Blog | Amodini's Movie Reviews - Part 80Amodini's Movie Reviews | Movie Reviews by Year, Genre and Rating

Worst Movies of 2007

Posted on December 31, 2007 by amodini

This year was a bad one for big banner desi films. They crashed and burned all over the place. From the clichéd “Laaga Chunari mein daag” to the over-hyped “Saawariya” and “Om shanti Om” the terrible films kept coming. Even old worthies failed to come through – case in point, Vidhu Vinod Chopra with “Eklavya”. Thankfully, this year I’ve been kinder to self, by not seeing the worst of the worst. Thus, have been saved from stuff like “RGV ki Aag”, and “Cash”. Still, it’s not like I don’t have enough to pick and choose while making this list. So here goes – my top picks for the worst films of 2007 (that I have seen) :

10. Om Shanti Om : This is the Dhoom2 of 2007. It’s a little better than that, and the first half of the film saves it from being #1 on this list, but it’s a bad film nevertheless. See the full review here.

9. Ta ra rum pum : You want annoying, immature, dumb ? Then this is it. Technically well-made this film flounders because of it’s utter inability to comprehend what normal people call “common sense”. You still wanna know more ?

8. Traffic Signal : How tepid can you get ? This one left me unmoved and a film which leaves one unmoved is a big, big failure. Here are details.

7. Mera pehla pehla pyaar : I’d have thought it cutesy if I’d been 18. Now I think it annoying, and an exercise in imbecility. If you’re above 21, keep away. Here’s the complete review.

6. Heyy Babyy : Stupid, sexist, crass – what more can I say ?

5. Dhan Dhana dhan goal : A soccer drama apparently, this one suffers from poor quality, poor scripting and poor acting. Poor everything actually. The only actor worth watching here is John Abraham. And not for his acting skills. Read the complete review.

4. I see you : The brainchild of models Arjun Rampal and the Mrs. (Mehr that is), this is the film they conceived when they were optimists. Are they optimists now ? I think not.

3. Partner : 6 words – Stupider, more sexist, crassier, David Dhawan.

2. Apne : The Deol men weeping as one. I weeping by myself. Guess who’s happier ?

1. Eklavya : This one’s earns the top spot because it promised a lot and gave zilch. Hyped to be the master’s film, this film crashed and burnt like no other. It’s not like bad, bad but really I expect better than mediocre from Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Chopra’s lost it, and I’m not sure if he knows it. Plus what’s with nominating this piece-of-work for the Oscars ? Really, I want a refund of my movie ticket – I could do much better with $8 .

Also see the Best Films of 2007.

Posted in 2007, bollywood, Top 10 | 6 Comments

Best Films of 2007

Posted on December 28, 2007 by amodini

Note : The edited version of this post appears in the Spotlight Section of Planet Bollywood, here.

This was the year of the little known film-maker. While big banners floundered with their attempts at crowd-pleasing cinema, small-time, independent film-makers carved out the top-spots with innovative, imaginative moves. Very pleased with the outcomes, I bring to you my picks for the Top 10 films of 2007 :

10. Taare zameen par : In the mood for a weepie ? A heart-tugging tale of a dyslexic little boy and an unsympathetic world, this one brings up the rear of the Top 10 count-down. Here’s the full review.

9. Honeymoon travels Pvt. Ltd : Reema Kagti’s first directorial venture, by way of Farhan Akhtar is a tale of a bunch of honey-mooners, out celebrating. With well-etched out characters, the elements of love, drama, humor, surprise, fantasy are nicely intertwined to create a clean, fresh, and enjoyable film. Full review here.

8. Jhoom-barabar-jhoom : This is your above average masala film with a twist. Shaad Ali’s second attempt at film-making , this one’s a little loopy, a little kitschy, and can boogie with the best. The full scoop here.

7. Bheja Fry : One of the better comedies of the year, this one still takes the cake for situational (and realistic) humor. Quirky characters abound, and inflict themselves upon poor, unsuspecting souls, creating a comedy of errors you won’t forget. Read the entire review.

6. Life in a metro : A group of stories all inter-twined, and each one well told. An amazing starcast brings the characters to life, and a great sound-track brings home the emotion. Metro is surely the thinking man’s cinema, and an engrossing film. Full review here.

5. Cheeni Kum : What, want more romance ? And you want it sans the juvenile inanities that make desi romances such a chore ? Well then, CK is it for you. A grown-up attitude towards amore, CK sizzles with wry wit, humor and superb acting. Love, is now, in the air. Here’s the full review.

4. Jab we met : I like JWM so much because it’s light, fluffy and melts in the mouth. Not without it’s flaws, and a slightly “heavy” second half, this one still comes in at #4 because of it’s humor, feel-good-ness and nicely done romance. The on-screen chemistry between Kareena and Shahid is a lovely bonus. Details here .

3. Manorama six feet under : Perry Mason, Poirot, move over ! Make way for our very own home-grown, small-town desi detective, Satyaveer Singh Randhawa. Not very Herculean by nature, Satyaveer’s attempts to do the right thing inspite of all odds, garners the film much appreciation and the #3 slot on this countdown. Read the full review here.

2. Johnny Gaddar : There are crime mysteries galore, but ever hear the one about how he got away ? An interesting, intelligent crime thriller, JG is top grade desi noir. Here’s the lowdown on the film.

1. Chak de India ! : How do you like your under-dog : rare, medium or well-done ? Well-done it seems with CDI, which takes the age-old formula, infuses it with charm, and feel-good vibes to trot out the most endearing film of the year. Classy flick this one – read the full review here.

Other watchable films for 2007 are few, and they are :

– Guru
– Aaja Nachle
– Gandhi, my father
– Salaam-e-ishq
– Ek chaalis ki last local
– Risk

Forward looking, aren’t we ? Here are the Blockbusters from 2008 ! Plus make sure you didn’t miss the cream of the crop from last year – check out The Top 5 films of 2006 !

Hmmm … forgiving mood ? See the Worst Films of 2007.

Tags : Best films of 2007, Best hindi movies, Good hindi movies, Top 10 movies

Posted in 2007, Best hindi movies, bollywood, recommended, Top 10 | 12 Comments

Review : Taare zameen par

Posted on December 25, 2007 by amodini

Note : The edited version of this review appears at Planet Bollywood, here.

Rating : Above average (3.8/5)
Genre : Drama
Year : 2007
Running time : 2 hours 45 minutes
Director/Producer : Amir Khan
Cast : Aamir Khan, Darsheel Safary, Tanay Cheda, Tisca Chopra, Sachet Engineer, Vipin Sharma
Music : Shankar Ehsaan Loy
Writer : Amole Gupte
Lyrics : Prasoon Joshi

TAARE ZAMEEN PAR (TZP) : WINSOME WEEPIE

Ishaan Awasthi (Darsheel Safary) is your average 8 year old. Or not. He is mischevious, naughty and given to pranks that you’d think were normal for his age. He loves to paint, and express himself. But at school, he has difficulty concentrating on his work and taking directions. And when the teacher asks him to read, he can’t . Why ? Because, says he, “the letters are dancing”. Smartass ? No. Dyslexic ? Yes.

The film is about a little boy, who’s a little different from all the other little boys. Only the rest of the world can’t see his troubles, terming them “attitude” problems, or laziness. Even his parents, especially his dad (Vipin Sharma) won’t sympathize, packing him off to boarding school where “they’ve tamed wilder horses”.

Dyslexia is little recognized, I’d imagine, in an atmosphere where competition is severe, and tomorrow’s success depends on high scores in class today. We all must be toppers, so where is the space for little buck-toothed Ishaan ? Ishaan’s elder brother Yohan (Sachet Engineer) is your average super-accomplished kid, excelling in studies and sports. Thus his parents are doubly disappointed in Ishaan’s red-inked classwork, oft-repeated mistakes, and frequent complaints from school. Ishaan is lost in an internal world of misery, until an astute and empathetic teacher Ram Shankar Nikumbh (Aamir) recognizes the symptoms and helps him out.

The film’s story is simple; it’s about Ishaan and Nikumbh, one helping the other. The film starts off depicting Ishaan’ problems in day-to-day life, and moves slowly – one wished for crisper editing. While the subject of the story would require a slower pace, and the need to delve into details, smarter editing might have prevented the movie dragging in the beginning. The film features some very interesting graphics and animation sequences; the letters which Ishaan claims are dancing, “actually” dance off the screen, the spiders that Ishaan imagines his books to be actually crawl out to threaten Ishaan. We get a glimpse into Ishaan’t creativity, by seeing the adventures in his mind’s eye, and his talent in choosing bright, vibrant colors in his artwork is depicted by moving, swishing colors.

Safary is a very good actor for his age, so I found Ishaan’s character believable, and I felt for him. Aamir’s role as Nikumbh starts pretty much after the interval, and although it was finely done, I found Nikumbh a little too smug in his righteousness. Aamir portrays Nikumbh with a self-consciousness – the self-consciousness of a person who knows how “good” he is being, and that takes away some of the emotional connection for me. I mean, I know he’s a good guy and all, and he’s the only one who’s really helping Ishaan. But taken just by himself, and without the sympathetic support from Darsheel’s character I’m not sure I felt as much for Nikumbh – he was too surely seated on his moral high horse. Still, he’s managed some heart-warming scenes with little Darsheel – scenes which left me mopping my eyes.

Ishaan’s parents’ story wasn’t every well-developed I thought – they kind of disappeared after Ishaan went off to boarding school, only reappearing as uncaring foils to Nikumbh’s super-sensitive soul. Seemed a little contrived in Nikumbh’s favor. Ishaan’s Dad is depicted as a stick-in-the-mud authoritarian, and in the face of Nikumbh’s persuasion, very resistant to the idea of Ishaan’s being dyslexic, viewing it as akin to retardation. Vipin Sharma as Awasthi appears angry and a little over the top, and anal, which he is, I suppose. He isn’t very subtle, that’s for sure. His mother Maya (Tisca Chopra), acts pretty well. Still, she who feels the most for him, lets him be carted away to boarding-school, which I found hard to swallow, since her character appears to care very much. Would even reasonably competent parents sit back complacently even after knowledge of a possible condition like dyslexia ?

TZP features some very nice songs, beautifully worded. For a first film, Aamir directs well, although he could have tightened the pace a bit. The dialogues are apt; my children were fairly amused by all the talk among the kids in the film. There are very few desi movies tailored to kiddie audiences, and even fewer still which deal with topics like dyslexia. Just by that factor alone, TZP earns a few brownie points. It would have earned more had it been a little more subtle, and sophisticated. So, although I’m not absolutely floored by it, it’s still a good film. And it has it’s heart in the right place. It’s earnest, and it tries to do the right thing – a weepie worth the watch.

Posted in 2007, bollywood, drama, family-friendly, rating-G, recommended, social issues | 7 Comments

Review : Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal

Posted on December 21, 2007 by amodini

Rating : Poor (0.5/5)
Genre : Action / Sports / Drama
Year : 2007
Running time : 2 hours 45 minutes
Director : Vivek Agnihotri
Cast : John Abraham, Arshad Warsi, Boman Irani, Raj Zutshi, Bipasha Basu,

DHAN DHANA DHAN GOAL (DDDG) : NO GOALS SCORED !

There aren’t that many Bollywood-ian sports flicks. In fact I can name only two – Lagaan and Chak de India! Now I don’t play or watch cricket or hockey, but guess what ? These films were enjoyable ! Not so the recent addition to the sports stable – DDDG. You think sports and you think action. I mean they’ll do something, right ? They do, they do, but it’s boring nevertheless. And extremely painful to watch.

Arshad Warsi is Shaan, a desi restaurant owner with a passion for soccer. Thus he makes every effort to rev up his soccer team Southall United to victory. The team has no resources, no coach, and a desi commentator Johnny Bakshi and city councilwoman Anne are after the land of their soccer club. Shaan manages to get Tony Singh, a yesteryear player with a tarnished reputation as coach, and Tony in turn manages to lure first-class player Sunny Bhasin (John) to Southall United. Slowly the tide begins to turn . . .

But man, oh man, is it boring watching this tide thingy ! Ever watched grass grow ? Quite similar. The story is the oft-repeated under-dog one. Not that I have problems with that – Lagaan and CD were under-dog stories too. But the treatment was way, way different. I mean there’s the under-dog and he has an uphill battle. That’s a given, yeah ? Now you’d better like the under-dog and root for him, or else the whole exercise is pointless. And that’s the major flaw in DDDG – the under-dogs really are a bunch of losers, and not even remotely likeable, forget about rooting for them.

What comes across in the film is the director’s narrow point of view. The film is full of old, tired clichés about “goras”, and “betraying your community”, and not fitting in. It’s the whole “Us” and “Them” deal, and I didn’t get it. Who’s “Us” ? The desis who CHOOSE to live in Britain ? Who’s “Them” ? All the “white folk” ? And we assume that all of “Them” are racist and bigoted ? I’m not saying racism and bigotry don’t exist, but trying to paint all of “Them” with one broad brush is not just asinine, it’s immature. It smacks of the mindset of a director who can’t get over his Lagaan hang-up. As an immigrant I’m not sure who the target audience of the film really is. The desis in India won’t identify with this bunch, and I’m not sure if I will. If you live outside India, if the UK is your adopted country, I’d assume some loyalty to the land where you live and whose citizens your kids are. If you can’t fit into where you choose to live, you have bigger problems than just soccer woes.

The other major flaw (Ah ! You thought there was just one, hmm ?) is the listless depiction of soccer. Let’s see, was it – thrilling ? No. Interesting ? No. Well-paced ? No. Did I care ? No. All I wanted was for this film to end. A sports film hinges upon . . er, sports. If you can’t get the sporting action right, half the battle is lost right there. Seriously, I have as much of a clue about soccer as I have about hockey. But I really enjoyed all the matches in “Chak de”, because they had everything DDDG soccer games didn’t. Because you rooted for the “Chak de” girls – they had sass, guts, integrity and loyalty. They knew who they were and they knew where they stood. Unfortunately, the soccer guys don’t. And they can’t kick ball. Or ass.

Much of the blame for the film’s failure can be attributed to poor scripting. Half-baked characters do no one any good. Least of all fine actors like Arshad Warsi, who makes the best of what he’s given. Boman Irani is a pretty good actor too, but his performance can only be described as over-wrought in this film. Bipasha’s role of a doctor who’s balancing out her brother’s patriarchal views regarding women, with her desire to jump John is plain unbelievable. John has cut his hair, and does fairly OK, except for his discordant accent. I mean, wouldn’t you expect a British born and bred guy to have a British accent ? The only character who seemed just right was that of Arshad Warsi’s British-born wife. The rest of the supporting cast was either asked to ham it up, or they thought it up on their own.

The story was pretty ad-hoc and relied heavily upon unrealistic emotions. The direction was terrible. Editing was shoddy, and scenes looked like they’d been cut and pasted to fit, instead of to flow. The dialogues were cheesy and theatrical. But all that is small change when the basic premise of the story is faulty. That’s the foundation, and with a shaky foundation, you ain’t going nowhere. The songs were OK, I think. The “Don’t mess with me” number was pretty catchy.

With this film, Mr. Agnihotri gets himself in the top 3 of my “Directors to not watch out for” list. What that means for you’ll, is to not watch his films. What that means for me is to watch and rip to shreds. I hope I’ve done that adequately here.

Posted in 2007, bollywood | Comments Off

Review : Aaja Nach le

Posted on December 19, 2007 by amodini

Rating : Above average (3.8/5)
Genre : Musical / Drama
Year : 2007
Running time : 2 hours 25 minutes
Director : Anil Mehta
Cast : Madhuri Dixit, Akshaye Khanna, Raghuvir Yadav, Divya Dutta, Irfan Khan, Konkona Sen Sharma, Kunal Kapoor, Vinay Pathak, Yashpal Sharma, Sushmita Mukherjee

AAJA NACHLE : SIMPLE AND ENTERTAINING

Madhuri, when she was reigning queen of Bollywood, epitomized the idea of an earthy, voluptuous, youthful desi beauty. Now, in her first film after her return from Uncle Sam’s land, the voluptuousness is toned down, and the youthfulness dissipating. What is unchanged however is Madhuri’s star power – the 1000 mega watt smile is still in eminence, and the power to carry off a film totally on her own, minus a major “hero”, is there for all to see. How many current heroines can actually do that ?

It doesn’t hurt ofcourse that Madhuri is one of the better actresses on the desi film scene, or the fact that she dances like a dream. Or that ANL is a Yash Raj productions, with decent direction, excellent dialogues and some pretty catchy numbers. But what makes this film one of the better films of the year, is Madhuri herself. Yes, I will say to all the nay-sayers right now, she does look older; age shows on her face, crows-feet and all. Still, she is fitter than ever before – less puppy fat on face, and I’ve never seen her look this good in jeans. In the “Aaja Nach le” number, she absolutely sizzles on stage. And lest I forget, there is an unmistakable confidence in her step, when playing the “Angrez” so to speak. She is gauche no more, and that actually may be the result of a real-life personality change.

Madhuri is Dia, a small-town girl, partial to dancing and the arts, and devoted disciple of the Makrand (Darshan Zariwala) Guru of Ajanta, a dance-theatre group. As is customarily seen in small-towns, in Shamli too, conservatism rules. And when Dia falls in love with National Geographic photographer American Steve, tongues wag. Her parents arrange a hurried match with local chai-shop wala Mohan (Shourie), and Dia unable to stomach this runs away with Steve to the good old USA.

Several years down the line, she returns with a daughter in tow, at her Guruji’s death. Her Guru is now gone, but Dia is determined that his artistic vision will live on. And if that means taking on the local MP (Khanna) who’s determined to tear down the dance school to make way for a mall, or the townspeople who won’t give her the time of day, so be it. Thus when the modern, pizza-loving MP challenges Dia to prove that Shamli does indeed need Ajanta as much as she thinks it does, by organizing a performance with local dancers, Dia is more than upto the task . . .

OK, first the good, because I’m such an optimist you know, and especially around the holidays. It’s another thing ofcourse that most big banner films this year have reduced my optimistic tendencies to a smidgen of their previous selves, AND made my hair stand on end (I don’t need the straightening iron anymore.)

This is a classy, clean film – perfect for family viewing. There’s almost nothing in here that’ll make you worry about your kid’s sensibilities being adversely affected. Most of the characters are played by fairly strong actors. Konkona Sen Sharma plays a local girl, angling for a part in Madhuri’s dance production and is good. As is Kunal Kapoor playing a young goon, in the employ of your resident, slimy politician. Raghuvir Yadav as Doctor the “caretaker” of Ajanta is immaculate, but with him you expect nothing less.

Akshaye Khanna is charming as the MP (and Raja) of Shamli, and delivers some of the best lines; when Dia’s daughter wonders who he is, he mutters matter-of-factly “I’m the bad guy”. Plus they finally got his hair right – they took it all off ! Ranvir Shourey has a pretty meaty role as in-love-with-Dia tea-shop-owner Mohan, who’s devotion to her knows no bounds. Quite the under-dog, he got my sympathy. Vinay Pathak is delightful as the rigid government officer and Sushmita Mukherjee (remember Kitty from Karamchand ?) as his contrarily lively wife is sweet.
This film has fantastic dialogue. From the razor sharp repartees that Dia snaps back at the amused MP, to the description of Konkona that Dia comes up with – “You are”, she says, “like a cat in a gunny sack” of Konkona’s disheveled appearance – they all had me chuckling.

The story is a little sparse, but does have it’s strong points. I’m glad, for example, that Dia as a divorcee is still portrayed as a complete woman, and the divorce is not rubbed in her face as the “fault” of a “fallen” woman. It happened, she moved on, and built a life on her own terms. Nice, and really quite innovative for desi films still in the clutches of a patriarchal hangover. I’m also glad that there is only a hint of a romance between Dia and the MP, and the story does not get side-tracked to encompass the love angle. Quite a leap for Bollywood to portray that a woman can focus on her goals, and not “need” a man to fulfill them for her.

Now for the bad – it’s a tad ‘traditional”, in that all the mean characters in the film, miraculously turn goody-goody at the end of the film. The whole character black-and-white thing reminds me funnily enough of this :

There was a little girl,
Who had a little curl,
Right in the middle of her forehead.
When she was good,
She was very, very good,
But when she was bad she was horrid.

I mean I’m all for realistic cinema, but you can’t pick and choose realism can you ? An example : Madhuri in her dance performance at Shamli has a bunch of extras, and a set that looked like it would have needed Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s supervision to build. Always assuming (as in all Hindi films) that God supplies the music and the orchestra, we would still need a group of dancers where Dia’s having trouble coming up with a handful, and enough moolah and expertise to transform the ramshackle Ajanta theatre into an atrium for the Gods.

Still, why sweat the small stuff, yeah ? This is a good film, even after minor drawbacks. It should be interesting to see how Madhuri fits into the desi film scene, now that she has her share of stretch-marks. I’m quite pleased that she chose to make ANL her comeback vehicle, where she took on an age-appropriate, graceful, strong, woman-centric role (Dia’s a woman with gumption, no less !), instead of trying to fit into the mindless pretty-young-thing slots. And even though I’m not the biggest Madhuri fan, I hope she has a good run.

Posted in 2007, bollywood, family-friendly, rating-G, recommended | 2 Comments

Review : Manorama six feet under

Posted on December 1, 2007 by amodini

[amazon_link id=”B001KQFANU” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ][/amazon_link]Rating : Very good (4.0/5)
Genre : Suspense / thriller
Year : 2007
Running time : 2 hours 15 minutes
Director : Navdeep Singh
Cast : Abhay Deol, Vinay Pathak, Gul Panag, Raima Sen, Sarika, Kulbhushan Kharbanda

MANORAMA SIX FEET UNDER : DESI DETECTIVE DELIVERS !

“Manorama, six feet under” is the perfect example of Desi noir – a term unheard of until now. And our very own desi detective. No Poirot this one, he’s Satyaveer Singh Randhawa (Abhay Deol), a junior PWD (Public Works Department) engineer in small town Rajasthan. Living his small-town life in Lakhot with sarcastic beauty-parlor-running wife Nimmi (Panag) and small son Raju, SV is also a writer, penning short stories after trying, and failing, in his big attempt to write a novel. That attempt, a novel “Manorama”, featuring a detective named Raghu, sold only 200 copies, and flopped miserably.

In his day job, SV is under suspension for accepting a bribe – a shiny new motor-cycle. His humdrum everyday life is interrupted when a regal woman lands up at his door, saying she needs to use his detective services. She’s a fan of his book, Manorama, and presumes that he will be able to help her, because he, the writer of a detective novel is the closest they have to a detective in this small, desert town. The woman is the wife of a powerful politician, wanting evidence against him, and is willing to pay handsomely to procure the required information. Satyaveer, twiddling his thumbs at home, suspended, accepts the commission, but what appears to be a simple case of a little spywork, turns into a much more dangerous and intriguing problem. . .

This is a wonderful, wonderful film. It is dark, at times startlingly violent, and unfolds very, very slowly. Each character is lovingly built-up. The taut script and screenplay provide numerous unexpected turns and twists, enough to keep one’s eyes glued to the screen. The characters are realistic, and meticulous attention is paid to the appearances – I suppress a smile watching Nimmi in a dressing gown, a bright yellow petticoat visible underneath, sitting out on the front porch peeling vegeatables. Middle-class India is out on display. SV’s nosy neighbor enquires about the new motor-bike, and his wife sitting out in the garden keeps an interested eye on the goings-on in the Singh household. The street-people are swathed in shawls, rustic goons go around in faded home-grown jeans, with bright blue pockets, and SV lolls at home in kurta-pyjamas. The dialogues suit the people; the graduate Nimmi very often lapses into English, while her rustic, mustachioed brother, rolls out his own version of proverbs like “Curiosity kill cat”, his accent very often dissolving into the vernacular. Wry humor and earthy ditties keep us grounded.

Our protagonist’s life, much like the desert, is dry and sterile, and crumbling. It’s slow, mired in heat and dust and travels at the speed of SV’s old scooter (which his wife calls a tin-box). It’s harried – the tap dries up when SV has a bath, there’s a fly in his chai (tea), and all’s rocky on the homefront. Abhay Deol (and man, can this guy pick films !) superbly underplays his role; SV is self-deprecating, a good family man, yet susceptible to temptation. His world’s going to pieces, and he has warnings galore. Everyone, it seems wants him off this case, but SV hangs onto it like a dog with a bone. Only this bone’s gonna stick in his craw.

Gul Panag is fantastic as SV’s sharp-tongued wife Nimmi. Vinay Pathak, as Nimmi’s Inspector brother plays his part to perfection; he is the epitome of a street-smart, small-time corrupt official on the take, kow-towing to the bigger fish and eating the smaller ones. Raima Sen proves her mettle once again, this time essaying a small but pivotal role. And that oft-forgotten veteran Kulbhashan Kharbanda appears appropriately odious as yet another slimy politician. Sarika has a very small role, but does manage it ably. Although these major actors anchor the film, MSFU is so effective because all the actors, even the minor ones are good, and effectively drawn.

This film is an absolute must-see. If there’s one film you choose to see this year, please let it be this one. I, for one, am mighty pleased that Hindi cinema has it’s very own filmi detective at last. And oh, joy, one with brains, gumption and character – could one ask for more ? With Navdeep Singh’s deft direction at work, I’m hoping we are treated to more fine products of the same quality. A sequel or a series, perhaps ?

Posted in 2007, bollywood, drama, outstanding, rating-PG13, recommended, thriller | 11 Comments

Review : Jab we met

Posted on November 17, 2007 by amodini

Rating : Above average (3.6/5)
Genre : Comedy / Drama
Year : 2007
Running time : 2 hours 24 minutes
Director : Imtiaz Ali
Cast : Shahid Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor, Tarun Arora, Kiran Joneja, Divya Seth

JAB WE MET : ROMANCE DONE RIGHT !

This film is the cutesy kind of romantic flick, which has been such a nice, breezy watch, that you hate to nitpick. Ali’s second directorial venture after “Socha na tha”, he does it again, producing an entertaining film which exudes bonhomie and good humor. Yes, it is filmi, but it’s a commercial film, and will never be considered India’s entry to the Oscars, so I’m quite comfy with it not being all arty-sharty. And yes, the second half does get a little heavy and stretched, but for an unassuming film to come out of nowhere, and give me three hours of enjoyment, where hyped-up big banner films are crashing like the duds that they are, warms the cockles of one’s heart.

Aditya Kashyap (Shahid Kapur), a very rich, young industrialist, leaves home after a stressful time, and meets up with Geet (Kareena), a bubbly, vivacious, pretty young Sardarni, who talks nineteen to the dozen. Geet, once she’s figured out that Aditya is running away from something, offers her help, and won’t take no for an answer. All Aditya wants is to be left alone, so someone like garrulous Geet is anathema. However fate intervenes to throw them together for a couple of days. Things go all awkward when Aditya finds himself falling for Geet, who’s all set to start her new life with the love of her life, Anshuman (Tarun). . .

Shahid and Kareena make a charming pair; the chemistry definitely helps the film. Kareena gives a pretty good performance, her best after Omkara, and channels her natural perkiness into Geet’s attractive yet borderline annoying character. Since the film majorly hinges on Geet’s character, it is to her credit that the film works; any other actress and I’d have been champing at the bit. Shahid does really well too, appearing suave, and sweet, and nice – quite the prince on the white steed.

The film is mainly about the two young things, and their journey from being mere co-passengers on a train to potential soul-mates. So the conversation is young, and fresh and sounds like real talk. The characters, which encompass Aditya’s family (an estranged mom played by Hum Log’s Manjhli Divya Seth – anyone remember Hum Log ?) and Geet’s Punjabi parivar complete with mother (Kiran Joneja), father, sister, Chacha, and grand-father, are a tad filmi and cliched, (because like ALL Punjabis in the universe, they live in a palatial bungalow with a large central courtyard, drink tons of lassi, and dance the bhangra at the drop of a hat) but still pretty well-developed and believable. And the film works because we really do care about Geet and Aditya, their lives, and problems, and how they end up.

Ali takes us through a light, breezy first half. Lots of sparkly, and funny dialogue, mostly courtesy Geet’s non-stop chatter (she wonders what the difference is between a mountain and a hill, while Aditya deadpans), and Aditya’s taciturn responses, grace the first 1.5 hours. The second half takes a more serious downturn and relies on emotion, and feelings rather heavily. The direction is fairly tight, and the story pretty innovative. I mean it’s still boy meets girl etc., but told with such lightness of spirit, and humor, that it doesn’t seem jaded at all. Into the film, Ali also manages to sprinkle tasteful ditties on life and love – quite a nice change from the vulgar innuendoes one has gotten used to seeing in Desi cinema. The film has very good music. “Nagada, nagada” and “Mauja, mauja” are 2 catchy Bhangra based numbers. I also loved “Yeh Ishq hai” although the music seemed familiar, sort of.

Although a classy film, please use your judgement when taking kids to see it; a few dialogues contain references to rape, and there’s a liplock at the end of the film. Compared to all the terrible trash spewed out in films like Partner, Golmaal etc, this might seem like peanuts, but still. All in all, JWM is an entertaining 2.5 hours, and well worth your money and your time.

Posted in 2007, All Netflix, bollywood, comedy, family-friendly, Hindi movies on Netflix, rating-G, recommended | 9 Comments

Review : Om Shanti Om

Posted on November 11, 2007 by amodini

[amazon_link id=”B00124ONSI” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ][/amazon_link]Rating : Below average (2.75/5)
Genre : Comedy / Drama
Year : 2007
Running time : 2 hours 48 minutes
Director : Farah Khan
Cast : Shahrukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Shreyas Talpade, Arjun Rampal, Kiron Kher

OM SHANTI OM : SPOOF ME SILLY !

Farah Khan is all about delivering entertainment – nothing arty-sharty about it. “Main hoon na” was enjoyable, if a bit inane (and that’s probably brother Sajid’s influence). So when she, along with producer SRK goes all out to promote OSO, one believes that a good three hours of mindless fun are to be had, rubs one’s hands in glee, and proceeds to the ticket-counter forthwith. The Sunday morning show that I went to was pretty full, for a Sunday morning show. I mean, who really wakes up to watch a Hindi film at 11 o’clock in the morn, except for yours truly ? Thus, duly impressed, and untainted by the perusal of Internet reviews, I found myself looking forward to the film. And really I hadn’t lost hope in the first half. But, hai! Those illusions – how they shatter !

First things first – OSO was almost a direct plot copy of Rishi Kapoor, Simi Garewal starrer Karz. Granted that that had a female villain, and this has a male version, OSO still pitted good against evil with the evil-doer brought to justice by the re-incarnated hero. Shahrukh Khan plays junior film artiste Om Prakash Makhija, in love with superstar ShantiPriya (Deepika). When on saving her from a set fire, he earns her gratitude, he also discovers she’s in love someone else. When her lover attempts to kill her, and succeeds, Om dies attempting to save her. Om is reborn, and on coming face-to-face with the killer, tries to mete out justice, the dramatic way. Unfortunately I don’t care a whit by this time, because he seems more passionate about dancing with the 31 stars in the title song, than in avenging the crime.

The first half of the film is set in the 70s and is laced with spoofs. As if the hair-dos, and the bell-bottoms weren’t enough, Farah’s got SRK on a giant LP, a la Rishi Kapoor, doing jiggly dance moves to the original OSO (Karz) number. There’s not a trick in the book she hasn’t used, from giving the super-star hungry masses their daily fix of Bollywood by way of the star-studded “Om Shanti Om” song, to the creatively titled Dard-e-disco number, to putting SRK in a red Superhero costume and sending him flying around rescuing damsels in distress (read Malaika looking all pouty in a red gown). Cliches scatter like confetti as Farah laughs at the film industry – there’s the all-suffering Nirupa Roy like Maa, played by Kirron Kher, the none too subtle digs at the Govinda Ahujas and Sooraj Barjatyas of Bollywood.

So you think what’s wrong with spoofing it up ? Nothing really (I enjoyed them), except I’d like to see the spoofs held up by the plot, and not the other way around. Too many spoofs, too little story – the meat’s getting a little thin on the bones, what ?

Still, to be fair, the first half breezes past quite quickly, and I’ve winced only a couple of times. Now, in the second half – I’m so bored. Farah’s running out of spoofs, and the film, it must progress. And progress it does. Very slip-shoddily. The scenes in which re-incarnated Om hatches his plan to make the criminal confess, are so lacking in finesse, that they look like rough takes. And I can’t help the comparisons; where in Karz the overtly dramatic replay of events engineered to scare the killer, seemed plausible (going by Bollywoodian plausibility standards), here it seems so hare-brained that it reminds me of the pathetic who-dun-its that once screened only on DoorDarshan.

There’s also a massive problem of character development, in that there is none. Who are Om, Shanti, Sandy really ? What do they think, what makes them tick ? And most importantly, why should we care about them ? Redeeming qualities, anyone ? Farah falters with OSO in not realizing that spoofs and Bollywoodian numbers held up by a barely there plot, does not a film make. And if you do want that crutch, in moderation please. If all I wanted to do was ogle a bunch of filmi stars shake their thang-thangs, I’d watch a filmi award show.

As far as the acting goes, this film suits SRK to a T. After all, who better to ham it up in a hammy film, that the King of Hamdom, himself ? SRK hems and haws, does the wiggly eyebrow thing, whimpers and pouts by turns. As for the 6-pack abs, he could sprout an 8-pack and it wouldn’t affect his oomph quotient any. Yes the man absolutely radiates charm, but sex appeal ? Not so much. Shreyas Talpade, as Om’s pal, Pappu is quite good. He is however reeled in and forced to toe the clichéd line in the second half, to the film’s detriment.

Hindi film debutante, model Deepika Padukone, is nothing if not stunning. Ms. LongLegs acts decently enough, can gyrate adequately to fit into desi cinema, and displays the flattest, most toned tummy this side of the Himalayas (why is no-one talking about her abs ?) She appears young and unaffected, and really the only one eliciting any sympathy from moi. And talking of long legs, let’s not forget Arjun Rampal, looking quite dapper as villain Mukesh. His pencil thin moustache suited him no end, and although he, in comparison to SRK’s bare-chested appearances was quite clothed in the film, he oozed oomph through every available pore. His acting was quite OK, partly probably due to the fact that his role required him to appear sinister and to NOT ham it up. The remaining stalwart Kirron Kher gives a cringe-worthy performance as Om’s mother, and it’s not even her fault.

I cannot qualify the direction as even average; the film lost it’s moorings in the second half, and veered from one crazy strategizing session to the other. The dialogues are OK. The music – I was floored by the almost magical “Aankhon mein teri”, and on the whole the songs are good and the picturisation adequate. It’s a pity the film isn’t.

Even if this film begs for comparisons with oldie super-hit Karz, I’d rather liken it to last year’s Dhoom 2, for it’s very superficial treatment. I do not doubt, that just like D2, OSO will do well; for the masses swooning at Bollywood’s feet, this might be just what the doctor ordered. However if you are looking for an actual film, and not just spoofs, clichés, jokes, and item numbers strung together in a very, very skimpily attired plot, OSO is not for you. You might end up watching this film for it’s ability to laugh at itself, the heady rush of nostalgia it triggers, or it’s funny moments (and there are many), but no need to hurry, you know ? If you’ve got better things to do, do them first.

Posted in 2007, bollywood, rating-G, thriller | 1 Comment

Review : Heyy Babyy

Posted on November 9, 2007 by amodini

Rating : Below average (2.8/5)
Genre : Comedy
Year : 2007
Running time : 2 hours 25 minutes
Director : Sajid Khan
Cast : Akshay Kumar, Fardeen Khan, Reitesh Deshmukh, Vidya Balan, baby Johana

HEY BABYY : HAMMING IT UP !

Some time back Sajid Khan used to have this TV show called “Ikke pe Ikka”. It was this mad-cap show which looked like it was pretty adhoc and script-less. It featured Sajid and a host of other characters and Sajid’s trademark zany sense of humor. Sometimes dizzy, sometimes shitty, sometimes funny and sometimes not so much. He did whatever he wanted. “Hey Baby” seemed pretty much like the show – scriptless and adhoc.

Yes, yes, I know it’s inspired from the 1987 film “Three men and a baby”, and it does stick to the story atleast in the beginning. But, ah, problems begin when the director decides to go all original on us, and hands us some rather convoluted turns (coz we are desi and all, you know) in the second half. Oh, and also be prepared for the obligatory dose of desi emotion. However where I found the original film rather heartwarming, this one drags at places, especially at places where Sajid is unable to overcome his “me Tarzan – you Jane” attitude towards women in general.

Arush (Kumar), Ali (Fardeen), Tanmay (Riteish) are three desi Casanovas – you know the works – totally objectify women, sleep around with a host of women etc. And, yes, lest I forget they are all allergic to the concept of true love, marriage and commitment. The three live together, and amazingly hold down jobs, although whenever we see them they are either partying, stalking women or making asses of themselves.

Into this totally bindaas lifestyle, comes a baby, delivered to their door-step, with a note which tells them in none too polite a tone, to take care of their daughter. The question is who’s daughter is she ? At the rate at which the three have been, excuse the language, spewing their seed around, she could be either of the three’s.

The three used to their bachelor life-styles, take the baby in all right, but don’t know what to do with her. They don’t know what to feed her, have no clue that kids have excretionary functions too, and in short act like a bunch of retards. When with time, they finally learn how to take care of the kid, they are completely besotted with her, and turn into not only adoring Dads but good human beings (I’m rolling my eyes too, but what did you expect ?). Just as they are getting comfy with the fathering bit, in walks the irate mother, and she wants the kid back . . .

Frankly I found the film silly. The first half mainly deals with the happy-go-lucky lives of the three, and the impact of the kid on their lives. Even if we assume that men when faced with a baby turn into morons of the first order (and they do not I assure you), the film stretches this into such length that I’m longing for Sajid Khan to get a move on. The second half turns into sopping melodrama, which does nothing to better the film.

Plus I’m pretty sure that Sajid wrote some of the dialogues atleast . Sample a few : Child protective services worker saying to trio “I’ve heard you three have a baby and there is no woman in the house”. I didn’t know whether to laugh out loud or shake Sajid Khan until his teeth fell out. Then there is Tanmay (Riteish’s character) saying to baby, “First I was bad, now I am Dad”. Ewww – talk about cheesy ! You grit your teeth and move on. And then there is super-intelligent heroine Isha telling Arush : “How amazing ! We both live in Australia and never meet and we come to India and we meet.” Well, you know what Sajid ? Australia’s a rather large country.

However, kudos to the actors for doing a fairly decent job – Akshay with his comic flair, and Fardeen with his Anglicised side accentuated. Riteish is just himself which is good enough. Now, Vidya Balan, she displays star power. I cannot by any stretch of imagination call her thin, or even slim. All she has is fairly decent acting skills and a beautiful face, and she puts it to good use, as the baby’s Mom, carrying the film without revealing any of that famous skin. Quite Madhabala-ish, really.

Direction is decent, dialogues crappy, and songs good. This is Sajid’s contribution to the world pool of silliness, and I do hope he stops with this film – he’s done more than his fair share. The film abounds in Sajid-style toilet humor, and while slap-sticky, poop-in-the-face (literally) jokes might amuse the kids, the sexist references definitely won’t.

You might watch this film, on a lazy Sunday afternoon, when you hanker for a dumb, desi film along with that serving of pakoras. The pakoras better be good. Because the film – it ain’t.

Posted in 2007, bollywood, comedy, ecstatically stupid | 3 Comments

Review : Johnny Gaddar

Posted on October 28, 2007 by amodini

Review : Johnny Gaddar
Rating : Very good (4.3/5)
Genre : Thriller
Year : 2007
Director : Sriram Raghavan
Cast : Neil Nitin Mukesh, Vinay Pathak, Govind Namdeo, Zakir Hussain, Daya Shetty, Ahswini Kalsekar, Rimi Sen

JOHNNY GADDAR : YOU SAY PULP, I SAY FICTION

Johnny Gaddar is not your usual who-dun-it. It’s more of a we-know-who-dun-it , but did-he-get-away-with-it ? It reminds me of the “James Hadley Chase” genre. We know who the criminal is (aren’t they all ?) and what the crime is. We also know that the plan has gone horribly wrong. What we don’ know is how it will end.

Our protagonist is a very unlikely one. Quite probably a person you’d take at face value, no undertones to this one. A handsome young man, clean, good-looking – the world to conquer and all that. And honest you know ? Not one to cheat or rob his friends, you know ? Keeps his word, that one. Only there’s a woman he’s involved with. She’s in a hard place and there seems to be no way in this world for the two of them to be together. Unless, unless of course, he takes this one risk. Just this one, oh, only one risk. And they’ll be free. Free. And no one will be able to touch them. Just like that . . .

One crime, then two, then . . . And its not like he’s a hard, resilient criminal either; at being threatened and beaten the man crumbles, weeps, repents, says he didn’t want to do it, but circumstances forced his hand. What was one to do after all ? He didn’t want to do it, didn’t he say ? It was all an accident, a big mistake, didn’t he say ? It just happened . . .

Neil Nitin Mukesh, is the hero here, if you will, our very unlikely protagonist. He plays Vikram, the junior-most member of a gang of 5 men running gambling/fencing activities and other small con jobs. The other 4 are Seshadri (Dharmendra), Shardul (Zakir Hussain), Prakash (Vinay Pathak) and Shiva (Daya Shetty). When a large money-making opportunity presents itself to Seshadri via his police detective friend Kalyan (Govind Namdeo), he shares it with the other four.

Now Vikram is having an affair with Mini (Rimi Sen), Shardul’s wife. And they can think of no better way of getting away from vicious Shardul than going abroad where no on will find them. However going abroad takes money, and that Vikram can get only one way – by turning double-crosser . . .

JG is the kind of film you wait an year for. January, February . . . the months go on, and it’s all a vast desert. JG finally is the oasis. Quite certainly the definition of pulp fiction in desi cinema, JG marks a new twist in the hindi thriller genre. It’s style is quite cut and dry, and engrossingly so. We do know who’s the bad guy so to speak, the unknowns come later.

Neil M. makes his debut with this film and it is not un-impressive. Making good use of his choclatey-soft looks, Neil adequately portrays Vikram. There is a lack of finesse in his acting, but if this is the begining , the future definitely looks bright. Rimi Sen, she of the heaving bosom, graces the screen, but heavy breathing is what she brings to the film. I’d have preferred someone who could act without sounding like she was succumbing to hyper-ventilation. The other female in the film, Prakash’s wife, played by Ashwini Kalsekar, is quite fantastic in her limited screen time. Playing by turns, the shrew, the nag and the desperate wife at the end of her tether, Ashwini brings her character to life.

Not much need be said about Vinay Pathak, Govind Namdeo or Zakir Hussain for they present immaculate performances. Dharmendra as the aging Seshadri, is OK. And so is Shetty in his small role.

The film pays homage to it’s inspirations – Vikram routinely reads or atleast pretends to read James Hadley Chase novels, and snatches of dated Hindi cinema appear throughout the film. Sriram Raghavan, the director, who in his earlier film, Ek Hasina Thi (which is #2 in my Top 10 Suspense hindi film list), dealt with the ire of a woman scorned, takes on a totally different subject and does a wonderful job with JG. The story’s interesting, screenplay tight, and the direction deft. I wish the acting had been superb instead of average, but one can’t have everything, can one ?

It’s not just this film, but the general trend nowdays in thriller/crime, negative-toned desi cinema is for the film to feature an unlikely protagonist. The criminal is no longer a snarling Neanderthal, but a suave, soft-spoken, clean-profiled young man with spunk and brains (Don etc.). He looks the guy next door but nicer, and if you could hear his thoughts it’d make your blood run cold. So much more interesting than outright evil. He could almost be the hero, except he’s not. He’s the anti-hero. And yet you can’t hate him. Subtlety finds it’s niche, and intelligent cinema is born.

A very adult-themed film, JG features sexual situations/references and bits of gory violence, and is unsuitable for children. For the grown-ups however, the best thing about JG is it’s absolute unpredictability; just when you think you have it all figured out, it turns and goes the other way. And if that is not enough for you, let me also add that the film finishes up beautifully, because it delivers the kind of justice I find most satisfying – the poetic kinds. I have waited quite a while to see Bollywood do a John Travolta. And to it’s credit, this film, a must-see, makes the wait worth-while.