Review - John RAMBO - Because sometimes Mayhem doesnt require a reason!

Rating: 4 / 10

Oh! so Sly is back... with his legacy John Rambo. When he came back with ROCKY, I came out of the theater satisfied. The movie had the underdog flavour to it; it retained its charm, the never say die spirit. But, this film has confused me completely.

Its like my friend said, maybe SLY got the idea of the film in the LOO and finished the script in the LOO too! It must have taken hardly 5 minutes. He must have had the sudden craving for Mayhem, massacre and slaughter. A craving to cut in 2 a person with his knife, to tear a persons throat out with his bear hands, to take a big machine gun and spill peoples guts out. And to satiate that craving would have immediately started this enterprise.

While I was watching this movie, I couldnt help but wonder if this was what RAMBO signified. Was it all about displaying intestines and massacres? Was it meant to be a medium to vent Anger, frustrations of the directors and the actors involved? Was it always just mindless and pointless action? or was it something else? Maybe Sylvester should look back at this movie and introspect.

So, coming back to the movie. Mayanmar is under some military regime, who entertains itself by killing an entire village and spilling their internal organs all over the fields. There is no reason given for this atrocity. Its unabashed violence. John stays in Vietnam and catches and sells snakes!!! A group of americans, who believes in making a difference in society and ending the massacre in myanmar, come to Rambo to give them a lift into Myanmar territory. Once he drops them there, they are captured and kept with pigs. So, our hero reluctantly comes back and saves the day, by finishing off the 100 odd men platoon who has kept the group in custody; yeah - he gets help from some mercenaries. His solution to killing so many people is quiet simple. Get on to a big truck carrying a big big gun and just blow their guts away!!! Thats that.... so simple.

Maybe it would have been better if SLY would have just let this one go. and I hope he doesnt come back with any more of such senile stuff. or maybe one day when he is 90, he might sit in the loo and get an idea of making another sequel and in that movie he might just Nuke VIETNAM or some other asian country and simply show mutilated bodies, exploding brains and bodies disintegrating. Too bad John Rambo had to end this way.

Review - Sunday - Nothin Sunny About this one!

Rating : 3/ 10

Senseless -thats what you would call this one. From the acting , to the direction, to the screen play. Everything is pure nonsense. Rohit Shetty has now had 3 films - the disastorous Zameen, the no-brainer but entertaining Golmaal, and now this Senseless - Sunday.

This film is actually lifted straight from a Telugu film called "Anukokunda oka roju", which I incidentally saw about 4 days ago. That film was extremely engaging and realistic. Only the end was a little too far fetched and there were some glitches here and there. So, when I came to know that Sunday is going to be made on the same script, I was expecting Rohit Shetty to iron out the glitches in the plot and change the ending. He did change the ending, but rather than ironing out the problems, he has destroyed the rest of the film. Literally. You have to see both the films to really understand what I mean.

The film is about this girl who goes to this party one night and when she awakens , she realises that she has missed out on an entire day. She doesnt even remember how she got back home. She is then followed by a mysterious gang and a taxi driver. Both claim to know her, even though she doesnt. She informs the police and then starts the investigationm to find out what consipred on that missing day.

The plot is great, but the treatment is pathetic. The songs are forgettable and the placement ridiculous. Sometimes such movies instigate me to make films. Atleast I could make a film on-par with this stuff. Anyways, in the acting department "Ayesha" who is the central character fails to impress. Ajay Devgan has an Okayish Role, while Arshad Warsi is stale(He needs to introspect and do some different roles for a change). In my view Irrfan Khan tries hard, but fails to tickle your funny bone too much. I dont blame the actors; its the dialogue writer, the script writer, the screen play writer who deserve all the flack. The film is too loose and flawed. Maybe if I would have watched this film before the Telugu flick, I would I been less critical, but when you see how some truly awesome scenes have been murdered by the adapter, you cringe. Watch the Telugu flick if you can. It has some truly amazing comedy scenes and a better and tighter execution. Even the preformances are better.

Rohit Shetty should now try making an original film. Golmaal was also adapted. He basically lacks the vision and talent requisite of his position. He even copies an action sequence from a Telugu film called Pokhiri (which incidentally is an awesome film). He completely lacks originality and when he does try something different it is crappy.

If you get a ticket around 60-70, then and only then venture the cinema halls. That too just to chillax in that environment or with your friends, to enjoy the few laughs that the film has on offer. I cannot say whether this film will flop or not, because box-office reports say WELCOME has grossed well above Taare Zameen Par. If a total B&*$ S#$% film like WELCOME can gross around 110 Crores, then this film can be a Smash Hit aswell...

Review - "National Treasure - Book of secrets" - A Popcorn Flick

Rating: 5 /10 .

The movie as you would have seen in the box-office reports, hasnt exactly set the screen on fire. Neither has it got any critical acclaim. I realised why when I saw this movie.

Though it is complete timepass and a fast paced movie, its lost the charm of the first endevour. You get a feeling that the director is trying hard to entertain. You also get a feeling that the director thought of the end first and then worked backwards, thinking of amazing ways to make the clues un-fathomable to anyone but Nicholas Cage.

Its got all the cliche's you could possibly think of. Its got an estranged couple, coming back together to solve a mystery and you know what happens in the end. Ofcourse they kiss and make up. Then there is the damsel in distress bit. To top it theres the bumbling side kick. A few more weaknesses for the hero, like his mom and dad, make it very simple for the villian to control the strings.

So, Nicholas Cage is giving a speech when Ed Harris(humaara pyaara villian) comes and accuses Cage's great grandfather of being a traitor and one of the conspirators who killed Abraham Lincoln!! Yeah right!!! To clear his name, Cage decides to find a CITY OF GOLD, which could prove his great grandfathers innocence. Then starts a not so special ride, which has some ridiculous conspiracies and some mind boggling secrets. He even kidnaps the President of United States to get to the bottom of this mystery!! can you beat that???

Overall a timepass flick, perfect for a boring afternoon. So if you get a softcopy of this, do watch it with some home popcorn.

Review - Taare Zameen Par - Sparkling

Rating: 7.5 / 10

Disclaimer : I am a big big big Aamir fan… So this review is truly, totally, completely and comprehensively biased Aamir has done it again and this time not as an actor, but a director. Being his debut you simply cannot ask for more. But, TZP is not just about Aamir, infact its not atall about Aamir. He simply dedicates every take to the Kids. He hands over a canvas and some colors to the kids and lets them go wild in their imagination. And this is why this movie is simply sparkling.

The movie is about this kid Darsheel who is like any other boy, but isnt. His perception of this world is completely different from others and nobody understands him. His parents try to force studies into him, but he does his best to simply run wild. Why doesnt he understand? Why does he feel frustrated with the world, with himself? These questions form the Heart of the film and are dealt with amazing sensitivity.

If I try to find a fault in this movie, I would say its the runtime. It could have been shortened by half an hour. But this is due to Aamir’s preoccupation to perfection. The amount of detailing he does to dig through the surface of his protagonist’s character (Darsheel) to the depths of his perception can be simply described as Meticulous. In this very exercise, some scenes leave you waiting for the next scene.

Now to the good part and there are so so many. This film is about the kids, dedicated to every kid, but not directed towards the kids. The message is well and truely for the parents, for the wanna-be parents, for those who have been through it all. And the message never comes as a speech, but through the narration of the film. Its a tribute to childhood in many respects. You would watch every scene and identify with it, be it the punishments in school or at home, be it the tussles with other kids, or the stereotypical professors.

The songs of the film are Tailor made for it. They carry the narrative, drive in the emotions, the message and are well and truly bound to the script. They become the script. The whole cast plays its role with aplomb. Aamir is restrained and effective, but Darsheel steals the show with the sparkle in his eye, with his bunny face, with his amazingly expressive face and his touching performance.

Due credit should be given to Amol Gupte for an excellent story and the whole team for the depth of research on the topic. The sincerity in the research and the belief in the cause by Amol Gupte, reflects in the narrative and tugs chords in your heart. And his dedication and belief has payed off.

I dont know how this movie would have turned out, had Amol directed it, but Aamir has shown class in his directorial debut. The use of colors, the continuity of scenes, the use of the background score, the panning of the camera to capture the emotions and the symbollic shots are excellent. Just that in building up his character, he goes to the limits and this could be curbed.

The movie never forces you to shed tears, but its power makes you. Be it tears of happiness or despair, you start living with the kids. It tackles a serious topic like Dyslexia and brings it to the fore with force. So, I urge you to catch the first show you can and enjoy. Its not a no-brainer comedy, its intense and meticulous. You might have your complaints, but I am sure, you would love it.