair for a martial arts movie here: the Fight Choreographer. 

Ruhian, like Uwais, is a genuine master of the Southeast Asian martial art of Silat. Silat is an umbrella term for a large and diverse collection of combat disciplines practiced across Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Through their influence, the ferocity of Silat brought a brand-new take on action with extreme and gritty battles, one that has been echoing across Hollywood cinema lately. It ratchets up the bar for viciousness and sanguine splatter, and Ruhian brings this to Wira in full force. 

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As martial arts movie stars go, Hairul Azreen is one to watch. Azreen has previously starred in a string of burgeoning Malaysian actioners. Unlike Ruhian, Azreen is not a Silat master. He holds a black belt in Taekwondo. Strapping and dashing, Azreen has an impossibly long neck and stands taller than most of his castmates and stuntmen. It presents a challenge to his fight scenes. His enemies become smaller, less menacing. In order to compensate for his physical dominance, Wira adds sheer numbers, pitting Azreen against big gangs of baseball bat and machete wielding foes in outrageous one-versus-dozens melees. 

In Wira , Azreen plays Hassan, a former commando returned to pull his father and sister out of the ghetto. Hassan’s old hood is ruled by the evil kingpin Raja (Dain Iskandar Said), a slumlord, MMA promoter, meth maker, and oppressive boss of the condom factory that runs the ghetto. Half of the time, Raja speaks English instead of Malay, adding to his villainy. The film opens with a brutal caricature of a women’s MMA fight between Raja’s daughter Vee (Ismi Melinda) and Hassan’s sister Zain (Fify Azmi) setting up a female rivalry that runs the course of the film. Hassan enters like Rambo in First Blood , a returning soldier walking into town who gets stopped by police, but there’s a twist. The rest of the film is genre cliché—Hassan’s family is bound by an old debt to Raja. To pay it off, Hassan and Zain are forced back into the MMA ring, and the fights just keep escalating from there.

However, this is a martial arts film, so the plot comes secondary to the action and it is Hassan’s fight scenes that garner the spotlight. He bursts into action with a thrilling long take fight against a horde of gangsters. Within the martial genre, a long take fight scene has been held in the highest regard since the golden era of the old school Shaw Brothers Studios Kung Fu movies back in the ‘70s. Fight choreography is a dangerous dance where a misstep can easily end in an actor’s broken jaw. The more movements that a continuously shot fight can pull off is a testament to the action star’s skill as well as the stunt people, the choreographers, and the cinematographers. Hassan’s first fight scene is a convoluted warehouse fight that runs almost a minute and a half. While that’s no 1917 , the complicated composition of the scene is outstanding, a showcase of what Azreen can deliver. 

Beyond that warehouse fight, the novel use of long-take drone shots is inspired. One visionary fight scene breaks out of the window of a cramped bus alongside a tossed body, circles the moving bus peering in at the fight within, then re-enters through another window broken by a gunshot. Although not a fight scene, there’s another long-take drone shot that starts as the gang crashes the gate of the slumlord’s tenement housing at street level. The camera soars up over the building to look down through the courtyard upon the perpetrators as they climb up the staircases, and then pans upward on the balcony where their target awaits. It’s a flash of Malaysian style on how to move a camera.

The climax of any martial arts film is in the final fight. And here, Wira does not disappoint with a face-off between the film’s two biggest badasses for the main event: Azreen versus Ruhian. Ruhian plays Raja’s top heavy, Ifrit. With few lines, Ruhian seethes with menace. Azreen is much taller than Ruhian, but Ruhian makes up for his lack of reach with his precision and timing. Many of the earlier gang fights had wide swings and hesitations that came off staged. However, that was somewhat forgivable. The gang members weren’t meant to be as skilled as Hassan, and it’s easy to spoil any one-on-dozens fight scene by watching the background stunt people queue up for their butt kicking. This makes Ruhian shine even more. His actions are so tight and fast that there’s little room for error. When he dominates Azreen, and Azmi too, he sells those punches with panache. Ruhian’s Silat is pure pugilistic poetry in motion.

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Wira is directed by Adrian Teh, one of Malaysia’s top directors with award-winning films like The Hungry Ghost Ritual and Southeast Asian box office successes like King of Mahjong . His rom-com time-travel parody, Goodbye Mr. Loser, was an enormous sleeper hit in Mainland China that even garnered a limited North American theatrical release and earned $228 million worldwide. 

Wira is the second collaboration between Teh and Azreen. Azreen played Arman, the leading man for Teh’s militaristic Paskal . Just like China’s two blockbuster Wolf Warrior films had the support of China’s People Liberation Army, Paskal was backed by the Royal Malaysian Navy. No matter what country, official support of the armed forces converts films into propagandist gun shows, macho displays of military might, and nationalistic heroes, as well as recruitment ads. This isn’t to say such films lack spectacle. The fire fights are as explosive as they get. No need for CGI when there’s real missiles to shoot. Although the bulk of the action is gunplay and firefights, there’s a ferocious finale fight between Arman and the traitorous Jeb (Ammar Alfian), an actor who is bigger and burlier than Azreen. It’s a decent piece of fight choreography, made more interesting by its vertiginous setting on an oil rig platform.

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Paskal was only released in theaters locally. Nevertheless, it earned 30 million Malaysian Ringgits ($7 million dollars), making it a major blockbuster by Malaysian standards. Netflix also picked up Paskal last year. Although Azreen plays a completely different character in Paskal , the film exists in the same universe as Wira , and the concluding tease for a potential sequel which would merge the storylines. 

Teh had both Azreen and Azmi commit to three months of training prior to Wira . Azreen put in additional daily sessions with Ruhian, sharpening his fight chops with the master. During filming, Azreen tore a ligament in his right leg but he shook it off, claiming that Wira was the action film he had been dreaming of making for a long time. Wira means ‘hero’ in Malay, and Azreen is already a hero to his country. With the right opportunities, he could be a new martial hero for the world. 

Wira is now available globally on Netflix. Subtitles are limited to English and Malay.

Gene Ching is a 32nd generation layman disciple of the original Shaolin Temple of China and was the publisher of Kung Fu Tai Chi magazine until…

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Movies | ‘young woman and the sea’ review: daisy ridley navigates a shallow but rousing swimming pic.

In 1926, 20-year-old Gertrude Ederle, raised in a German immigrant household in New York City, swam the English Channel in 14 hours and 31 minutes. She bested the previous record-holder, a male, by two hours and became the first female athlete to make the crossing.

Two million people turned out for her ticker-tape parade. President Calvin Coolidge called her “America’s best girl.” After decades and centuries of patriarchal whining about women, swimming and the galling impropriety of the words “women” and “swimming” in close proximity, Ederle’s feat changed the course of athletics.

The movie tidies things up for its tour of Ederle’s life, focused by screenwriter Jeff Nathanson (“Catch Me If You Can,” the forthcoming “Lion King” prequel “Mufasa”) on 15 or so of the subject’s first 20 years. Trudy, as Gertrude was called by some, initially was not the most talented swimmer in the family; her older sister, Meg, was. That shifted soon enough; by the early 1920s, and Trudy’s late teens, she was the most famous female athlete in America, winning gold and bronze medals in the 1924 Paris Olympics. An initial go at the Channel crossing proved unsuccessful, and (some say) actively sabotaged by Ederle’s coach, Jabez Wolffe, who’d himself attempted the crossing 22 times to no avail.

“Young Woman and the Sea” plays around with various degrees of truth and fiction, because it’s not a documentary and, you know, welcome to the concept of movies based on true stories. None of them, not a one, tells the whole truth and nothing but the truth. It’s not their job. In the film, Ederle’s Olympic triumphs (she won gold and bronze medals) become invisible, rewritten instead as a general part of a general failure and a huge setback for women’s sports. In the film, her second, successful Channel attempt comes mere hours after the first, not a year later.

These things don’t necessarily matter (to me, at least) when a movie’s working as drama. This happens just often enough — and by the precision-tooled setback/triumph/setback/triumph pacing of the climax, just rousingly enough — to take care of business.

Throughout, director Joachim Ronning, next in line for the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise, manages a fairly pleasing blend of practical 1920s-era recreations, digital effects (plentiful but rarely completely fraudulent-looking) and shamelessly effective melodrama. Every sexist, misogynist resistance point to Ederle’s mission, feels not unlikely (it wasn’t; it was assuredly omnipresent a century ago) but boiled down to reductive, pencil-sketched character traits. Man A is a good man because treats Trudy as an equal, with respect; Men B, C, D, E and F-Z are not good men because they snigger and sneer at her, and all women.

And is too much to have the sniveling Scots swim coach (Christopher Eccleston) actually heave a radio through the nearest window pane at a key moment? Maybe, but who cares? The preview screening crowd was well and truly into the swim of things by that point. While never getting the material she needs to match her skills, Ridley creates a heroine both storybook-vibrant and human-scaled.

It’s not the creative license part of sports biopics that bugs me. It’s the screenwriters’ avoidance of how people actually talked, and behaved, in the time and place of the storyline. In this instance we have a German immigrant family, with good actors (led by Jeanette Hain and Kim Bodnia as Gertud and Henry Ederle) at the helm, yet there’s no attempt at even mentioning the anti-German sentiment of the mid- and post-World War I era. Sometimes it’s not what’s in a movie that weakens it, but what isn’t.

Yet this is sheer irrelevance by the end. Trudy Ederle’s paradoxically exhilarating ordeal amid the choppy waters, threatening skies, jellyfish and sheer physical punishment of the Channel was made for the screen. Not even the most generic film score in recent memory can keep “Young Woman and the Sea,” its title pulling a real-life variation from Hemingway’s old man and his sea, from reaching its destination.

“Young Woman and the Sea” — 2.5 stars (out of 4)

MPA rating: PG (for thematic elements, some language and partial nudity)

Running time: 2:08

How to watch: Premieres in theaters May 31

Phillips is a Tribune critic.

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'The Dead Don't Hurt': Viggo Mortenson makes a Western of gentle romance and brutal violence

The star, who also directs, has lovely chemistry with leading lady vicky krieps..

Viggo Mortensen wrote and directed “The Dead Don’t Hurt” and stars as Holger, a Danish immigrant who recently lost his wife.

Shout! Studios

One imagines Viggo Mortensen is a big fan of Clint Eastwood’s 1992 “Unforgiven,” given how Mortensen’s “The Dead Don’t Hurt” echoes the basic framework of that classic Western, i.e., a widower and father living on the outskirts of town who would just as soon avoid conflict and violence, but that’s not the way of this world. Not that this film (or for that matter, any other Western made in the last 30 years) can stack up to “Unforgiven,” but it is a lean and brutally authentic tale bolstered by outstanding performances from Mortensen, the versatile Vicky Krieps and a terrific supporting cast.

Mortensen does it all in “The Dead Don’t Hurt.” He’s the director, star and producer, and he even contributes the music, which alternates between Western fiddles and haunting chamber music. Maybe the dead don’t hurt, but the body count does escalate quickly in three scenes early in the film: a number of victims are gunned down in a saloon, a man is arrested and quickly tried and hanged for those killings, and just outside of town, a man buries his wife, who has succumbed to a long illness.

In a storytelling choice that is unnecessary and at times slightly confusing, “The Dead Don’t Hurt” toggles back and forth along the timeline throughout the film. Looking every bit the rugged leading man at 65, Mortensen has an Eastwood-esque stoicism as Holger Olsen, the man who was burying his wife. In flashback sequences, we learn Holger is a Danish immigrant who met Krieps’ Vivienne, a French-Canadian, in San Francisco. They have an instant connection, and Vivienne brushes aside the smarmy dandy (Colin Morgan) who has been courting her and accompanies Holger back to his hometown in Nevada.

Here we meet the usual array of Western archetypes, including the wealthy and powerful businessman Alfred Jeffries (Garret Dillahunt); his dangerously unhinged and violent son, Weston (Solly McLeod); the friendly saloonkeeper, Alan Kendall (W. Earl Brown), and the cheerfully corrupt Mayor Rudolph Schiller (Danny Huston, as always doing work that honors the legendary Huston family legacy).

Vivienne (Vicky Krieps) starts a new life with Holger in Nevada.

Holger and Vivienne literally build a home together, but when a group of soldiers fighting for the North in the Civil War come to Nevada to recruit new blood, Holger joins up, much to the shock and disappointment of Vivienne, who points out he’s too old for this war, and also, they’re supposed to be building a life together. Two years later, Holger returns, and let’s just say it might not have been the best idea for him to leave Vivienne alone in this godforsaken town.

As a director, Mortensen keeps things clean and simple, opting for basic medium-closeups in the interiors, and wisely showcasing the vast and awesome period-piece exteriors, with location shooting in British Columbia and Durango, Mexico. (The attempt at realism goes overboard in one curious way; we hear the irritating and over-loud sounds of flies buzzing in nearly every outdoor sequence.) Krieps and Mortensen have a lovely and understated chemistry together; though Vivienne and Holger come from vastly different backgrounds, they are kindred spirits. We know there’s going to be a big showdown late in the story, and the confrontation doesn’t disappoint. It’s a clever twist on the classic standoff, and it concludes the Western fable on a perfect note.

Review: Carved out of rough-hewn elements, ‘The Dead Don’t Hurt’ charms with retro-western poise

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Some actors seem made for westerns, even if they rarely appear in them. Viggo Mortensen, stalwart leading man of weathered good looks and appealing reserve, certainly qualifies. But now that he’s written and directed one, “The Dead Don’t Hurt,” Mortensen’s second feature behind and in front of the camera, he has generously shown us that the luminous Vicky Krieps belongs in that category, too. The supremely watchable pairing of these magnetic actors is what helps lift this lyrically crafted frontier love story above the usual efforts to restore the genre’s appeal.

The gently blossoming match of a strong-willed woman of French-Canadian origin with a taciturn, self-reliant Danish immigrant is this film’s beating heart, from their initial spark in San Francisco to their settling in a ramshackle cabin on the outskirts of a one-saloon Nevada town called Elk Flats. This being a western, though, the specter of death and violence is never far away. Mortensen even starts with a pair of grim scenes that in other films might be endings — one a private loss, the other a public shootout. They trigger the film’s temporally loose narrative tapestry, in which flashbacks (which have their own flashbacks) begin to feel as if the playing out of the past is this tale’s true present, the way it might feel to someone in mourning.

Viggo Mortensen scores his own movies. His music background is a saga in itself

Forever Aragorn, the actor now writes and directs. He composed the score for his new western, “The Dead Don’t Hurt,” and has a long punk-adjacent history.

May 31, 2024

For big-city flower seller Vivienne (Krieps), who can take care of herself and relishes childhood memories of idolizing Joan of Arc, the attraction to rugged, kind-eyed carpenter Olsen (Mortensen) is in the promise of adventure, passion and mutual respect for each other’s rock-ribbed independence. We sense early on, from Mortensen’s delicate handling of their courtship, that this isn’t some musty rehash of the trope where she civilizes him and he domesticates her. Rather, watching them interact as they whip their home into shape, they come off as adults, not so much love-struck as love-sturdy. Clear-eyed about themselves and the realities of their adopted nation, they’re willing to forge something together, confident they’re there for each other in a time of growing turbulence.

The Civil War is nigh, for one thing, but part of that unease is local, too. There’s an air of menace in town, fostered by a corrupt alliance between the mayor and a wealthy businessman — played, respectively, by horse-opera dependables Danny Huston and Garret Dillahunt — plus the gleefully sadistic presence of the latter’s entitled, insolent son (a forbidding Solly McLeod). We fully expect that danger to touch the central couple’s lives when Olsen, a military veteran, feels compelled to fight for the Union, leaving behind Vivienne, who begins working at the saloon’s bar. Before long, her fortitude is put to the severest of tests, and eventually, so is Olsen’s, upon his return years later.

There’s little the radiant Krieps ( “Phantom Thread” ) can’t do with a headstrong, ahead-of-her-time character, and in period stories especially, she preserves a spiky modern sensibility — both the rose and its thorns. The durably authentic Mortensen, meanwhile, understands that his mostly reactive role is closer to a featured part than a lead. At times in his scenes with Krieps, you’d swear his smitten expressions are as much about a director’s gratitude than a lonesome tradesman’s good fortune. (Mortensen, for whom this project is clearly personal, also wrote the forlorn cello-and-violin score , which mostly satisfies, if at times calling to mind a Ken Burns history lesson awaiting old-timey narration.)

“The Dead Don’t Hurt” is soothingly picturesque, meeting the requirement that any western worth its boots needs an evocative, immersive look to take in a campfire’s glow or the scorching glare of day. That task is handled with aplomb by cinematographer Marcel Zyskind, blessed with vista-rich locations in Durango, Mexico, and Canada. But it’s also helped immeasurably by actors whose faces, in any given light, photograph like their own rich landscapes, of happiness, strength, care and pain.

'The Dead Don't Hurt'

Rating: R, for violence, some sexuality and language Running time: 2 hours, 9 minutes Playing: Now in wide release

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‘Summer Camp’ Review: Star-Studded Comedy Preaches Fun, but Forgets to Cut Loose Itself

Despite Kathy Bates, Diane Keaton and Alfre Woodard in leading roles, this increasingly tiresome flick has neither the modest charms of 'Book Club,' nor the timeless joys of 'Now and Then.'

By Tomris Laffly

Tomris Laffly

• ‘Summer Camp’ Review: Star-Studded Comedy Preaches Fun, but Forgets to Cut Loose Itself 1 day ago
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It happens to many of us above a certain age. You wake up one day, and realize that your life involves neither your childhood besties, nor the carefree bliss you once took for granted. With that in mind, Castille Landon’s wearisome comedy “ Summer Camp ” ponders, what if there was a way to awaken our inner child and reestablish our priorities later in life through some fun and play? It’s surely a worthy enough premise for a good time, but one “Summer Camp” squanders through dull jokes, an uninspiring story without any real stakes and an overall phony feeling that the film can’t shake.

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Perhaps more troublingly, “Summer Camp” doesn’t bother with any sort of character development for the mature Ginny, Mary and Nora that feels real. In that, their chats about marriage vs. independence, and jokes about sex (and remote-control vibrators) just fall flat. It’s almost as if Landon has worked out of a checklist of topics these women would hypothetically discuss, rather than thought through what any of these conversations might emotionally mean for a later-in-life coming-of-age tale. One effort to give one of the women — namely Nora — some character arc through a makeover session looks especially comical, even confusing. Imagine Diane Keaton already wearing the most Diane Keaton-y of costumes — crisp high-neck shirts, tailored blazers, thick belts and Annie Hall hats — and only ending up in another signature Keaton look after the makeover.

Among the three, only Mary’s story hits some deep notes and Woodard is memorable when “Summer Camp” gives her the space to explore her dilemmas as a woman who gave up on her career goals only to be stuck in a loveless marriage with a selfish man. But any potential good that might come out of that thread rapidly gets overpowered by bad running gags (scenes with Betsy Sodaro’s Vick as an unhinged camp operative especially feels repetitive), tiresome camp hijinks and a half-hearted twist about the self-assured Ginny.

From the star-studded cast to the crew, those involved in the “Summer Camp” production probably had an amazing time hanging out at the working summer camp in Hendersonville, North Carolina, the idyllic location where the film was shot. But somehow, we’re never let in on the fun. 

Reviewed online, New York, May 28, 2024. MPA Rating: PG-13. Running time: 96 MIN.

• Production: A Roadside Attractions release of a Saks Picture Company production, in association with Project Infinity. Producers: Alex Saks, Dori A. Rath, Tyler W. Konney, Diane Keaton, Stephanie Heaton-Harris. Executive producers: Grant S. Johnson.
• Crew: Director, writer: Castille Landon. Camera: Karsten Gopinath. Editor: Morgan Halsey. Music: Tom Howe.
• With: Kathy Bates, Diane Keaton, Alfre Woodard, Betsy Sodaro, Eugene Levy, Dennis Haysbert, Josh Peck, Beverly D’Angelo.

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Content Caution

In Theaters

• November 17, 2017
• Voices of Steven Yeun as Boaz the Donkey; Keegan-Michael Key as Dave the Dove; Aidy Bryant as Ruth the Sheep; Zachary Levi as Joseph; Gina Rodriguez as Mary; Christopher Plummer as King Herod; Delilah as Elizabeth; Joel McCrary as Zechariah; Phil Morris as Miller; Kris Kristofferson as Old Donkey; Ving Rhames as Thaddeus the Dog; Gabriel Iglesias as Rufus the Dog; Oprah Winfrey as Deborah the Camel; Tyler Perry as Cyrus the Camel; Tracy Morgan as Felix the Camel; Patricia Heaton as Edith the Cow; Kelly Clarkson as Leah the Horse; Kristin Chenoweth as Abby the Mouse; Anthony Anderson as Zach the Goat; Mariah Carey as Rebecca the Hen; William Townsend as Goat; Joel Osteen as Caspar

Home Release Date

• February 20, 2018
• Timothy Reckart

Distributor

• Sony Pictures Animation

Movie Review

Donkeys don’t dream. Well, not in an aspirational, “follow your dreams” way, at any rate.

But Boaz is no normal donkey. Marching in a circle grinding grain is not Bo’s vision of destiny fulfilled. No, Bo and his friend, Dave the dove, harbor royal aspirations: marching at the vanguard of the king’s caravan.

Bo breaks his bonds and flees his angry owner, but an injury to one hoof keeps him from fleeing far. He soon takes refuge in the courtyard of a young couple named Joseph and Mary. And the tenderhearted, miraculously pregnant young woman tends to Bo’s hurt hoof.

Meanwhile, a dazzling, mysterious star has appeared in the heavens. That blazing object prompts three wise men and their camels—Deborah, Cyrus and Felix—to begin the long journey toward, well, actually, they don’t know quite where. But they’re convinced the celestial sign portends the birth of a king.

Someone else has taken anxious notice of the star too: King Herod. It means something. But he’s not sure what. The unexpected arrival of the three visitors from the East only amplifies his paranoia, especially when they carry on about bringing gifts for a king—a different king than Herod.

Back in Nazareth, the birth of Mary’s baby is now fast approaching, but she and Joseph must take a long trip to Bethlehem for a census ordered by Herod. Little do they realize that their craven ruler has ordered a speechless, ogre-like henchman and his two fearsome dogs to track down the identity of this would-be king … and end his reign before it begins.

Thankfully, Bo makes the perilous journey with them, fulfilling a bigger destiny than he could have guessed in his wildest donkey dreams.

Positive Elements

Throughout the film, Bo, Dave and a sheep named Ruth (whom they meet along the way) encourage and help each other as they try to protect Joseph and Mary from Herod’s hunter and his dogs. Bo is also willing to sacrifice his dream (as is Dave) to protect Mary once it’s clear that she’s in peril.

Conflicts occasionally threaten to split up Bo, Ruth and Dave. But during one falling out, Ruth implores desperately, “Flocks stick together!”

Elsewhere, Bo tries to convince Dave to pursue their original dream on his own. But Dave replies, “The royal caravan was our dream. But the best part was that it was gonna be us . If all I wanted was to flap around a bunch of funny wagons, I would have done that a long time ago. … Look, you lead the way. And wherever you go, your best friend, Dave, will be right behind you.” (Dave’s soliloquy, of course, echoes events and language in the biblical book of Ruth, as do several characters’ names here.)

An old donkey with whom Bo grinds grain plays a key part in helping Bo escape the mill at an opportune moment.

Spiritual Elements

The Star tells the story of Jesus’ birth largely from the perspective of talking, thinking animals. But within that obviously fictional storytelling context, it also stays quite true to the biblical narrative of Jesus’ birth in most of its details.

We’re only a few minutes into the film, for example, when Mary is confronted by an angel who announces, “Fear not. For you have been favored by God to conceive and bear a son.” Mary responds, “A son? But how?” The angel answers, “The Holy Spirit will overshadow you. And the child will be called the Son of God. For nothing is impossible with God.” Mary stumbles a bit in her response initially, but then says, “I mean, yes, let it be done just as you say.” At that moment, the room is filled with a great light, signifying—it would seem—the immaculate conception of the child, followed by the same light zooming off into the sky to become “the star.”

A mouse who saw the whole thing tells her friends, “The room was filled with magical light. And the angel said that the child would be our new King!”

Talking about the star, Bo tells Dave, “See! I told you that star was a sign. We’re meant for something greater than this.” But an old donkey who Bo works with tries to discourage his dreaming, saying, “Look, kid, we’re mill donkeys. We grind grain. We don’t carry kings.”

Joseph is incredulous when Mary finally tells him the story of the baby she’s pregnant with. “The Messiah?” he says. Mary responds, “God wants you and me to raise him.” But Joseph is doubtful: “I can’t raise the Son of God. He’s a king. I’m just a carpenter. … I mean, who am I?” Mary reassures him, “You’re my husband.” Joseph apologizes for his insecurities, saying, “It’s too much to take in.”

The couple faces more struggles and uncertainties on the dark, lonely road to Bethlehem. Mary tries to encourage her frustrated and frightened husband, saying, “This must be part of God’s plan.” Joseph responds sarcastically, “So far this plan is going great. I can’t wait to see what happens next.” He voices his discouragement to God in prayer: “Lord, I can’t do this, alright? I am not the father of a king, just the son of a carpenter.” Like some characters in the Old Testament, he then asks for a sign—and gets one in the form of Bo returning after the animal had left in anger a few minutes before.

Mary realizes that faithfully following God’s plan doesn’t guarantee a painless path forward. “Joseph, you were right,” she tells him. “This is hard. Trust me, I know it is. Just because God has a plan doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy, and that scares me.” Now, however, the encouragement shoe is on the other foot, as Joseph responds, “Hey, I’m scared, too. but I’m here. And I’m yours. And I will give everything I have to keep you and the baby safe.”

We hear a similar conversation as Mary goes into labor and is fearful that she and Joseph haven’t been able to find an inn. Mary soon gives birth in a manger that Bo finds for them, and she’s surrounded by adoring and awestruck animals, as well as the three wise men who arrive to bequeath their gifts upon the newborn baby, Jesus. At that moment in a field of shepherds, an angel announces, “Fear not: I bring good tidings of great joy. For unto you is born this day a Savior, Christ the Lord.”

Bo prays for God’s help in a desperate moment, too. [ Spoiler Warning ] And even the two dogs that have hunted Mary seem to have a canine “conversion experience” of sorts. One of the dogs, Rufus, tells Bo, “We’re bad dogs.” But Bo counters, “You don’t have to be. You’re free now.” Rufus later asks his fellow hunter, “Thaddeus, are we good dogs now?” And Thaddeus says, “We have to try.”

Deborah the camel (voiced by Oprah Winfrey) says, “You know, I think people are gonna remember this night. What happened here around this manger will be celebrated for thousands of years. Families will come together and exchange presents and sing carols, all to remember the grace of this moment that we are witnessing right now.”

Various traditional Christmas carols (“O Holy Night,” “Little Drummer Boy,” etc.) can be heard throughout the movie. We also hear the songs “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” and “Mary Did You Know?” An original song for the film encourages, “Follow you heart. Follow the light. Follow that star.”

Sexual Content

No sexual content. But Joseph and Mary do have a veiled conversation about how she could have become pregnant that is—understandably—difficult for Joseph to comprehend and accept. Another scene shows them lying down next to each other, back to back, as they go to sleep. Joseph is shown tenderly kissing Mary’s forehead.

Dave flirts mildly with a female pigeon.

Violent Content

The soldier who hunts Mary and Joseph with his two dogs, Rufus and Thaddeus, never speaks, lending him an ominous and foreboding feel. A couple of times he’s about to pounce on Mary when Bo and Co. manage to divert him. We see him begin to pull a sword, and it’s clear that he means Mary mortal harm. We also see the soldier choke someone. The animals protecting Mary knock the silent soldier into a well at one point, and over the top of a tall bridge in another scene. (After the fall, we see him unconscious, or perhaps dead, on the ground below.)

Speaking with his scribes, Herod threatens, “If you people can’t find this one child, then I’ll have to kill them all,” an obvious allusion to what does, in fact, happen in Scripture.

Bo’s madcap escape from the mill involves the Miller getting bonked in the head and knocked out cold, one of quite a few moments of mild violence that’s played more as slapstick humor than as genuine peril.

Dave tells a brood of chickens, “Ladies, run!” when he realizes that people are using them for food. Bo falls down a ravine and lands, humorously, on top of Dave.

Crude or Profane Language

Dave uses the phrase “tick people off.”

Drug and Alcohol Content

Other negative elements.

Dave the dove says “Nazareth can kiss my gleaming white tail feathers goodbye.” And when he coaches Bo on trying to escape from Mary and Joseph’s courtyard (an idea Bo briefly entertains early on), Dave says a “well-placed No. 2” will motivate the humans to get rid of him. Dave also quips, “I gotta be honest: I’m very upset right now. I’m gonna go find somebody to poop on.” After Bo falls on Dave, the donkey can’t find his friend, prompting Dave to say, “I’m right here on your butt.”

Hollywood has often taken liberties with beloved biblical stories in ways that have riled the faithful, with Noah and Exodus: Gods and Kings being two of the more recent examples.

The Star , thankfully, will not be joining that list. This film tells an imaginative and sweet version of Jesus’ birth—from the point of view of animals—while remaining faithful to the biblical narrative. Tyler Perry, one of many A-list stars to lend their voices to this production, said of it, “This is such a clever and genius way to tell the real meaning of Christmas. I was honored to be a part of it.”

Apart from some intense moments of perilous pursuit that might be frightening to very young or sensitive viewers, the film’s only other content issues all have to do with occasional bathroom humor—usually courtesy of Dave the dove.

But those moments are only very mild concerns in a film that’s otherwise admirably focused on retelling the familiar story of our Savior’s birth from a fresh perspective.

Adam R. Holz

After serving as an associate editor at NavPress’ Discipleship Journal and consulting editor for Current Thoughts and Trends, Adam now oversees the editing and publishing of Plugged In’s reviews as the site’s director. He and his wife, Jennifer, have three children. In their free time, the Holzes enjoy playing games, a variety of musical instruments, swimming and … watching movies.

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Mr and Mrs Mahi movie review: Janhvi Kapoor-Rajkummar Rao film struggles as it tries to please everyone

Mr and mrs mahi movie review: janhvi kapoor-rajkummar rao film gives us a rom-com nestled in india’s favourite sports, which in turn is nestled in the tropes of the family-entertainer movie..

‘Gunjan Saxena’ director Sharan Sharma re-unites with leading lady Janhvi Kapoor for ‘Mr and Mrs Mahi’, which should have been, by all rights, called Mrs and Mr Mahi: this let’s-put-the-woman forward story deserved that switch in the title. But it also tells you something about the difficulties that mainstream Bollywood still faces in putting its feminist intentions right out front.

It may have begun with Mahendra (Rajkummar Rao) desperate to break free from the deadly ennui of helping out in his father’s sports shop by playing the game professionally, but this film’s heart, like the hero’s, begins to beat only when Mahima (Janhvi Kapoor) enters the scene.

Both individuals stuck in places they don’t enjoy, both finding joy in cricket: this is an interesting little knot in a plot which starts off by going down the pitch with pleasing confidence, coming into its own with a spray of sixers, but then comes up against tonal confusion: if it says hurrah too loudly for this Mahi, will those who are rooting for the other Mahi be upset? What will the conservative audience which likes its differences in small, incremental steps be put off? In trying to please everyone, ‘Mr and Mrs Mahi’ stops short of being a six itself.

ALSO READ | As star fees, entourage costs skyrocket, Hindi film industry technicians, writers and actors are ‘bleeding’: Bollywood’s horror show

Kapoor’s Mahi, who has acquired a daddy-approved MBBS degree and a dead-beat hospital job, is happiest when hitting that little red ball into the stands. On her ‘suhaagraat’, she’d rather wake up early for an important India match, rather than you know what. Rao’s Mahi, who has a problem of being altogether too truthful, not only finds a soul-mate in this cricket-mad wife, but also a purpose: her natural, raw talent can be honed, and she can play for the country, so what if he couldn’t, and he’s the man for the job.

Up until a point, all goes swimmingly. Both start clocking into each other’s rhythm, and he’s quite happy to become her cheerleader. There’s no one better than Rao in playing a regular guy with no special talent, and Kapoor is quite capable of filling up a character (apart from Gunjan Saxena, her 2022 ‘Goodluck Jerry’ gave her a chance to show us a comedic side). But then male ego and jealousy rears its ugly head, leading to an obvious rift, and leading us to an even more obvious climax, with a second half which feels longer than it is.

In the end, you can see the confusion clearly. The film is giving us a rom com nestled in India’s favourite sports, which in turn is nestled in the tropes of the family-entertainer movie. So sure, that’s the way, Mahi Ve. But which Mahi are we are meant to be rooting for: her, him, or both? Are we, the audience, ready for a hero who will stand by and see the heroine get all the limelight? That’s the real question.

Mr and Mrs Mahi movie cast: Rajkummar Rao, Janhvi Kapoor, Kumud Mishra, Rajesh Sharma, Zarina Wahab, Purnendu Bhattacharya, Arijit Taneja Mr and Mrs Mahi movie director: Sharan Sharma Mr and Mrs Mahi movie rating: 2.5 stars

• Dharma Productions
• Janhvi Kapoor
• Karan Johar
• Rajkummar Rao

The exit poll results for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections will be released on June 1, giving an indication of how India voted. The counting of votes and result declaration will take place on June 4. The BJP-led NDA and the opposition's INDIA bloc had a tough fight, while West Bengal saw violence and voting in all seven phases. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal was released on bail to campaign for his party.

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