0710 – Son of a Gun (2014)

timespace coordinates: 2010’s Australia

Son of a Gun is a 2014 Australian crime thriller film written and directed by Julius Avery. It stars Brenton Thwaites, Ewan McGregor, Alicia Vikander and Jacek Koman.

When JR (Brenton Thwaites) is sent to prison for a minor crime, he becomes the apprentice to Brendan Lynch (Ewan McGregor), Australia’s public enemy number one. When JR helps Brendan break out, they go on the run and form a complex co-dependent relationship. JR quickly learns in the criminal world, life is like a game of chess. To gain control, you have to stay a few moves ahead of your opponent. Lose that control, and you risk becoming a pawn in their very dangerous game. (rottentomatoes)

imdb

706 – Sacred Games (TV Series 2018– )

timespace coordinates: 70’s – 80’s – 90’s – 2010’s Mumbai

Sacred Games is an Indian web television series by Netflix based on Vikram Chandra‘s 2006 thriller novel of the same name. The series was produced in partnership with Phantom Films. The novel was adapted by Varun Grover, Smita Singh and Vasant Nath, and all eight, hour-long episodes were directed by Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane. All eight episodes were made available for streaming on 6 July 2018.

Sacred Games tells the story of Sartaj Singh (Saif Ali Khan), a jaded police inspector living under the shadow of his deceased father and seeking validation from a police force he nevertheless loathes for its corruption. When Singh receives an anonymous tip-off regarding the whereabouts of Ganesh Gaitonde (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), a notorious crime lord who has been missing for 16 years, it initiates a chain of events that burrows deep into India’s dark underworld.

जन्नत तोह मैं हो

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The episode titles are inspired by Hindu mythology. The first episode titled “Aswatthama”, was based on the namesake character from the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata. He was cursed with immortality by Krishna after the Kurukshetra war. In the series, Gaitonde calls himself immortal like Ashwatthama, but later commits suicide. “Halahala”, another episode, was named after a poison of the same name, which was retrieved from Samudra manthan. Aatapi and Vatapi were two demons who used to trick travellers with hospitality and kill them. Brahmahatya means killing of a Brahmin, which is a crime in Hinduism. In the episode, the Hindu Gaitonde agrees to try to attract Muslim votes for Hindu politician Bhosale. Sarama is referred to as a dog. Pretakalpa learns the rites of a Hindu to perform the cremations. In this episode, Katekar is killed and Sartaj cremates him. Rudra is the angered version of Shiva. Gaitonde’s wife Subhadra is killed in this episode; he takes revenge by murdering her killers. Yayati was king cursed with premature old age.

imdb

0704 – The Last Legion (2007)

timespace coordinates: ancient Rome AD 475

The Last Legion is a 2007 Anglo-Italian action adventure film directed by Doug Lefler. Produced by Dino De Laurentiis and others, it is based on a 2002 Italian novel of the same name written by Valerio Massimo Manfredi. It stars Colin Firth along with Sir Ben Kingsley and Aishwarya Rai, and premiered in Abu Dhabi on 6 April 2007.

The film is loosely inspired by the events of 5th-century European history, notably the collapse of the Western Roman Empire. This is coupled with other facts and legends from the history of Britain and fantastic elements from the legend of King Arthur to provide a basis for the Arthurian legend.

historical notes

connections to Arthurian legend   imdb

646 – Paul, Apostle of Christ (2018)

spacetime coordinates: Roma, 67 AD.

Paul, Apostle of Christ is a 2018 American biblical drama film written and directed by Andrew Hyatt. It stars James Faulkner as Saint Paul and Jim Caviezel (who portrayed Jesus in the 2004 film The Passion of the Christ) as Saint Luke. The film tells the story of Paul, who was known as a ruthless persecutor of Christians prior to his conversion to Christianity. The plot focuses on his becoming a pivotal figure in the formation of the early church before being executed by Emperor Nero in Rome. (wiki)

Persecution of Christians   Mamertine Prison   /       imdb

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“Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.
Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.
But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.” (Paul_of_Tarsus)

0642 – 48 Hrs. (1982)

spacetime coordinates: San Francisco 1982

48 Hrs. is a 1982 American action comedy film directed by Walter Hill.  The film stars Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy (in his film debut and Golden Globe Award-nominated role) as a cop and convict, respectively, who team up to catch two cop-killers, Albert Ganz and Billy Bear, played respectively by James Remar and Sonny Landham.

It is often credited as being the first film in the “buddy cop” genre, which included the subsequent films Beverly Hills Cop, Lethal Weapon, and Rush Hour. (wiki)

imdb

627 – The Running Man (1987)

spacetime coordinates: 2017 – 2019 Los Angeles

The Running Man is a 1987 American science fiction action film directed by Paul Michael Glaser and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, María Conchita Alonso, Yaphet Kotto, and Richard Dawson. It is very loosely based on the 1982 novel of the same name written by Stephen King and published under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. The film’s story, set in a dystopian United States between 2017 and 2019, is about a television show called The Running Man, where convicted criminal “runners” must escape death at the hands of professional killers.

Original director Andrew Davis was fired one week into filming and replaced by Glaser. Schwarzenegger has stated this was a “terrible decision”, as Glaser “shot the movie like it was a television show, losing all the deeper themes”.  (wiki)

imdb

622 – Tomb Raider (2013 video game) / Tomb Raider (2018 film)

Tomb Raider is a 2018 action-adventure film directed by Roar Uthaug, with a screenplay by Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Alastair Siddons, from a story by Evan Daugherty and Robertson-Dworet. It is based on the 2013 video game of the same name, with some elements of its sequel by Crystal Dynamics, and is a reboot of the Tomb Raider film series. The film stars Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft, who embarks on a perilous journey to her father’s last-known destination, hoping to solve the mystery of his disappearance. Dominic West, Walton Goggins, Daniel Wu, and Kristin Scott Thomas appear in supporting roles.

Producer Adrian Askarieh told IGN in an interview that he may oversee a film universe with Just Cause, Hitman, Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, and Thief. Askarieh however is not officially accredited with the production of this movie. (wiki)

imdb

Tomb Raider – FULL GAME WALKTHROUGH