document_title: Detroit (film)

question_text: who is the band in the movie detroit

question_tokens: who is the band in the movie detroit

text: Detroit (film)

text: Plot[edit]

text: On July 23, 1967, the Detroit Police Department stage a raid on an unlicensed club during a celebration for returning black veterans from the Vietnam War. While suspects are being arrested, a mob forms and starts throwing rocks at the officers before looting nearby stores and starting fires, beginning the 12th Street Riot. With state authorities, elected representatives, and even emergency services unable to maintain any semblance of order, Governor George W. Romney authorizes the Michigan Army National Guard and President Lyndon B. Johnson authorizes Army paratroopers to enter Detroit in order to provide assistance. On the second day of rioting, two cops pursue a fleeing looter. One of them, Philip Krauss, kills the man with a shotgun against orders, but is allowed to remain on duty until his superiors can decide whether to file murder charges.

text: The Dramatics, a professional black R&B group, arrive in Detroit hoping to score a recording contract. Seconds before their scheduled performance at a music hall, the police shut down the venue and order them to leave the city. En route, their bus is attacked by rioters and the group subsequently splits up, with lead singer Larry Reed and his friend Fred Temple renting a room at the local Algiers Motel for the night. They meet two white girls, Julie Ann and Karen, who introduce them to their friends Carl Cooper and Aubrey Pollard. Carl and another friend stage a prank using a starter pistol, upsetting Julie and Karen, who move to the room of Greene, a Vietnam War veteran, while Larry and Fred return to their own room.

text: Melvin Dismukes, a private security guard, is assigned to protect a grocery store from looters and ingratiates himself with the Guardsmen. Carl decides to fire several blanks from his pistol in the direction of the troops to frighten them, but they mistake it for a sniper attack and pinpoints it coming from the Algiers due to the pistol's muzzle flash. The Michigan State Police, National Guard, and Detroit Police arrives at the motel to investigate, led by Detroit police officer Krauss. Entering the building, they gun down Carl when he tries to escape, and plant a knife next to his body as he bleeds out and dies.

text: They round up everyone in the hotel and line them against the wall, demanding to know who the sniper was. Despite not finding any weapon during a search of the room, Krauss terrorizes and interrogates the occupants of the hotel. Dismukes arrives to try to help. Unwilling to get involved, most of the state police and National Guard leave without informing anyone of Krauss's abuse.

text: Krauss orders several suspects to be moved to different rooms and subjected to mock executions in order to terrify the others into confessing. One police officer actually kills Aubrey, as he didn't understand the executions were supposed to be mock. Julie and Karen are taken to an upstairs room when they begin screaming, and Julie's clothes are torn off. Disgusted, a Guardsman returns, and manages to get them released from custody. Fearing arrest, Krauss permits the remaining suspects to leave, but only if they swear to keep silent. Greene and Larry agree, but Fred is killed when he refuses.

text: As the riots die down, Dismukes, while working his other job in a factory, is arrested and charged with murder after Julie identifies him as being present at the Algiers that night. Krauss and his fellow officers are questioned as well, and when everyone except Krauss confesses, they are also charged. Larry, whose singing career has stalled due to the trauma he experienced, is summoned as a witness to testify. The judge ultimately refuses to accept any of the confessions as evidence, and without a solid case, the all-white jury acquits Dismukes, Krauss, and their co-defendants of all charges. Dismukes confronts Krauss with the truth, but finds himself powerless to get any justice for the victims.

text: The film ends by explaining what became of the participants: Dismukes moved to the suburbs to escape death threats and resumed work as a security guard, Krauss and his men remained on the force but never returned to active duty, Julie rebuilt her life and started a family, and Larry became a choir singer and still lives in Detroit to the present day.

text: Cast[edit]

text:
John Boyega as Melvin Dismukes[9][10]
Will Poulter as Philip Krauss
Algee Smith as Larry Reed
Jacob Latimore as Fred Temple
Jason Mitchell as Carl Cooper
Hannah Murray as Julie Ann
Kaitlyn Dever as Karen
Jack Reynor as Demens
Ben O'Toole as Flynn
Nathan Davis Jr. as Aubrey
Peyton Alex Smith as Lee
Malcolm David Kelley as Michael Clark
Joseph David-Jones as Morris
John Krasinski as Attorney Auerbach
Anthony Mackie as Greene
Laz Alonso as John Conyers Jr.
Ephraim Sykes as Jimmy
Leon Thomas III as Darryl
Gbenga Akinnagbe as Aubrey Pollard Sr.
Chris Chalk as Officer Frank
Jeremy Strong as Attorney Lang
Austin Hébert as Warrant Officer Roberts
Miguel Pimentel as Malcolm
Kristopher Davis as Blind Pig Patron
Samira Wiley as Vanessa
Tyler James Williams as Leon
Glenn Fitzgerald as Homicide Detective Anderson

text: Production[edit]

text: On January 28, 2016, it was announced that Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal would reteam to make a film about the 1967 Detroit riots, with Bigelow directing from a script by Boal.[11] Both would also produce the film, along with Annapurna Pictures' Megan Ellison and Matthew Budman.[11] Game of Thrones actress Hannah Murray was cast in a "key role" in the film, although her character was then being kept under wraps.[12] The film was scheduled to shoot in the summer of 2016, in order to be released in 2017 for the 50th anniversary of the riots. On June 21, 2016, John Boyega joined the cast.[13] On August 3, 2016, Jack Reynor, Will Poulter, and Ben O'Toole were cast in lead roles.[14] On August 4, 2016, Anthony Mackie joined the cast,[15] and on August 5, 2016, Jacob Latimore and Algee Smith also joined.[16] On August 8, 2016, Joseph David-Jones joined the cast,[17] followed by Kaitlyn Dever on August 30, 2016.[18] On September 9, 2016, Jason Mitchell joined the cast,[19] and on September 13, 2016, John Krasinski was also added.[20] In October 2016, Jeremy Strong, Chris Chalk, Austin Hébert, Ephraim Sykes, Laz Alonso, Nathan Davis Jr., Malcolm David Kelley, Peyton Alex Smith, and Leon Thomas III all joined the cast of the film.[21]

text: Filming[edit]

text: It was reported at the end of July 2016 that the film had commenced principal photography in Boston during the previous week.[22][23] Scenes were filmed inside Dedham District Court,[24] in Dorchester, Massachusetts and in Brockton, Massachusetts.[25] In addition, the movie filmed in Detroit during October 2016. The elimination of Michigan's film incentives in 2015 affected the filming locations.[5][26]

text: Post-production[edit]

text: In May 2017, James Newton Howard was hired as the film's composer.[27] In July 2017, Detroit rapper Tee Grizzley released a song called "Teetroit" for the soundtrack.[28]. The Roots and Bilal released a song named "It Ain't Fair" for the soundtrack. [29]

text: Release[edit]

text: Detroit began a limited release in 10 markets on July 28, 2017, opening in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Washington D.C., Detroit, San Francisco, Houston, Atlanta, and Baltimore.[30] Annapurna Pictures then released the film nationally, its first as a distributor, on August 4, 2017.[6] Annapurna handled the film's North American distribution, while Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Entertainment One handled distribution for its international release.[31] On November 3, 2017, it was announced the film would get a ten city, 20 screen re-release on December 1, 2017 in an effort to push its award campaign.[32]

text: Reception[edit]

text: Box office[edit]

text: Detroit grossed $16.8 million in the United States and Canada and $4.8 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $21.5 million, against a production budget of $34 million.[4]

text: In North America, Detroit grossed $350,190 in its limited opening from 20 theaters (an average of $17,510), finishing 16th at the box office.[33] The film then had its wide expansion alongside Kidnap and The Dark Tower, and was initially projected to gross $10–15 million from 3,007 theaters over the weekend.[34] The film made $525,000 from Thursday previews, which was more than the $515,482 it made in its entire week of limited release. It then made $2.6 million on its first day, lowering weekend projections to $7.5 million.[35] It went on to open to $7.1 million, finishing 8th at the box office; 40% of its opening weekend audience were African American. Deadline.com said that the film could have done better had it been released in the fall during festivals and awards season.[36] In its second weekend the film grossed $2.9 million, dropping 59.5% (above average for an adult drama) and finishing in 13th.[37] In its third week of wide release the film was pulled from 1,579 theaters and grossed $850,000 (a drop of 70.9%).[38]

text: Critical response[edit]

text: Detroit received praise for its direction, script and performances, especially those of Poulter, Boyega and Smith.[7][8] On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 84% based on 252 reviews, and an average rating of 7.6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Detroit delivers a gut-wrenching – and essential – dramatisation of a tragic chapter from America's past that draws distressing parallels to the present."[39] On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating to reviews, the film has a weighted average score of 78 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[40] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, while comScore reported filmgoers gave an 86% overall positive score and a 63% "definite recommend".[35]

text: Richard Roeper of Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 4 out of 4 stars and called it one of 2017's best, saying: "Journalist-screenwriter Mark Boal (Bigelow's collaborator on The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty) does a magnificent job of juggling the multiple storylines and creating fully authentic characters—some flawed, some basically decent, some evil."[41] Writing for Rolling Stone, Peter Travers praised the cast and script, giving the film 3.5/4 stars and saying, "... Detroit is far more than a liberal howl against the escalating toxicity of racism in America. Bigelow, with the same immersive intensity that Christopher Nolan brings to Dunkirk, smacks us down in the middle of a brutal historical event so we can see it – and feel it – for ourselves."[42]

text: Conversely, Alexander Nazaryan of Newsweek said, "[Bigelow's] characters never come alive, moving through the film less as people than entries in a sociology textbook ... If Bigelow could get inside the minds of soldiers suffocated by post-traumatic stress disorder, as she did so capably in The Hurt Locker, she can get into the mind of anyone. In Zero Dark Thirty, she made even CIA interrogators likeable. The characters in Detroit, though, black and white, are as flat as the plains of the Upper Midwest."[43]

text: Several critics noted the film's questionable take on a predominantly African American-based story. A. O. Scott in The New York Times wrote, "It is curious that a movie set against a backdrop of black resistance and rebellion—however inchoate and self-destructive its expression may have been—should become a tale of black helplessness and passivity. The white men, the decent ones as much as the brutes, have the answers, the power, the agency."[44] K. Austin Collins of The Ringer wrote, "This movie isn't really about black people as people, nor history as a lived experience, but is instead invested in a dutiful, 'just the facts, ma'am' reenactment that pretends those other things are already a given. Boal, and Bigelow beside him, refuse to speculate about — or imagine — the rest."[45]

text: The New Yorker's Richard Brody called the film "a moral failure", saying: "[Bigelow's] intentions come through clearly: to depict an incident—and a climate—of racism, to show that the cruelty of these deeds was multiplied by their ultimate impunity, and to suggest that, in the intervening half-century since the events depicted in the film took place, little has changed. Movies aren’t made with intentions, though; they’re made with people and with equipment, and what Bigelow has her actors do for the benefit of the camera is repellent to imagine."[46]

text: Tim Grierson and Will Leitch from The New Republic mentioned the film as a possible Academy Award candidate in the main category Best Picture, and mentioned John Boyega as a possible nominee for Best Actor.[47]

text: Accolades[edit]

text:
Award
Date of ceremony
Category
Recipient(s)
Result
Ref.

Black Reel Awards
February 22, 2018
Outstanding Film
Detroit
Nominated
[48][49]

Outstanding Actor, Motion Picture
Algee Smith
Nominated

Outstanding Ensemble
Victoria Thomas
Nominated

Outstanding Score
James Newton Howard
Nominated


document_title: Night of the Living Dead

question_text: who starred in night of the living dead

question_tokens: who starred in night of the living dead

root

text: Night of the Living Dead

text: Plot[edit]

text: Barbra and Johnny Blair drive to rural Pennsylvania to visit their father's grave. Barbra is attacked by a strange man walking in the cemetery. Johnny tries to rescue his sister, but the man throws him against a gravestone; Johnny strikes his head on the stone and is killed. After a mishap with the car, Barbra escapes on foot, with the stranger in pursuit, and later arrives at a farmhouse, where she discovers a woman's mangled corpse. Fleeing from the house, she is confronted by strange menacing figures like the man in the graveyard. Ben arrives and takes her into the house, driving the "monsters" away and sealing the doors and windows. Throughout the night, Barbra slowly descends into a stupor of shock and insanity.

tag: p

text: Ben and Barbra are unaware that the farmhouse has a cellar, housing an angry married couple, Harry and Helen Cooper, along with their daughter Karen. They sought refuge after a group of the same monsters overturned their car. Tom and Judy, a teenage couple, arrived after hearing an emergency broadcast about a series of brutal murders. Karen has fallen seriously ill after being bitten by one of the monsters. They venture upstairs when Ben turns on a radio, while Barbra awakens from her stupor. Harry demands that everyone hide in the cellar, but Ben deems it a "deathtrap" and continues upstairs, to barricade the house with Tom's help.

text: Radio reports explain that a wave of mass murder is sweeping across the eastern United States. Ben finds a television, and they watch an emergency broadcaster report that the recently deceased have become reanimated and are consuming the flesh of the living. Experts, scientists, and the United States military fail to discover the cause, though one scientist suspects radioactive contamination from a space probe. It returned from Venus, and was deliberately exploded in the Earth's atmosphere when the radiation was detected.

text: Ben plans to obtain medical care for Karen when the reports list local rescue centers offering refuge and safety. Ben and Tom refuel Ben's truck while Harry hurls molotov cocktails from an upper window at the ghouls. Judy follows him, fearing for Tom's safety. Tom accidentally spills gasoline on the truck, setting it ablaze. Tom and Judy try to drive the truck away from the pump, but Judy is unable to free herself from its door, and the truck explodes, killing them both; the zombies promptly eat the charred remains.

text: Ben returns to the house but is locked out by Harry. Eventually forcing his way back in, Ben beats Harry, angered by his cowardice, while the zombies feed on the remains of Tom and Judy. A news report reveals that only a gunshot or heavy blow to the head can stop them, aside from setting the "reactivated bodies" on fire. It also reports that posses of armed men are patrolling the countryside to restore order.

text: The lights go out, and the zombies break through the barricades. Harry grabs Ben's rifle and threatens to shoot him. In the chaos, the two fight and Ben manages to wrestle the gun away and shoots Harry. Harry stumbles into the cellar and collapses next to Karen, mortally wounded. She has also died from her illness. The ghouls try to pull Helen and Barbra through the windows, but Helen frees herself. She returns to the refuge of the cellar to see Karen is reanimated and eating Harry's corpse. Helen is frozen in shock, and Karen stabs her to death with a masonry trowel. Barbra, seeing Johnny among the zombies, is carried away by the horde and devoured. As the zombies overrun the house, Ben fights off Karen and seals himself inside the cellar, where Harry and Helen are reanimating, and he is forced to shoot them.

text: The next morning, Ben is awakened by the posse's gunfire outside. Upon venturing upstairs, the posse mistake him for one of the ghouls and kill him with a shot to the forehead. Ben's body is thrown onto a pile of corpses which are set ablaze.

text: Cast[edit]

text:
Duane Jones as Ben: An unknown stage actor, Jones' performance depicted Ben as a "comparatively calm and resourceful Negro" (a distinguished gentleman and former university professor, in real life), according to a movie reviewer in 1969.[a] Casting Jones as the hero was potentially controversial in 1968: it was not typical for a black man to be the hero of an American film when the rest of the cast was composed of white actors at the time, but Romero said that Jones simply gave the best audition.[6] He was in a few other films after Night of the Living Dead and continued working as a theater actor and director until his death in 1988.[7] Despite his other film roles, Jones worried that people only recognized him as Ben.[8]
Judith O'Dea as Barbra Blair: A 23-year-old commercial and stage actress, O'Dea once worked for Hardman and Eastman in Pittsburgh. O'Dea was in Hollywood seeking to enter the movie business at the time of audition. Starring in the film was a positive experience for her, she remarked in an interview. She admitted that horror movies terrified her, particularly Vincent Price's House of Wax (1953). Besides acting, O'Dea performed her own stunts, which she jokingly claimed amounted to "lots of running". "I honestly had no idea it would have such a lasting impact on our culture", assessing Night of the Living Dead. She was just as surprised by the renown the film brought her: "People treat you differently. [I'm] ho-hum Judy O'Dea until they realize [I'm] Barbra from Night of the Living Dead. All of a sudden [I'm] not so ho-hum anymore!"[9]
Karl Hardman as Harry Cooper: One of the film's producers (alongside Streiner), Hardman is also the voice of the newscaster heard on the radio of Johnny's car.[10]
Marilyn Eastman as Helen Cooper: Eastman also played a female ghoul eating an insect.[10]
Keith Wayne as Tom
Judith Ridley as Judy: Ridley later co-starred in Romero's second feature There's Always Vanilla (1971).[11]
Kyra Schon as Karen Cooper: Hardman's 11-year-old daughter, Schon also portrayed the mangled corpse on the house's upstairs floor that Ben drags away.[10]
Charles Craig as TV Newscaster/Ghoul
Bill Hinzman as Ghoul: Hinzman was the zombie encountered by Barbra and Johnny in the cemetery. He reprised the role in new scenes that were filmed for the 30th-anniversary edition of the film.[12]
George Kosana as Sheriff McClelland: Kosana also served as the film's production manager.[13]
Russell Streiner (uncredited) as Johnny Blair: Streiner later served as an executive producer of the 1990 remake of the film, in which he makes a cameo appearance as Sheriff McClelland.[14]
Bill "Chilly Billy" Cardille as a WIIC-TV Channel 11 news reporter: Cardille was well-known in Pittsburgh as a TV presenter who hosted a horror film anthology series, Chiller Theatre, on late Saturday nights in the 1960s and 70s. Cardille would later make a cameo appearance as the TV news reporter in the 1990 remake.[15]

tag: ul

text: Production[edit]

text: Development and pre-production[edit]

text: Romero embarked upon his career in the film industry while attending Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.[16] He directed and produced television commercials and industrial films for The Latent Image, in the 1960s, a company he co-founded with friends John Russo, and Russell Streiner. The trio grew bored making commercials and wanted to film a horror movie during this period. They wanted to capitalize on the film industry's "thirst for the bizarre",[17] according to Romero. He and Streiner contacted Karl Hardman and Marilyn Eastman, president and vice president respectively of a Pittsburgh-based industrial film firm called Hardman Associates, Inc. They pitched their idea for a then-untitled horror film.[17] A production company, conceived by Romero, called Image Ten, was formed which included Romero, Russo, Streiner, Hardman and Eastman. The initial budget was $6,000[18] with the ten members of the production company, investing $600 each for a share of the profits.[19] Another ten investors were found when it was found that another $6,000 was required but this was also soon found to be inadequate. Image Ten eventually raised approximately $114,000 for the budget.[20]

text: Writing[edit]

text: Co-written as a horror comedy by John Russo and George A. Romero under the title Monster Flick,[21] an early screenplay draft concerned the exploits of adolescent aliens who visit Earth and befriend human teenagers. A second version of the script featured a young man who runs away from home and discovers rotting human corpses that aliens use for food scattered across a meadow. Russo came up with the concept that they would be the recently dead only, because they could not afford to bring long-dead people out of their graves, or at least "we" thought. He also came up with the idea that they would be "flesh-eaters." Romero decided he liked those two ideas and without them, it would have been labeled a true 'rip-off' of "Richard Matheson's I Am Legend" novel (1954). The final draft, written mainly by Russo during three days in 1967, focused on reanimated human corpses – Romero refers to them as ghouls – that consume the flesh of the living.[22] In a 1997 interview with the BBC's Forbidden Weekend, Romero explained that the script developed into a three-part short story. Part one became Night of the Living Dead. Sequels Dawn of the Dead (1978) and Day of the Dead (1985) were adapted from the two remaining parts.[23]

text: Romero drew inspiration from Richard Matheson's I Am Legend (1954), a horror novel about a plague that ravages a futuristic Los Angeles. The infected in I Am Legend become vampire-like creatures and prey on the uninfected.[20][24][25] Discussing the creation of Night of the Living Dead, Romero remarked, "I had written a short story, which I basically had ripped off from a Richard Matheson novel called I Am Legend."[26] Romero further explained:

text: I thought I Am Legend was about revolution. I said if you're going to do something about revolution, you should start at the beginning. I mean, Richard starts his book with one man left; everybody in the world has become a vampire. I said we got to start at the beginning and tweak it up a little bit. I couldn't use vampires because he did, so I wanted something that would be an earth-shaking change. Something that was forever, something that was really at the heart of it. I said, so what if the dead stop staying dead? ... And the stories are about how people respond or fail to respond to this. That's really all [the zombies] ever represented to me. In Richard's book, in the original I Am Legend, that's what I thought that book was about. There's this global change and there's one guy holding out saying, wait a minute, I'm still a human. He's wrong. Go ahead. Join them. You'll live forever! In a certain sense he's wrong but on the other hand, you've got to respect him for taking that position.[27]

text: Official film adaptations of Matheson's novel appeared in 1964 as The Last Man on Earth, in 1971 as The Omega Man, and the 2007 release I Am Legend. Matheson was not impressed by Romero's interpretation, feeling that "It was ... kind of cornball",[28] though he later said, "George Romero's a nice guy, though. I don't harbor any animosity toward him."[29]

text: Russo and Romero revised the screenplay while filming. Karl Hardman attributed the edits to lead actor Duane Jones:

text: The script had been written with the character Ben as a rather simple truck driver. His dialogue was that of a lower class / uneducated person. Duane Jones was a very well educated man [and he] simply refused to do the role as it was written. As I recall, I believe that Duane himself upgraded his own dialogue to reflect how he felt the character should present himself.[17]

text: Eastman modified cellar scenes featuring dialogue between Helen and Harry Cooper.[17] According to lead actress Judith O'Dea, much of the dialogue was improvised. She told an interviewer, "I don't know if there was an actual working script! We would go over what basically had to be done, then just did it the way we each felt it should be done".[30] One example offered by O'Dea concerns a scene where Barbra tells Ben about Johnny's death:

text: The sequence where Ben is breaking up the table to block the entrance and I'm on the couch and start telling him the story of what happened [to Johnny] it's all ad-libbed. This is what we want to get across [...] tell the story about me and Johnny in the car and me being attacked. That was it [...] all improv. We filmed it once. There was a concern we didn't get the sound right, but fortunately they were able to use it.[9]

text: Although the film is regarded as one of the launching pads for the modern zombie movie, the screenplay itself never uses the word.[31] In fact, Romero would later confess that he felt the film's antagonists were distinct enough from Haitian zombies that they were "something completely new" with Romero actively avoiding any similarities between the two creatures although he notes that he may have subtly been inspired by them.[31]

text: The lead role was originally written for someone of Caucasian descent, but upon casting African-American actor Duane Jones, Romero intentionally did not alter the script to reflect this.[31] Asked in 2013, if he took inspiration from the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. that same year, Romero responded in the negative noting that he only heard about the shooting when he was on his way to find distribution for the finished film.[31]

text: Filming[edit]

text: Principal photography[edit]

text: The small budget dictated much of the production process. According to Hardman, "We knew that we could not raise enough money to shoot a film on a par with the classic horror films with which we had all grown up. The best that we could do was to place our cast in a remote spot and then bring the horror to be visited on them in that spot".[17] Scenes were filmed near Evans City, Pennsylvania, 30 miles (48 km) north of Pittsburgh in rural Butler County;[32] the opening sequence was shot at the Evans City Cemetery on Franklin Road, south of the borough.[33] The interior upstairs scenes were filmed in a downtown Evans City home that later became the offices of a prominent local physician and family doctor (Allsop). This home is still standing on South Washington St. (locally called Mars-Evans City Road), between the intersecting streets of South Jackson and Van Buren. The cemetery chapel was under warrant for demolition; however, Gary R. Steiner led a successful effort to raise $50,000 to restore the building, and the chapel is currently undergoing renovations.[34][35]

text: The outdoor, indoor (downstairs) and basement scenes were filmed at a location northeast of Evans City, near a park. The basement door (external view) shown in the film was cut into a wall by the production team and led nowhere. As this house was scheduled for demolition, damage during filming was permitted. The site is now a turf farm.[36][b]

text: Props and special effects were fairly simple and limited by the budget. The blood, for example, was Bosco Chocolate Syrup drizzled over cast members' bodies.[37] Consumed flesh consisted of roasted ham and entrails donated by one of the actors, who also owned a chain of butcher shops. Costumes consisted of second-hand clothing from cast members and Goodwill. Zombie makeup varied during the film. Initially makeup was limited to white skin with blackened eyes; but as filming progressed mortician's wax was used to simulate wounds and decaying flesh. As filming was not linear, the piebald faces appear sporadically. Eastman supervised the special effects, wardrobe and makeup.[17] Filming took place between June and December 1967 under the working title Night of Anubis and later Night of the Flesh Eaters.[38][39] The small budget led Romero to shoot on 35 mm black-and-white film. The completed film ultimately benefited from the decision, as film historian Joseph Maddrey describes the black-and-white filming as "guerrilla-style", resembling "the unflinching authority of a wartime newsreel". Maddrey adds, it "seem[s] as much like a documentary on the loss of social stability as an exploitation film".[40]

text: Directing[edit]

text: Night of the Living Dead was the first feature-length film directed by George A. Romero. His initial work involved filming shorts for Pittsburgh public broadcaster WQED's children's series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.[41][42] Romero's decision to direct Night of the Living Dead essentially launched his career as a horror director. He took the helm of the sequels as well as Season of the Witch (1972), The Crazies (1973), Martin (1978), Creepshow (1982) and The Dark Half (1993).[43] Critics saw the influence of the horror and science-fiction films of the 1950s in Romero's directorial style. Stephen Paul Miller, for instance, witnessed "a revival of fifties schlock shock... and the army general's television discussion of military operations in the film echoes the often inevitable calling-in of the army in fifties horror films". Miller admits that "Night of the Living Dead takes greater relish in mocking these military operations through the general's pompous demeanor" and the government's inability to source the zombie epidemic or protect the citizenry.[44] Romero describes the mood he wished to establish: "The film opens with a situation that has already disintegrated to a point of little hope, and it moves progressively toward absolute despair and ultimate tragedy."[45] According to film historian Carl Royer, Romero "employs chiaroscuro (film noir style) lighting to emphasize humanity's nightmare alienation from itself."[45]

text: While some critics dismissed Romero's film because of the graphic scenes, writer R. H. W. Dillard claimed that the "open-eyed detailing" of taboo heightened the film's success. He asks, "What girl has not, at one time or another, wished to kill her mother? And Karen, in the film, offers a particularly vivid opportunity to commit the forbidden deed vicariously."[46] Romero featured social taboos as key themes, particularly cannibalism. Although zombie cannibals were inspired by Matheson's I Am Legend, film historian Robin Wood sees the flesh-eating scenes of Night of the Living Dead as a late-1960s critique of American capitalism. Wood asserts that the zombies represent capitalists, and "cannibalism represents the ultimate in possessiveness, hence the logical end of human relations under capitalism". He argues that the zombies' victims symbolized the repression of "the Other" in bourgeois American society, namely activists in the Civil Rights Movement, feminists, homosexuals, and counterculturalists in general.[47]

text: Post-production[edit]

text: Members of Image Ten were involved in filming and post-production, participating in loading camera magazines, gaffing, constructing props, recording sounds and editing.[48] Production stills were shot and printed by Karl Hardman, who stated in an interview that a "number of cast members formed a production line in the darkroom for developing, washing and drying of the prints as I made the exposures. As I recall, I shot over 1,250 pictures during the production".[17] Upon completion of post-production, Image Ten found it difficult to secure a distributor willing to show the film with the gruesome scenes intact. Columbia and American International Pictures declined after requests to soften it and re-shoot the final scene were rejected by producers.[30] Romero admitted that "none of us wanted to do that. We couldn't imagine a happy ending. . . . Everyone want[ed] a Hollywood ending, but we stuck to our guns".[41] The Manhattan-based Walter Reade Organization agreed to show the film uncensored, but changed the title from Night of the Flesh Eaters to Night of the Living Dead because a film had already been produced under a similar title to the former.[39] While changing the title, the copyright notice was accidentally deleted from the early releases of the film.[49]

text: The opening title music with the car on the road had been used in a 1961 episode of the TV series Ben Casey entitled "I Remember a Lemon Tree" (that piece of music accompanying each time that George C. Scott's character, a doctor who is secretly a drug addict, is injecting himself with morphine), and is also featured in an episode of Naked City entitled "Bullets Cost Too Much". Most of the music in the film had previously been used on the soundtrack for the science-fiction B-movie Teenagers from Outer Space (1959). The eerie musical piece during the tense scene in the film where Ben finds the rifle in the closet inside the farmhouse as the radio reports of mayhem play in the background, can be heard in longer and more complete form during the opening credits and the beginning of The Devil's Messenger (1961) starring Lon Chaney, Jr. Another piece, accompanying Barbra's flight from the cemetery zombie, was taken from the score for The Hideous Sun Demon (1959). According to WRS, "We chose a selection of music for each of the various scenes and then George made the final selections. We then took those selections and augmented them electronically". Sound tech R. Lococo's choices worked well, as film historian Sumiko Higashi believes that the music "signifies the nature of events that await."[50]

text: Soundtrack[edit]

text:
Night of the Living Dead: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Film score by Various Artists

Released
1982 (1982)

Genre
Soundtrack

Label
Varèse Sarabande

Producer
Scot W. Holton

Compiler
Scot Holton

tag: table

text: A soundtrack album featuring music and dialogue cues from the film was compiled and released on LP by Varèse Sarabande in 1982; it has never been reissued on CD. In 2008, recording group 400 Lonely Things released the album Tonight of the Living Dead, "an instrumental album composed entirely of ambient music and sound effects sampled from Romero's 1968 horror classic".[51]

text:
[show]Side one

No.
Title
Writer(s)
Length

1.
"Driveway to the Cemetery (Main Theme)"
Spencer Moore
02:19

2.
"At the Gravesite/Flight/Refuge"
William Loose/Loose—Seely/W. Loose
03:42

3.
"Farmhouse/First Approach"
Geordie Hormel
01:16

4.
"Ghoulash (J.R.'s Demise)"
Ib Glindemann
03:30

5.
"Boarding Up"
G. Hormel/Loose—Seely/Glindemann
03:00

6.
"First Radio Report/Torch on the Porch"
Phil Green/G. Hormel
02:27

7.
"Boarding Up 2/Discovery: Gun 'n Ammo"
G. Hormel
02:07

8.
"Cleaning House"
S. Moore
01:36

text:
[show]Side two

No.
Title
Writer(s)
Length

9.
"First Advance"
Ib Glindemann
02:43

10.
"Discovery of TV/Preparing to Escape/Tom & Judy" (All the samples of the track were composed by Geordie Hormel)
G. Hormel/J. Meakin/J. Meakin
04:20

11.
"Attempted Escape"
G. Hormel
01:29

12.
"Truck on Fire/Ben Attacks Harry/Leg of Leg*" (*electronic sound effects by Karl Hardman)
G. Hormel
03:41

13.
"Beat 'Em or Burn 'Em/Final Advance" (Final Advance was composed by Harry Bluestone and Emil Cadkin)
G. Hormel
02:50

14.
"Helen's Death*/Dawn/Posse in the Fields/Ben Awakes" (*electronic sound effects by Karl Hardman)
S. Moore
03:05

15.
"O.K. Vince/Funeral Pyre (End Title)"
S. Moore
01:10

text: Release[edit]

text: Premiere controversy[edit]

text: Night of the Living Dead premiered on October 1, 1968 at the Fulton Theater in Pittsburgh.[52] Nationally, it was shown as a Saturday afternoon matinée – as was typical for horror films at the time – and attracted an audience consisting of pre-teens and adolescents.[53][54][55] The MPAA film rating system was not in place until November 1968, so even young children were able to purchase tickets. Roger Ebert of Chicago Sun-Times chided theater owners and parents who allowed children access to the film with such potent content for a horror film they were entirely unprepared for: "I don't think the younger kids really knew what hit them," he said. "They were used to going to movies, sure, and they'd seen some horror movies before, sure, but this was something else." According to Ebert, the film affected the audience immediately:[55]

text: The kids in the audience were stunned. There was almost complete silence. The movie had stopped being delightfully scary about halfway through, and had become unexpectedly terrifying. There was a little girl across the aisle from me, maybe nine years old, who was sitting very still in her seat and crying... It's hard to remember what sort of effect this movie might have had on you when you were six or seven. But try to remember. At that age, kids take the events on the screen seriously, and they identify fiercely with the hero. When the hero is killed, that's not an unhappy ending but a tragic one: Nobody got out alive. It's just over, that's all.

text: Response from Variety after the initial release reflects the outrage generated by Romero's film: "Until the Supreme Court establishes clear-cut guidelines for the pornography of violence, Night of the Living Dead will serve nicely as an outer-limit definition by example. In [a] mere 90 minutes this horror film (pun intended) casts serious aspersions on the integrity and social responsibility of its Pittsburgh-based makers, distributor Walter Reade, the film industry as a whole and [exhibitors] who book [the picture], as well as raising doubts about the future of the regional cinema movement and about the moral health of film goers who cheerfully opt for this unrelieved orgy of sadism..."[56]

text: One commentator asserts that the film garnered little attention from critics, "except to provoke argument about censoring its grisly scenes".[50]

text: Critical reception[edit]

text: Despite the controversy, five years after the premiere Paul McCullough of Take One observed that Night of the Living Dead was the "most profitable horror film ever [...] produced outside the walls of a major studio".[57] The film had earned between $12 and $15 million at the American box office after a decade. It was translated into more than 25 languages and released across Europe, Canada and Australia.[50] Night of the Living Dead grossed $30 million internationally, and the Wall Street Journal reported that it was the top-grossing film in Europe in 1969.[58][c]

text: Almost 50 years after its release, the film enjoys a reputation as a classic and still receives positive reviews; review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes retrospectively collected 52 reviews and gave Night of the Living Dead a 96% "Certified Fresh",[59] and it is regarded by many as one of the best films of 1968.[60][61][62] In 2008, the film was ranked by Empire magazine No. 397 of The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time.[63] The New York Times also placed the film on their Best 1000 Movies Ever list.[64] In January 2010, Total Film included the film on its list of The 100 Greatest Movies of All Time.[65] Rolling Stone magazine named Night of the Living Dead one of The 100 Maverick Movies in the Last 100 Years.[66] Reader's Digest found it to be the 12th scariest movie of all time.[67]

text: Night of the Living Dead was also awarded two distinguished honors decades after its debut. The Library of Congress added the film to the National Film Registry in 1999 with other films deemed "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant".[3][13][68] In 2001, the film was ranked No. 93 by the American Film Institute on their AFI's 100 Years...100 Thrills list, a list of America's most heart-pounding movies.[69] The zombies in the picture were also a candidate for AFI's AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains, in the villains category, but failed to make the official list.[70] The Chicago Film Critics Association named it the 5th scariest film ever made.[71] The film also ranked No. 9 on Bravo's The 100 Scariest Movie Moments.[72]

text: Some reviewers disliked the film's gory special effects. Variety labeled Night of the Living Dead an "unrelieved orgy of sadism" and questioned the "integrity and social responsibility of its Pittsburgh-based makers".[d] The New York Times critic Vincent Canby referred to the film as a "junk movie" as well as "spare, uncluttered, but really silly".[73]

text: Some reviewers cited the film as groundbreaking. Pauline Kael called the film "one of the most gruesomely terrifying movies ever made – and when you leave the theatre you may wish you could forget the whole horrible experience. . . . The film's grainy, banal seriousness works for it – gives it a crude realism".[74] A Film Daily critic commented, "This is a pearl of a horror picture that exhibits all the earmarks of a sleeper."[e] While Roger Ebert criticized the matinée screening, he admitted that he "admires the movie itself".[55] Critic Rex Reed wrote, "If you want to see what turns a B movie into a classic [...] don't miss Night of the Living Dead. It is unthinkable for anyone seriously interested in horror movies not to see it."[75]

text: Revisions[edit]

text: The first revisions of Night of the Living Dead involved colorization by home video distributors. Hal Roach Studios released a colorized version in 1986 that featured ghouls with pale green skin.[76][77] Another colorized version appeared in 1997 from Anchor Bay Entertainment with grey-skinned zombies.[78] In 2004, Legend Films produced a new colorized version. Technology critic Gary W. Tooze wrote that "The colorization is damn impressive", but noticed the print used was not as sharp as other releases of the film.[79] In 2009, Legend Films coproduced a colorized 3D version of the film with PassmoreLab, a company that converts 2-D film into 3-D format.[80] The film was theatrically released on October 14, 2010.[81] According to Legend Films founder Barry Sandrew, Night of the Living Dead is the first entirely live action 2-D film to be converted to 3-D.[82]

text: In 1999, co-writer John A. Russo released a modified version called Night of the Living Dead: 30th Anniversary Edition.[83] He filmed additional scenes and recorded a revised soundtrack composed by Scott Vladimir Licina. In an interview with Fangoria magazine, Russo explained that he wanted to "give the movie a more modern pace."[84] Russo took liberties with the original script. The additions are neither clearly identified nor even listed. However, Entertainment Weekly reported "no bad blood" between Russo and Romero. The magazine quoted Romero as saying, "I didn't want to touch Night of the Living Dead".[85] Critics panned the revised film, notably Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News. Knowles promised to permanently ban anyone from his publication who offered positive criticism of the film.[86][87]

text: A collaborative animated project known as Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated was screened at several film festivals[88][89][90][91] and was released onto DVD on July 27, 2010 by Wild Eye Releasing.[92][93] This project aims to "reanimate" the 1968 film by replacing Romero's celluloid images with animation done in a wide variety of styles by artists from around the world, laid over the original audio from Romero's version.[94] Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated premiered theatrically on October 10, 2009 in Ramsey, New Jersey[95] at the Zombie Encounter and Film Festival.[96] Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated was nominated in the category of Best Independent Production (film, documentary or short) for the 8th Annual Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards, but lost to American Scary, a documentary on television horror movie hosts.[97]

text: In 2009, Mike Nelson of Mystery Science Theater 3000 provided commentary in the form of a single-person "riff" for the Legend Films colorized DVD. Nelson along with Bill Corbett and Kevin Murphy who had previously worked with Nelson on Mystery Science Theater 3000 released a humorous commentary track which is available as downloadable video file or as a DVD through the group's website RiffTrax.[98]

text: On September 16, 2015, comic publisher Double Take, a subsidiary of Take Two Interactive, headed by former Marvel executive Bill Jemas released 10 comic book series based upon the 1968 film entitled "Ultimate Night of the Living Dead".[99]

text: The film will be released by Criterion Collection on February 13, 2018.[100] It will feature a workprint edit of the film under the title of Night of Anubis.[101]

text: Related works[edit]

text: Romero's Dead films[edit]

text: Night of the Living Dead is the first of six ...of the Dead films directed by George Romero. Following the 1968 film, Romero released Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Land of the Dead, Diary of the Dead and Survival of the Dead. Each film traces the evolution of the living dead epidemic in the United States and humanity's desperate attempts to cope with it. As in Night of the Living Dead, Romero peppered the other films in the series with critiques specific to the periods in which they were released.

text: Return of the Living Dead series[edit]

text: The same year Day of the Dead premiered, Night of the Living Dead co-writer John Russo released a film titled The Return of the Living Dead that offers an alternate continuity to the original film than Dawn of the Dead. Russo's film spawned four sequels. Return of the Living Dead sparked a legal battle with Romero, who believed Russo marketed his film in direct competition with Day of the Dead as a sequel to the original film. In the case Dawn Associates v. Links, Romero accused Russo of "appropriat[ing] part of the title of the prior work", plagiarizing Dawn of the Dead's advertising slogan ("When there is no more room in hell [...] the dead will walk the earth"), and copying stills from the original 1968 film. Romero was ultimately granted a restraining order that forced Russo to cease his advertising campaign. Russo, however, was allowed to retain his title.[102]

text: Rise of the Living Dead[edit]

text: George Cameron Romero, the son of director George A. Romero, has developed Rise of the Living Dead, a prelude to his father's classic pitched with the working title Origins.[103] The film tracks a six-year period leading up to the story told by his father. George Cameron Romero's script is intended to be an homage to his father's work, a terrifying glimpse into the political hot bed that was the mid-to-late 1960s and a bookend piece to his father's original story. Despite raising funds for the film on Indiegogo in 2014, the film has yet to go into production as of November 2017.

text: Restoration[edit]

text: Starting in 2015, and working from the original camera negatives and audio track elements, a 4K digital restoration of Night of the Living Dead was undertaken by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and The Film Foundation.[104] The fully restored version was shown at MoMA in November 2016 as part of To Save and Project: The 14th MoMA International Festival of Film Preservation.[105][106]

text: Remakes and other related films[edit]

text: The first remake, debuting in 1990, was directed by special effects artist Tom Savini. It was based on the original screenplay, but included more gore and a revised plot that portrayed Barbra (Patricia Tallman) as a capable and active heroine. Tony Todd played the role of Ben. Film historian Barry Grant saw the new Barbra as a corrective on the part of Romero. He suggests that the character was made stronger to rectify the depiction of female characters in the original film.[107]

text: The second remake was in 3-D and released in September 2006 under the title Night of the Living Dead 3D, directed by Jeff Broadstreet. Unlike Savini's 1990 film, Broadstreet's project was not affiliated with Romero.[108] Broadstreet's film was followed in 2012 by the prequel Night of the Living Dead 3D: Re-Animation.[109]

text: On September 15, 2009, it was announced that Simon West was producing a 3D animated retelling of the original movie, originally titled Night of the Living Dead: Origins 3D and later re-titled Night of the Living Dead: Darkest Dawn.[110][111] The movie is written and directed by Zebediah de Soto. The voice cast includes Tony Todd as Ben, Danielle Harris as Barbra, Joseph Pilato as Harry Cooper, Alona Tal as Helen Cooper, Bill Moseley as Johnny, Tom Sizemore as Chief McClellan and newcomers Erin Braswell as Judy and Michael Diskint as Tom.[112][113][114][115][116][117]

text: Director Doug Schulze's 2011 film Mimesis: Night of the Living Dead relates the story of a group of horror film fans who become involved in a "real-life" version of the 1968 film.[118][119]

text: Due to the film's public domain status, several independent film companies have also done remakes of the film.

text:
Night of the Living Dead: Resurrection (2012): British director James Plumb made this remake set in Wales.[120]
A Night of the Living Dead (2014): Shattered Images Films and Cullen Park Productions released a remake with new twists and characters, written and directed by Chad Zuver.[121]
Night of the Living Dead: Genesis (2017): Director Matt Cloude initially announced this remake project in 2011.[122] The film has undergone several transitions in the ensuing years. It brings back several alumni of Romero's initial trilogy, including Judith O'Dea as the Barbra character.
Night of the Living Dead: Rebirth (2017): Rising Pulse Productions is set to release an updated take on the classic film that brings to light present issues that impact modern society such as religious bigotry, homophobia, and the influence of social media.[123]

text: Copyright status[edit]

text: Night of the Living Dead entered the public domain in the United States because the original theatrical distributor, the Walter Reade Organization, neglected to place a copyright indication on the prints.[124] In 1968, United States copyright law required a proper notice for a work to maintain a copyright.[125] Image Ten displayed such a notice on the title frames of the film beneath the original title, Night of the Flesh Eaters. The distributor erroneously removed the statement when it changed the title.[49][126]

text: Because of its public domain status, the film is sold on home video by many distributors. As of 2017, Amazon.com lists copies of Night of the Living Dead numbering 15 on VHS, 121 on DVD, 5 on Blu-ray and 28 on Amazon Video.[127] The original film is available to view or download free on Internet sites, such as Internet Archive and YouTube.[128][129][130] As of November 15, 2017, it is the Internet Archive's most-downloaded film, with over 3 million downloads.[131]

text: Critical analysis[edit]

text: Since its release, some critics and film historians have interpreted Night of the Living Dead as a subversive film that critiques 1960s American society, international Cold War politics and domestic racism. Elliot Stein of The Village Voice saw the film as an ardent critique of American involvement in the Vietnam War, arguing that it "was not set in Transylvania, but Pennsylvania – this was Middle America at war, and the zombie carnage seemed a grotesque echo of the conflict then raging in Vietnam."[132] Film historian Sumiko Higashi concurs, arguing that Night of the Living Dead was a film about the horrors of the Vietnam era. While she admits that "there are no Vietnamese in Night of the Living Dead, [...] they constitute an absent presence whose significance can be understood if narrative is construed". She points to aspects of the Vietnam War paralleled in the film: grainy black-and-white newsreels, search and destroy operations, helicopters, and graphic carnage.[133] In the 2009 documentary film Nightmares in Red, White and Blue, the zombies in the film are compared to the "silent majority" of the U.S. in the late 1960s.[134]

text: While George Romero denies he hired Duane Jones simply because he was black, reviewer Mark Deming notes that "the grim fate of Duane Jones, the sole heroic figure and only African-American, had added resonance with the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X fresh in the minds of most Americans".[6][135] Stein adds, "In this first-ever subversive horror movie, the resourceful black hero survives the zombies only to be killed by a redneck posse".[132] The deaths of Ben, Barbra and the supporting cast offered audiences an uncomfortable, nihilistic glimpse unusual for the genre.[136]

text: Other prevalent themes included "disillusionment with government and patriarchal nuclear family"[132] and "the flaws inherent in the media, local and federal government agencies, and the entire mechanism of civil defense".[137] Film historian Linda Badley explains that the film was so horrifying because the monsters were not creatures from outer space or some exotic environment, "They're us."[138] Romero confessed that the film was designed to reflect the tensions of the time: "It was 1968, man. Everybody had a 'message'. The anger and attitude and all that's there is just because it was the Sixties. We lived at the farmhouse, so we were always into raps about the implication and the meaning, so some of that crept in."[6]

text: Legacy[edit]

text: Romero revolutionized the horror film genre with Night of the Living Dead; according to Almar Haflidason of the BBC, the film represented "a new dawn in horror film-making".[139] The film has also effectively redefined the use of the term "zombie". While the word "zombie" itself is never used—the word used in the film is ghoul—Romero's film introduced the theme of zombies as reanimated, flesh-eating cannibals.[52][140][141] Romero himself didn't initially consider the antagonists in the film zombies, later saying "I never thought of my guys as zombies, when I made the first film...To me, zombies were still those boys in the Caribbean doing the wetwork for [Bela] Lugosi."[142] The film and its successors spawned countless imitators, in cinema, television and video gaming, which borrowed elements invented by Romero.[4] Night of the Living Dead ushered in the splatter film subgenre. As one film historian points out, horror prior to Romero's film had mostly involved rubber masks and costumes, cardboard sets, or mysterious figures lurking in the shadows. They were set in locations far removed from rural and suburban America.[143] Romero revealed the power behind exploitation and setting horror in ordinary, unexceptional locations and offered a template for making an "effective and lucrative" film on a "minuscule budget".[144] Slasher films of the 1970s and 80s such as John Carpenter's Halloween (1978), Sean S. Cunningham's Friday the 13th (1980), and Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) "owe much to the original Night of the Living Dead", according to author Barry Keith Grant.[107]


document_title: Hindu mythological wars

question_text: which is the most powerful god in hinduism

text: Hindu mythological wars

text: In Vedic literature[edit]

text: Indra and Vrtra[edit]

text: The central battle in the Vedas is between Indra and Vrtra, and the defeat of the demon Vrtra leads to the liberation of rivers, cattle and Ushas (dawn/light). While this battle does reinforce the timeless good v/s evil theme, close examination of various hymns and verses in the Rig Veda suggest this might have been an allegorical account of the end of the last ice age in the Himalayan glacial system.[1]

text: Another important battle is the historic Battle of the Ten Kings, alluded to in the Rigveda, in which the Tritsu clan, led by Sudas, defeat the Puru confederation of ten Indo Aryan clans.[2]

text: The Devas and Asuras[edit]

text: The perennial battle between the Devas and Asuras is undertaken over the dominion of the three worlds: Svarga, Bhumi and Patala, or Heaven, Earth and the Nether worlds. Both races are technically equal, possessors of great religious and martial powers, but the Devas are committed to the worship of the Supreme Being and the practice of virtue. The Asuras have atheistic and devious tendencies that grow over time. The divide is the greatest in the Kali Yuga, the final age.[3]

text:
Shukra: the Preceptor of the Asuras, their high priest and guru, worshiper of the Supreme Lord, but remains supportive of the Asuras.[4]
Brhaspati:[5] the Preceptor (Guru)  of the Devas. Possessing unparalleled knowledge of the Vedas, scripture, religion and mysticism, Bṛhaspati's mastery of the military arts is akin to Shukra, his counterpart.

text: He is also known as Guru Brihaspati.

text:
Indra: the God of thunder and lightning, King of Heaven, the leader of all the Devas against the demons. The greatest performer of sacrifices, Indra is the most famous and fearsome warrior in the three worlds. When facing opponents like Vritra, Indra seeks the aid of Vishnu.
Kartikeya: army commander of Devas. He is also god of war and victory. He is the son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati.[6]
Narakasura: the great Asura opponent of Vishnu.[7]
Vritra: the brahmin Asura, who performs a sacrifice to obtain sovereignty of the three worlds.[8]

text: The Kshatriya order[edit]

text: War Sacrifices:

text:
Ashvamedha: The famous horse-sacrifice was conducted by allowing a horse to roam freely for a slated period of time, with the king performing the sacrifice laying claim to all the lands it touched. The king whose authority is contested must prove himself in battle or accept the imperial supremacy of the challenging king. When the horse returns safely after the period of time, the main sacrifice is performed, and the king, if successful in obtaining dominance over other kings, is crowned Emperor of the World. The Ashwamedha allows the opportunity to maintain peace if the kings do not choose to contest the sacrificial horse. In Mahabharat era, Arjuna alone had conquered whole world for the sake of Ashvamwdha yagya of his brother.[9]
Rajasuya: Considered the ultimate sacrifice, the king performing the sacrifice must openly challenge every king in the world to accept his supremacy or defeat him in battle. If and when the king returns successfully, having beaten all other known rulers, the performance of the sacrifice will send him to the abode of Lord Indra. It was performed by the Pandava hero Yudhishthira in the Mahabharata epic. Arjuna had conquered many kingdom for the sake of Yudhisthira's Rajasuya.[10]
Vishwajeet Yagna
Gomedh Yagna
Yajna: Akin to the conduct of the Rajasuya, save only that the entire sacrifice is to please Vishnu.[citation needed]

text: Levels of Warrior Excellence:

text:
Mahamaharathi's: A warrior capable of fighting 24 Atimaharathi class warriors or 207,360,000 warriors simultaneously. This includes Lord Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Durga, Ganesha, Kartikeya and the ten Mahavidyas.
Atimaharathi's: A warrior capable of fighting 12 Maharathi class warriors or 8,640,000 warriors simultaneously. Rama, Lakshmana, Balarama,drona, Arjuna,. Karna Abhimanyu, Bhishma, Krishna, Hanuman, Ravana, Indrajit, Avatars of Vishnu are considered as a Atimaharathi's.
Maharathi's: A warrior capable of fighting 12 Atirathi class warriors or 720,000[citation needed] warriors simultaneously, circumspect in his mastery of all forms of weapons and combat skills. , Kartavirya Arjuna, Kumbhakarna,   Lava, Kusha, Sugriva, Atikaya, Jambavan, Vali,vrishaseenan, Ashwatthama, Angad, Alambusha, Bhagadatta, Narakasura, Drupada, Virata, Jarasandha were Maharathis.
Atirathi: A warrior capable of contending with 12 Rathi class warriors or 60,000[citation needed] warriors simultaneously. Kritavarma, Shalya, Kripacharya, Bhurisravas, Yuyutsu, Virata, Akampan, Satyaki, Drishtadyumna, Kuntibhoja, Ghatotkacha, Prahasta, Angada, Duryodhana, Jayadhradha , Dusassana , Vikarna,  all 97 brothers of Duryodhana, Yudhishtir, Bhima, Nakula, Sahadeva, Dhrishtaketu, and Pradyumna were Atirathi's.
Rathi: A warrior capable of attacking 5,000 warriors simultaneously. Somadatha, Sudhakshina, Shakuni, Shishupala, Uttar, Shikhandi, Uttamaujas, all sons of Draupadi, etc were Rathi's.

text: Strategic Formations: The Vyuha:

text:
Krauncha Vyuha: The crane-shaped formation of an army; forces are distributed to form spanning wing-sides, with a formidable, penetrating centre depicting the crane's head and beak.
Padma Vyuha or the Chakra Vyuha: A winding, ever-rotating circular formation; considered impenetrable during the Mahabharata age by all warriors except Arjuna, Drona, Ashwatthama, Krishna, Pradyumna and Abhimanyu. Abhimanyu, had learnt how to break into the formation (in the womb of Subhadra) but not how to break out of it and is trapped inside during the Mahabharata war.
Sarpa Vyuha: Winding Snake Formation
Makara Vyuha: Crocodile Formation
Sakata Vyuha: Cart Formation
Shukar Vyuha: Pig Formation
Vajra Vyuha: Thunderbolt formation
Kurma Vyuha: Turtle formation

text: The end of the world[edit]

text:
The end of the world and illusions is prophesied to happen at the end of the Kali Yuga. Kalki, the final Avatar of Vishnu is also prophesized to appear the end of the Kali Yuga, to wage the final battle between good and evil.[11]
Lord Shiva Nataraja, the Destroyer, kills the paramount demon of the time and performs the Tandava Nritya (The Dance of Tandava) on his back.
The mystical dance by Goddess Kali i.e. Dark Energy for destroying all forms of matter, materials, beings and illusions, which are absorbed within herself i.e. the Supreme Brahman.

text: Other Sanskrit epics[edit]

text: The Ramayana[edit]

text:
Vishvamitra is the preceptor of Rama and Lakshmana, a powerful tapasvin and Brahmarishi.[12] He bestows the knowledge of all divine weaponry to Rama and Lakshmana, leads them to kill powerful demons, and instructs them in religion and military arts.
Rama: the Seventh Avatar of Vishnu, a great warrior-tapasvin. Rama single-handedly slays the 14,000 demon hordes of Khara (in one hour, according to the Ramayana), the demons Maricha and Subahu, Ravana's chief commander Prahasta and is responsible for the ultimate killing of Ravana himself.
Lakshmana is as powerful and excellent a warrior as his brother, and slays extremely powerful demons, including Atikaya and Indrajit.
Hanuman: the Vanara minister of Sugriva is the greatest devotee of Rama, famous for his unerring service, absolute loyalty and great feats of courage. Hanuman is responsible for killing many demons, as well as burning the city of Lanka. His strength is given by his father Vayu, and by virtue of the boons bestowed on him by various Gods, he could increase his size and strength beyond any limit he desired.
Ravana: blessed by his fearsome 10,000 year tapasya to be the most powerful being on earth, invulnerable to every God, demon and living being, save man. Although an expert on the Vedas, a great king, and a great devotee of Shiva, he is the Emperor of evil due to his patronage of demons, murder of kings and humiliation of the Gods headed by Indra.
Indrajit: as his name suggests, Ravana's first-born son defeated Indra, king of Gods. He even twice defeated Rama and Lakshman. Indrajit killed 670 million Vanara's in a single day, nearly exterminated the entire half man-half monkey race[13][not in citation given][14][page needed]. Master of mystical warfare and celestial weapons, and blessed by boons from Gods, Indrajit was considered the most fearful and knowledgeable warrior, virtually invincible. He was said to be invincible in battle because of a Yajna he used to perform before every battle.At a very young age, Meghnada became the possessor of several supreme celestial weapons, including Brahmandastra, Pashupatastra and Vaishnavastra, under the guidance of Shukra, the guru of the daityas (demons).During the Devasura Sangram (the battle between the devas and the asuras) he defeated Indra, tying him up and mounting him onto his celestial chariot.At this juncture, Brahma intervened and asked him to free Indra. Meghanada obliged, and was granted a chance to ask for a boon from Brahma. Meghanada asked for immortality, but Brahma remarked that absolute immortality is against the law of nature. Instead, he was then granted another boon: he would never be won over in any battle, until his Yagna (fire-worship) of his native goddess Nikumbala was disturbed and destroyed. On the completion of the Yagna, a supreme celestial chariot would appear, boarding which, Indrajit would become invincible in any battle. But Brahma also cautioned him that whosoever would destroy this yagna would also kill him. It was Brahma who gave him the name Indrajit ("the conqueror of Indra").However, He was easily beaten by Angad who destroyed his horses and made him run but his real power was his magic. He was finally killed by Lakshmana who challenged him and defeated him twice before killing him.[15]
Kumbhakarna: the gigantic brother of Ravana is a fearsome monster-demon who sleeps for six months at a stretch, rising for only one day and then returning to his slumber. Kumbhakarna can slay hundreds of warriors by the sweep of his hand or step of his foot. He is slain by Rama in the war.[16]
Prahasta: the chief commander of Lanka's army who was killed on the 1st day of the war of Rama and Ravana.*Atikaya: the second son of Ravana, who had an indestructible armor given to him by Brahma that can only be pierce by the Brahmastra. Once he caught Lord Shiva trident in Mount Kailash when the Lord was angry at him. Both Atikaya and his cousin Trishira were the reincarnations of Madhu and Kaitabha, who were defeated by Mahavishnu.
Akshayakumara: the youngest son of Ravana who died, fighting Hanuman in Ashoka Vatika, who later set Lanka on fire.
Shatrughna: Brother of Rama who killed Lavana, son of Madhu and Kumbhini (a sister of Ravana) and became the King of Mathura.
Bharata: Brother of Rama who along with his maternal uncle Yudhajit, conquered Gandhara and created his kingdom of Takshasila and Pushkalavati by defeating Gandharvas inhabiting that kingdom.

text: The Mahabharata[edit]

text:
Kuru Army: of 11 Akshauhinis is formed by the kingdom of Hastinapura in alliance with races like the Samshaptakas, Trigartas, the Narayana army, the Sindhu army and Madra.
Commanders in Chief: Bhishma, Drona, Karna, Shalya and Ashwathama
Rathis: Duryodhana ( 8 Rathi), Susharma, Sudakshin, Shakuni, Jayadradha, Dussasana, Vikarna, 97 Kauravas, Duryodhana's son Lakshmana and the son of Dussasana were Rathi warriors.
Atirathis: Kritavarma, Kripacharya, Shalya, Bhurisravas, Brihadbala, Somadatta,Karna
Maharathis: Bhishma, Drona,  Aswathama, Bhagadatta, Alambusha and Vrishasena, the son of Karna.
Pandava Army: is a coalition of 7 Akshauhinis, primarily the Panchala and Matsya forces, the Rakshasa forces of Bhima's son, and Vrishni-Yadava heroes.
Commander in Chief: Dhristadyumna
Rathis: Yudhishthira, Bhima ( 8 Rathi), Nakula, Sahadeva, Uttamaujas, Shikhandi, Yuyutsu, Uttar.
Atirathis: Kuntibhoja, Satyaki, Dhristadyumna, Ghatotkacha and all sons of Draupadi
Maharathis: Arjuna, Abhimanyu, Drupada, Virata and Dhrishtaketu
Bhishma: the most consummate warrior trained by Parashurama, Bhishma is indestructible by any warrior when he lifts his weapons. Having countered his preceptor himself, as well as all the kings of the earth, he is the Commander in Chief of the Kuru Army.
Drona: the preceptor of the Kshatriyas and kings of the age, Drona is a great master of Vedic military arts and almost every celestial weapon. He is invulnerable to any attack till he holds a weapon of any sort. This is the reason why the only way Pandavas could kill him was for him to throw down all weapons, which he does after hearing the death of his son. He also has great religious knowledge and wisdom. He becomes the second Kuru commander, and Arjuna is his favorite student. Drona's refused to teach Karna because Karna was not a prince, lays the foundation for the great Karna-Arjuna rivalry.
Karna: The son of Suta, Karna was the greatest archer of epic. He was the first-born of Kunti, one of the most powerful warrior in that era and one only warrior conquerer of the entire world and due to misfortune he was killed totally unfairly by Arjun but if he was not cursed by his guru parashuram. Karna was taught by parashuram in warfare and he was most worthiest student of  parashuram and he gifted him vijay bow and lot of celestical weapons. Even lord parashuram declared karna as his parallel in that generation
Ashwatthama, the son of Drona, one of the eight chiranjivi . He is a great Maharathi warrior. Aswatthama and Kripa are believed to be the lone survivors still living who actually fought in the kurukshetra war. Aswatthama was born with a gem in his forehead which gives him power over all living beings lower than humans. This gem is supposed to protect him from attacks by ghosts, demons, poisonous insects, snakes, animals etc. Dronacharya loved him very dearly. The rumors about his death in the Kurukshetra war led to the death of Drona at the hands of Prince Dhrishtadyumna. He is the grandson of the Brahmin sage Bharadwaja. Ashwatthama is a mighty Maharathi who fought on the Kaurava side against the Pandavas.  His physical description in the Mahabharata is that he is incredibly tall, with dark skin, dark eyes, and a gem in his forehead. Like Bhishma, Drona, Kripa, Karna and Arjuna, he is a master of the science of weapons . Aswatthama studied Dhanurveda or martial arts and Brahmavidya or the science of the Self or Atma from Lord Parasurama, Maharishi Durvasa, Maharishi Ved Vyasa, Bhishma, Kripa and Drona. Aswatthama is the master of all forms of knowledge and possesses complete mastery over 64 forms of arts or Kalas and 18 Vidyas or branches of knowledge.[17][18] Ashwatthama used the mighty Narayanastra against the Pandava army in-order to avenge his father Drona's death. Narayanastra destroyed one Akshauhini of Pandava army. He was also responsible of leading the night raid at the end of 18th day of the war in order to avenge the unethical killing of Bhishma, Drona, Karna, Bhurisravas, Prince Duryodhana and killed all the remaining Panchala army and sons of Pandavas. Thus only 3 people from the Kauvarava side and 8 people from the Pandava survived the war. At the end Ashwatthama and Arjuna used Brahmshirsha astra against each other and he tried to kill the unborn son of Abhimanyu in order to exterminate the Pandava lineage.But the child was saved by Lord Krishna himself who in turn gave the most fearsome and deadly curse to Ashwatthama that anybody had ever got and declared that he would carry that curse till the end of Kaliyuga. He also removed the gem from his forehead and left him helpless.
Arjuna: is the son of Lord Indra.  He was one of the great warrior of Mahabharata and one of the greatest archers of his time. He was able to win hand of Draupadi by hitiing target in swayamvara contest. Lost only thrice in battlefield . Bhisma, Drona, Karna, Lord Krishna, Lord Mahadeva and Parshurama r.[19]
Bhima: One of the supreme physical powers, along with Balrama, Shalya & Kichaka. Bhima had phenomenal personal strength, he is also known for killing many powerful kings and demons like Jarasandh, Kirmira, Bakasura, Hidimb, Jatasura, Kichak and wrestler Jimut, he was an unsurpassed master of the mace weapon and a consummate wrestler. He slays all of the one hundred Kuru brothers including the chief antagonist of the saga, Duryodhana. There are no greater destroyer's than him to Kuru army, he alone destroyed half of it.
Nakul: the fourth brother of the Pandavas.  It is said that he was the most handsome man in the world.  He was an expert in the art of sword warfare.  He was also greatly associated with horses.  During the Kurukshetra war he was the one who killed all the offspring of all the Kauravas. He also killed a son of Shakuni, Ulloka.
Abhimanyu: the son of Arjuna, Abhimanyu is a consummate warrior superior to his father. When he enters the unbreakable Chakra vyuha, he holds the entire Kuru host, with Drona and hundreds of other heroic warriors, in addition to hundreds of thousands of foot soldiers at bay single-handedly. Abhimanyu was master of group attack who always attacked others in group. On 13th day, he entered Chakravyuh and defeated all Kaurava warriors including Karna and Drona multiple times in war. Karna fled twice from child Abhimanyu in Chakravyuh. At last he got killed unfairly by multiple Kaurava warriors.[20]

text: Levels of Warrior Excellence as per Bhishma from Mahabharata[edit]

text: As per Bhishma in Mahabaratha at the tale of Rathas and Maharathas there are only 3 types of warriors. They are Rathas, Atirathas and Maharathas. He classified every warrior in both sides of the army as per his judgement and knowledge of the science of weapons. According to him the highest level of a warrior is Maharathi and does not mention about the concept of Atimaharathi or Mahamaharathi.If we go by authentic scripture the highest class of a warrior is Maharathi.[21]

text: From Kaurava side

text: Rathis

text:
Sudhakshina, the ruler of the Kamvojas
Shakuni, King of Gandhar and uncle of Kauravas
Duryodhana's son Lakshmana and the son of Dussasana
Jayadrath, the king of the Sindhu and brother in law of Kauravas is equal to 2 rathas
All 99 brothers of Duryodhana including Dushasan are single Rathis
Duryodhana is classified as a warrior equal to 8 Rathis

text: Atirathis

text:
Bhoja chief Kritavarman
The ruler of the Madras, Salya
Bhurisravas, the son of Somadatta
Kripa, also known as Kripacharya, the son of Saradwat
Vrishasena, the son of Karna,

text: Maharathis

text:
Brihballa ,descendant of Lord Rama
Kritverma He was general of Narayani sena of Lord Krishna

text: The ruler of Pragjyotisha, the brave Bhagadatta

text:
Guru Drona  he was the best warrior ever known no one could defeat him even the indra with all the deva continuously fire at him he will not get defeated until he had any sort of weapon in his hand
Asvathama, the son of Guru Drona, one of the eight chiranjivi and a Maharathi.
Bhishma, even though he never classified himself, later it was revealed that Bhishma was equal to 2 Maharatha warrior.

text: From Pandava side

text: Rathis

text:
Uttamaujas
Sikhandin, the son of the king of the Panchalas
All sons of Draupadi
Dhrishtaketu, the son of Shishupala, the king of the Chedis

text: Atirathis

text:
Satyaki of the Vrishni race,
Dhrishtadyumna the son of Drupuda
Kuntibhoja, the maternal uncle of Pandavas
Ghatotkacha, prince of Rakshasas and master of all illusions, son Bhima and Hidimva.
Yudhishthira the son of Pandu and Kunti, is a Ratha.
Nakul and Sahadeva are single Rathis
Bhima is regarded as equal to 8 Rathas.

text: Maharathis

text:
Virata King
Drupuda, King of Panchalas
Abhimanyu, the son of Arjuna.
Arjuna, the mighty son of Lord Indra is equal to 2 Maharathis.

text: Major Deities[edit]

text: Shakti[edit]

text: Shakti is the Supreme God in Shaktism Sect of Hinduism. Both a Supreme Being and an energy that is considered to be the source of all works of creation, preservation and destruction, Adi Parashakti is the mother of Trimurti, the universe and all of creation. She took many incarnations to fight with demons, including Parvati, wife of Shiva,[22] the complete avatar of Shakti herself, according to the Devi Gita and Durga Saptashati, the main scriptures for Shakti worshipers. As the goddess Parvati, she is considered to be the most powerful of all deities.[23]

text: Sometimes, the gods worship Parvati, who came before them in different avatars:

text:
Durga, who killed the demon Durgamasur
Kali, the most ferocious Form of the Goddess, who can not be pacified by anyone after war. No one can stop her because she is the only deity who is omnipotent, free from all rules and regulations.
Chandi, the gentle manifestation of Durga or Kali, Goddess Lakshmi, Saraswati, who killed Mahishasura in the Battle of Alkapuri.
Kanyakumari, who killed Banasura
Chamunda, who killed Chanda and Munda
Kaushiki, who killed Shumbha and Nishumbha
Minakshi, who defeated all the demigods and destroyed the arrogance of all demi-gods.

text: Apart from Parvati, there are some demons who were killed by Laksmi's incarnation. One example is Muru.[23][24]

text: Shakti is usually depicted as having the weapons of all the gods, even the Trimurti. She holds the trident of Shiva, the Chakra of Vishnu, the Vajra of Indra, the Gada of Yamaraaj. It indicates that she is the one who actually having all kinds of powers. It is she from whom strength arose. It is she from whom all powers of nondimensional formless GOD (Not talking about Brahma, Vishnu or Shiva) is vested. She is all powerful. All in one and one in all too.

text: Shiva[edit]

text: Mahadeva literally means "Highest of all gods". He is the Supreme God in Shaivism sect of Hinduism. He is the Supreme God without any starting or end.  Shiva is also known as Maheshvar, "the great Lord", Mahadeva, the great God, Shambhu, Hara, Pinakadhrik, "bearer of the Pinaka" and Mrityunjaya, "conqueror of death". He is the spouse of Shakti. He also is represented by Mahakala and Bhairava. Shiva is often pictured holding the damaru, an hourglass-shaped drum, along with his trishula, a trident-staff. His usual mantra is Om Namah Shivaya.[25] Lord Shiva is also considered as the God Of Gods. The existence which represents infinity itself. He is the supreme masculine divinity in this universe and is lord of the three worlds (Vishwanath) and is second to none in wrath and power.

text:
The Lord Destroyer, Sarvaripati Shiva is one of the most fearsome manifestation of the Supreme God. Assigned with destroying all of the universe at the end of time, Shiva is one of the most fearsome warriors and unconquerable. Tandava is the dance of the Destroyer, which He performs over the body of a demon.
Shiva employs his power to kill the Asura Tripura, destroying the flying three cities of Tripura.
In battle, Shiva and his Avatars deploy formidable weapons controlled by him. Some of these are:

text:
Arrow of Shiva: It can destroy creation. Returns to the quiver after being used.
Chandrahas: Sword of Ravana granted by Maha Shiva as a boon.
Ekasha Gada: The mace of Lord Shiva. A blow from the weapon is the equivalent of being hit by a million elephants.
Girish: A special sword of Shiva with unique characteristics.
Jayantha Vel: A spear which contains the power of the third eye of Lord Shiva.
Khaṭvāṅga: In Hinduism, the god Shiva - Rudra carried the khatvāṅga as a staff weapon and are thus referred to as khatvāṅgīs.
Maheshwara Chakra: The Chakra of Lord Shiva.
Parashu: The axe of Shiva given to Parashurama (the 6th Avatar of Lord Vishnu).
Pashupatastra: An irresistible and most destructive personal weapon of Shiva, discharged by the mind, the eyes, words, or a bow.
Pinaka: The celestial bow of Shiva.
Shiva Dhanush (Shiva's bow): A bow given by Shiva to Janaka and broken by Rama during Sita's swayamvara
Shiva Kaakam: An unconquerable weapon of Lord Shiva.
Shiva Parham: A long noose (of Shiva) from which even the Gods can't escape from.
Shiva Vajra: A vajra 100 times more powerful than Indra's Vajra
Teen Baan: Shiva gave Barbarika three infallible arrows (Teen Baan). A single arrow was enough to destroy all opponents in any war, and it would then return to Barbarika's quiver.
Trishula (Trident): The trident of Shiva
Third eye : The third eye situated in the center of the forehead of lord Shiva (also the point where the three nadis – Ida, pingala and suhasmana meet – pituitary gland) is the most destructive weapon/power in the entire universe. It is proved to destruct kaala (time) hence ending all the creation. Once opened for a purpose, its immense energy is so intense that it can burn down the entire universe into ashes. No other weapon can match its powers.

text: Vishnu[edit]

text:
Vishnu, the Inconceivable Supreme, is the Supreme God in Vaishnavism sect of Hinduism. "Vishnu" means "all pervading" supreme being, the source of everything. In the Vishnu Sahasranama he is called Paramatman or Parameshwara(the highest form of God), and is periodically reborn as an Avatar upon earth in order to destroy evil and bring deliverance to the pious. He is also the refuge of the Devas in their battles against Asuras. The most martial Avatars include Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Narasimha, Mohini, Vamana, Parshurama, Rama, Krishna, Kalki. He is also considered to be the first God, 'Adideva'. He is beyond birth, death, time. He is Beyond all.
In battle, the Avatars of Vishnu are aided by a variety of astra or celestial weapons. His two human avatars, Parashuram and Rama were fearsome warriors and possessed many celestial weapons that accompany the past times of Vishnu. Sri Krishna also used a few of these weapons in Mahabharata. These include:

text:
Kaumodaki: The divine mace weapon of Vishnu; invincible and without parallel, Lord Krishna slayed demon Dantavakra with it.
Kodandam: The bow of Rama, 7th avatar of Vishnu.
Nandaka: The Sword of Vishnu
Narayanastra: Narayanastra is the most powerful astra in the universe along with the Vaishnavastra. The personal missile weapon of Vishnu in his Narayana (Naraina) form, this astra lets loose a powerful tirade of millions of deadly missiles simultaneously. The intensity of the shower increases with resistance. The only solution is total submission before the missile; only then will it cease. The Narayanastra was first used by Lord Rama in the Ramayana. Then, thousands of years later, this astra was again used by Ashwatthama in the Kurukshetra War against the Pandava army.
Parashu: The axe of Parashurama, 6th Avatar of Vishnu, given by Shiva.
Sharanga: The Celestial bow of Vishnu
Sharkha: The bow of Krishna, 8th avatar of Vishnu.
Sudarshana Chakra: The magical Chakra, a spinning disc with sharp outer spears. It is the most powerful Shastra in the universe, and without any parallel. The Chakra was famously designed by Vishwakarma for Lord Vishnu. The Sudarshan flies at the command of Krishna, spinning away to tear off the heads of His opponents, or to perform any function desired by Vishnu. It was most famously used by His Avatar Krishna in the Mahabharata.
Vaishnavastra: Vaishnavastra is the most powerful astra in the universe along with the Narayanastra. The personal missile weapon of Krishna, once fired it cannot be thwarted by any means, save by the will of Vishnu Himself. This astra was used by King Bhagadatta, son of Narakasura and King of Prajyogsta (modern day Burma) in the Mahabharata war against Arjuna but Lord Krishna saved the life of Arjuna. This astra was stopped by Shri Krishna himself, as Arjun couldn't stop it even with his most powerful weapons.

text: Celestial Weapons[edit]

text: An astra is a weapon that is to be hurled at an enemy. Examples include arrows from bows. A shastra is a personal weapon, like swords and maces, that must be constantly operated by the warrior.

text:
Brahmastra: Embedded with the mystical force of Brahma, this weapon releases millions of missiles, great fires and a destructive potential capable of extinguishing all creation, if not used by and aimed only at a celestial fighter. Modern speculation has equated its destructive nature to be similar to that of a nuclear weapon, it has been used multiple times in Ramayana, Indrajit used it against hanuman, Lakshmana asked permission to use it against Indrajit, which Lord Rama declined, Lakshmana used it to kill Atikaya, Lord Rama used it as final arrow to kill Ravana. In the epic Mahabharata, it is said that the weapon manifest with the single head of Lord Brahma as its tip. In Mahabharata era Parasurama, Bhishma, Drona, Karna, Kripa, Ashwatthama, Arjuna, Yudhishtir and several Maharathi's possessed the knowledge to invoke this weapon.
Brahmashirsha astra: A weapon capable of greater destruction than the Brahmastra. It can burn all creation to ashes once discharged, Arjuna and Ashwatthama both used it against each other after the Mahabharata war.Capable of killing even heavens. Was used by Ashwatthama on Parikshit. It is thought that the Brahmashirsha is the evolution of the Brahmastra, 4 times stronger than Brahmastra.Its similar to modern day hydrogen bomb or thermonuclear (fusion) bomb.In the epic Mahabharata, it is said that the weapon manifest with the four heads of Lord Brahma as its tip.In Mahabharata era sage Agnivesha, Drona, Ashwatthama, Arjuna possessed the knowledge to invoke this weapon.
Brahmanda astra: This is the most powerful weapon of Lord Brahma. It was first used by sage Vashishtha against vishwamitra's (who was King Vishwarath at that time) Brahmashirsha, as only Brahmanda astra can stop Brahmashirsha astra, it was also used by sage Piplad against Shani to avenge his father's death.In the epic Mahabharata, it is said that the weapon manifest with the all five heads of Lord Brahma as its tip.Brahma earlier lost his fifth head when he fought with Lord Siva.This weapon is said to possess the power to destroy entire solar system or brahmand, the 14 realms according to Hindu cosmology. In Mahabharata era no one possessed the knowledge to invoke this weapon. In some texts it is called Brahma-dhanda astra, the weapon created by Saptarishi's to counter any weapon ever created, even that of Trimurti's. The rishi of this weapon is Para Brahman. It is said to be the most difficult astra to obtain. Capable of destroying entire multiverse in a blink of an eye. Vishvamitra used all kinds of divine weapons against sage Vashistha, even Pashupatastra, but the Brahma-dhanda astra of Vashistha neutralized and swallowed all astra (weapon) of Vishwamitra proving that Brahma-dhanda astra is the most powerful of all astras.[26]
Pashupatastra: It is believed in Hinduism that Pashupatastra is most devastating weapons, as it is the weapon of the consort of the Godhead Mahadeva, i.e. Mahakali. Mahadeva literally means "Highest of all gods" and Mahakali means "Goddess who is beyond time". This weapon, granted to Arjuna by Shiva, is one of the most destructive and foreboding weapon in Mahabharata it was first used by lord Shiva for the destruction of tripura, also acc. To Ramayana, Indrajit used it against Lakshmana, lord Shiva also granted this astra to Arjuna. In Mahabharat era, Apart from Arjuna no one knew this weapon.
Narayanastra: Invincible and painful, this astra is unconquerable except by total submission, this astra was used by Lord Krishna against lord Shiva, when lord Lord Shiva was fighting on behalf of the evil Banasura, when lord shiva charged his personal Pashupatastra on Lord Krishna, he vanquished it with his personal Narayanastra, In Mahabharata ashwathama used it against Pandava army to avenge his father's death.
Vaishnavastra  : One of the most powerful astras, this cannot be stopped by anyone except its creator, Vishnu, it was used by king bhagdatta against Arjuna.
Nagastra: The snake weapon used by Indrajit against Rama and Lakshmana, used by Karna against [Arjuna].
Nagapasham: is the celestial weapon equal to Nagastra".
Garudastra:The eagle weapon to counter against the Nagastra.
Angalikastra: The personal weapon of Lord Indra. This is the astra used by Arjuna to slay Karna in the Mahabharata war.
Ramabanam (Ramastra): Created by Lord Sri Ram, and is used to kill the Rakshasa King Ravana in Ramayana.It cannot be countered by any weapon and could not be stopped by anyone except Lord Sri Rama.
Bhargavastra: this is the astra created by Lord Parasurama, he gave it to Karna in the Mahabharata.
Parvatastra: one of the most dangerous weapon, once it used mountains from sky fall in to the earth.
Vasavi Shakti: The magical dart weapon of Indra, unfailing at executing its target. Indra granted it to Karna during the Kurukshetra war, in Mahabharata it was used by karna to kill ghatotkacha.
Vajra: The thunderbolt weapon of Indra, who is the God of Thunder and Lightning, akin to Zeus and Jupiter.,[27] this weapon was made from the bones of sage dadhichi and it was used by Indra to slay demon called Vritra. Later, Indra gave his Vajra to his son Arjuna.
Agneyastra: The fire weapon, created by Agni, master of the flames
Varunastra: The water weapon, created by Varuna, master of the oceans
Vayavastra: The wind weapon, created by Vayu
Samvarta: Weapon belonging to Yama used by Bharata to annihilate thirty million gandharvas in a moment, tearing them to pieces.
Sammohanastra: Would cause entire hosts/armies to collapse in a trance. Was used by Arjuna to collapse the entire army of kuru Maharathis including Duryodhan, Drona, Kripa, Ashwatthama, Duhsashan, and Karna.
Twashtastra: When used against a group of opponents (such as an army), would cause them to mistake each other for enemies and fight each other.
Sooryastra: Created by Lord Suryadev, Create a dazzling light that would dispel any darkness about and dry up water bodies.
Sabda vedastra: This weapon prevents an opponent from turning invisible. Used by Arjuna against the Ghandarva king Chitrasena.
Gandharvastra: Created by Gandharva King Chitrasena (who defeated the combined force of Duryodhan and made karna flee the battlefield). He gave it to his best friend Arjuna.
Mayastra: Dispel any form of maya or sorcery in the vicinity.
Manavastra: Created by Manu" father of the human race, Could overcome supernatural protections and carry the target hundreds of miles away. Can inspire humane traits in an evil being. This weapon was used by Sri Rama on the rakshasa(demon) Maricha.
Bhaumastra: Created by Goddess Bhoomi Devi, The weapon could create tunnels deep into the earth and summon jewels.
Indrastra: Created by the God Indra, King of Devas and God of the sky and weather, Would bring about a 'shower' of arrows from the sky.

text: The three potential astras are Vaishnavastra, Pashupatastra and Brahmanda astra. However, these astras cannot harm four principle gods i.e. Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, and Devi as they are the supreme manifestation of the divine. Especially, these astras cannot harm Vishnu, the greatest of all gods, Shiva, the god of gods and the destroyer himself, and Shakti, the original energy behind all astras. With these five gods, the astras also can not harm Hanuman, the son of god vayu, as he obtained vardanas (boons) from several gods.


document_title: That Thing You Do (song)

question_text: who sings the song that thing you do

question_tokens: who sings the song that thing you do

text: That Thing You Do (song)

text: In the film[edit]

text: In 1964, an Erie, Pennsylvania band named "The One-ders" (later known as The Wonders) goes from a college talent show to climbing up the Billboard charts thanks to the song "That Thing You Do". Written by guitarist/vocalist Jimmy Mattingly II, it was originally crafted as a ballad. During the performance at the talent show, drummer Guy Patterson produces a much more up-tempo beat and the rest of the band follow suit, turning the song into an upbeat, Beatles-esque rock number. The song is a hit with the audience, and they win the talent show. From there, the band is picked up by a local manager who helps them get more shows in the area, and eventually the song receives radio airplay. The band is then signed to Play-Tone Records, under Mr. White's guidance, and the song climbs up the Billboard Hot 100, starting at #93, then #71, #49, and #21. The following week, "That Thing You Do" climbs to #7, becoming the quickest charting song ever on Play-Tone Records. However, Jimmy walks out on the band before they can produce another record, so they eventually become one-hit wonders.

text: Early in the film, when Jimmy and Lenny are asking Guy to join them at the talent competition at the college, Jimmy mentions they'll perform a song he wrote. Lenny takes offense to that by slapping Jimmy on the arm. Jimmy begrudgingly corrects himself by saying, "We wrote." Later, when the vinyl 45 is officially released, the label states: Written by James Mattingly II. Later still, when being interviewed live on radio station KJZZ, Jimmy says of the song, "We wrote it in my garage back in Erie, PA".

text: In the film, the song is performed by James "Jimmy" Mattingly II on lead vocals and guitar, Leonard "Lenny" Haise on lead guitar and backing vocals, "T.B. Player" on bass and backing vocals (as a running gag, the bass player in the film is unnamed), and Guy "Shades" Patterson on drums. For their live performance of the song on The Hollywood Television Showcase, studio bassist Scott "Wolfman" Pell replaced T.B. Player on bass and backing vocals.

text: In the fictitious "mockumentary" liner notes from the soundtrack CD, "That Thing You Do" peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 during the summer of 1964.

text: In Reality[edit]

text: The song was written by Adam Schlesinger, the bassist of the alternative rock group Fountains of Wayne. Schlesinger did not expect his song to be chosen, but tried as "a personal exercise." Performers include Mike Viola on vocals with Schlesinger on backup vocals.[2]

text: The song was released as a single, and although not as successful as was depicted in the film, the track still did moderately well in the US, peaking at #41 on the Billboard Hot 100. (It also reached #22 on the Adult Contemporary chart, #18 on the Adult Top 40, and #24 on the Top 40 Mainstream chart.)[2] The song also reached #50 in Australia.

text: The song was a bigger hit outside of the US, reaching #31 in Canada in December 1996,[3] and #22 on the UK Singles Chart in February 1997.[4] The song was nominated for Best Original Song at the 69th Academy Awards as well as Best Original Song at the 54th Golden Globe Awards, losing out on both occasions to Madonna's "You Must Love Me" (written by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber) from the musical Evita.[5]

text: On April 25, 2017, three quarters of the actors who played The Wonders - Tom Everett Scott (Guy "Shades" Patterson), Johnathon Schaech (Jimmy Mattingly II) and Ethan Embry ("T.B. Player") - performed the song live during a surprise appearance at the Roxy in Los Angeles.[6] The occasion was the Goddamn Comedy Jam, a live show series in which comedians tell funny stories about a meaningful song and then perform it with a live band.[7] Comedian and show creator Josh Adam Meyers persuaded the actors to perform the song with him. After initial hesitation on Scott's part, Meyers managed to persuade him with help from The After Jam producer Jason Gallagher, who happened to be Scott's brother-in-law. The other actors soon followed suit, with Gallagher helping them learn how to play the instruments. Steve Zahn (Lenny Haise) was unable to participate due to living in Kentucky; comedian Jeremiah Watkins took his place on lead guitar while wearing a cut-out mask of Zahn's face.[8] On April 10, 2017, Embry posted a video of himself playing the song's bass line; it is now apparent that the video was a teaser for the event two weeks later.[9] Coincidentally, Tom Everett Scott replaced Steve Zahn as Frank Heffley in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid film series.

text: Cover versions[edit]

text:
The Knack recorded the song for their 1998 hits collection, Proof: The Very Best of the Knack.[10]
'N Sync performed the song during their 1999 tour, as part of a '60s segment.[11]
New Found Glory did a cover of this song for their EP, From the Screen to Your Stereo in 2000.
Japanese ska band Shaka Labbits included a cover of the song on their 2004 live album Burning Cylinder.
Scottish band Bubblegum Lemonade included the song on their 2008 EP Ten Years Younger.[12]
In 2010, the song was parodied by The Fringemunks to recap Fringe episode 3.03, "The Plateau."[13]
Day6's Jae Park performed it on the South Korean reality show K-pop Star in 2012.
Pentatonix performed the song at the 2014 Kennedy Center Honors, paying tribute to Tom Hanks, the writer and director of the song's feature film by the same name.[14]
Set It Off used the beat as inspiration for their song "Ancient History."