Bollywood World

Trailer


Review

Trailer


Review

Rating : 5/10
Release Date : 11th September, 2015
Time : 131 minutes
Director, Co-Writer : Nikhil Advani; Co-Writer: Umesh Bist based on the original �83 movie by Subhash Ghai; Music : Various
Starring : Sooraj Pancholi, Athiya Shetty, Aditya Pancholi, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Sharad Kelkar, Kishor Kadam, Chetan Hansraj, Vivan Bhatena



Disclaimer : I haven�t seen the original 1983 film by Subhash Ghai (Wiki link here), so that lets me out of any pesky comparisons

A goonda (with a heart of gold, obviously) falls in love with a top cop's daughter (spoilt SoBo types) while he has kidnapped her at his godfather�s behest�



What Nikhil Advani and Umesh Bist (Director-writer and writer resp.) then do is figure out the most convoluted, tortuous way to try and get the lovers (and their folks) to unite� they add unnecessary characters, twist plot lines, prolong the movie and also defy logic, gravity, space-time continuum etc in their holy quest.



Sample some of the senseless stuff
- The godfather, Aditya Pancholi, is never seen without his lawyer. Even in jail, in his cell. Didn�t know you could invite a roomie�
- Kidnapping an IG�s daughter should be no mean feat. However, here it happens peacefully. Twice. No casing the joint, observing her movements, or watching her security detail necessary. Not even so much as looking at your potential victims photo beforehand as Sooraj is surprised when he sees her (having had a run in with her at a club sometime ago)
- If you kidnapped her from Mumbai, in a car, dressed as cops, where would you go ? Jammu, obviously. Isnt it next door ? Arre � it�s so picturesque to show the young couple romancing in the snow !!
- Tigmanshu Dhulia, the IG, has to be the worst cop possible. Not only does he let his daughter get kidnapped, twice, he also lets Aditya Pancholi escape from custody. And then does nothing whatsoever to track him down. Obviously more worried about what people will say about his daughter cavorting around with aaj ka Gen Y goonda� On receiving a match for beloved daughter, he also falls head over heels for the same (Call me Dad) without doing any sort of reference check whatsoever
- I loved the gym Sooraj sets up � really fancy. Would love even more to meet whoever lent him the money to make it�also whichever institute did Athiya�s show (and allowed a novice to join in) ?
- Why was Vivan Bhatena needed in the film ? For that matter, why was Paris ?




Am not even touching on 20 other points that come to mind (how did she know when he was being released, didn�t the bike wash away in Jammu , how come the bomb blast laid twenty cops low twenty feet away but Aditya Pancholi is unharmed five feet away ?) just focused on the big ones above...




Also, the acting skills of Tigmanshu and Aditya were quite gloriously wasted. I really wish instead of wasting time on songs (too many, too ordinary) and devising new ways to stretch the plot, the makers had spent a bit more time building on the characters of the lead pair, showing us what they were about, why they fall in love etc. The two star kids actually look good, have good screen presence for their debut film and will get better with time. Unfortunately we don't really get to know them at all we are only dealt cliches. Just wish they�d got a better platform, script-wise, to showcase their talents

Rating : 7/10
Release Date : 22nd May, 2015
Time : 120 minutes
Director : Anand L Rai; Writer : Himanshu Sharma; Music : Krsna, Tanishk-Vayu
Starring : Kangana Ranaut, R Madhavan, Deepak Dobriyal, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Jimmy Shergill, K K Raina, Rajesh Sharma, Swara Bhaskar, Eijaz Khan, Dipti Mishra, Rajendra Gupta, Navni Parihar

"Bas karo yeh havas ka nanga naach !"

A crackling first half deteriorates quite badly midway through the second�becoming unnecessarily maudlin, sentimental, and ruins the overall message of the film�There is still much to admire in the film, though, especially the situations woven (incl the tantalizing intermission point) and the sizzling dialogue which, in the good old days, would�ve led to a chavanniyon ki baarish every 5 minutes or so !

"Tu dinosaur ki biradri ka hove, ke doosri biradri se shaadi kar lai to extinct ho javega ?"

Kangana and Madhavan break up while settled in the UK. He goes to an asylum there, while she returns to Kanpur. And when, at the instigation of best mate, Deepak Dobriyal, he serves her divorce papers, she decides to revisit her good, old days (and friends), with Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub (an illegal tenant in her parents place)�everything is going swimmingly until she meets old flame, Jimmy Shergill once again. And Madhavan meets her doppelganger � a young, Harvanyi spouting girl from Jhajjar, a bob-cut version of Kangana�and then things are never the same again !

"Sex ? Woh to do saal pehle, Bhaiyya Dooj ke din�."

The true hero of the film are the one-liners�mostly delivered via Deepak Dobriyal, who also delivers amongst the best performances of the film. Kangana breathes fire, especially in her hockey wielding, college going avatar � the other one I don�t quite get, who thodi baavli si hai. Zeeshan Ayyub gives a riveting performance in a small but meaty role, while Jimmy Shergill and Rajesh Sharma (has a couple of great scenes) catch the eye despite having miniscule screen time. The whole bit around Swara Bhaskar and her husband (Eijaz) was unnecessary, as was the �Komal� angle and extremely long drawn out final wedding sequence�

"Yeh kya mazaak hai ? Original bhi mera aur duplicate bhi mera ?"

There are some scenes which really stand out�Rajesh Sharma�s speech to his village elders�the non-stop diatribe by Madhavan�s mom (Dipti Mishra) to her husband, the (hold your breath) pony-tailed KK Raina and his final riposte� the �dekh, kabootar� trick�There were also some great messages not too subtly delivered - about self-reliant, independent women, about progress and inter-caste marriage � too bad the end let the tempo drop and kind of diluted it all�still worth a watch, though, and with a peppy soundtrack, not bad as sequels go.

"Aa, tujhe Batman ke saare legend dikhati hoon.."

Rating : 6/10
Release Date : 21st November, 2014
Time : 132 minutes
Director : Antoine Fuqua; Writer: Richard Wenk, based on the TV series by Michael Sloan and Richard Lindheim; Music : Harry Gregson-Williams
Starring : Denzel Washington, Martin Czokas, Chloe Grace Moretz, David Harbour, Haley Bennett, David Meunier, Johnny Skourtis

Rating : 7/10
Release Date : 21st November, 2014
Time : 137 minutes
Director, Writers : Raj and Krishna DK; Co-writer: Sita Menon; Music : Jigar Sachin
Starring : Saif Ali Khan, Ileana D'Cruz, Kalki Koechlin, Ranvir Shorey, Govinda, Rahul Nath, Preity Zinta






Equalizer and Happy Ending, as films & genres, couldn�t be more dissimilar. One is a action, one-man army, bloody, gory film, the other a soft focus, breezy romantic comedy. In one bad things happen to a lot of bad people while in the other, good people enjoy the good life. Yet my movie viewing experience was so alike that I felt compelled to write a kind of combined review. That, and a slight time constraint.



In Equalizer, Denzel Washington, a seemingly innocuous worker at a DIY store, perennial do-gooder, transforms into a plague of sorts against a well-heeled, well-connected Russian mob. Just because they beat a not-so-close friend of his, Chloe, up. And when they turn up the heat, sending Marton Csokas, their enforcer, he switches on some sunlight himself�



In Happy Ending, Saif is a commitment phobic, serial womanizer, rich, popular author. Who suddenly finds his book replaced on the shelves, his money finished, his popularity faded and the women drying up. Suffering from writers block, handed a life-saving script-writing opportunity by a single-screen star, Govinda, who wishes to now connect with the multiplex audiences, Saif (for reasons not entirely clear) decides to hook-up with the new author / flavor of the month, Ileana D'Cruz, who�s pulpy, romantic novel, has replaced his on the shelf and him at his literary agent. And she turns out to be the female version of him�


What struck me, with both movies, was the predictability of the storylines and also the inevitability of the endings, whether Happy or otherwise. And yet, they were both enjoyable, gripping in their own ways, proving once again that even if the destination is clear, the journey can still be fun.


What works for Equalizer are its action sequences, background music, superb visuals and earnest performances from Denzel and Marton. It helps that Antoine Fuqua, the director, is no stranger to the action genre, with films like Training Day, Olympus Has Fallen and Shooter under his belt, and keeps the film crisp, pacy and slick, yet manages to build a good emotional connect with simple, deft touches � chance meetings, stray conversations about books at a diner, a musical doll, a glistening tear rolling down the cheek. Chloe also comes through in her brief role�


And what works for Happy Ending is its irreverent take on life, relationships, writing and Saif. The good thing about him is that, especially when playing the lovable rascal, it really feels that the character is him in reality � he�s not playing a part, just being himself. Ilena does well (though not without flaw),Kalki's role, as Saif's slightly psychotic girlfriend, was a bit unidimensional, and Ranvir, as Saif�s bff and a much harried, married man, delivers the laughs fairly consistently. It was also a nice change to see a film about an author, and the dialogue, refreshingly, was consistently good and funny.


Equalizer�s end was worse than Happy Ending�s. Required a suspension of disbelief longer than the Golden Gate, the locale of part of the latter�though, arguably, HE�s was more contrived. But both still made for a good watch, stopping a few milestones shy of greatness but giving us some happy viewing�