wombat [none/use name]@hexbear.net

wombat [none/use name]@hexbear.net

IMPORTANT NOTE: please use a VPN whenever visiting Hextube, or anywhere else on the internet, for that matter. Protect your privacy.

For this Friday Movie Night, starting at 8PM EST (we’re trying an earlier start time this weekend), we’re watching Gangs of Wasseypur: Part 2 (2012), one of the highest-rated Bollywood movies on Letterboxd. Part 1 told the story of a young man (Sardar Khan) in 1970s India who pursues revenge against the mafia boss (Ramadhir Singh) who killed his father. Sardar got old, and his sons grew up, and one of the sons ingratiated himself with Ramadhir. We left off Part 1 in the 1990s, with Sardar being assassinated in an ambush condoned by his various enemies, which include his estranged wife. As with many Bollyword blockbusters, this movie is a whole bunch of things mashed into one, including gritty gangster violence, over-the-top melodrama, action scenes, broad comedy, and musical numbers. Our last foray into Indian cinema, Nayakan (1987), was a hit on Hextube, as was Part 1 when we watched it two weeks ago; this one is on every list of “movies to watch if you’re new to Bollywood” in existence, so we’re giving it a try.

After that is The Set-Up (1949), a classic film-noir about a down-on-his-luck boxer who nobody believes will win his upcoming title fight. He is determined to prove the naysayers wrong, but unfortunately, his manager has accepted a bribe to throw the fight. Scandal! What could go wrong? This is considered a classic of film-noir, combining the genre’s usual cynicism and moral ambiguity into a taut 73 minutes. The director is Robert Wise, otherwise best-known for, uhh, The Sound of Music (1965). His work had some range, apparently. Looks cool, and It’s received rave reviews, so let’s watch.

We’ll start at 8PM EST on Hextube, right here:

https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies

Be there, comrades!