D-Day

Attempt to mature

 

            Nikhil Advani’s attempt of re-re-inventing himself with a gangster thriller takes a mature step ahead over a volley a gangster films India has made. D-Day is taut and detailed and a genuine attempt of bringing authenticity to Indian gangster films. With thrilling action sequences and authentic performances, D-Day easily becomes one of the better films of the year.

            Four ISI agents from different backgrounds, join hands for a common job in Karachi, Pakistan, and soon get caught into something, the cause of which cannot be comprehended by either of them. Consequently, the merciless international politics weakens them further and dumps them to hopeless death possibilities. Advani impresses you with his detailing in terms of showcasing mission plans, use of weapons and the layers of his five main characters. The craft of the film keeps you well engaged, until the film reaches its mid second half, after which dragged emotional sequences and melodrama take centre stage. The conclusion is well staged, but is nothing that you wouldn’t expect from the film.

 

 

            Screenplay needs to be applauded for its subtle capacity of inducing emotion even for a dead Karachi main market prostitute. Editing is crisp and a fine cinematography helps recreate Karachi. Production design is detailed and genuine, and real locations are well shot. Music is unnecessary for most of the parts that it is played, although the compositions are worth appreciation.

            Rishi Kapoor as the big guy, seems a little awkward in some scenes, but the being the actor he is, he successfully hides it and delivers a convincing gangster role. Rampal as the macho ex-military agent paves his way through with ease. Huma Quereshi is functional. Irfaan Khan as the sandwiched in dilemmas ISI agent steals the show with a strong, subtle and supreme performance.

 

D-Day is the sort of film India hasn’t made till date. Although it doesn’t conclude on an ‘epic’ note, it still makes a mark on you as you move out of the theatres. It’s 3 out of 5 for the film and an extra half just for the genuine attempt.

 

Bhaag Milkha Bhaag

Fit and Fine

 

            From dialogues to screenplay and background score to the production design, Rakesh Omprakash Mehra’s Bhaag Milkha Bhaag is the closest to what they call as flawless filmmaking. With a write up of smoothly flowing story, Prasoon Joshi takes us deep into the reality and emotions of Mr. Milkha Singh’s life.

            The story’s main premise is Milkha declining to participate in a tournament based on an Indo-Pak friendly association, owing to the venue being Pakistan. The reasons why Singh is repelled by the Pakistani venue reveal themselves at proper intervals such that you don’t lose desire to know them. Often playing between many timelines, Prasoon Joshi’s screenplay helps the biopic turn itself into an interesting narrative.

 

 

 

 

            Mehra as the director grabs the opportunity of working on a brilliant script, and does a flawless job himself. Mehra uses fine techniques in showing the reality of Indian villages on the border caught in the Indo-Pak separation post Independence. For instance, the scene where Milkha’s elder sister gets sexually abused by her husband in presence of the entire family. Or the scene where Milkha finds dead bodies of his family post a domestic war. The abuse is brutal, hard hitting and genuinely portrayed by Mehra.

            Mehra smartly puts elements for quick comic relief in the otherwise hard hitting narrative. Prakash Raj surprises, and pleasantly so, in a role of a stern yet loveable military training officer. Or the parts where Milkha romances the various leading ladies are heart-warming. Some sequences with high level of melodrama could have been shortened and softened, but they hardly annoy.

            The film is very well edited by show motion action sequences and extensive use of graphics. The cinematography follows a Rang de Basanti pattern and the shades change according to the timelines. Music is good, not the best of Shankar Ehsan Loy though.

            Farhan Akhtar immerses himself into every bit of the Milkha Singh he understands. From a fabulous body build up to the turban, Akhtar gets it picture perfect and delivers his best work here. The supporting cast is perfect for their respective parts and all the performances amalgamate to create a rock solid film.

 

I am going with an out and out 4 out of 5 for Rakesh Omprakash Mehra’s Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. In your busy and fast life, spare a 3 and a half hour slot for Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, and you won’t regret it.

 

 

Ishkq in Paris

It’s all about Zinta

           

            Prem Raj’s Ishkq in Paris may not be most different of ventures in Hindi cinema, yet it makes its mark with certain onscreen zest that its actors bring with themselves.

            Ishkq in Paris, produced, co-written and acted in by Preity Zinta is a rom-com which neither pretends to be different, nor tries to. This is one of the cases where they say the routine works. You’d also be glad to know that director Prem Raj’s disastrous debut, Main aur Mrs Khanna doesn’t repeat itself in his second venture.

            Two strangers particularly repelled by commitment decide to spend a night at Paris, and the story develops in the most predictable way. Ishkq in Paris however suffers due to its weak writing. The first of half of the film does show some comic moments, but its writers fail to make it totally satisfactory. They try to be innovative but end up into not so intelligent dialogues. Perhaps, an Imtiaz Ali kind of writing is what the plot desperately needed. The second half falters with dragged scenes and overuse of melodrama to create emotions.

 

 

            What simply works in favour of the film is its wisely chosen enchanting setting of Paris. The cinematography is at its best, and Ishkq in Paris counts in the top five well shot films in Paris. The crisp daylight of the Paris winter or the snowfall or varied locations of the Eiffel Tower are brilliantly captured and make the viewing pleasant to the eye. Prem Raj and Preity Zinta write a linear screenplay and keep it simple with a sweet, European style of narration.

            The editing is again very good, and the film is cut short to run time of only an hour and half. Sajid Wajid do a decent job with the music and background score without ever getting spectacular. It’s all about tonight and Jaane bhi de are outstanding tracks while the others are very forgettable. Salman Khan makes a charming cameo but is wasted due to a forgettable number he dances on. Surily Goel deserves a mention for designing fantastic clothes in fashion capital of the world.

            Isabella Adjani is wasted with a small screen time and least dialogues and looks unconvincing for her role.  Rehan Maleik makes a strong debut with a subtle yet remarkable performance. But it’s obviously Ms Zinta all the way through, who carries the movie on her shoulders with her high energy and brilliant screen presence.

Preity Zinta is THE reason you could watch the movie.

 

I am going with a 2.5 out of 5 for Prem Raj’s Ishkq in Paris. Watch it if rom-com is your thing, or watch it for Zinta!

Iron Man 3

And it gets bigger and better

 Latest instalment of the Iron Man series overtakes its predecessors in almost all respects. Director Shane Black, new to the IM series transforms the series into his own world keeping in touch with the IM legacy.

            The film kicks off with a brief footage of Tony Stark’s past event where a one night stand results into much more than just the girl hating him. He is soon shown in the present having sleepless nights in his 5 star workshop with an uncontrollable anxiety of something he cannot comprehend. Unlike the previous flicks, IM 3 gets deep into the emotions of Tony Stark the husband. The scenes where he reveals his fears of losing his beloved wife, Pepper played by Gwyneth Paltrow are touching and set out a new thread for the Iron Man’s character. The Villain is obviously the fierce Mandarin, taken from the Iron Man comics, but given an internationally political vibe, say an Osama Bin Laden of a super hero film.        

 

            Iron Man 3 is certainly not as intelligent as a Dark Knight, but it still makes the experience super satisfying with sheer style, technology and fantastic lead actors. Robert Downy, Jr. makes Iron man so charming and effortless that you wouldn’t mind sitting for another two hours to simply enjoy his crack ups in the film. Paltrow gets a larger footage time this around and she shines through her part. Ben Kingsley as the Mandarin is exceptional, and you would know why only after having watched the second half.

            Technology has taken a bigger leap from the previous instalments. Scenes where parts of the Iron Man suit fly out and bombard Stark’s body one by one to fit in are amazingly edited. The fierce attack at Malibu, or the bomb blasts or the finale sequence could give any super hero flick a run for their money. Watch the scene where the suit grabs Pepper to save her from the falling ceiling but soon leaves her to reach its true master, and you’d realise how well the suit had been engineered before the shooting began.

            The 3D however is ordinary with no particular scene where it totally blows you off. This makes it a decent 2D view, and you wouldn’t want to wait to buy tickets for a 3D show. Iron Man 3 hints at being the last one of the series, but doesn’t confirm it. If you haven’t watched the previous flicks, Iron Man 3 can get self explanatory.   

           

I am going with a 4 out of 5 for Shane Black’s Iron Man 3. Watch it if you are into action movies, if not, watch it anyway!

 

Nautanki Saala

A delight

 

            Rohan Sippy’s Nautanki Saala inspired from a French film Apres Vous seems to be a film Sippy had been waiting to make since ages. He makes an intelligent comedy film with a simple yet sensible storyline and excels thoroughly.

                RP (Ayushman Khurana) encounters a confused man with a dilemma, Mandar(Kunal Roy Kapur); then friendships, ladies and comedy of errors in very unconventional ways is what NS talks about. In Hindi movies, the director’s craft is often hidden under the star power of its leads and the the male lead actor easily looks like the captain of the ship. Sippy however is the true hero of the film who writes vivid, unconventional scenes with some fabulous comic situations and keeps the audience engaged in a story which could have got really annoying. He writes a linear screenplay and keeps his story telling very simple yet very intelligent. He cut shorts through many scenes, keeping the run time just over two hours.

 



                Sippy however fails create a totally convincing relationship between his two male leads. The question of why would RP go out of his way to help Mandar who he just recently befriended, getting himself into trouble and having to face financial losses, especially when RP doesn’t seem to be a too liberal person after all, remains unanswered.

                Cinematography is particularly good, and locales of South Mumbai are used brilliantly. The sets and theatres are well shot too. The costumes are young and casual and particularly interesting during the Ramayan play. Music is catchy and compliments the story well.

                Ayushman Khurana yet again shines through the film in an author backed role. It is however Kunal Roy Kapur who creates almost all the laughter of the film and gets the Marathi accent so right. The three girls have little to do, but they never disappoint.

Nautanki Saala is a perfect answer to many commercial 100 crore comedy films with big stars which do nothing but thrive on stupid clichés and often objectify women.

 

       I am going with 3.5 out of 5 for Rohan Sippy’s Nautanki Saala. Don’t miss it!

 

Chasme Baddoor

The occasional laughter

                As I planned to catch Chasme Baddoor this weekend, my obvious homework for reviewing it was watching its original, which I must admit I couldn’t. Surprisingly, not having watched the original totally worked for me, as I could experience the novelty of the story without having to scrutinize and compare the two films.

                Director David Dhavan tries to pull out his type of humour out of a 1981 comic film Chasme Baddoor. Now to begin with, the story is simple, predictable and really stupid in parts. So all Dhavan could offer us is a big laugh riot in which he didn't totally succeed. Witty one- liners and some well written scenes are the saviours but film falters to totally appeal to the audience as the original did.

 

 

                Dhavan uses the clichés: Friends falling for the same girl, crossing agendas, lies and then a settlement. What he does right here is that he writes a fast paced screenplay and finishes the movie within 2 hours, not giving us the chance to lose patience. The first half disappoints as it offers a repetitive script and some pretentiously comic dialogues that provide absolutely no humour. It is fun to watch mad dialogues, but don’t be too surprised to find some really stupid one’s too here!

                Dhavan uses the location of Goa well. Beaches, cafes and shopping malls are well shot. Editing is interesting, especially in the flashbacks. Costumes are conflicting; you see a broke Ali Zafar in branded clothes and specs. Music is fun, catchy and one of Sajid-Wajid’s better works.

                Dhavan messes up the casting. Ali Zafar as the lead character seems out of the place and doesn’t find his spot in any scene. Tannu Pannu as the lady love fails the impress and needs to take big lessons on acting. Anupam Kher, Rishi Kapoor and Lilette Dubey are dependable as always. Siddharth and Divendu Sharma sparkle through the film with a superb comic timing.

 

Dhavan offers you a not so bad film. If you are ready to settle for it, go watch it. I am going with an average 2.5 out of 5 for David Dhavan’s Chasme Baddoor.

 

Aatma

Not worth a scare

           

            Supern Verma’s Aatma is yet another film of the horror genre in addition to a fair bit of not so great films of the same genre released in the recent times. To its makers’ credit, Aatma tries to be different and particularly logical unlike its very many counterparts.

            Maya (Bipasha Basu) is a single mother to a daughter (Doyel Dhawan). Having separated with her husband (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) who eventually dies, Maya believes life shall be peaceful hence, only until she realises her husband’s super natural presence in her life who is determined to kill their daughter and take her to the world of the dead.  Now the plot might just feel a little unconventional to begin with, but the film soon gets sucked into clichés and typically annoying tactics used by most of the horror film makers in India.

 

 

            The director and writers seem to be almost obsessed with the mirrors, as they throw us a volley of scenes where the ghost is visible only in the mirror. The only intelligent killing sequence is while the ghost murders his daughter’s school teacher, although the setting is rather odd. Not in many films with running of time of mere 90 minutes, have I felt so exhausted waiting for the climax; Aatma tests your patience as its screenplay is sloppy and slow. The conclusions however is much logical than most of the hindi horror films we have seen in the recent times, although it is totally predictable. The genre demands suspense and scary moments, but Aatma has the least of it to offer.

            Editing and animations are good in parts and functional in some. Watch the death sequence of the priest and you will applaud the animated beast he turns into. Background score is decent, but is betrayed by some really amateur scenes.

            It is totally an actors’ film. Doyel Dhawan as the loving and confused daughter is perfectly cast and plays her part with conviction. Basu as the vulnerable mother is impressive and delivers her best amongst the few horror films she has done. Siddiqui is easily the best the film can offer. He looks simple yet vicious and adds to the horror. Here’s an actor who adds more value to the film that its captain, the director.

            Aatma is not the best, but easily a better attempt at making horror.

 I am going with a very liberal 2.5 out of 5 for Supern Verma’s Aatma. In spite of its very many flaws, watch it to encourage a genuine effort to make some better horror in Indian films.

 

 

Jolly LLB

                        ^{Too easy for inspiration, yet decent enough}

Director Subhaas Kapoor of the Phas gayere Obama fame attempts a feel good film with Jolly LLB.  Jolly, played by Arshad Warsi, a small town jobless lawyer travels to Delhi in search of better work. He soon finds himself pitched against the supposed best lawyer in the country played by Boman Irani in a case which is way too big for Jolly to handle. The story then turns into a predictable-inspirational kind with a pretty obvious conclusion.

You may think the movie is a thorough comedy, but you will be pleasantly surprised to experience a decent share of drama and reality of the Indian judiciary system. Kapoor’s biggest achievement in this film is clearly the genuine occasional laughs that he gives the audience with a blend of a reality check and criticism of the judiciary system. Kapoor writes an engaging 130 minute run time with a linear screenplay.



Having said that, patches of the script show lazy writing. Jolly’s adventurous journey throughout the case seems too easy to be believable. For instance, the way Jolly falls into being pitched against the Irani in a huge case feels just too fake to be true. And again, a totally unnecessary love angle adds to the spoiler and also generates unneeded song and dance.

Camera work and editing is particularly impressive during an accident sequence. Music is ignorable.

Cunning and witty dialogues generate big laughs in the theatre and are easily the highlights of the film. Kapoor however wastes his actors this time around. Warsi is well cast as the small town confused lawyer; however he hardly gets the opportunity to reach his best. Irani too is underused. Amrita Rao as Jolly’s love interest although in short insignificant role shines through her part. It is Saurabh Shukla however, as Judge Tripathi who steals the show with a lousy, weird and doubtful character.

 

I am going with a 3 out of 5 for Subhaas Kapoor’s Jolly LLB.  With all its ignorable flaws and limitations, its offers you a good weekend entertainer.

 

 

Special 26

A prey to commercial demands

 

               

            After the spectacular thriller of 2008, A Wednesday directed by Niraj Pandey, it isn’t surprising if you eagerly await for his next, especially when the trailers look pretty interesting. When a first time director make a spectacular film, his second not so bad project, can easily be written off and Special 26 can fall prey to the same.

            A decent plot, good story telling and an excellent background score is what Special 26 flaunts, but all this goes in vain when a smoothly running story is occasionally interrupted by totally unnecessary romance sequences. It is surprising and annoying to see an efficient director fall prey to the so called conventional commercial demands of a Hindi movie especially when he already has roped in a ‘very saleable’ hero. Dragged romantic scenes and dance numbers pop in and out of a gripping narrative and make it look like a never ending novel and defy the very intention of it bringing some entertainment value as all it does is, is to make the viewers restless.           

            Ajay Singh, played by Akshay Kumar with his three fellow conmen have been raiding politicians and rich businessmen for some time now by pretending to be officers from CBI. They raid another minister and also cheat the local police who aid them during the raid. Ranveer Singh, the cheated (and hence suspended) police officer played by Jimmy Shergill is desperate to find the conmen down with help of Wasim, the real CBI officer. The raids shown look very real and tiniest of details shown. Entertaining dialogues and comic traits of certain characters are the brightest parts of the movie.

 



 

Director writes a gripping screenplay for the parts showing the hardcore planning and execution of the raids/robbery, but the lengthy romantic pop ups totally slow down the pace of the film. Pandey adds a totally unnecessary character: Ajay Singh’s lady love played by Kajal Aggraval. This character costs the film a really boring 30 minute excess run time and hence a few detractors. The screenplay then fails to keep the suspense till the end.

Camera work is excellent, especially during the chasing sequences, the robbery and vehicles. Editing is average and some really amateurish animation is easily annoying. Music is also average but background is excellent.

 Anupam Kher is terrific as the oldest of the conmen. He is hilarious in parts and really strong and vibrant in the raiding sequences. Manoj Bajpai looks pitifully weak but delivers an equally strong performance. Kajal Aggrawal gets the second name in the credits, but has least work. She is wasted in the film, has the most insignificant role and fails to be even a show piece. Jimy Shergill and Divya Dutta too have much smaller roles. Akshay Kumar is entertaining, smart and quick for his role and performs it with utmost sincerity.

Special 26 has its flaws, but it surely is one of the better films of the year.

I am going with a 3 out of 5 for Neeraj Pandey’s Special 26. Do watch it, but with some patience.

 

 

 

Vishwaroop

 

                                                                       The first in India

               

              In spite of having seen decent action sequences in some recently released films like Ek tha Tiger, action in Indian films has been incomparably inferior to that produced in the west. Writer, co-producer and director Kamal Haasan’s Vishwaroop is a perfect example to break this convention and is to date the most technically sound film made in India. This can perhaps become your sole reason to catch it this week in the theatres.

                Kamal Haasan’s Vishwaroop totally sucks you into the plot within the first few minutes of the run time.  It is easily amusing to see an effeminate hero dance kathak on a classical number, in a spy thriller in the very beginning of the film. But it soon starts to lose its grip with some scattered writing in the second half.  Hasan writes a non linear screenplay and tries his best to keep the suspense intact, but the story is often too simple to even pretend to have anything hidden.  And in this desperate play of the screenplay, Hasan introduces unnecessary characters and scenes which add nothing but an excessive run time.

                It all starts with narration from Dr Nirupama(Pooja Kumar) an oncologist in the states, who is married with an hidden agenda to an effeminate and much older husband,Vishwanath(Kamal Haasan). Having to self hide her guilt of an affair with her boss, she hires a spy to find out a possible extra-marital affair of her husband. Soon the spy falls into the wrong hands while chasing Vishwanath, and things start to unfold and all the lies to unveil.

 



                A large portion of the film is shot in parts of the terrorist camps of Afghanistan and is easily the highlight of the film. The combat including the bombings, the Arab culture and especially the vicious terroristic influence on the kids of the jihads is shown with utmost genuineness which makes it a well researched film. Hasan excels in showing emotions of the innocent Arabs living life on the edge in Afghanistan.  For instance, a scene where an innocent Arab accused of being a traitor is hanged to death on a crane while the mother cries helplessly reveals the intense atmosphere in the country.

                The camera work is excellent with clean cinematography capturing the lonely arid deserts of Afghanistan and cold snowy winter of New York. Editing is uniquely done, especially the spoofy edits when the narration changes timelines.

                Pooja Kumar as Dr. Nirupama is well cast, she often struggles to match up to Hasan’s performance, but succeeds in most providing a comic relief in the film. It is interesting to see Rahul Bose cast as a jihad, especially when the casting team had a lot of other options. He seems a little uncomfortable in his character, and doesn’t finds a spot for it. Shekar Kapoor has limited work, and he hardly shines through whatever he gets. Praising Kamal Hasan for a good performance is like calling sugar sweet; from being the effeminate to the macho guy, he gets it all bang on!

                Vishwaroop could have been a great film had it managed to find a smarter script. Yet, the film is easily watchable and I would recommend a watch as this film has touched such a height of excellence in the technical department that no Indian film has to date.

                For the record the film doesn’t make any derogatory remarks on any sane community of the world, and the film clearly deals with anti-terrorism ideals and the reality of the terrorists groups of Taliban in Afghanistan.

 

I am going with a 3 out of 5 for Kamal Hasan’s Vishwaroop. Watch it for its technical finesse and to have a closer look at the reality of Afghanistan



 

 

 

Race 2

All tried and tested, yet unapologetically immature

 

            Director duo Abbas Mustan’s Race 2 reminds you of the very recently released Dabang 2 and also makes you realise how the Hindi film industry lacks imagination and originality. Race 2 is yet another sequel produced to a successful predecessor and is amusingly similar to it. The twists appear at similar situations, but this time they are painfully predictable.

                Abbas Mustan yet again attempt their signature stylized and slick action thriller with Race 2, but are ditched but a patchy script which craves for logic. Race may not have been the most logical of thrillers, but its surprising twists had made it an engaging film. Race 2 offers neither a surprise nor  thrill for it is a film with a scattered and confused story. However, the film starts with a plot having potential and leaves with you a higher expectation at the end of the first half. The second totally falters.

                Characters are either repeated from the first part or replaced by similar ones in this sequel. Ranvir Singh(Saif Ali Khan) is the same smart rich man, this time with a motive of his own. John Abraham replaces Akshay Khanna as Arman Malik, a filthy rich businessman ever ready to expand his empire. Both characters have opposing agendas and use other characters to win over each other. Abbas Mustan use their skills of showing slick action sequences, exotic foreign locales and good looking men and women with least amount of clothing. Race 2 is certainly an ambitious project and it shows on its expensive production design and the star-cast.

                Certain action sequences have clarity and good editing while the climax sequence shot on a flying private jet is ridiculously illogical and badly animated and can become a reason why some might totally dislike the film. Cinematography is decent and the camera captures decent looking locales of Turkey. Songs pop in the movie at the most unnecessary situations and can be easily annoying. Music is average. Background score is good.

                Amongst the actors, everyone fits well into their parts except John Abraham, whose performance falls at various moments and the big muscular body just doesn’t help.

                Race 2 has it all, big money, glamour, cleavage and stars but a patchy story and not surprising twists waste all the glitter its makers gave it.

 

I am going with a 2.5 out of 5 for Abbas Mustan’s Race 2, watch it if you are willing to enjoy all the glamour without a good story.

 

 

 

 

Trailer: