The global success of “RRR” or “Rise, Roar, Revolt,” has caught director S.S. Rajamouli by surprise he told me at the reception following a screening Thursday night at the Whitby Hotel on 56th Street. “But it’s a wonderful surprise,” he added.

The acclaimed Indian director stayed for the entire reception, posing for selfies and talking to anyone who approached. He had just received a standing ovation for his three hour-plus action spectacular, screened for a crowd that probably had never seen a Tollywood film before (including me). The audience stomped, laughed and cheered. “RRR” inspires that kind of reaction. Glorious excess that works. A tiger and wolf collide in an early scene. It gets crazier from there. (The screenplay is by Rajamouli’s 80 year-old father, V. Vijayendra Prasad.)

The movie features two of India’s biggest stars, Ram Charan and N.T. Rama Rao Jr., as two friends and rivals who clash but reunite to rescue a young kidnapped girl from sadistic British colonialists. It’s a sort of an Indian bromance with lots of spectacular battle scenes. And a fabulous dance sequence, the “Naatu Naatu” scene, where our heroes demonstrate they can dance as well as they fight. They wipe the floor with the racist English toffs who challenge them in a dance off and win over the adoration of the young ladies who soon join them in the exuberant moves. That scene had the audience cheering. Watch “RRR” on a big screen with an audience that surrenders to the over-the-top action scenes.

During the Q&A,  Rolling Stone writer David Fear, who turned out to be an amusing moderator, asked: “Can we tell them how many days it took to film this?”

“We shot it for 320 days,” Rajamouli said sheepishly. “I mean, I’m not proud that I shot it for (so long) …  I think my producers definitely are not proud that it took so long. I would like to do it much faster, but we don’t have second unit directors and third unit directors in India. So pretty much every sequence, every scene, almost every shot, I had to direct. So because that’s such a big film with such big episodes, I had to shoot one episode, take a break, prepare for the next episode, and shoot it so it is (a long process).”

After three hours viewing time there was not time to dissect even half of the scenes and how the director did them said Fear. But the Naatu Naatu dance scene, a stand out in a movie with so many, the choreography music and editing is so impeccable, how long did it take to choreograph, shoot and get the stars up to speed?

“Both of them are exceptionally good dancers and we had a great song to showcase their dancing skills and we had a beautiful scene that leads up to the dance and so it doesn’t feel like suddenly, a song is coming onto the action (out of nowhere) and it (works) with  the narration,” said the director.

“Everything is properly put in. But still, I would give most of the credit of the success of that song for the dance choreographer, Prem Rakshith. He’s my choreographer. He spent almost two months composing for that number. And just for the two (stars), three signature steps or the hook line steps, he composed more than 100 variations.

“And you wouldn’t believe me. He had four sets of assistants, two assistants each and he was composing the steps for 15, 20 steps, 15, 20 variations. And the assistants were having cramps in their legs and pain in the knees. He would take out one couple and bring in another couple and start composing (with them). The third couple or fourth couple had to go to the hospital because (of injuries). 

“So he was relentless in getting what he wanted and once the steps were composed, Tarak (aka Rama) and Charan, like I said, they’re great dancers. They didn’t need too much time to practice the steps. They got it quite fast, but they also had to practice a lot because I wanted them to do the steps in exact synch. So they would do the steps and they knew they did it perfectly, and I would say, ‘One more, one more, one more.’ They didn’t understand why I was asking one more. Tarak is the most vocal guy. Charan is a silent guy. He would ask Tarak to,’ Go check why he’s asking for so many takes.’

“Tarak would come and I would play the sequence and showed him at that point that there is (variation in speed). He said, ‘Everything seems perfect.” Then I would replay it back at 1/10th the speed and going slowly, I would say, ‘See?’

“At that point (he was) staring at me and he said, ‘I worked with you 15 years back. In this 15 years, I thought you would be better, but I think you’ve gone crazier.’

The dance sequence involves some funny business with suspenders. How that came about?”

Again the director credited the choreographer.

“He came to my wife, she designed the costumes (Rama Rajamoui). He sat with her, he asked her, ‘What is the costume? I want to see the costume.’ And he took the costume from her and he saw that the costume had suspenders…) Let’s make something with the suspenders. And he composed that dance sequence.”

Fear quipped, “I’m pretty sure that that sequence single-handedly saved the suspender industry. I’m sure sales have gone up 300%.”

Photo c2023 Elena Martirosov for Showbiz411

Here’s a headscratcher: in announcing their long lists of pre nominations today. the BAFTA Awards didn’t have much love for Steven Spielberg or “The Fabelmans.”

The brilliant Spielberg memoir on film received nods for Best Picture, Actress, and Screenplay and two more below the line categories. But the BAFTAns didn’t nominate Spielberg for Best Director, Judd Hirsch for Supporting Actor, or John Williams for Best Score. Huh?

They also gave two minor nods to “Avatar: The Way of Water,” snubbing it in most categories.

Otherwise, they lean heavily toward British films — no surprise — and on Netflix’s “All Quiet on the Western Front.”

Well, you can’t have everything. But still…

These are not the final noms. They come soon. The Brits just like to tease a little…

BEST FILM

• Aftersun
• All Quiet on the Western Front
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Elvis
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• The Fabelmans
• Living
• Tár
• Top Gun: Maverick
• Triangle of Sadness

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM

• Aftersun
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Blue Jean
• Brian And Charles
• Emily
• Empire of Light
• Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
• Lady Chatterley’s Lover
• Living
• The Lost King
• Mrs Harris Goes To Paris
• Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical
• See How They Run
• The Swimmers
• The Wonder

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER

• Aftersun
• Blue Jean
• Donna
• Electric Malady
• Emily
• Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
• Nothing Compares
• Rebellion
• See How They Run
• Wayfinder

FILM NOT IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE

• All Quiet on the Western Front
• Argentina, 1985
• Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths
• Close
• Corsage
• Decision To Leave
• EO
• Holy Spider
• The Quiet Girl
• RRR

DOCUMENTARY

• All That Breathes
• All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
• A Bunch Of Amateurs
• Fire of Love
• The Ghost of Richard Harris
• Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, a Journey, a Song
• Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues
• McEnroe
• Moonage Daydream
• Navalny

ANIMATED FILM

• The Amazing Maurice
• The Bad Guys
• Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
• Lightyear
• Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
• Minions: The Rise of Gru
• Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
• Turning Red

DIRECTOR

• Aftersun
• All Quiet on the Western Front
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Corsage
• Decision To Leave
• Elvis
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Fire of Love
• The Quiet Girl
• Saint Omer
• She Said
• Tár
• Till
• Top Gun: Maverick
• The Woman King
• Women Talking

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

• Aftersun
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Decision To Leave
• Elvis
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• The Fabelmans
• Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
• The Menu
• Tár
• Triangle of Sadness

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

• All Quiet on the Western Front
• Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
• Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
• Living
• The Quiet Girl
• She Said
• Top Gun: Maverick
• The Whale
• Women Talking
• The Wonder

LEADING ACTRESS

• Naomi Ackie in I Wanna Dance With Somebody
• Ana de Armas in Blonde
• Cate Blanchett in Tár
• Jessica Chastain in The Good Nurse
• Viola Davis in The Woman King
• Danielle Deadwyler in Till
• Lesley Manville in Mrs Harris Goes To Paris
• Emma Thompson in Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
• Michelle Williams in The Fabelmans
• Michelle Yeoh in Everything Everywhere All At Once

LEADING ACTOR

• Austin Butler in Elvis
• Tom Cruise in Top Gun: Maverick
• Harris Dickinson in Triangle of Sadness
• Brendan Fraser in The Whale
• Colin Farrell in The Banshees of Inisherin
• Daniel Kaluuya in Nope
• Felix Kammerer in All Quiet on the Western Front
• Daryl McCormack in Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
• Paul Mescal in Aftersun
• Bill Nighy in Living

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• Angela Bassett in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
• Hong Chau in The Whale
• Kerry Condon in The Banshees of Inisherin
• Jamie Lee Curtis in Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Dolly De Leon in Triangle of Sadness
• Lashana Lynch in The Woman King
• Janelle Monáe in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
• Carey Mulligan in She Said
• Emma Thompson in Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical
• Aimee Lou Wood in Living

SUPPORTING ACTOR

• Brendan Gleeson in The Banshees of Inisherin
• Tom Hanks in Elvis
• Woody Harrelson in Triangle of Sadness
• Barry Keoghan in The Banshees of Inisherin
• Brad Pitt in Babylon
• Ke Huy Quan in Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Eddie Redmayne in The Good Nurse
• Albrecht Schuch in All Quiet on the Western Front
• Micheal Ward in Empire of Light
• Ben Whishaw in Women Talking

CASTING

• Aftersun
• All Quiet on the Western Front
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Elvis
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• The Fabelmans
• Living
• Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical
• Tár
• Triangle of Sadness

CINEMATOGRAPHY

• All Quiet on the Western Front
• Amsterdam
• Athena
• Babylon
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• The Batman
• Elvis
• Empire of Light
• Tár
• Top Gun: Maverick

COSTUME DESIGN

• All Quiet on the Western Front
• Amsterdam
• Babylon
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
• Corsage
• Elvis
• Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
• Mrs Harris Goes To Paris
• Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical

EDITING

• Aftersun
• All Quiet on the Western Front
• Babylon
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Decision To Leave
• Elvis
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Moonage Daydream
• Top Gun: Maverick
• Triangle of Sadness

MAKE UP & HAIR

• All Quiet on the Western Front
• Amsterdam
• Babylon
• The Batman
• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
• Blonde
• Elvis
• Emancipation
• Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical
• The Whale

ORIGINAL SCORE

All Quiet on the Western Front
Babylon
The Banshees of Inisherin
The Batman
Empire of Light
Everything Everywhere All At Once
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
Tár
Women Talking
The Wonder

PRODUCTION DESIGN

• All Quiet on the Western Front
• Avatar: The Way of Water
• Babylon
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• The Batman
• Elvis
• Empire of Light
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• The Fabelmans
• Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS

• All Quiet on the Western Front
• Avatar: The Way of Water
• The Batman
• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
• Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore
• Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
• Jurassic World Dominion
• Top Gun: Maverick

SOUND

• All Quiet on the Western Front
• Avatar: The Way of Water
• Babylon
• The Batman
• Elvis
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
• Tár
• Thirteen Lives
• Top Gun: Maverick

BRITISH SHORT ANIMATION

• Beware of Trains
• The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
• Christopher at Sea
• Middle Watch
• Salvation Has No Name
• Your Mountain is Waiting

BRITISH SHORT FILM

• The Ballad Of Olive Morris
• Bazigaga
• Bus Girl
• A Drifting Up
• A Fox in the Night
• An Irish Goodbye
• Little Berlin
• Love Languages
• Too Rough
• WanderLand

And Martin Scorsese sent in a video, showing that work on “Killers of the Flower Moon” is giving him baggage under his eyes. (The man looks tired, but editing proceeds.)

The New York Film Critics Dinner at Tao Restaurant last night was full of fun and surprises. Seth Meyers, a Colin Farrell fan, showed up to present Best Actor but Farrell was MIA. Stephen Colbert anointed Cate Blanchett Best Actress for “Tar,” which also won Best Feature. That prize was given by Scorsese on video, though he seemed like he might take a nap any minute during his speech.

Talking Heads’ David Byrne presented to Laura Poitras who won the Documentary prize for her “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed.”

The highlights of the night included Blanchett and Banshees star Kerry Condon. Blanchett arrived late last night after flying in from the wilds of Australia. Jet lagged, the star of “Tar” gave a cutely loopy acceptance speech from a sheath of papers. She’s already on her way to L.A. for more awards shows, which means she’s just been flying around the world for two days. My gosh. Condon presented in absentia awards for Colin Farrell and “Banshees” director Martin McDonagh and was so charming half the room was swooning. With her Irish accent and red hair, when she pronounces the word film in two syllables, it sounds like music.

Other emotional speeches came from Best Supporting Actor Ke Huy Quan and Best Supporting Actress Keke Palmer. Quan joked that Palmer’s “Nope” director Jordan Peele, who was in the audience, may change his name to “Ke Ke Ke” because he likes the “Ke” sound (Keegan Michael Key was Palmer’s longtime comedy partner, Keke Palmer– get it?). Quan is part of the 90s nostalgia wave this Year (like Brendan Fraser) but he’s also the happiest man in Hollywood as a perpetual nominee from “Everything Everywhere All at Once.”

We also got to meet Danny Ramirez currently flying high in “Top Gun.” He told me he became addicted to the flying in Air Force jets. He’s ready for the “Maverick” sequel. Ramirez next stars as the Falcon to Anthony Mackie’s Captain America” In the next chapter of that Marvel series.

Scorsese, by the way, could not wax more poetic about “Tar.” His abridged comments follow but they don’t include the moment when he looked into the camera and said of Blanchett’s amazing performance, “Cate, I don’t even know what you’re doing there. It feel like the beginning of a new career.” Or something like that. And don;t forget, Scorsese directed Blanchett to an Oscar in “The Aviator.”

Scorsese:

For so long now, so many of us see films that pretty much let us know where they’re going. I mean, they take us by the hand, and even if it’s disturbing at times, sort of comfort us along the way that it will be all okay by the end. Now this is insidious, as one can get lulled into this, and ultimately get used to it.
Leading those of us who’ve experienced cinema in the past — as much more than that— to become despairing of the future of the art form, especially for younger generations. But that’s on dark days. The clouds lifted when I experienced Todd’s film, TÁR.
What you’ve done, Todd –– is that the very fabric of the movie you created doesn’t allow this. All the aspects of cinema and the film that you’ve used, attest to this. The shift in locations for example, the shift in locations alone do what cinema does best, which is to reduce space and time to what they are, which is nothing.
You make it so that we exist in her head. We experience only through her perception. The world is her. Time, chronology and space, become the music that she lives by. And we don’t know where the film’s going. We just follow the character on her strange, upsetting road to her even stranger final destination.
Now, what you’ve done, Todd –– it’s a real high wire act, as all of this is conveyed through a Masterful Mise-en-scène, as controlled, precise, dangerous, precipitous angles, and edges geometrically kind of chiseled into a wonderful 2:3:5 aspect ratio of frame compositions. The limits of the frame itself, and the provocation of measured long takes all reflecting the brutal architecture of her soul — TÁR’s soul.