Blinded
by the Light
(Musical, drama)I
t’s her best movie
since BendIt Like
Beckham and director
and cowriter Gurinder
Chadha has created a
joyous instant classic
for anyone who has felt
like an outsider. Set
in 1987 in Thatcher’s
Britain, hopeful writer
and sensitive 16-year-old
Javed (Viveik Kalra) is
from a Pakistani family
living in Luton, England.
His bland world
explodes with colour
when Roops (Aaron
Phagura) introduces
him to the music of US
rocker Bruce Springsteen.
Suddenly, wearing a
Springsteen-style jean
jacket, life makes sense
for Javed with the help
of Springsteen’s lyrics
to inspire him. This is an
inspiring, foot-stomping
ray of musical sunshine.Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
(Drama, black comedy)O
scar-winning writer and director
Quentin Tarantino is back with his
star-studded ninth movie and his
trademark ensemble cast, which includes
Margot Robbie, is better than ever.
Leonardo DiCaprio plays slick TV star
Rick Dalton, who is backed up by his trusty
stunt double and friend Cliff Booth (Brad
Pitt). These fictional characters are said
to be based on the real-life actor Burt
Reynolds and stuntman Hal Needham.
Set in 1969 in Los Angeles against the eerie
backdrop of the Charles Manson Family
murders, the ‘not quite as hip as they used
to be’ duo are struggling to be relevant in
a rapidly changing Hollywood. It’s a movie
people will be talking about.Blinded
READER’S DIGEST
128 august 2019