Movie Review: Nanu Ki Jaanu
The success of GOLMAAL AGAIN has shown that horror comedies have immense potential in India. Now Faraz Haider, who last made a war comedy WAR CHOD NA YAAR [2013] attempts with this genre fusion in NANU KI JAANU. So does NANU KI JAANU follow in the footsteps of GOLMAAL AGAIN and provide humour and horror in ample doses? Or does it fail on both the fronts? Let’s analyse
NANU KI JAANU is the story of a ghost that falls in love with a crook. Nanu (Abhay Deol) is a small time goon who works with Dabbu (Manu Rishi Chadha). Their modus operandi is to rent a flat and then threaten the landlord to transfer the ownership in their name. One day, Nanu is returning home when he sees that Siddhi (Patralekhaa) has met with an accident. He refuses to be a bystander and takes her to the hospital. Siddhi is barely conscious but she sees Nanu helping her and she falls for him. Unfortunately, she passes away as soon as she is brought in the hospital. Nanu gets disturbed by the episode. Soon he realizes that the spirit of Siddhi has followed him to his posh residence in Noida. With no other option in hand, he finds out the address of Siddhi's father (Rajesh Sharma) and meets him. But even that doesn’t help. He then approaches a ghost buster (Shreya Narayan) but it ends up in a disaster. To make things worse, Nanu loses interest in his illegal work and as a result their source of livelihood is in danger. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
NANU KI JAANU is a remake of a Tamil film PISAASU and is written by Mysskin. The adaptation by Manu Rishi Chadha is very poor. Manu Rishi Chadha’s screenplay is very weak and only a few moments stand out.
NANU KI JAANU doesn’t have a great beginning but one hopes for things to get better as the film progresses. The sequence where Siddhi is dying but is looking at Nanu lovingly could have gone wrong but is handled well. The film has some nice moments once the ghost starts to harass Nanu. The scene where Dabbu gets hung upside down by the spirit brings the house down. The intermission point is intriguing. But shockingly, the film goes completely downhill in the second half. The narrative goes haywire. The last 30 minutes of the film are bizarre to say the least and it’s going to raise questions as to how the script got approved in the first place.
Manu Rishi Chadha’s dialogues are funny at places but they fall flat in many scenes. The dialogues get tacky in the finale. Faraz Haider’s direction is ineffective. He already had a weak plot in hand and his poor direction further messes up things. In the second half, he completely loses control. Even before the shockingly pathetic climax, he has done weird things like putting an intense chase sequence in a romantic song!
Abhay Deol sleepwalks for most of the part but suits the role and is overall decent. He is known to be a thinking actor and has a credible track record. Hence it comes as a jolt to see him in such a bad film. Patralekhaa is shockingly hardly there in the film, maybe for around 10 minutes. Her performance is okay. Manu Rishi Chadha is funny and provides the much needed humour quotient. Rajesh Sharma is quite genuine even when he’s made to perform some very embarrassing scenes. Himani Shivpuri (Nanu's mother) is fair. Brijendra Kala (Mr Kumar) is nice in the intro scene but then hardly has anything to do. Shreya Narayan's scenes are a bit overboard but funny but she does well as per the characters requirement. Spandan Chaturvedi (Phantom) plays a difficult role with ease. Manoj Pahwa gets to play an unusual role and is quite good. Others like Gayatri (Shefalii Rana), Gurmeet Singh (Yahoo), Sameer Siddiqui (domestic abuser), Adithi Kalkunthe (domestic abuser’s wife), Mahendra Shrivas (kachauri seller), Ganesh Kumar (watchman), Chirag Sethi (Con man in building lobby), Kunickaa Sadanand (Mrs Nandi), Tarana Kaur (psychiatrist) and Reshma Khan (Promila) are good. Sapna Choudhary is alright in the item song.
The music of the movie is forgettable. ‘Tere Thumke’ catches attention while ‘Bhoot Aaya’ fails to register impact. Other songs like ‘Tujhe Dekhti Hai Nazar’, ‘Kali Choti’ and ‘Jai Mata Di’ are also poor. Dhruv Dhalla’s background score is needlessly loud.
S R Sathish Kumar’s cinematography is nothing special. Boishali Sinha’s production design is passable. Sunil Rodrigues’s action and Manan Ajay Sagar’s editing are okay.
On the whole, NANU KI JAANU is an extremely poor show. At the box office, it will be a huge disaster.
Movie Review: AVENGERS - INFINITY WAR (English)
Making a film that spans not just two or three characters but instead features a multitude of characters, more precisely 76 of them is feat in itself. Well, the latest offering from Marvel in the form of the highly anticipated and keenly awaited AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR is exactly that. An unprecedented cinematic journey ten years in the making and spanning the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel Studios' AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR brings to the screen the ultimate, deadliest showdown of all time. Given the immense hype for the film and the massive fan following each superhero character has developed over the decade long saga, it is a no brainer that the film will be a sure shot money spinner at the box office. However, we at Bollywood Hungama dissect the film to tell you why this one should definitely be on your must watch list.
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR starts off with the Avengers and their allies continuing to protect the world from threats too large for any one hero to handle. But, a new danger has emerged from the cosmic shadows: Thanos. A despot of intergalactic infamy, his goal is to collect all six Infinity Stones, artefacts of unimaginable power, and use them to inflict his twisted will on all of reality. Everything the Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment - the fate of Earth and existence itself has never been more uncertain. Faced with dire consequences, the Avengers and their Super Hero allies must be willing to sacrifice all in an attempt to defeat the powerful Thanos before his blitz of devastation and ruin puts an end to the universe. Going into the film you are inundated with tags like ‘epic film’, ‘not to miss spectacle’ and ‘definite must watch’ that are often used to promote and hype big ticket summer releases. In the case of AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR each one of these tags hold true. Believe the hype, this film that features all of the Marvel superhero characters that have been introduced so far and some that are yet to be seen does full justice to what a Marvel film should be.
The film starts off where the last Marvel film THOR: RAGNAROK left off with the Asgardian brothers Thor and Loki heading off on a spaceship. Thanos accosts their convoy laying waste their craft eventually acquiring the Space stone that was housed in the Tessaract. Defeated and left for dead, Thor teams up with the Guardians of the Galaxy who arrive at the location following a distress beacon. On a parallel track, learning of Thanos’ evil plan, Bruce Banner AKA The Hulk makes his way back to earth arriving (read crashing) at Doctor Strange’s lair. Once there, he teams up with Strange and Tony Stark after detailing what he has learnt. With the location of five of the six power stones that Thanos is after being known, Earth’s mightiest defenders team up to formulate a plan to stop the mad titan and save not just Earth but half the universe. Whether they succeed or fall victim to the tyranny of Thanos is what makes up the rest of AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR.
Given Marvel’s penchant for larger than life cinematic experiences, expectations from AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR is high, and the film lives up to each and every bit of hype. Naturally, the special effects and visuals as you would expect are top notch and seamlessly woven into the film. However, the high point of the film has to be its direction. In fact, the Russo brothers are faced with the mammoth task of telling a one line story that involves a multitude of characters and parallel story lines in a coherent way without confusing the viewers. In this regard it's fair to say that the Russo brothers have gone above and beyond in narrating the film interweaving each individual story line with the main plot of the film developing a stellar piece of beautiful filmmaking amid an ocean of chaos.
Coupled with the marvellous direction is the spot on Editing that keeps the film crisp and edgy. Keeping up with the rapid progression on screen, the editing is fast paced and seamless in effect enhancing the story telling ability of the directors. If that wasn’t all, the Background Score of the film plays well with the narrative building up the anticipation for each climactic battle sequence. Besides this, a special mention needs to be made for the writing team who have done a brilliant job of detailing each character while at the same time not making the depiction too heavy or lengthy. In fact, Thanos too has been well detailed, from his mannerisms to his methods each and every aspect lends to the viewer understanding the tyrannical titan and his motivations.
Performance wise, each of the members of the cast have gone the extra mile to bring to life the larger than life characters battling a cataclysmic evil. Though with the number of cast members this segment alone deserves a stand alone post, suffice to say that each and everyone from Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark AKA Iron Man to Chris Evans as Captain America, from Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow to Zoe Saldana as Gamora and from Chris Pratt as Star Lord to Tom Holland as Spider Man each have brought in their own charm. However, it is Josh Brolin as Thanos who steals the show. With a character that has been worked upon the most, Brolin does full justice in depicting the power hungry evil overlord.
All in all, AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR is every bit an EPIC action film with amazing and fast paced action sequences. From featuring an engrossing story line to a well-defined and AWESOME villain, this film has it all, proving that the 10 year long, 18 film build up that leads to climactic surprise ridden visually extravagant end was well worth the wait.
Watch it on the BIG SCREEN. Do not miss it!
Movie Review: 102 Not Out
“Age is just a number” is a very old adage and many people swear by it. Despite their growing age, they prefer to keep the child inside them alive. The rest on the other hand feel that it’s better to come to terms with the old age and all the complications associated with it. R Balki handled this aspect beautifully in 2007 in CHEENI KUM wherein Amitabh Bachchan’s character at 64 was all set to get married while his to-be father-in-law, essayed by Paresh Rawal, was younger than his to-be son-in-law and was all set to become a ‘senior citizen’. Amitabh now gets into a kind of a similar zone with 102 NOT OUT. So does it turn out to be an ideal family entertainer? Or does it fail to evoke fun and madness?
102 NOT OUT is an unusual story of a father and a son. Dattatraya Vakharia (Amitabh Bachchan) is a healthy old man at the ripe age of 102. He’s full of life and aims to live for 16 more years to break the record of the oldest man alive on Earth. His son Babulal (Rishi Kapoor) meanwhile is around 75 and has lost interest in life. Dattatraya is unable to tolerate the negativity oozed by Babulal with regards to old age, death etc. and decides to become the first father ever to admit his son in an old-age home. Babulal is naturally shocked and livid at this decision of his father and he protests. Dattatraya, as a result, decides to put few conditions in front of Babulal that he needs to fulfill if he wants to stay in their sprawling bungalow. As Dattatraya starts to fulfill these conditions, he becomes more and more excited and child-like. But few of the conditions also require Babulal to confront some of the past demons, which is going to be a challenge. What happens next forms the rest of the story.
The opening credits of the film are creative, showcasing some of the important landmarks of Mumbai, many of which are also a part of the film’s narrative. The introduction of all the 3 important characters – Dattatraya, Babulal and Dhiru (Jimit Trivedi) is quite funny and makes for a nice watch. The film is just 102 minutes long and hence, no time is wasted. The film comes right on track after the quick introduction and it’s hilarious to see Dattatraya trying to get his son admitted into an old age home. The sequence where he reads Babulal’s love letter raises lots of laughs. From here, the film slips a bit as the direction is a bit disjointed. But the film picks up slightly with the church sequence as a new angle is introduced at this point. Post-interval, this angle gets a lot of prominence and that’s where the film gets emotional. The sequence where Dattatraya narrates a terrible ordeal from their lives is heart-wrenching but also one of the best sequences of the film. The climax is clap worthy and also puts a smile on one’s face. But in this process, the humour that one would expect after watching the funny promos of the film, might feel a bit let down as the second half is very serious, with very few laughs.
Saumya Joshi’s story is novel, touching and gives a very important message. Saumya Joshi’s screenplay is effective, for most of the parts, but is too quick and slightly incoherent in the first half. For instance, the manner in which the film’s tone gets too emotional in the sequence when Babulal enters the park with the aeroplane is too quick and catches viewers unaware. Saumya Joshi’s dialogues however keep the fun and interest going and at places, are also quite acidic. Umesh Shukla’s direction is simple and neat. He struggles at a few places in the first half, but overall, he manages to leave a mark and ensure that viewers are moved and have laughed in equal measures. 102 NOT OUT is adapted from a Gujarati play by the same name, directed by Saumya Joshi, and Umesh manages to get it on celluloid very well. At a few places, it does give you a feeling of a play but no complaints as such since the content is strong!
Amitabh Bachchan is in a great form yet again and delivers an outstanding performance. It’s amusing and endearing to see him playing a centenarian and still preferring to live life to the fullest. Even in the emotional scenes, he shines a lot. His Gujarati accent comes out well, but it’s not too in-your-face. Rishi Kapoor also puts his best foot forward and gets completely into the skin of his character. It’s nice to see him as an uptight senior citizen and his gradual transformation is also lovely. His best act is definitely in a crucial emotional sequence in the second half where he mouths no dialogues but communicates a lot simply through his expressions and eyes. Jimit Trivedi whose debut in BHOOL BULAIYAA (2007) was much talked about gives a yet another bravura performance. He also contributes a lot to the fun and emotional quotient of the film. Dharmendra Gohil (Amol) is decent in the lone sequence.
Salim-Sulaiman’s music is hardly memorable. 'Bachche Ki Jaan' and ‘Kulfi’ both are played in the background and go well with the narrative. ‘Badumbaa’ is missing from the film. George Joseph’s background score however is quite exhilarating. Laxman Utkar’s cinematography is decent and the exterior shots of Mumbai are well captured. Bodhaditya Banerjee’s editing is slick, at times too quick, but overall fair. It’s commendable that a film with the title of 102 NOT OUT is actually 102 minutes long and kudos to the editor for managing it. Mansi Dhruv Mehta’s production design is appealing – the mansion looks quite rich. Veera Kapur Ee’s costume stylist is first-rate. The review would be incomplete without the mention of Preetisheel Singh’s make up, hair and prosthetics. She gives a great look to both the veteran actors which also turns out to be the film’s USP.
On the whole, 102 NOT OUT is a complete family entertainer with strong emotions as its trump card. It carries an important message for today’s times. At the box office, it will have a strong word of mouth and families are bound to flock to watch it in theatres. Recommended!
Movie Review: Omerta
Terrorism is arguably the biggest threat to humanity and every major country is at their wits end on how to eradicate it completely. It’s no surprise that in Bollywood as well in Hollywood, plenty of films have been made that talk about terror attacks and other related aspects. Talking specifically about Bollywood, some very interesting flicks have tackled terrorism like DIL SE [1998], BLACK FRIDAY [2007], NEW YORK [2009], A WEDNESDAY [2008], THE ATTACKS OF 26/11 [2013], FANAA [2006], FIZA [2000], PHANTOM [2015] etc to name a few. Hansal Mehta now brings up OMERTA and this film promises to stand out from the rest as it talks about one of the most dangerous terrorists of the world. So does OMERTA manage to shock and awe? Or does it fail in its endeavour? Let’s analyze.
OMERTA is the story of Omar Saeed Sheikh and how he emerged as one of the forces to reckon with. Omar Saeed Sheikh (Rajkummar Rao) is British-born who gets affected with the way Muslims got butchered in the Bosnian war in 1994. At first, he joins the local protest with like-minded individuals. It’s at this point that he’s offered a chance to go one level up in this field and he agrees. After an intense training session, he arrives in Delhi and assumes the identity of Rohit Verma. He befriends a foreigner named Rhys Patridge and his friends and then kidnaps them to send a message to the world that the Whites are not safe. However, this act of Omar leads to his arrest. He gets released in 1999 along with two other terrorists in exchange for the hostages of the Indian Airlines that was hijacked from Nepal. What happens next and how Omar rises in the world of terrorism is what the film is all about.
OMERTA gets into a very unconventional zone right from the word ‘Go’. From the manner in which the introduction and lead character is established to the non-linear narrative, a lot of aspects in this film don’t follow the norms. One of the most memorable sequences of the film has to be the kidnappings of foreigners in Delhi. The way Omar befriends them with his smooth talk in British accent looks absolutely real. One can actually feel that anybody else in the place of the foreigner would have fallen for it. In a way, it also helps viewers delves into the minds of these terrorists and how they are ready to go to any length for their endeavour. The entire Daniel Pearl episode is also engaging, and chilling. On the flipside, the unconventional narrative does make it difficult to digest things. There’s no message as such in the film and one really wishes that Omar’s fall or the fact that Omar regretting to choose this line of work is shown. Moreover, Omar’s contribution in the 26/11 terror attacks is only briefly put forward. The makers should have explored this angle more as it’s quite shocking.
Actor Mukul Dev has written the story and it’s definitely interesting and novel. Dialogues are sharp. Hansal Mehta’s screenplay is terrific, especially in Delhi kidnappings and Daniel Pearl episode. But otherwise, it’s decent to even shaky at places. The film suffers a bit as a result of this inconsistency. Same goes for Hansal Mehta’s direction – he has handled the angle of Omar’s relationship with his father well. It makes an important comment how family’s silence can also play a role in their children going the wrong way. He also nicely creates the dark and violent feel for the film so that audiences get sucked in the world of Omar. But at some places, it leaves a lot to be desired. For instance, Hansal does show that Omar has a wife Saadia (Orvana Ghai) but he doesn’t delve much into this aspect.
OMERTA belongs to Rajkummar Rao – no doubts on that. In his brief career, he has given some marvelous performances and with this flick, he continues his tradition. Notice how he has worked on his body language, accent, voice, eye movements – it’s drastically different from any other performance of his. OMERTA just confirms that Rajkummar is one of the finest actors that we have today. Timothy Ryan Hickernell (Daniel Pearl) leaves a mark as a passionate reporter whose quest for reporting leads to his gruesome death. Rajesh Tailang (ISI General Mahmood) is okay initially but makes his presence in the sequence where he comes to meet Omar wearing a burkha. Rupinder Nagra (Maulana Ismail) has a natural foreign accent that works to his advantage. Performance wise, he’s fair. Orvana Ghai sadly gets no scope. The actors playing Rhys Partridge and Omar’s father are quite nice.
Ishaan Chhabra’s music has the thrill element that keeps the tension going. There’s just one song but is hardly memorable. Anuj Dhawan’s cinematography is quite raw and rugged in the tension-filled, action scenes. But it’s also quite simple and neat as per the requirement of the scene. Aditya Warrior’s editing is slick and razor sharp. Neil Chowdhury’s production design is authentic. Harpal Singh and Ravi Kumar’s action is quite gritty and disturbing.
On the whole, OMERTA has some engrossing moments and Rajkummar Rao’s award-worthy performance as its USP. But the unconventional narrative and dark, violent theme of the film will restrict its appeal. Box office wise, this film will have a tough road ahead but critically, it’s bound to get accolades.
Movie Review: Raazi
In the past few years, Bollywood has churned out some very exciting spy films like AGENT VINOD [2012], PHANTOM [2015], BABY [2015], BANG BANG [2014], EK THA TIGER [2012], TIGER ZINDA HAI [2017], D-DAY [2013] etc. Most of these films also had the role of a female spy who looked like she meant business and would easily kick ass. Katrina Kaif’s portrayal in the TIGER series is the most apt example. But imagine a spy who’s completely feminine replete with long, flowy hair and salwar kurtas et al. Anil Sharma did slightly touch upon this aspect in 2003 with his biggie THE HERO: LOVE STORY OF A SPY. Now Meghna Gulzar attempts to make a complete film on this aspect with RAAZI. So does it manage to engross viewers like the other spy films? Or does it fail in its endeavour? Let’s analyse.
RAAZI is the story of a young girl from India sent to Pakistan as an undercover agent. The year is 1971. Pakistan is all set to make a surprise attack on India and the Indian intelligence is trying it’s best to get the details. Hidayat (Rajit Kapur) lives in Srinagar and travels to Pakistan for business. He is a part of the Indian intelligence but has convinced Pakistani Brigadier Syed (Shishir Sharma) that he works for them. Hidayat is terminally ill and he asks Syed if he can get his daughter Sehmat (Alia Bhatt) married to Syed's younger son Iqbal (Vicky Kaushal). Syed agrees and surprisingly, Sehmat also gives her nod. Sehmat is obviously being married to Iqbal to spy in the house of Syeds and she gets adequate training from Khalid Mir (Jaideep Ahlawat) from Indian intelligence. Sehmat gets married and she gradually gets attached to Iqbal, who gives her the space and doesn’t force himself on her. Meanwhile Sehmat begins her surveillance and finds out crucial information regarding naval attacks planned by Pakistan against India. However the challenges faced by Sehmat are immense and one wrong move can prove fatal for her. What happens next forms the rest of the story.
RAAZI is based on Harinder S Sikka’s novel ‘Calling Sehmat’. The story is novel and stands out from the rest of the spy films as the lead character goes to any lengths, morals be damned. And this bit comes across very nicely. Bhavani Iyer and Meghna Gulzar’s screenplay is a mixed bag. In most scenes, it’s simplistic and engrossing.
RAAZI doesn’t commence on a high note but grips viewers well. The characters are well established and Sehmat agreeing for the dangerous mission could have come across as not so believable. But thankfully that doesn’t happen. Her training sequence is interesting but the film gets better once she moves to Pakistan. Though the film drops for a while, it picks up brilliantly in the intermission point when Sehmat drives the jeep. Arguably it’s the best part of the film. Post interval, the film has some engaging moments but at the same time, the film begins to slow down. There should have been a more gripping cat and mouse chase game but that never really happens. The manner in which Sehmat is able to escape suspicion most of the times is very unconvincing. The finale however makes up for the minuses to an extent. Some of the scenes however gets complicated. For instance, some of the details provided by Khalid during Sehmat's training is difficult to process as it is presented too quickly. Also the interest drops in some scenes. Meghna Gulzar’s dialogues are simple and neat and are very craftily written. Meghna Gulzar’s direction is impressive. Despite the content being niche, she tries to tell the story in a commercial format. She does falter at places but overall, manages to do justice to the plot.
Alia Bhatt delivers a powerhouse performance and this is surely one of her most accomplished works. Her character is living a double life and she brings out this aspect very nicely. In the emotional and breakdown sequences, she shines! Vicky Kaushal has a limited screen time but he leaves a mark. His character is sure to be loved. Rajit Kapur is quite endearing. Jaideep Ahlawat is very good. This talented actor deserves to be seen more in movies. Shishir Sharma is quite dependable. Notice how endearing he looks when he’s interacting with Sehmat but transforms in another avatar altogether when he’s talking business. Amruta Khanvilkar (Munira) is lovely. Arif Zakaria (Abdul) plays a dynamic role with panache. Ashwath Bhatt (Mehboob) has a small role but is effective. Soni Razdan (Teji) is okay. Other actors do a good job.
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s music is melodious but won’t be remembered, except for ‘Ae Watan'. The song has an anthem like feel and can get a longer shelf life if it’s played during Independence and Republic Day celebrations in the country. The title track gets noticed while ‘Dilbaro’ is completely relegated to the background.
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and Tubby’s background score is quite exhilarating. Jay I Patel’s cinematography works big time. The exterior shots of Kashmir are simply breathtaking. Nitin Baid’s editing is nice but should have been more razor sharp. Subrata Chakraborty and Amit Ray’s production design is very authentic. Maxima Basu Golani’s costumes are appealing. Harpal Singh’s action is subtle and not very detailed.
On the whole, RAAZI is an interesting thriller brilliantly narrated by Meghna Gulzar that makes for mature viewing. It is a film that celebrates nationalism that is devoid of the colors of religion. At the box office, it has the potential to grow with positive word of mouth and keep its makers happy.
Movie Review: Deadpool 2 (English)
Back in 2016, we saw the release of an unlikely superhero film in the form of DEADPOOL. Back then the makers of the film took a gamble and kept the film R-rated to do justice to the foul mouthed ass kicking, quick witted and sarcastic superhero Deadpool. The film which released amid much fanfare went on to work brilliantly well at the box office, warranting a sequel. Now a couple of years on and we see Ryan Reynolds, yeah the same guy from the forgettable and regrettable GREEN LANTERN, return to the big screen with DEADPOOL 2. But will the sequel work its magic at the box office, or will it like so many other franchise sequels bite the bullet is the question.
DEADPOOL 2, starts off with the foul-mouthed mutant mercenary Wade Wilson (A.K.A. Deadpool), blowing himself to pieces after a tragedy only to be rescued by Colossus, who is on a mission to enroll Deadpool at Professor Charles Xavier’s home for the gifted, and eventually into the X-Men. However, Deadpool being well basically Deadpool, manages to bugle things up when they are called to assist with a rogue mutant kid. After an initial altercation, Deadpool is sent back to the ‘ice box’ along with Russell AKA FireFists (Julian Dennison). Unfortunately, a super soldier from the future, Cable (Josh Brolin) travels back in time to eliminate Russell and save his era. Will Deadpool manage to protect Russell whom he has developed a liking for, will Cable prove to be too overpoweringly strong, or will Deadpool finally join the X-Men, are some of the questions that make up the rest of the film.
Going into a film like DEADPOOL 2 you are faced with the question of how can the makers live up to the expectation that have been developed by the first film? Coupled with this is the fact that the makers are faced with a task of making a film wherein the lead character is constantly able to break through the fourth wall and communicate with the audience. This melange of rather tough questions is answered in DEADPOOL 2 with a stellar script and some top notch direction. David Leitch has done a marvellous job of interweaving the story of Wade Wilson AKA Deadpool along with the narrative that gives the character enough leg room to pass some snarky comments and establish a rapport with the viewer. Double innuendo gags, well scripted humour and oneliners that come with a punch are some of the high points of the film. However despite this, DEADPOOL 2 does have moments that can leave some viewers a little lost, yes we are indeed referring to the multiple references to pop culture, films from the years gone by that have burned themselves into memory and some latest releases too. But with a lead character that is aware of these references, it becomes a breeze to watch a comic character come to life on the big screen.
Coming to the performances in the film, Deadpool 2 is as the name would suggest a Ryan Reynolds film all the way. No not like the 2011 film GREEN LANTERN, instead like the first DEADPOOL, it's very entertaining. With Reynolds going all out to infuse life into the character in the process spilling some of his own real life charm and charisma into it, the film rests firmly on his shoulders. Other cast members who have prominent roles in the film like Cable for instance, played by none other than Thanos err… sorry… Josh Brolin is on point yet again. Be it playing the mad titan or the time travelling super soldier, Brolin brings a depth to his character that is rarely seen on the big screens these days. Zazie Beetz as Domino, Julian Dennison as Russell, TJ Miller as Weasel and of course Karan Soni as Dopinder do an equally good job in their given roles. However, when it comes to Morena Baccarin as Vanessa one can’t help but notice how underused her character is. In fact with fleeting screen time, Morena’s might just be the smallest dialogued role in the film.
Assisting the stellar performances in the film is the action. Like the first DEADPOOL 2 keeps the action crisp and limited, not going overboard with bodies flying lends the film a more plausible feel thus developing a better rapport with the viewer. But don’t be disheartened, for the action seekers, this film holds more than its fair share of awkwardly twisted limbs, head rolls (literally), blood splatter and yeah fire balls!!! Another aspect of the film that works well with the on screen happenings is the background score. But since the lead character is able to break through the fourth wall, the background score more or less acts like a playlist for the character as he goes about his business. This concept helps audience unconsciously prepare for an upcoming sequence without realizing that they have been drawn into it.
But what is all this without the amazing visuals, right? DEADPOOL 2 features some of the best visual effects in recent times. No, it isn’t like AVATAR great; instead it is more like a live action film that has CGI and VFX blended into the mix seamlessly. This slick merger of CGI into the live action film takes things up a notch for DEADPOOL 2 delivering that extra bit of punch when it matters the most.
On the whole, if you have watched the first film in the series and liked it, there are high chances that DEADPOOL 2 will blow you away. For those who like superhero films, this one is a superhero film with a difference. In the end, DEADPOOL 2 that features some crazy action, wicked humour, madcap one liners and well timed humour is definitely a must watch.
At the Indian box office, with no big releases hitting screens for another couple of weeks, DEADPOOL 2 looks set to enjoy a stellar run.
Movie Review: Parmanu - The Story of Pokhran
When India got independence in 1947, it was a challenge for those who assumed power. After all, they had to start from scratch in several areas and aspects. These challenges continue till date but it’s heartening to see that despite a lot of hurdles, India has made great progress in a lot of fields. One of the achievements was becoming a full-fledged nuclear state and this happened due to a series of nuclear tests carried out in Rajasthan town in 1998. The entire story behind these nuclear tests is quite fascinating and surprisingly, no filmmaker had picked it up in these two decades. Finally, actor-producer John Abraham took the challenge and has come out with PARMANU – THE STORY OF POKHRAN. So does the film turn out to be an engaging and thrilling fare? Or does it fail in its endeavour? Let’s analyse.
PARMANU – THE STORY OF POKHRAN is the story of those people who secretly carried out a series of nuclear bomb test explosions in Pokhran on May 11, 1998. Ashwath Rana (John Abraham) is from the research department of the Central Government and in 1995, he advises the Prime Minister’s Office to conduct nuclear bomb tests in order to achieve supremacy in this field and establish fear among the nuclear powers of the world. The plan gets accepted but he’s not made a part of it. His plan is also not studied well. As a result, USA's satellites catch India preparing for the tests red handed. India is left red faced and Ashwath is made the scapegoat. He is removed from his job and shifts to Mussoorie with wife Sushma (Anuja Sathe) and son Prahlad. For the next 3 years, Ashwath does odd jobs while Anuja runs the house by working in an observatory. In 1998, Atal Bihari Vajpayee is made the Prime Minister. His principle secretary Himanshu Sharma (Boman Irani) summons Ashwath and asks him to help with the nuclear tests. Ashwath agrees and devises a plan to prepare and conduct the tests without the USA getting a whiff of it. He also prepares a team comprising of Ambalika (Diana Penty), Dr. Viraf Wadia (Aditya Hitkari), Dr. Naresh Sinha (Yogendra Tikku), Major Prem Singh (Vikas Kumar) and Purunganathan. How they manage to work together and put India on world nuclear map forms the rest of the film.
Saiwyn Quadras, Sanyuktha Chawla Shaikh and Abhishek Sharma’s story is very promising and novel as it has entertainment and feeling of nationalism in adequate doses. Saiwyn Quadras, Sanyuktha Chawla Shaikh and Abhishek Sharma’s screenplay is neat and simple and they ensure that complex technical language is not used. As a result, even the layman can understand what’s going on.
PARMANU – THE STORY OF POKHRAN has a shaky start. The 1995 sequence doesn’t involve viewers properly. It’s when Ashwath meets Himanshu is when the film picks up. From here, the film goes on another level and it’s fun to see Ashwath assembling his team and fooling USA. The intermission comes at a great point. The second half is better as the Pakistani spy (Darshan Pandya) and CIA agent Daniel (Mark Bennington) try their best to fail Team Ashwath's mission. There’s also sudden humour quotient added and it works very well especially in the confrontation scene between Ashwath and Sushma. The best is reserved for the finale. It is very well handled and the patriotic fervor comes out beautifully.
Saiwyn Quadras, Sanyuktha Chawla Shaikh and Abhishek Sharma’s dialogues are nothing great but look real and conversational. Abhishek Sharma’s direction flows quite easily and is to the point. He very nicely packs in a lot in 130 minutes. However, one wishes if the tension levels could have gone higher. A film like this should have had more edge of the seat moments for an added impact. Also, though the team is shown facing roadblocks, it seemed a bit convenient at most places. Thankfully, the film has enough plusses that overpower these glitches.
John Abraham delivers one of the best performances of his career. His act is subtle and yet leaves a mark. His character has suffered a lot and this bit comes out very well. Also he’s not shown as an invincible killing machine which is his image. Yet he pulls it off very well! Diana Penty has a crucial part and essays the no nonsense character very well. Boman Irani delivers an incredible performance and it was a pleasure to see him on screen after ages. Vikas Kumar is totally believable as an army major. Yogendra Tiku raises laughs while Aditya Hitkari looks quite smart and gives an impressive performance. Darshan Pandya leaves a mark. Anuja Sathe is very good and manages to create an impact with her supporting role. Mark Bennington and Zachary Coffin (Stephen) are okay.
Sachin-Jigar’s music doesn’t get much scope and all songs are relegated to the background. 'Thare Vaaste' is the only song that stands out, more so because of the execution. Sandeep Chowta’s background score is theatrical and impactful but has a major Hans Zimmer hangover which could have been avoided. Zubin Mistry’s cinematography is quite nice and captures the barren locales of Rajasthan well. Rameshwar S Bhagat’s editing is slick. T P Abid and Sandeep S Ravade’s production design is very authentic and realistic. Amar Shetty’s action is sans any gory.
On the whole, PARMANU – THE STORY OF POKHRAN is an excellent saga that has a big chance of working at the box office despite the low buzz. The patriotic fervor and simple, effective narration works big time. Recommended!
Movie Review: Solo: A Star Wars Story (English)
A little over four decades ago, in 1977, the first film in the epic Star Wars saga (that would extend over years to come) released with the release of A NEW HOPE. Now after nine films in the saga, we see the release of a spin off story line that brings fans in touch with the origins of one of the most loved characters Han Solo. But will this new age space western do justice to the mammoth legend of Han Solo or will it like so many other spin off/ origin satires falter, is the question of the hour.
SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY follows the escapades of Han Solo before he became the legend. Starting off from the early days, the film depicts the squalor that Solo came from that was ruled by the tyrannical Lady Proxima and his constant schemes and efforts to pay his way out. Besides this like most of the films in the saga, this one too features a budding love story angle between Solo and Qi’ra. But will the two young romantics find a way out of the hell hole or will they fall prey to the Empire’s growing power is what forms the rest of the film.
Starting off one must bear in mind that the happenings in SOLO are dated before the rebellion came into being. In fact the film goes on to depict the rise of the Empire into a force to reckon with. While at the same time laying the base upon which the legend of Han Solo is built. If that wasn’t enough, through a series of daring escapades deep within a dark and dangerous criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his mighty future co-pilot Chewbacca and encounters the notorious gambler Lando Calrissian, in a journey that will set the course of one of the Star Wars saga's most unlikely heroes.
First things first, with director Ron Howard at the helm of the film, one expects nothing less than a visual spectacle. Known for films like APOLLO 13, A BEAUTIFUL MIND and more recently RUSH and INFERNO, Howard brings with him, expectations of a space western film on epic proportions. However, unlike Howard’s previous cinematic outings, SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY offers little scope for sweeping cinematic visuals. Despite this, when given the chance to depict a world that has been ravaged by time, Howard works his magic with aplomb. Going into SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY, viewers are already aware of the fact that it will feature some of the high points of Han’s life that eventually made him the smuggler with a heart of gold, unfortunately this exact premise hampers the entire telling of what could become an epic due to the limited scope to explore unknown avenues, a detail upon which most of the film in the Star Wars franchise that thrived. But despite this, Howard has managed to pull together an enjoyable film that sadly looks like a series of highlight from a character’s life.
Coming to the performances, Alden Ehrenreich is no Harrison Ford, but he does manage to do a commendable job with the role of Han Solo. Joonas Suotamo as the lovable Chewbacca and Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian are sorely underused. Despite having prominent roles in the film, both their characters (though only supporting roles) appear to be greatly under developed and half baked. One wishes that both Chewbacca and Lando were given more meatier chunks to explore the entire depth of their characters. But it is the roles of Woody Harrelson as Beckett and Emilia Clarke as Qi’ra that come across the most dejecting. In fact, both good actors in their own right fall flat with a narrative that focuses on Solo alone. While one wishes that these two were used more to their full potential being a Han Solo film, they are relegated to the shadows serving only as waypoints to take the story forward.
However, the biggest drawback of SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY is the writing and the narrative, with most of the suspense lost, the makers have had to rely heavily on the epic tale of Solo to develop a narrative that does justice to his character. Sadly, this does not suffice. Instead the film comes across as a rather poor attempt at developing a new story line to encash on an epic saga that has neared the end of its money making heydays. Simply put, with an underwhelming story and weak narrative SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY is devoid of that charm and charisma that have over the years endeared the epic of STAR WARS to so many fans.
Even the background score of the film, unlike most Howard directorial seems greatly underused. With a fall back to the now legendary Star Wars theme every now and then, this new venture offers very little to the viewers. But it isn’t all downhill. Though limited, the action and race sequences are well shot and choreographed but one wishes there were more. The CGI too though done well could have been so much better had the story line of the film given room to develop a bit more.
On the whole, SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY leaves you with a somewhat empty feeling. With nothing new to tell in the story and very little scope to deviate from the past, the film becomes just another run of the mill cinematic outings that is developed to cash grab the last bits of money from a fading franchise. At the box office, with the John Abraham starrer Parmanu releasing alongside the film, SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY might just face a hard time raking in the numbers.
Movie Review: Veere Di Wedding
Bollywood has given innumerable bromance flicks. But there have been hardly any such film involving our pretty ladies. This is quite a shocker as the urban, multiplex audience would love to see female bonding flicks talking about their problems, quirks, way of life etc. Finally Sonam Kapoor and her sister producer Rhea Kapoor took up the challenge and designed VEERE DI WEDDING. Despite their lead actress Kareena Kapoor Khan getting pregnant, they stayed put and refused to shelve the project. The film is now finally out for release and does it manage to meet all the expectations? Or does it fail in its endeavour? Let’s analyse!
VEERE DI WEDDING is the story of four female friends at an uncertain age. Kalindi Puri (Kareena Kapoor Khan), Avni Sharma (Sonam Kapoor Ahuja), Sakshi Soni (Swara Bhasker) and Meera Sood (Shikha Talsania) are the best of pals. Avni is doing well professionally as a divorce lawyer but her mother (Neena Gupta) feels that it’s not all worth it unless she gets married. Sakshi is married and is facing tough times. Meera is married and also has a child and she is unhappy as her father has not accepted the union. Kalindi is dating Rishabh Malhotra (Sumeet Vyas) and all is going well in their relationship. But one day Rishabh proposes marriage. Kalindi says yes but she develops cold feet. Her marriage gets planned with much fanfare and it stresses her out. Of course her gang of friends assemble to be with her during the most significant period of her life, while battling their life problems. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Mehul Suri and Nidhi Mehra’s story is very relatable and raises some important points about marriage, relationship, friendship, broken families etc. But Mehul Suri and Nidhi Mehra’s screenplay fails to do justice to the plot. The script is haywire and hence one doesn’t feel totally involved with the goings on. Also there are far too many subplots in the film and too much is packed in 125 minutes.
Mehul Suri and Nidhi Mehra’s dialogues are peppered with adult talk and abusive language. At places it is very witty and funny but at several places, it looks forced and that it’s added just for the effect. Thankfully most of the dialogues are left intact by the Censor Board.
VEERE DI WEDDING rests on a great idea and interesting characters. But it doesn’t translate into a fully entertaining fare. It’s the direction that plays spoilsport. The execution is very shaky and it hampers the impact. The introduction of the characters is nice and the marriage prep sequence is the most relatable. Post interval, the Thailand sequence stands out. The climax should have been a highpoint but sadly that doesn’t happen.
Shashanka Ghosh’s direction is the biggest culprit. The film just gives an overview and never allows viewers to delve into the lives of the Veeres. Also some shocking developments take place in the film like Rishabh's father (Manoj Pahwa) getting arrested. But it’s not executed in the desired manner.
The chemistry of all the four actresses is brilliant and looks very convincing. It’s difficult to say if it’s their performance that’s great or their chemistry in real is the same as shown in the film. Kareena Kapoor Khan delivers a marvellous performance. She indeed looks like a commitment phobic person who’s getting the chills with the elaborate marriage preparations. Sonam K Ahuja leaves a mark but other actors dominate her. Swara Bhasker is outstanding and her performance will surely be a talking point. Watch out for her excellent dialogue delivery! Shikha Talsania is a complete natural. Sumeet Vyas is quite endearing. Vishwas Kinni (Bhandari) plays the irritating character well. Neena Gupta is decent. Vivek Mushran (Cookie Chacha) and Anjum Rajabali (Kishan) are fair. Manoj Pahwa is his jovial self while Ayessha Raza (Rishabh’s mother) leaves a mark. Ishwak Singh (Nirmal) is apt for the part. Ekavali Khanna (Paromita) raises laughs. Edward Sonnenblick (John) is okay.
The songs are well woven in the narrative. Shockingly, the film’s biggest chartbuster 'Tareefan' is missing. ‘Pappi Le Loon', ‘Bhangra Ta Sajda', ‘Laaj Sharam' and ‘Aa Jao Na' are all relegated to the background. ‘Dagmag Dagmag' is played during the opening credits while ‘Veere’ makes the most impact. Arijit Dutta’s background score is quite good.
Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti’s cinematography is bad. There are too many close ups which take away the charm from many scenes. Shweta Venkat Mathew's editing is razor sharp. Priya Ahluwalia's production design is rich. Rhea Kapoor, Abu Jani – Sandeep Khosla’s costumes are quite bold and appealing.
On the whole VEERE DI WEDDING has a bold theme that defies stereotypes and delivers a shock value. At the box office, the multiplex audience and the youth [especially female] will patronize the film in a big way. Watch it for all the fun and madness created by the four leading ladies.
Movie Review: Bhavesh Joshi Superhero
India has its own range of superhero comics since a long time. But unlike the West which is minting huge amount of money by making films on Marvel and DC comic characters, our filmmakers have lagged behind in this aspect. Bollywood has given a handful of superhero flicks like MR X [2015], DRONA [2008], A FLYING JATT [2016], RA.ONE [2011], ZOKKOMON [2011] etc. which didn’t work at the box office. KRRISH series is the only one that has been successful. Now this week’s release BHAVESH JOSHI SUPERHERO gets added to the list of ‘Hindi superhero films’. So does it manage to entertain and give audiences a great time? Or does it fail just like most of the superhero films of our industry? Let’s analyse
BHAVESH JOSHI SUPERHERO is the story of a one man’s fight against a corrupt practice in Mumbai. Siku (Harshvardhan Kapoor) is friends with Bhavesh Joshi (Priyanshu Painyuli) and Rajat (Ashish Verma). Siku and Bhavesh feel a change is needed in the country. Both participate in India Against Corruption (IAC) movement of 2011 and also start a YouTube channel called 'Insaaf TV'. As part of this endeavour, they’d wear masks in order to conceal their identity and expose those breaking local civic laws. When the IAC movement fizzles out by 2011 end, Siku gets disillusioned and moves on with his life. 6 years later, Siku is working as a coder in an MNC and he’s offered a chance to move to USA, which he accepts. Bhavesh meanwhile still believes in bringing change. An old aged resident contacts him and informs him of a huge racket involving water scarcity. Bhavesh uploads a video exposing the scam and the baddies involved in this racket are alarmed. They begin to find out his identity. Meanwhile an altercation takes place between Siku and Bhavesh and the former shoots a video of the latter wherein he’s speaking about the ills plaguing the country. Siku uploads the video online but only a part of it. Bhavesh is hence presented as someone who’s insulting India. The water scarcity baddies, headed by Rana (Nishikant Kamat), accuse Bhavesh of being an anti-national. He’s badly beaten up. Bhavesh however doesn’t relent and he continues exposing the racket. This time Rana's goons murder him. Siku reaches the airport to leave for USA but at the eleventh hour, he changes his mind. He returns back to the city without informing anyone and decides to avenge Bhavesh's death. He assumes the identity of Bhavesh Joshi and promises to teach the wrongdoers a tough lesson. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Vikramaditya Motwane, Anurag Kashyap and Abhay Koranne’s story is very disappointing and juvenile. The premise has too many loose ends. Vikramaditya Motwane, Anurag Kashyap and Abhay Koranne’s screenplay is also not effective. Only a few sequences are well written. Their dialogues also work only at select places.
BHAVESH JOSHI SUPERHERO's beginning portion is very dry and incoherent and makes no impact. It’s only when Bhavesh chances upon the water scarcity bit that the film gets better. The manner in which Bhavesh is tortured by Rana’s men is intriguing. The intermission point is when the film goes on a high. It is the best part of the movie and one expects fireworks in the second half. Sadly that never happens. The unconvincing moments are aplenty. It is bewildering how Siku and Sneha (Shreiyah Sabharwal) don’t communicate at all after the former pretends to move to USA, especially when they haven’t formally broken up. Moreover, Siku following Rana’s men without even changing his appearance is too much since they could have easily spotted him and his game would have been up. One expects at least the climax to be satisfying. But alas, the film gets worse at this point.
Vikramaditya Motwane’s direction is poor and this is shocking since he has handled his previous films [UDAAN, LOOTERA, TRAPPED] very well. A few scenes are deftly handled. For instance, the entire passport track is very relatable. But in the major part of the film, the direction goes haywire.
Harshvardhan Kapoor is strictly okay and lacks the conviction needed for the part. At some places, he’s completely blank. For instance, after Bhavesh gets beaten up because of his folly, he ideally should have looked regretful and sad. But these emotions don’t come across on his face at all. Priyanshu Painyuli is much better and dominates the first half. His dialogue delivery especially is praiseworthy. Nishikant Kamat leaves a mark in a small role. Shreiyah Sabharwal is wasted. Ashish Verma is great and shines in the finale. The actors playing Hemant Patil, old aged resident and the cop do a nice job.
Amit Trivedi’s music is nothing great. ‘Chavanprash’ is foot tapping but Arjun Kapoor’s version is missing. ‘Hum Hain Insaaf’ stands out and ‘Qasam Kha Li' is relegated to the background. Amit Trivedi’s background score is dramatic.
Siddharth Diwan’s cinematography is rugged and that works well. Cyril Raffaelli, Sébastien Seveau and Vikram Dahiya's action is entertaining, especially in the local train chase sequence. Aditya Kanwar’s production design is fair.
On the whole, BHAVESH JOSHI SUPERHERO is a poor show owing to its haphazard writing and bad direction. At the box office, it will be a disaster. Avoid!
Movie Review: Jurassic World - Fallen Kingdom (English)
Back in 1993, JURASSIC PARK introduced viewers to a different breed of monster movies that thrilled and chilled. Following this, the JURASSIC trilogy with two more subsequent films viz. THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK and JURASSIC PARK 3 hit screens in 1997 and 2001 respectively. Cut to 2015 when the first of the new trilogy that was based on the previous three films releases with JURASSIC WORLD made a splash. Taking up the mantle from the earlier three, the 2015 release did rather well at the box office re-establishing the JURASSIC brand. Now a couple of years on we see the second instalment in the new Jurassic trilogy gearing up for release with JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM. But will the fifth film in the series live up to the dinosaur expectations of fans that have been developed over years or will it like the creatures in the film fade into oblivion is the question of the hour.
JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM starts off four years after the Jurassic World theme park was closed down. Owen and Claire return to Isla Nublar to save the dinosaurs when they learn that a once dormant volcano on the island is active and is threatening to extinguish all life there. Along the way, Owen sets out to find Blue, his lead raptor, and discovers a conspiracy that could disrupt the natural order of the entire planet. Will they manage to foil the malicious plan or will life find a way again, is what makes up the rest of the film.
Going into the film, the first question that comes to mind is whether the makers of JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM will manage to provide a different take on the happenings in this film from the previous four? Well, the short answer is yes. Director J. A. Bayona has done a marvellous job with the new film; he has dared to take risk where others would have usually preferred to stick to the tried and tested formula. Though the basic plot line of the film still remains the same viz. dinosaurs are introduced into modern times and run amok while all hell breaks loose. However, unlike the 2015 film, the new one deals with a more human angle where the power of greed comes into play. Starting off with an epic sequence that grabs your attention, the film continues to engage viewers’ right through the first half. Set in the open landscape of Isla Nublar, the visuals are both breath-taking and thrilling giving the viewer a feel of the enormity of the dinosaurs and the task faced by Owen and Claire. Post the interval there is a change in setting with the on screen happenings shifting indoors. However, this restriction does not dampen the proceedings. In fact, thanks to this shift Bayona manages to recreate some of that old school charm, thrill and excitement that was felt in the first ever JURASSIC PARK. From introducing a new species to relocating the dinosaurs while at the same time battling for survival, the film encompasses almost every emotion that you would expect.
Coming to the performances, for Chris Pratt (Owen) JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM is a chance to recover a bit after his character’s faults in the recently released film AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR and boy does he do a good job. Sticking true to his role of being a dinosaur trainer, Pratt does well in his given role managing to make the task of communicating with an animal believable. Bryce Dallas Howard as Claire too is pretty good, keeping up with the happenings. Howard makes her character believable by developing an emotional connect with the viewers. Similarly the rest of the cast as well do a decent job to lend support to the main leads.
Talking about the visuals, it has been 25 years since the release of the first film JURASSIC PARK and with the advancement in technology JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM can easily be classified as one among those that seamlessly interweaves CGI and live action. This coupled with a background score that builds up the crescendo at the perfect moment and the overall dark theme of the film lend a more plausible and relatable tale.
On the whole, JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM might not be the best in the Jurassic series but it comes pretty close. With stellar direction, action scenes aplenty and a thrilling depiction, this one is certainly a must watch. At the Indian box office, with no Bollywood release, the film is likely to do well especially since it enjoys a wide release across four languages.
Movie Review: Race 3
When RACE [2008] arrived in cinemas, everyone expected it to be a decent suspense fare. But the film exceeded everyone’s expectations thanks to its stylish narrative, performances, writing and most importantly, the numerous unpredictable twists! RACE 2 [2013] didn’t reach the level of its predecessor, forget going beyond it. Yet, the franchise had a lot of steam left. The producers obviously realized it and they have now come up with RACE 3. This time, the film is bigger in terms of scale and grandeur and moreover, it also features one of the country’s biggest superstars, Salman Khan. At the same time, the thrill element has been toned down a bit to make it more family-friendly. The lead of RACE and RACE 2, Saif Ali Khan, is no longer there and same goes for Abbas-Mustan, the director duo of both the parts. With all these changes, does RACE 3 manage to impress and entertain? Or do these changes lead to plain disappointment? Let’s analyse!
RACE 3 is the story of a dysfunctional family amidst a high stakes heist. Shamsher (Anil Kapoor) is the head of this family and Sikander (Salman Khan) is the kind-hearted and wise member. Sanjana (Daisy Shah) and Suraj (Saqib Saleem) are the youngest in the family and have a grudge against Sikander. But Shamsher is the pacifier who always ensures that things don’t go out of control. However, trouble arises when this family is entrusted with a task of retrieving a hard disk kept in a locker. This hard disk is worth millions. Shamsher entrusts this task to Sikander and the other family members. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
The biggest problem with RACE 3 is that there’s hardly any storyline in the film. Whatever of Shiraz Ahmed’s story is there is lame and confusing and it rests on a wafer thin plot. Shiraz Ahmed and Kiran Kotrial’s dialogues are corny and one soon realizes that Daisy Shah’s ‘none of your business’ is not the only troll-worthy one-liner of the film! Shiraz Ahmed’s screenplay is disjointed as it concentrates more on style and action than substance. Also, just like its predecessors, the makers have added a lot of twists and turns but they are unnecessary and unconvincing.
Remo Dsouza’s direction also suffers as a result of the flawed writing. The film is high on style and low on substance. The action bits are good but Remo has stretched these scenes unnecessarily. Moreover, he, the makers and writers have tried every gimmick in the book to appeal to Salman fans. Even dialogues and scenes are something that are tailor made for bhai fans but they appear unconvincing and evoke disappointment.
The first half of RACE 3 is quite horrible and there’s absolutely no story. It’s only in the second half that the film boasts of some worthwhile moments. There’s no doubt that the film looks rich. Each and every frame is a visual delight and it shows that the money has been spent like water. The makers have even left scope for a sequel. However, one really doubts whether the RACE franchise would now be carried forward. At 2.40 hours, the film appears too long. Some of the scenes are so corny that it would surely become the talking point of social media in days to come.
Talking of performances, Salman Khan does well and is in a way the saving grace of the film. He’s not in his top form like he was in his last film TIGER ZINDA HAI [2017]. But he sails through the film with his performance. Jacqueline Fernandez is shockingly disappointing and she struggles to act. Bobby Deol (Yash) is also strictly okay. There was an excitement to see him after a hiatus and he’s sure to disappoint his fans and admirers. Anil Kapoor however puts his best foot forward and is impressive. His look is also quite great. Daisy Shah and Saqib Saleem are hardly memorable. Same goes for Freddy Daruwala (Rana).
The songs of RACE 3 fail to meet the expectations. However, ‘Allah Duhai Hai’ and ‘Selfish’ are quite memorable and are picturised brilliantly. ‘Heeriye’ leaves a bit of a mark. The rest of the songs are forgettable. Salim-Sulaiman’s background score is much better and it adds to the thrill and dramatic element.
Ayananka Bose’s cinematography is eye catching and captures the locales of U.A.E and Thailand very well. Rajnish Hedao’s production design is classy while Anal Arasu and Thomas Struthers’s action lifts the film to an extent. But again, it’s not as spectacular as Salman’s previous films like TIGER ZINDA HAI and KICK [2014]. Steven Bernard’s editing is haphazard and the film could have been smoother and shorter in length. Manish Malhotra, Ashley Rebello, Alvira Khan Agnihotri, Anaita Adajania, Akshay Tyagi and Rhea Kapoor’s costumes are quite good and suit the financial status of the characters.
On the whole, RACE 3 is high on style and low on substance. It lacks entertainment value and is a disappointing fare due to its wafer thin plot. At the box office, the movie will take a jump start due to Salman Khan’s star power and accelerate over the weekend, post which, the business will see a sizeable drop. The film will entail losses to the distributors.
Movie Review: Sanju
Biopics are quite in vogue in Bollywood and in recent times, many of them have even tasted massive commercial success. But often, these biopics are criticized as they become quite hagiographic and tend to glorify the person in question. In such a scenario, blockbuster director Rajkumar Hirani’s SANJU promises to be different and shows the highs as well as lows and dark periods of actor Sanjay Dutt. That it’s directed by Rajkumar Hirani, who has a cent per cent track record and features popular actor Ranbir Kapoor, has added to the excitement considerably. So does SANJU live up to its hype and turns out to be a yet another feather in Hirani’s cap? Or does it fail to impress? Let’s analyse.
SANJU is the biopic of controversial actor Sanjay Dutt and some of the dramatic and significant episodes of his life. Sanjay Dutt (Ranbir Kapoor) is the son of famous actor Sunil Dutt (Paresh Rawal) and yesteryear actress Nargis (Manisha Koirala). He is about to get launched in a film by his father titled ROCKY. Upset with his father, he tries drugs for the first time courtesy his friend Zubin Mistry (Jim Sarbh). At this point, he finds out that Nargis is suffering from cancer and has few days to live. She is taken to New York for treatment. Sanju is unable to control his drug habit even when his mother is struggling. While in New York, he befriends Kamlesh Kapasi (Vicky Kaushal) and they both form a wonderful bond. Sadly due to his drug addiction, his relationship with his girlfriend Ruby (Sonam Kapoor) gets affected and ends on a dismal note. Nargis dies just three days before the release of ROCKY. An overwhelmed Sanju agrees to go for rehab in USA. Once he overcomes this addiction, he gets into a bigger problem. He gets arrested for illegal possession of arms. He’s also accused of aiding the terrorists in carrying out the serial bomb blasts in Mumbai in 1993. How Sanjay Dutt fights this dreadful charge forms the rest of the film.
Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi's story is interesting but one can sense that they have tried to play safe. But they have balanced it out by not glorifying Dutt and showing his bad and dark side too. Also, it’s impressive how Rajkumar and Abhijat haven’t focused on his film career and have focused on his personal life and turmoils. Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi's screenplay is terrific and despite the minuses, can be used as a guide on how to write films. With so much happening in the film, the writers ensure that the narrative doesn’t go all over the place. Everything is neatly put together. For instance, when the sequence where the Dutts are returning back to India, Nargis’ remarks about Ruby. This is done organically and neatly links to the next sequence which is related to Ruby. Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi's dialogues as always are entertaining, sharp and massy. Few dialogues related to sex will bring the house down in single screens and in the hinterland. A section of audience however would also be put off by such jokes and dark humour at places.
Rajkumar Hirani's direction as expected is highly effective. This is no easy film to make but he executes and presents the plot in a simple and crisp manner. His magic comes to the fore in several sequences and is bound to leave viewers smiling and teary eyed. However, the climax could have been better and more powerful.
The biggest strength of SANJU is that the film never drops. The screenplay is riveting and keeps you hooked, even if you might not agree with the goings on. And that’s a feat for a film which is 160 minutes long. The back and forth narrative works very well and keeps viewers intrigued. The first half is excellent and boasts of some fine emotional, funny and dramatic sequences. The intermission point comes as a bolt from the blue. The madness continues in the second half but the plot gets a bit shaky here. The film goes on a high in the first half but the same doesn’t happen in the second half. The film should have ended with a punch or on a rocking note, as it has happened in the previous Rajkumar Hirani films. However, the film leaves a strong emotional impact overall, which works very well.
Ranbir Kapoor owns the film and delivers a terrific performance. Nowhere does his performance seem like a caricature and he gives his best shot in ensuring that he looks and behaves like Sanjay Dutt. Watch out for him in the emotional sequence, particularly when his mother passes away and he confesses to his father that he needs to get better. Also he’ll leave viewers moist eyed in the scene where he fails to read his speech to his father and later the inevitable happens. SANJU surely ranks as one of the most or arguably the most accomplished performance by this young actor and is bound to win him accolades, admiration and awards! Paresh Rawal is also quite impressive and plays the important part of Sunil Dutt with perfection. SANJU is a father-son story and he compliments Ranbir very well in taking some scenes to great heights. Vicky Kaushal is the surprise package of the film. Right from his entry, he makes a mark and brings the house down at several places. Also, he’s rocking in the emotional sequences like when he meets Ruby or when he tells Sunil Dutt that they need to help Sanjay Dutt. Even in the second half, watch out for him when he meets Sanjay Dutt in the hospital and in the pre-climax when he listens to the radio. Manisha Koirala has a supporting part but is an important pillar in the film and charms with her performance. Anushka Sharma (as Winnie Dias) delivers a splendid performance. Again, her screen time is limited. Jim Sarbh makes an impact with his role. Sonam Kapoor (as Ruby) is decent in the cameo. Boman Irani (as Homi) contributes to the fun quotient. Sayaji Shinde (as Bandu Dada) looks every inch a gangster. Dia Mirza (as Maanayata Dutt) gets overpowered. Aditi Seiya (as Priya Dutt) looks quite like Priya but doesn’t have much to do in the film. Karishma Tanna (as Pinky) is quite sizzling and makes a mark, despite being there for just a scene. Mahesh Manjrekar (himself), Piyush Mishra (D Tripathi), Ashwin Mushran (security officer), Bharat Dabholkar (lawyer) and Aanjjan Srivastav (minister) are good.
Songs are not that great but work well in the film. 'Kar Har Maidaan Fateh' is the best of the lot. 'Main Badhiya Tu Bhi Badhiya' is very well picturised and imagined. 'Ruby Ruby' (by A R Rahman) is relegated to the background. Sanjay Wandrekar and Atul Raninga's background score is much better and exhilarating. S Ravivarman's cinematography is splendid and has captured some of the locales beautifully. In fact, he impresses right from the first shot itself - a bird’s eye view of Bandra. Shashank Tere's production design is appealing and rich. Eka Lakhani's costumes are authentic. Vikram Gaikwad's make-up design, Clover Wootton's prosthetics and VFX by Fluiidmask Studios deserves the highest praise for making Ranbir look like Sanjay Dutt through the ages. Rajkumar Hirani’s editing is crisp.
On the whole, SANJU is an entertaining saga that blends emotions, humour and drama in adequate doses. It is powerful, engaging, emotional as well as compelling. The combination of Rajkumar Hirani and Ranbir Kapoor works like a dream. At the box office, despite not being a ‘typical Rajkumar Hirani family entertainer’, SANJU will score tremendously and emerge as a Monstrous Hit! Don't miss it!
Movie Review: ANT-MAN AND THE WASP
After the last Marvel release AVENGERS: INFINITY WARS fans of the series have been desperately awaiting the next film in the line, which is ANT-MAN AND THE WASP. With many unanswered question still remaining after the last releases, hope is that the new film will at least manage to assuage a few unrelenting questions. But will ANT-MAN AND THE WASP that comes with much hope attached to it live up to audiences’ mammoth expectations or will it be just another fly on the wall in the larger scale of things is what we analyse.
Starting off ANT-MAN AND THE WASP begins with Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang AKA Ant-Man living life within the confines of his home for the past two years after the happenings in CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL-WAR. Post Lang assisting Captain America in his fight against Stark, Lang has been put on house arrest with the threat that if he breaks the parameters of his new boundary or even comes in contact with quantum tech, he will be imprisoned for 20 years. With just a few days left till his house arrest is terminated, all hell breaks loose when Lang has a dream where he sees Hank Pym’s wife and daughter Hope. Confused with the sudden dream, Lang makes a call to Pym, who in turn reaches out and literally abducts Lang with the help of Hope. Once at the lab, Lang is told that Hank and Hope managed to open a tunnel to the quantum realm wherein Hope’s mother has been trapped for the past 30 years. And it was due to this that Lang, who has in the past visited the quantum realm, developed a link with Hope’s mother. But in the meantime, Ava/ Ghost, a young girl who has met with a quantum accident is hell bent on acquiring energy from the quantum realm to help stop her from phasing. While a battle ensues between Pym, Hope, Ant-Man and Ghost to acquire control of the quantum tunnel all hell breaks loose. Will Pym, Hope and Lang manage to rescue Hope’s mother, will Ghost harvest enough quantum energy or will the tech fall into the wrong hands is what makes up the rest of the film.
Right from the start it is evident that ANT-MAN AND THE WASP is unlike any of the previous films released in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). With a focus more on human values, the film sees the family and emotions play a more integral part in the overall story and on screen happenings. However, this does not diminish the action. In fact, keeping with the MCU format ANT-MAN AND THE WASP does feature its share of action and humour well interspersed that keeps the viewer in his seat. From witty one liners to some high octane action, the film has it all.
But, the biggest drawback for ANT-MAN AND THE WASP is the fact that unlike previous MCU films, the villain in this one is rather underplayed. After the progressions in AVENGERS: INFINTY WAR, the audience expects nothing less than a menacing antihero or if you will, the villain. Unfortunately in the new release, the role of the villains comes across more as an individual who has been led down a nasty path against their will. With the main antagonist owning up to their dark past while displaying remorse for what they have done, the viewer is gets the picture that is contrary to expectations Ghost is in fact a lost soul in desperate need of realignment.
But it doesn’t stop here, instead ANT-MAN AND THE WASP comes across as more of a Disney film rather than a Marvel film for the plain fact that while typical Marvel films focus on interpersonal superhero relationships and their outcomes, this film follows Disney’s tried and tested method of instilling family values, with the good guys eventually saving the bad one who then turns over a new leaf to live a perfectly normal life. However, despite this, one must admit that ANT-MAN AND THE WASP does still make for a decent watch. With CGI and visual effects that are on point and a tight script, the film takes the viewer on a rollercoaster ride with references to past films and TV series thrown in for good measure.
On the whole, ANT-MAN AND THE WASP that makes for a good watch plays its role of acting as balm to assuage the anguish left after AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR perfectly. A light hearted film with true Walt Disney film values at its core, this is one film to watch just to complete the list of MCU releases that eventually will tie into the main plot of the next AVENGERS film.
At the box office, with SANJU still running, and the other Bollywood release SOORMA taking up a good share of screens, ANT-MAN AND THE WASP is likely to face a hard time raking in the numbers.
Movie Review: Soorma
An anonymous quote says “Willpower is like a muscle: The more you train it. The stronger it gets”. Yet, it is easier said than done, especially in cases when the whole world is asking you to give up or not try. But there are a rare breed of people who have managed to shun all these notions and achieve the impossible through their sheer will. One such legend is the Indian hockey player Sandeep Singh who got back on his feet after facing a shocking accident. The plot is very interesting and can turn out to be a great, inspirational biopic. So does director Shaad Ali manage to do justice to this exciting storyline? Or does he fail in its endeavour? Let’s analyse.
SOORMA is the unbelievable story of Sandeep Singh, his beginnings in the world of hockey, his accident and his comeback that shocked everyone. Sandeep Singh (Diljit Dosanjh) is from the village of Shahabad, Punjab. As a kid, he is enrolled for hockey training under Coach Kartar Singh (Danish Husain). But Kartar's strict ways forces him to leave the training in his childhood itself. When he turns adult, he gets interested in hockey again when he falls for Harpreet (Taapsee Pannu). She is an efficient hockey player and Sandeep decides to try his luck on the sport once again to woo her. Meanwhile, Sandeep's brother Bikramjeet Singh (Angad Bedi) never left hockey and has the potential to play in the national team. However he doesn’t get selected. He returns home dejected but is overjoyed when he realises that Sandeep can do the dragflick, an extremely difficult skill of hockey, effortlessly. Bikramjeet hence takes Sandeep to Patiala so that Coach Harry (Vijay Raaz) can train him. In no time, Sandeep gets selected in the national team. He also is given a job in an airline company. Harpreet is ready to marry him too. However, all his dreams are shattered on August 22, 2006, when he’s traveling in a train and a police officer accidentally fires him on the back. Sandeep survives but he gets paralysed from his waist below. Needless to say, he can’t play hockey again. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Shaad Ali’s story is quite promising and inspirational. But Suyash Trivedi, Shaad Ali and Siva Ananth's screenplay fails to do justice. It is a bit slow in the first half but on the plus side, a lot of scenes are well written. But in the second half, it is too quick and sans any impact. Suyash Trivedi, Shaad Ali and Siva Ananth's dialogues are witty, sharp and funny, especially the ones mouthed by Vijay Raaz.
Shaad Ali's direction is inconsistent, with the first half executed very well more or less but the second half being a letdown. Post interval, he rushes through the narrative. He also fails to do justice to the romantic track at this point, which otherwise is quite cute in the first half. Also, hockey as a sport is not as popular as say cricket. Hence it was important for him to ensure that the aam junta can comprehend what’s going on in the hockey scenes. But that doesn’t happen. Few developments are not properly explained. For instance, why Chairman Saab (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) is called back is not properly explained. A film like SOORMA should have ended with a punch. But the final match between India and Pakistan is lackluster.
SOORMA is a bit shaky and one realises that in the very beginning. But one doesn’t mind as the first half is embellished with some lovely and dramatic sequences that keep the interest going. One of the most interesting sequences of the film is when Bikramjeet realises that Sandeep is a very good dragflicker and the latter is surprised that he possesses such a rare skill. Then, Vijay Raaz tickles the funny bone with his hilarious one liners. The intermission point is shocking. Unfortunately, the film goes downhill in the second half. The entire process of Sandeep getting back on his feet and on the field should have been the highpoint. Shockingly, director Shaadi Ali shows it in a bland manner within just a song, thereby completely diluting the impact. What also is a problem is that CHAK DE INDIA [2007] is still fresh in people’s minds and has set a benchmark when it comes to hockey related films. SOORMA is nowhere close to this iconic film.
Diljit Dosanjh however saves the film to an extent. He looks very endearing as he romances his ladylove and wins accolades for India. One feels terrible after he meets with the accident. Watch out for him when he has an ugly fight with his brother outside his residence. Taapsee Pannu gets to play an interesting character but sadly her part seems unconvincing after a point. Performance wise, she is very good though. Angad Bedi has a supporting part but is fairly nice and gets to be a part of some important scenes. Vijay Raaz steals the show. Some of his dialogues are going to bring the house down in the single screens! Satish Kaushik (Gurucharan) plays his part with honesty. Khulbhushan Kharbanda and Avtaar Singh (Mahavir Bhullar) are quite lovable. Danish Husain looks very convincing. Jimmy Moses (Lobo Joseph) gets a bit overboard. The real Bikramjeet Singh appears in the film as the villainous Pakistani player Tanveer Alam and is fine. Others do a good job.
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s music is forgettable. ‘Soorma Anthem’ has the anthem like feel but is not well utilitised. 'Ishq Di Baajiyaan' is lovely but is used in too many scenes. 'Flicker Singh' and 'Pardesiya' are strictly okay while 'Good Man Di Laaltain' works as it’s well shot and choreographed. Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and Tubby’s background score is dramatic. Chirantan Das's cinematography is a bit disappointing. Some scenes could have been better shot. Sharmistha Roy's production design is authentic and same goes for Eka Lakhani's costumes. Farooq Hundekar's editing could have been better, in the second half majorly.
On the whole, SOORMA is laced with a promising plot but the weak execution hampers the impact. The buzz is very low and at the box office, it should do better in the North compared to the rest of the country.
Movie Review: Dhadak
Falling in love in India comes with its share of major problems. This is especially true when the lovers belong to diverse castes or religions or regions. Honour killing is still prevalent in many parts of India and so many cases have been reported and talked about so openly in media that it doesn’t even shock us anymore. Yet, when Nagraj Manjule presented his 2016 Marathi film SAIRAT to the audiences, it left the audiences deeply impacted. But at the same time, they were thoroughly entertained too! The film became a craze in Maharashtra and also got noticed pan-India. Shashank Khaitan, who has proved his worth with films like HUMPTY SHARMA KI DULHANIA [2014] and BADRINATH KI DULHANIA [2017] decided to take up the task of remaking this flick in Hindi. Titled DHADAK, the film is significant as it marks the long-awaited debut of Sridevi’s elder daughter Janhvi. So does DHADAK manage to turn out as entertaining as or better than the Marathi original? Or does it fail to live upto the expectations? Let’s analyse.
DHADAK is the story of two young souls who fall in love against the restrictions of caste hierarchy. Madhukar Bagla (Ishaan Khatter) belongs to a lower caste in Udaipur, Rajasthan. He’s smitten by Parthvi Singh (Janhvi Kapoor), the daughter of the high-caste politician Ratan Singh (Ashutosh Rana). Parthvi has an intimidating personality but that doesn’t stop Madhukar from making her known that he has feelings for her. Parthvi gets impressed by Madhukar’s bravado and love blossoms between the two. Trouble arises when at the birthday celebration of Parthvi’s brother Godaan Kumar (Roop Kumar), Ratan Singh catches Parthvi and Madhukar together. Madhukar and his friends Shridhar Watsar (Purshottam) and Gokul (Ankit Bisht) are taken into police custody while Parthvi is grounded at home. Parthvi however reaches the police station and manages to free Madhukar and his friends. Madhukar and Parthvi escape to Kolkata where they try to start their life afresh. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
DHADAK is adapted from SAIRAT (written and directed by Nagraj Popatrao Manjule). Shashank Khaitan’s story is on the same lines as the Marathi blockbuster with minor tweaks. Shashank Khaitan’s screenplay is very effective. One of the best things about the screenplay is that it’s shorter than SAIRAT. However the impact is more or less the same. In the second half, the film gets a bit slow but then it was necessary to show the hardships. Shashank Khaitan’s direction complements the script well. He keeps the film very rooted and also tells a very relatable story. In some sequences, he takes the film on another level. For instance, the scene where Madhukar and Parthvi have a showdown on the streets of Kolkata is very well handled. Also he shines in the climax. Shashank Khaitan’s dialogues are simple and funny and even acidic as required.
Though DHADAK is an official remake of SAIRAT, one should not expect the former to be a scene by scene reworked version of the latter. As a result, there are quite a many changes. Hence even those who have seen SAIRAT will be in for a surprise. The film begins on a nice note with the food eating competition sequence turning out to be quite interesting. The manner in which Madhukar and Parthvi's love story develops will surely put a smile on the faces of the viewers. Two sequences stand out here – Madhukar meeting Parthvi at her mansion at night and Madhukar singing an English song for Parthvi. The film goes on a high as soon as Ratan Singh learns about their romance. Post interval, the film switches tracks as the lovers realise that love is not a bed of roses. But the best is reserved for the finale. It’s a shocker to say the least!
Ishaan Khatter had already proved his worth with BEYOND THE CLOUDS and with DHADAK, he proves that he’s definitely here to stay. He’s very confident and looks so endearing in scenes where he’s head over heels in love, especially in the song 'Pehli Baar'. In the emotional and dramatic, he’s equally efficient. Janhvi Kapoor also does extremely well and exudes lot of confidence. She handles this difficult role with so much ease and that’s a feat for a newcomer. Definitely, a star is born! Ashutosh Rana is a natural when it comes to negative roles and this one is no different. Shridhar Watsar is extremely hilarious and contributes a lot to the humour quotient. He’s going to be loved by the youth and single screen audiences. Ankit Bisht is fair but gets overshadowed by the presence of Ishaan and Shridhar. Godaan Kumar is good in the villainous role and leaves a mark in the scene when he’s asked to apologise to the college professor. Aditya Kumar (Devilal) gets limited scope. Ishika Ganeja (Ambika) looks lovely and gets noticed. Govind Pandey (Bhagwandas) is decent as Madhukar's father. Shalini Kapoor (Ashadevi) and Aishwariya Avinash (Gayatri) are fair as the mothers of Parthvi and Madhukar respectively. Manish Verma (Arvind Mama) is passable while Kharaj Mukherjee (Sachin Bhowmick) is very adorable and would be loved. Shubhadevi Harshal Choksey (Promila Bhowmick) looks beautiful and is confident. Balaji Gauri (Sulekhaji Goenka) makes a mark in a cameo. Vishwanath Chatterjee (Inspector Shekhawat) looks convincing.
Ajay-Atul’s music is melodious. The title song has a soothing feeling. 'Zingaat' is already a rage and should grow after the film’s release. 'Pehli Baar' is soulful and well shot. 'Vaara Re' is neatly relegated to the background. John Stewart Eduri’s background score is brilliant and enhances the impact. Vishnu Rao’s cinematography is one of the best things about the film. The locales of Udaipur have been captured like never before. Shashank Tere’s production design is convincing as well as appealing. Monisha R Baldawa’s editing is slick. Manish Malhotra, Natascha Charak, Nikita Mohanty's costumes are impressive.
On the whole, DHADAK is a simple tale told in a beautiful way. Despite being a remake of an iconic film, it manages to stand up on its feet and entertain the audiences thoroughly. At the box office, the youth is going to savour this flick big time which will ensure commercial success.
Movie Review: Mission: Impossible – Fallout
Making a sequel to a highly successful film isn’t an easy task, leave alone making the sixth instalment in a franchise that has since its introduction back in 1996 developed a fan following across the globe. But this week we see exactly that with the release of MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT. Marking the return of Tom Cruise to the legendary character of Ethan Hunt, after the highly forgettable THE MUMMY, the film comes with tremendous hype. But will the new film live up to the legend of old, or will it like the previous film in the series leave fans disappointed is what we analyse.
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT begins with Ethan Hunt on a mission to impersonate an arms dealer in an attempt to recover three nuclear cores. However, the deal goes south with Hunt finding himself caught between choosing the life of one of his team members and acquiring the cores. Putting his team’s value above everything else, Hunt saves Luther’s life but in the process loses the cores. After this IMF mission ends badly and Solomon Lane escapes custody, the world is faced with dire consequences. As Ethan Hunt takes it upon himself to fulfil his original briefing, the CIA begins to question his loyalty and his motives. Hunt finds himself in a race against time, hunted by assassins and former allies while trying to prevent a global catastrophe.
Starting off, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT marks Christopher McQuarrie’s second directorial outing in the franchise, the first being the rather forgettable MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: ROGUE NATION. However, unlike the previous film in the series, with FALLOUT, McQuarrie has done a commendable job of harkening the new flick to the first three in the series. From high octane bike chase sequences, to the cliff hanging thrill of free had rock climbing the FALLOUT features quite a few sequences that remind viewers of the first three films. Well executed and deftly shot, the film makes for a rather thrilling adrenaline pumping right.
Sadly though, FALLOUT has a rather flimsy story line. With a wafer thin plot and multiple utterances of the catch phrase, “I’ll figure it out” the film comes across as a project that did not really have a bound script. In fact, more often than not, the on screen progression comes across as ad hock performances strung together to make a whole.
Coming to the performances, Tom Cruise has since become the main stay of the MI series. And with the new film, it isn’t much different, Cruise does well in his given role as the super agent that never was, while still retaining the charm and charisma from the previous films. Since the film focuses mainly on his character, the others viz. Henry Cavill, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Sean Harris, Angela Bassett, Michelle Monaghan and Alec Baldwin find themselves relegated to supporting roles. While most of them have performed well, Sean Harris as Solomon Lane makes an impact. Playing the rogue agent who has since setup his own organisation, Harris imbues his character with a fierce menace and maniacal rage that chills. On the other hand, Henry Cavill as August Walker is plain pointless. Though the character has multiple arches both emotionally and mentally, Cavill just seems like a misfit.
However, it isn’t performances or story that is the main stay of MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT, instead it is the action. Well-choreographed and executed marvellously, the film makes of an engaging watch. Though it doesn’t keep you on the edge of your seat, it has enough elements to get the adrenaline pumping. With high altitude helicopter chase sequences to high speed bike chase scenes, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT features some of the grandest stunts that exist in the series.
On the whole, with only action going for the film, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT does make for a decent watch for the MI fans who enjoy action films. At the Indian box office, with previous Bollywood releases fading away, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT that sees a wide release in multiple languages, looks set to enjoy a good opening weekend.
Movie Review: Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 3
SAHEB BIWI AUR GANSTER [2011] arrived sans any noise and it turned out to be a surprise success at the box office. Encouraged by the response, the makers came up with the sequel – SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER RETURNS [2013]. The first part had a great combination of sex and thrill while the sequel hardly had any sizzling scenes. Now the makers are all set to unveil SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER 3 and it marks the return of the sizzle in the franchise. What’s more, this time, Sanjay Dutt plays the dashing gangster while Chitrangda Singh is also added to the cast. So does SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER 3 manage to be as good as its predecessors? Or does it fail in its endeavour? Let’s analyse.
SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER 3 begins where part 2 ended and twisted games that continue between the Saheb and the Biwi. Aditya Pratap Singh (Jimmy Sheirgill) is still in prison and is desperate to get out, settle scores and take back his lost power. His seductress wife Madhavi Devi (Mahie Gill) is now an MLA and using all the tricks of the trade to get what she wants. Aditya hatches a clever plan and comes out on bail. Madhavi realizes that with the Saheb a free bird, she would once again be compelled to remain caged behind closed doors. She searches her way out and in the process bumps into the Gangster, Udai Pratap Singh (Sanjay Dutt). Shunned by his family and scorned by his love, the beautiful Suhani (Chitrangda Singh), Udai agrees to help Madhavi Devi. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Tigmanshu Dhulia and Sanjay Chouhan’s story is weak and stands on a wafer thin plot. In fact one can say that there’s literally no story in the film. There are far too many characters and too many plots running parallel. Tigmanshu Dhulia and Sanjay Chouhan’s screenplay is quite disjointed with the narrative not flowing in an organic manner. Tigmanshu Dhulia and Sanjay Chouhan’s dialogues thankfully save the day and spike interest in some scenes.
Tigmanshu Dhulia’s direction is flawed and it’s shocking that a person who exceptionally helmed films like HAASIL [2003], PAAN SINGH TOMAR [2012] and even the previous parts of SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER is just not in form. There are multiple scenes which start and end abruptly. The VFX is tacky at places and in one shot, the colour correction changes mid way! For most part of the film, nothing much is happening. Only few scenes here and there work, along with the performances. The film’s length is another issue. It’s too long and with not much exciting stuff happening in the film, it tests your patience.
SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER 3 arrives five years after the second part and the recall value isn’t that strong. The makers should have realised this and could have given some recap. But they don’t and as a result, audiences might get confused with some of the developments. On the other hand, the track of Sanjay Dutt is like a downer. His track is half baked. Audiences never get to know under what circumstances he had to leave India, separate from Chitrangda Singh and marry someone else. However some scenes stand out. The sequence where Mahie Gill picks up a hunk from a party and gets him to the haveli will bring the house down. Chitrangda's entry is power packed. A few sequences of Jimmy also work well, particularly his conversations with Mahie. When seen in isolation, these scenes look great but in totality, they get overshadowed by the many minuses.
Sanjay Dutt's presence was supposed to take the series to the next level. But sadly he looks disinterested and tired and fails to do justice. Thankfully he gets to mouth some clapworthy dialogues, which will impress single screen audiences. Jimmy Sheirgill is yet again in top form. The actor enjoys playing the Saheb and it shows. The film will disappoint but Jimmy won’t! Mahie Gill is also exceptional and arguably creates the maximum impact. Watch out how her character cunningly gets her way out of any situation. Surely she deserves to be seen more and act in better films. Chitrangda Singh genuinely gives her best shot and her entry scene is kick-ass. But later on, she hardly has anything to do in the film. Deepak Tijori (Vijay Singh), Zakir Hussain (Bunny Uncle) and Kabir Bedi (Udai's father) are average. Deepraj Rana (Kanhaiya) plays the loyal assistant part well. Pamela Singh Bhutoria (Deepal) is quite promising. Nafisa Ali (Udai’s mother) leaves a mark. Soha Ali Khan is okay.
The music is disappointing and songs are just forced, further adding to the film’s length. ‘Baba Theme’ has a massy touch while ‘Kesariya Jugni’ suits the opening credits. ‘Lag Ja Gale’ has been promoted a lot but it’s wasted. Dharma Vish’s background score is quite exhilarating but badly chopped at places. Amlendu Chaudhary’s cinematography is okay. Dhananjoy Mondal’s production design and Tulika Dhulia’s costumes are rich, authentic and quite appealing. Nishant Khan’s action is nothing special. Pravin Angre's editing could have been slicker and at places, could have been smoother.
On the whole, SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER 3 is a disappointing fare thanks to its long length, flawed script and haphazard direction. At the box office, these flaws and the lack of buzz will hamper its commercial prospects.
Movie Review: Mulk
One of the most burning issues of the country and also the world, since a long time, is the perception of Muslims in society. In India, the extremely traumatic memories of Partition of 1947 compounded the Hindu-Muslim divide. As time passed, the differences reduced significantly but it still exists. Anubhav Sinha’s MULK attempts to talk speak about this aspect and promises an intense, hard-hitting time to the viewers. So does Anubhav Sinha treat this sensitive topic well? Or does it fail to make any impact? Let’s analyse
MULK is the story of a family facing extreme crisis when one of their own is accused of being a terrorist. Murad Ali Mohammed (Rishi Kapoor) is a respected lawyer in Varanasi and he lives there in an almost century old building with wife Badi Tabassum (Neena Gupta), brother Bilal (Manoj Pahwa), Bilal's wife Choti Tabassum (Prachee Shah Paandya), Bilal’s daughter Aayat (Vartika Singh) and Bilal's son Shahid (Prateik Babbar). The Mohammeds are planning a grand party on the occasion of Murad Ali's 65th birthday. His daughter in law Aarti (Taapsee Pannu), married to his son Aftab (Indraneil Sengupta) comes from London and surprises them. On the same day as Murad Ali's birthday, Shahid leaves at night under the pretext of watching a cricket match at Kanpur. Unknown to the family, he has been brainwashed and he carries out a bomb blast in Allahabad, killing 16 people. Shahid is spotted in the CCTV footage and a hunt begins for him. He’s finally found and is eliminated by officer Danish Javed (Rajat Kapoor). For the Mohammed family, the world comes crashing down. Bilal is accused of helping out Shahid with the terror attack and is arrested. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Anubhav Sinha’s story is excellent and the need of the hour. There are a lot of characters and each of them is well written. Anubhav Sinha’s screenplay is highly effective as it keeps the audiences captivated from start to finish. He understands that he has a sensitive topic in hand and treats it very well. He takes up both sides of the issue and that’s very praiseworthy. Anubhav Sinha’s dialogues are hard hitting and acidic. The dialogues mouthed by Santosh (Ashutosh Rana) might squirm viewers but it was needed to make the impact.
Anubhav Sinha’s direction is very good and he is in control of the written material. He has often been criticized for not executing his films well, be it DUS [2005], CASH [2007] or RA.ONE [2011]. But in MULK, he seems in seems in top form. Only blemish is that the film seems too long and it drops in between in the second half.
MULK impresses viewers from the introduction itself. After acquainting them with the Mohammed family and the characteristics of each of them, it slowly indicates that Shahid is not what he seems to be. The sequence where Shahid is encountered is quite thrilling. But the scene in the first half that stands out is when Murad Ali refuses to accept Shahid’s mortal remains. It’s moving to see how he and his family gets branded as terrorists by those who knew him since years. In the second half, the film gets better as the courtroom drama goes on a high. At some places however the pace drops. But the film picks up when Aarti interrogates Murad Ali and asks him some tough questions. Note that this sequence might remind viewers about PINK [2006] which had a similar sequence of Amitabh Bachchan forcing Taapsee Pannu to speak up to prove a point. The closing arguments of Aarti are also terrific and surprisingly, even the monologue of the judge (Kumud Mishra) is remarkable and would induce claps from audiences!
Rishi Kapoor delivers a bravura performance, and stands amongst his finest in his long, glorious career. Viewers are bound to move by his plight and helplessness and the way he was obligated to prove his nationalism simply because of his religion. His monologue in the pre climax is very memorable. Taapsee Pannu is quite nice in the first half and in the beginning of the second half, she’s a silent spectator to the goings on. But as soon as she takes up the case, she surprises viewers with her glorious performance. It’s thanks to her that the climax goes on dizzying heights. Manoj Pahwa is the next best in line. He’s always been a fine actor but sadly never got his due. With MULK, he’s surely going to be talked about a lot! Prateik Babbar is terrific in a small role. Ashutosh Rana gets into the skin of the character and is quite good as the villainous, communal minded advocate. Rajat Kapoor looks every inch a no nonsense officer and performance wise, he’s dependable. Kumud Mishra is subtle yet impressive. Neena Gupta and Prachee Shah Paandya are decent but get scope only in the first half. Vartika Singh, Ashrut Jain (Rashid) and Indraneil Sengupta are fine. Others do well.
Songs aren’t required in this film. Only ‘Thenge Se’ stands out. Mangesh Dhadke’s background score is dramatic and enhances tension. Ewan Mulligan’s cinematography is fairly decent. Nikhil Kovale’s art direction is quite earthy and real. Yasmin Rogers's make up and Preetisheel Singh's prosthetics are excellent, especially in case of Rishi Kapoor. Riyaz – Habib’s action is straight out of life, in the lone action scene. Ballu Saluja’s editing could have been crisper and better. Few scenes ended and began abruptly and this could have been avoided.
On the whole, MULK is a hard hitting and exhilarating saga that effectively talks about some of the burning issues of our country. At the box office, it has the potential to grow thanks to the positive word of mouth and thereby emerge as the dark horse of the year! Recommended!
Movie Review: Karwaan
Road trip films have their own charm and some of the most memorable films in the West belong to this genre. Even Bollywood has excelled in this genre with films like PIKU [2015], QARIB QARIB SINGLLE [2017], ZINDAGI NA MILEGI DOBARA [2011], HIGHWAY [2014], JAB WE MET [2007], YEH JAWAANI HAI DEEWANI [2013] etc. Irrfan Khan, surprisingly, has appeared in two such films in recent times – PIKU and QARIB QARIB SINGLLE. And now he’s all set to complete his travel trilogy with KARWAAN, which is the Bollywood debut of South star Dulquer Salmaan and the first leading role for internet sensation and Marathi actor Mithila Palkar. So does KARWAAN manage to entertain and motivate like other films in this genre? Or does it disappoint? Let’s analyse.
KARWAAN is the story of three diametrically opposite individuals on a journey together. Avinash Rajpurohit (Dulquer Salmaan) works in an IT company in Bengaluru and is frustrated with his job. One day he gets a call that his father Prakash Rajpurohit (Akash Khurana) has died in a bus accident while he was on his way to Gangotri. The travel company arranges for his father’s mortal remains to be sent to Avinash in Bengaluru. Avinash had a troubled relationship with his father as the latter compelled him to give up his dreams of becoming a photographer. As a result, he’s not quite affected with his demise. Avinash asks his friend Shaukat (Irrfan Khan), who runs a garage, to provide him with a van so that he can carry the mortal remains from the airport to the crematorium. Avinash picks up the body and reaches the crematorium, where he realizes that he is given the mortal remains of a woman (Beena). The woman turns out to be a victim who also died in the same bus accident and her family resides in Kochi, who in a terrible mix up, were provided with Prakash’s remains. Avinash hence decides to take advantage of the long weekend and take the woman’s remains to Kochi and exchange it with his father’s. Shaukat also joins in. On the way, the dead woman’s daughter Tahira (Amala Akkineni) makes a SOS call to Avinash and requests if he can pick up her daughter Tanya (Mithila Palkar) who studies in Ooty and is incommunicado. Shaukat has reservations with this idea but Avinash doesn’t listen. He reaches Ooty, picks up Tanya and then they head to Kochi. Unknown to them, a group of small-time goons are also following the trio. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Bejoy Nambiar’s story is promising and could have made for a great script. But Akarsh Khurana and Adhir Bhat’s screenplay fails to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity. The film moves at a snail’s pace and many developments don’t happen organically. Also, the entire track of Avinash’s father forcing him to give up photography is something that’s been done to death in our films, most notable and recent example being TAMASHA [2015]. Hussain Dalal’s dialogues are funny and witty, yet worded simply. The ones mouthed by Irrfan Khan stand out.
Akarsh Khurana’s direction is weak and he also lets go of the opportunity of turning a somewhat flawed script into a good film with his execution. One doesn’t feel much for the characters due to the way the narrative pans out. Except for the part where Shaukat speaks about his father, no other scene moves viewers, not even the monologue of Tahira and Avinash. Also, the predictability sets in since one knows that the road trip films usually end with the characters getting transformed ultimately. Hence, despite the scene of Avinash in the end with his boss being a good one, it doesn’t make the desired impact as the audiences already see it coming.
KARWAAN begins well and the frustration of being a part of a profession that doesn’t suit Avinash is well depicted in the initial scenes. One expects things to get better once the road trip begins. And it does get better but not to a great extent. The film drags and a lot of humour and situations seem forced. The character of Tanya is half-baked and the writers should have etched this part in a better way. The intermission point is funny and again, the hopes rise for a better second half. Alas, that doesn’t happen and the film remains flat in the last hour as well. Even the climax lacks punch. In fact, the Indian audiences might have strong reservations in the manner in which Tahira and Tanya organize a feast, play cricket and make merry as if nothing untoward has happened in their lives, just hours after the funeral. On the positive side, the film has some funny moments that succeed in raising laughs. The best part in this regard is that track of the shehnai wallah (Habib Azmi). It’s sure to bring the house down!
Irrfan Khan delivers a decent performance and contributes to the laughter quotient, but only at places. Almost all his dialogues are worded to create an effect and the endeavor fails. Compare this with Irrfan’s previous travel films – QARIB QARIB SINGLLE and PIKU – where the humour flowed organically. Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen here. But he surely dominates the film and gives the most memorable performance out of all actors. Dulquer Salmaan makes a confident debut. He understands his part well and watch out how he carefully ensures he doesn’t go overboard. This aspect would surely be loved. Mithila Palkar is strictly average. Her character lacked depth and even performance wise, she could have brought out various shades which would have enhanced the impact. Alas, her performance looks a bit monotonous. Amala Akkineni is genuine. Akash Khurana is good as the autocratic father. Kriti Kharbanda (Rumana) is quite lovely in the special appearance, but again, her track fails to add much to the film. Donna Munshi (Tasneem) has a striking face and does very well. Habib Azmi gives a fine performance. Beena is alright. The actors playing the cargo office staffer, Avinash’s boss, Rumana’s husband, new employee at Avinash’s office and Nambiar are good.
Music goes well with the narrative but isn’t something that would have a long shelf life. ‘Chota Sa Fasana’ is the best of the lot and is like a theme of the film. ‘Heartquake’ comes next and works due to its quirky lyrics and situation. ‘Saansein’ is also fair and the rest are forgettable. Anurag Saikia’s background score is good but could have been a bit more subtle. Avinash Arun’s cinematography is breathtaking and captures the locales so well that one feels that one is actually a part of the ‘Karwaan’. The lensman had earlier shown his magic in MASAAN [2015] and DRISHYAM [2015] and directed the acclaimed Marathi film KILLA [2015] and he ensures that he keeps his credibility intact. Tiya Tejpal’s production design is passable. Three locations – the house of Rumana, Tahira and Nambiars – all seemed to be shot at one location. Ajay Sharma’s editing is too slow and could have been slick. Also, the manner in which the flashback of Prakash Rajpurohit would suddenly pop up seemed unconvincing. Jaya Taurani’s costumes are fine.
On the whole, KARWAAN is a good opportunity gone waste. Irrfan Khan is the biggest draw of this film but the audiences might be dejected to not see him in his full glory. At the box office, the film is going to struggle to stay afloat.
NANU KI JAANU is the story of a ghost that falls in love with a crook. Nanu (Abhay Deol) is a small time goon who works with Dabbu (Manu Rishi Chadha). Their modus operandi is to rent a flat and then threaten the landlord to transfer the ownership in their name. One day, Nanu is returning home when he sees that Siddhi (Patralekhaa) has met with an accident. He refuses to be a bystander and takes her to the hospital. Siddhi is barely conscious but she sees Nanu helping her and she falls for him. Unfortunately, she passes away as soon as she is brought in the hospital. Nanu gets disturbed by the episode. Soon he realizes that the spirit of Siddhi has followed him to his posh residence in Noida. With no other option in hand, he finds out the address of Siddhi's father (Rajesh Sharma) and meets him. But even that doesn’t help. He then approaches a ghost buster (Shreya Narayan) but it ends up in a disaster. To make things worse, Nanu loses interest in his illegal work and as a result their source of livelihood is in danger. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
NANU KI JAANU is a remake of a Tamil film PISAASU and is written by Mysskin. The adaptation by Manu Rishi Chadha is very poor. Manu Rishi Chadha’s screenplay is very weak and only a few moments stand out.
NANU KI JAANU doesn’t have a great beginning but one hopes for things to get better as the film progresses. The sequence where Siddhi is dying but is looking at Nanu lovingly could have gone wrong but is handled well. The film has some nice moments once the ghost starts to harass Nanu. The scene where Dabbu gets hung upside down by the spirit brings the house down. The intermission point is intriguing. But shockingly, the film goes completely downhill in the second half. The narrative goes haywire. The last 30 minutes of the film are bizarre to say the least and it’s going to raise questions as to how the script got approved in the first place.
Manu Rishi Chadha’s dialogues are funny at places but they fall flat in many scenes. The dialogues get tacky in the finale. Faraz Haider’s direction is ineffective. He already had a weak plot in hand and his poor direction further messes up things. In the second half, he completely loses control. Even before the shockingly pathetic climax, he has done weird things like putting an intense chase sequence in a romantic song!
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR starts off with the Avengers and their allies continuing to protect the world from threats too large for any one hero to handle. But, a new danger has emerged from the cosmic shadows: Thanos. A despot of intergalactic infamy, his goal is to collect all six Infinity Stones, artefacts of unimaginable power, and use them to inflict his twisted will on all of reality. Everything the Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment - the fate of Earth and existence itself has never been more uncertain. Faced with dire consequences, the Avengers and their Super Hero allies must be willing to sacrifice all in an attempt to defeat the powerful Thanos before his blitz of devastation and ruin puts an end to the universe. Going into the film you are inundated with tags like ‘epic film’, ‘not to miss spectacle’ and ‘definite must watch’ that are often used to promote and hype big ticket summer releases. In the case of AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR each one of these tags hold true. Believe the hype, this film that features all of the Marvel superhero characters that have been introduced so far and some that are yet to be seen does full justice to what a Marvel film should be.
The film starts off where the last Marvel film THOR: RAGNAROK left off with the Asgardian brothers Thor and Loki heading off on a spaceship. Thanos accosts their convoy laying waste their craft eventually acquiring the Space stone that was housed in the Tessaract. Defeated and left for dead, Thor teams up with the Guardians of the Galaxy who arrive at the location following a distress beacon. On a parallel track, learning of Thanos’ evil plan, Bruce Banner AKA The Hulk makes his way back to earth arriving (read crashing) at Doctor Strange’s lair. Once there, he teams up with Strange and Tony Stark after detailing what he has learnt. With the location of five of the six power stones that Thanos is after being known, Earth’s mightiest defenders team up to formulate a plan to stop the mad titan and save not just Earth but half the universe. Whether they succeed or fall victim to the tyranny of Thanos is what makes up the rest of AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR.
Given Marvel’s penchant for larger than life cinematic experiences, expectations from AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR is high, and the film lives up to each and every bit of hype. Naturally, the special effects and visuals as you would expect are top notch and seamlessly woven into the film. However, the high point of the film has to be its direction. In fact, the Russo brothers are faced with the mammoth task of telling a one line story that involves a multitude of characters and parallel story lines in a coherent way without confusing the viewers. In this regard it's fair to say that the Russo brothers have gone above and beyond in narrating the film interweaving each individual story line with the main plot of the film developing a stellar piece of beautiful filmmaking amid an ocean of chaos.
Coupled with the marvellous direction is the spot on Editing that keeps the film crisp and edgy. Keeping up with the rapid progression on screen, the editing is fast paced and seamless in effect enhancing the story telling ability of the directors. If that wasn’t all, the Background Score of the film plays well with the narrative building up the anticipation for each climactic battle sequence. Besides this, a special mention needs to be made for the writing team who have done a brilliant job of detailing each character while at the same time not making the depiction too heavy or lengthy. In fact, Thanos too has been well detailed, from his mannerisms to his methods each and every aspect lends to the viewer understanding the tyrannical titan and his motivations.
Performance wise, each of the members of the cast have gone the extra mile to bring to life the larger than life characters battling a cataclysmic evil. Though with the number of cast members this segment alone deserves a stand alone post, suffice to say that each and everyone from Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark AKA Iron Man to Chris Evans as Captain America, from Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow to Zoe Saldana as Gamora and from Chris Pratt as Star Lord to Tom Holland as Spider Man each have brought in their own charm. However, it is Josh Brolin as Thanos who steals the show. With a character that has been worked upon the most, Brolin does full justice in depicting the power hungry evil overlord.
All in all, AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR is every bit an EPIC action film with amazing and fast paced action sequences. From featuring an engrossing story line to a well-defined and AWESOME villain, this film has it all, proving that the 10 year long, 18 film build up that leads to climactic surprise ridden visually extravagant end was well worth the wait.
Watch it on the BIG SCREEN. Do not miss it!
102 NOT OUT is an unusual story of a father and a son. Dattatraya Vakharia (Amitabh Bachchan) is a healthy old man at the ripe age of 102. He’s full of life and aims to live for 16 more years to break the record of the oldest man alive on Earth. His son Babulal (Rishi Kapoor) meanwhile is around 75 and has lost interest in life. Dattatraya is unable to tolerate the negativity oozed by Babulal with regards to old age, death etc. and decides to become the first father ever to admit his son in an old-age home. Babulal is naturally shocked and livid at this decision of his father and he protests. Dattatraya, as a result, decides to put few conditions in front of Babulal that he needs to fulfill if he wants to stay in their sprawling bungalow. As Dattatraya starts to fulfill these conditions, he becomes more and more excited and child-like. But few of the conditions also require Babulal to confront some of the past demons, which is going to be a challenge. What happens next forms the rest of the story.
The opening credits of the film are creative, showcasing some of the important landmarks of Mumbai, many of which are also a part of the film’s narrative. The introduction of all the 3 important characters – Dattatraya, Babulal and Dhiru (Jimit Trivedi) is quite funny and makes for a nice watch. The film is just 102 minutes long and hence, no time is wasted. The film comes right on track after the quick introduction and it’s hilarious to see Dattatraya trying to get his son admitted into an old age home. The sequence where he reads Babulal’s love letter raises lots of laughs. From here, the film slips a bit as the direction is a bit disjointed. But the film picks up slightly with the church sequence as a new angle is introduced at this point. Post-interval, this angle gets a lot of prominence and that’s where the film gets emotional. The sequence where Dattatraya narrates a terrible ordeal from their lives is heart-wrenching but also one of the best sequences of the film. The climax is clap worthy and also puts a smile on one’s face. But in this process, the humour that one would expect after watching the funny promos of the film, might feel a bit let down as the second half is very serious, with very few laughs.
Saumya Joshi’s story is novel, touching and gives a very important message. Saumya Joshi’s screenplay is effective, for most of the parts, but is too quick and slightly incoherent in the first half. For instance, the manner in which the film’s tone gets too emotional in the sequence when Babulal enters the park with the aeroplane is too quick and catches viewers unaware. Saumya Joshi’s dialogues however keep the fun and interest going and at places, are also quite acidic. Umesh Shukla’s direction is simple and neat. He struggles at a few places in the first half, but overall, he manages to leave a mark and ensure that viewers are moved and have laughed in equal measures. 102 NOT OUT is adapted from a Gujarati play by the same name, directed by Saumya Joshi, and Umesh manages to get it on celluloid very well. At a few places, it does give you a feeling of a play but no complaints as such since the content is strong!
Amitabh Bachchan is in a great form yet again and delivers an outstanding performance. It’s amusing and endearing to see him playing a centenarian and still preferring to live life to the fullest. Even in the emotional scenes, he shines a lot. His Gujarati accent comes out well, but it’s not too in-your-face. Rishi Kapoor also puts his best foot forward and gets completely into the skin of his character. It’s nice to see him as an uptight senior citizen and his gradual transformation is also lovely. His best act is definitely in a crucial emotional sequence in the second half where he mouths no dialogues but communicates a lot simply through his expressions and eyes. Jimit Trivedi whose debut in BHOOL BULAIYAA (2007) was much talked about gives a yet another bravura performance. He also contributes a lot to the fun and emotional quotient of the film. Dharmendra Gohil (Amol) is decent in the lone sequence.
Salim-Sulaiman’s music is hardly memorable. 'Bachche Ki Jaan' and ‘Kulfi’ both are played in the background and go well with the narrative. ‘Badumbaa’ is missing from the film. George Joseph’s background score however is quite exhilarating. Laxman Utkar’s cinematography is decent and the exterior shots of Mumbai are well captured. Bodhaditya Banerjee’s editing is slick, at times too quick, but overall fair. It’s commendable that a film with the title of 102 NOT OUT is actually 102 minutes long and kudos to the editor for managing it. Mansi Dhruv Mehta’s production design is appealing – the mansion looks quite rich. Veera Kapur Ee’s costume stylist is first-rate. The review would be incomplete without the mention of Preetisheel Singh’s make up, hair and prosthetics. She gives a great look to both the veteran actors which also turns out to be the film’s USP.
On the whole, 102 NOT OUT is a complete family entertainer with strong emotions as its trump card. It carries an important message for today’s times. At the box office, it will have a strong word of mouth and families are bound to flock to watch it in theatres. Recommended!
OMERTA is the story of Omar Saeed Sheikh and how he emerged as one of the forces to reckon with. Omar Saeed Sheikh (Rajkummar Rao) is British-born who gets affected with the way Muslims got butchered in the Bosnian war in 1994. At first, he joins the local protest with like-minded individuals. It’s at this point that he’s offered a chance to go one level up in this field and he agrees. After an intense training session, he arrives in Delhi and assumes the identity of Rohit Verma. He befriends a foreigner named Rhys Patridge and his friends and then kidnaps them to send a message to the world that the Whites are not safe. However, this act of Omar leads to his arrest. He gets released in 1999 along with two other terrorists in exchange for the hostages of the Indian Airlines that was hijacked from Nepal. What happens next and how Omar rises in the world of terrorism is what the film is all about.
OMERTA gets into a very unconventional zone right from the word ‘Go’. From the manner in which the introduction and lead character is established to the non-linear narrative, a lot of aspects in this film don’t follow the norms. One of the most memorable sequences of the film has to be the kidnappings of foreigners in Delhi. The way Omar befriends them with his smooth talk in British accent looks absolutely real. One can actually feel that anybody else in the place of the foreigner would have fallen for it. In a way, it also helps viewers delves into the minds of these terrorists and how they are ready to go to any length for their endeavour. The entire Daniel Pearl episode is also engaging, and chilling. On the flipside, the unconventional narrative does make it difficult to digest things. There’s no message as such in the film and one really wishes that Omar’s fall or the fact that Omar regretting to choose this line of work is shown. Moreover, Omar’s contribution in the 26/11 terror attacks is only briefly put forward. The makers should have explored this angle more as it’s quite shocking.
Actor Mukul Dev has written the story and it’s definitely interesting and novel. Dialogues are sharp. Hansal Mehta’s screenplay is terrific, especially in Delhi kidnappings and Daniel Pearl episode. But otherwise, it’s decent to even shaky at places. The film suffers a bit as a result of this inconsistency. Same goes for Hansal Mehta’s direction – he has handled the angle of Omar’s relationship with his father well. It makes an important comment how family’s silence can also play a role in their children going the wrong way. He also nicely creates the dark and violent feel for the film so that audiences get sucked in the world of Omar. But at some places, it leaves a lot to be desired. For instance, Hansal does show that Omar has a wife Saadia (Orvana Ghai) but he doesn’t delve much into this aspect.
OMERTA belongs to Rajkummar Rao – no doubts on that. In his brief career, he has given some marvelous performances and with this flick, he continues his tradition. Notice how he has worked on his body language, accent, voice, eye movements – it’s drastically different from any other performance of his. OMERTA just confirms that Rajkummar is one of the finest actors that we have today. Timothy Ryan Hickernell (Daniel Pearl) leaves a mark as a passionate reporter whose quest for reporting leads to his gruesome death. Rajesh Tailang (ISI General Mahmood) is okay initially but makes his presence in the sequence where he comes to meet Omar wearing a burkha. Rupinder Nagra (Maulana Ismail) has a natural foreign accent that works to his advantage. Performance wise, he’s fair. Orvana Ghai sadly gets no scope. The actors playing Rhys Partridge and Omar’s father are quite nice.
Ishaan Chhabra’s music has the thrill element that keeps the tension going. There’s just one song but is hardly memorable. Anuj Dhawan’s cinematography is quite raw and rugged in the tension-filled, action scenes. But it’s also quite simple and neat as per the requirement of the scene. Aditya Warrior’s editing is slick and razor sharp. Neil Chowdhury’s production design is authentic. Harpal Singh and Ravi Kumar’s action is quite gritty and disturbing.
On the whole, OMERTA has some engrossing moments and Rajkummar Rao’s award-worthy performance as its USP. But the unconventional narrative and dark, violent theme of the film will restrict its appeal. Box office wise, this film will have a tough road ahead but critically, it’s bound to get accolades.
RAAZI is the story of a young girl from India sent to Pakistan as an undercover agent. The year is 1971. Pakistan is all set to make a surprise attack on India and the Indian intelligence is trying it’s best to get the details. Hidayat (Rajit Kapur) lives in Srinagar and travels to Pakistan for business. He is a part of the Indian intelligence but has convinced Pakistani Brigadier Syed (Shishir Sharma) that he works for them. Hidayat is terminally ill and he asks Syed if he can get his daughter Sehmat (Alia Bhatt) married to Syed's younger son Iqbal (Vicky Kaushal). Syed agrees and surprisingly, Sehmat also gives her nod. Sehmat is obviously being married to Iqbal to spy in the house of Syeds and she gets adequate training from Khalid Mir (Jaideep Ahlawat) from Indian intelligence. Sehmat gets married and she gradually gets attached to Iqbal, who gives her the space and doesn’t force himself on her. Meanwhile Sehmat begins her surveillance and finds out crucial information regarding naval attacks planned by Pakistan against India. However the challenges faced by Sehmat are immense and one wrong move can prove fatal for her. What happens next forms the rest of the story.
RAAZI is based on Harinder S Sikka’s novel ‘Calling Sehmat’. The story is novel and stands out from the rest of the spy films as the lead character goes to any lengths, morals be damned. And this bit comes across very nicely. Bhavani Iyer and Meghna Gulzar’s screenplay is a mixed bag. In most scenes, it’s simplistic and engrossing.
RAAZI doesn’t commence on a high note but grips viewers well. The characters are well established and Sehmat agreeing for the dangerous mission could have come across as not so believable. But thankfully that doesn’t happen. Her training sequence is interesting but the film gets better once she moves to Pakistan. Though the film drops for a while, it picks up brilliantly in the intermission point when Sehmat drives the jeep. Arguably it’s the best part of the film. Post interval, the film has some engaging moments but at the same time, the film begins to slow down. There should have been a more gripping cat and mouse chase game but that never really happens. The manner in which Sehmat is able to escape suspicion most of the times is very unconvincing. The finale however makes up for the minuses to an extent. Some of the scenes however gets complicated. For instance, some of the details provided by Khalid during Sehmat's training is difficult to process as it is presented too quickly. Also the interest drops in some scenes. Meghna Gulzar’s dialogues are simple and neat and are very craftily written. Meghna Gulzar’s direction is impressive. Despite the content being niche, she tries to tell the story in a commercial format. She does falter at places but overall, manages to do justice to the plot.
Alia Bhatt delivers a powerhouse performance and this is surely one of her most accomplished works. Her character is living a double life and she brings out this aspect very nicely. In the emotional and breakdown sequences, she shines! Vicky Kaushal has a limited screen time but he leaves a mark. His character is sure to be loved. Rajit Kapur is quite endearing. Jaideep Ahlawat is very good. This talented actor deserves to be seen more in movies. Shishir Sharma is quite dependable. Notice how endearing he looks when he’s interacting with Sehmat but transforms in another avatar altogether when he’s talking business. Amruta Khanvilkar (Munira) is lovely. Arif Zakaria (Abdul) plays a dynamic role with panache. Ashwath Bhatt (Mehboob) has a small role but is effective. Soni Razdan (Teji) is okay. Other actors do a good job.
DEADPOOL 2, starts off with the foul-mouthed mutant mercenary Wade Wilson (A.K.A. Deadpool), blowing himself to pieces after a tragedy only to be rescued by Colossus, who is on a mission to enroll Deadpool at Professor Charles Xavier’s home for the gifted, and eventually into the X-Men. However, Deadpool being well basically Deadpool, manages to bugle things up when they are called to assist with a rogue mutant kid. After an initial altercation, Deadpool is sent back to the ‘ice box’ along with Russell AKA FireFists (Julian Dennison). Unfortunately, a super soldier from the future, Cable (Josh Brolin) travels back in time to eliminate Russell and save his era. Will Deadpool manage to protect Russell whom he has developed a liking for, will Cable prove to be too overpoweringly strong, or will Deadpool finally join the X-Men, are some of the questions that make up the rest of the film.
Going into a film like DEADPOOL 2 you are faced with the question of how can the makers live up to the expectation that have been developed by the first film? Coupled with this is the fact that the makers are faced with a task of making a film wherein the lead character is constantly able to break through the fourth wall and communicate with the audience. This melange of rather tough questions is answered in DEADPOOL 2 with a stellar script and some top notch direction. David Leitch has done a marvellous job of interweaving the story of Wade Wilson AKA Deadpool along with the narrative that gives the character enough leg room to pass some snarky comments and establish a rapport with the viewer. Double innuendo gags, well scripted humour and oneliners that come with a punch are some of the high points of the film. However despite this, DEADPOOL 2 does have moments that can leave some viewers a little lost, yes we are indeed referring to the multiple references to pop culture, films from the years gone by that have burned themselves into memory and some latest releases too. But with a lead character that is aware of these references, it becomes a breeze to watch a comic character come to life on the big screen.
Coming to the performances in the film, Deadpool 2 is as the name would suggest a Ryan Reynolds film all the way. No not like the 2011 film GREEN LANTERN, instead like the first DEADPOOL, it's very entertaining. With Reynolds going all out to infuse life into the character in the process spilling some of his own real life charm and charisma into it, the film rests firmly on his shoulders. Other cast members who have prominent roles in the film like Cable for instance, played by none other than Thanos err… sorry… Josh Brolin is on point yet again. Be it playing the mad titan or the time travelling super soldier, Brolin brings a depth to his character that is rarely seen on the big screens these days. Zazie Beetz as Domino, Julian Dennison as Russell, TJ Miller as Weasel and of course Karan Soni as Dopinder do an equally good job in their given roles. However, when it comes to Morena Baccarin as Vanessa one can’t help but notice how underused her character is. In fact with fleeting screen time, Morena’s might just be the smallest dialogued role in the film.
Assisting the stellar performances in the film is the action. Like the first DEADPOOL 2 keeps the action crisp and limited, not going overboard with bodies flying lends the film a more plausible feel thus developing a better rapport with the viewer. But don’t be disheartened, for the action seekers, this film holds more than its fair share of awkwardly twisted limbs, head rolls (literally), blood splatter and yeah fire balls!!! Another aspect of the film that works well with the on screen happenings is the background score. But since the lead character is able to break through the fourth wall, the background score more or less acts like a playlist for the character as he goes about his business. This concept helps audience unconsciously prepare for an upcoming sequence without realizing that they have been drawn into it.
But what is all this without the amazing visuals, right? DEADPOOL 2 features some of the best visual effects in recent times. No, it isn’t like AVATAR great; instead it is more like a live action film that has CGI and VFX blended into the mix seamlessly. This slick merger of CGI into the live action film takes things up a notch for DEADPOOL 2 delivering that extra bit of punch when it matters the most.
On the whole, if you have watched the first film in the series and liked it, there are high chances that DEADPOOL 2 will blow you away. For those who like superhero films, this one is a superhero film with a difference. In the end, DEADPOOL 2 that features some crazy action, wicked humour, madcap one liners and well timed humour is definitely a must watch.
At the Indian box office, with no big releases hitting screens for another couple of weeks, DEADPOOL 2 looks set to enjoy a stellar run.
PARMANU – THE STORY OF POKHRAN is the story of those people who secretly carried out a series of nuclear bomb test explosions in Pokhran on May 11, 1998. Ashwath Rana (John Abraham) is from the research department of the Central Government and in 1995, he advises the Prime Minister’s Office to conduct nuclear bomb tests in order to achieve supremacy in this field and establish fear among the nuclear powers of the world. The plan gets accepted but he’s not made a part of it. His plan is also not studied well. As a result, USA's satellites catch India preparing for the tests red handed. India is left red faced and Ashwath is made the scapegoat. He is removed from his job and shifts to Mussoorie with wife Sushma (Anuja Sathe) and son Prahlad. For the next 3 years, Ashwath does odd jobs while Anuja runs the house by working in an observatory. In 1998, Atal Bihari Vajpayee is made the Prime Minister. His principle secretary Himanshu Sharma (Boman Irani) summons Ashwath and asks him to help with the nuclear tests. Ashwath agrees and devises a plan to prepare and conduct the tests without the USA getting a whiff of it. He also prepares a team comprising of Ambalika (Diana Penty), Dr. Viraf Wadia (Aditya Hitkari), Dr. Naresh Sinha (Yogendra Tikku), Major Prem Singh (Vikas Kumar) and Purunganathan. How they manage to work together and put India on world nuclear map forms the rest of the film.
Saiwyn Quadras, Sanyuktha Chawla Shaikh and Abhishek Sharma’s story is very promising and novel as it has entertainment and feeling of nationalism in adequate doses. Saiwyn Quadras, Sanyuktha Chawla Shaikh and Abhishek Sharma’s screenplay is neat and simple and they ensure that complex technical language is not used. As a result, even the layman can understand what’s going on.
PARMANU – THE STORY OF POKHRAN has a shaky start. The 1995 sequence doesn’t involve viewers properly. It’s when Ashwath meets Himanshu is when the film picks up. From here, the film goes on another level and it’s fun to see Ashwath assembling his team and fooling USA. The intermission comes at a great point. The second half is better as the Pakistani spy (Darshan Pandya) and CIA agent Daniel (Mark Bennington) try their best to fail Team Ashwath's mission. There’s also sudden humour quotient added and it works very well especially in the confrontation scene between Ashwath and Sushma. The best is reserved for the finale. It is very well handled and the patriotic fervor comes out beautifully.
Saiwyn Quadras, Sanyuktha Chawla Shaikh and Abhishek Sharma’s dialogues are nothing great but look real and conversational. Abhishek Sharma’s direction flows quite easily and is to the point. He very nicely packs in a lot in 130 minutes. However, one wishes if the tension levels could have gone higher. A film like this should have had more edge of the seat moments for an added impact. Also, though the team is shown facing roadblocks, it seemed a bit convenient at most places. Thankfully, the film has enough plusses that overpower these glitches.
SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY follows the escapades of Han Solo before he became the legend. Starting off from the early days, the film depicts the squalor that Solo came from that was ruled by the tyrannical Lady Proxima and his constant schemes and efforts to pay his way out. Besides this like most of the films in the saga, this one too features a budding love story angle between Solo and Qi’ra. But will the two young romantics find a way out of the hell hole or will they fall prey to the Empire’s growing power is what forms the rest of the film.
Starting off one must bear in mind that the happenings in SOLO are dated before the rebellion came into being. In fact the film goes on to depict the rise of the Empire into a force to reckon with. While at the same time laying the base upon which the legend of Han Solo is built. If that wasn’t enough, through a series of daring escapades deep within a dark and dangerous criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his mighty future co-pilot Chewbacca and encounters the notorious gambler Lando Calrissian, in a journey that will set the course of one of the Star Wars saga's most unlikely heroes.
First things first, with director Ron Howard at the helm of the film, one expects nothing less than a visual spectacle. Known for films like APOLLO 13, A BEAUTIFUL MIND and more recently RUSH and INFERNO, Howard brings with him, expectations of a space western film on epic proportions. However, unlike Howard’s previous cinematic outings, SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY offers little scope for sweeping cinematic visuals. Despite this, when given the chance to depict a world that has been ravaged by time, Howard works his magic with aplomb. Going into SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY, viewers are already aware of the fact that it will feature some of the high points of Han’s life that eventually made him the smuggler with a heart of gold, unfortunately this exact premise hampers the entire telling of what could become an epic due to the limited scope to explore unknown avenues, a detail upon which most of the film in the Star Wars franchise that thrived. But despite this, Howard has managed to pull together an enjoyable film that sadly looks like a series of highlight from a character’s life.
Coming to the performances, Alden Ehrenreich is no Harrison Ford, but he does manage to do a commendable job with the role of Han Solo. Joonas Suotamo as the lovable Chewbacca and Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian are sorely underused. Despite having prominent roles in the film, both their characters (though only supporting roles) appear to be greatly under developed and half baked. One wishes that both Chewbacca and Lando were given more meatier chunks to explore the entire depth of their characters. But it is the roles of Woody Harrelson as Beckett and Emilia Clarke as Qi’ra that come across the most dejecting. In fact, both good actors in their own right fall flat with a narrative that focuses on Solo alone. While one wishes that these two were used more to their full potential being a Han Solo film, they are relegated to the shadows serving only as waypoints to take the story forward.
However, the biggest drawback of SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY is the writing and the narrative, with most of the suspense lost, the makers have had to rely heavily on the epic tale of Solo to develop a narrative that does justice to his character. Sadly, this does not suffice. Instead the film comes across as a rather poor attempt at developing a new story line to encash on an epic saga that has neared the end of its money making heydays. Simply put, with an underwhelming story and weak narrative SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY is devoid of that charm and charisma that have over the years endeared the epic of STAR WARS to so many fans.
Even the background score of the film, unlike most Howard directorial seems greatly underused. With a fall back to the now legendary Star Wars theme every now and then, this new venture offers very little to the viewers. But it isn’t all downhill. Though limited, the action and race sequences are well shot and choreographed but one wishes there were more. The CGI too though done well could have been so much better had the story line of the film given room to develop a bit more.
On the whole, SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY leaves you with a somewhat empty feeling. With nothing new to tell in the story and very little scope to deviate from the past, the film becomes just another run of the mill cinematic outings that is developed to cash grab the last bits of money from a fading franchise. At the box office, with the John Abraham starrer Parmanu releasing alongside the film, SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY might just face a hard time raking in the numbers.
VEERE DI WEDDING is the story of four female friends at an uncertain age. Kalindi Puri (Kareena Kapoor Khan), Avni Sharma (Sonam Kapoor Ahuja), Sakshi Soni (Swara Bhasker) and Meera Sood (Shikha Talsania) are the best of pals. Avni is doing well professionally as a divorce lawyer but her mother (Neena Gupta) feels that it’s not all worth it unless she gets married. Sakshi is married and is facing tough times. Meera is married and also has a child and she is unhappy as her father has not accepted the union. Kalindi is dating Rishabh Malhotra (Sumeet Vyas) and all is going well in their relationship. But one day Rishabh proposes marriage. Kalindi says yes but she develops cold feet. Her marriage gets planned with much fanfare and it stresses her out. Of course her gang of friends assemble to be with her during the most significant period of her life, while battling their life problems. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Mehul Suri and Nidhi Mehra’s story is very relatable and raises some important points about marriage, relationship, friendship, broken families etc. But Mehul Suri and Nidhi Mehra’s screenplay fails to do justice to the plot. The script is haywire and hence one doesn’t feel totally involved with the goings on. Also there are far too many subplots in the film and too much is packed in 125 minutes.
Mehul Suri and Nidhi Mehra’s dialogues are peppered with adult talk and abusive language. At places it is very witty and funny but at several places, it looks forced and that it’s added just for the effect. Thankfully most of the dialogues are left intact by the Censor Board.
VEERE DI WEDDING rests on a great idea and interesting characters. But it doesn’t translate into a fully entertaining fare. It’s the direction that plays spoilsport. The execution is very shaky and it hampers the impact. The introduction of the characters is nice and the marriage prep sequence is the most relatable. Post interval, the Thailand sequence stands out. The climax should have been a highpoint but sadly that doesn’t happen.
Shashanka Ghosh’s direction is the biggest culprit. The film just gives an overview and never allows viewers to delve into the lives of the Veeres. Also some shocking developments take place in the film like Rishabh's father (Manoj Pahwa) getting arrested. But it’s not executed in the desired manner.
BHAVESH JOSHI SUPERHERO is the story of a one man’s fight against a corrupt practice in Mumbai. Siku (Harshvardhan Kapoor) is friends with Bhavesh Joshi (Priyanshu Painyuli) and Rajat (Ashish Verma). Siku and Bhavesh feel a change is needed in the country. Both participate in India Against Corruption (IAC) movement of 2011 and also start a YouTube channel called 'Insaaf TV'. As part of this endeavour, they’d wear masks in order to conceal their identity and expose those breaking local civic laws. When the IAC movement fizzles out by 2011 end, Siku gets disillusioned and moves on with his life. 6 years later, Siku is working as a coder in an MNC and he’s offered a chance to move to USA, which he accepts. Bhavesh meanwhile still believes in bringing change. An old aged resident contacts him and informs him of a huge racket involving water scarcity. Bhavesh uploads a video exposing the scam and the baddies involved in this racket are alarmed. They begin to find out his identity. Meanwhile an altercation takes place between Siku and Bhavesh and the former shoots a video of the latter wherein he’s speaking about the ills plaguing the country. Siku uploads the video online but only a part of it. Bhavesh is hence presented as someone who’s insulting India. The water scarcity baddies, headed by Rana (Nishikant Kamat), accuse Bhavesh of being an anti-national. He’s badly beaten up. Bhavesh however doesn’t relent and he continues exposing the racket. This time Rana's goons murder him. Siku reaches the airport to leave for USA but at the eleventh hour, he changes his mind. He returns back to the city without informing anyone and decides to avenge Bhavesh's death. He assumes the identity of Bhavesh Joshi and promises to teach the wrongdoers a tough lesson. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Vikramaditya Motwane, Anurag Kashyap and Abhay Koranne’s story is very disappointing and juvenile. The premise has too many loose ends. Vikramaditya Motwane, Anurag Kashyap and Abhay Koranne’s screenplay is also not effective. Only a few sequences are well written. Their dialogues also work only at select places.
BHAVESH JOSHI SUPERHERO's beginning portion is very dry and incoherent and makes no impact. It’s only when Bhavesh chances upon the water scarcity bit that the film gets better. The manner in which Bhavesh is tortured by Rana’s men is intriguing. The intermission point is when the film goes on a high. It is the best part of the movie and one expects fireworks in the second half. Sadly that never happens. The unconvincing moments are aplenty. It is bewildering how Siku and Sneha (Shreiyah Sabharwal) don’t communicate at all after the former pretends to move to USA, especially when they haven’t formally broken up. Moreover, Siku following Rana’s men without even changing his appearance is too much since they could have easily spotted him and his game would have been up. One expects at least the climax to be satisfying. But alas, the film gets worse at this point.
JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM starts off four years after the Jurassic World theme park was closed down. Owen and Claire return to Isla Nublar to save the dinosaurs when they learn that a once dormant volcano on the island is active and is threatening to extinguish all life there. Along the way, Owen sets out to find Blue, his lead raptor, and discovers a conspiracy that could disrupt the natural order of the entire planet. Will they manage to foil the malicious plan or will life find a way again, is what makes up the rest of the film.
Going into the film, the first question that comes to mind is whether the makers of JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM will manage to provide a different take on the happenings in this film from the previous four? Well, the short answer is yes. Director J. A. Bayona has done a marvellous job with the new film; he has dared to take risk where others would have usually preferred to stick to the tried and tested formula. Though the basic plot line of the film still remains the same viz. dinosaurs are introduced into modern times and run amok while all hell breaks loose. However, unlike the 2015 film, the new one deals with a more human angle where the power of greed comes into play. Starting off with an epic sequence that grabs your attention, the film continues to engage viewers’ right through the first half. Set in the open landscape of Isla Nublar, the visuals are both breath-taking and thrilling giving the viewer a feel of the enormity of the dinosaurs and the task faced by Owen and Claire. Post the interval there is a change in setting with the on screen happenings shifting indoors. However, this restriction does not dampen the proceedings. In fact, thanks to this shift Bayona manages to recreate some of that old school charm, thrill and excitement that was felt in the first ever JURASSIC PARK. From introducing a new species to relocating the dinosaurs while at the same time battling for survival, the film encompasses almost every emotion that you would expect.
Coming to the performances, for Chris Pratt (Owen) JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM is a chance to recover a bit after his character’s faults in the recently released film AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR and boy does he do a good job. Sticking true to his role of being a dinosaur trainer, Pratt does well in his given role managing to make the task of communicating with an animal believable. Bryce Dallas Howard as Claire too is pretty good, keeping up with the happenings. Howard makes her character believable by developing an emotional connect with the viewers. Similarly the rest of the cast as well do a decent job to lend support to the main leads.
Talking about the visuals, it has been 25 years since the release of the first film JURASSIC PARK and with the advancement in technology JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM can easily be classified as one among those that seamlessly interweaves CGI and live action. This coupled with a background score that builds up the crescendo at the perfect moment and the overall dark theme of the film lend a more plausible and relatable tale.
On the whole, JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM might not be the best in the Jurassic series but it comes pretty close. With stellar direction, action scenes aplenty and a thrilling depiction, this one is certainly a must watch. At the Indian box office, with no Bollywood release, the film is likely to do well especially since it enjoys a wide release across four languages.
RACE 3 is the story of a dysfunctional family amidst a high stakes heist. Shamsher (Anil Kapoor) is the head of this family and Sikander (Salman Khan) is the kind-hearted and wise member. Sanjana (Daisy Shah) and Suraj (Saqib Saleem) are the youngest in the family and have a grudge against Sikander. But Shamsher is the pacifier who always ensures that things don’t go out of control. However, trouble arises when this family is entrusted with a task of retrieving a hard disk kept in a locker. This hard disk is worth millions. Shamsher entrusts this task to Sikander and the other family members. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
The biggest problem with RACE 3 is that there’s hardly any storyline in the film. Whatever of Shiraz Ahmed’s story is there is lame and confusing and it rests on a wafer thin plot. Shiraz Ahmed and Kiran Kotrial’s dialogues are corny and one soon realizes that Daisy Shah’s ‘none of your business’ is not the only troll-worthy one-liner of the film! Shiraz Ahmed’s screenplay is disjointed as it concentrates more on style and action than substance. Also, just like its predecessors, the makers have added a lot of twists and turns but they are unnecessary and unconvincing.
Remo Dsouza’s direction also suffers as a result of the flawed writing. The film is high on style and low on substance. The action bits are good but Remo has stretched these scenes unnecessarily. Moreover, he, the makers and writers have tried every gimmick in the book to appeal to Salman fans. Even dialogues and scenes are something that are tailor made for bhai fans but they appear unconvincing and evoke disappointment.
The first half of RACE 3 is quite horrible and there’s absolutely no story. It’s only in the second half that the film boasts of some worthwhile moments. There’s no doubt that the film looks rich. Each and every frame is a visual delight and it shows that the money has been spent like water. The makers have even left scope for a sequel. However, one really doubts whether the RACE franchise would now be carried forward. At 2.40 hours, the film appears too long. Some of the scenes are so corny that it would surely become the talking point of social media in days to come.
Talking of performances, Salman Khan does well and is in a way the saving grace of the film. He’s not in his top form like he was in his last film TIGER ZINDA HAI [2017]. But he sails through the film with his performance. Jacqueline Fernandez is shockingly disappointing and she struggles to act. Bobby Deol (Yash) is also strictly okay. There was an excitement to see him after a hiatus and he’s sure to disappoint his fans and admirers. Anil Kapoor however puts his best foot forward and is impressive. His look is also quite great. Daisy Shah and Saqib Saleem are hardly memorable. Same goes for Freddy Daruwala (Rana).
SANJU is the biopic of controversial actor Sanjay Dutt and some of the dramatic and significant episodes of his life. Sanjay Dutt (Ranbir Kapoor) is the son of famous actor Sunil Dutt (Paresh Rawal) and yesteryear actress Nargis (Manisha Koirala). He is about to get launched in a film by his father titled ROCKY. Upset with his father, he tries drugs for the first time courtesy his friend Zubin Mistry (Jim Sarbh). At this point, he finds out that Nargis is suffering from cancer and has few days to live. She is taken to New York for treatment. Sanju is unable to control his drug habit even when his mother is struggling. While in New York, he befriends Kamlesh Kapasi (Vicky Kaushal) and they both form a wonderful bond. Sadly due to his drug addiction, his relationship with his girlfriend Ruby (Sonam Kapoor) gets affected and ends on a dismal note. Nargis dies just three days before the release of ROCKY. An overwhelmed Sanju agrees to go for rehab in USA. Once he overcomes this addiction, he gets into a bigger problem. He gets arrested for illegal possession of arms. He’s also accused of aiding the terrorists in carrying out the serial bomb blasts in Mumbai in 1993. How Sanjay Dutt fights this dreadful charge forms the rest of the film.
Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi's story is interesting but one can sense that they have tried to play safe. But they have balanced it out by not glorifying Dutt and showing his bad and dark side too. Also, it’s impressive how Rajkumar and Abhijat haven’t focused on his film career and have focused on his personal life and turmoils. Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi's screenplay is terrific and despite the minuses, can be used as a guide on how to write films. With so much happening in the film, the writers ensure that the narrative doesn’t go all over the place. Everything is neatly put together. For instance, when the sequence where the Dutts are returning back to India, Nargis’ remarks about Ruby. This is done organically and neatly links to the next sequence which is related to Ruby. Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi's dialogues as always are entertaining, sharp and massy. Few dialogues related to sex will bring the house down in single screens and in the hinterland. A section of audience however would also be put off by such jokes and dark humour at places.
Rajkumar Hirani's direction as expected is highly effective. This is no easy film to make but he executes and presents the plot in a simple and crisp manner. His magic comes to the fore in several sequences and is bound to leave viewers smiling and teary eyed. However, the climax could have been better and more powerful.
The biggest strength of SANJU is that the film never drops. The screenplay is riveting and keeps you hooked, even if you might not agree with the goings on. And that’s a feat for a film which is 160 minutes long. The back and forth narrative works very well and keeps viewers intrigued. The first half is excellent and boasts of some fine emotional, funny and dramatic sequences. The intermission point comes as a bolt from the blue. The madness continues in the second half but the plot gets a bit shaky here. The film goes on a high in the first half but the same doesn’t happen in the second half. The film should have ended with a punch or on a rocking note, as it has happened in the previous Rajkumar Hirani films. However, the film leaves a strong emotional impact overall, which works very well.
Ranbir Kapoor owns the film and delivers a terrific performance. Nowhere does his performance seem like a caricature and he gives his best shot in ensuring that he looks and behaves like Sanjay Dutt. Watch out for him in the emotional sequence, particularly when his mother passes away and he confesses to his father that he needs to get better. Also he’ll leave viewers moist eyed in the scene where he fails to read his speech to his father and later the inevitable happens. SANJU surely ranks as one of the most or arguably the most accomplished performance by this young actor and is bound to win him accolades, admiration and awards! Paresh Rawal is also quite impressive and plays the important part of Sunil Dutt with perfection. SANJU is a father-son story and he compliments Ranbir very well in taking some scenes to great heights. Vicky Kaushal is the surprise package of the film. Right from his entry, he makes a mark and brings the house down at several places. Also, he’s rocking in the emotional sequences like when he meets Ruby or when he tells Sunil Dutt that they need to help Sanjay Dutt. Even in the second half, watch out for him when he meets Sanjay Dutt in the hospital and in the pre-climax when he listens to the radio. Manisha Koirala has a supporting part but is an important pillar in the film and charms with her performance. Anushka Sharma (as Winnie Dias) delivers a splendid performance. Again, her screen time is limited. Jim Sarbh makes an impact with his role. Sonam Kapoor (as Ruby) is decent in the cameo. Boman Irani (as Homi) contributes to the fun quotient. Sayaji Shinde (as Bandu Dada) looks every inch a gangster. Dia Mirza (as Maanayata Dutt) gets overpowered. Aditi Seiya (as Priya Dutt) looks quite like Priya but doesn’t have much to do in the film. Karishma Tanna (as Pinky) is quite sizzling and makes a mark, despite being there for just a scene. Mahesh Manjrekar (himself), Piyush Mishra (D Tripathi), Ashwin Mushran (security officer), Bharat Dabholkar (lawyer) and Aanjjan Srivastav (minister) are good.
Songs are not that great but work well in the film. 'Kar Har Maidaan Fateh' is the best of the lot. 'Main Badhiya Tu Bhi Badhiya' is very well picturised and imagined. 'Ruby Ruby' (by A R Rahman) is relegated to the background. Sanjay Wandrekar and Atul Raninga's background score is much better and exhilarating. S Ravivarman's cinematography is splendid and has captured some of the locales beautifully. In fact, he impresses right from the first shot itself - a bird’s eye view of Bandra. Shashank Tere's production design is appealing and rich. Eka Lakhani's costumes are authentic. Vikram Gaikwad's make-up design, Clover Wootton's prosthetics and VFX by Fluiidmask Studios deserves the highest praise for making Ranbir look like Sanjay Dutt through the ages. Rajkumar Hirani’s editing is crisp.
On the whole, SANJU is an entertaining saga that blends emotions, humour and drama in adequate doses. It is powerful, engaging, emotional as well as compelling. The combination of Rajkumar Hirani and Ranbir Kapoor works like a dream. At the box office, despite not being a ‘typical Rajkumar Hirani family entertainer’, SANJU will score tremendously and emerge as a Monstrous Hit! Don't miss it!
Starting off ANT-MAN AND THE WASP begins with Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang AKA Ant-Man living life within the confines of his home for the past two years after the happenings in CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL-WAR. Post Lang assisting Captain America in his fight against Stark, Lang has been put on house arrest with the threat that if he breaks the parameters of his new boundary or even comes in contact with quantum tech, he will be imprisoned for 20 years. With just a few days left till his house arrest is terminated, all hell breaks loose when Lang has a dream where he sees Hank Pym’s wife and daughter Hope. Confused with the sudden dream, Lang makes a call to Pym, who in turn reaches out and literally abducts Lang with the help of Hope. Once at the lab, Lang is told that Hank and Hope managed to open a tunnel to the quantum realm wherein Hope’s mother has been trapped for the past 30 years. And it was due to this that Lang, who has in the past visited the quantum realm, developed a link with Hope’s mother. But in the meantime, Ava/ Ghost, a young girl who has met with a quantum accident is hell bent on acquiring energy from the quantum realm to help stop her from phasing. While a battle ensues between Pym, Hope, Ant-Man and Ghost to acquire control of the quantum tunnel all hell breaks loose. Will Pym, Hope and Lang manage to rescue Hope’s mother, will Ghost harvest enough quantum energy or will the tech fall into the wrong hands is what makes up the rest of the film.
Right from the start it is evident that ANT-MAN AND THE WASP is unlike any of the previous films released in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). With a focus more on human values, the film sees the family and emotions play a more integral part in the overall story and on screen happenings. However, this does not diminish the action. In fact, keeping with the MCU format ANT-MAN AND THE WASP does feature its share of action and humour well interspersed that keeps the viewer in his seat. From witty one liners to some high octane action, the film has it all.
But, the biggest drawback for ANT-MAN AND THE WASP is the fact that unlike previous MCU films, the villain in this one is rather underplayed. After the progressions in AVENGERS: INFINTY WAR, the audience expects nothing less than a menacing antihero or if you will, the villain. Unfortunately in the new release, the role of the villains comes across more as an individual who has been led down a nasty path against their will. With the main antagonist owning up to their dark past while displaying remorse for what they have done, the viewer is gets the picture that is contrary to expectations Ghost is in fact a lost soul in desperate need of realignment.
But it doesn’t stop here, instead ANT-MAN AND THE WASP comes across as more of a Disney film rather than a Marvel film for the plain fact that while typical Marvel films focus on interpersonal superhero relationships and their outcomes, this film follows Disney’s tried and tested method of instilling family values, with the good guys eventually saving the bad one who then turns over a new leaf to live a perfectly normal life. However, despite this, one must admit that ANT-MAN AND THE WASP does still make for a decent watch. With CGI and visual effects that are on point and a tight script, the film takes the viewer on a rollercoaster ride with references to past films and TV series thrown in for good measure.
On the whole, ANT-MAN AND THE WASP that makes for a good watch plays its role of acting as balm to assuage the anguish left after AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR perfectly. A light hearted film with true Walt Disney film values at its core, this is one film to watch just to complete the list of MCU releases that eventually will tie into the main plot of the next AVENGERS film.
At the box office, with SANJU still running, and the other Bollywood release SOORMA taking up a good share of screens, ANT-MAN AND THE WASP is likely to face a hard time raking in the numbers.
SOORMA is the unbelievable story of Sandeep Singh, his beginnings in the world of hockey, his accident and his comeback that shocked everyone. Sandeep Singh (Diljit Dosanjh) is from the village of Shahabad, Punjab. As a kid, he is enrolled for hockey training under Coach Kartar Singh (Danish Husain). But Kartar's strict ways forces him to leave the training in his childhood itself. When he turns adult, he gets interested in hockey again when he falls for Harpreet (Taapsee Pannu). She is an efficient hockey player and Sandeep decides to try his luck on the sport once again to woo her. Meanwhile, Sandeep's brother Bikramjeet Singh (Angad Bedi) never left hockey and has the potential to play in the national team. However he doesn’t get selected. He returns home dejected but is overjoyed when he realises that Sandeep can do the dragflick, an extremely difficult skill of hockey, effortlessly. Bikramjeet hence takes Sandeep to Patiala so that Coach Harry (Vijay Raaz) can train him. In no time, Sandeep gets selected in the national team. He also is given a job in an airline company. Harpreet is ready to marry him too. However, all his dreams are shattered on August 22, 2006, when he’s traveling in a train and a police officer accidentally fires him on the back. Sandeep survives but he gets paralysed from his waist below. Needless to say, he can’t play hockey again. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Shaad Ali’s story is quite promising and inspirational. But Suyash Trivedi, Shaad Ali and Siva Ananth's screenplay fails to do justice. It is a bit slow in the first half but on the plus side, a lot of scenes are well written. But in the second half, it is too quick and sans any impact. Suyash Trivedi, Shaad Ali and Siva Ananth's dialogues are witty, sharp and funny, especially the ones mouthed by Vijay Raaz.
Shaad Ali's direction is inconsistent, with the first half executed very well more or less but the second half being a letdown. Post interval, he rushes through the narrative. He also fails to do justice to the romantic track at this point, which otherwise is quite cute in the first half. Also, hockey as a sport is not as popular as say cricket. Hence it was important for him to ensure that the aam junta can comprehend what’s going on in the hockey scenes. But that doesn’t happen. Few developments are not properly explained. For instance, why Chairman Saab (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) is called back is not properly explained. A film like SOORMA should have ended with a punch. But the final match between India and Pakistan is lackluster.
SOORMA is a bit shaky and one realises that in the very beginning. But one doesn’t mind as the first half is embellished with some lovely and dramatic sequences that keep the interest going. One of the most interesting sequences of the film is when Bikramjeet realises that Sandeep is a very good dragflicker and the latter is surprised that he possesses such a rare skill. Then, Vijay Raaz tickles the funny bone with his hilarious one liners. The intermission point is shocking. Unfortunately, the film goes downhill in the second half. The entire process of Sandeep getting back on his feet and on the field should have been the highpoint. Shockingly, director Shaadi Ali shows it in a bland manner within just a song, thereby completely diluting the impact. What also is a problem is that CHAK DE INDIA [2007] is still fresh in people’s minds and has set a benchmark when it comes to hockey related films. SOORMA is nowhere close to this iconic film.
DHADAK is the story of two young souls who fall in love against the restrictions of caste hierarchy. Madhukar Bagla (Ishaan Khatter) belongs to a lower caste in Udaipur, Rajasthan. He’s smitten by Parthvi Singh (Janhvi Kapoor), the daughter of the high-caste politician Ratan Singh (Ashutosh Rana). Parthvi has an intimidating personality but that doesn’t stop Madhukar from making her known that he has feelings for her. Parthvi gets impressed by Madhukar’s bravado and love blossoms between the two. Trouble arises when at the birthday celebration of Parthvi’s brother Godaan Kumar (Roop Kumar), Ratan Singh catches Parthvi and Madhukar together. Madhukar and his friends Shridhar Watsar (Purshottam) and Gokul (Ankit Bisht) are taken into police custody while Parthvi is grounded at home. Parthvi however reaches the police station and manages to free Madhukar and his friends. Madhukar and Parthvi escape to Kolkata where they try to start their life afresh. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
DHADAK is adapted from SAIRAT (written and directed by Nagraj Popatrao Manjule). Shashank Khaitan’s story is on the same lines as the Marathi blockbuster with minor tweaks. Shashank Khaitan’s screenplay is very effective. One of the best things about the screenplay is that it’s shorter than SAIRAT. However the impact is more or less the same. In the second half, the film gets a bit slow but then it was necessary to show the hardships. Shashank Khaitan’s direction complements the script well. He keeps the film very rooted and also tells a very relatable story. In some sequences, he takes the film on another level. For instance, the scene where Madhukar and Parthvi have a showdown on the streets of Kolkata is very well handled. Also he shines in the climax. Shashank Khaitan’s dialogues are simple and funny and even acidic as required.
Though DHADAK is an official remake of SAIRAT, one should not expect the former to be a scene by scene reworked version of the latter. As a result, there are quite a many changes. Hence even those who have seen SAIRAT will be in for a surprise. The film begins on a nice note with the food eating competition sequence turning out to be quite interesting. The manner in which Madhukar and Parthvi's love story develops will surely put a smile on the faces of the viewers. Two sequences stand out here – Madhukar meeting Parthvi at her mansion at night and Madhukar singing an English song for Parthvi. The film goes on a high as soon as Ratan Singh learns about their romance. Post interval, the film switches tracks as the lovers realise that love is not a bed of roses. But the best is reserved for the finale. It’s a shocker to say the least!
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT begins with Ethan Hunt on a mission to impersonate an arms dealer in an attempt to recover three nuclear cores. However, the deal goes south with Hunt finding himself caught between choosing the life of one of his team members and acquiring the cores. Putting his team’s value above everything else, Hunt saves Luther’s life but in the process loses the cores. After this IMF mission ends badly and Solomon Lane escapes custody, the world is faced with dire consequences. As Ethan Hunt takes it upon himself to fulfil his original briefing, the CIA begins to question his loyalty and his motives. Hunt finds himself in a race against time, hunted by assassins and former allies while trying to prevent a global catastrophe.
Starting off, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT marks Christopher McQuarrie’s second directorial outing in the franchise, the first being the rather forgettable MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: ROGUE NATION. However, unlike the previous film in the series, with FALLOUT, McQuarrie has done a commendable job of harkening the new flick to the first three in the series. From high octane bike chase sequences, to the cliff hanging thrill of free had rock climbing the FALLOUT features quite a few sequences that remind viewers of the first three films. Well executed and deftly shot, the film makes for a rather thrilling adrenaline pumping right.
Sadly though, FALLOUT has a rather flimsy story line. With a wafer thin plot and multiple utterances of the catch phrase, “I’ll figure it out” the film comes across as a project that did not really have a bound script. In fact, more often than not, the on screen progression comes across as ad hock performances strung together to make a whole.
Coming to the performances, Tom Cruise has since become the main stay of the MI series. And with the new film, it isn’t much different, Cruise does well in his given role as the super agent that never was, while still retaining the charm and charisma from the previous films. Since the film focuses mainly on his character, the others viz. Henry Cavill, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Sean Harris, Angela Bassett, Michelle Monaghan and Alec Baldwin find themselves relegated to supporting roles. While most of them have performed well, Sean Harris as Solomon Lane makes an impact. Playing the rogue agent who has since setup his own organisation, Harris imbues his character with a fierce menace and maniacal rage that chills. On the other hand, Henry Cavill as August Walker is plain pointless. Though the character has multiple arches both emotionally and mentally, Cavill just seems like a misfit.
However, it isn’t performances or story that is the main stay of MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT, instead it is the action. Well-choreographed and executed marvellously, the film makes of an engaging watch. Though it doesn’t keep you on the edge of your seat, it has enough elements to get the adrenaline pumping. With high altitude helicopter chase sequences to high speed bike chase scenes, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT features some of the grandest stunts that exist in the series.
On the whole, with only action going for the film, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT does make for a decent watch for the MI fans who enjoy action films. At the Indian box office, with previous Bollywood releases fading away, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT that sees a wide release in multiple languages, looks set to enjoy a good opening weekend.
SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER 3 begins where part 2 ended and twisted games that continue between the Saheb and the Biwi. Aditya Pratap Singh (Jimmy Sheirgill) is still in prison and is desperate to get out, settle scores and take back his lost power. His seductress wife Madhavi Devi (Mahie Gill) is now an MLA and using all the tricks of the trade to get what she wants. Aditya hatches a clever plan and comes out on bail. Madhavi realizes that with the Saheb a free bird, she would once again be compelled to remain caged behind closed doors. She searches her way out and in the process bumps into the Gangster, Udai Pratap Singh (Sanjay Dutt). Shunned by his family and scorned by his love, the beautiful Suhani (Chitrangda Singh), Udai agrees to help Madhavi Devi. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Tigmanshu Dhulia and Sanjay Chouhan’s story is weak and stands on a wafer thin plot. In fact one can say that there’s literally no story in the film. There are far too many characters and too many plots running parallel. Tigmanshu Dhulia and Sanjay Chouhan’s screenplay is quite disjointed with the narrative not flowing in an organic manner. Tigmanshu Dhulia and Sanjay Chouhan’s dialogues thankfully save the day and spike interest in some scenes.
Tigmanshu Dhulia’s direction is flawed and it’s shocking that a person who exceptionally helmed films like HAASIL [2003], PAAN SINGH TOMAR [2012] and even the previous parts of SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER is just not in form. There are multiple scenes which start and end abruptly. The VFX is tacky at places and in one shot, the colour correction changes mid way! For most part of the film, nothing much is happening. Only few scenes here and there work, along with the performances. The film’s length is another issue. It’s too long and with not much exciting stuff happening in the film, it tests your patience.
SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER 3 arrives five years after the second part and the recall value isn’t that strong. The makers should have realised this and could have given some recap. But they don’t and as a result, audiences might get confused with some of the developments. On the other hand, the track of Sanjay Dutt is like a downer. His track is half baked. Audiences never get to know under what circumstances he had to leave India, separate from Chitrangda Singh and marry someone else. However some scenes stand out. The sequence where Mahie Gill picks up a hunk from a party and gets him to the haveli will bring the house down. Chitrangda's entry is power packed. A few sequences of Jimmy also work well, particularly his conversations with Mahie. When seen in isolation, these scenes look great but in totality, they get overshadowed by the many minuses.
Sanjay Dutt's presence was supposed to take the series to the next level. But sadly he looks disinterested and tired and fails to do justice. Thankfully he gets to mouth some clapworthy dialogues, which will impress single screen audiences. Jimmy Sheirgill is yet again in top form. The actor enjoys playing the Saheb and it shows. The film will disappoint but Jimmy won’t! Mahie Gill is also exceptional and arguably creates the maximum impact. Watch out how her character cunningly gets her way out of any situation. Surely she deserves to be seen more and act in better films. Chitrangda Singh genuinely gives her best shot and her entry scene is kick-ass. But later on, she hardly has anything to do in the film. Deepak Tijori (Vijay Singh), Zakir Hussain (Bunny Uncle) and Kabir Bedi (Udai's father) are average. Deepraj Rana (Kanhaiya) plays the loyal assistant part well. Pamela Singh Bhutoria (Deepal) is quite promising. Nafisa Ali (Udai’s mother) leaves a mark. Soha Ali Khan is okay.
The music is disappointing and songs are just forced, further adding to the film’s length. ‘Baba Theme’ has a massy touch while ‘Kesariya Jugni’ suits the opening credits. ‘Lag Ja Gale’ has been promoted a lot but it’s wasted. Dharma Vish’s background score is quite exhilarating but badly chopped at places. Amlendu Chaudhary’s cinematography is okay. Dhananjoy Mondal’s production design and Tulika Dhulia’s costumes are rich, authentic and quite appealing. Nishant Khan’s action is nothing special. Pravin Angre's editing could have been slicker and at places, could have been smoother.
On the whole, SAHEB BIWI AUR GANGSTER 3 is a disappointing fare thanks to its long length, flawed script and haphazard direction. At the box office, these flaws and the lack of buzz will hamper its commercial prospects.
MULK is the story of a family facing extreme crisis when one of their own is accused of being a terrorist. Murad Ali Mohammed (Rishi Kapoor) is a respected lawyer in Varanasi and he lives there in an almost century old building with wife Badi Tabassum (Neena Gupta), brother Bilal (Manoj Pahwa), Bilal's wife Choti Tabassum (Prachee Shah Paandya), Bilal’s daughter Aayat (Vartika Singh) and Bilal's son Shahid (Prateik Babbar). The Mohammeds are planning a grand party on the occasion of Murad Ali's 65th birthday. His daughter in law Aarti (Taapsee Pannu), married to his son Aftab (Indraneil Sengupta) comes from London and surprises them. On the same day as Murad Ali's birthday, Shahid leaves at night under the pretext of watching a cricket match at Kanpur. Unknown to the family, he has been brainwashed and he carries out a bomb blast in Allahabad, killing 16 people. Shahid is spotted in the CCTV footage and a hunt begins for him. He’s finally found and is eliminated by officer Danish Javed (Rajat Kapoor). For the Mohammed family, the world comes crashing down. Bilal is accused of helping out Shahid with the terror attack and is arrested. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Anubhav Sinha’s story is excellent and the need of the hour. There are a lot of characters and each of them is well written. Anubhav Sinha’s screenplay is highly effective as it keeps the audiences captivated from start to finish. He understands that he has a sensitive topic in hand and treats it very well. He takes up both sides of the issue and that’s very praiseworthy. Anubhav Sinha’s dialogues are hard hitting and acidic. The dialogues mouthed by Santosh (Ashutosh Rana) might squirm viewers but it was needed to make the impact.
Anubhav Sinha’s direction is very good and he is in control of the written material. He has often been criticized for not executing his films well, be it DUS [2005], CASH [2007] or RA.ONE [2011]. But in MULK, he seems in seems in top form. Only blemish is that the film seems too long and it drops in between in the second half.
MULK impresses viewers from the introduction itself. After acquainting them with the Mohammed family and the characteristics of each of them, it slowly indicates that Shahid is not what he seems to be. The sequence where Shahid is encountered is quite thrilling. But the scene in the first half that stands out is when Murad Ali refuses to accept Shahid’s mortal remains. It’s moving to see how he and his family gets branded as terrorists by those who knew him since years. In the second half, the film gets better as the courtroom drama goes on a high. At some places however the pace drops. But the film picks up when Aarti interrogates Murad Ali and asks him some tough questions. Note that this sequence might remind viewers about PINK [2006] which had a similar sequence of Amitabh Bachchan forcing Taapsee Pannu to speak up to prove a point. The closing arguments of Aarti are also terrific and surprisingly, even the monologue of the judge (Kumud Mishra) is remarkable and would induce claps from audiences!
Rishi Kapoor delivers a bravura performance, and stands amongst his finest in his long, glorious career. Viewers are bound to move by his plight and helplessness and the way he was obligated to prove his nationalism simply because of his religion. His monologue in the pre climax is very memorable. Taapsee Pannu is quite nice in the first half and in the beginning of the second half, she’s a silent spectator to the goings on. But as soon as she takes up the case, she surprises viewers with her glorious performance. It’s thanks to her that the climax goes on dizzying heights. Manoj Pahwa is the next best in line. He’s always been a fine actor but sadly never got his due. With MULK, he’s surely going to be talked about a lot! Prateik Babbar is terrific in a small role. Ashutosh Rana gets into the skin of the character and is quite good as the villainous, communal minded advocate. Rajat Kapoor looks every inch a no nonsense officer and performance wise, he’s dependable. Kumud Mishra is subtle yet impressive. Neena Gupta and Prachee Shah Paandya are decent but get scope only in the first half. Vartika Singh, Ashrut Jain (Rashid) and Indraneil Sengupta are fine. Others do well.
Songs aren’t required in this film. Only ‘Thenge Se’ stands out. Mangesh Dhadke’s background score is dramatic and enhances tension. Ewan Mulligan’s cinematography is fairly decent. Nikhil Kovale’s art direction is quite earthy and real. Yasmin Rogers's make up and Preetisheel Singh's prosthetics are excellent, especially in case of Rishi Kapoor. Riyaz – Habib’s action is straight out of life, in the lone action scene. Ballu Saluja’s editing could have been crisper and better. Few scenes ended and began abruptly and this could have been avoided.
On the whole, MULK is a hard hitting and exhilarating saga that effectively talks about some of the burning issues of our country. At the box office, it has the potential to grow thanks to the positive word of mouth and thereby emerge as the dark horse of the year! Recommended!
KARWAAN is the story of three diametrically opposite individuals on a journey together. Avinash Rajpurohit (Dulquer Salmaan) works in an IT company in Bengaluru and is frustrated with his job. One day he gets a call that his father Prakash Rajpurohit (Akash Khurana) has died in a bus accident while he was on his way to Gangotri. The travel company arranges for his father’s mortal remains to be sent to Avinash in Bengaluru. Avinash had a troubled relationship with his father as the latter compelled him to give up his dreams of becoming a photographer. As a result, he’s not quite affected with his demise. Avinash asks his friend Shaukat (Irrfan Khan), who runs a garage, to provide him with a van so that he can carry the mortal remains from the airport to the crematorium. Avinash picks up the body and reaches the crematorium, where he realizes that he is given the mortal remains of a woman (Beena). The woman turns out to be a victim who also died in the same bus accident and her family resides in Kochi, who in a terrible mix up, were provided with Prakash’s remains. Avinash hence decides to take advantage of the long weekend and take the woman’s remains to Kochi and exchange it with his father’s. Shaukat also joins in. On the way, the dead woman’s daughter Tahira (Amala Akkineni) makes a SOS call to Avinash and requests if he can pick up her daughter Tanya (Mithila Palkar) who studies in Ooty and is incommunicado. Shaukat has reservations with this idea but Avinash doesn’t listen. He reaches Ooty, picks up Tanya and then they head to Kochi. Unknown to them, a group of small-time goons are also following the trio. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Bejoy Nambiar’s story is promising and could have made for a great script. But Akarsh Khurana and Adhir Bhat’s screenplay fails to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity. The film moves at a snail’s pace and many developments don’t happen organically. Also, the entire track of Avinash’s father forcing him to give up photography is something that’s been done to death in our films, most notable and recent example being TAMASHA [2015]. Hussain Dalal’s dialogues are funny and witty, yet worded simply. The ones mouthed by Irrfan Khan stand out.
Akarsh Khurana’s direction is weak and he also lets go of the opportunity of turning a somewhat flawed script into a good film with his execution. One doesn’t feel much for the characters due to the way the narrative pans out. Except for the part where Shaukat speaks about his father, no other scene moves viewers, not even the monologue of Tahira and Avinash. Also, the predictability sets in since one knows that the road trip films usually end with the characters getting transformed ultimately. Hence, despite the scene of Avinash in the end with his boss being a good one, it doesn’t make the desired impact as the audiences already see it coming.
KARWAAN begins well and the frustration of being a part of a profession that doesn’t suit Avinash is well depicted in the initial scenes. One expects things to get better once the road trip begins. And it does get better but not to a great extent. The film drags and a lot of humour and situations seem forced. The character of Tanya is half-baked and the writers should have etched this part in a better way. The intermission point is funny and again, the hopes rise for a better second half. Alas, that doesn’t happen and the film remains flat in the last hour as well. Even the climax lacks punch. In fact, the Indian audiences might have strong reservations in the manner in which Tahira and Tanya organize a feast, play cricket and make merry as if nothing untoward has happened in their lives, just hours after the funeral. On the positive side, the film has some funny moments that succeed in raising laughs. The best part in this regard is that track of the shehnai wallah (Habib Azmi). It’s sure to bring the house down!
Irrfan Khan delivers a decent performance and contributes to the laughter quotient, but only at places. Almost all his dialogues are worded to create an effect and the endeavor fails. Compare this with Irrfan’s previous travel films – QARIB QARIB SINGLLE and PIKU – where the humour flowed organically. Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen here. But he surely dominates the film and gives the most memorable performance out of all actors. Dulquer Salmaan makes a confident debut. He understands his part well and watch out how he carefully ensures he doesn’t go overboard. This aspect would surely be loved. Mithila Palkar is strictly average. Her character lacked depth and even performance wise, she could have brought out various shades which would have enhanced the impact. Alas, her performance looks a bit monotonous. Amala Akkineni is genuine. Akash Khurana is good as the autocratic father. Kriti Kharbanda (Rumana) is quite lovely in the special appearance, but again, her track fails to add much to the film. Donna Munshi (Tasneem) has a striking face and does very well. Habib Azmi gives a fine performance. Beena is alright. The actors playing the cargo office staffer, Avinash’s boss, Rumana’s husband, new employee at Avinash’s office and Nambiar are good.
Music goes well with the narrative but isn’t something that would have a long shelf life. ‘Chota Sa Fasana’ is the best of the lot and is like a theme of the film. ‘Heartquake’ comes next and works due to its quirky lyrics and situation. ‘Saansein’ is also fair and the rest are forgettable. Anurag Saikia’s background score is good but could have been a bit more subtle. Avinash Arun’s cinematography is breathtaking and captures the locales so well that one feels that one is actually a part of the ‘Karwaan’. The lensman had earlier shown his magic in MASAAN [2015] and DRISHYAM [2015] and directed the acclaimed Marathi film KILLA [2015] and he ensures that he keeps his credibility intact. Tiya Tejpal’s production design is passable. Three locations – the house of Rumana, Tahira and Nambiars – all seemed to be shot at one location. Ajay Sharma’s editing is too slow and could have been slick. Also, the manner in which the flashback of Prakash Rajpurohit would suddenly pop up seemed unconvincing. Jaya Taurani’s costumes are fine.
On the whole, KARWAAN is a good opportunity gone waste. Irrfan Khan is the biggest draw of this film but the audiences might be dejected to not see him in his full glory. At the box office, the film is going to struggle to stay afloat.