How the Sister Midnight Team Made a Punk-Rock Feminist Fable Set in a Mumbai Slum
Boasting striking compositions (with every shot evocatively storyboarded), rich colors, and the first score composed by Interpol frontman Paul Banks, writer-director Karan Kandhari's feature debut premiered at last year's Cannes Film Festival in Directors' Fortnight and was nominated for outstanding debut at the BAFTAs.
It's a marvelously audacious, utterly sui generis salute to those who defiantly flout tired rules and clash with customs, whether you call that feminism or punk rock; really, they're two sides of the same rebellious coin, Kandhari points out. 'The film is a hymn to being an outsider,' the London-based filmmaker tells Vogue. 'I'm attracted to misfits and weirdos and people who don't fit in society.'
The film was inspired by his first visit to Mumbai 20 years ago. 'I was mesmerized by this chaotic city, full of character and contradictions. It possessed me.' He'd always gravitated toward films where specific cities loomed large, like the Hong Kong of Chungking Express and the New York of Taxi Driver. But Mumbai is also a place where he struggled. 'I found it very hard to penetrate. A lot of this film is about loneliness, which I experienced the first time I went there,' he explains.
Its story is about operating in the world without a manual, whatever your role: adult, man, woman, husband, wife. 'It spun out from this one moment in the traditional setup of an arranged marriage,' Kandhari says. 'The very next morning, after the dude has gone to work, what happens? The whole thing unfurled from that.'
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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
'XO, Kitty' Season 3: Everything We Know (So Far!) About the Netflix Series' Next Chapter
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CNET
5 hours ago
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7 Tips to Follow When Starting Wuchang Fallen Feathers
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It looks like a standard block, but if you time it right, you'll parry the attack and receive no damage. But that's not all. Next to the Sword Counter node on the grid are two variants that are also worth getting. By unlocking all three, when enemies attack you, you can deflect their attacks and knock them to the ground to sneak in extra hits. Something to keep in mind is that the Sword Counter can only deflect weapon attacks, so enemy punches or kicks can't be parried. Also, with bosses, your deflects may only give you a window to get a free hit or two, but they have greater value in raising the bosses' Obliterate meter, which is a circle that increases after successive attacks. Fill this up, and the boss will be staggered, which will allow for a critical attack to deal big damage. 505 Games Unlocking the upgrades for your weapons Along with the improved attacks, new weapon abilities, and stat increases, the Impetus Repository (the game's name for its skill tree) has nodes to improve a weapon class. You need to unlock the node first and then acquire feathers to upgrade the weapon. The upgrade for a weapon class affects all weapons, so improving longswords by +3 means every longsword in the game will also be +3. You'll need specific items for these upgrades, which are usually found on tougher enemies with red eyes and can sometimes be purchased from the merchants. There are Faint, Brilliant and Radiant Red Feathers needed for upgrades, with Radiant ones being the best of the three. Respec all the time One useful mechanic in Wuchang is the option to respec, or reallocate your upgrades, at any time. If you feel like you're a little weak or there's something you haven't tried yet, make sure to respec -- don't worry, it's free and can be repeated indefinitely. On the Impetus Repository, there's the option to undo an upgrade to just one node, or you can do it for an entire path. If a weapon like the axe has been doing well against bosses but there's one boss who's just too fast to land any attacks, then it's time to respec and try another weapon. There's no shame in doing so. And who knows? The new weapon might end up being your favorite. Wear the right equipment Like in any Souslike, there are different status effects that build up over time, such as Burn or Blight, this game's name for poison. Enemies in certain areas will focus on different status effects with their attacks, like how enemies in colder climates can cause Frostbite buildup. There are consumable items you can use to remove the effect or stop the buildup, but in the case of status effects like Despair and Corruption, if your armor resistance isn't high enough, you can get killed almost immediately from the effect. If you find that happening (and you can tell it happens due to the status effect icon in the middle of the screen), then consider changing your equipment to better resist the status effects you're running into. Armor in Wuchang is very situation-based. Some will offer a lot of slash and stab protection, which is great for bosses with swords or spears, but it may offer no protection against Blight, which means you can be poisoned very quickly. In general, armor that's the best to protect against physical attacks is horrible for status effects, hence you can die almost instantly in certain areas. If you notice that happening, make sure to switch up your armor for the right occasion. 505 Games Explore, explore, explore Like any good Soulslike with quality level design, like Wuchang, there are different paths available and some are easy to overlook. So many side paths in Wuchang seemingly lead to dead ends, but you'd be surprised how many will lead to entirely new areas. Not only can you find powerful items and weapons, but there are entire sections of a map with their own bosses you might have skipped. I missed out on multiple locations as I rushed through the game on my first runs through levels. If you're having trouble with a boss, spend some time to backtrack a bit and explore every nook and cranny in an area. Another point to keep an eye out for is the teleport option at the Shrine. If there's an NPC you should talk to, there will be a small face next to the location listing. 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You'll see multiple poses, such as worship, examine and a very obvious one, Tai Chi. Assuming the pose at the specific location will unlock a clue about Wuchang's past, or give up an item. Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is out now for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series consoles for $50. Xbox Game Pass subscribers can play the game as part of their subscription.
Forbes
5 hours ago
- Forbes
Wonder Festival Spotlights ‘Evangelion' Amidst Blazing Summer Heat
The Japanese summer heat was no joke. Ollie Barder Following the winter edition of Wonder Festival earlier this year, the summer version focused on promoting Evangelion , while we all melted from the heat. As always, Wonder Festival is split into two main parts: commercial and fan-based. The former had very noticeable absences, with the likes of Kotobukiya, Good Smile Company, Bandai, and Takara Tomy lacking their typically large stalls. While Bandai and Takara Tomy did have some small showings, it was more the new Chinese manufacturers that were showing off their impressive wares. Specifically, the likes of CCS Toys and POSE+, with the former's upcoming Ultimate Dancouga from Super Robot Wars 30 looking incredible up close (shown below). The upcoming Ultimate Dancouga from CCS Toys is very impressive in the flesh. Ollie Barder However, the main focus this year on the commercial side was Evangelion , with a large area dedicated to new and upcoming merchandise as well as more esoteric elements. One highlight was seeing the original artwork used in Newtype magazine back in the 90s to originally promote the TV series (shown below). Following the commercial side of things, the fan-based offerings were enormous as usual, with a still steady stream of fan-made Armored Trooper VOTOMS kits, as well as some Layzner and Galient kits thrown in for good measure. There was also more Armored Core stuff this year, although not so much for Armored Core VI , but more for the older games that have seen a recent resurgence in popularity online. Not least due to the digital re-releases of the first three Armored Core games on PlayStation. Seeing the original cels to make the promotional art for 'Evangelion' was fascinating. Ollie Barder In addition, there was an awful lot of Virtual On kits on show, with one stall offering enormous papercraft versions of things like the mid-game boss Jaguarandi from Virtual On Force . Talking of Virtual On Force , one stall had every variant from the game, which made for a rather marvellous sight. One notable point on the fan side was that there was almost nothing from Gundam GQuuuuuuX or Requiem for Vengeance , which is definitely curious, as there were other Gundam offerings, albeit sparse As with all things Wonder Festival, it's always more interesting to see what the fans are up to, as that tends to influence the commercial side of things a few years down the road. In any case, it was another great Wonder Festival and reinforced my love for this event, which never fails to impress and intrigue. Although I much prefer the winter event, the current Japanese summer is pretty brutal. Wonder Festival 2025 Summer Ollie Barder Wonder Festival 2025 Summer Gallery Date: 27th July 2025 Entry: 3,500 yen Follow me on X , Facebook and YouTube . I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.
