Pareeksha is now streaming on Zee5.
Streaming platforms like ZEE5, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar, VootSelect and Apple TV+ have been streaming some great content over the past few weeks. Given the lack of options we have in the entertainment space right now, these OTT platforms have been like a saviour to people isolating at home.
In the last week, we saw new film releases like Shakuntala Devi (Amazon Prime Video), Lootcase (Disney+ Hotstar), Raat Akeli Hai (Netflix) and Yaara (ZEE5). The latest release to join this list is Prakash Jha’s Pareeksha that started streaming on ZEE5 on August 6.
The Indian Express critic Shubhra Gupta gave Pareeksha 2.5 stars and called it a “well-intentioned film.” She wrote, “Pareeksha is about a rickshaw puller in Bihar whose desire to see his son attend the city’s best English-medium private school, surmounts all else. And while the treatment is linear, often taking a simplistic hop-skip-jump over tough problems to reach its message-y end, it toplines hope: if one poor man’s child can break into the privileged sanctum of expensive education which will lead to a better life, so can many others.”
“Prakash Jha knows his Bihar. The accents, the cadences, the characters, including the gold-chained festooned ‘sahukar’ and the entitled ‘sahebs’, feel right. An underdog-as-winner is an always-in-demand subject; a little less exposition would have made this well-intentioned film better,” the review further read.
They Shall Not Grow Old, a World War II documentary directed by Peter Jackson, is now streaming on Netflix. It is an extraordinary experience, which has rightly earned plaudits around the world. Jackson, best known for directing the Lord of the Rings trilogy, has used modern post-production techniques, both visual and sound, including new voice-acting, and colourisation to bring alive World War II in all its terrible glory.
Steven Spielberg's adaptation of HG Wells' novel of the same name, War of the Worlds sees an invasion by the Martians. Tom Cruise stars as a longshoreman who witnesses the invasion directly. Scores of people are disintegrated by the Martian war machines called Tripods that emerge from beneath the earth. War of the Worlds is a non-stop thriller that never lets up.
James Bobin directorial Dora and the Lost City of Gold was a live action adaptation of Nickelodeon's television series Dora the Explorer. It starred Isabela Moner in the lead role as the titular explorer. The film was received well by critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film scored 84 per cent. The critical consensus read, "Led by a winning performance from Isabela Moner, Dora and the Lost City of Gold is a family-friendly adventure that retains its source material's youthful spirit."
Directed by Prakash Jha, Pareeksha stars Adil Hussain, Priyanka Bose, Shubham Jha, Sanjay Suri. The Indian Express critic Shubhra Gupta gave the film 2.5 stars and wrote, "Prakash Jha knows his Bihar. The accents, the cadences, the characters, including the gold-chained festooned ‘sahukar’ and the entitled ‘sahebs’, feel right. An underdog-as-winner is an always-in-demand subject; a little less exposition would have made this well-intentioned film better."
Directed by Sam Mendes, 1917 is set during World War I. The premise of the film has two men crossing the trenches and passing a message to call off an attack but since that path is extremely dangerous, they have to risk their life to get to the other side. The film appears is shot and edited to look like one take and is a visual marvel.
Starring Tripti Dimri, Avinash Tiwary, Rahul Bose, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Bulbbul is streaming on Netflix. The Indian Express film critic Shubhra Gupta's review of the film read, "Anvita Dutt’s striking debut feature is set in the late 19th century Bengal. It uses the supernatural horror genre to tell the story of a wide-eyed child bride whose quest for a kindred soul and kindness pulls her deep into peril. Bulbbul (Dimri), a free spirit who used to love climbing trees and plucking raw mangoes in her ‘maayka’, has to turn into an obedient wife to her much older husband Indranil (Bose), who lives in a big haveli, with his mentally challenged twin Mahendra (Bose again), Mahendra’s wife Binodini (Dam), and younger brother Satya."
Starring Charlize Theron in the lead role, The Old Guard is now streaming on Netflix. The Indian Express critic Shubhra Gupta gave the film 3 stars and wrote in her review, “There are some lax moments, and a bit of portentousness in the dialogue. But in the way of slick superheroes flicks, there’s enough wham-bam, guns rattling and bodies piling up, to keep things ticking over nicely.”
There is nothing like watching an atmospheric horror show. Supernatural is not one however, but is does have plenty of scares coupled with excellent characters (you could not ask for more developed characters than Winchester brothers) which makes it a solid TV show even if it is a sort of guilty pleasure.
Mrs. America is a Hulu miniseries created by Desperate Housewives and Mad Men alum Dahvi Waller. Starring Cate Blanchett in the lead, the series is set in the 1970s 'United States and is about the movement to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment or ERA by second-wave feminists.
Alexandre Aja's compulsively watchable horror thriller is a blistering ride throughout its slim 87 minute runtime that is scarier than most movies that involves ghosts, monsters and other frightening stuff. Crawl does not have ghosts. It has a father and daughter duo who are struggling to stay alive while being hunted in a basement of a house by two really hungry and crafty alligators.
A science fiction drama TV anthology series, Tales from the Loop is a gripping, superbly shot and well-written piece of entertainment that will delight everyone, but specifically those who liked HBO's Westworld and FX's recent series Devs.
In This Breaking Bad spinoff movie, Jesse Pinkman finds himself hunted by law enforcement for collaborating with “Heisenberg” after fleeing from the Neo-Nazi hideout. His name is all over the news and there aren’t many people left who he can trust. Here is where Skinny Pete and Badger and more figure in.
Breaking Bad's less popular spinoff Better Call Saul is at least as good as Breaking Bad (according to some, even better) even if it is mostly devoid of big moments of drama and twists that characterised the tale of Walter White. Whatever you may believe, it is solid, high quality television nonetheless.
Created by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK (also known as Raj & DK), The Family Man starred Manoj Bajpayee as a middle-class man, who is secretly an intelligence officer working with a fictional branch of National Investigation Agency (NSA). The series was gripping from start to finish and featured a characterstically nuanced performance by the excellent Bajpayee.
Pakash Jha's Pareeksha tackles the education system in the country. It centres on an ordinary rickshaw driver Bucchi (Adil Hussain) who wishes to provide his son the best quality education in a private English medium school. Jha has also written and produced the film that also stars Priyanka Bose and Sanjay Suri. Initially scheduled to be released in theatres, the film found a new home in Zee5. The film premieres on August 6.