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'3 Idiots (2009)' is the first proper Bollywood movie I've seen, even though I have seen the Hindi-language 'The Lunchbox (2013)', and it seems to be a pretty good place to start considering its general popularity, acclaim and relatively brisk runtime of just under three hours. The film is basically a satirical criticism of India's education system and the pressure put on students to becomes engineers, doctors, and other high-paid professionals rather than follow their dreams. Via a mixture of slapstick silliness, sincere melodrama, surprising darkness, and sidelined yet satisfying romance, the feature keeps you entertained for its duration, shifting and changing over time to deliver its message while also definitely making you laugh and maybe making you cry. It feels a little long and it's a bit baggy on occasion, but it never truly stagnates and it's engaging for its majority. It's utterly ridiculous at times, yet also features several really serious moments that threaten to give you tonal whiplash yet somehow don't. Its light moments work better than its heavy ones, yet everything lands to some extent and the flick typically walks its tonal tightrope really confidently. It's genuinely funny at times, and it's really endearing overall. It frequently puts a smile on your face and occasionally brings a tear to your eye, somehow remaining effective even as it becomes incredibly sappy (which often backfires and feels somewhat condescending or artificial). It only features two full-blown musical numbers, plus one montage set to a song and a brief in-universe strum-and-sing, but these are catchy, vibrant and energetic sequences that are really charming. I almost wish it featured more musical moments, closer to a traditional musical, because these scenes are so colourful and compelling. As a whole, this is a really well-made, well-acted, and enjoyable experience that has something to say but doesn't let that overwhelm its main purpose: entertainment. It's a lot of fun overall, and it crafts an atmosphere that makes you more inclined to forgive its issues (including some narrative messiness, tonal inconsistencies, and a handful of slightly iffy jokes). It's a great time, and it makes me want to explore more of what Bollywood has to offer. It's honestly pretty fantastic for what it is, flaws and all (is well).

'The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie (2024)' feels like a bit of a miracle. After all, 2D animation has mostly gone the way of the dodo, and the 'Looney Tunes' have never had a fully animated feature released theatrically (and the last time they were on the big screen, sharing it with live-action actors, wasn't exactly anything to write home about). Plus, there's about a fifty percent chance these days that Warner Bros will put one of their films in the bin for tax write-off purposes (apparently that was the original intention with this, but the budget had been kept low enough that the studio instead thankfully decided to shop around its distribution rights). Although it sadly never got a cinematic release in the UK (or any release as of yet), I was luckily able to catch it as it was surely intended to be seen: on a small screen on the back of the airplane seat in front of me, shaking with turbulence, drowned out by the hum of jet engines, and interrupted every few minutes by a crew announcement or the arrival an in-flight meal. Joking aside, it's still a real treat to have seen this. As a fan of the 'Looney Tunes' shorts, and of animation in general, it's a breath of fresh air, a scrumptious silly and delightfully delirious adventure brought to life with wonderfully wacky animation that often resembles 'The Ren & Stimpy Show (1991)' in its commitment to near-grotesque absurdity. It's energetic, it's ridiculous, it's utterly outlandish. It's a mile-a-minute madcap explosion of expressive plasticity and visualised metaphor, of unhinged humour and tongue-in-cheek references, of eye-rolling puns and breathless folly. It doesn't quite capture the aesthetic of the best of its series' efforts, but it crafts a whole new vibe that completely immerses you in its weird world and its even weirder characters. Daffy Duck skews close to his original incarnation, a zany force of uncontrollable chaos rather than the exasperated punching bag he morphed into in the aftermath of his popular appearances opposite a certain rascally rabbit. Porky Pig acts as the so-called 'straight man' of the duo, his stuttering sensibility serving to keep his best friend grounded without totally clipping his wings. The pair have been given a new backstory that basically makes them brothers, and the genuine warmth of their relationship anchors the experience with an emotional core that persists throughout the world-ending wackiness that occurs in the flick's back half. Speaking of which, while the narrative is undeniably rather slight, it does exactly what it needs to, twisting just often enough to keep you engaged for its brisk duration and never taking itself seriously enough that you're tempted to do the same even for a second. Its plot basically exists just to give its creators an excuse to come up with as many utterly out-there sight gags as they can, which they dutifully cram into each and every ever-escalating minute until it's almost impossible to tell where one ends and the next begins, and that isn't a bad thing. The experience is often rather funny, even if a lot of its most successful moments are only so because they're so completely out of pocket, and it keeps you in good spirits even while you aren't outright laughing. It's simple, but effective, and it scratches the same itch its series aims to scratch without losing any of the potency that comes with a runtime of just a few minutes. It's a really solid effort that's enjoyable, visually stunning, and undeniably wild. It isn't quite great, but it's a genuine blast if you're in the right mood for it. Luckily for me, I'm always in the mood for a looney toon.

'Deep Cover (2025)' is a straightforward comedy that's satisfyingly sincere (as in not self-aware, rather than self-serious) and entirely uninterested in a thematic underpinning or ultimate message, instead settling for just enough character work to make you care about those caught up in its concept and a steady stream of successful jokes that make sure you'll be in high spirits for its duration. It feels oddly refreshing, in a way, not least of all because it's a funny movie that's actually funny. Although it's relatively predictable (I definitely called the biggest narrative twist almost as soon as the character involved is introduced) and some elements of its plot don't quite make sense, it's typically as entertaining as it is contrived and its flaws don't have much impact on its overall effect. It clearly takes place in the kind of heightened world in which something like this could actually happen, so you don't mind its coincidences and clichés; in fact, they kind of enhance its purposefully silly vibe. That it is so outright ridiculous is a feature rather than a bug, and the actors are able to find the truth of their situations so keenly that you wholly buy their behaviour even while laughing at it. It mirrors some of its characters' impressive commitment to the bit, understanding that some things can only cause chuckles if they're played totally straight. It's basically a buddy comedy if the buddies were a trio, and the combination of the appropriately confident Kat, the overconfident Marlon and the underconfident Hugh ticks all the boxes it needs to. Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom and Nick Mohammed work incredibly well together, leveraging their individual strengths to form a charming central unit that you care about as much as you cackle at. Surrounding them is a rock-solid supporting cast comprised of the phenomenal Paddy Considine (who's thankfully in this more than I expected), the enigmatic Sonoya Mizuno, the accent-chewing Ian McShane and the accent-retaining Sean Bean (who honestly isn't really trying, but is charismatic nevertheless), as well as a few cameos from people such as Omid Djialili and 'Taskmaster'-alumnus Sophie Duker. It's well-paced, well-shot, and, well, just enjoyable. It isn't a masterpiece, but it's a lot of fun and that's exactly what it needs to be. It's never truly hilarious, but it makes me laugh more than enough to say it's a really funny affair. It isn't deep, but it doesn't need to be. It's a great time.