Spider-Man Edge of Time announced

Last year we saw the release of Spider-Man Shattered Dimensions. Although the game didn't get great reviews, it was one of the better Spider-Man games. In Shattered Dimensions, players controlled Spider-Man in four different universes namely Noir, Amazing, Spiderman 2099 and Ultimate Spider-Man.


The new Spider-Man game titled Spider-Man Edge of Time was announced at WonderCon 2011 in San Francisco and is expected to hit store shelves in the 2011 fall. The game is not a sequel to last year's title and has a completely fresh storyline. It is however being developed by Beenox studios (Now owned by Activision) who developed Shattered Dimensions. No specific platforms were mentioned but the game is expected to hit all the current generation platforms namely the XBOX 360, PS3, PSP, Nintendo DS and PC.


Spider-Man Edge of Time will take place in two Universes namely the Amazing Spider-Man universe and Spider-Man 2099 universe. Marvel writer Peter David who wrote the story of Shattered Dimensions is scripting the storyline of Edge of Time.


In this iteration of the game, both Spider-Men must work together to prevent the death of Peter Parker.


Although the core gameplay mechanics will stay true to tradition, the biggest change is that the heroes of both the universes will have to work together to save the day

India worthy world champions, Dhoni the hero: Oz media - The Times of India

The Australian media raised a toast to Mahendra Singh Dhoni's "bold" leadership as it declared India the worthy world champions who defied history and intense pressure to come out triumphant in the summit showdown against Sri Lanka.

The newspapers said Dhoni's leadership and his performance in the final match in Mumbai stole the limelight from iconic batsman Sachin Tendulkar who was playing in his sixth World Cup.

With its headline reading 'India defies history to win its first World Cup in 28 years', 'The Australian' said though it was not a fairytale finish but nonetheless India were the deserved world champions.

"It was about two great South Asian teams giving fans a thrilling, edge-of-the-seat one day final and a deserved triumph for a cricketing nation which felt its time had come. It wasn't a fairytale finish but for Mumbai and a nation still licking its wounds, it was more than enough," the newspaper said.

It said the current Indian team showed that it was no longer solely dependent on Tendulkar to win matches.

"Tendulkar might have been the name on everyone's lips but if ever there was a sign that the Indian team has moved beyond its one-man juggernaut, Saturday night's gritty victory was it.

"The team showed determination and discipline that surprised even the most nationalist fans to snatch a victory every man in the team then dedicated to their diminutive teammate playing in his sixth and final World Cup," it said.

"The win bore little resemblance to the fairytale finish the Mumbai crowd had been hoping for; one in which Sachin Tendulkar saw out his final World Cup by hitting his hundredth century before his home town crowd."

The newspaper described Dhoni as an "all-conquering captain" who now rivals Tendulkar in popularity.

"The 29-year-old is already cricket's top earner after signing a record two-year, $42 million contract last year to endorse whatever product comes his way, and after Saturday night's remarkable home-ground win against Sri Lanka, his marketability knows no bounds.

"With neither the Brahminical poise of hero-worshipped Sachin Tendulkar, the joviality of Shahid Afridi, or the worldly eloquence of Kumar Sangakkara, Dhoni is nonetheless the face of a new, harder-edged Indian team," the newspaper said.

"It was Dhoni's innings of 91 not out, and his final game-winning six, that made him the man of the match and sent a 33,000-capacity crowd at the Wankhede Stadium into a frenzy," the newspaper said.

Writing for 'Sydney Morning Herald', veteran cricket writer Peter Roebuck praised Dhoni for his bold leadership.

"The day belonged to Dhoni. Like Jayawardene, his form had been scratchy but he was able to put that behind him. Indeed he dared to push himself up the order," Roebuck wrote under headline 'Bold captain Dhoni India's hero of the day'.

"In the critical hour and despite modest returns, Dhoni dared to back himself. That is leading from the front. Even in the toughest times, too, he managed to convey composure. Throughout, his players felt their captain remained on the bridge and the situation was under control.

"Exuberant celebrations began the moment Dhoni clouted a drive into the stands. It was a fitting end to an unexpectedly successful and mostly clean tournament. Appropriately, the final was a superb contest full of twists and turns and dominated not by power but by skill and temperament.

"No home side had won a World Cup before but India did not blink. Overall it was a happy and entertaining occasion ... It was a fine World Cup, the best for 25 years."

India (Ind) vs Sri Lanka (SL): Nehra most likely ruled out but Gambhir fit: Dhoni

MUMBAI: India were dealt a blow ahead of Saturday's World Cup final against Sri Lanka with skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni saying that pacerAshish Nehra is "most likely" out of the match due to a fractured right-hand finger.

There was widespread speculation over Nehra's fitness and Dhoni said the lanky pacer, who returned impressive figures of 2/33 in the semifinal against Pakistan, was virtually out of reckoning.

"Nehra is most likely ruled out. He has got multiple fractures (in his right hand finger)," Dhoni said at the pre-match press conference.

But opener Gautam Gambhir, who left the field during Pakistan's innings due to a hamstring problem, is expected to be fit for the final.

"Gautam looks right now. He is most likely to be fit for the game," was Dhoni's response when asked about the left-hander's fitness status.

Nehra picked up the injury while attempting a catch against Pakistan when fielding at deep midwicket. He hurt himself while trying to pick up a pull by Shahid Afridi off Yuvraj Singh's bowling.

Nehra had missed the first two matches of the event due to a sore back. He went for 65 runs in 8.4 overs against South Africa in a group game after coming back.

He was then left out for India's next two games, before making a comeback in the semifinals.

F.A.L.T.U - Movie Review

When charting out a film that takes you to the college hallways, introduces an ideal group of 'buddies', and shows all things vibrant and 'happening', the makers are actually hanging by a thin chord; you'd either get the collegian razzmatazz bang right, or there'd be a herd of wannabes belligerently trying to amaze their way into believable adolescents.  

In Vashu Bhagnani produced FALTU (it's a naff acronym), which evidently steals inspiration from Steve Pink's 2006 comedy Accepted, Ritesh (Jackky) and Nanj (Angad Bedi) are utterly hopeless when they write exams, and accompanying them is Pooja (Puja Gupta). Just about managing to get clearance with percentages ranging in the bracket of 35-40, the trio faces rejection from every institute, much to the dismay of their respective parents. 

This triggers the leading star to think 'innovative', and from what starts just as a token letter of acceptance in Fakeerchand and Lakeerchand Trust University soon cumulates into a big gamble, as the fictitious college website leads to uproar and an army of students -- all other rejects, throng to the campus where they got 'admitted'. 

Most of FALTU is pleasing. Although the premise is unrealistic, to stretch the parameters that decide authenticity, the movie convinces you, and moreover, even in its fabricated fashion, it does succeed in confronting the flaws in our educational scenario.

Drawing comparisons with a Rajkumar Hirani [ Images ] film wouldn't be just because, FALTU targets the challenging tour of transition from high school (junior college) to a well-recognised degree institute whereas the latter stressed on the pressures post entering. 

FALTU is indeed an underdog story. They are underperformers academically but not wholly uninspired. Their transformation, fuelled by Baaji Rao (Riteish Deshmukh [ Images ]), who again is guided by Google (Arshad Warsi [Images ]), is subtle and cleverly brought out. 

Thus, after a lot of hullabaloo, there are courses of choice in the college, and here passion compliments the theory, and quite remarkably the film utilises digital exploitation for sundry tutoring benefits, like the videos of experts instructing uploaded on their website. This might not look immediately pragmatic but it isn't far-fetched either.

The film's weakness reflects in its rushed characterization, in fact, their very inception. Like Arshad Warsi's Google's origin is unexplained. Although he is a likeable guy, but you wonder how he is immensely resourceful, monetarily and influentially, as he without much trouble gets the massive college property, and also invests on its gleaming renovation. 

Riteish's Baajirao, is initially introduced as a person incapable of responsibility, however by the time the movie cumulates, he comes across as a valuable constituent. Both the actors, share appraisable camaraderie and infuse the much needed youth-like humour. Boman Irani [ Images ], however, as a BMC school principal is under-utilised but evokes occasional giggles. The 3 Idiots hangover doesn't seem to dry off till now.

It might be argued that the over-dramatic background score is mandatory to keep the turn of events pepped up, but at points it drenches the film of seriousness, and portrays it as a frivolous musical dramedy with its recurrent songs, although the music by Sachin -- Jigar is feet-tapping good. Frivolous, the film opens. Run of the mill, the characters debut. But, over a brief period, they attract beguilingly and also take you in sympathetically as you want them to do well. This is pretty much an accomplishment. 

Although FALTU's screenplay is openly lifted from Accepted, as the movie terminates it takes its own course resulting into an unexpectedly charming climax that metaphorically demonstrates the teething troubles of students stuck in a just passed to an average category. 

The dialogues don't sound contrived, and sensibly enough have been strictly kept measured and under-toned. This helps the film in not getting too preachy and yet be effective.

All you wish was that the story would've been nourished more, fine-tuned here and there.

Jackky Bhagnani's re-launch would after all be successful, as without being dominating, he emits confidence, and portrays the role of the rebellious youth very comfortably. His body-language shows no trace of uneasiness and expressions click and convey. 

Angad Bedi is a discovery, whereas Chandan Roy Sanyal soaks Vishnu [Images ] and arouses humour as the geek-gone-wild. Puja Gupta, facially resembles Prachi Desai [ Images ], but acts mediocrely.   

FALTU might not be revolutionary or inspiring, as it attempts to be, that slot primarily reserved to Rang De Basanti [Images ], but Remo D'Souza's level-headed direction amidst impressively enacted supporting roles by parents of the central characters keeps it uplifted.

An ambitious sophomore story of scholastically dim students coursing an almost impossible journey to prove their worth, enrolling for once in FALTU, might not be a faltu idea after all. 

GAME - The movie Review

GAME releases at a time when a different game, of bat and ball is at its peak. You guessed right; the Cricket World Cup mania has gripped the entire country, with India beating Pakistan for a clash against Sri Lanka in the finals. 


Anyway, leaving the excitement of Cricket aside, let's talk about GAME here, shall we? It's about four troubled individuals from different parts of the world - casino owner Neil Menon (Abhishek Bachchan), politician OP Ramsay (Boman Irani), actor Vikram Kapoor (Jimmy Shergill) and journalist Tisha Khanna (Shahana Goswami). All of them receive personalised handwritten invitations by billionaire Kabir Malhotra (Aupam Kher), offering them a helping hand if they arrive at his private island of Samos in Greece. Getting easily convinced and without wasting much time, all of them reach the exotic island, only to find out, they have been tricked. It turns out; they were all responsible in some way or the other, for the death of Kabir's daughter Maya (Sarah Jane Dias), three years back. Before Kabir can avenge the death of his daughter, he is found dead, in what looks like a suicide. Detective Sia Agnihotri (Kangna Ranaut) feels otherwise and interrogates the four visitors, holding them murder suspects.


The first rule of a suspense thriller is that it should be succinct. Debutant director Abhinay Deo breaks it by having copious songs and some irrelevant sub-plots which add no value. The first half is a drag, and the story doesn't move much. At one point a character says: I can't take this nonsense anymore. You know what, as a viewer, you share exactly the same sentiment. 


The narrative picks up in the second half which has some adroitly done twists. But they fall short of elevating the overall impact. Too much emphasis is made on the look and feel of the film, but the plot isn't exciting enough. If you pay attention to details, chances are you will know the suspense way before it is actually revealed. 


Some of the scenes defy time and logic like Vikram's story is out in a film magazine minutes after he has actually made the confession. Talk about real time updates! Amitabh Shulka's editing needed to be much tighter. Kartik Vijay's cinematography is fine. Shankar Ehsaan Loy's music is below the mark.

Abhishek Bachchan acts decently but some of his dialogues are cringe worthy. Debutante Sarah Jane Dias is impressive in her act. Kangana Ranaut is surprisingly good and her dialogue delivery has improved greatly. Excellent actors like Shahana Goswami, Jimmy Shergill and Boman Irani are wasted. Anupam Kher doesn't have much scope. Gauhar Khan is nice in her small role. 

Barring some astute twists in the second half, this GAME isn't worth playing. 

Some Hilarious Leave Applications

Infosys, Bangalore : An employee applied for leave as follows:
"Since I have to go to my village to sell my land along with my wife, please sanction me one-week leave."

This is from Oracle Bangalore: From an employee who was performing the "mundan" ceremony of his 10 year old son:
"As I want to shave my son's head, please leave me for two days.."

Another gem from CDAC. Leave-letter from an employee who was performing his daughter's wedding:
"As I am marrying my daughter, please grant a week's leave.."

From H.A.L. Administration Dept:
"As my mother-in-law has expired and I am only one responsible for it, please grant me 10 days leave."

Another employee applied for half day leave as follows:
"Since I've to go to the cremation ground at 10 o-clock and I may not return, please grant me half day casual leave"

An incident of a leave letter:
"I am suffering from fever, please declare one-day holiday."

A leave letter to the headmaster:
"As I am studying in this school I am suffering from headache. I request you to leave me today"

Another leave letter written to the headmaster:"As my headache is paining, please grant me leave for the day."

Covering note:
"I am enclosed herewith..."

Another one:
"Dear Sir: with reference to the above, please refer to my below..."

Actual letter written for application of leave:
"My wife is suffering from sickness and as I am her only husband at home I may be granted leave".

Letter writing:-
"I am well here and hope you are also in the same well."

A candidate's job application:
"This has reference to your advertisement calling for a ' Typist and an Accountant - Male or Female'... As I am both(!! )for the past several years and I can handle both with good experience, I am applying for the post.

Be Careful What You Wish For

A man walks into a restaurant with a full-grown ostrich behind him, and as he sits down, the waitress comes over and asks for their order.

The man says, “I’ll have a hamburger, fries and a coke,” and turns to the ostrich. “What’s yours?” “I’ll have the same,” says the ostrich.

A short time later the waitress returns with the order. “That will be $6.40 please,” and the man reaches into his pocket and pulls out exact change for payment.

The next day, the man and the ostrich come again and the man says, “I’ll have a hamburger, fries and a coke,” and the ostrich says, “I’ll have the same.” Once again the man reaches into his pocket and pays with exact change.

This becomes a routine until late one evening, the two enter again. “The usual?” asks the waitress. “No, this is Friday night, so I will have a steak, baked potato and salad,” says the man. “Same for me,” says the ostrich.

A short time later the waitress comes with the order and says, “That will be $12.62.” Once again the man pulls exact change out of his pocket and places it on the table.

The waitress can’t hold back her curiosity any longer.

“Excuse me, sir. How do you manage to always come up with the exact change out of your pocket every time?”

“Well,” says the man, “several years ago I was cleaning the attic and I found an old lamp. When I rubbed it a Genie appeared and offered me two wishes. My first wish was that if I ever had to pay for anything, just put my hand in my pocket, and the right amount of money would always be there.”

“That’s brilliant!” says the waitress. “Most people would wish for a million dollars or something, but you’ll always be as rich as you want for as long as you live!”

“That’s right! Whether it’s a gallon of milk or a Rolls Royce, the exact money is always there,” says the man.

The waitress asks, “One other thing, sir, what’s with the ostrich?”

The man sighs, pauses, and answers, “My second wish was for a tall chick with long legs who agrees with everything I say!”