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2010-07-06T11:09:00.003+05:30

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Movie Review : Rajneeti - Not completely compelling...

2010-06-07T20:01:00.001+05:30

Genre : Drama

Films on Indian Politics have a trademark feel. Specially from directors like Prakash Jha, Sudhir Mishra, Anurag Kashyup. Its raw, its fast paced, its brutal and its in your face. Rajneeti is re-packaging of an age old story with new characters and known situations. Rajneeti is the vehicle for Actors and not just stars. Rajneeti is a welcome relief in the slump, but not exactly a benchmark film.

Largely inspired from the Mahabharata and The Godfather, this one is a tribute to both. Its about a family that rules Madhya Pradesh politics and the infighting within the family for power. Direct references are to the Mahabharat family in terms of charcters and direct scenes are lifted from the Godfather ( like the Hospital sequence and the horse head sequence).

Lets talk about the positives. Like most recent Prakash Jha films, this film also has a very tense undercurrent, with things happening left right and centre. Infact there are so many characters in the film, that it takes you some time in understanding who's who. But once you know, you are sucked in. The first half goes like a breeze. With political cards thrown all over the place, the movie keeps you on the edge and sets up for a stupendous second half. The scale, the background score,the screenplay overwhelm you and you think you are gonna watch history being made. 2 actors keep you spellbound - Nana Patekar and Manoj Bajpai. Nana Patekar who plays "Krishna" the guide is fabulous is almost every moment. He emotes to perfection in the most tense of scenes. Manoj Bajpai as "Duryodhan" is also in top form. His angry speeches, his inner turmoil blazes the screen. The others like Ajay Devgan, Ranbir Kapoor, Arjun Rampal do a good job aswell, and the only weak link seems Kathrina Kaif, though she does redeem herself towards the end. What is also refreshing to see, is that no one is shown as a pure soul and completely white. Everyone has shades of grey and everyone is ready to do anything to gain power.

What makes this movie a GOOD movie but not a GREAT one is an average second half which drags. Infact in trying to put in so many references some scenes seem irritating. You wonder why did Prakash Jha spoil something that he had started so well. Some irritating points are a few forced assasinations, an avoidable reference to "KARAN", some unwanted pregnancies! The film would have done without these things. Also, though Arjun Rampal does a decent job, he seems out of place in the raw charcters look. Ajay Devgan is wasted with too little screen time. Kathrina Kaif, though suits the character to the T, is weak in some sequences. Finally, the climax is ridiculous to say the least! These points are irritating, because suddenly a complex, intelligent , realistic film becomes farcical.

Gangajal still remains Jha's most powerful film even though Rajneeti touches some dizzy height towards the interval. Its a nice little tribute to both Mahabharat and Godfather, but unfortunately would not come in that category of culthood. I would say that it is a job half done, and I still think Prakash Jha could have avoided the Godfather references. Thats what made Gulaal so refreshing. Even though it also lost momentum in the second half, it remained a genuinely original film.

Go for it, as its one of better movies to have hit the screens in a long time. Plus, directors like Prakash Jha, Sudhir Mishra should be given support so that they come up with more compelling dramas. As far as Rajneeti is concerned, the political drama is complex, but not completely compelling..

Rating : 7 / 10 (0.5 extra for Nana Patekar's whizardry...)

Movie Review : Kites - Pour fa BORE !

2010-05-24T01:45:00.001+05:30

Genre: Romance

Sizzling Heroin, Muscular Hero, Psychotic Vamp, Idiotic Villian, Scenic Setting, Frantic Chases, Brooding Romance, A Tragic End, Eternal Love - Ingredients of a Potential Blockbuster. But sometimes the sum of parts is not the whole. Because it depends on the cook, how much a particular spice should be added. This one has one too many slow motion set pieces, tight frames with a crazy background than can be digested. Its like attempting to make Tortilla and ending up with an Enchilada!

Kites, an ambitious project set in and around the border of Mexico and US, is a love story of 2 people who do not know each others languages. They meet out of need, get seperated and when they meet again, they dont want to seperate all over again. So, there's Hritik who forces himself to marry the Psychotic Kangana for her money and there's Barbara who for the same reason wants to marry the Idiotic Villian. Suddenly, out of no where Love appears in their hearts and they decide it's time to make a run for it. But Crazy Vamp and Idiotic Villian want revenge. So, starts a never ending sequence of chases intertwined with slow motion romance sequences.

The film has its plus points. First of all, its not too long, even though it feels long. Next, it has some amazing Cinematography, excellent production value and decent screenplay for the weak script. Also, it is a brave attempt of making an international film as its got a mix of spanish, english and hindi dialogues (characters dont speak hindi just for the heck of it!!) It would be a good idea though, to dub it in Hindi and release it in B and C centers. Also, the Director Basu, has some flair in terms of shooting sequences and his style leaves a mark.

But this is where the GOOD-buck stops!!! The problem with the movie is the weak script. The romance between the 2 main characters never achieves depth. They say "I love you" , but you never feel it. You see Hritik pining for her, but why you never understand. Anyways, maybe that's love - complicated ! Then there is the problem of some horrendous background score. When you have a movie so heavily dependent on background score, you need something operatic, magnificient. Though the attempt is brave, its weak. Most of all, the script is extremely weak.

Pages of the screenplay document seem to have been misplaced, thus resulting in converting half the scenes into SLOW MOTION pans! The first half is filled with THINGS UNSAID, LONG STARES, A SPANISH GUITAR playing in the background and you trying to plan what to eat next ! The second half is full of Chases and you laughing your guts out at some woefully shallow romantic sequences. Also, you wonder why Hritik, a U.S. citizen keeps fluctuating between an American and an Indian English accent? Our SuperStars really need to start getting into the skin of the character more and leave their own persona behind.

Overall, Hritik has done a good job in the film, while Barbara looks good, pouts and emotes decently. If you survive the film, you might take back a few good moments, but that is if you do not leave in the first half. I would say its a decent attempt at giving India a different kind of a love story. Anurag Basu, tried to create a Romantic Painting, but it ended up being a romantic PAIN thing ! Save your money for better fares coming up in the coming weeks, unless you are a Hritik fan. After all one of the films songs itselff preaches "Zindagi - Do pal ki" - why waste it !!! Pardon my Spanish - this one's POUR fa BORE !

Rating: 4.5 / 10

Movie Review: Shrek Forever After - An almost appropriate ending, but not quiet!

2010-05-21T16:34:00.001+05:30

Genre : Animation

The only thing really disappointing about the final edition is that it ends a widely loved franchise. Otherwise, its more than a watchable film. Though strictly speaking, the first two editions were brilliant and this ones just plain good. Even if you compare it to the films that have come out before this one - How to Train your dragon, Up - this ones ordinary.

Shrek has a happy little life with his kids, his friends, his friends kids etc and his life has become a cycle of waking up, feeding kids, cleaning them, having food with his friends, singing songs and going back to sleep again. All's well on the surface, but Shrek is frustrated by the monotony in his life. He is not the same old feared Ogre, he used to be and he hates it. So out of frustration, he signs up a magical deal to get back his old life for just one day. Ofcourse, it's not just an ordinary deal and a whole new adventure starts.

What is really awesome about the movie is the 3-D experience. The movie is deliberately made for a 3D audience and many of the sequences look especially awesome due to the 3D effect. Also, like all the franchises, the humor rocks. Donkey, Puss in Boots and the villainous RumpelStiltskins are hilarious, and so are the take offs on the good old fairy tales. The first half ends with you wanting more.

The problem with the movie is that its too familiar. Everything you look at is like something you have already seen. Shrek has the same main characters, the same setting and it does not convert into something extraordinary. That does not mean that it's not enjoyable. Infact it is really a good time at the movies.

So if you are an OGRE lover, go to the theaters right away, coz I am sure this is your best bet this weekend. I am upset though, because even though the poster says ITS NOT OGRE, UNTIL ITS OGRE -- Its actually over....and not exactly with as big a bang as I expected.

Rating : 6.5 / 10

Movie review: Badmaash Company : A Bad Mash of a film

2010-05-08T16:27:00.002+05:30

The biggest con in this film is that of the director. That he conned the producer to pump in crores of rupees in the film, conned known actors to work in it and got the film released is the biggest achievement. That is Parmeet Sethi's biggest achievement, coz what he had for a script was a bumbling no brainer. The script apparently must have been written by one of his sons when they were in standard 4 and he would have decided to back it. Then he would have watched back to back episodes of the British series Hustle and decided to copy the style blindly.

I must give the film some credit. The film starts kiddishly with silly humour, but then by the end of the first half picks up pace with a well executed con. But then the second half is such a distater that I seriously wonder how didnt anybody on the set realise the same. I am amazed by Parmeet's con-abilities. So, we have these 3 idiots who have just finished their engineering. Shahid is the blessed one, engineering topper. His father still believes that he is only capable enough to become a peon in an office. So much for setting the film in 1994, the engineering/doctor era! He wants his son to do an MBA, and start working in a stable job like he has done all his life. But Shahid goes against his fathers advice, starts his own BADMAASH company and starts making money by conning the system. The first half turns out to be bearable, but in the second half they land up in the US to continue their conning ways. And con after con, the film becomes more absurd than before. The success goes to Shahids head, which leads to his fall and then the film converts into a moral science lesson while you start tearing your hair out.

There are several problems with this film. The music is atrocious. The director feels that the way to make a con film successful is not having a brilliant idea, but by having the lead actors walk towards the camera in a single file in slow motion, with heavy music playing in the background ( like Reservoir Dogs). After every fifteen minutes the 4 main leads of the film wear goggles and walk in style to heavy music. The problem is also that if you want to make a con film, why do you bring your conscience into it? Forget morals for a minute and make an intelligent con film. It is an utterly confused film, the director not knowing what he wants to show. Then there is the problem of charcter development. The characters change their colors so easily that you yourself get confused. The transformation of Shahid from a good natured starry eyed man, to a brat and then his instantaneous realisation is wildly amaeturish. Even Anushka Sharma converts from a slutty, ultra modern girl to a devoted girlfriend in the blink of an eye! I will stop for now, or this would get converted to a 500 page novel on How Not to make a film !!!

What I liked in the film, is the honest effort by Chang, Vir and Anushka. Shahid for one, is suddenly going the Fardeen Khan way. He is giving flops at the rate Sachin makes centuries. As far as his performance is concerned it is apparent that he needs a good director to make him really act , otherwise he remains an SRK wannabe. Parmeet Sethi should perhaps throw away his Hollywood con films collection and the Hustle series collection and have a look at the Indian con film like Johnny Gaddar - one gem of a film. Even Bluffmaster and 99m were not this confused. You cannot alienate yourself from your surrounding while making a film. Also, I think its time I write a script in 2 to 3 hours of free time and push it with YRF and I would try to make it a no brainer. I am sure the IDIOTS approving the scripts would fund me with crores and add in an SRK.

Chalo, I must work now. As for you , do not go to the theaters for this one. Its all style, no substance and one bad mash of a film!

Rating : 3 / 10

Movie Review : Love, Sex aur Dhoka - Beyond expectations...

2010-04-17T01:16:00.001+05:30

Welcome to the world of digital cinema - a film-making medium for the common man. If you have a good concept, a limited budget and a good team - go for it. And thats exactly what Dibanker has done. He has 3 decent provocative stories, a taut screenplay and some very good unknown actors. What he benefits from, though, is some really high-fi digital cams and very good post production.

I have no idea why I had not watched this movie yet, but thank god I did. Dibanker has taken a shooting concept, now quiet common in Hollywood movies and used it to shoot 3 provocative stories. When you have a title like LSD - love, sex and dhoka, half battle is already won. So, the first story deals with a director and an actress who fall in LOVE while making a romantic diploma film. They elope and get married with disastrous consequences. The second story is about how a man lures a girl into having SEX with him, records it on camera and sells the sex tape. And the third is about DHOKA a sting operation , where a journalist and a wanna-be dancer try to bring to light the casting couch ways of a popular pop star.

The first story sets things up with a jarring end, but overall its a less than ordinary story. What stays with you is the innovative story telling. The second story is the best of the lot. It has some awesome characters, the best of which is a Haryanwi speaking bitchy sales-girl. The main cast Raj Yadav and Neha Chauhan also d an excellent job. The characterisation of the man who sets out to lure a average looking girl, falls in love, but still goes ahead with his nefarious plan for want of money is excellent; hardhitting and brutal. The third story is lifted by the excellent performances by Arya Devdutta as the wanna-be dancer and Herry Tangdi as the popstar.

The language used is as brutal as the imagery. The realism of the movie is maintained by deliberate mistakes in shooting, like shaking camera, off center characters and abrupt cuts. But the narration does not suffer throught the film and is seemless. Though it would be difficult for an average viewer to digest, it is refreshing to see such a raw film coming from Bollywood. What makes this kind of film making difficult, is that there are a lot of big scenes to be shot in one go, with the best coordination required from the whole team and on this aspect the whole team comes up tops. Complex scenes are executed to perfection, like the Store Shootout sequence or the scene where the journalist jumps from the bridge to save the wanna-de dancer.

Overall, despite its flaws this is an excellent film by Dibanker and surely is beyond my expectations.

Rating : 7 / 10 ( I feel generous today :)

Movie Review : How to train your dragon - Simply 3-Delicious !

2010-04-16T13:26:00.000+05:30

Wow, now that’s a spectacular film. How to Train your Dragon is one hell of a story and one hell of a ride.

I was waiting for this film to be released and didn’t waste time in running for it. And thank god I did. “HTTYD” is a 3-D animation film, which lives up to its tag of a 3-D film. As far as Animation Films go, this one is up there with the best of them.

HTTYD is about this clan of Vikings which hunt and kill dragons. According to them Dragons are vile creatures that have the sole motive of killing their kin, so Dragons are their sworn enemies. But one little kid, who is now being trained to kill dragons, never understands why he has to kill them. He comes across this injured unknown legendary dragon and starts developing a friendship with it. So now he starts understanding Dragons and how they are not so devilish afterall. Does he manage to make others understand? What are the challenges and how he tackles them? That’s what the rest of the film is about. And what a great ride it is !

You expect a DreamWorks production to have amazing Animation, and the film does not disappoint you with its quality. What you are not sure of is the story, characters and the screenplay. And that is where the movie scores. It has a touching story, an engaging story/characters and a gripping screenplay. The background score elevates the impact. The film is not just for the kids; it’s for the kid in all of us. The 3-D impact of the movie is much higher than a movie like Avatar which could have been enjoyed as much in 2-D. Also, the voice overs by the likes of Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Gerard Butler and Jonah Hill are excellent.

So what are you waiting for? Go for the 3-D version and do not wait for a DVD if you love animation films. Even if you don’t like animation films, go for it, you might start liking them ! This movie is simply 3-Delicious. Bon-appétit.

Rating : 8 / 10 - awesome :)

Movie Review : Green Zone : Show this one the red light.....

2010-04-14T15:47:00.000+05:30

I went for this movie for the frenetic combination of Paul Greengrass and Matt Damon. The Bourne Movies had a solid plot and were shot at such frentic pace, that they kept you riveted to the screen. And I expected that from this movie too.

The first few scenes had the Greengrass stamp all over it. With shots changing every second, the screenplay was frenetic. We were in Iraq in 2003 and eveything was exploding all over the place. People runnings, bombs exploding, military guys parading around, snipers hiding in towers, bricks falling all over the place, dialogues running simultaneously, frenetic camerawork - a million things happening at one time on the screen. It would take a first time viewer some time to get used to the handheld shaky camerawork, but that was what I had expected.

The first few minutes were excellent, because I was just soaking in the atmosphere created in the film - art direction, camerawork, background score - everything top class. But then I started moving in my seat and started to get a little bored. I coudlnt put a finger on what was wrong, but then I figured it out. The plot was too cliched, the visuals too common. The premise was similar to what you had seen earlier, the plot was predictable and there was nothing too spectacular going on the screen. The screenplay was awesome, but the purpose was boring. That's where the Bourne films were far more superior than this one. When you do not have an interesting enough plot, the screenplay will not save you. Matt Damon is solid in a role he can sleepwalk in and others are competant. But none of that matters when you are getting bored by the run of the mill action movie !

I would say you wait for this movie to arrive on a DVD or on television and save your money. Show the red light to the Green Zone!

Rating : 4 / 10

Movie Review : Well Done Abba - Really... Well Done !

2010-03-27T12:41:00.001+05:30

Genre : Comedy (Satire)

Shyam Benegal, the veteran director, the multi-national award winner is back and how ! Welcome to Sajjanpur was just a sign of things to come. Well Done Abba is another delightful film. It's the quaint little, feel good, light hearted movie which also enlightens you about the extent of corruption in the system. Much like "Office Office" it gives you an insider look on the way the officials rob the poor in a humorous way.

It's about this poor driver, who returns to his village to get his daughter married and how he falls into the vicious trap of getting a free well dug in his compound with the help of a lot of corruption! According to a scheme by the government, if you fall under the poverty line, you can get a grant to dig a well in your compound. The poor man, is lured into this mix by the husband of the sarpanch, and the first half revolves around how on every step the officials rob him off his grant. After paying off all of them, he doesn't have money enough to dig a well. The second half deals on how he goes about getting back at his officials.

The music in the movie by Shantanu Moitra is just about bearable. Simply because its not that important! But apart from this everything is awesome.

Boman Irani is the life of the movie. He doesn't put a single step wrong in his portrayal of a Andhraite. His lingo, mannerism are perfect. This is what sets him apart from most actors today. He is probably the most versatile actor in Indian Cinema today. He plays the 2 roles in this film - of a hard working driver and his rogue brother, to perfection. The surprise package is Ila Arun., who plays the ratty- chatty wife of the rogue brother with perfection. Overall, the ensemble cast, full off good actors, is good. Minissha Lamba is sincere in her portrayal of the daughter of the protagonist and Sameer Dattani also does a good job.

What is awesome in this satire is the writing. Some of the sequences and the dialogues in this movie are really hilarious. The movie does stray a bit in the middle and you might get thinking where this film is leading, but when you are walking out of the theater you have had a lot of fun and are going out with a feel good factor. And this is the plus point of the movie. Plus, it doesn't have any expectations to overcome. So if you ignore the length, meanderings in the screenplay and a bit of an overdose of social messages, this film works.

I would recommend this film for a pleasant weekend watch. Well Done Shyamba! Atleast you give opportunities to good actors and make delightful little films which are not pretentious.

Rating : 6 / 10

Movie Review: Alice in Wonderland : Dark and Dull...

2010-03-17T11:17:00.001+05:30

Tim Burton makes some dark, nutty films and Alice in Wonderland, has his signature look and feel to it. But what it lacks is entertainment value.

This story is not the original; it is a sequel to the same. So here, a nubile Alice returns to the rabbit hole to fulfill a prophecy. The problem with the story is that it is not engaging enough. It doesn’t have the charm of the original. Also the story-telling is extremely grim and with hardly any captivating sequences.

The characters in this film are also not too endearing, except for the nutty "Mad-Hatter" played brilliantly by Johnny Depp and the “Red Queen” played by Helena Carter. Also, the background score lacks the strength to really suck you into the scenes.

What the movie scores on, is “Visual Effects” and the 3-D experience. If you watch this film, you will realize what an actual 3-D experience is. The wonderland though bleak and grim - is fantastic. But that is not enough to hold your attention.

Though this movie is topping the US, UK charts, it’s mainly because of the Johnny Depp drawing power and nothing else. Watch this only if you are an avid fan of his; else go take a chance on some other small-budget Hindi film!

Rating : 4 / 10

Movie Review: Road, the Movie - Dont go down this path !

2010-03-17T10:35:00.000+05:30

Some movies are for entertaining the public, some are for enlightening them, some are a product of the directors need to tell a story and some are just ego trips. Road, is a movie made to satisfy the whims of Dev Benegal.

It’s about this supposed ROAD trip, which Abhay Deol takes up. He is bored of his family's Hair Oil business, so volunteers to take an Uncle's "Cinema-on-Wheels" to its final resting place. On the way he meets some interesting characters and his journey is "Soporific" to say the least.

Abhay Deol may have a cult status, because of the kind of movies he chooses to be in, but frankly he is extremely challenged as an actor. His unidimensional roles prove that and in this film he continues to be the obnoxious, fleety guy he was in Dev D - minus the drugs ofcourse! Satish Kaushik does a good job of the decent role he gets after a long long time. He should probably continue acting, rather than directing movies. Mohammad Faizal as the smart-ass kiddo is just about ok and Tannishtha Chatterjee is alright in her smallish role.

The problem with the movie is that it is too self-indulgent. For 15 minutes you have to stare at a rickety truck's tyre travelling on surfaces of various colours and patterns. Come to think of it, the Director shows you exactly what he states - ROAD !! Good frames, seem to have taken precedence over a half decent screenplay. When the director cant even hold your attention for 95 minutes, then there must be something seriously wrong with the writing. Half way through the film you are tired and want to leave. Maybe it’s because of Abhay Deol's weird screen presence. He does not have the personality or the charm to hold you.

Also, the humour seems to be forced. Infact the director throws in some inexplicably juvenile humour towards the end, which is an attempt in parody, but he fails completely. The hero falls into the trap of a nefarious Water-Dacoit, and gets out of his clasp by giving him a Mardaangi inducing TEL-MAALISH(oil head massage). You meanwhile, start tearing your hair out and start wishing for a Tel Maalish yourself.

When a TEA STALL guy starts referring to Starbucks, you should understand that it’s not made for Indian Audiences. This movie was made to be on the ROAD to various film festivals and bore audiences across the world. The only thing top class in this film is the cinematography, credited to Michel Amathieu.

Not many would have ventured into the theater for this one, but I was a sucker for its promos and Abhay Deol choice of films. Unfortunately, this one bored me to the helm. It really falls into the “Fest Film” category and is beyond us “mere-mortals”. Dont go down this path, unless you want to pander to the director’s self-indulgence.

Rating : 3 / 10 - (for the cinematography and a decent background score)

Movie Review : Karthik Calling Karthik - Not just a Missed call.....

2010-02-27T19:24:00.001+05:30

Genre : Thriller.

Karthik Calling Karthik is what I call a low-budget semi-intelligent film. For most it would also be a taut suspense too, though I had put together the pieces half way through the first half.

So KCK is about a loser, who is also a loner. He starts getting calls from a guy who sounds like him, knows about him and call himself Karthik.These calls change his life. He starts becoming something from nothing. But once he reveals this to his girlfriend and doctor, the guy on the phone gets pissed and ruins his life. Who is the guy on the phone? Will Karthik be able to save himself from this guy? Thats what the movie is about.

The movie is not what you would call a slick flick. It meanders. Specially in the beginning. He looks like a loser, acts like a loser and is treated like one. But once he begins to change, you do not understand how an IIM graduate who is also topper in CA examinations could be this loser in a small private company. The movie does have its share of good comedy, perfectly executed by Farhan in his innocent style, but sometimes the comedy is too childish and feels forced. The first half of the movie is quiet cumbersome, but once you get to the second half, it does throw its share of surprises. The thrills increase and you do feel the pain of the protagonist. But finally, being a film sometimes logics go for a toss and the end is a little dissapointing.

The background score is good and keeps the tension up. Some scenes are elevated by the Midival Pundit and Karsh Kale's backgrounds. The songs are pretty decent.

The film belongs to Farhan Akhtar. You live with him and the other characters are just supporting him through the film. Akhtar has his limitations as an actor, but he does emote very well. You cannot really differentiate between characters he has played earlier and what he is in this film. He isnt versatile but he is sincere and does a very good job. He plays the suave and the loser with equal sincerity. What he has to work on , is his dialogue delivery. It lacks that punch and though this movie gave him ample scope to really let go, he seemed stretched. You put someone like an Irfan Khan in the same role and you would see the difference. Deepika Padukone is like a mantle piece, both in beauty and in expressions. Her limitations as an actress are glaring and she has to work really hard to either keep looking this good or to improve her acting skills, coz someday people might just get bored.

Overall the movie is a average thriller, which picks up its pace later. Decent first movie by Vijay Lalwani and I am sure he must have been helped by Akhtar's presence on the sets. Go get it in the theaters if you have nothing else to do, but do not expect an exceptional film. Its a decent film and not just a missed call.

Rating : 6 / 10

KARTHIK CALLING KARTHIK - Review

2010-02-26T16:02:00.000+05:30

Directed by : Vijay Lalwani

This week we have KCK directed by Vijay Lalwani. I would say that slowly Indian directors are daring to touch THRILLER stories. And this one is worth a viewer’s money.

This is a story of Karthik, who I would say is a looser. Nothing is exciting in his life, no friends; even most of the people of his office don’t know him. Whose boss always scolds him. A poor fellow. Somehow on his birthday he gets a call. It was he, himself who called. Here starts exciting journey of Mr.Karthik. What happens next is the thing you need to watch.

Story is really gripping. Last time a good thriller hindi movie I saw was, Johney Gaddar and now this one. Story line doe not go off the track for a single time. It successfully holds viewer. The music by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy is also good.

As far as performances are concern Mr.Akhtar deserves applause for portraying Karthik very effectively. The body language needed for this character was perfect. Miss.padukone has done good job as Karthik’s love interest. Ram kapoor was also good as a rude boss.
But the movie only belongs to Mr.Akhtar and the Director. As a first time director he has treated the story very well.

A worth watching this weekend. (I may be over rating but I just love Good Thrillers.)
And don’t compare this with any Hollywood flick.

Rating : 7 out of 10.

Movie Review : My Name Is Khan : And I am trying too hard !!!

2010-02-15T02:09:00.000+05:30

A film by Karan Johar, starring Shah Rukh is something I really look forward to. It gives me a perfect opportunity to go to the theater with my friends, buy a lot of popcorn, and then laugh my guts out at each emotional scene. What makes it even more special is to irritate the hell out of the neighboring people. I still remember how I burst out laughing in the climax scene of Kuch Kuch Hota hai, and the man besides me, who was apparently wiping a tear with his handkerchief, just looked at me, got up and watched the rest of the movie standing in the aisle.

With all the controversy surrounding the movie, I wanted to see if this film is even worth half the attention the media is according it. So I went to the theater with a friend of mine who is an SRK fan. So I had deliberately put myself in a position where I couldn’t fall off the chair laughing on the floor.

I watched the film, and was lost for words. So I did the next best thing. I got Rizvan Khan, the protagonist of the film to write his views :

“”

Hi, My Name is Khan, and I am trying too hard! I suffer from ASS-par-GAS syndrome. No, I don’t have a bad stomach; it’s just a mental disorder!! I want to let you know that the director was very kind to me. He gave me a role of a life time. When he told me that 9/11 was the central theme, I said "no no no ,, no no no - again 9/11? After New York, Kurbaan and countless others, wouldn’t it be too repetitive." Karan said "That’s why you are the hero! That’s novel no? Yes yes. Having a challenged person in challenging situations was the challenge!

When I read my lines, I did not understand many of them. I was not only naive and took things literally, but I was also a smart ass. I did not understand why? Why was it that all jokes had to come from me? The pressure of delivering one joke after another, started showing on my haggard face. Only my brother's (Jimmy Shergil) beauty products helped me in my journey to meet the president of United states.

While the local police failed to solve a case of a simple accidental murder of my son in school, I set out for a journey of months across the United States. Also, I must admit the FBI's investigations do not match even the local television standards. While the correspondents found out my family history, the FBI could not even understand my mentally challenged condition! Though I am as confused about a few other things like how I managed to walk miles without food or water, how I never grew a beard, how my hair never grew, how my clothes remained spotless white as I travelled in buses, trains, roads, deserts, also how I managed to catch a bus to easily reach a Tornado hit location.

When I asked few questions, my Director told me not to worry. No No No No No , Not to worry. Ha Ha Ha. He said that the audience didn’t care for logic! They wanted to be manipulated emotionally scene after scene. When I asked him if we were making a comedy, he said no this was sensible cinema! I seem to forget what sense is all about, but then I do suffer from this condition you know!

Director asked me to learn to love Sam - my son and Ham - my technique. I had to ham through the film, though I did try to be subtle this time around! He also asked me to learn Hum Hongay Kaamyaab. I had to sing it at all possible supposedly inspiring scenes, like when I remembered my son after his death, or when I saved Hurricane Katrina victims or when Mandira told me her sob story. Though I sung well, I told Mandira (Kajol) not to sing. She is a good actress, but I must admit she did go a little overboard with her beaming grim and extra loud screaming cry. And by Overboard I do not mean jumping off into the water from a boat, no no no no no ! Also, I still do not understand why did she marry me? She could have maybe, adopted me. But why did she marry me? Maybe my dimples impressed her. Mummy (Zarina Wahab) said Love defies logic and Mandira’s, surely did.

I am particularly happy with the acting of all the cast, though I did manage to hog almost 90% of screen time. I must admit that even mummy did not allow me to hog this much, no no no no no. They made me work really hard. If I wasn’t there in the scene, my voice-over managed to ensure my presence. Also, I was happy with the travelling as I got to visit so many beautiful locations and I must say the film looks very good - very much like my Mandira after applying my brother’s beauty products!

When I saw the film, I was confused. Childhood is the best part of life and so was mine in the film. It’s only after I grew up and left for the US that I started getting confused. I was also tired. I had not only endured Asperges, the Hindu-Muslim riots of 83, but went onto suffer post 9/11 hatred, death of my child, travelled thousands of miles, endured police beating, FBI harassment, helped Hurricane Katrina victims and so on a so fortieth! But finally, I had met Mr.President.

And Mr.Director is very intelligent. When I told him I am confused. He said No No No No No. Don’t be confused, this film will break records. I quickly hid all mine, especially Micheal Jackson’s records! When Director explained what he meant, I got even more confused. And then he said that since I was Khan and I knew only good and bad people, I should say this in public with reference to our Neighbors. In my childhood, mummy had drawn a diagram of a man with a bat in hand and said he was neither Muslim nor Hindu, he was a batsman. As I knew only the neighbor’s cricket team, I said they were good. And the rest fell in place!!!

“”

Rizvan Khan left me to say a few words in the end.

Though Shah Rukh was sincere in the film, it was the irritating knack of Johar to make “HAM and CHEESE” scenes which really put me off. Either someone Hams in a scene or its too Cheesy !! This films not for me, but it does have its moments. This one is somewhere between Kurbaan (vomit) and New York(nice) for me. But then, as I am a world famous for not liking SRK, JOHAR , I would suggest watch this film and judge. The publicity campaign has turned out to be a necessity rather than just being fortuitous!

Rating : 5 / 10 ( For SRK’ sincerity and control on his hamming, plus some good camera work, good production value and a couple of good songs )

Movie Review - Ishqiya - Good but not Great...

2010-02-09T11:28:00.001+05:30

Sometimes, Reputations drive reviews and thats what happened on the RANN, ISHQIYA release date. RGV was panned for his unrealistic preachy RANN and some reviewers went to the extent of saying "Tarantino would be proud of ISHQIYA" !!!

While I had below zero expectations for RANN, I had bloated expectations for ISHQIYA becoz of the stunning reviews. Rann pleasantly surprised me. I was a rivetting movie. But Ishqiya wasnt quiet the mind blowing movie I expected, though it did leave an impression.

Ishqiya set in Gorakhpur, gives you a slice of the rustic, rural india set up. 2 louts, Naseer and Arshad, running from a gangster take shelter in Vidya Balan's home. Vidya, taking advantage of their situation, seduces and uses them both to extract revenge.

Lets look at the many positives in the movie.

1) The Characters : Characterisations of Naseer, Arshad and Vidya are wonderful. While Naseer , the old goon, is the mildly romantic type - Arshad is the young, flashy lover. Vidya on the other hand is the perfect seductress, mixing vulnerability and vengence with ease.

2) Performances and Chemistry : To say that Vidya steals the show, is an understatement. She is amazing. Her body talks, her eyes emote. She seduces Naseer with her fleeting touches, her sensual voice, her voluptous body and sets Arshad on fire with her trash talk, her naughty advances. Naseer is in the perfect "Aashikaana" mode. He doesnt have many dialogues, but he plays the childlike lover to perfection. Arshad has the most lines and delivers them with perfect comedic timing. His body language is in perfect unison with his character.

3) The Direction and research team : Though everyone is saying its a Vishal Bharadwaj film, Director Abhishek Chaubey deserves the appluads. His overall knowledge of the setting, the detailing in the sets, the get ups, the dialogues, the language transports you to UP. He promises to have a good future in cinema.

But, the story, the plot is not gripping. This is the only flaw in the movie. Sometimes, the movie does become cumbersome. The content is probably apt for a 1 hour film, as 1 hour 40 minutes also feel a bit long. Though some scenes are powerful, others just seem to be a squeeze. Also, its only the performances, and the chemistry between the characters that work. Its not the plot. The plot is secondary, hence the movie somehow loses steam towards the end. Maybe a week or two with Bharadwaj on the script would have elevated the film a few notches.

Overall a commedable effort by a first time director. To make a film work without any big hero's is a big achievement and the film is the only one that has worked so far this year because it does have a universal appeal. If you havent watched, have a go. Coz its good, but not great...

Rating : 6.5 / 10

Movie Review - Rann - One sided story but Riveting stuff.

2010-01-29T14:53:00.005+05:30

Genre :Drama.

Yesterday I could not sleep. I had made a decision of watching RANN - first day first show and this was playing on my mind. The last time I had seen a RGV movie on the first day, I had burnt myself ! Ofcourse that legendary movie was AAG. So with trepidations and doubts I entered the cinema hall. Another AAG and I would have been scarred for life ! But thankfully RGV with RANN has gone back to his roots, has gone back to what he does best.

This movie is sure to be scathed in the media. Because it takes up a completely one sided viewpoint and badgers the media black and blue. But then it does have its primary Idelaistic protagonists as media-men. So, we have a revered media personality - Amitabh Bachchan who owns a news channel. Renound for his ideals, his voice is heard and believed by the nation, but alas people want entertainment and this is where his channel lags. Enter, the saviour of the channel, his son - Sudeep, who under TRP and political pressure, compromises on his ideals and makes a deal with a tainted politician - Paresh Rawal. It is only the effort of a young journalist - Ritesh Deshmukh, that this scam is unearthed.

Now, there is one big flaw in the movie. It has taken a stand, that entertainment rules in news. It not only typecasts the media, but also the Indian public. It has a view that media gives India what it wants and what India wants is sensational news - entertainment and not just the truth. And hence its narrative has flaws which are convenient for banging in the message.

But then again everyone has an opinion and RGV states his without wavering an inch. The movie succeeds because of its rivetting screenplay, brooding tension and captivating performances. Scene after scene the tension is built and the focus is on the delivery rather than the logic. Many things are taken to be understood and thrills is what RGV delivers.

The camerawork, by Amit Roy, in this movie is audacious to say the least. Almost all techniques of filming are used and sometimes irritates; but its the slow panning, close up shots of the protagonists faces, a trademark of RGV cinema, that leave its mark. When the camera is fixed on an actors face for such a long time, then he is dependent on his acting talents to succeed, to carry the movie through and the actors deliver.

Ritesh Deshmukh makes a sincere effort as the yound idealistic journalist, who cannot watch the medium he reveres being used for selfish reasons. Monish Behl, as the owner of a rival news channel, delivers too. The surprise package is "Sudeep" who as the son depicts the turmoil within with aplomb. His brooding style reminds you of the reclusive, intense role of Chakravarthi in Satya. But its finally upto Amitabh to take the cake. With his deep, baritoned voice, intense eyes, rivetting personality and peerless acting talent he captivates you throughout, especially in an almost 10 minute soliloquy in the end. Anyone else, and the last scene would have fallen flat on the face.

RGV's film is full of tension and this tension is maintained by the intense background score. But the songs are definitely not a take away. They are just another medium for more bashing.

Though sometimes it does seem to be a one sided bashing fest, if you consider it to be a film and just that, RANN is a compelling drama. The first half is brilliant, but the film falters a bit in the second half. Could have done without the Rajpal Yadav histrionics. So in all, after making a bag full of crap , RGV is back to what he does best. So, I would definitely tell you not to RUNN!! but to visit the theater and watch this one sided but rivetting film. And yes, be ready for tension, tension and then some more tension!

Rating : 6.5 / 10

Movie Review : VEER - Do you have the B@lls!!!!

2010-01-25T03:40:00.006+05:30

Genre : An Epic Blunder

When Salman said he was making HIS STORY into a film, we didnt expect him to rewrite HISTORY ! But he does just that with the ASTOUNDING film "VEER".

Sample this, Neena Gupta dances the "choli ke peeche kya hai" step with Mithun da, as her sons watch their parents perform vulgur movements and merrily have some beer! There are some unbelievable blunders in this film - Salman growing hair instantly as he wears his armour and then his hair dissapearing in the next scene as he wears a business suit, Salman running faster than horses and almost as fast as a train, Salman bashing up some 30 British guards in Britain, massacaring some Indian royalty and in the very next moment appearing in India and again drinking over his exploits. Who needs logic when you have jingoism, heroism.Logic can go into the toilet bowl !

Now, make no mistake, I enjoyed every moment of this film. Its etched in my mind. Engraved by the sword of this Historically brave warrior cum freedom fighter. I chose to watch this film in a single screen theater and took a STALL ticket. Amidst the cat calls, jeers and whistles I felt at home, witnessing the power of a mass hero flaunting his stardom.

Salman says that this is Bollywood Cinema's most expensive film. He forgets the bigger you are , the harder you fall. He also forgets to write some sense in the single page story. The totally dimwitted Period Drama is about a group of barbarians named Pindaris, who are betrayed by a king (Jackie Shroff), who along with the british kill thousands of their tribe. So Mithun Da swears to rip their hearts out. Mind you, Pindari warriors would rather die than go back on their word (You secretly hope he does!!)! He sends his sons to London, to learn the british ways, where Salman woos a chubby girl. Alas the chubby cheeked damsel is the daughter of his sworn enemy, Jackie. So what? He roars, sings, dances, fights, drinks his way to victory. Along the way he turns from a warrior to a freedom fighter and brings out a revolution in India !!! Isko kehte hain HERO!

ANIL SHARMA - take a bow ! Now this is direction. If you thought he could not top the peaks of "Hero - the love story of a spy", think again. And he's got guts. Very few can have the courage to convert a single page dimwit story into a full length 2 hour 45 minutes torture session? And he was so thoroughly prepared. Even NASA would be put to shame if you look at the depth of research the direction team has put into this film. DVDs of movies like Lagaan, Troy, Gladiator, Braveheart, The Last Samurai etc etc had to be seen 100s of times. Who needs history books? You know Pindari warriors were actually from Scotland.!!!They do the scottish jiggy wiggy and do drunken brawls just like those Scots I say.The art direction team should be given some kind of an award. Seriously! Did you know Pindari warriors had rubber armours? Mithun Da's armour actually shows ripples as he rides his horse. They were sooooooo brave! No doubt a movie had to be made on them!

Music is quiet decent, but Rahat Fateh's "dabbi dabbi saason" is repeated some 15 times in the film and by the end of the film you develop severe nausea everytime its tune plays in the background.

Also, you have to give it to these actors. They act with so much conviction and deliver those inane dialogues with such sincerity that you want to believe they are warriors in the truest sense. Brave in the face of extreme stupidity.

This film should be sent as an entry to 2 shows - 1) Ripley's Believe it or not 2) Guiness book of world records. No film in the history of films would have such brave actors, such a brave director, such a brave cast and crew; and ofcourse such a brave audience! Seriously. VEER is such an apt title.

Watch it. I dare you to enjoy more than I did. I was doing cartwheels as Salman bounced in air and turned a Britishers head around or when he delievered those beefy dialogues like "Jahan se bhi pakdungaa, paanch ser ghosht nikaal dunga!! or when he tore out the intestine of a fellow warrior with his bare hands, or when he broke a stainless steel sword with a flick of his wrist ! Do you have the B@lls !!!!

Rating : 3 / 10 - For the BRAVERY all round !

Movie Review: Sherlock Holmes - More Fists, Less Wits !

2010-01-13T10:38:00.003+05:30

When you place an intellectual superhuman detective in the hand of Guy Ritchie what do you expect? Ofcourse, he turns into a gun rattling, Bone crunching hero. So forget about your image of Sherlock, submerge into Ritchie's version. Quirky, Aloof, Explosive, Athletic and ofcourse with extraordinary knowledge and observation powers - played by Robert Downey Jr.

The plot of the movie is preposterous. The villian who is caught by Sherlock and then hanged for practicing black magic, returns from the dead to complete his nefarious plan. And Sherlock has to question his own logical mind to drill down to a solution to this supernatural mystery. Ofcourse, Dr.Watson tags along - reluctantly to solve it and bring the wrongdoer to his super - "natural death".

I had recently read The hounds of the Baskervilles. I imagined Sherlock as this lean, frail, geeky character - Ritchie's version is a six pack, athletic Sherlock - where brawn equals brain. Nobody in this world can stand Sherlock except for dearest Dr.Watson and this relationship is at the heart of Ritchie's caper. The chemistry between Downie and Jude Law is simple spectacular. Sherlock is quiet clearly jealous of sharing Watson with anyone else, and the only person who really can stand him or put him in his place is Watson. There are no women involved with these 2 men in the classic novel, but surely the movie version has 2 women in love with the main leads, though in the movie Sherlock clearly cares for Watson more than anyone else. The original Sherlock, is also by no means a timid one, he too goes quiet willingly into seemingly impossible situations and comes out safe - because he had already deduced what would happen next. In the movie even Sherlock's fighting has a method, but this Sherlock deals more with fists than with wits and thats where the movie somehow loses its original or legendary charm.

The problem with Ritchie's film is that he goes too far off on a tangent. The movie is not intellectually challenging or mysterious, its just one hell of a rollercoaster ride. When the deduction does come, you are not really thinking how he came to the conclusion because you were never thinking of the problem. Deduction is secondary, entertainment is primary. Battle of Wits gives way to Battle of Fists. But never the less the movie is a brisk entertainer and one thing that keeps you bound to your seats is Robert Downey Jr.'s scintillating performance. Casting him was a stroke of pure genius. Robert Downey simply transforms into this self-indulgent, sniffing, deducing genius and keeps you rivetted with his performance. His bickering with Jude Law gives you probably one of the best screen chemistry's ever. Also, I simply cannot wait for the next installment where Sherlock will meet his most brilliant adversary - Prof.Moriarity , a supervillian. And talks are that Brad Pitt is gonna be Moriarity. Awesome. Hope the film is more the battle of wits we deserve.

The art design of this movie is splendid, and you are transported to old London. The dialogues are brilliantly written and the screen play is fast paced and engaging. What enhances the mood, is the awesome background score. Guy Ritchie has always been known for his style and the movie exhudes style, though in an old fashioned way :).

The theater is filled with forgettable movies except 3 idiots and Sherlock. So go ahead and watch this movie for its total Paisa vasool - though be ready for more fists and less wits !

Rating : 6.5 / 10

The films I liked in 2009

2010-01-02T13:04:00.001+05:30

So here is the list of movies that I liked in 2009 -

which is one of the worst years in terms of quality of movies released.

The 2 most entertaining films of the year for me:

1) Vishal Bharadwaj's Kameeney - Living up to the plethora of expectations, Kaminey was fast paced thriller with excellent perfromaces, brilliant screenplay and awesome background scores.

2) Raju Hirani's 3 idiots - An over hyped film living up to its expectations was rare in this year and 3 Idiots broke the chain. Raju and Aamir's film gave me some non-stop entertainment and kept me completely glued to the story. It was more about the feeling than anything else.

The most critically acclaimed film of the year :

1) Zoya Akhtar's Luck By Chance - This movie is not everyone's cup of tea. Even I was a little bored when I first watched it. But this movie is like an ONION. You start peeling it and you get a layer after a layer. I have watched it 3 to 4 times now and I am totally a fan of this movie. Rishi Kapoor's performance in this film is one of the year's best.

The Anurag Kashyup Magic :

1) Dev D - A little too cheeky for my liking, but I have to give it to Anurag, he did make a more than decent film with some amazing background score and zany camerawork.

2) Gulaal - Simply fabulous film. Gulaal should be the Drama of the year for its amazingly gripping story, some powerful perfromances and brilliant lyrics. It loses its grip a bit post interval, but then that doesnt take away anything from this powerful movie.

Ranbir Kapoor's sincerity:

1) Wake up Sid : Though a tad boring, this movie was one of the sincerest movies by a promising new director and Ranbir carries this film on his shoulders with aplomb.

2) Rocket Singh Salesman of the year - Not exactly the movie of the year, but again Shimit comes up with an honest movie, with spot on real life office polictics, realistic potrayal of a sardar and some good charcters to make the movie endearing. Though it seems a little confused in the second half, Ranbir's honest potrayal of a salesman and a sardarji really help you like this film.

Amitabh Bachchan's mastery :

1) PAA : PAA works for one reason and one reason only - Amitabh Bachchan's mastery. Otherwise, it had too many flaws for it to make it to this list.

1 YRF film that worked for me:

1) New York : The credit goes to Kabir Khan for writing and directing a believable story backed by surprisingly decent performances and good music.

4 surprise packets:

1) Quick Gun Murugan : Nobody could have predicted the appeal of this film. QGM was one of the whackiest and most entertaining films of the year. It had awesome dialogues and some memorable characters. QGM had a loose second half, but then from a movie you had no expectations, this was a wonderful surprise.

2) Let's Dance : This movie made in 5 crores made around 40-80 lakhs at the box office. The main reason 99% of the population didnt even know this movie was going to be released and maybe as much didnt even know when it left the theaters. A completely new cast, new director, this movie was really a good movie. Good production quality, good direction, decent story and some amazing dance performances. If you get a chance watch it on TV.

3) 13 B : Though the first half was pityful, the logical manner in which this movie is written and made, makes it a sensible thriller in the face of some idiotic films.

4) 99 : Even though this movie was a tad boring, the direction and Mahesh Manjerekar's splendid performance made it a more than decent watch

And Hollywood had a good year and from the movies I watched here is a list of the best:
1) Inglorious Basterds : Simply Outstanding.
2) District 9 : Brilliant
3) Avatar : A visual delight
4) In the Loop : No film could beat its caustic humour.
5) Star Trek : It lived up to its expectations.
6) Taken : A surprisingly gritty and fast paced film.
7) Paranormal Activity : The low budget money maker.
8) Zombieland : Hillarious take on Zombies taking over the world.
9) Harry Potter and the half blood prince : Sets up the finale brilliantly.
10) The Hangover : The surprise box office bonanza!

and 2 films I want to see : Up in the air and The informant.

I may have missed many...So do lemme know your views.

P.S: Love Aaj Kal was a decent film too( specially the KAL part )- and considering its one of the biggest box office successes I guess it should be mentioned.

Movie Review : 3 Idiots - Oye Jingle Bell Jingle Bell...Dont you worry, All is well....

2009-12-29T17:12:00.002+05:30

If you do not know or have not noticed, I must tell you first that I am an Aamir Khan "pankha". So this review may be biased. After the All Brawn No Brain - Ghajini , he is back - and how !! Saalaa deta nahi Mauka... maarta rehta hai Chauke pe Chauka...If I have gone overboard or judged this movie unfairly, I would really like you guys to give me your take on it and correct me. Sometimes Bias clouds analysis.

Stand up and applaud for this fellow - "Raju Hirani". His movies might go overboard sometimes in driving down the point, but then they are so good-hearted and firmly routed in amazing comedy, that you have to appreciate it and you come out the theater having this really Good feeling. You have been given a lesson in life ( a takeaway) but you have enjoyed it thoroughly.

Raju Hirani's talent for a writing brilliant screenplay and dialogues, plus creating amazing charcters were clear in Munnabhai. 3 Idiots may not have as strong characters but then it still manages to give you a few gems.

3 idiots has a message and that message is something I have been living with for the last year - "Follow your heart, follow your dreams. There is no point doing something you do not want to do." And maybe thats why it connected to me so instantaneously. Its about a group of engineers who have a dreamer among them. And the way his non-conformism influences their life and urges them to follow their passion, their dream. Yes, the movies story has been inspired by "Five Point Someone" but Raju has given it a totally filmy twist, so that the screw of the message really pins deep in your mind. Apart from his fascination with "Chaddi's" I really dont have any issues with Raju's comedy - but then everyone has a fetish :).

There are moments that are hillarious beyond words, some over the top where you go Kuch Bhi, but then you are so enveloped by the FEEL GOOD factor that you do not mind those. Things like cinematography, screeplay - though top notch, do not matter much. The music suits the film and the background score enhances the feel.

Having such brilliant actors makes your job easy. Initially you find it a little difficult to believe a 44 year old man playing the role of a teenager, but as time goes by you do not mind it. Infact Aamir's Rancho wins you completely. Madhavan and Sharman carry off thier roles with equal panache. Boman Irani has a subdued character and he makes it totally believable. Kareena is just another entity in the film ! But there is a guy worth a special mention and that is "OMI" who plays Chatur. As the "Gas Emitting English Muttering By Hearting Rat Racing Scholar" he is brilliant. He enacts one of the most hillarious sequences in this movie.

Finally after the rut in Bollywood, here is a movie that is not only endearing but enjoyable; suitable for classes, and the masses. I may go digging into the logic of a few things in this movie like why have such old actors as teenagers? why doesnt the principal rusticate the students for huge crimes when in real life students are kicked out for less? some idiotic Chaddi sequences! , but its so firmly connected to me right now I cannot find those faults. Thats the difference between an extraordinary Avatar and this film - that emotional connect. Thank you Raju, first for Munnabhai and now for these 3 idiots.

Soch kya rahe ho? Throng the theaters... jingle bell, jingle bell.... enjoy your holidays, coz all is well.....

Rating : 8 / 10

Koi Zara raju ko bole mujhe assitant rakhlega !!! itna achcha achcha likha bhi maine :P

added later : On the same scale Munnabhai MBBS would be around 10 / 10 (a near perfect film) and Lagey Raho Munnabhai 9 / 10...

3 idiots- best entertaining movie of the year

2009-12-29T00:21:00.001+05:30

3 idiots

Directed by : raj kumar hirani ( the genius )

THE BEST ENTERTAINING MOVIE OF THE YEAR (and last few years also)
Its totally FADOO movie , sorry I don’t find the proper words but this one’s awesome , beyond expectation.

As we know it is based on ‘5 point someone’ (by chetan bhagat), but not loosely based coz there is twisted story co-written by Mr. Genius (raju hirani) so I am happy that he kept the soul of book also in his story.

Story of 3 students farhan,raju and rancho .these 3 happens to be different personality with different back ground . They are engineering student at ICE delhi . it’s a type of MEMOIR of these guys of their college days and story of 2 of them who is in search of their lost friend. In the days of ICE they happens to meet different guys like principle (VIRUS), chatur (SILENCER) and piya ( love of rancho ).

The story is interwoven so well and entertaining that I don’t want to spoil the joy of watching the movie.

As I said story – screenplay deserves total points. Very well written and the director has done simply great job with this story. A Perfect combination of emotions which leads to a smile on viewers face at the end. Music is also good specially first song BAHETI HAWA SA THA WO.

For performance kareena was beautiful and shown shine in the climax and that dream song. Boman irani , he is the best for role of VIRUS . OMI as silencer was superb( specially that speech part).
Now talking about THE IDIOTS , sharman and madhavan were outstanding and have done total justice to their respective characters. And at the end MR.Genius 2 Amir khan he is millions of times better than ghajini in this movie, totally devoted actor and great performance from him at the end.

All and all its must watch for all. All is not only well but GREAT.

Ratings : 9 out of 10

3 Idiots mein Mohabbatein!

2009-12-26T10:48:00.003+05:30

PLEASE NOTE: Guys, this is not a review or a critical analysis...this is just an observation and is not intended to demean any of the 2 movies. 3 Idiots is a great movie and Mohabbatein too is a good movie.

OBSERVATION: I was randomly surfing the net when this pic of the film 'Mohabbatein' popped up. 'Mohabbatein' is an Aditya Chopra film released in 2000. It was one of the biggest hits of that year staring 3 big stars - Amitabh, Shahrukh & Aishwarya.

Back to 2009, '3 Idiots' has tsumanized the movie screens across the nation and the world (NRIs). It will eventually become one of the biggest hits of all time and may even beat 'Ghajini', the highest grosser of all time in Hindi Cinema. Incidentally both films have Aamir as the lead hero.

After looking at this pic of 'Mohabbatein' (ATTACHED), I remembered '3 Idiots'. Then, I could immediately draw parallels and similarities between the two films. Few of those are listed below:

STAR CAST: Multi-Starrer

CREATORS: Big succesful film makers

BUDGET: Huge

BOX OFFICE PERFORMANCE: Profitable

NOW THE MAIN SIMILARITIES - Related to the Storyline...

In 3 Idiots, Aamir comes to a college and brings about a change with his fresh thinking. In Mohabbatein, Sharukh comes to a college but as teacher and brings about a change with his new way of thoughts. In 3 Idiots, Boman Irani, the dean of the college is very strict who feels one has to be disciplined, has cliched old thoughts and is not open to change...In Mohabbatein, Amitabh plays a very strict dean of the college and is not open to change..Both stress on studying hard..
In 3 Idiots, Aamir falls in love with the daughter of the dean...In Mohabbatein too, Shahrukh falls in love with the daughter of the dean...In 3 Idiots, the dean of the college has a mysterious and disturbed past of his son committing suicide while in Mohabbatein too, the dean has a disturbed past of his daughter committing suicide. In 3 Idiots, there are 3 Idiots while in Mohabbatein there are also 3 Idiots - Uday, Jugal, Jimmy. In 3 Idiots, the message is to 'Follow your Dream.' In Mohabbatein the stress is on the love quotient and here the message becomes 'Follow your Dream (girl).' In both movies, the dean tries his best to get rid of the change agents.
And in the end, the deans in both the movies have a change of heart..

Movie Review - AVATAR - A familiar tale in an Unfamiliar World...

2009-12-18T23:40:00.000+05:30

Avatar - the most anticipated movie of the year, is out and "woaahh" does it score high on imagination. If Imagination, Creativity and Vision were the only criteria to judge a film, this film sets standards beyond compare.

Pandora - is something we hope our planet could be, or probably was. It's got aboriginals- slender, tall, with enhanced sensory capabilities and with a cord to literally connect to the network of nature. Its animals sleek, fast, dangerous, colorful. Its Flora huge, colorful, iridescent. Its water sparkling and pure. Its mountains hovering in air ! But yes, Human's are still a very ARROGANT race. Even in their imagination, they think that any dominant / intelligent species of any world to be some kind of an AVATAR of the human race. 2 legs, 2 hands, 1 head, 2 eyes - think of any intelligent alien form imagined in movies and its got a human-like structure. But then all barriers of imagination cannot be broken in one movie itself.

The amount of detailing gone into the creation of the imaginary world is stupendous. The Vision commendable. The performances are adequate. The background score is awesome. Technically this movie is brilliant.

But then as I said a movie cannot be judged as a visual spectacle alone, atleast when it tells an emotional story. The movie is yet another statement on the greed of the human race. First destroy your own planet by sucking out all its wealth and then use your powers to invade other worlds and suck them dry too. So, here the earthlings have entered Pandora and the most important thing for them is a mineral - way way more precious & powerful than Plutonium. A team of scientist have created a mixed breed between a human and an aboriginal; and this Avatar is controlled by the human from whos gene the mix breed is created. You have a matrix type chamber where you sleep and you are mentally connected to your AVATAR and can control all its motions. And our hero's AVATAR, manages to infiltrate the native clan, pass on their secrets to the humans and when Humans try to exploit them, he realises his mistakes and fights for the natives.

The story is a familiar one;that of an opressor and an opressed; and how the opressed stand up and fight for their right, their liberation, their world. Nothing new. And here , it somehow remains a spectacle and does not transcend beyond that. Just when it is about to connect to you its over. Though it leaves a tremendous potential for many more Sequels. A whole new world gives you the power to write whole new stories in this world.

If you ask me to choose between AVATAR and TITANIC - I would probably go for TITANIC, because , to me, it had 2 very strong characters, with whom I could connect and the movie was more than just a visual spectacle, more than the special effects - it was about the love between 2 individuals. That touched a chord with me. And this is where AVATAR does not score too high. Independence Day was more emotionally charged, Jurassic Park was more thrilling, there are not many movies better than "Braveheart" when it comes to opressed fighting back and one more movie from MelGibson "Apocalypto" which was on the same theme and was a brilliant mixture of emotions and effects. But none were perfect. What I am asking for is a perfect film, - which is rare. AVATAR transcends all boundaries of visual effects and scores decently on the human aspect as well ( unlike a 2012 or a 10,000 BC ).

This movie is like an introduction to the world and that takes up most of the time. After this if any sequels are made, the director can concentrate on making a more wholesome and touching experience.

Definitely a BIG BIG "YES" from me for you to go visit the theater, open the Pandora's box and watch this movie of a familiar story in an unfamiliar world. The spectacle, the technology is enough to enthrall you, and you will come out wanting more, coz you are just getting comfortable in the surroundings with your 3D glasses.

Rating : 8 / 10

AVATAR :A spectacular visual extravaganza

2009-12-18T23:34:00.002+05:30

AVATAR

A spectacular visual extravaganza

This year’s most awaited movie is now in a theatre near you. The hype created for this mega budget movie is up to viewer’s expectation or not , will come out soon.

But first thing, its for all sci-fi lovers and those who have never seen a sci-fi flick.

Movie evolves on a planet called PANDORA. pandora is home of NA’VI ( a kind of specie which is better than humans ) and different other species. As we know humans have deep desire of finding and stealing treasure from wherever they find ,they have made a camp on this BEAUTIFUL PLANET and for this they have made a program called AVATAR .

A marine soldier’s na’vi avatar was created and send between them to make relations and find the roots of billions of worth minerals. This quest goes beyond reach of both humans and na’vi resulting in battle kind of situation.

Synopsis would give sci-fi lovers idea of what it would be in the movie, but the real base of movie is how james Cameron has described THE PANDORA , NA’VI AND and whole AVATAR , its outstanding . I bet no one has seen such a beautiful world on screen with so much interesting stuffs like animals ,birds , flying mountains the list is endless.

If one wants to see the movie don’t go with prier knowledge of sci-fi flicks ,just go and experience this VISUAL EXTRAVAGANZA . and watch it in 3D possible.

RATING :8 out of 10 from me.

( 10 out of 10 for visuals-EXTRA) to Mr.cameron’s AVATAR

ROCKET SINGH: honest and worth watching

2009-12-16T22:52:00.002+05:30

Directed by : shimit amin

Here is an honest story of harpreet singh bedi , after graduating he decides to become a salesman with a computer sales company. As a trainee within a few days he makes such a big mistake puts his career on halt , because he was HONEST. Colleagues strart making fun of him. In this whole situation he tries to make his own way by creating a new company it self with the help of his few colleagues and unknowingly gives tough competition to the company where he is working as a trainee .

First ,even though with running time of almost 150min the movie does not allow you to think anything else than the movie, it holds viewer’s attention completely. By this it wins half the battle.

The movie is entertaining from start to finish with a message of honesty is the best policy.

If we talk about performances all the actors are very good specially gauhar khan, D Santosh , Naveen Kaushik and Manish Chaudhary . above all the rocket singh RANBIR KAPOOR , he has shown that no one could have done this role better than him.

Shimit amin has always handled this kind of stories very well starting from AB TAK CHHAPPAN ,CHAK DE INDIA and now this one. Jaydeep sahani has written an interesting screenplay .

Over all an excellent team effort resulting in a movie worth watching. TOTAL PAISA VASOOL.

RATING : 7.5 out of 10.

Movie Review - Rocket Singh - Does manage to Rock-it a bit...watch it...

2009-12-16T01:17:00.006+05:30

Rocket Singh is a well intentioned, well researched film. It is bang on - on the realities of life of a salesman. Unfortunately, the film falters a bit in the "filmy" part, because it tries to be both idealistic and realistic at the same time.

Rocket Singh is the story of a young graduate who has just managed to scrape through his studies. He is not too ambitious, but he is confident of his capabilities. He is what you call a "Virgin" in the corporate world, untill he gets ...eh...a taste of reality. His ideals are tossed into the garbage bin, as he enters the big bad dog-eat-dog world of business (especially sales). And then with all his ideals intact, and by bending a few rules he tries to fight the system.

Shimit and Jaideep do an exceptional job in bringing out the nuanses of a thoroughbread sales office. Infact the first half is like a breath of fresh air. You can almost relate to every second dialogue, if you have worked in a sales environment. Even if you cant relate to it, you can certainly enjoy it, because the dialogues and punch lines are brilliantly executed.

Its the second half that falters. It tries to be realistic and idealistic. In its intention to drive in a point that business can be done in a certain way, it shades the world into whites and blacks for a while and then again goes to greys.The thing I found dissapointing is, if you are making a point then stop at the harsh reality, rather than concocting a situation which seems totally unrealistic.

Also, the film might not appeal to youngsters or people who cannot relate to this situation and it takes a little more time to drive the point than it should. But then my problem was not the length but the end. They wanted to give that feel good factor in the end, as well as stick to their guns of harsh reality - and in this very dilemma created a bit of a dull end.

The background score is excellent, throughout the film. But the songs are just there for the sake of it; you really dont notice them, nor would you listen to them at home.

The performances from almost all the main characters is good. But you have to give the cakepiece with the cherry on top to Ranbir Kapoor. He has got the charisma and effortless acting talents from his PAA. He was excellent in Wake Up Sid and again in this film gives a very measured performance. Plus the characterisation of a sardar as a normal human being (for a change) in the film is refreshing. Normally films overdo the sardar bit. Overall this film due to Ranbir, it's good intentions and a terrific first half does Rock-it a bit. Watch it.

Rating : 6.5 / 10

P.S. :

Ajab Prem Ki Gazab Kahani - a film I couldn't tolerate beyond 15 minutes , turned out to a super hit, and this film which is way way way better than it and infact is a good film, might not rake in the moolah. Too bad. You might see this talented actor do more rubbish in the future ( keeping my fingers crossed that he doesnt)

Also, do watch the film - "Glengarry Glen Ross" - a hollywood film on sales (multi-starrer including al pacino) -- for its brilliant potrayal of a sales office... just amazing. a must watch.

Ninja Assassin: Blood and Blood and more blood

2009-12-08T10:34:00.002+05:30

Release date: November 25, 2009
Release country: US

Ninja Assassin as the name suggests is about Ninjas and assassin and yes that’s all.

The opening scene when a ninja chops of half of the upper face of its adversary, you move to the edge of the seat in a lot of anticipation only to be disappointed.

This is story of clans who kidnap young kids and brutally train them to become ninjas. One of the ninja turns against his clan when his love is murdered. He then with help of Europol gets its clan terminated.

There are some beautiful fight sequences with swords but honestly the blood and gore is so much that you become indifferent to it. The scenes of training the children and scenes between the hero and his love are far too many while the scenes where the hero plans to use the Europol officers for his revenge are abrupt and lack detail.

The ninja flying, sword dancing and blood splattering action is good only if it was supported by similar proficient reasoning. In short, more was expected from director James McTeigue who is also the maker of the Matrix trilogy… the cult action movies…

My Rating: 2/5

Movie Review - PAA - Just PAAs with Grace !

2009-12-04T20:46:00.003+05:30

I am bewildered. When you have a rare congenital disorder as your subject, you create an awesome character and then you have the most amazing actor to play it, why would you waste your time shooting things totally unrelated. Balki - Cheeni Kum may have had less sugar , but the spice of the relationship between an old man and a middle aged girl was brilliant. But here Cheeni bhi kum, spice bhi kum, sab thoda thoda kum.

I have to start with positives first, because the movie has many. Amitabh Bachchan reallly takes the cake. Please tell me what is it that he cannot do. A 70 year old man playing a 12 year old so amazingly would certainly be the first of its kind. Balki creates a totally believable 80 year old kiddo and Amitabh breathes life into that character. Brilliant is the word. Abhishek and Vidya perform effortlessly. Like Cheeni Kum's character named Sexy, here also you have a classmate who is a friend of Amitabh who is brilliant. Some of the comic dialogues and scenes are really well done. The make up is excellent. The overall look of the film is also quiet good.

Now, comes the bad part :

1) I dont know the infatuation of these directors from south to cut one scene into so many shots. It seems that with every word in the dialogue the camera angle changes. Dunno somehow that style didnt suit the movie.

2) The songs are less than ordinary.

3) Believe it or not, but the director strays from the main story for almost half the time of the running of this film. Its irritating at times. Balki strays mindlessly to Media Bashing, Political rivalries and the movie goes from an emotional film to some cross breed of a Nayak and Sadma.

4) Somehow the film does not touch you. The end is quiet predictable but the treatment of the end is not good enough. Balki would definitely be dissapointed.

But if you ask me, even though the movie has so many negatives, you have to see it for Amitabh's whizardry. Watch it only for that purpose and you might not be that dissapointed. Finally because of some inspired scenes featuring Amitabh with friends or at home or with Abhishek , this movie PAAses with Grace marks !!

BTW, the movie has no connection with Benjamin Button.. Its a completely different film based on kid suffering with "Progeria"

Rating : 6.5 / 10

2012: long and predictable

2009-11-28T12:48:00.006+05:30

Release date: November 11, 2009
Release country: US

This has been one of the most awaited movies. Why? Because of an amazing and promising trailer.

This movie is about the geological changes that bring on the collapse of earth's crust. This fulfills the prophecy of the destruction of the mankind on 12-21-2012. Of coarse there is a plan to save the human race and the execution of this plan provides a cross section of human nature like the optimist, the leader, the family man and the mean one

The movie has disappointed most movie watchers including myself because though the movie talks about the unthinkable yet the drama is very predictable. All characters are in black and white. The amazing scenes that promised to be the USP of the movie and lured us to the theatres are just too many. Plus the movie goes on and on and on… probably too much work went in creating these scenes and thus the editor was not willing to cut any of them out.

Some very ordinary acting which stops you from sympathizing with any of the characters. Great concept but lost in execution.

My rating: 2/5

Movie Review - Kurbaan - Some Love stories are IDIOTIC !

2009-11-20T13:49:00.013+05:30

Genre : Drama

Life is really a bummer. You dont get to watch movies for weeks and then you break ur fast with a total no brainer. Well, thats the way it is. So now that you know how this review is gonna be stay tuned for some real idiotic stuff. Such a weak plot , an idiotic premise can only lead you to a complete dud of a movie, which cant be saved even by Kareena's bare back.

This movie could well have been named 3 idiots ! or maybe simply "Idiots"

Idiot Number 1 - Saif Ali Khan - He is supposed to be a deadly terrorist -( no , its not a secret ). He is supposed to be conniving, dangerous, yet what you see is pure stupidity. His recruitment procedure for a deadly sleeper cell is laughable. He is infact shown as a complete naive fellow, who falls for Vivek's stupid plan. Infact in the end he himself changes his plan, which is so outrageous you wanna tear open your seat.

Idiot Number 2 - Vivek Oberoi - You cannot stop yourself from wondering what kind of a nutcase he is. He has clear evidence against the terrorists, he has the address, yet instead of going to the police and ending our misery , he decides to join the gang to expose them !!! That brings us 1 and half more hour of stupidity. Seriously Vivek ke character ki Herogiri kuch samajh nahi aayi. Faaltu ka tashan.

Idiot Number 3 - Kareena Kapoor - For accepting this role. It was meant for a dumbo. She falls for a fellow professor and marries him. She even brings him back to the US. All this happens quickly and from then on her role is limited to the scared, crying, subdued girl. Yaar, aaj kal toh "Soha Ali Khan" bhi ro leti hai !

Idiot Number 4 - Rensil D'Silva - Mr.Director for writing a script fit for children and then making it an adult film !!! Dude , only children could fall for such a stupid plot and premise development.

Idiot Number 5 - Karan and Hiroo Johar - For spending so much money in the film. I realise when you would have seen the movie, you must have requested Rensil to add the bare back love making sceen to bring in the crowds. Well, in that case you shouldnt have bowed down to MNS. A few broken windows and stopped shows would have given you some more leverage.

Pity that they tell us in the beginning itself that the story is a work of fiction, because the world would have loved to have such stupid terrorists!

Dont blame the actors much, but their characters and hence the director. Actually I am fed up of these Terrorist agenda films. If you want to make anything atleast make an intelligent film! NewYork by Kabir Khan was a much much much better film. Very sensible indeed and characters were written perfectly, and so was the plot. You could feel the pain of the terrorists in the movie. You could see that they have been driven to what they are doing.

But Kurbaan does nothing of that sort. Everything essential in the plot is taken as understood and 80% of what is shown is useless. You do not empathise with anyone. Only if you connect with the characters does a film make a difference to you, but here you dont. Infact the film tests your patience with its pace. The mood is kept grim with heavy tense background score and thats it. Decent job by the actors, but the movie is extremely cliched and no one can save it. Saif looks haggard man, he needs a face lift !

Well, I suggest do not waste your time on this movie. Some love stories are really Idiotic!

Rating : 4 / 10 - for some good cinematography and background score.

Movies I watched at MAMI - Mumbai Film fest

2009-11-06T11:20:00.010+05:30

This movies has FESTIVAL written all over it. The director tests your pateince throughout the film. Its also about illegal immigration of mexicans into america and their lives, work etc. Its about 2 guys who finish their work of the day and then go for a special job to kill a lady. The movie starts with a 10 minute still frame with nothing happening. I certainly slept through half the movie. A brilliant shot in the end was alls that was exciting to me. rating - 5 / 10

YANG YANG - This taiwanese film is my most favourite film off all the movies in this fest. Its the story of a girl named Yang Yang, whoes mother marries her athletics coach. Evreything starts off well, but soon things turn sour between her and her step sister. The movie is made out of several big shots - continuous filming and hence the performances have to be spot on and they are. Brilliant direction , amazing performances make this movie awesome. And more importatly this movie scores of emotions and sensitivity. I loved it. rating - 9 /10

VIHIR - Umesh Kulkarni .Another winner from this most talented Marathi director who previously made VALU. Vihir is a brilliantly written story of 2 cousin brothers. the younger one looks up to the elder brother, and always tries to emulate him. But when the elder brother dies, the younger brother goes thru a lot of pain and several questions of life, relations, death spring to him mind and he leaves on a quest to find these answers. Awesome cinematography and acting. A must must watch rating - 8 / 10

Twenty Bist - Iranian film. Like most Iranian films, its a simple film about human emotions. But this is a film full of misery. Its about a HALL owner and his employees. When the HALL owners health begins to deteriorate, he deices to close down his HALL, which puts his employees in a tough spot as they depend on this job to live their life. This film is full of misery - one life full of misery to another. It also comes to a very morose end. Anyways, this movie is a thoroughbread festival film. Catch it if you must. rating - 6 / 10

The waiting City - An australian film by Claire McCarthy shot in Calcutta. An australian couple comes to adopt an indian girl. The red tape in the system holds up the adoption for many days and they have to play the waiting game within which they not only have to get to grips with the Indian culture , way of life etc but also try to smoothen their own crumpled relationship. A very nice film which lives off the performances of the lead actors. A film worth watching. rating - 7.5 / 10.

My fest started with this film and its a simple, beautiful film. Its shot in 2 places Italy and Romania. Its about a Romanian girl who comes to Italy to earn some money by taking care of an old Italian lady. Its the story of how the relation develops between the 2. Sweet film.
rating - 7 / 10

Konkani film "MAN BEYOND THE BRIDGE" The surprise Package of the festival. I didnt even know before this that konkani films exist , but am totally blown away by it. This film is about a relationship that develops between a lonely man and an outcast,mentally challenged girl. Loads of dynamics involved - what the villagers think, religion, faith. 2 thubs up for this film. A must watch. rating - 8 / 10

A filipino film, for which the director won the best director award at Cannes. This movie really tests your patience. Its a movie about a group of corrupt cops who go on a journey to kill one prostitute who has betrayed them. In this journey they are joined by a new recruit. This film meanders and keep trying to grab loads of tension and finally the police carry out the gruesome act. Kinatay is one hell of a festival film, but it really tested my patience. rating - 6 / 10

Happy Go Lucky is about a girl who is happy go lucky. In this cruel , bad world, what if you could keep smiling and be an eternal optimist. Will this world let you be that way or wwill it pull you down. Thats the premise of this film. Again a must watch.
rating - 8 / 10

A french film EDEN IS WEST made by costa-gavras, is a tragicomedy, something like a Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron, where the protagonist goes through the shit of the system or the world and then ends up all screwed up. Its a kind of a statement on the illegal immigration that happens from poor countries to countries like France. Engaging film.
rating - 6.5/ 10

A film from a small little country named Bulgaria. The movie ends pretty much as it starts. There is no plot, just a statement. There is no end, but a possibility of a new beginning. It shows the politics, the culture of Bulgaria through the life of 2 brothers and just leaves us there. Brilliant acting by the lead actor -Christo Christov (who passed away a few days after shooting ended- sad) rating - 6 / 10

Dogtooth - a greek film, is one of the most interesting films I saw this week. Its about a couple who keep their children locked within the confines of their home for 17 years. They are taught, bread there and made to believe that the world outside is evil and they would die if they try to go out. But one outside influence kindles their curiosity and everything goes haywire. A must watch for its weirdness. rating - 8 / 10

Imagine a movie where 80% of a movie 86 mins long is showing just the face of the protagonist. Thats APPLAUS for you. N even then this film from Denmark scores, because of Paprika Steen's phenomenal performance. - Plot -A stage actress is turning old and is trying to pick up the pieces of her life.
rating - 6.5 / 10 - simply for the performance.

A rather timepass film for a festival. 7 minutes is about a dating service in which you can meet different guys and gals and discuss for 7 minutes after which you have to decide whether you want to date them. Nothing special here except a few explicit scenes that could excite teenagers. rating - 4 / 10

BLUE- a perfect disaster

2009-10-18T02:33:00.003+05:30

Blue_ rating 2 out of 10

Like akshay kumar has decided to beat his own record of giving consecutive CRAPS here comes another DISASTER .

Story has nothing new to offer , a group of criminals , younger brother trapped between bad guys and for his life elder brother goes for what he had decided not to do. A sexy girlfriend who was on gunpoint of bad guys and finally a fox like friend….

If it was not enough an international pop star’s cold special appearance .

Performance ? yes nobody has performed because director’s role was missing .
Like akshay kumar has written his own pathetic dialogues . every time he opens his mouth to shoot pathetic dialogues if u see his performance zayed khan has done better than him in the movie. Sanjay dutt , why director had chosen him is a big question..
sanjay dutt was not looking in shape and not at all a deep sea diver . he was looking tired and FAT. Lara dutta had nothing to do accept to do a bikini song.

Stunts of B grade Hollywood movie would be better than this .and if one wants to see underwater marine world, he should see discovery channel but not this.

Biggest disappointment was from director’s side. he has made it without any planning.

Total waste of producer’s money and people like me who went to see this crap.

Inglorious Basterds - The ultimate war fantasy!

2009-10-06T10:32:00.006+05:30

Genre : Drama

There is something about Tarantino yaar. He has this amazing ability to make even 10 minute conversations interesting. His prowess as a director is peerless.

Inglorious Basterds is a fictional war drama. It's the ultimate war fantasy played out over 3 hours. The climax is so outrageous that I guess only Tarantino can pull it off. But then the movie is not about the climax, its about the journey. As Tarantino likes it, the movie plays in Chapters. The first being the most amazing one. You simply cannot miss that. Its about a German Colonel ( Col. Hans Landa ) visiting a farmer's hut and verbally forcing him to reveal a secret. The exchange has to be seen to be believed. The snake like character of Col.Hans Landa has to be one of the most devilish characters written for cinema. Without using a single threat or without using any force, he breaks a resolute man into submission. And that scene sets the pace for the film.

One thing amazing about Hollywood actors is that they are not greedy. They look at a role rather than Meat and their persona. Brad Pitt plays a rather insignificant role in this film ( the scene is stolen by Christoph Waltz - Cl.Landa and Melanie Laurent - Shosanna Deyfuss ). You cannot imagine a Bollywood superstar playing second fiddle to so many characters. Also, in Bollywood characters are written keeping in mind the stars , while in Hollywood actors have to mould themselves into a character. We should come of age in this area.

Anyways, even though the amount of violence and the bodycount in this film is much lesser than Kill Bill, the tense undercurrent, the witty exchanges make for an amazing watch. Also, as always Tarantino has some extraordinary background tracks. The acting is top notch. The whole ensemble cast is in top form, but the film belongs to Waltz and I am sure he is going to win a plethora of awards for the same.

Even though you might towards the end say "Kuch Bhi" the child inside you might say WHY NOT? In the realms of fiction , anything is possible :)

Rating : 8 / 10

Movie Review - WAKE UP SID - a somnolent awakening....

2009-10-02T01:22:00.007+05:30

Genre : Drama

I am a little confused. When you see something so personal, you tend to think before passing judgments; but then again when you pay 300 bucks for it , it becomes a public issue! Ok, first time director Ayaan Mukherjee, clearly was too attached to this subject, because he langorously delves into the story of a spoilt brat and his awakening. But unfortunately half the theater snores ( especially the guys !) as he awakens.

No this is no Lakshya. Here too the first half is about a boy who is content spending his fathers hard earned fortune. He goes about in merriment untill one day he fails his exams and realizes the gravity of the situation. His parents arent impressed either and this seems to be the last straw. So he leaves home and finds a refuge in a friend's place. And slowly (really slowly) he begins to understand his responsibilities and that he needs to do something worthwhile in his lifetime. His friend ( an independent Bengali girl ) plays a big part in this.

Yeah, many many people could relate to this. And hence, in some parts the movie touches chords but then thats about it. As one of my friends would aptly put - "Director bechara Bhawnaaoo main beh gaya" because the film is too self involved. The director seems more interested in making the shot look impressive and colorful; and less about what the audience must be going through. Because even though there is a point to this story, it takes a rather long time to make it. Clearly the scissors should have been out before the film was.

Also, the story suffers because of enormously lengthy and sometimes preachy scenes. The director does come up with some colorful characters , but never uses them. There are no interesting subplots going along as the main plot drags. The very first sequence between Randhir and Konkana drags for pages and pages of dialogues. Yes, the dialogues are realistic but then in a film you need to keep a scene crisp unless really necessary.

As far as the ART direction/ cinematography is concerned, its fantabulous. Effort has been put in to make the movie look impressive and it does. Also, the music is peppy and does give you a reason or two to stay awake!

Ayaan certainly has great potential as a director. Some of the emotional scenes are handled brilliantly and I am sure, now that he has gotten over this extremely personal film he would think more objectively and come up with a more entertaining film. He could have taken queues from Farhaan when he made this film, on how to make this story into a better script.

Konkona Sen is in familiar territory. Its so sad to see that she has been typecasted into this typical Bengali independent girl who reads big novels and dreams big. Come on! she is much more talented and should definitely choose a different character to play. It seems like she walks out of the script of Page 3, right into this film. Anyways, this film belongs to Ranbir completely. As the spoilt kiddish arrogant brat Ranbir is spot on. Its a totally believable performance. He has this effortless screen presence ( very much like his father) and gives a rough idea of the range he possesses.

Finally, Wake up Sid, was a very good opportunity. But somehow the director could not make it very interesting. He tried to make it thought provoking, but most of the things you see on screen seem to give you a sense of de javu. It's probably doing the same thing differently.

Good luck to all the college guys who would be forced to go to this film by their girlfriends. And probably you would be snoring while they drools over Ranbir! Probably a one time watch , but then guys "INGLORIOUS BASTERDS" might be playing on the adjacent screen!

Rating : 5.5 / 10

Movie Review - What's Your Rashee -- Onerous , over-indulgent and Overbearing.

2009-09-26T10:47:00.011+05:30

A trip to the theater can be many things. It could be a edge of the seat experience, or could be an easy going popcorn fiesta, or probably a rollicking time. What “What’s your rashee” is like sitting in a preheated oven! First the warmth is quiet pleasing, then the temperature begins to rise and you start to feel the heat and slowly as the temperature starts getting unbearable, you start to burn, but the heat is relentless and you come out completely overcooked; infact burnt !

Please bear with the length of the review. And no it is not the case of “If I had to bear it , so should you” It’s just that this movie requires such an analysis. But I believe that this would definitely be worth the length. Also, I made it a point to sleep on it and then write this, because right after the film, you feel like ripping it apart.

Its plot is something like this. An NRI is looking for a suitable bride, so that he can inherit his uncle’s fortune and save his brother who is a lot of debt. He has read this book which says that there are 10 varieties of girls according to their Sun signs. So he decides to meet 10 different girls of corresponding Sun Signs.

Now, let me take a less than conventional route to review this movie. See the plot line for an average film is something like this –

The movie starts with its usual introductions, then it turns a corner and gives us something new to think about and then some song arrives, some comedic interludes and then it unravels some more until it reaches the interval and leaves us with a twist or a sudden increase in pace; after which it unfolds some more and gives us a bit of a rest with some more songs and comedy and then finally runs at full steam towards the finish line.

On the other hand Whats ur Rashee has a very simple one dimensional plotline. Something like this

The movie starts with the usual introductions, sets up the problem and then the solution of the problem takes a decade to unravel. Its just one meeting after another; and another; and another. It provides only a few variations in terms of character definition but overall it remains absurdly one dimensional. Many films are like this, but none is almost 4 hours long!! The plotline resembles that of a dying patient ,who finally passes away and that’s what happens to you in the theater!

Now when you write a story/screenplay for a movie the most important requirement is how to manipulate the audience interest level / involvement in the story. The ideal involvement of the audience is something like this –

The audience comes in with certain expectations and then as the story unfolds the level of interest keeps growing uniformly. But in realistic terms the graph would look something like this for a good film.

The level of interest increases and then keeps wavering till you finally reach the climax where the involvement is at its peak.

For an epic Saga like “Whats ur Rashee” the graph looks something like this.

Now, you come in with some minimum expectation and then you get involved. Its quiet pleasing for the first hour. For a bit later, the involvement increases, beyond which because of the one dimensional plot line, the interest begins to waiver and then starts declining and declining, until it turns to a certain level of disinterest. When it reaches its 4th hour of running (D) your level of disinterest is as stagnant as the plotline and finally there is spike towards the final lap. You are enraged now and feel like ripping the seats of the theater.

There is no doubt that Ashutosh Gowariker is a master director, but sometimes masters become narcissists or extremely self indulgent. Suraj Leela Bhansali / Kamal Hassan for instance. To make a movie on an easy going, one dimensional script is alright, but to then stretch it to an almost neverending saga is plain stupid. The same story in 2 hours would be extremely charming. He could well have fast forwarded through a few dames / sun signs and focused on a few. Approx 2 hours of this movie, off and on, shows the true class of the master director because this movie has some brilliant moments. Some instances are brilliantly scripted.

Also, the decision to insert a song for every sign is simply unforgivable. Every time a song arrives you think you are in a concentration camp being slowly poisoned to death. Though the songs are not that bad, but there is a limit to everything.

About the performances. Well Harman Baweja looks and acts like a true “Champu”. Though there is some level of potential in there somewhere but right now he does not have the personality or the screen presence or the talent to handle a movie singlehandedly. Fortunately, there is Priyanka Chopra, who sleep walks through the plethora of roles. Though everytime she comes in a new avatar you somehow feel it’s the same person, but she does it with such ease and panache that you surely believe that this is an actress in top form. There is one character I liked the most and that was of DiIip joshi. He has supreme comedic timing. Awesome.

Well, I could tell you some more about the useless subplots , the absurd explanation given by the grandpa for all girls looking similar to this guy or about the ridiculously brain dead ending, but I should also probably conclude this epic review by thinking “what if the director had edited this movie crisply, penned it considering the audience in mind?” then this would have been an extremely enjoyable film. Or else he could release it in parts on television as a series. But as off now, it is a test of endurance. Watch it if you must in a theater else wait for the DVD release. But surely a DVD viewing is highly recommended because it does have its bits of pure genius.

Leaving you with one quote from the several that the audience shouted out... Towards the end after seeing 10 girls and after some 3 and half hours, the hero is still indecisive. His mom asks him has he finally decided on a girl when he says " Mujhe samajh nahi aa raha", just then a person pipped "Maa main Gay hun" !!! Figures !!! :P Scope for part 2 ... hehehehehe

Rating : 4 / 10 –– 1) because 50% of the movie is awesome 2) Priyanka’s performance !!! 3) Ok, it definitely needs to match “Wanted” …

Movie Review : Wanted - Some Hajmola.....

2009-09-18T14:44:00.007+05:30

Genre - Action

Ek thi "Ghajini" aur ek hai yeh "Wanted" but woh bhi tha "Kuch Bhi" aur yeh bhi hai "Kuch Bhi". Beware guys the South Falvour is moving Northwards ! Frankly when I watched this film in Telugu - Pokhiri it seemed believable but in Hindi - Baat kuch hazam nahi hoti. The only change is probably the mindset.

Wanted is a perfect vehicle for the beefcake Salman. No, he did not have to work out and prepare for this film, coz he was made for it, or u might say the role was made for him. This film probably has all the requirements Salman would want in a film - 1) He barely has to act - Check , 2) He has to vomit style all over the screen - Check 3) He gets some fast songs to show his signature dance steps - Check. Waise if there was an Oscar for the Most Style Exuded in a Film by an Actor - Salman would win it hands down for this film. Har dialogue main attitude ki barsaat. In some places he is so full of himself, he forgets to act, but thats alright - Salman Bhai hai , Acting kisko chahiye.

So in this all Brawn no Brain film, you have a plethora of Villians. They are the ruthless underworld of Mumbai puppeteered by a Bhai sitting in some South East Asian city. Salman Khan - urf "Radhe" is a roadside ruffian who blasts anybody who comes in his way and can do anything for money. He can change sides, at the drop of a hat full of money, in this Mafia war and work for any side who pays more. Then there is this a damsel in distress - Ayesha Takia who's family is being blackmailed by a lecherous police inspector - Mahesh Manjeraker. Well, without delving too much into the story the movie is how this roadside ruffian keeps saving the damsel in distress from this lecherous police inspector and in between keeps pulverising and smashing other gangsters.

You dont require a story for such a movie. You sketch some action sequences, compose some groovable songs which might or might not make any sense and write some stupid comedy sequences to fill in the blanks - ranging from the extremely crude to the rib tickling. Then probably you can go for the old fashioned twist in the end which explains everything.

Prabhu Deva is the king of dance, and today I seriously believe that. He can not only move each and every muscle of his body but also make the Camera dance. The amount of work the camera does through out the film is phenomenal. Salman does not turn, the camera turns. Salman does not have to move much in the songs, the camera dances for him. Sample the first sequence where the Main Villain is watching a kickboxing fight and you will know what I mean. The camera zooms past the crowd, swirls, swishes, turns and comes to a grinding halt into the nostrils of our Villain. Its not that I am against such a style - but sirf style ke liye itna naach is too maach ,oops much!

Ek tha woh Angry Young Man in Deewar aur yeh hai aaj ka Angry "Pretending to be" Young man - Zameen , Aasmaan ka farak. This is for die hard Salman fans - coz as I said earlier the role was made for him and and this film can also work for man-eaters - with enough pulp to satiate even their desires. Ghajini broke all box office records, but I am not sure Wanted can do the same - some stories work only in the south but ofcourse the STAR POWER can push it.Afterall, Salman is doing in this film what he does best. But if you ask me, Itna masala bharaa hua hai ki seriously some "Hajmola" is Wanted !

Rating : 4 / 10 -- Buss Kya --- Salman deserves this much atleast.

Movie Review : District 9 - Sci-fi-licious....

2009-09-12T00:46:00.004+05:30

Genre : Sci Fi

Whats it about - The most amazing thing happens. An alien mothership gets stranded in Earths atmosphere. After days of waiting, humans enter the spacecraft to find millions of alien beings. These are then relocated onto earth in District 9. Initially humans accept them, but slowly they cannot tolerate these aliens so close to their city and want them out of their territory. The movie is about a private company trying to relocate the millions of aliens from District 9 to a new District remotely located.

This film is shot brilliantly. A very unique storytelling technique is used. The whole film is shot like a documentary. The events unfold as people narrate parts of the story. Its shot on a medium scale budget but can be a lesson for big budget movies like Terminator, Transformers on how to make an engaging and entertaining movie without splurging millions. Plus the main protagonist and the other supporting cast are completely unknown, yet their performances speak volumes. It shows that you do not need superstars to make an awesome film.

The director seems to be making a very pertinent point in this era of extreme prejudice. Everywhere people are beginning to look at non-state people as aliens. Indians are treated as aliens in Australia, Asians are looked on as aliens in America, North Indians are looked upon as aliens in Chennai, UPites are not welcome in Mumbai and so on as so forth. There is so much intolerance. This literally puts aliens on earth and shows our animosity towards them. It turns the alien genre on its head and makes us the predators.

This film is a must watch. Do not miss it if u r a sci-fi fan , coz this is simply sci-fi-licious...

Rating : 8 / 10

Movie Review : Quick Gun Murugan - Watch it, I say...

2009-09-06T23:40:00.000+05:30

Genre : Comedy

You must have heard a lot about QGM. This movie is doing quiet well throughout the country and its not just hype. QGM is hysterically witty in parts and will keep you in splits. Now, lets look at what works and what doesnt in the movie.

What works:

1)The writers have sketched out the most outrageous characters seen in recent years. QGM, as we all know, is not a recent invention and has been a widely loved character. Rajendra Kumar plays this character flawlessly. The others like Gun Powder, Rice plate Reddy, Rowdy MBA have been sketched out beautifully. What I really liked about this film is that the characters though outrageous go about their duty seriously. Though the characters are a joke, the acting isnt. Specially Rice Plate Reddy the main villian. His character is a mean bugger to the core. You can feel the evil and the character never goes over the top.

2) The art direction, costumes, visual effects : The movie has been planned out beautifully. From the sets, to the costumes everything looks really authentic and no cost has been spared. The product looks like a rich one. Even the visual effects have been done beautifully.

3) The background score/music : The background score is as witty as the dialogues. Watch the flashback song between QGM and his locket lover and you will know what I mean.

4) Finally the dialgoues : The dialogues take the cake and will keep you in splits throughout.

All of these keep the first half of the film quiet enjoyable.

What doesnt :

1) The second half suffers from the weight of expectations it builds in the first half. The story loses pace and drags. The writer seems to have run out of imagination when he leaves his southern territory (beautifully captured in the first half) and comes to Mumbai.

The second half has only a few memorable dialogues and moments and hence you seem to be losing your patience as the shenanigans become repetitive. So the story, screenplay lacks the punch in the second half.

Overall this movie is a brave attempt, but might leave you with mixed feelings. A strong second half would have catapulted it to iconic status. Unfortunately it remains a brave attempt by the director Shashank Ghosh,who must get a decent applause. Good clean fun, filled with witty lines and quirky characters. I would suggest, if you havent seen it , go and see this film for its vivid imagination. Love it or Hate it, you simply cannot ignore it... Watch it I say...

Rating : 6 / 10

Movie Review - Aagey Se Right - In the Right direction but not exactly...

2009-09-04T14:17:00.008+05:30

Genre : Comedy

Some movies are made to be full timepass entertainers, where you keep your brains aside and enjoy because the director has done all the thinking for you. This is one such movie.

"Aagey se right" is a whacky caper focussed on 2 guys. 1 - Shreyas Talpade - a newly recuited sub inspector, who misplaces his gun and keeps getting into one ugly situation after another because of it. 2 - K.K. Menon - who is a terrorist come on a mission but forgets his mission when he loses his heart to a bar dancer!

2 hours long, this movie is hillarious in parts and trying too hard in parts. It does succeed in entertaining you with some wild imagination. Its kind of a spoof where the humour is loud. But the whackiest of all is KK Menon's character. Once he falls in love, he tries to learn the Mumbaiyaa lingo and his mix of Urdu and Bhindi (Bambaiya Hindi ) is hillarious. Shreyas Talpade as the tame new recruit is brilliant in parts and just runs overboard in some , just like the movie. The movie is made out of goofy characters and more goofy situations. No story as such, just a line! hence 2 hours is more than enough, because the director just wouldnt know what to do next after that. Infact could have been even better in 1 and half hours :) No need for songs actually.

The Music is just a conduit to take the story forward and nothing to write home about. But overall the movie is written to be completely whacky and if you watch it in that sense, you will certainly not go home dissapointed. Aagey se right is the kind of movie me and my friends used to think of making, coz its humour is very much the kind we like, you know "The Austin Powers" humour, though not in the same league :)

One thing is for sure, the movie is written to be exactly what it turned out, so thumbs up to the newbie director Indrajit Nattoji for the same. The shortcomings are in the script.

If you have nothing else to do this weekend, I suggest "Aagey se right" lekar visit the theater for this movie. Tashreef rakhneka,,, Timepass karneka....sochneka nahi...

Rating : 5 / 10

Kameeney - Frenetically Folid

2009-08-19T12:21:00.004+05:30

But for the Swine Flu menace, I would have given the review on Friday itself. Had booked the Premier show tickets for Thursday, but unfortunately the city got shut down for 4 days. Finally yesterday I got to see it and I must say it was worth the wait !

Kameeney runs, for the most part, only on 2 gears - 4th and 5th ! Just in a few of the sequences the film comes to 2nd gear. Maybe, Vishal wanted us to breathe a bit.

Kameeney is a multilayer gangsta flick with the usual intertwined mix up story which brings our 2 male protagonists in a sticky situation. What makes it unusual is the treatment.

Vishal has chosen HAND HELD frenzied pictuarisation to shoot this film. Along with the zany background score this shaky cinematography maintains the pace of the film. Though it is slightly overdone. In some sequences the shake isnt required and creates a jarring effect on the senses. Pace can be maintained in a more sophisticated way like the Bourne Series ( complicated mix of steady shots - written and edited to perfection) or like a Guy Ritchie gangsta film ( some unconventional transitions between mutliple shots ). Though I still think the decision on Vishal's part is a brave one and proves that you do not need Huge Crane shots or Trolleys to make a scene powerful. RGV depends on slow brooding tension, while Vishal works on a more frenzied version.

Kameeney has some solid dialogues and screenplay. It proves that strong writing can help create an awesome film. Though the characters are not memorable except for the "PHA ko PHA" bolnewala PHAhahid. Shahid has done a stupendous job in the film and finally I think he has come out of his SRK infatuation. Priyanka is also very good in her role. Amole Gupte's character is someone you have seen several times in films and he has done a decent job.

Songs and Background score are the strong point of this film, "Dhan Ta dan" being the strongest.

The first half of the film scores full marks, though the story loses some pace in the second half. Yes, a bit of reduction in its running time, would have given it some extra points, with a deletion of a few sequences which do not take the story anywhere. The lull before the final sequence is the lull before the storm because the screen explodes with action from all directions. The song running in the background in the last seqeunce is probably the most enchanting one. A surpise packet. Do watch out for it.

The style of storytelling is also refreshing. Not necesarily linear, it runs parallelly at times. Brings out a "Yeh kya ho raha hai" before you go "Oh ! ok" or sometimes "Abhi kya hogaa?" before you go "Achhchaa!".

Kameeney is definitely MANY notches above the average Bollywood flick. But to say that its a new dawn of brave bollywood film making is a bit of an exaggeration. We expect this from Vishal and he has not let us down. Its the kind of storytelling that captivates and entertains. What a phenomenal talent this guy ! Kudos....

Rating: 7.5 / 10 - cud have earned more if it cud have given some more memorable characters - like a Bhiku Mhatre for instance.

Movie Review - Love Aaj Kal - Nayi Packet Cheez Puraani

2009-08-01T11:49:00.004+05:30

I went to see this movie to a good old Cinema Theater (and not a multiplex) and thank god I did!!! I am sure we all have great expectations from this film and its director, though I was a bit skeptical because of the total lack of chemistry between Saif & Deepika even in the Ads shown during the T20 world cup. So, I went to Chandan cinema with my usual pack of hooligans and when the film started - the first 15,20 minutes of the film were kind of confusing. Nobody in the whole theater never quiet understood what was going on. A bizarre sequence of uninteresting events clubbed together to show the growth of the relationship between Saif and Deepika. But then, finally the movie started to make more sense.

The movie is about these 2 modern individuals staying in London who are more practical than emotional. To them their relationship cannot come between their ambition. True. I could relate to that completely. Then, there is an age old romantic (Rishi Kapoor) who makes Saif realize, that love happens only Once and one should not let “the One” get away without a fight. “So long and so clichéd!” And then you see a parallel story of a younger Rishi Kapoor (played by Saif) and an Anonymous actress called Harleen in the film. (Even though she looks Picture Perfect – she has 2 left feet and doesnt even know the “A” of acting – to that extent good she has strangely been left out of the credits.)

The problem with the film is that it goes from the uber cool new, to the mildly predictable romance, to the super clichéd melodrama. Yes, the lingo and the dialogues do have a freshness to them but too much of anything can be harmful. Unfortunately, the film is too heavily dependent on dialogue. There is so much dialogue in the film that it gets irritating at times. It seems to be preachy at times and you wish the movie would just move on. I must say some of the exchanges are brilliantly witty, though too few and far between.

If you have a script so heavily dependent on dialogue then you need interesting people to deliver them and unfortunately Rishi Kapoor is the only one that could sleepwalk through it in this department. He has an effortless class that the other actors lack. Saif is good in some scenes and awesome in a few, though his charm alone can’t help you enjoy the barrage of dialogues (Somebody please check his underpants please. The way he dances, it seems they were completely starched!!). The one that fails miserably in the acting department is Deepika. She is trying so hard in the film to act that its apparent in every scene. Somebody please put her through a course, else such a pretty face would be lost. When there is so much weight on “one to one” dialogue, it is bound to fail if one of the participants is so poor and if the protagonists lack chemistry.

The music of this film is enjoyable to the extent of 2 songs – Twist and Aahun Aahun (which unfortunately comes with the end credits). Others are just excuses to stretch this tiresome experience.

Imtiaz seems inspired by the song from Phir bhi Dil hai Hindustani – “Nayi Packet main bechey – tumko cheez puraani”. The film keeps reminding you of films like “Hum Tum”, “Dil Chahta Hai” and “Dilwale Dulhaniya Ley Jayengay”. A song shot supposedly in San Francisco seems to be totally inspired by “Tanhayi”. Some of the shots of Saif are identical to the ones of Aamir in DCH. Being such a talented director, you expect much more from Imtiaz. But I guess the law of averages has caught up with him. After a cute “Socha Na Tha” and the charming “Jab We Met” comes the confused “Love Aaj Kal”.

This movie gave us Hooligans the perfect opportunity to howl, laugh at emotional scenes and sqeeze double meanings out of innocuous dialogue ( Generally reserved for SRK films :) ). To that extent it was fun. Plus the audience in a good old theater beats the boring ones in a multiplex hands down.

Rating – 4.5 / 10

old partner

2009-04-02T21:27:00.001+05:30

Old partner, no surprises here it is a movie/ i shall say a docu drama. Most of you not have heard about it, coz it is a Korean movie and in Korean title it sound as “ the sound of my cow’s bell”.
Why I am writing about this movie coz it is one of the most amazing real life story ever captured on celluloid. It is a story of an old farmer and his old cow, in a distant land. The devotion of farmer is unparallel, who refuses to trade his cow for a tractor. Story has one more character the farmers nagging wife.
The director of old partner wanted to capture a real life story of friendship between man and beast. There are instances in the movie, where you end up felling sympathy and somewhere you get your eyes numb. A farmer and his 40 year old cow, as partners. The scene in the movie where he went to sold his cow is the most touchy one. The farmer quotes to high for beloved that no one end up buying her. It seems he never wanted to sell her.
There is one of the scene in the movie when the cow fails to pull the cart full of logs, farmer took a part of logs and load on his back and start moving slowly along with his cow.There is no script no imagination bit, all that is captured here is truth.
The farmer wife keep on nagging him for his love for the cow, but the farmer never budge, but even a small sound from his cow, he give her all attention.
The movie is a cult classic at least for me, for its reality stuff and an honest attempt to portray an amazing relation.
People you can try some torrent search, if that's too hard for you, sear ch for this amazing story on net.

Gran Torino

2009-03-26T14:46:00.006+05:30

8/10

Gran Torino, a classic car from Ford. The movie is not about the car but about it's owner Client Eastwood. He is old, widowed, lonely, retired from army, sick and worse he has un-familiar korean neighbours.

Walt Kowalski (Clint Eastwood) doesn't like his neighbours at all and infact hates them. To make matters worse, a member of the neighbouring family tries to steal Walt's car 'Gran Torino'.
He also hates his son and son's family. Basically, a grumpy old man who just drinks beer, washes his car and stays with a dog at home.

Things change when Walt saves the neighbour's daughter from some hooligans. The girl instantly strikes a chord with Eastwood. The neighbour family floods Eastwood's doorstep with flowers, gifts, food, etc. The kid who tried to steal Eastwood's car 'Gran Torino' also becomes a friend of Eastwood as the movie progresses and Eastwood becomes soft hear ted towards his neighbours. The end is quite touching and infact brought a tear in my eye.

I loved all the characters in the movie. Clint at his best in casting and taking out great performances from his team.

A must watch for Clint Eastwood fans. For others too, this film is worth a watch. Clint Eastwood entertains with his 'don't mess with me' attitude and blunt style of talking. Infact it's very humorous at times.

Don't mess it! Oops. Don't miss it!

Movie Review : 13B - A Logical Thriller

2009-03-15T23:42:00.004+05:30

My Say : A decent watch

My friend said " It's a spine-chilling horror. A must see" Then another told me Maddy - urf Madhavan had himself pleaded him to watch this movie. Maddy said " its awesome" So we went. It turned out to be a decent suspense thriller. Horror, it wasnt !Atleast for me...

The movie is a small budget film with a lead good actor and a strong / logical second half. The build up in the first half is comical and at times irritating. But if you stay put, you would be treated to some decent stuff in the second half. Infact, what makes its a good watch is that everything makes sense, nothing is illogical. The screenplay is good and the cinematography is excellent. The background score is adequately chilling , but the songs are pathetic!(Shankar, Ehsaan Loy seemed to have given them a bunch of rejects !! )

Off the actors, Madhavan hogs the limelight, but is the only actor to glue you onto the screen. He suits the role perfectly. He was excited when my friend gave him a positive feedback. It shows how desperate this acclaimed actor of the Tamil industry is to make it big in Bollywood !! Anyways,, if he works on his body a bit and sheds those extra kilos, I am sure he would do pretty well here.

One hillarious concept given in this film is THE DEAD are also upgrading themselves and finding various new channels to contact the Living !!! hahahaha... Like the TV in this case.. I assure you the final final scene will leave u in splits!!!absolutely absurd.

This one is surely worth a watch (on the CD preferably - where u can forward the unwanted bits), surely for putting all the pieces in the right place in the end. A logical thriller.

Rating : 5.5 / 10 ( 0.5 less for an irritating first half)

Movie Review : Gulaal - Gritty and Witty ....

2009-03-14T16:00:00.004+05:30

My Say : A gritty and witty film.

Maybe Mr.Mehra should pick up the fone and call up Mr.Kashyup and take some tips on abstract, on making statements that do not feel like listening to a lecture!

I cannot believe how could a movie like this be kept in the CAN for such a long time. Maybe, because it doesnt have sellable stars. Maybe, because uptil now the director was considered a Pariah... But with this film, Kashup proves that he can make and sell movies just on his name. The director has finally become the hero of his film in India !

Gulaal is a brutally raw and witty take on the infighting within a state of our country. The politics within the state, and the dirt within this politics. The game of power which doesnt discriminate between its victims.

Its about a mans pursuit to becoming the absolute power within his state and creating a separate domain of his own. Its about this mans blind belief in his ancestory. He is not willing to be a subject of the country, he wants to rule his own! He wants freedom for his people and himself. This ambition is not just his own, but of a few others too. And so begins the game of eimination. Interesting, very interesting.

Kashup's story is extremely gritty and engaging and the execution meets our high expectations. Though there is a drop in the pace in certain parts of the movie and you try to guess where is this all heading, it manages to suck you back in. The pace of the film waxes and wanes and almost reaches a towering crescendo somewhere near the end of the first half. You want to know whats next. The game of politics with the next roll of the dice, brings the fall of another pawn and another and another and the game becomes even more convoluted, yet simple. Amidst all this is stuck a guy who doesnt want to get involved , but is sucked in with dire consequences.

Again what takes the cake is the background score. The songs are extremely meaningful and create the perfect atmosphere for this ride. Concentrate on the lyrics, they send out a message. The performances by each and every character is brilliant. From the ever reliable Kay Kay to the Raj Singh Chaudhary, from Abhimanyu shekhar singh to Deepak Dobriyal. Watch out for Piyush Mishra ( KK's mental elder brother). His songs and dialogues create a lasting impact.

If Dev D was a drug to a few, this could give a high to a broader section of India. Go watch it and I am sure you will enjoy, for some reason or the other.

Rating : 7/10

Movie Review : Delhi 6 - Well intentioned but not well received!

2009-02-25T11:59:00.008+05:30

My Say : A chaotic khichdi not entirely digestable ....

Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra is a little crazy, a little erratic. He looks at cinema as a way to not only tell a story , but also give a message. His crazy self forces him to be a little experimental in his cinema. He is not averse to his movie being abstract and that makes him pleasant to have around. He could give u a bummer like AKS and then a revelation like RDB ! His third movie though promised a lot , does not live up to its expectations.

Delhi-6's plot is nothing new. A guy comes back to his roots and relaises what he was missing all his life! The treatment is surely different.

Delhi-6 starts off at a very poor note. The opening sequences are poorly directed but Mehra gains his ground there after. What leaves him in deep waters is the story which is thread bare. The only different point in the film is the KALA BANDAR . Otherwise, he packs in as many characters as possible and as many forseable problems as possible! The main and support cast in the movie delivers , though I think Waheeda Rehman ji goes a bit over the top.

The songs are the greatest asset this movie has, but their placement is highly debatable. I thought a few songs started abruptly. Rehna Tu comes at a totally unexpected time. Mehra is an innovative soul and his juxtaposition of Ramayan with the real life is quiet decent. Also, one of the song is creatively shot, when Abhishek starts seeing New York in the middle of Chandni Chawk!

Though I so wanted to like this film, I could only see its flaws. If Mehra wanted to depict utter chaos in the locality, he surely succeeds , because there is too much chaos in the film. All possible problems added into one movie makes it a type of a khichdi. Also, I felt that Abhishek's character was poorly sketched. A guy who has never been to India before in his life speaks flawless hindi , is not troubled by the dirt or the excessive population/pollution , or the fact that he has to carry a water bucket to the loo etc etc. His only claim to being an NRI is that he speaks english in an American accent. He keeps getting beaten up and witnesses friends fighting like animals over religion. Even then he keeps saying "Iss jagah ke log bade achche hain". Absurd !!! This guy could have easily been a guy from Bombay who visits his delhi house for the first time in his life. That would have been digestable too !

Delhi-6 is overall a chaotic Khichdi with a message, but unfortunately not entirely digestable !

Rating : 4 / 10

Delhi-6 Review

2009-02-22T11:04:00.003+05:30

Delhi -6 is so criticized for one and only one reason…as it’s a movie made by the RDB director…Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
An over-hyped, over-publicized and over-criticized movie…

If we think of it as any other movie…it’s a movie about an NRI (Abhishek Bachchan) accompanying his sick grandmother to her Delhi house. This movie is the narration of his perspective of India. During this narration many faces of India is shown… loving, sentimental, faith followers, myth believers, media frenzy dictated, authoritarian police, corruption, caste, emphasis on marriage, young dreams and communalism to count a few

The biggest strength of the movie is that there is no moral glorification of India… like a lot of other movies say that the west is culturally bankrupt and other fabricated statements to make India score over them... this movie show India as it is…with its strengths and weaknesses
The second as a movie is to create a rainbow of tangible characters… and some great performance by the actors like Om Puri, Pawan Mehlotra, Vijay Raaz, Divya Dutta, Rishi Kapoor, Cyrus, Prem Chopra, Sonam Kpoor and many more

The key weaknesses included some over dramatic scenes, the sections when the movie seems direction less and the tradition of Indian hero waking from the dead …

The music is awesome…Prason Joshi and A.R. Rehman delivers as per their competence… even though appropriate, it’s a little disappointing to see only pieces of these songs used in the movies for those who already loved them

After thought… this movie is actually like RDB… a movie that provides a tangential message on a burning issue faced by India head-on…except for one difference…though patriotism is a topic that gives you pleasure and pride …while communism is something that make us grimace …

My rating:3.5/5

Movie Review - Dev D - Stylish but Indulgent

2009-02-09T11:25:00.005+05:30

Rating : 6 / 10

My Say : Stylish but indulgent.

Anurag Kashyap -the Yuvraj Singh of Cinema - the genius kid , who has seen loads of cinema , has learnt a lot of techniques, has loads of innovative ideas - who just cannot help but go overboard. He has to quickly learn that even if you have all the ingredients required to cook food, you require only specific ingredients in specific amounts for a particular dish. Much like No Smoking, Anurag tries a lot of tricks when only a few would suffice. Dev D is a much more sensible and effective film - with Anurag's insanity intact!

Anurag and Abhay's take on the modern day Devdas, blending it with real life controversies makes it a very engaging story. It delves into the carnal avarices of human beings and does not shy away from most things thought off as taboo. The heroins both Chanda and Paro, are sexually liberated females, who arent hypocrites ( much like the members of the Moral brigade in India!! ) and the hero is a narcissist incapable of love, but who cannot bear the feeling of a female rejecting him. He hits females without discrimination and labels himself and most girls he meets and sleeps with as sluts. Welcome to Anurag's world of eternal depravity.

Even though the interpretation of the age old classic is interesting, the lenght of the movie is a big issue. Anurag in his infinite pursuit of showing off, keeps showing a series of day-break after night-fall and day-break all over again. The story of the movie moves at snails pace, as you see Dev downing one Vodka after another, then going to sleep completely sloshed and then waking up again to start that routine all over again. Ok, so he is an addict, but he dint have to show every trick he learnt from Danny Boyle ( gives special thanks to Mr.Boyle in the opening credits). Plus, I didnt get the feeling that he truly loved any of the 2 women, neither did I get the feeling that he could not , absolutely could not live without booze. Also, Anurag seems to be a bit confused. He does not quiet know if he wants Dev to be a narcissist only in love with himself, who feels no remorse for any of his actions or who is an addict and is driven to madness. Dev is somewhere in between and I had a problem with that. Talking of problems, I had a major problem with the ending, because the movie builds up to the hero snowballing towards eternal doom but finally shows Hope! Come on man.... let the perfect recipe for a tragedy remain one!!!

What I liked though was the style with which he has shot the film. The camera jars, swirls with the character and perfectly depicts the state of trance. Also, the locations, the interiors built are exceptional and give the movie that surreal look it deserves. The dialogues are bold and engaging. The background music is good, and gives the otherwise loopy script some pace. Though some tracks just blast your eardrums and give you a headache, a few are ingenius. The movie is like a continuous string of one song after another, and I truly hope Amit Trivedi hasnt used all his life's work in this film. My pick of the track was - Paayaliya. Emotional atyaachaar is very effectively placed. The use of Music was ok, but Anurag goes overboard here too... Overuse should be the word for it.

Abhay Deol does a decent job and I feel he could have done better in the emotional sequences or the scenes where he expresses his love. Mahie Gill as Paro does a fab job and stands out, while Kalki Koechlin as Chanda is decent ( shedefinitely looks the part!!!).

In the interval they showed the preview of GULAAL , Anurag's resurrected movie which has been in the making for a long time. Bold again, it promises a lot. I sure hope Mr.Kashyap matures quickly, coz I am sure he will revolutionize indian cinema. He has got that Rebellious streak in him, which would probably break the formula within Indian cinema. But I am sure, he would remain a Niche Audience director. A request to Mr.Kashyup - grow up man.... for our sake....

DEV D - Emotional Achaar

2009-02-08T22:20:00.008+05:30

Anurag Kashyap is back. Back with a vengeance. He listened to what audience told him for 'No Smoking'.

'Dev D' might not become a super duper hit but it will be one of the good films of this year. A modern day Devdas with a twist in the end. A typical multiplex film with all the masala of a hindi film and more. A bit more closer to life than the earlier versions of Sarat Chandra's novel.

The movie credits show that the concept of the film is by Abhay Deol! He is showing early signs of becoming a film maker!

Anurag is a master for extracting superlative performances from each & every person in the frame. Also, the film unit thanks Danny Boyle in the beginning. Dunno know why! (The shot takings, cuttings and the dark backgrounds remind of Slumdog!)

With this film, Abhay Deol proves that he is a top notch actor. Makes the Deol family proud.

New kids on the block - Mahi & Kalki give stellar performances as Paro & Chandramukhi respectively.

A bit long...but worth a watch. The film has an in your face attitude in the dialogues which really makes it a class apart. Not to be watched with your parents! (Advise)

Anurag has added all ingredients to make an emtional Achaar...its truly lip-smacking stuff!

I will give a 7/10
(A bit generous rating for Anurag since he has shown tremendous improvement over 'No Smoking')

Quarantine

2009-02-02T08:43:00.004+05:30

My biggest issue with Quarantine is one that has nothing to do with the filmmakers, but it affects the entertainment value of the movie in a big way. The primary TV spot/teaser that was used to promote the movie over the last few weeks is nothing more than the very last shot of the film. What makes this a huge issue is that it becomes apparent as soon as the movie’s premise is defined and Angela is established as the film’s “survivor girl.” It’s the epitome of anticlimactic to know exactly how the movie ends less than a half hour in.

Light is used brilliantly during scenes in which the protagonists interact with the military and the CDC through large glass windows. The extraordinarily bright white light outside the building is not only blinding, but also threatening and otherworldly. It creates a palpable uneasiness.

The pale flesh of the infected residents glows just enough to be seen as they dart through the dark frame behind our unsuspecting survivors. It’s truly chilling.

All in all Quarantine is a disappointment. Its premise alone should have made it relatively easy to create a successful new edition to the horror genre this Halloween, a treat if you will. To be sure, there are a handful of sequences that will make you very familiar with the edge of your seat. However, they are very few and far between while the rest of the movie is comprised of tricks that we’ve seen many times before and executed much better than this....

Acting: A- (Realistic portrayals, from the casual opening moments to the harried finish.)
Direction: C+ (The style could've been handled more cleanly, without as much disorientation.)
Script: C+ (Even for a genre film, it lacks depth or any intriguing twists.)
Effects: B (Good special effects and makeup, although you don't get to see much of it, with the camera moving constantly.)
Overall: B- (A strong, scary -- yet far from perfect -- first-person experience.)

Luck by Chance

2009-01-30T21:54:00.005+05:30

Well..i really like the opening of the film as it opens by featuring all the behind-the-stage people who work day and night so that bollywood remains bollywood. You have the gatekeeper at filmistan studios to the omnipresent chai-wallahs, the set makers, the sound guys et al. The story is about Vikram a "nobody" who becomes a "somebody" in bollywood and along the way breaks a heart, cuts quite a few throats etc etc. Its quite a decent attempt but the storyline is too predictable and the characters a tad too familiar. It does explore themes like do u really need talent in the industry or is luck/looks enough / But I wish it was more incisive with a sharper bite. It is just one more addition to the list of bollywood films on bollywood and ends there. Farhan's acting is not too bad and konkona reminds me of her page 3 role quite a few times. I would rate it as an average flick which is worth a dekho if you have nothing else to do this weekend.

Rating: 5.5/10

Movie Review : Slumdog Millionaire - Beyond me !!!

2009-01-30T14:45:00.007+05:30

Frankly, I do not know where to start. I fear a backlash even before I think of the next line. The Oscar, Golden Globe panel has thrown me such a big googly, that I am reeling under its trance.... I am like Ambrose facing Murlitharan!!! And I am like that Ambrose who is totally bewildered of why the others are actually figuring these googlies out... Or are they just pretending to ? Or are they just riding the wave? I simply do not get it.... I never will, much like Ambrose....

I know you must have got the drift of where I am going with this piece on Slumdog M. I purposely will dissect the movie and tell u things I could not digest, because quiet frankly, you guys must have read hundred 5 star reviews....

This movie is the cynosure of everyone's eye right now, and I am not so sure why. Ok, so it has some decent acting, but nothing to go ga-ga about. It has some decent music, but would it even win a Star Screen's Award in India? I can imagine why the audience around the world stands up and applauds the song JAI HO,,, but I simply cannot imagine an Indian staying back to watch the last song, let alone applaud it...

You must all be knowing the story by now. It's this rags to riches story about a Slum Boy who wins Koun Banega Crorepati. It's a total masala caper. It could put "Om Shanti Om" to shame and give tough fight to Rajnikant flicks, because the whole story is simply over the top. Like Danny said " Its an unrealistic story in a very real world."

The music suits the movie, but its mediocre by Indian Standards and even A.R.Rahman would never have imagined it being at the verge of winning 2 Oscars.

What I really think is laudable is how an Outsider has got into the Bollywood mode with such ease. It shows the greatness of Danny Boyle. Executing this film would have been really tough in the areas he shot it, but he has done it with aplomb. Also, I think he has an infatuation with Shit and Shit-holes. Watch "Trainspotting" his most famous film before SM, and you will see the protagonist(Ewan McGregor) in that film shitting in a filthy toilet and then actually putting his head into it to recover his drug pills. If this movie wins an Oscar, I am sure he will make his Protagonist go through Shit (literally) in every film he makes !!!

Yes, maybe in these times of gloom, this movie gave the Western audience some hope, some joy, but what has happened to the Indian media is beyond me. Its just an average Bollywood film with a Hollywood production. If this were a Bollywood production, you would go absolutely beserk when a policeman would ask any Indian how does he know who starred in Deewar!!! For god sake who does not know that? Especially a slum dweller from Dharavi who speaks immaculate English!!! Why didnt they question his very English Accent then? For me its taking Cinematic Liberty to the extreme. Also, tell me frankly. Doesn't Jamal's brother look and act more like an Afro -American / Brazilian gangsta kid than an Indian kid?

What the movie excels in doing, is keeping you engaged. The screen play is good and the editing is crisp. The international touch shows. The story telling / narrative of the film is great, but if you think of it , if you make this film, how else would you have it? First he winning the quiz and then his story or an intermingled plot? Would we have celebrated the film in such a way if it would have been made by a Bollywood director in Hindi? No ways....

That, Mr.Aamir Khan, went to this films premier is great. Now I hope, he will not be eager to win the Oscar anymore, neither would he hold it on such a high pedestal, coz clearly its going the Filmfare way!! To say that its an above average film would be digestable, but to see it win Oscars would be the biggest googly of my life ! Though I will be rooting for A.R.Rahman , please excuse me for disowning this film as a representation of top-class Bollywood cinema.

There is no doubt this is a decent film and I have only tried to be a devils advocate here..Maybe if Taare Zameen Par would have also been nominated, I would not have been so bitter. Maybe I have overanalysed the film..Maybe I analysed it for the non-existant 10/10 rating, rather than enjoy the average 6 / 10 rating. Maybe I should have enjoyed the film for what it is, rather than try to find why is it on the top of world cinema right now... forgive me....

Rating: 6 /10

My Say : Average Over the top stuff....

Dilli 6 - Music review

2009-01-26T11:01:00.003+05:30

Dilli 6: MUSIC REVIEW - Well, to start with, it's a bit unfair to review A.R.Rahman's music. Because, if its Rahman, then the music ought to be good. And i am no grandmaster in music to review Rahman's work.

But never the less, i can still blog my point from a music lover's eye.

Dilli 6 is a collector's edition. Like any other music composition of Rahman, Dilli 6 will also take time to grow on you. The songs are embedded in the story line which would make u luv them once u watch the film.

All da best to Rahman for the Oscars for Slumdog Millionaire. Pray that he wins and make India proud.

CC2C: Another Akki mindless crapper but this time fails to impress

2009-01-18T18:21:00.007+05:30

I m writing this review on behalf of my parents who just saw CC2C today. They aren't so net-savvy, so i thought i will play their nice beta and write their view of the film. I m trying to be as exact (in meaning) as possible.

CC2C fails to impress. First half is better than the second one since its more of comedy. Second half is all dishoom-dishoom. The village & the great Wall of China are the two
Chinese places shown in the movie. Akshay as usual satisfies with his comics. Deepika fights well.

The story is a bit difficult to digest. Long film. Music isn't good. Finally, CC2C cannot match up Welcome & Sinngh iss Kinng.

My comments: Akki bhai, i think u are over doing the comedy bit. I ain't talking abt your acting. But the type of movies. U need to re-invent. I am hoping dat your upcoming film called 'Blue' would do the trick for you. But again in this year, u are coming with another punjabi comedy.
Anyways, if SRK can do his stuff again & again & again & again & again & again...then u too hav the right to do ur stuff again & again & again & again & again..

Worst 10 hindi movies of 2008

2009-01-15T00:13:00.004+05:30

There were many bad movies in 2008. It was really difficult for me to choose the worst 10. Infact u can suggest more. We shud have a worst 100 instead!!

10. Hijack: Can some1 please teach Shiney Ahuja to lower his voice while acting. Its not horse naring competition going on.

09. Drona: Rona pada.

08. Mere Baap pehle Aap: Too loud & very cheap

07: Rama Rama kya hai yeh drama: No comments

06: Tashan: The music was outstanding but the audience couldnt stand the film!!

05: Tushar Kapoor Movies - Onetwothree; C-Kompany, etc.: except Golmaal Returns (He was acceptable in Golmaal Returns mainly because he had no dialogues) How can companies spend money on Tushaar Kapoor.

04: Karzzz: The audience just went zzzzzzzzz......

03: Meerabhai not out: What crap was this!!

02: Kash Mere Hotey: Only the title was good!!

01: Yuvraaj: Subash Ghai hit the audiences out of the theatre just like Yuvraj hits the ball out of the ground in a cricket match! I think Yuvraaj will figure in the worst 10 of all time!!

Good Hindi movies of 2008 - For your DVD collection

2009-01-14T23:23:00.015+05:30

A snapshot of good hindi movies of 2008 which should surely make it to your DVD collection.

1920: Purely because of its visual effects. Somehow it couldnt become a hit like Phoonkh, although both are cheap imitations of 'The Exorcist'.

'Maharathi', 'Mithiya', 'Oye Lucky Oye': Great concepts but gone waste.

'Sorry Bhai', 'EMI', 'Dostana', 'Bachna Ae Haseeno': Nice comedies.

Ghajini: Purely because of Asin's performance and Aamir's body.

'Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi' & 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na' : Cute love stories. RNBDJ would have climbed up the ladder if Shahrukh wud have not gone over the top in his role as Raj.

Race: Good soundtrack and lots of twists & turns. Will keep u occupied on a lazy sunday afternoon.

Rock on: A stripped down version of Dil Chahta Hai with some real good rock music and decent acting performances.

Jumbo: Bollywood animation films can now match hollywood.

Jodha Akbar: The music and the large canvas. Plus a Hrithik movie which comes once in a while.

Singhh is Kinng: Mindless comedy. The biggest hit of 2008. Cannot ignore this one.

Fashion: Very long. But would definitely enjoy watching it in your home. Great show!

Aamir: Clearly the underdog of the year. Keeps you on the edge through out.

A Wednesday: Hard hitting...pumps your adrenaline.

Dasvidaniya: Come fall in love with this one...it touches ur heart straight thru.

Mumbai Meri Jaan: It makes you cry from inside. The whole theatre audience gave a standing ovation to the movie when i had gone to watch this film.

Top 10 Bollywood movies of the year 2008 ( Among the ones I have seen )

2009-01-14T12:00:00.000+05:30

Hey All,

Its time for me to give you the list of the TOP 10 movies I saw this year and that does not mean that they were the best..I am giving the list of top 10 movies I saw in 2008 and regrettably it has some real shockers, but then the one's omitted were even worse.. I found it really difficult to fill the final few spots and I must say that I hope this year is better, coz quiet frankly, 2008 was a year worth forgetting. The last few films are the best of the worst ( according to me -with all biases in place) and hence have made it.

In 2008, we saw big films like Tashan, Drona, 2050: Love story, Mission Istanbul and Yuvvraaj turning out to be the Biggest turkeys. 2008 truly highlighted "The Bigger you are, the harder you fall". Small budget films boomed in this abysmal time and gave us the much needed ray of hope. They touched topics which were topical and unconventional. But then 2008 also showed us why Bollywood is still ruled by its Heroes. Sinngh is King, Rab Ne Banaa Di Jodi and Ghajini, though completely mindless, entertained the public to the end of their wits and brought in the dough, which was so lacking in the industry. Everything is secondary, the protagonist rules, the superstar rules.. And I believe this will remain the norm. But its heartening to see that Small Budget movies with good stories are getting their share of the space and are here to stay....

No 10 - Ghajini - At the bottom of my top 10 is the All brawn no brain, highest grosser in history movie, Ghajini. Yeah, I know you must be thinking "What the ...." but I couldnt help myself. I had to think long and hard to decide which one of the 3 should make it here "Dostana, Fashion or Ghajini" and being a die-hard Aamir Fan and taking into consideration Aamir and Asin, I went with Ghajini. Also, because I liked bits of Ghajini better than either of the other 2 movies. It was more like choosing the best of the worst. (BTW - Rab ne banaa di jodi, Sinngh is King were never ever in the reckoning).

No 9 - Mithya - This movie had rave reviews of being this awesome black comedy a`la Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, but it did not make a lot of sense to me. Slick editing would have made this movie far better than it finally turned out to be. But then solid performances and witty dialogues did make it a fun watch.

No 8 - Tahaan - No ,, not Tashan....!!! Tahaan was a light hearted movie set in Kashmir. Heavily inspired by Iranian Movies, this movie was a Fable of a small boy's journey to get back his friend Tahaan, a donkey. It touched a sensitive topic of people disappearing in Kashmir and the prevalent Terrorism, but the central story was simple and sweet.

No 7 - Jaane Tu Yaa Jaane Naa - This movie succeeded more because 2050:Love story released along with it and less because it was a decent movie. With a decent story, some decent acting and awesome music ( Kabhi Kabhi Aditi - my vote for best song of 2008 ) this movie did win more than a few hearts. It was indeed a very good first attempt by the director as well as the actors. Overall a timepass film, which was not at all bad.

No 6 - Rock On - Probably a few might think, it should have been a lot higher than 6, but I felt the movie lacked heart. It had some great music and awesome performances, but somewhere the story stopped short of good. The screenplay itself was slow and even though it tried reaching the heights of "Dil Chahta Hai" or "Jhankaar Beats", it did not. None the less, a movie worth watching.

No 5 - A wednesday - This fast paced movie received a lot of critical and commercial acclaim and was in truest sense India's answer to Hollywood run of the mill potboilers. A wednesday remained true to its story and the director stayed away from commercialising it. Anupam Kher and Naseer gave enough evidence of their class. An immensly enjoyable film, A Wednesday, vented the fury bellowing in the bellies of millions of Indians and showed what would happen if an ordinary citizen would take responsibility into his own hands. Hopefully a precursor to many such fast paced thrillers.

No 4 - Aamir - What a movie, to start off the year. This movie kicked off 2008 with a bang. With a great story, gripping screenplay and some cool background music, this movie had all the elements of an international film. Aamir touched the most topical subject of terrorism and weaved an awesome 24 hour saga. This movie was certainly worth more than a watch. With an extremely thin budget, this movie has shown how good cinema needs talent and good intentions, not buckets of money.

No 3 - Dasvidaaniya - Certainly, Dasvidaaniya, would win hands down for the most endearing and feel good movie of the year. Again a small bedget film with its heart in the right place. The "rain confession scene" remains one of the best moments in cinema for me this year. With Vinay Pathak playing the role he has perfected and a lovely story, this movie made me smile and I hope to see it again very soon. The best part is , this film never takes itself too seriously and hence remains brisk and happy. A story of a dieing man fulfilling his dieing wishes is certainly cliched, but then sometimes it's the storytelling that matters more than a story.

No 2 - Jodha Akbar - Azeemo Shaan Shehenshaa, Marhabbaa.... Jodha Akbar was one Big Budget movie which lived up to my expectations. Ashutosh Gowarikar's magnum opus gets this high a ranking for its sheer magnificence. Hritik and Ash made form a stunning couple and thier love story was potrayed beautifully, enhanced by their electric chemistry. The songs were brilliant and the scale at which some of its songs and battle sequences were shot are unparralled in Indian cinema. Even though many would not agree ( slating the movie as boring) , I sure felt it had the requisite pace and was made with utmost sincerity. A Jashn-E-bahara it was...

No 1 - Mumbai Meri Jaan - Yes, Mumbai Meri Jaan. A complex story, with complex characters in complex situations. Yet, handled so simply. Mumbai Meri Jaan wins my vote for the best movie of the year, not just because it was made on the Mumbai train blasts, but because it delved into the psyche of various individuals with aplomb. Bomb blast was just the common point, what was amazing was how the director was able to handle characters of such diverse walks of life with such precision. Paresh Rawal gave his best performance till date and so did in my opinion Soha Ali. A mature film, an intelligent film, which payed attention to nuances of not only the human psyche but also Mumbai ( which is certainly my Jaan)!!!

So, there you go.... I hope I didnt bore you a lot today, neither throughout the year and I hope I did help you in your choice of cinema. I promise to continue this work in the next year and I promise to be as Biased as ever. Here's wishing for an amazing time at the Box Office in 2009.

Yours truly,

Viru urf Vicks

p.s. : will be back with my top 10 Hollywood picks later..

(( 1 movie I missed - that could have made it :

1920 - I heard it had some stunning visual effects. ))

Movie Review: The president is coming.... A mad mad caper

2009-01-12T09:50:00.004+05:30

Genre : Comedy

Rating: 5.5/10

My Say : A madcap caper worth watching…

First I would like to applaud Rahman for winning the Golden Globe. Surely, this time an Oscar is coming Home!!!

The President is coming, is one of those over the top comedies that strive on being insane. It’s a parody and is actually adapted from a play. President Bush, is visiting India and he wants to shake the hand of a young Indian. So, the consulate sets up a team of 2, to interview and select a suitable candidate. The finalists are called into a room and are taken through a set of tests, to determine the winner. These tests are as silly as they can get.

The dialogues range from witty to puerile ala Bushistic to downright crass!!! The characters represent the diversity of India aptly, from the Desi chauvinist to the American wannabe. From the poor little rich girl to the gay who tries hard to flirt with girls. It also has the patent Gujju bhai Stocks ka Sher!

Though parts of it are totally nonsensical, it manages to keep you entertained. This is a MAD film and you should watch it with that mindset and I am sure you will enjoy. Plus, you get all the wonderful Bushisms to keep you laughing your heads off!! This madcap caper is surely worth watching….

Oye Lucky - Unlucky Oye

2008-12-31T00:48:00.003+05:30

Oye Lucky - Lucky Oye

Rating: 4.5/10

A brilliant start goes down the drain.
The movie opens up with Lucky, a versatile thief in jail. His booty being giving back to their rightful owners. Then it goes into flashback. The young lucky who is a serd has acted brilliantly probably better than the older one, Abhay Deol.
The movie grips you for almost the first 30-40 mins only after which u start losing interest. Lucky goes on stealing from one city to another and it really becomes boring. The end is a bit relieving but by the time the end comes, the movie loses its sheen completely.

The story is not unique. The treatment is quite similar to 'Khosla Ka Ghosla', Dibakar Banerjee's first film. But Dipakar fails to re-create the magic he did in 'Khosla Ka Ghosla'. Probably he got lost somewhere in the script.

Of the cast, Paresh Rawal shines as usual. Manjot Singh who plays young lucky is simply brilliant. Infact Abhay Deol fails to carry on his aggressive nature as the grown up lucky.

The film is completely undone by the hay-wire script. It simply fails to generate interest.
Abhay Deol has a knack of doing such off-beat films..but somehow you feel that his acting is more or less the same in these type of movies. He should re-invent himself.

Wait for the DVD or the satellite premiere of the movie.

Maharathi - Worth a dekho

2008-12-26T20:22:00.006+05:30

Maharathi: 6/10

Based on a Gujarati play, Maharathi brings great actors under one roof; namely- Paresh Rawal, Nasseeruddin Shah & Boman Irani.

Maharathi has good suspense and drama but u feel something amiss when u come out of the movie theatre.

Paresh Rawal is the raste ka chor who saves Nasseer's life and gets a job of a driver in the latter's house. Nasseer is an alchoholic film maker or rather a forgotten film maker who has made hugely successful films in the past. He has a hen-pecking but sexy wife played by Neha Dhupia.

Nasseer is fed up with his life and commits suicide....But before he kills himself he challenges Neha to prove that he was murdered in order to get hold of a 24 million dollar insurance policy. That scene is amazingly shot.

Neha doesn't take up the challenge but Paresh Rawal convinces her that it's very easy to prove that Nasseer was murdered and had not committed suicide. Thus begins an interesting plot. However, it loses steam in the second half especially towards the end. The end has twists & turns but is a drag with Om Puri coming in as the investigating officer. Finally, Paresh has good luck on his side to make him a Maharathi, which is a bit difficult to digest.

The movie still is good enough to get a 6/10 for Paresh Rawal's performance, the dark look & feel of the movie, impressive art direction and no songs which is an added advantage.

The movie was released during the Mumbai Terror attack which impacted its box-office collections. But its a must watch on DVD when it comes out or when it is shown on any satellite channel.

Movie Reviews - Ghajini and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi ... A tale of 2 superstars....

2008-12-26T15:12:00.006+05:30

Hi everyone.... I am back :) If you are wondering where I was --- I was busy getting married... So now I am Merrily Married!

In the meantime I got the chance of slipping away for 2 of the most awaited movies of the year... The New Year has truly been BASHED by Bollywoods 2 biggest stars - one with his Ham, other with his Wham Bam....

1st -- Ghajini

Rating : 5.5 / 10

My Say : Pure Brawn, little brain....

Probably the most Hyped / Super Marketed Movie of all time! And By God does it need that kind of marketing :)

My Fav - Aamir is back and with a tank of a body.... Ghajini is probably the most unique movie of year 2008. It probably fulfills Aamir's fetish to work in a complete and total Southie Style Action-Masala flick.. Hats off to the actor to try something extremely different, but not Hats off to the movie though. Awesome in parts, absurd in a few and dragging in the dieing minutes...

My rating is completely due to : 1) A good first half. 2) Aamir's effortless take on both the Stylish businessman and the brute force of destruction. 3) A stellar debut by Asin.

There is a scene where the police keep an unconsious Aamir bare chested on a table. You look at his brute body and you are reminded of the incredible hulk. His huffs, puffs, roars, spits are as dangerous as his punches - which break bones, turn heads... The amazing thing is Aamir makes it believable. You arent amazed when he bashes up 20 people at one time, coz you already know its possible.

The other telling scene is when Aamir first meets Asin. Aamir bearly speaks a word but speaks volumes and Asin keeps mumbling and steals the show. Asin is a brilliant actress and mark my words, she is gonna give bollywood beauties a run for their money. Rarely have I seen an actress doing comedy so effortlessly, ala Sridevi and Madhuri.

Apart from that, the movie is a complete masala, no brainer type wham -bam Southie brainbuster. The coincidences, plot are actually extremely funny... The first half gives good entertainment but the second half gives a weird twist in the tale and then an extremely predictable ending. Towards the end you start praying the hero does not forget everything again , now that he has built up all the anger and momentum! But he does.... N you start jumping in your chair. Then he remembers everything again and the film comes close to conclusion... Then a song starts and you wonder if this will ever end, you feel as pulverised as the villian towards the end... But fortunately it ends...

If the director would have given it a more Hindi film sensibility, the editor would have made the film tighter, this would have been a much better movie. Actually, the end frustrates you and hence you leave with a confused state of mind. Don't ask about logic, because it generally fails. What keeps you glued is Aaamir and totally him in the second half. The rating is justified because its kind of a fun watch with friends and has a good first half. The weakest part of the movie is A.R.Rahman's music and that is truly a cardinal sin.

Is it watchable?... Yes ofcourse,,, if u love Aamir - 100%, if you love Mithunda then too , if you like Rajni films -absolutely... Other than that ,,, sorry guys - its not your piece of cake.... Its Pure Brawn,,, little brain!!

2nd -- Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

Rating : 4 / 10

My Say: Sab ki Bajaa Di Thodi.....

The second superstar does what he does best... Hammmm.... Rab Ne Banaa Di Jodi is a semi-sweet, mostly-idiotic film. Whatever you say, you can expect much much more from the director who has given a classic like DDLJ. Even though I had my reservations already, because I had seen the 2nd film by Aditya "Mohabbatein - Crap Galore" I went for it with a hope. But that hope was quashed within 40 minutes.

You would all be knowing the storyline by now. A shy-guy marries a bubbly dame under filmy ciurcumstances. Then he tries to woo her by disguising as a roadside romeo. Now, he wants to test the girl and see who wins, him or the other him....!!!!! Absurd, yet true.

SRK as Suri the shy-guy is cute. The few scenes in the beginning where he tries but fails to woo her wife, are extremely endearing. But as soon as his alter ego Mr.Raj arrives, the HAM show begins - that character is simply unbearable. The new girl also gets her cue from the Ham King SRK and follows suite. The transformation of a shy-guy to an out and out flirt is unbelievable. If it would have been a case of split personalities, I would have given this movie 7 / 10!!! Atleast that makes sense! As if that wasnt enough, the final "Mujhe Tum Main Rab Dikhta hai Finale" certainly made me puke !!!

I certainly missed my friends, because this movie gave many opportunities to collectively hoot and ridicule. It atleast would have made the others enjoy the movie!

One thing that I loved in the movie were the songs... Awesome... Thats what helped me increase its rating to around 4...

Truly ,, iss SRK movie ne Sab ki Bajaa Di Thodi...

Dil Kabaddi - Dubbed Hollywood Movie

2008-12-26T14:58:00.006+05:30

I read the review by Prabal on the same site before watching the movie. I am writing my review as it is way different from his.

This movie is a one of the better movies made on relationships compared to the bollywood dramas like Salaam-e-ishq.

The movie talks about the splitting of a married couple, Samit(Irfan Khan) and Mita(Soha Ali Khan). Their friends Rishi(Rahul Bose) and Simi(Konkana Sen)who first try to convince them to stay married and underline the unethical reason for splitting the marriage soon brings all the same complications and insecurities to their own relationship and end up splitting.

Yes splitting and remarrying, dating and dumping and living-in is not casual in Indian society. Actually this movie is a rip off from Woody Allen’s movie "Husbands and Wives". You will be able to understand it much better if you see it as a dubbed Hollywood movie.

Konkana Sen performs outstandingly as the "passive-aggressive" character. Irfan Khan rocks as his portal of not so intellectual husband to an intellectual wife. His Comic timing is impeccable. Soha Ali Khan, Rahul Bose and Rahul Khanna also perform well.

This movie is a brilliant portrayal of mismatch of sensibilities in marriage. But anyone who has seen the original will say three cheers for Woody Allen and not for Anil Senior

My Rating: 3/5

Slumdog Millionaire: Awesome Movie

2008-12-24T09:38:00.002+05:30

This is a movie of a slum breed individual who wins “who wants to be a millionaire”. In the quest to understand how an illiterate person like Jamal Malik won a show like this, light is shed on his pain and his struggle through life.

This is based on the novel “Q & A” by Vikas Swarup.

Well little needs to be said about this movie which is sweeping awards left, right and center. The only thing that excels the superlative direction is the amazing camerawork. All actors including children give flawless performance.

Music given by A.R. Rehman rocks in this must watch movie.

A word of caution: Please don’t take children as some scenes show abject poverty and pain which are disturbing even for adults.

My Rating: 4/5

Dil Kabaddi

2008-12-07T13:55:00.001+05:30

Rating 4/10

I just happened to see Dil Kabbadi yesterday, without any prior plan.

I didn’t go with much hopes, but the starcast, especially Rahul Bose, Konkana Sen and Irfan indicated it’s a must watch movie.

Also, I had an inclination that this must be comedy with some adult content.

But, after seeing it and prior to it Dostana, I must say Indian Censor Board has really loosened up.

I was sitting adjoining to one family, thinking that what impression these sort of movies will have on kids. And, I think they understood my thought, and left during the interval.

It’s a pure time pass movie, without any message for the audience.

Sorry Bhai: Thank you Onir for this apology

2008-11-30T08:36:00.004+05:30

It’s a story of a simple family, Boman Irani, Shabana Azmi, Sharman Joshi and Sanjay Suri. Things take a turn when the younger brother Sharman fell in love with elder brother Sanjay’s Fiancée when he goes to attend Sanjay’s wedding in Mauritius. Things get difficult for everyone including the girl in contention Chitrangada Singh.
It’s a movie about realtionships and the proceedings get awkward at times..
The performances are Brilliant and are second only to the outstanding direction. Director Onir is so good that may be after watching this movie you will try to search his filmography in quest to find his other works.
The characters are close to reality and yet create enough drama. The movie works because the director does not fall in the traps and templates of relationships known in Bollywood and follow the storyline he set to tell. It’s a very crisp well said story, even though it deals with romance, my least favorite genre.
All in all an engaging movie, definitely worth a watch.

My Ratings : 3.5/5

2008-11-25T10:24:00.002+05:30

Golmaal re-turns:
5/10

'Golmaal returns' promised to be more comic than its predecessor but it failed to do so. It heavily depends on jokes on TV serials especially Ekta Kapoor.

The director of the movie got inspired from an old hindi movie starring Kiran Kumar and then weaved another story into it.

Of the cast, Shreyas Talpade is good followed by Tushar Kapoor, though some may feel otherwise. All others are just passe. Kareena is looking damn thin.

All in all its a popcorn stuff. Songs are not good at all and are forcefully put into the story-line. On second thoughts, it has no storyline!

The movie will tickle you but you won't burst into a laughter. That's how i would like to sum it up.

Movie Review: Dasvidaniya - Add it to your "TO DO" list...

2008-11-20T10:09:00.003+05:30

Rating: 6.5 /10

My Say: A thing to do.....deserves a watch...

The plots simple, the movie too. Simple but touching. Its has some truly touching scenes and thats what makes this movie immensely lovable.

The completely hackneyed storyline is about a man who realises that he has very little time to live and hence creates a list of things to do before he says goodbye.

And the movie is about how he goes about fulfilling his tasks. So far, so simple. But the treatment of the scenes, the dialgoues and the characters used in the film are the reasons that make it so good to watch. Vinay Pathak, as the simpleton who has stayed away from all vices in life, yet is facing an early death, is in top form. His repertoire as an actor is completely challenged by this character - but he comes out tops in both the comic as well as the emotional scenes.

The director sculpts some awesome characters ( the alter ego of the simpleton - Vinay Pathak , the caricaturish boss - Saurabh Shukla, the half deaf mother - Sarita Sharma, surprisingly the old flame - neha dhupia ). All actors have done full justice to their roles.

There are a few scenes in the film that touch you in a beautiful way and makes you laugh and cry with the protagonist. In one scene Pathak expresses his love for his childhood flame, Neha Dhupia. There is no dialogue in this scene, but it expresses so much. Plus, a few scenes really crack you up with their comic precision.

The songs are decent (specially the song "Mumma") and the background score scores. Yes, somethings are predictable and somethings unrealistic, but I am certain you wont mind them, because the film is all heart.

So put this on your TO-DO list and I am sure you wont regret it.

Dostana

2008-11-16T21:55:00.002+05:30

Rating 3/5

Good Comedy, with traditional plot of both friends falling for same girl, a common friend.

But, all throughout movie I kept on wondering, why it was not censored.
Acting, by all the actors is more than satisfactory. But, nothing special.
I will recommend it as leisure time movie, where you leave your brains before watching it.

Movie Review - Quantum of Solace - JAAM !!!

2008-11-11T15:46:00.006+05:30

Rating : 5.5 / 10

My Say - Its JAAM - Just Another Action Movie !

The much anticipated bond movie, with a smashing box office start in UK, is sadly - Just another action movie. Though there is no denying that the action is Fantastic, it falls short on the sophistication and style urf Bond quotient.

In the second installment, Daniel Craig is plain ruthless. He is more an assasin ( flaunting his License to Kill) than a secret agent. He is in pursuit of the villian who had left him bereft of the only true love of his life. And in this pursuit, he is blinded. His only aim - revenge. So throughout the movie he is casually moving from one country to another, just to kill. The ease with which he crosses borders even without money or passport is remarkable ( anyways, thats what he is trained to do !!) The plot is rather confusing and through most of the movie, you do not understand whats going on, and frankly, why? Its like the plot is just a vehicle for delivering one action sequence after another. You also wonder what these guys have in place of bones - titanium rods??? Unbreakable.

The only Quantum of Solace is that with this movie, the revenge of Bond is complete and now he will get back to his Stylish, Casanova ways in the next movie. Lets wait and watch, because this was frankly - JAAM.....

Movie Review : Fashion ... The Scum is the script...

2008-10-29T22:29:00.005+05:30

Rating : 4.5/10

My say : Ho humm.... A bore....

Madhur Bhandarkar is a real "Namoona". He's the RAGPICKER of the film industry. Just picks up all the dirt he can to create something like a movie. In Madhur's world, nothing's white... Its either dark grey or black. So with his goggles on this time he shows us the Scum of the fashion industry. To start with I must admit that its much better than his last film "Traffic Signal".

The problem with Madhur is that he is so full of himself, that he thinks only of national awards ( n the Board seems happy to give that to him even if he cr@ps...) . There is a hint of overconfidence in his approach. In one scene he shows himself, playing himself and people discussing that he is making a film that exposes the fashion world!!! Ooooooooo.. run ,Mr.Bhandarkar is here.....

Through Madhur's eyes, the picture of the fasion world is this...

All men in this industry are either GAY or Lascivious or both... All straight men cheat on their wives.. All successful models are dopers and are rude... Success can only be acheived by surrendering yourself "completely" to the tycoons... For looking confident on stage you need to be high... Drinking and Smoking is a must before any show.... All the women socialites either gossip or bitch...

He has tried to put so many issues into the film that it is about half an hour to 40 minutes more that what you can bear. Infact, you start wondering where this film is going even before the interval. Priyanka ( Meghna Mathur) comes to Mumbai to become a super-model. Her ambition is to dethrone Kangana (Shonali ) the current Show stopper!! The film charts her accent, her fall and then her comeback... God,you wonder, it would have been so great if it would have ended with the fall...

Anyways, the film is shot rather stylishly and for that I need to give Madhur credit. Especially the ramp scenes are handled impressively. Though it seemed that the soundtrack ran out of steam even before the interval. The story is like i said " A bit of a bore". Madhur, is getting extremely repetitive with this realistic genre and should probably reinvent himself with a clean love story or something.... The emotional scenes did bring a lot of cheer to me though.. Specially Kangana's scenes, she's downright howlarious in the film...

Among the performances, the support cast ranges from the stiff, to the comical, to the competent. If Kangana's aim was to make you laugh or loathe her - she is extremely successful. I dont blame her. Her character is simply unbearable. Her constant screaming, huffing puffing and crying gets irritating. Her bad dialogue delivery and terrible english doesnt help either. All she successfuly potrays is a B.. err mad female dog !!!

The film completely belongs to Priyanka Chopra , who I must say glides through her role as smoothly as her catwalk. She has the power to carry a film on her shoulders and that she does. The only thing that makes the film bearable is her believable and strong performance. I cannot imagine a single other actress who could have suited this role better than her. Well done PC... As for mr.MB ,,, dude... get a life... remove those dark goggles, n lighten up....

Karz-All Song No Movie:Shayad Mera Kisi Par Karz Tha

2008-10-20T00:45:00.003+05:30

Rating: 0.5/10

From Karz to Karzzzzz .From Rishi Kapoor to Himesh Reshammiya. From Dard-e-dil to Masahalla-the movie was a complete mockery.There were songs at the drop of a hat and none were worth it.The biggest shocker was Ek Haseena Thi by Himesh.Gosh!!What was that!! It looked as if he was at gunpoint when he was singing the same.Uski awaaz hi nahi nikal rahi thi.

The story is well known to us.The movie was copied scene to scene from the earlier version.

Characters:

Ravi Verma: Dino Morea

Monty/Ravi: Himesh Reshammiya

Kamini: Urmila

The few modifications being that of an airplane instead of a car.Sir Juda played by Gulshan Grover looked like a mere formality.Rohini H playing Monty's mother was just like Nirupa Roy of the past.Too much melodrama and loud acting from her end until she was mute in the second half.

Let me tell you the original Karz was far more engaging and when you are attempting a remake atleast put in presentable actors not people like Himesh.If I was a acting teacher I would have said that yes Himesh has made some improvement from the last film but then that is not what an audience wants to see.Even if Dino Morea would have been the lead in the entire movie , atleast I could have sit through the movie and Hari Om wont have sounded like Hurry Home!!!.

Urmila has delivered a good performance and suited her character but nothing to beat what Simi Garewal had done in the original movie.Not even in this technological age any effects were added too show the requisite impact of a thriller.

A movie to cater only to purely Himesh's fans.If there are any I am sure they will love the movie.

Movie Review : Hellboy 2 - What the hell !!!

2008-10-06T22:10:00.003+05:30

Genre : Super Hero
Rating : 3 / 10
My say : Seriously, What the hell?

Dunno where to start. HellBoy, the boy from hell who is now part of the freak platoon bread by the US government to fight the paranormal, the weird, the absurd....

So we are given this hero from Hell called "RED" who craves of being known, of being loved by the people he protects. His wife is Pyro girl who is pregnant and hiding this condition from him. His sidekick is an amphibian called "BLUE", the brainy guy who gets kicked before being saved by the hero. And then there is a Gas Ball - who is the cliched fun element.

Our team of freaks are out to save the world by preventing the villian from letting lose the indestructible GOLDEN ARMY. If they dont do this, the Golden Army would destroy, eliminate humanity.... yawnnn...

And then you see a sequence of lame action sequences and jokes. The director probably thinks that special effects, weird creatures are enough to make a hit. Sorry buddy, no ways.... It seems as though they had this year long session on making weird creatures and forgot about the story, so used all the weridos they had designed! After a while , you can't help but say "WHAT THE HELL"???

Welcome To Sajjanpur

2008-09-22T18:38:00.002+05:30

4/10

Hello Friends

I went to see this movie, with great hope.
The story is good, apart from abrupt ending. The acting is good by actors. But, it misses the punch, which legendary movies like 'Chupke-Chupke' has.

The direction is poor, and the story in between at many points seems to change abruptly.

In total, I would say its one time watch, provided you have spare time.

Quick Movie Review - A Wednesday - Entertaining at the most

2008-09-10T17:35:00.005+05:30

Rating: 5.5

My Say: Average

I have added 0.5 point for slick editing and good background music, which keeps this movie on top gear for most of the film. Though its predictable and cliched, it succeeds to entertain. Its of the "Aamir" genre where there is a thrill element in most scenes. Another plus point is that it sticks to the script and does not waste its time in meaningless songs. Its much like the countless run-of-the-mill Hollywood flicks which entertain, just that in India such movies are rare. It becomes slightly preachy towards the end, but thats alrite. Good performances, good editing makes it a good timepass watch. I would have rated it 5, if the editing was not this good....

Movie Review - Tahaan... Doesn't quench your thirst completely.

2008-09-08T11:56:00.006+05:30

Rating: 6 / 10

My Say: Feel Good.

Tahaan - a fable set in Kashmir, is a simple story touching complex issues. Its about this small kid called Tahaan who loses his favourite companion (his Donkey) and then sets out to get it back. He has a mute mother , a father who is missing for several months, a grandfather who dies after telling him that everyone should have a Goal in life and a big sister. He tranverses the beautiful valley along with his donkey's new owner Anupam Kher in a bid to win it back. The owner's dumb sidekick (Rahul Bose - wasted) tags along. The movie is about the choices the child makes to win back his companion. Along the way Mr.Santosh Sivan shows us the condition of the people in Kashmir. The constant threat of terrorism, the constant vigil of the army and the plight of the women who's husbands have disappeared.

This is a very good effort by Sivan to make a meaningful and feel good film. It is truly inspired by Iranian Cinema, where the themes are much like this and the execution is similar aswell. Sivan's camera work is breathtaking and really captures the amazing beauty of our Kashmir. That - such a heavenly place has become hell for many, saddens me.

Tahaan in MARATHI is thirst. This film doesnt completely quench your thirst for great cinema; Its not a gem but glitters enough to attract you and charm you.. Have a look....

A Wednesday : Worth a Watch

2008-09-08T11:48:00.004+05:30

When I say I am a movie lover, I really mean movies like this…

This is a movie about police commissioner, Anupam Kher who remembers an old case when a character played by Naseeruddin Shah held the Mumbai police at ransom.

This movie boasts of dazzling performances. Anupam Kher and Naseeruddin Shah live up to their reputation, giving a rare treat to movie watchers. Aamir Bashir and Jimmy Shergill also excel in august company.

But what I loved about the movie was the direction and editing. Written and directed by Neeraj Pandey, the movie has an awesome pace. I also loved the portrayal of policemen, refreshing change from the masala bollywood movies

Please dont get me wrong this movie is not perfect. It has its share of clichés and gaffes. But still it’s a heart touching and thought provoking. An honest attempt of making intelligent cinema. Believe me there are parts where you actually feel happy that finally someone left the moral high ground and talks for the common Indian on the streets.

My Rating: 4/5

Movie Review - Wall-E - Spot ON....

2008-08-31T17:34:00.004+05:30

Rating : 7 / 10

My say : Awesome

A big Bow to PIXAR before I start my review. If there would be a height of cretivity, I would name it Pixar. Wall-E is an exceptional and endearing animated film with a message. And it delivers its message in such a funny and enjoyable but hard hitting way, that it entertains and educates at the same time.

Its about this Tiny Robot which is assigned to clean the planet while the humans are enjoying on a fully automated space craft. He is alone and has just a cockroach for company. He carries out his work day in and day out, untill one day an unexpected visitor is sent to the earth's surface. he falls in love with the state of art new robot "EVA". This triggers an adventure of galactic proportions.

The movie touches serious issues like "Pollution" and "Lifestyle Disorders -Obesity" in a humourous but touching way. Its amazingly cute and you will simple fall in love with Wall-E. Bachchey , Boodhey aur Jawaan will love it equally. Throng to the theaters,,,, quick....

Movie Review - Rock On .... Pebbles... more than Rockss....

2008-08-31T10:51:00.004+05:30

Rating : 5.5/ 10

My Say : Average

The signs were good, the songs decent, the premise interesting, so it demanded a watch. Plus, my cousin who has his own band in Delhi wanted to see it. So we Rocked On.

No big surprises here, its an average film. It's about this group of guys having a band and a dream of making it big. Then they part ways and are later brought together, to once again rock the house. A mix of Dil Chahta Hai and Jhankaar beats you might say. But it fails to create the same magic. The film lacks depth, it touches the surfaces of both the emotions and the relations so wonderfully sketched in the said Inspirations ( DCH and JB). The break up is not properly explained and the reunion is far too fortituous. The end too predictable. Somewhere the movie moves from a cool film and falls into the trap of predictability.

Farhan Akhtar has good screen presence and a competent actor. Arjun Rampal, to his credit, has done a good job with his part( His wife in the film has done a fabulous job :) Prachi Desai is sweet, Luke Kenny emotes with honesty and Purab is charming. The songs are not everyones cup of tea, though I like quiet a few of them. The Onstage performances are wonderfully filmed and the overall screen play is good.

Abhishek Kapoor's film is thus a film that mildly pebbles, doesnt completely Rock. A decent watch for the week.

Movie Review : Mumbai Meri Jaan - Topical, Meticulous and Engaging.

2008-08-29T15:51:00.008+05:30

Rating : 7 / 10

Genre : Drama

Zaraa Hatt Ke , Zaraa Bachke , Yeh Hai "Mumbai Meri Jaan" sang Johnny Walker in 1956 and the situation in 2008 is even worse.Crooks, Economic Diversity are passe. Terrorism, share market fluctuations are the real threats today, but the spirit of Mumbai keeps it on the move no matter what.

"Mumbai Meri Jaan" is not a movie about terrorism, its a study in human psychology!!! It tracks the travails of 5 leading protagonists, who are affected in seperate ways because of the train blasts on July 11th 2006. A TV presenter (Soha Ali Kha)who loses her fiance in the blasts and then faces the brunt of the same media she represents,An old cop(Paresh Rawal) who is about to retire and is ashamed at his helplessness to do anything substantial throughout his career, A poor coffee vendor ( Irrfan Khan ) who is sturggling to meet ends in the city and faces humiliation everyday, A young man ( Madhavan) who is about to be a father and is saved from being blasted into smithereens by a stroke of sheer luck and a frustrated extremist ( K K Menon) who worries more about wondering what mischief Muslims are upto, rather than earn for a living.

This movie struck a chord within me because I could relate to Madhavan's character. I had written an article about it on 17th July 2006 ( have posted it on My Blog Fundae-mentals today). I too was very fortunate not to board the train whioh went boom. I was delayed because our seniors in MBA institute had held us back after college.

Back to the movie - I must give full credit to Nishikant Kamat the director, for having full faith in the story and staying true to it. No shenanigans, no items, nothing. Just some good performances and a convincing story. All lead actors have done a great job , including Soha Ali khan who excels in the scene where sees her fiance's dead boy. Support cast like side kicks of K K Menon and Paresh Rawal are also good. But the cake is taken by Paresh Rawal. His potrayal of an old , to-retire hawaaldaar is amazing. He makes you laugh and makes you feel for his helplessness with ease.

The movie is not jingoistic, it does not try to preach or educate, ( except the Plastic bag scene!!!) , it simply shows the plethora of human emotions, affected by a common tragedy ( much like "CRASH" - the oscar winning film)

Even though the line goes " Zaraa Hatt ke , Zaraa Bachke" you should not stay Bachke from Mumbai meri jaan... Go watch it.

mumbai meri jaan

2008-08-29T11:39:00.002+05:30

A riveting film that slashes across class, religion, gender, race and caste to identify common threads that bind people in the present troubled times. The single idea that the film potrays is that every one has their own retributions and penance without being didactic. It explores the various aspects of the human personality slipping into shades of grey with ease. The actors are all at their best but paresh rawal stands out in the role of a hawaldar as one of his best performances ever. The high point of the movie being in the end with a popular song about bombay being played to personify the city as it is. A must watch especially for people who have experienced life in mumbai.

maan gaye mughal e azam

2008-08-29T11:32:00.003+05:30

The less said the better. I could not tolerate the film and walked out after 45 minutes. The biggest let down is rahul bose who had the audacity to compare this film with jaane bhi do yaaron. Go watch it to stare at the depths of despair that bollywood has come to.

Ugly aur Pagli

2008-08-28T14:54:00.003+05:30

This is one of the most horrible movies that I have seen in a long long time. The plot is extremely weak and loose and the direction is simply pathetic. Instead of potraying a woman who is dominating, mallika sherawat instead plays a woman who is confusing. Her erratic demands and drinking sprees are sprinkled liberally with boredom. Even if you leave your brains at home for this one, you will be found tearing your hair at the end of the movie. Ugly and pagli is exactly that - ugly and pagli ! Avoid it at all costs.

Movie Review : Singh is Kinng... Unabashed Buffonery...

2008-08-24T09:51:00.006+05:30

Rating: 4.5/ 10

Mindsets dictate your condition during a movie. Biases dictate your decision. And nobody can deny it. I always say that my reviews are completely biased and my belief was turned into a conviction when I saw this movie. I knew it was a complete mindless entertainment, with the sole intention of entertaining and minting money. So, I went in with expectation of being ravaged by utterly nonsensical antics and you know what, it worked. I was actually able to enjoy it. Its like going to a Mithun film with the sole intention of enjoying and laughing at the most idiotic sequences.

I wanted to actually watch this movie which has catapulted the Kingg Kumar to dizzying box office heights. I wanted to know what is the pulse of this nation, and how the director has his finger firmly on it. It's like the director knows that the audience is a bunch of monkeys, so he has aptly dangled a savoury banana. And the monkeys have made a plunge for it, including me :)

About this film. Nothing much to say. Its about this village idiot who goes to Australia to bring back the shame of their village, a Sradaar Don in Australia. In between he meets his lady love, tried best to hand her over to another guy and eventually wins her. The movie works in some sequences because of the brilliance of Ranvir Shourey, Javed Jaffery and ofcourse , Akshay Kumar. The action sequences suck big time , but some comic dialogues and scenes are hillarious. Overall the movie would entertain you, sometimes irritate you and will not even scratch the surface of your brain. If you havent seen the film and want to, go with an open mind (sans the brain ofcourse). The songs would surely help (they are good). And its not crass comedy, its clean.

I have realised that though there is acceptance for some intelligent, serious stuff, the audience by and large wants to go to the theaters and leave their brains behind. Atleast most of it. Mass audience want to laugh at all costs and Bazmee has hit the jackpot.Haah, take that you pseudo intellectuals... I give up...

A social experiment which is thoroughly successful. A nonsensical film that works.

Death Race

2008-08-24T03:18:00.002+05:30

Yes, I have a soft corner for death, blood, explosion and gore on the screen. I love Hollywood action movies.

Yet I can’t speak volumes about this one.

Directed by Paul Anderson, This movie is plotted in future when US is losing its shine and prisons are in private hands. To make money on internet death race is conceived and published and fueled with the right kind of people. The bet is that if a convict win this race 5 times, he can walk free.

Our hero Jensen Ames (Jason Statham) is framed for his wife’s murder to make sure that he takes places of Frankenstein, a celebrated driver who won 4 times, but died.

The concept was good and so was the action. The movie displayed, lot of metal, ammunition and speed, but not once you doubt the win of the “Good over evil”. There is so little imagination used to make the “Heroes” win and “Villains” loose, that it challenges the commonsense.

The mastermind Warden Hennessey (Joan Allen) and her reign of terror seem toothless. They are not listening at points they should be listening and keeping an eye on their pawns while they plot against them. Damn! they don’t even check the presents they get.

My Rating: 2/5

Movie Review: The Dark Knight - Intense but lenghty

2008-07-21T21:17:00.004+05:30

Rating: 6.5 / 10

I would have given it an even better rating if the lenght would be around 15 minutes less. The movie is too intense and too serious to keep you gripped for 2 hours and 30 minutes. When there is so much tension in the air, you need respite, which you get from songs in Hindi movies, but in Batman, you have no such room to breathe. At some point you feel that you have had your fill, but then there is too much on the platter.

The Batman enterprise , reprised by Christopher Nolan, has truly transformed it from its Comical past ( POW, SWISH days) to an almost unbelievably brutal and realistic present. The Joker is not the wicked laughing prankster of the past. He has become a psychopathic, killer with no remorse. He kills, because he enjoys it. He is a terrorist, who has no rules, no boundaries, no reason. And our Batman, is a confused man. He wants to remove the burden of being the Knight in shining armour. He wants to give it to a man with a face ( District Attorney). He has complete faith in the new DA to put the criminals in the cell, and clense Gotham once and for all and he does not dissapoint. Just when our hero decides its time to put in his papers!! Joker strikes... And nothing would be the same, anymore....

Nolan has done an exceptional job in building the momentum in the action sequences. Rather than using a lot of noise, he has used silence. The editing in this film is phenomenal. Complex, but very well done. The gadgets, the acting is par excellance and will keep you gasping for more in a few sequences. But its too lenghty. I was losing my patience in between. There are too many plots and twists and the movie keeps going on and on. The momentum that it gathers before the interval, is not maintained post it. The slick editing does help it though....

Finally , hats off to Heath Ledger. What an awesome performance. You would simply love his performance, be it the maniacal laugh to the one liners like "Why so serious?" "Lets put a smile on that face"... 3 cheers....

Go for it, because you will get more than you pay for,, but maybe slightly a little more than you would want or need or desire.....

Movie Review : HANCOCK - Wasted opportunity...

2008-07-13T23:17:00.006+05:30

RATING: 4 /10

Normally, I wudnt dare write a review, when Priti ji has already written one (her review). But I have made an exception because I had to say something about this movie. It has made enormous first week collections, but I think things would start going down hill from the next week onwards, cos quiet frankly this movie doesnt work. You would probably come out of the theater wondering how the hell could a director let the movie go so wayyyyy out of hand!

What an amazing plot... A detested super hero.. A Drunkard, egotistical, destructive super-hero, who saves a life of a PR agent, who in turn helps our hero improve his social image. So far so good. But then there is a twist in the story, which makes you feel, the movie is gonna go up a few notches post interval. Unfortunately, it drops to level zero.. Infact, it crash lands...

I have to try really really hard to understand in what hour of utter insanity, did the story writer come up with such a dreadful twist in the storyline! Doesnt work bro! Aboslutely not... Infact it does not even make sense.

Technically, visually the movie is amazing. Will Smith revels as John Hancock and Charlize Theron sizzles on screen. Some dialogues and the comedy in the first half is good. But the main villian of this film is its story! Also, there is no novelty left in the character after this film, so I dont see how this franchise could have a sequel. Its better if we just leave this experiment as a hopeless one and move to better things .. Like the Dark Knight or HULK and Iron man coming together! I specially am hard on this movie because it had enormous potential, with such an amazing character at hand, but they completely goofed it up!

Movie Review: Kung Fu Panda - Simply "Fat"abulous....

2008-07-13T00:35:00.007+05:30

Genre: Animated

Rating: 7 / 10

Dreamworks..Works like a Dream. Maybe they havent had the box office success as Pixar, but their work is at par. Shrek, of Dreamworks, is amongst my top 2 animated films, after Ice Age. Its become impossible to distinguish Animated movies on their quality of animation, because these 2 studios have almost perfected their art. With the level of precision and detailing, they have virtually created an alternate - beautiful and magical universe, which seems as real as ours.

Kung Fu Panda is amazing. The animation is fantabulous, which goes without saying. What makes is even more spectacular is the storyline and the dialogues. Its funny, witty and extremely engaging. Its about this "Fat" Panda who lives in china and sells noodles, untill he is chosen as the "THE ONE" who will destroy the greatest villian alive. You got the see the fight sequences to believe them. Seriously - awesome. Our hero cant even climb 5 steps without panting, let alone do KUNG FU. Its about how he starts believing in himself and how he finally defeats his nemesis! hehehehe.. its very funny!

I suggest , log on to the website of a theater and book a ticket "Turant- fauran- abhich- now" hehehehe.. I am still laughing.. He is so cute :) Go get Po! .. I mean .. oN yOUR mARK, gET sET PO!!!!

Journey to the Centre of the Earth

2008-07-12T12:41:00.003+05:30

Dear MovieMaker Sir,

I totally understand that making a sci-fi movie is very costly now a days. The state of art equipment, technology and graphics is a necessity in such movies and they don’t come cheap. But you still need to engage and pay a scriptwriter to write a plot for your movie.

Regards,
Disgruntled Viewer

The movie is the about journey of a scientist to the center of the earth with his nephew and a mountain guide. He has lost his brother already in such a mission.

There is nothing scientific or even logical about the movie, unlike Jurassic Park. The sequence of events is very lame. The hero directly lands in his brother’s abode in the center of the earth. And the place is calm enough for some emotions and romance, sporadic entries of flying fishes, dinosaurs, carnivorous plants do take place…but nothing to take your breath away though the hero does get to remove the sleeves of his shirt and show some muscles.

I am not sure how small is the center of the earth but may be its as big as a mall because characters seem to be meeting and getting lost at will.

The only plot of the movie that I could figure out was to show that the journey to the center of the earth is almost smooth, at your convenience/will and u get rich, so everyone should give it a shot…

HELP !! Scriptwriter!!!

My ratings: 1/5

Review: Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Naa - A decent start....

2008-07-06T17:10:00.004+05:30

Rating : 5.5 /10

Bollywood with its new wave of cinema is making me really happy. These movies are working and hence more and more directors are being courageous and coming up with movies far from the convention. And in between all of this, Abbas Tyrewala has gone back to the basics. This movie has a story which has been milked dry by bollywood. Its about the lead couple being the best of friends, confused about their love for each other and finally they realise what fools they were , so marry. Nothing new, fresh about it. But what is fresh is the look, the treatment, the music, the actors and thats the plus point of this movie.

I am in Chennai and I went to see this film, without any hope of getting a ticket. Fortunately for me , I got a ticket in black. I must tell you, the crowd in chennai and their passion , their involvement in this movie was unbelievable. The movie is timepass, but because of the crowd my enjoyment was amplified manyfold.

Technicaly the movie is good, in most aspects. The music is specially youthful and stays true to the image of the movie. The acting is strong from the veteran's like Ratna Pathak Shah, Naseer(Cameo), Paresh Rawal etc as well as the new comer Imran and south Indian success story Genelia.

In movies where the story is simple, the emphasis is on the screen play, the dialogues, the scene sequences and Abas Tyrewala has done a decent job on all of these. Hence the movie is enjoyable.

Not very good,its cliched but its decent. But because of the songs, the performances , this movie becomes enjoyable and in addition if u get a truly involved crowd in the theater, u will have a ball! Go for it and get your moneys worth.

Get Smart

2008-07-06T14:44:00.003+05:30

Movie is about an analyst , Maxwell Smart who yearns to be a field agent and when he is made one, in dearth of other field agents. He is not the best but saves the earth with his beautiful partner Agent 99.

It’s an action comedy which is not a spoof. There are more unpredictable scenes then of predictable ones and definitely plenty of reason for a heartfelt laugh. The scene where Max dance, the tree agent, the emotional conquering of bad guy, escape to Los Angeles and the final bow, all makes this cliché movie… special.

Steve Carell gives a great performance, by not attempting to do comedy at any point of time. Anne Hathaway looks gorgeous. Other characters like chief, Bruce, agent 23 make this movie a good comedy.

My Rating: 3.5/5 (I seldom laugh so hard in movie halls)

Hancock : Worth A Watch

2008-07-06T13:31:00.005+05:30

A truly different superhero movie. shocked??? How different can be a superhero movie???.
This movie is about a Hancock; a superhero with a bad tongue, alcohol issues and an uncanny habit of irritating people. When he fights crime, government object to the expenses/damages and when he save lives, people tell him better ways to do it. A PR guys come into picture to get him a change of image and deserved respect….

Will Smith rocks and so does Jason Bateman and Charlize Theron. You will watch this movie not for action or laughs but just because it takes you so much by surprise. All batman, superman and spiderman seem forgettable in front of it.

Some people may despise the extra drama added towards the end of this otherwise fun movie…but definitely worth a watch.

My Rating:3/5