Latest news with #Metropolis
Time of India
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Strawberries and scholarship
Bachi Karkaria's Erratica and its cheeky sign-off character, Alec Smart, have had a growing league of followers since 1994 when the column began in the Metropolis on Saturday. It now appears on the Edit Page of the Times of India, every Thursday. It takes a sly dig at whatever has inflated political/celebrity egos, and got public knickers in a twist that week. It makes you chuckle, think and marvel at the elasticity of the English language. It is a shooting-from-the-lip advice column to the lovelorn and otherwise torn, telling them to stop cribbing and start living -- all in her her branded pithy, witty style. LESS ... MORE India and Iran converge again in Cambridge The temptation was strawberries, but I savoured learning's creamy layer. In 1998, I'd interviewed Richard Blurton — yes with an 'l' – when, as director of British Museum's South Asian section, he'd brought 'The Enduring Image' exhibition to Mumbai. We reconnected 26 years later, at Malavika Banerjee's 'Kalam' in Bhubaneswar, where he presented his latest tome, India: A History in Objects. On my recent trip to London, he said, 'Do come to the Ancient India and Iran Trust (AIIT) garden party in Cambridge. There'll be plenty of strawberries, cream and bubbly.' He added, 'You'll meet its new Chair, Almut Hintze.' Wow! Being appointed Zarthoshty Brothers Professor of Zoroastrianism at London's SOAS had till then been the latest recognition of her long scholarship; she belonged to the august lineage of non-Zoroastrians dedicated to the study of my 3,000 year-old faith. And there she was in person – and so personable. In a very English way, a patron's generous bequest was exclusively meant for this garden at 23 Brooklands Avenue. It had come along with the house bought by Sir Harold Bailey, Cambridge Professor of Sanskrit and the other four founding Trustees who had dug as deep into the study of South and Southeast Asia — some physically too, having doubled as archaeologists. The Trust was established in 1978 to 'promote the study of prehistory, archaeology, art history and ancient languages of South & Southeast Asia, Central Asia and Iran –but it has gone beyond. If journalism is history 'To go', scholarship is history 'on the slow'. My goosebumps rose as I padded through rooms bringing alive Zoroastrianism's lifelong researchers such as Mary Boyce and John Hinnells. Their personal libraries were among AIIT's precious trove of 30,000 volumes and 20,000 records. All being safely digitised. The Bridget Allchin Archive included photographs of everything displayed in the Kabul Museum in the early 1950s; priceless because it was trashed in Afghan's civil war. India Room's mantelpiece displayed a celebrated quartet of Burmese bronze figurines from another founding-Trustee collection, that of the Dutch van Lohuizen couple, Joan and Jan. It captured men cracking open a coconut, playing a flute, and two, 17 cm high, engrossed in the rattan-ball game of chinlone, which I learnt was deeply embedded in Burmese cultural history. A month later Richard was to address London bankers. Whhyy? He explained. 'In today's world anyone operating internationally is at a disadvantage without an understanding of the fundamentals on which South Asian society is built. This is increasingly important since more and more people of South Asian origin, especially Indian, are at the summit of commercial, financial, academic and political activity; this understanding we try to deliver at the British Museum.' Good to hear authoritative, non-bigoted lips proclaim our past and present greatness. *** Alec Smart said: 'Train blasts: Was justice derailed?' Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
Geek Tyrant
21 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Geek Tyrant
James Gunn Reveals Key Scene in SUPERMAN Was Almost Much Darker — GeekTyrant
Superman was a film about hope. It was about the human experience, and navigating life under super circumstances. Director James Gunn put his signature style into the film, bringing us humor and heart, and even a pretty dark scene to portray the level of evil Clark was dealing with in his nemesis, Lex Luthor. But as it turns out, the scene was almost much darker. {Spoilers ahead, if you haven't seen the film.} The scene takes place in the pocket universe created by the villainous Luthor, in the prison he is keeping all who ever wronged him. He puts the captured superhero into a cell with Metamorpho, who is meant to conjure Kryptonite to break Superman down if he doesn't reveal the answers to Luthor's questions. Lex then brings in Malik Ali, a falafel vendor who appears earlier in the film when he helps Superman during a kaiju's attack on Metropolis, who he uses as a ploy to get Superman to talk. Luthor ends up shooting Malik, which is shocking and sad, but Gunn revealed that in his original plan, the scene then took a grim turn. In a recent interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Gunn said that he toned down the aftermath of Malik's death, which leaves an anguished Superman wailing after watching Luthor shoot the friendly civilian in the head. 'There's a really dark thing in there. There was a really dark thing. Once I saw the movie, I'm like, 'This is [too dark].' So Lex shoots the guy in the head, that was always done in this extreme wide [shot] so it's not too graphic. But the guy fell on the ground, and blood is pouring out onto the platform, and Lex looks down and sees the blood is about to get on his shoes.' At that point, Luthor would have Ghurkos get on the ground to soak up Malik's blood from seeping into his shoes. 'Ghurkos goes, 'What? No!' And Nic looks at him, and his delivery is great, because he looks at him straight and [says], 'No?' And then Ghurkos, sheepishly, sadly, trudges forward and lays down on his back. And [Burić], he's so funny. He lays down on his back and starts soaking up the blood. Then Nic looks over at Superman and says, 'I'll see you tomorrow.'' Gunn noted the scene was shot but was 'cut pretty early,' adding, 'I don't think that was even ever in a test screening.' Before the film's release, Gunn revealed that Drew Goddard, writer of Marvel's Daredevil and the films The Martian , The Cabin in the Woods , and Project Hail Mary , recommended he trim the scene. Gunn told Collider: 'Drew Goddard was really helpful. I think that there were a couple of little things in the movie, three or four things that we really argued about in the film, and all of them had to do with things that were a little bit darker or a little bit lighter. In discussing one of them, Drew Goddard was like, 'You know what? It's just not that film. It's not that film with this little dark ending bit.' And I thought, 'He's right. It's not that film. It is not that film.' And so that line that he said stuck with me for the rest of editing.' Gunn's Superman is now playing everywhere in theaters.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
James Gunn almost cut Superman's most controversial scene after a bad test screening: "Why the f*** is he saving a squirrel?"
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. James Gunn says we almost didn't see Superman save a squirrel during one of the film's biggest fight scenes because of poor audience reaction. Warning: Spoilers for Superman below! "Yeah, although it was probably the second- or third-most hotly debated moment in the movie. Because we showed it to test audiences and some people did not like the squirrel. They're like, 'Why the fuck is he saving a squirrel?' Why is he taking time out, saving a squirrel?'" Gunn told Rolling Stone "There was a cut where I cut it out and I'm like, 'I really miss the squirrel. He's gotta save the squirrel.' In addition, there were also some geographic problems with where he ended up if I didn't have him fly over with the squirrel. So I put the squirrel back in despite the protestations of some of my people on my crew." In Superman, Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) sends a kaiju to destroy Metropolis in order to distract Superman (David Corenswet) while he and his goons break into the Fortress of Solitude. At some point during the battle, we see Superman lift up the kaiju's foot to stop it from crushing a dog, and later grabs a squirrel out of the way to save it from being smushed. It might seem like a small, silly detail, but it really highlights just what type of superhero he truly is: every life is worth saving, no matter how big or how small. Personally, I would've thought that whole crying alien baby scene would've been the thing that didn't test well with audiences... but hey, what do I know? Superman is in theaters now. For more, check out our guides to all the upcoming DC movies and TV shows and how to watch the DC movies in order. Solve the daily Crossword
New York Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
A City's in Grave Danger. Why Would Superman Save a Squirrel?
'You'll believe a man could fly.' That was the tagline for the 1978 'Superman' movie, made when superhero films were so rare that simply watching someone soar through the sky felt magical. Today, though, comic-book movies are commonplace, with flight and other superpowers handed out so liberally that even Annette Bening has blasted energy beams from her hands. (That happened in 2019's 'Captain Marvel.' What, you don't remember?) James Gunn's new take on 'Superman,' in theaters now, has its fair share of flight scenes and they're all convincingly done. But the movie's mission statement has more to do with a pure spirit than a special effect: In the middle of one frenetic action sequence, after noticing a tiny squirrel is in danger of being crushed by debris, Superman leaps into action to rush the animal out of harm's way. Sure, you'll believe a man could fly. But would you believe that man would go to the trouble of saving a squirrel? 'The squirrel moment is probably one of the most debated,' Gunn told me recently. In early test screenings, some audiences were confused about why Superman (David Corenswet) would prioritize a tiny critter when all of Metropolis was in jeopardy. But to Gunn, that was exactly the point: His cleareyed, upbeat incarnation of Superman prizes saving every life, human or not. 'A lot of people were anti-squirrel. They thought it was too much,' he said. 'And I think it really comes down to, do you like squirrels or not?' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Gizmodo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
Superman Saving a Squirrel Was Cut Out of the Movie, but James Gunn Put It Back In
There are plenty of weird and unexpected moments in James Gunn's Superman, but one of the most unexpected has to be when he saves a squirrel in the middle of a giant battle. Not a human, not a group of animals, but a single, solitary squirrel. It speaks to the character's kindness and respect for all life in a fun, quirky way, but apparently not everyone liked it. 'It was probably the second- or third-most hotly debated moment in the movie,' Gunn said in a wide-ranging interview with Rolling Stone. 'Because we showed it to test audiences, and some people did not like the squirrel. They're like, 'Why the fuck is he saving a squirrel? Why is he taking time out, saving a squirrel?' There was a cut where I cut it out and I'm like, 'I really miss the squirrel. He's gotta save the squirrel.'' And so, Gunn put it back in. Especially because, if he lost it, the flow of the editing of the battle got messed up. 'In addition, there were also some geographic problems with where he ended up if I didn't have him fly over with the squirrel,' Gunn said. 'So I put the squirrel back in despite the protestations of some of my people on my crew.' Is Superman saving a squirrel extraneous? Possibly. Does it make sense? Absolutely. We know he loves animals from his attitude and interactions with Krypto. Plus, in a populated city like Metropolis, there aren't going to be many wild animals running around. But one that would certainly be there is a squirrel. And, don't forget, Gunn is the filmmaker who made a three-film Marvel series that centered around the origins of a talking raccoon. So, of course, Superman was going to have a soft spot for furry creatures. Head over to Rolling Stone to read much more from Gunn, especially regarding its music. Superman is now in theaters. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what's next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
