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.