Poulomi Das
Tomatometer-approved critic
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Hannah Gadsby: Something Special (2023) |
Something Special looks, sounds, and feels nothing like Nanette and Douglas and yet that proves to be Gadsby’s calling card -- simply because it isn’t just a case of the comedian’s growth. Instead, it makes a case for the comedian’s regrowth. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted May 12, 2023
|
|
|
|
Family (2023) |
Both as an unsettling portrait of a rural Christian community bound by faith and hypocrisy as well as a relentless character study of human transgressions, Family sees Palathara return to his assured form of filmmaking. - The Federal
Read More
| Posted Apr 07, 2023
|
|
|
|
The Eternal Daughter (2022) |
With Hogg at the helm, it also transforms into an act of haunting excavation, situating the turmoil of the time, memory, grief, and familial relationships in a mother-daughter relationship within the aesthetics of a ghost story. - The New Indian Express
Read More
| Posted Mar 08, 2023
|
|
|
|
Against the Tide (2023) |
The documentary’s examination of a community caught between tradition and progress is enlivened by Kaur’s commitment to spotlighting their invisibilized lives. - Hyperallergic
Read More
| Posted Mar 08, 2023
|
|
|
|
The Fabelmans (2022) |
Despite The Fabelmans' dreamlike quality, there's something singularly bittersweet about how Spielberg approaches his past -- as if simultaneously honouring his upbringing and mourning it. - The New Indian Express
Read More
| Posted Feb 13, 2023
|
|
|
|
Shortcomings (2023) |
The kind of film that feels effortless in its being. - The Playlist
Read More
| Posted Jan 26, 2023
|
|
|
|
My Animal (2023) |
The narrative doesn’t seem interested in ever climaxing. - The Playlist
Read More
| Posted Jan 24, 2023
|
|
|
|
Polite Society (2023) |
The film’s crowning glory is Manzoor succeeding in complementing the film’s wild, riotous narrative detours with breathless, high-octane energy throughout its 104-minute-runtime. - The Playlist
Read More
| Posted Jan 24, 2023
|
|
|
|
Infinity Pool (2023) |
'Infinity Pool' is the kind of film that reminds you that sometimes, the best thing a filmmaker can do is take you to places you would never dream of heading without apologizing for any of it. - The Playlist
Read More
| Posted Jan 22, 2023
|
|
|
|
Justice (2023) |
“Justice” remains concerned primarily with rekindling our outrage instead of offering explosive, new revelations that could have done it anyway. - The Playlist
Read More
| Posted Jan 22, 2023
|
|
|
|
Kuttey (2023) |
Every frame, every moment of Kuttey is designed to impress, sometimes at the risk of making it overstuffed or indulgent. The film possesses the kind of style that sacrifices substance. - The Federal
Read More
| Posted Jan 20, 2023
|
|
|
|
Govinda Naam Mera (2022) |
If Govinda Naam Mera feels like it undermines its own potential, it’s solely because of the disconnected storytelling. The crucial problems that afflict the film feel like standard Dharma Production missteps. - The Federal
Read More
| Posted Jan 05, 2023
|
|
|
|
Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) |
What you make of Avatar: The Way of Water depends largely on whether you’re inclined to give Cameron the benefit of doubt. In that, the film proves that there are some things that Cameron gets right, he does so with faultless precision. - The Federal
Read More
| Posted Jan 05, 2023
|
|
|
|
The Elephant Whisperers (2022) |
Much of the beauty of The Elephant Whisperers lies in the understated coming-of-age of the film’s narrative that draws ample parallels between humans and animals. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Dec 28, 2022
|
|
|
|
Last Film Show (2021) |
It's perhaps why the personal thread of Chhello Show, culled from Nalin's own journey to become a filmmaker, feels diluted in the face of the well-tested tropes the film force-fits itself into. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Oct 14, 2022
|
|
|
|
Luckiest Girl Alive (2022) |
Even when Luckiest Girl Alive doesn't manage to sell its plot contrivances all the time, Kunis' breathtaking performance manages to make us buy some of it. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Oct 10, 2022
|
|
|
|
Goodbye (2022) |
Even though Goodbye is ultimately let down by several factors, what sounds a death knell of its very existence is a complete lack of purpose. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Oct 10, 2022
|
|
|
|
Hasan Minhaj: The King's Jester (2022) |
It's not everyday that you see a comedian deliver a comedy special on the illusion of freedom of speech with such clarity. But then again, it's not everyday that you get to see Hasan Minhaj release a special. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Oct 10, 2022
|
|
|
|
Nick Kroll: Little Big Boy (2022) |
Kroll awes and flounders in equal measure throughout the runtime of the one-hour special... It’s the second approach of Kroll’s special that proves to be a letdown considering it sits at odds with his own reputation. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Oct 10, 2022
|
|
|
|
Vikram Vedha (2022) |
On its part, Vikram Vedha isn't devoid of style, charm, or even voice. Even though Pushkar-Gayathri mute down their source material for the Hindi remake, it still retains the makers' trademark measured intensity. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Sep 30, 2022
|
|
|
|
Plan A Plan B (2022) |
The film, which feels like an overextended sketch gone wrong for the most part, is unable to muster any charm, an ingredient that is usually indispensable for any rom-com outing.
- News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Sep 30, 2022
|
|
|
|
Chup (2022) |
It's hard to not be excited, amused, or even invested in any of these premises. Except, it's easy to forget one crucial thing -- what might prevent these one-line plots from ending up as a gimmick is intelligent filmmaking. There is no shortcut to that. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Sep 23, 2022
|
|
|
|
The Borderlands (2021) |
There's a sense of intimacy in Divekar's compositions that has a real feel for geography. My only grouse with the film was the lack of cohesive approach to its storytelling. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Sep 22, 2022
|
|
|
|
Jogi (2022) |
If the film succeeds in making viewers invest in the proceedings despite its lengthy 160-minute runtime, it's solely owing to the sensational two-header turns by Dosanjh and Zeeshan Ayub. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Sep 16, 2022
|
|
|
|
Brahmāstra Part One: Shiva (2022) |
Brahmastra Part One -- Shiva is a film that shouts its story from the rooftops instead of piecing its threads together in a coherent narrative. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Sep 10, 2022
|
|
|
|
Diorama (2022) |
Novotny's knack at conjuring tension out of silences and resentment is the film's secret weapon. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Sep 10, 2022
|
|
|
|
Cuttputli (2022) |
I wish Cuttputlli cared as much about not torturing the audience as much as it cares about Kumar's saviour complex. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Sep 02, 2022
|
|
|
|
Love in the Villa (2022) |
Love in the Villa resembles the rom-com equivalent of a tourist trap. It takes corny clichés and stretches it into directions that make it amiable but also, forgettable. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Sep 02, 2022
|
|
|
|
Holy Cow (2022) |
Mishra is the backbone of the film, giving a face to a Muslim everyman while asserting his repressed fears. It's an effective display of an actor being so attuned to his craft that he can seamlessly tune out the noise surrounding it. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Aug 26, 2022
|
|
|
|
Dobaaraa (2022) |
It's as generic and similar as most mid-tier Netflix offerings, which over time turn into nameless, faceless, entities. If anything, Dobaaraa feels like an exercise in Kashyap dumbing himself down. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Aug 20, 2022
|
|
|
|
Laal Singh Chaddha (2022) |
It's hard to justify the purpose of a remake that doesn't seem interested in rethinking a source material in a way that is attuned to present times and is invested in only recreating it. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Aug 20, 2022
|
|
|
|
Raksha Bandhan (2022) |
Raksha Bandhan is the cinematic equivalent of a man constantly talking over a woman and then wanting an award for it. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Aug 20, 2022
|
|
|
|
Darlings (2022) |
Despite the sorry state of Hindi cinema, it's not entirely difficult to make an assured debut these days. But with Darlings, Reen does something more admirable: she resembles a daring storyteller who refuses to play to the gallery. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Aug 05, 2022
|
|
|
|
Good Luck Jerry (2022) |
The makers treat the Hindi adaptation as a fully formed being of its own, bringing in a fresh pair of eyes to contextualise the universality of the film's premise for a Hindi-speaking audience. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Aug 05, 2022
|
|
|
|
Thar (2022) |
At its best, Thar — written and directed by Raj Singh Chaudhary — exhibits a startling mastery over its craft. But at its worst, the film ends up as a cautionary tale, stacked with inconsistencies that undermine the potential of its own material. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Jul 25, 2022
|
|
|
|
Bill Burr: Live at Red Rocks (2022) |
Despite its occasional sameness, the special feels like an effortless return of form for Burr, one that seems necessary given the sheer atrocity of the recently released Bill Burr: Friends Who Kill. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Jul 15, 2022
|
|
|
|
Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between (2022) |
[Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between] is both proof of Netflix’s being dedicated to representing young adults on screen as well as its ability to build on the kind of accessible storytelling that can be both predictable and rewarding. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Jul 08, 2022
|
|
|
|
Pete Davidson Presents: The Best Friends (2022) |
Davidson achieves what he presumably set out to do with the showcase: make us believe that he has the coolest friends in the world. I for one, am sold. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Jun 17, 2022
|
|
|
|
Halftime (2022) |
[Halftime] takes a celebratory approach, putting its subject on a pedestal and at a remove from the world at large. Still, if Halftime manages to become illuminating, it’s solely due to the candid vulnerability that Lopez brings to the outing. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Jun 17, 2022
|
|
|
|
Jane Fonda & Lily Tomlin: Ladies Night Live (2022) |
It’s so scattered that it does a disservice to every single comic associated with it. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Jun 17, 2022
|
|
|
|
Bill Burr Presents: Friends Who Kill (2022) |
I’d argue that the point of comedy isn’t to play polite, rather it is to plumbs the depths of the human condition as long as a punchline can emerge from it. The problem rather is the fact that every single second of his set is horribly second-rate. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Jun 10, 2022
|
|
|
|
Jungle Cry (2022) |
It takes a special talent to take a thrilling story of survival and excellence and turn it into a bland drama that is so inefficient in telling a story that it should be embarrassing for everyone involved. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted Jun 07, 2022
|
|
|
|
Ricky Gervais: SuperNature (2022) |
I don’t mean to sound disillusioned but there really has to be more to comedy than wealthy, overgrown men defending each other’s freedom to offend while also being terribly unfunny. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted May 31, 2022
|
|
|
|
Our Father (2022) |
Jourdan’s compassionate retelling manages to do what the law refused to: brand him as pure evil.
- Firstpost
Read More
| Posted May 20, 2022
|
|
|
|
Flee (2021) |
On his part, Rasmussen lends Amin a cinematic canvas that make the refugee narrative at the center of Flee both emotionally involving and immersive. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted May 11, 2022
|
|
|
|
Great Freedom (2021) |
A modern day masterpiece. - Firstpost
Read More
| Posted May 11, 2022
|
|
|
|
Heropanti-2 (2022) |
It is the kind of movie that is really a non-movie -- one which isn't enjoyed as much as it is survived. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Apr 29, 2022
|
|
|
|
Jersey (undefined) |
Jersey spends much of its runtime indulging and stroking Arjun's misery. It doesn't help that Kapoor confuses sulking with acting and heightens an exaggerated screenplay with a caricatured performance filled to the brim with theatrics. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Apr 27, 2022
|
|
|
|
Dasvi (2022) |
Is this a film about the circus of Indian politics or is it about the hold of illiteracy in the country? Dasvi doesn't really deliver on either count, crafting an overcooked story that jumps from one distraction to another. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Apr 16, 2022
|
|
|
|
Writing with Fire (2021) |
Writing with Fire may not do justice to the Khabar Lahariya story but it scores high as an committed socio-political commentary on the state of women in India. - News9 Live (India)
Read More
| Posted Apr 04, 2022
|