Movie Review - PK

I have always been a huge fan of Hirani’s films, but this was different, fizzled out even before it began. Movie reviewers almost in unison have rated it five and above. A section of the media including Tweeter and facebook tried to give it a communal angle, accusing Hirani of targeting a particular religion and not all. I disagree with both, somewhat with the first but completely with the second.

The movie does not in any way approach even closer to the Raj Kumar Hirani genre that we are used to, at least in its intellectual capacity.

A great subject needs great intellectual muscles to carry it and it’s here that Hirani has failed miserably. The movie does not have the intellectual muscle to carry the bold subject that it starts with and every 10 minutes you feel like the subject gets drowned under the weight of some compulsions, societal, political or whatever.

Hiani starts with challenging religion itself, no doubt a really bold topic for the Indian audience, but very soon you realize that Hirani prefers to go the Buddha way and treks the middle path. He ends up challenging godmen instead. Godmen have been challenged every now and then, so what’s the new thing Hirani?

Not a single punch line or dialogue worth remembering. Not a single takeaway from this movie. Amir khan acts an alien, but could have definitely done better. Was he autistic or alien, you don’t seem to conclude at least seeing the way he acts.

The script is tight; no problem with the screenplay, just that Hirani did not have the guts to carry on with the theme that he started with. The film is a big hit, has already made records but that is not the point. Today even Prabudeva’s films make records. You need to stand out Hirani.

Let not the Hirani factor miss in your films MR Rajkumar Hirani!

Filmistaan - Movie Review

Much has been said, written and filmed about India and Pakistan. For a change let us discuss Indians and Pakistanis today – people in flesh and blood and people with a heart! This in essence is the crux of Filmistaan and hats off to Nitin Kakkar for being honest to the storyline and bringing out this message so effectively. If this movie experience has to be described in one sentence it would simply be “you just can’t afford to give it a miss’.

An extremely sensitive plot and a tighter script when collude with larger than life performances you can’t expect anything less than a magic. The movie with a comical humor delves into the complex topic of creation of artificial boundaries over a set of people and making these people believe that they are two different entities with nothing in common. 

Filmistaan is a welcome break from the earlier stereo type narrations on similar plots - movies intending to create unnecessary jingoism. The filmmakers in the past have either ended up taking sides or fallen prey to the unnecessary and unwanted call for nationalism especially in sequences when it was not required. Even a biopic like Bhag Milkha Bhag couldn’t escape that. This movie however, treads cautiously into this sensitive realm, sticks to the storyline and ends up making story as the real hero. No wonder the movie has already bagged awards in international forums. Filmistan also goes on to prove that if you honest to your storyline you can still grab eyeballs and mint money at the box office. The preliminary reports do suggest that the movie is a hit.

Here’s a movie that forces you to rethink on the cultural continuity between India and Pakistan and how movies as art forms have bridged the artificial hiatus created by history. The name Filmistaan definitely has relevance here. Hindustan, Pakistan might be two separate entities but Filmistaan is a common entity that binds together both the regions and their people with films serving as the crucial bonding element between the two.

Sunny (Sharib Hashmi) is a happy-go-lucky fellow who always dreams of making it big in films someday. As part of an American crew he lands up in Rajasthan for a documentary shoot and in a case of mistaken identity is kidnapped and brought to Pakistan as a captive. Aftab (Imanullah) is a petty Pakistani villager who makes money by selling pirated Indian movie Cds in Pakistan. 

Aftab is himself a great movie buff and finds a true friend in Sunny - of course the passion for films in both serves as the boding element. Aftab fights all odds to help Sunny escape back to India. The movie ends on a note where Sunny and Aftab are about to cross the border with cross firing from both sides. The back ground music stops and then we hear the voice-over of Nehru in chaste Anglicized accent proclaiming the freedom in India and so does Jinnah in Pakistan. The message is loud and clear! Independence was for the ruling class!

The dialogues especially those referring to the common elements between the two countries are definitely food for thought. The madarsa trained Pakistani jihadi unnerves your spine when he narrates his story of how he became a jihadi. “Madarse me panch waqt nawaaz to tha par do waqt ki roti naseeb nahi thi.”

The movie definitely raises questions on the sad state of affairs on the villages of the border and how these villagers are left at the mercy of either the jihadis or the security forces. Another interesting and unique thing about this movie that definitely deserves a mention is that it doesn’t have a lead or even a secondary female cast in the whole movie. This should definitely be an eye opener for those filmmakers who believe that movies in India can’t work without a lead female actor or an item number.

Heropanti - Movie Review

A romantic movie that revolves around the social evil of honor killing - still rampant in certain parts of North Western India - and to make it a launch pad for a star son is by no means simple. And in this regard the director Sabbir Khan of “Kamakht Ishq” fame needs a round of applause. He has been able to do this in a quite lucid yet very convincing manner.

Ask your wife a simple question, “Who loves you more, you as the husband or her father?” She will “always” say her father. And you live with this hard truth forever. Heropanti boldly touches upon this complex love quotient with a dramatic yet convincing feel. The emotion of a father whose daughter has eloped with her lover is pitched against the emotion of the lover himself with his new found love in this “Father’s daughter”. This comparison of love quotient – one between father daughter and the other between daughter and her lover both from the male perspective is interesting. A subject that generally the film makers in India have not touched upon so far!

The film has to be watched or missed, re-watched or re-missed on only one count - Tiger Shroff. This new lad on the horizon is a complete star material – one who has dashing looks, dances well, and prefers to do his own stunts. In a nutshell Tiger has in him everything that makes a perfect star but misses slightly on one front – acting. Maybe we can spare him this time and wait for his next release to see his acting skills. Looks like, the weak script too was a reason that restrained him to come out with his emotions well on screen. For a debutant actor I would prefer to give him full credit for the movie, even with a weak script Tiger has pulled off the movie well all along his own shoulders.

The plot is simple! Choudhary’s (Prakas Raj) daughter Renu has eloped with her lover and Choudhary is out on the hunt for the couple along with his goons. Choudhary soon realizes that Babloo (Tiger Shroff) had helped the couple, so Babloo is taken captive and brought to the khap village. It’s here that Babloo falls in love with Choudhary’s second daughter Dimpy (Kriti Sanon). Romance unfolds in a melodrama leading to a series of fight sequences and ultimately Choudhary realizes that Babloo’s love for Dimpy was no less than his own love for his daughter. In a dramatic climax, Choudhary relents and gives the hands of his daughter to Babloo.

Prakash Raj as expected is the backbone of the movie and does it with a good mix of action, emotion and humor. The dance sequences are awesome. Tiger definitely seems to have done his homework well. The music especially the flute tune from Hero (Jackie Shroff’s debut movie) has a nostalgic feel. The movie has good action sequences and cheesy dialogues:

Tiger Shroff on Heropanti: “Kya karu kisi ko aati nahi aur meri jaati nahi”

“Jo dost kaminey nahi hote wo kaminey dost nahi hote.”

The movie falls flat on certain counts. The intensity of romance is nowhere to be seen. The body chemistry between the lead pair doesn’t seem to work well and this is quite obvious on the screen. Also on emotional dialogues Tiger looks hesitant and a novice. The script offers little for Kriti Sanon and nowhere has she tried to go beyond it.

On a final note you can give it a watch for Tiger Shroff if not for anything else. He’s definitely a star in the making.

Movie Review - 2 States

The story need not have a hero, but the story should be the hero. The male protagonist who is an aspiring writer airily declares this to his girlfriend just when the movie begins. This was a strong statement to generate some interest and curiosity for the story but to my utter dismay even after the movie ended I could not find the story there forget that being the hero.

I am not a huge fan of Chetan Bhagat's genre of story telling, honestly I have not read his stories. Not that I didn't want to, I tried few times but his novels have always failed me as reader. Most of the times I couldn't go beyond the first twenty, twenty five pages. This movie was no different. Two States could still have worked with a strong screenplay as it did in 3 Idiots, but it was almost non existent here.

A north Indian boy falls for a south Indian girl, both study together in girl's hostel room, jump into bed quite a few times before realizing that they are in love. The melodrama follows wherein each take turns to bridge the north south divide, they meet through the stumbling blocks, overcome them and eventually get married.

But hey, give me a break! A North Indian Punjabi is not just about alcohol and a South Indian Brahmin is not just about banana leaves and sambhar. The film makers in India as also the story tellers watch out, its time to come up with more realistic and creative cultural depictions now.

The movie moves at a snail's pace in the first half and then stops moving completely in the second half. Especially in the second half, there were many sequences where the film could have ended with ease.

The wow factors in the film are few, Arjun Kapoor is good, Alia falls flat, her plastic smile either during intimate scenes on bed or on serious moments during the cross cultural conflicts, is irritating. She has proved her acting talent earlier in Highway, but here fizzles out completely.

Song and dance sequences are good. The rock solid performances by Ronit Roy, Amrita Singh, and Revathy have to a great extent compensated for the weak screenplay most of the times.

My ultimate take on the movie is that, if you are not a die hard fan of Chetan Bhagat's genre of story narration, a CD experience of the movie should be fine. Save your theater experience for the upcoming releases, there are some really good ones coming up later this month.

Movie Review - Gunday

Gunday

Old wine in new bottle but the wine is awesome. The movie vaguely reminds you of the eternal friendship between Jai and Viru in Sholay as also it has coincident sequences in resemblance to Mujhse Shaadi Karogi wherein both Akshay Kumar and Salman Khan fall for the same girl.

The storyline is compact keeps the sequences tightly woven around the script. Movie starts with the historical horror of Bangladesh creation and the subsequent plight in the refugee camps wherein Bikram (Ranbeer Singh) and Baala (Arjun Kapoor) as kids first get the taste of crime and eventually Kolkata bears the brunt of their criminal mindset.

Bikram and Baala carve out an empire for themselves and rule Kolkata for sometime before Priyanka Chopra comes into their lives and gives a new twist to the tale. Her simplicity and audacity impress both and eventually both Bikram and Baala realize that they are madly in love with Priyanka.

The sequences pertaining to the friendship chemistry between Bikram and Baala are quite engaging and the fact that both these guys are friends  in real life too, shows up on screen. Their queer attempts to woo Priyanka is definitely worth a watch and kudos to all three for giving a powerful performance in this regard. Eventaully Priyanka chooses one, dumps the other, misunderstanding between the friends follow leading to an all out rivalry. ACP Satyajeet Sarkaar's (Irfan Khan) power pact performance adds gravity to the movie without whom of course Gunday would have fallen into a comedy genre.

The movie captures some of the best locations in Kolkata, worth the mention is the Howrah Bridge which is always there in the background. Bikram has matured as an actor and exudes confidence in his act while Baala tries to catch up with him and at times even surpasses him. Ranbeer Singh has already established himself as a star while Arjun  Kapoor looks quite promising, will definitely go a long way.

The movie has in it all the masala for a typical Bollywood hit. Both Ranbeer and Arjun have delivered superb performance, while Priyanka Chopra though under acts her age yet at no point of time does she let her audience down.

If you a true Bollywood buff, have an apetite for masala movies, Gunday is a sure shot paisa wasool.

Movie Review - Shaadi Ke Side Effects

Shaadi Ke Side Effects

 

 

 

There are two ways to look at this movie - first as a sequel to Pyaar Ke Side Effects wherein Mallika Sheravat and Rahul Bose morph into Vidya Baalan and Farhaan Akhtar. It took Saket Choudhary almost eight years to move ahead of "Pyaar" leading to "Shaadi" and the side effects there after. As a sequel, this movie literally moves a step ahead and keeps the audience engaged.

The other way to look at this movie is to think of it as a stand alone comedy that encompasses the nitty-gritty of daily life in a married couple's life and the ensuing drama that unfolds once the kid comes into the picture. Quite a realistic portrayal this movie has been, and I am sure for those couples who have recently become parents, this movie would appear to be an actual story of their own lives.

A power packed performance by Vidya and Farhaan, this movie keeps the audience engaged till the very end. Though for every reason the movie could have ended much before. While the first half has loads to sequences and punches tightly woven in the script, the second half appears loose and drags on for quite sometime.

The message of the movie is strong and Saket Choudhary has been quite successful in bringing that out through a mix of comic and realistic portrayals. The "me" time that men look for after marriage is actually a mirage, the closer you get to it, the farther it goes. For women too priorities change, so there's no point cribbing over trivial issues - this in essence is the mantra for a successful married life.

Overall, if you have already watched Pyaar Ke Side Effects, or if you are recently married or moreso if you recently became a parent, you cant just afford to miss this movie. Trust me ,you will come out of the theater wiser than before.

Movie Review - Bewakoofiyaan

Bewakoofiyaan

 

 

 

An extraordinarily brilliant movie with rock solid performance by Mohit Chaddha (Ayushman Khurana) and the ever beauty diva Myra (Sonam Kapur). A romantic comedy genre that has its element of high and low in the romance.

The ongoing chemistry between the two goes on until Mohit who works in the aviation industry bears the brunt of recession and is fired from the job. Things move on well for sometime with Myra trying to support Mohit financially and as expected differences grow up between them. Myra tries to concentrate on her career while Mohit tries hard to get a job but in vain.

The strong comic timing of V K Saigal (Rishi Kapur) a Dilli Babu and Myra's dad keeps the story engaging especially in times when conflicts erupt between the love birds.

Towards the end Myra and Mohit realize that they are actually made for each other and status and money differential could not keep them apart. A very compelling dialogue by Ayushman that sums up the message of the film

" Agar status aur paise dekh kar muhabbat hone lage to hum jaisa fakkad to kabhi muhabbat kar hi nahi payenge"

Overall, its a good movie, go and watch it in a theater, its worth the money.

Movie Review - Highway

Highway

 

 

Yet another master piece from Imtiaz Ali. As the writer director Imtiaz Ali successfully portrays on the celluloid what his actual thought was. Another great achievement of Imtiaz Ali is his ability to bring out the best from Alia. I am sure this movie will be remembered for one of the best performances by Alia Bhatt.

Beauty and the beast theme has always worked, will always work. Thats what human emotions are all about. The beauty (Alia Bhatt) discovers her true freedom only when she is kidnapped and as time unfolds she is madly in love with the beast (Randeep Hooda). Randeep Hooda is a stud, Alia comes as a surprise, terrific performance. 

The movie boldly touches upon incest relationships apparent in affluent societies. Also if you are a lover of Himalayas, this movie is a must watch. Its been shot in some of the best locations in our very own Devbhoomi Himachal! 

In a nut shell you cant just afford to miss this movie. Just go for it!

Movie Review - Hansee to Phansee

Hansee to Phansee

 

 

A typical romantic comedy that ends up on a happy note. Nikhli (Siddharta Malhotra)is a typical Indian guy who believes that love can happen only once and no matter what you should not let it go. His girlfriend Karishma (Adah Sharma) is pretty much demanding but Nikhil always tries to please her and give in to her tantrums.

Meanwhile Nikhil meets Meeta (Parineeti Chopra) who is a geek and unaware of the fact that Meeta is Karishma's sister develops a soft corner for her as she struggles with her addiction to drugs.

As time unfolds the chemistry brews between Nikhil and Meeta and both of them realize that they complete each other. Yes the climax is what you expected, Nikhil is madly in love with Meeta and they tie the knot in the same mandap which was decorated for Karishma.

The pace of the film is smooth, Parineeti comes up with a power packed performance. She is definitely the show stealer and carrier the whole film on her shoulder with ease. If not for anything else this movie is definitely a must watch to see the acting caliber of Parineeti. Kudos Parineeti, keep it up.