Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Jab We Met -- Movie Review


The longtime real life couple Shahid-Kareena's last reel life appearance was a good farewell to them . Jab We Met is a good romantic comedy with a fabulous performance by Kareena and Shahid also did his part quite well . For the first time there Chemistry on screen was looking good .

The movie starts with shahid being dumped by his girlfriend who gets married to some other guy . Shahid gets miserable and goes away from his own life and then accidently meets very bubbly and lively Punjabi Girl , Geet , who makes him forget the past and live life the way she does. She is a blabber-mouth and even talks when she is sleeping . On the contrary Shahid is as very serious guy who is the son of very famous businessmen and is quite confused about his life . Geet ( Kareena ) doesn't hide anything from him & tells him about herself and how she wants to run away with the love of her life , a guy from Simla .

Kareena meets Shahid on a train and misses her train because of him . He takes her to her home back to Bhatinda and in the journey Shahid falls in love with her and also gets a new perspective of life . Kareena is a briliant actress with acting running in her blood veins. She looks very cute and surprisingly very much in shape .

In the second half the story turns the other way as the guy , whom Kareena loves , dumps her and she lives Nine months in misery in Simla away from her home , from where she runs away for him . Then Shahid comes to know about this and he teaches Kareena the same things what she tought him earlier about life . And after this strangely her lover comes back and apologises . She accepts her apology and takes him back to Bhatinda to marry him and Shahid supports them . What happens afterwards is left for you guys to watch .

I am big time fan of "Socha Na Tha" and I think it is one of the best Sweet-Romantic comedy film and " Jab We Met " has also been made with same spirit , yet it is not as good as the first one was . Director Imtiaz Ali has something for " Running away " from home as he uses the same situation in the second movie also . But he knows his job quite well and he has directed this one nicely . The Pace of the movie is good with some songs in between which were quite a disappointment . The second half is not as good as the first one yet it is bearable .

Pritam , stop stealing American Tunes and do something original . Only two songs were worth it and the rest were quite boring . Maybe Imtiaz should have stuck with Sandesh Shandilya who did a good job in "Socha Na Tha" .

Kareena is the best thing in the movie and Shahid was also good . Shahid should now get over his chocolate boy image and start doing roles with some serious nature . Like this movie , he should do the roles which are little serious because it suits him . He is a good actor but he needs to work a little more hard to change his image . Maybe he should take some Acting Lessons from his Dad who could polish him very well .

Overall the film is quite good and worth a watch . All the couples would enjoy it therefore I didn't enjoy it as much , as I am still single . Well I also want to say " Jab We Met " , is any body listening ?

Movie Rating : Two and Half Stars for Kareena's Good performance and
direction .

Mumbai Salsa -- Movie Review


Movies surrounding urban setup are now being made in lot more frequency than before , considering the new breed of Multiplex Audience . The same is the case with Mumbai Salsa . It is a movie about today's youth , which has a cosmopolitan lifestyle . The movie revolves around a group of 4 boys and four girls who are in different fields of work and are also very different from each other yet are very much depended on each other for all the emotional and mental support .

Movie starts with a brief introduction of each of characters of the movie and what are there principles in life . All of them are single and desperately want to have a relationship with the opposite sex . Both the lead actor and actress are dumped by their respective partners and hence they meet each other in a bar and then fall in love eventually , after some dramatic situations . All the other friends also hook up with the each other and eventually fall in Love and get Married.

This sounds quite usual as it happens with other movies also , but what is different about this movie is the treatment it has been given by Director . Manoj Tyagi the director has done his job excellently . He has stuck to the Hardcore Mentality of todays youth and has portrayed the lifestyle of young people very well .

All the leading actors and actresses have given a good performance and the Songs and Music is also decent . The director has very rightly casted the main actors of the movie with everybody suiting to its character . The advantage of taking new people in a movie is that you can present them in which way the story demands since the Audience doesn't have any preconceived image of the actors . They can very comfortably carry the image of character without thinking much .

Only one complaint , the end is a little bit stretched . The Director could well have cut it short . Even though it is just 2 hrs long yet the story kinda gets over by one and half hours so the last half hour is been just stretched a little .

In the end Mumbai Salsa is a Decent Movie with quite good comic scenes . Yet it would be liked only by youth of Indian Metros only .

Movie Rating : Two Stars ** for good natural performances and good direction .

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Top 10 - Kids Movies ???


Bollywood has always stayed away from films based on kids with very few exceptions . Those who dared to go into this lane got lost somewhere and ended up at a dead-end . I looked back in Film history & I could not find many good films whose central theme was based on kids . The number of such films is so less that it can be counted on fingers . Whereas on the contrary in Hollywood there have been numerous films that are made just for kids . In India some of the kids movies which have been made are just so pathetic and are so much inspired fro
m Hollywood that it is even hard to watch them once . Indian film makers don't give any importance to such cinema whereas greats like Steven Spielberg have also made it .

I am glad that Aamir has ventured into this stream that too in h
is debut movie as a director . I would like to appeal to all the biggies who make so many melodramatic films but don't even think about Indian kids and just work for Money . They can risk a little bit money in this direction and they should , to start a new trend .

Still there are some films that have been made in India which are wor
th a mention . Here's my top 10 list of kids movies :

1. Mr. India : The best movie which is made for kids by
far . It is not only first science fiction film of India but also a great movie for Kids . The emotional portrayal of Arun by Anil Kapur as the uncle of so many orphan kids is very moving .The legendary character of Mogambo (Amrish Puri ) creates a place in every kids mind . The kids that were selected for this movie by Shekhar Kapoor were just fabulous and they acted very naturally without any effort . The movie also sends out a message not only for kids but also adults . The science fiction element serves as a food for imaginative and creative minds of Kids . I have seen this movie well over 30-40 times as a kid and I still enjoy it . The best part in my opinion is the originality of Script . This movie deserves more applause than it has got .

2.Makdee: Directed by Vishal Bhardvaj this is a good kids movie which revolves around two twin sisters , Chunni and Munni . One sister in simple and the other one is naughty. This is a fun filled movie with some scary scenes for kids . Pure and healthy fun and also gives a good message to kids in the end. The songs are also quite good . Vishal Bhardvaj , I think is the only mainstream director who has made films for kids but this one was made before Omkara which got him fame . Shabana Azmi has given a splendid performance in the role of Makdee , the witch .

3. Koi ... Mil Gaya : This movie in my opinion is not a p
ure Kids movie but I had to put it in the list because there are very few such movies . Still Hrithik's fabulous performance as mentally underdeveloped kid and Director Rakesh Roshan's sense of Direction make this movie worth a watch for every Kid . This movie does not send any message to the kids but some of the scenes are quite moving . Though the sequel is not at all a film for kids , this one has some elements of it . As a Director I think Rakesh Roshan can make a big budget full length feature film for kids .

4. Jajantaram Mamantaram :
This movie made under i-Dream production
by Soumitra Ranade is a good attempt as a movie for kids . Based on the old Gujarati fable of Bakasur, which tells the tale of a sleeping giant who wakes up only to eat people. The film is also inspired by Gulliver's Travels . The stories of Bakasur and Gulliver have been adapted to a contemporary situation. Aditya (Jaaved Jaaferi), a Mumbaiite, reaches Shundi, a mythical island. To his surprise, he finds the inhabitants to be much smaller than him. Though initially the villagers feel that Aditya is there to harm them, they soon make friends with him. However, danger is lurking in the background. Chattan Singh (Gulshan Grover), the army chief, has with him a magical contraption with which he creates Jhamunda, a giant. Jhamunda terrorises the village. He coaxes the villagers into giving him children from time to time for food in return for a promise that he will not plunder the village. The movie didn't work due to little loose screenplay and boring songs in between . Yet it is a good attempt and worth a watch if you are a kid

5. Blue Umbrella
: This movie recently won the National Award for kids film . Again , Directed by Vishal Bhardvaj Blue Umbrella is a screen version of Ruskin Bond's short story Blue Umbrella. It is about a young girl Binya (Shriya) who trades her superstitious lucky charm of bear nails in return of a Japanese Blue Umbrella with tourists. Instantly she becomes a center of attraction of the villagers. A small trader Nandakishore (Pankaj Kapoor) eyes of the Blue Umbrella and tries all ways of get the umbrella. When Binya's umbrella is stolen – the police raid Nandakishore's shop. Facing this humiliation and to show that he too can afford or buy an umbrella, Nandakishore orders a similar Japanese Red Umbrella. Once the Red Umbrella comes, he gains back popularity and respect from everyone in the village. The movie is well directed and just perfect portrayal of Ruskin Bond's story . Vishal is an excellent director and he should keep doing such projects . He also said in an interview that kids films are rarely made in India whereas films like Harry Potter are breaking Box Office records worldwide.

Oops!!! I ran out of movies , my Top 10 has just gone half way and thats it , I can't think of any other movie which is made for Kids . Well this is how pathetic the condition is . There were several unsuccessful attempts like "Raju Chacha" & "Chain Kulli ki main kulli" but I still would like to applaud their producers for at least attempting to make one .

So its high time that Indian Producers & Directors pay heed to my sincere request -- " Guys Please Make some more movies for Kids of India , they should not need to watch towards the Hollywood !!! "

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Monday, October 15, 2007

Bhool Bhulaiyaa -- Review


First of all sorry for the late review ( I am saying just like the whole world reads it !!! ) But still . I couldn't watch the movie because it was Running House Full on the weekends and I couldn't get a ticket. Considering that by now a lot of you might have seen it or heard about it , for the first time I am giving a full review . Those of you who have yet not seen it you can skip some paras and go down straight .

*** SPOILER Warning --- Plot Details Under ***

Well the movie starts quite well and starts in Priyadarshan style with all the Fun and Frolic . It starts with Priyan's Favourite star Paresh Rawal and also his other favourite Asrani acting some quite funny sequences ( The third favourite Om Puri is missing in this one ) . Paresh Rawal renovates the King's Old Palace which is widely popular as
Haunted Mansion throughout the Village . The starting sequences very effectively shows that how some mistakes and co-incidents can take a shape of some paranormal activity just because of Fear and Imagination running wild . On this effort I would like to compliment Priyadarshan who tried to expose the so called paranormal activities and how they exist in our minds only . He has done this in his own funny ways .

Then comes the Prince , Siddharth Chaturvedi ( Shiny Ahuja ) from US along with his wife Avni ( Vidya Balan ) . He marries Vidya in US without saying anything back home in India to his Uncle Badrinarayan (Manoj Joshi ) , whose adopted Daughter Radha ( Amisha Patel ) was waiting since her childhood to marry the Prince . Shiny is supposed to be the next king after his fathers death and hence is subjected to
crowning ceremony . Well I forgot to mention the haunted palace is being renovated by Paresh on the orders of shiny because his wife Vidya wants to live in a old palace being a student of architecture herself . Hence without listening to all Haunting Stories of the Villagers they go and live in the palace . Then Vidya starts exploring the whole Palace and opens a room on the third floor which has been locked because of some Spirits of and Old Dancer and her lover which have been trapped inside by some great Tantrik Yagyaprakash Bharati (Vikram Gokhale) .

Since Shiny and Vidya being from US don't believe in all this crap and hence She
opens the room . Then start a series of strange things happening with every villager going paranoid and thinking it to be done by the so called spirits . Shiny still doesn't believes all this and some how due to some coincidences starts having a doubt on Amisha to be behind this due to jealousy . So Shiny decides to consult his Psychiatrist friend to help Amisha get rid of her psycho behavior . Then comes the Hero of the story Dr. Aditya Shrivastav (Akshay Kumar ) to set the whole situation straight . Akshay is best in his comic skills and he does create a laugh riot . He starts inspecting the whole situation and after a long series of events realises that Vidya Balan herself is the culprit behind all of this . He realises that due to a disturbed childhood she suffers from a multiple personality disorder and sometimes behaves as the Dancer who comes back to take revenge . He then with some help from Shiny and the Tantrik treat her in a strange way and recover her back to normal .

The most outstanding performance is delivered by Vidya Balan who at times scares you with her scary expressions ( reminds of Urmila in Bhoot ) and splendid acting performances . She is really not of her times , roles with some period element only suit her (considering Hey Babyy ) . She is no doubt among the best Female Actors in India today .

Akshay does what he is best in doing , Comedy , but with perfect acting and not by dialogues . There is nothing new by him but just the same old combo of Priyadarshan + Akshay at his best . Yet he makes you laugh the most .

Amisha has given her best because I think she can't do it better than this and Shiny is also good . He does look like a prince . Nothing much for him in it .

Paresh , Rajpal and Rasika Joshi all are tereffic actors and hen
ce deliver what is expected from them to perfection .

Neeraj Vohra has written a good screenplay except the songs which pop in between which were quite a turn off , considering the title track being played in end credits .
The Bengali track played in between the movie is catchy and creepy bo
th . Kudos for the background score .

The suspense behind the whole creepy things is well kept by Director and hence holds the interest of people in the story . Yet the whole flashback sequence of the Dancer and King in the end is quite boring . But during these scenes I realised how much he is inspired from South-Indian films and hence puts a little southern flavour in his movies .

I have only one complaint against Priyadarshan that he should have sticked to his Non Existence of Meta-Physical activities belief . He some how diverts from this belief and in the end makes the viewer confused that whether he/she should believe in these things or not . Instead of all the Multiple Personaliy Disorder thing he should have shown something like a Hidden Treasure being guarded by someone insider or something even more interesting . Maybe I expect a lot from him because I think he is one of the finest film-makers , its just that he is not pushing his limits .

*****Spoiler Ends Here *****

Yet it is a good Entertaining Film better than some of the last attempts of Priyadarshan . Packed with some good acting performances and tight screenplay and popular title track it is bound to work among the masses considering it is the festival season . After a long time a wholesome entertaining film has released so it will be a hit no doubt . Go for it , see a new side of Priyadarshan .

From my side it gets Two And A Half stars for good comic sequences and some good thrills in between .

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Sunday, October 14, 2007

Taare Zameen Par -- Trailer Review




The first promo of Taare Zameen Par is out now and to be fair it is quite simple & interesting just as the story of the movie would be . For all of you who don't know TZP is Directed by none other than Actor Aamir Khan himself who also stars in it . From the promo its quite obvious that the movie is about kids who dream a lot and are also creative and imaginative .

India is a country where Largest number of movies are made in entire World and it is also the Youngest Nation of the World yet the number of movies that are Genuinely Made for Kids can be counted on Fingers . On the contrary , in Hollywood some of the finest movies are made for Kids ( leaving apart the Animated ones ) . Aamir has been always known for making brave decisions and I am not surprised he decided to make this one all by himself . In past there have been a number of unsuccessful attempts of kids' movies ( like Raju Chacha ) but still I hope or rather I should say know that this one would not be the same .

Now talking about the trailer it shows some of the cutest kids in it yawning and gazing inquisitively like all kids do . Then there is a kid ( probably the lead ) who is looking at a painting and imagining something and behind him is sitting Aamir who is in same Innocent and surprised mood as the Kid is . The trailer very effectively brings out the Innocence of kids and in my opinion also their creative side . The Teaser Trailer doesn't reveal much about the story and just sends out the basic theme of movie .

I saw the poster very closely and I found a spacecraft drawn by child on which it is written "Ahmed in NASA " . I am not sure about the name though . But from this it looks like the main kid in the movie is interested in Space and probably wants to work in NASA and dreams of becoming an astronaut . This is just a guess not sure though.

The movie is out in the theaters from 21st December and I can't wait to see it .

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Tuesday, October 9, 2007

NO SMOKING -- Music Review


Kudos to Vishal Bhardwaj , good soundtrack with an entirely new feel and some quite very smooth tracks . Vishal apart from Film Making also knows his Music quite well and no need to say anything about legends , I mean, Gulzaar Saab .

The first track "Jab Bhi Cigaret - Jazz " is really in my opinion the finest Jazz attempt in Indian Music Ever . The jazz in the song sounds like it is straight from the some jazz club of America . The song is sung by none other than Adnan Sami who I think is perfect for any Jazz Song . Jazz is all about "smoothness" in sound and both music and voice of adnan deliver it perfectly .


Then comes another great track "Phoonk De--Female" which is very stylishly sung by none other than Rekha Bhardwaj ( " Namak Isk Ka - Omkara " fame) . The song is sung in such a style and flow that it has to work among the masses apart from the splendid music in it . She has a different sound and style and so are her songs. The song has a unique combination of club beats and desi dhol beats.

There is another version of the same song by Sukhwinder Singh which is entirely different from this version and is also different on Lyrics part . The song can work in a rapid moving sequence in the movie . Sukhwinder has sung in his own style and is definately not a remix of previous version , yet Rekha's version is better .

After these there is "Kash Laga " which I think would work only if played
in background of the movie . I mean if the story would keep running along with the song then the song would work else it would fail and may prove to be a distractor while watching the movie. The song is sung by some new singer I believe. It has a sufiana-qawalli type touch in it which sounds a little good .

" Ash Tray " is a not appealing in any case . The only lull in the entire album .

At the end comes there is another fast version of " Jab Bhi Cigarette " by Sunidhi Chauhan who sings in typical sunidhi style but one thing is quite interesting is that the lyrics of the song are the same that are sung by male voice . I mea
n to say she says " Peeta Hoon " instead of " Peeti Hoon " which I think is done on purpose considering Cigarette being not so popular among the opposite sex as the male & the Director didn't want to put any Ideas in the head of Public .

On a whole the entire soundtrack is quite good with some great singing by Rekha & Adnan and a different feel to music is worth a "listen" . Here's Wishing best of luck to
Anurag Kashyap ( Black Friday ) . May his film be as good as the previous one & not a longer version of the short story of " Darna Mana Hai ".

Glitter Photos
Music Rating -- ***

Best Tracks : Jab Bhi Cigarette (Jazz) & Phook De (Club Mix )


Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Are Ranbeer-Sonam a repeat telecast ?



Just watched the new song "Maasha Alla " of saawariya and one thing that struck me was acting of new guy on the block Ranbir Kapoor .

His acting looks quite similar to
apne SALLU Bhai , looks like Sanjay Sir has not yet forgotten his first love Salman & Ash . The new girl , Sonam Kapoor , is also shown very quite in the rushes but I am sure there would be some childish naughtiness in her character in the movie also similar to what there was in Aishwarya Rai in HDDCS . Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam is my all time favourite love story and I have watched it many times . But Looking at the rushes of the movie I am getting a feeling that there will be many similarities in the acting of Ranbeer & Sonam with Salman - Ash .

Since both of them had
completly submitted themselves in Sanjay Sir's hand , a lot of past will be seen in them . Same Innocense & Naughtiness of Salman-Ash will be seen in them . Lets see ahead , everyone knows what happened to Salman & Ash , so Ranbir plz be careful at least I don't want the History to repeat itself .