Yes I know its too late to review a movie like Goal.My apologies for the same.Nevertheless I still have to do my duty.Goal is Vivek Agnihotri's next attempt after Chocolate & too things are quite obvious to the viewer while watching Goal- one Vivek continues to be fond of foreign subjects & two-the movie does try to cash in on the gains of a sports movie like Chak De India ( no harm in that though).
Goal is a football movie- a tale of a U.K based club ( Southall United Football Club) which comprises of make shift players of Indian,Pakistani & Bangladeshi origin.Arashad Warsi is the captain of the team & when the club faces the threat of having to move out of their bastion, they are left with no option but to win the English Premier League & stay put !!!
So Arshad first manages to get the coach-Boman Irani who once played for the same team & has a troubled past.John Abraham is an Indian who wants to make it big as a British Soccer player.But when he does not get his due outside, Boman convinces him to join their team.Inspite of Arshad's apprehensions & their regular rivalry the team unites,improves & plays well.
Of course there is the usual twist in the plot which leads to the grand finale- the final match being played in a grand fashion.And of course no prizes for guessing the end.Well so you want to know whats Bipasha doing in the movie?Well she's the physio of the team & Arshad's sister who likes John.
Overall a decent movie, lets face it.But its not a Chak De or an Iqbal.John is decent, while Boman & Arshad are just ok.Raj Zutshi does well among the others.Music is average with only 2 songs in the movie.Overall the producers UTV have made a profit on the movie as they sold it at a reasonable price.
Rating-2/5
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Polladhavan-A Quick Review ( Tamil)
Director Vettrimaran, a protege of Balu Mahendra makes his debut with Polladhavan & what a debut this is.This movie is fast emerging as the dark horse of the diwali releases with word of the mouth being quite positive.Dhanush is back in form after that box office disaster Parattai......
It takes guts & a lot of thought to make a movie like this,thats for sure.The story is inspired by the all time classic-Vittoria De Sica's 1949 movie-The Bicylce Thieves & a chinese movie- Beijing Bicycle.What is interesting is that the director has taken the basic thread from these movies & intervowen it with the North Chennai underworld to give it a new interpretation alltogether.
Dhanush is the son of Murali ( Malayalam actor) & Bhanupriya.He along with his friends Karunas,Santhanam etc are all without jobs & only loiter around and while away their time.Dhanush likes Ramya ( Kannada's leading heroine) but has not been able to express the same to her.One day when his father finds out that he has stolen money from home, he gives him Rs.70,000 & asks him to do something good for himself with it.
Dhanush goes & gets himself his coveted dream-a Bajaj Pulsar.Now things start looking good for him, as he gets a job in a bank as a collection agent, his father slowly starts respecting him & he gets his girl too.Its at that juncture that the bike is stolen.Dhanush & his friends move around frantically in search of the bike.
Thats when it is known that the bike had been taken by an underworld gang ( Daniel Balaji) while fleeing from a place after committing a murder. In the interim period Dhanush loses his job, his father is beaten up by Daniel's men & he is almost about to lose his girl too.Then it becomes a curious cat & mouse game between the two against the dark bylanes of north chennai.
The censor board has butchered a lot of scenes & there's heaving muting of sound throught the film.Inspite of that the film keeps you arrested right till the end.Technically well shot ( could have been appreciated more if the censors hadnt butchered so much), the director seems to be in good control throughout.Dhanush is the life of the movie, Daniel Balaji is also good.Their confrontation scenes have a lot of spark.
Ramya is adequate, comedy by Karunas & Santhanam is decent.Music by G.V.Prakash Kumar is good especially the Engeyum Eppodhum remix.After Kireedam G.V has scored another winner.All in all a good movie.Do watch it.
Rating- 3.5/5 ( Extra 0.5 for Vettrimaran & Dhanush)
It takes guts & a lot of thought to make a movie like this,thats for sure.The story is inspired by the all time classic-Vittoria De Sica's 1949 movie-The Bicylce Thieves & a chinese movie- Beijing Bicycle.What is interesting is that the director has taken the basic thread from these movies & intervowen it with the North Chennai underworld to give it a new interpretation alltogether.
Dhanush is the son of Murali ( Malayalam actor) & Bhanupriya.He along with his friends Karunas,Santhanam etc are all without jobs & only loiter around and while away their time.Dhanush likes Ramya ( Kannada's leading heroine) but has not been able to express the same to her.One day when his father finds out that he has stolen money from home, he gives him Rs.70,000 & asks him to do something good for himself with it.
Dhanush goes & gets himself his coveted dream-a Bajaj Pulsar.Now things start looking good for him, as he gets a job in a bank as a collection agent, his father slowly starts respecting him & he gets his girl too.Its at that juncture that the bike is stolen.Dhanush & his friends move around frantically in search of the bike.
Thats when it is known that the bike had been taken by an underworld gang ( Daniel Balaji) while fleeing from a place after committing a murder. In the interim period Dhanush loses his job, his father is beaten up by Daniel's men & he is almost about to lose his girl too.Then it becomes a curious cat & mouse game between the two against the dark bylanes of north chennai.
The censor board has butchered a lot of scenes & there's heaving muting of sound throught the film.Inspite of that the film keeps you arrested right till the end.Technically well shot ( could have been appreciated more if the censors hadnt butchered so much), the director seems to be in good control throughout.Dhanush is the life of the movie, Daniel Balaji is also good.Their confrontation scenes have a lot of spark.
Ramya is adequate, comedy by Karunas & Santhanam is decent.Music by G.V.Prakash Kumar is good especially the Engeyum Eppodhum remix.After Kireedam G.V has scored another winner.All in all a good movie.Do watch it.
Rating- 3.5/5 ( Extra 0.5 for Vettrimaran & Dhanush)
Friday, November 16, 2007
Rock & Roll-A Quick Review ( Malayalam)
After Kaioppu with Mammooty writer-director Renjith is back this time with Mohanlal in Rock & Roll.After a turkey like Ali Bhai & an experimental flop like Paradesi maybe this is the movie that will make both Lalettan's fans as well as the aam junta happy.
This is a light hearted musical & Renjith seems to be in fine control.The story is fairly simple- Siddique is a well known music director & he gets a project with Lal-Jose ( playing himself) when they decide that that it will be great to have a good support score on the drums by Chandramouli ( Mohanlal) who is a world famous drummer, a close friend of Siddique.
In fact they used to have a music group earlier the other members being Rehman-now a key board player, Mukesh-now a well known background music composer,Lal-once upon a time a composer but now addicted to alcohol,seperated from his wife ( Rohini)& playing the violin now & finally Salim Kumar who is a tabla player.
Well Siddique contacts Mohanlal & after some convincing he comes down to Chennai for the assignment.There he meets another old friend,Shweta Menon who's a choreographer.Though Mohan lal refuses the work initially, on seeing a new singer Daya Srinivasan ( Lakshmi Rai) practice the song, he decides to join in.
Mohan lal has a reputation of being single & a big flirt & now he surprises himself & his friends by falling for Lakshmi Rai. So when she goes back to Mumbai, unable to bear the seperation, Mohanlal after a lot of thought decides to use the only weapon he knows to bring her back to Chennai- by announcing that he is turning composer for a movie & wanting her to sing for the project.
Lakshmi Rai is coveted by her cousin who controls the family & it is with great difficulty that she manages to come over for the assignment.When Mohanlal's friends get suspicious of his plans & question the whereabouts of the film's producer, enter Jagathi as the same.So how does Mohanlal go about executing his plan & finally what happens to the love for her is what the movie gets to show.
Renjith has done a great job both as a writer & director.The casting is excellent.Mohan Lal just rocks as Chandramouli the drummer ( people can easily identify him with an eminent drummer).His restrained act & sense of timing is excellent.Just watch him in the scenes when his friends try to conrner him & learn the truth- simply superb.Lakshmi Rai has a good debut in Malayalam.Jagathi is as usual brilliant in his portrayal especially his intro scene where he speaks heavy hindustani.
The rest of the cast- Siddique,Lal,Rehman,Salim Kumar,Mukesh,Manoj.K.Jayan,Shweta Menon& Rohini are all good.Special mention must be made of Suraj Venjuramoodu who plays a composer who lifts tunes- he's simply hilarious.Music by Vidya Sagar is good & suits the mood of the musical film.All in all a good film.
Rating-3/5
This is a light hearted musical & Renjith seems to be in fine control.The story is fairly simple- Siddique is a well known music director & he gets a project with Lal-Jose ( playing himself) when they decide that that it will be great to have a good support score on the drums by Chandramouli ( Mohanlal) who is a world famous drummer, a close friend of Siddique.
In fact they used to have a music group earlier the other members being Rehman-now a key board player, Mukesh-now a well known background music composer,Lal-once upon a time a composer but now addicted to alcohol,seperated from his wife ( Rohini)& playing the violin now & finally Salim Kumar who is a tabla player.
Well Siddique contacts Mohanlal & after some convincing he comes down to Chennai for the assignment.There he meets another old friend,Shweta Menon who's a choreographer.Though Mohan lal refuses the work initially, on seeing a new singer Daya Srinivasan ( Lakshmi Rai) practice the song, he decides to join in.
Mohan lal has a reputation of being single & a big flirt & now he surprises himself & his friends by falling for Lakshmi Rai. So when she goes back to Mumbai, unable to bear the seperation, Mohanlal after a lot of thought decides to use the only weapon he knows to bring her back to Chennai- by announcing that he is turning composer for a movie & wanting her to sing for the project.
Lakshmi Rai is coveted by her cousin who controls the family & it is with great difficulty that she manages to come over for the assignment.When Mohanlal's friends get suspicious of his plans & question the whereabouts of the film's producer, enter Jagathi as the same.So how does Mohanlal go about executing his plan & finally what happens to the love for her is what the movie gets to show.
Renjith has done a great job both as a writer & director.The casting is excellent.Mohan Lal just rocks as Chandramouli the drummer ( people can easily identify him with an eminent drummer).His restrained act & sense of timing is excellent.Just watch him in the scenes when his friends try to conrner him & learn the truth- simply superb.Lakshmi Rai has a good debut in Malayalam.Jagathi is as usual brilliant in his portrayal especially his intro scene where he speaks heavy hindustani.
The rest of the cast- Siddique,Lal,Rehman,Salim Kumar,Mukesh,Manoj.K.Jayan,Shweta Menon& Rohini are all good.Special mention must be made of Suraj Venjuramoodu who plays a composer who lifts tunes- he's simply hilarious.Music by Vidya Sagar is good & suits the mood of the musical film.All in all a good film.
Rating-3/5
Monday, November 12, 2007
Saawariya-A Quick Review
So this diwali's other biggie is Saawariya, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansal,produced by Sony & launching Ranbir Kapoor & Sonam Kapoor.Though this Diwali was supposed to witness a big clash between OSO & Saawariya, it looks like OSO might just win the contest.
So why do you think I am making this statement?As much as I have been following SRK's career in Bollywood, I have also been admiring SLB's movies.But this here ( Saawariya) is undoubedtly a work of someone who has just taken the audience for granted.I can understand an Anurag Kashyap making a No Smoking ( he anyways has never bothered about audiences), but then can SLB say the same?
This is just one pompous work which deserves to go down in history as a major tragedy.Though based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's White Nights, it shamelessly tries to draw influences from Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge in terms of artwork.There are no shots taken in the open & everything seems to be shot on sets ( showing an imaginary city completely in blue).There are songs every 7-8 minutes.
There is hardly any chemistry between the lead pair which is expected in the launch of star kids like Ranbir & Sonam.Well I can go on & on abou the negatives, but then let me stop here since I'm not on a SLB bashing spree.So whats the story then?A wandering singer( Ranbir) comes to a new town & meets up with a prostitute ( Rani Mukherjee) who guides him so that he manages to fix up his stay with a kind old lady ( Zohra Sehgal).
Ranbir comes across Sonam on a bridge & instant love for him.But alas she's waiting for her lover ( Salman).So many songs and some irritating dialougues later you have Salman finally re-entering.So if any of you really want to know who gets Sonam in the end or else if you are a die-hard SLB fan please go ahead & watch it.Others including Salman fans are well advised to stay away from this one.Cinematography by Ravi.K.Chandran is not impressive this time, music by Monty is good, but you wont appreciate it much on screen.
Ok so why did I watch this movie?I wanted to know to what extent was SLB wrong in the movie ( very much) & yes it helps that I saw the movie for free :) .
Rating- 1.5/5
So why do you think I am making this statement?As much as I have been following SRK's career in Bollywood, I have also been admiring SLB's movies.But this here ( Saawariya) is undoubedtly a work of someone who has just taken the audience for granted.I can understand an Anurag Kashyap making a No Smoking ( he anyways has never bothered about audiences), but then can SLB say the same?
This is just one pompous work which deserves to go down in history as a major tragedy.Though based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's White Nights, it shamelessly tries to draw influences from Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge in terms of artwork.There are no shots taken in the open & everything seems to be shot on sets ( showing an imaginary city completely in blue).There are songs every 7-8 minutes.
There is hardly any chemistry between the lead pair which is expected in the launch of star kids like Ranbir & Sonam.Well I can go on & on abou the negatives, but then let me stop here since I'm not on a SLB bashing spree.So whats the story then?A wandering singer( Ranbir) comes to a new town & meets up with a prostitute ( Rani Mukherjee) who guides him so that he manages to fix up his stay with a kind old lady ( Zohra Sehgal).
Ranbir comes across Sonam on a bridge & instant love for him.But alas she's waiting for her lover ( Salman).So many songs and some irritating dialougues later you have Salman finally re-entering.So if any of you really want to know who gets Sonam in the end or else if you are a die-hard SLB fan please go ahead & watch it.Others including Salman fans are well advised to stay away from this one.Cinematography by Ravi.K.Chandran is not impressive this time, music by Monty is good, but you wont appreciate it much on screen.
Ok so why did I watch this movie?I wanted to know to what extent was SLB wrong in the movie ( very much) & yes it helps that I saw the movie for free :) .
Rating- 1.5/5
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Om Shanti Om- A Quick Review
The diwali big release SRK's Om Shanti Om is finally here.So are you the type who grew up on Bollywood cinema of the 70's/80's ( read the Manmohan Desai variety), who liked the opulence, grandeur, charm of the big screen magic?Are you the type who digs bollywood trivia?Are you the type who would like to see a good spoof?And most importantly are you the one who would like movies like Farah Khan's previous venture- Main Hoon Na?
If the answers to all these questions are yes, then its cheers all the way.Pop up the champagne, wear your party wear & party hard.OSO is one hell of a party all the way.Its all about SRK, its all about Farah Khan & her tribute to the 70's ka bollywood.No this one isnt just a 70's styled movie, its a take off or spoof on the 70's.Be it a look at filmmaking styles, sets, references to numerous film personalities etc.
And yes, did you ask whats the story?Well its one of the most filmed subjects in bollywood- reincarnation.SRK is Om Prakash Makhija- a junior artiste & a wannabe superstar.Supporting his dreams are his friend- Shreyas Talpade & his mother Kiron Kher- a former junior artiste herself.SRK is also dreamy eyed about the reigning bollywood queen- Deepika Padukone.
On a film location, SRK saves Deepika from a fire ( remember Sunil Dutt-Nargis story on the sets of Mother India?) and they get friendly.Just as SRK starts feeling his dreams are in control, he realises that there's something more than professional relationship between Deepika and a hot shot producer, Arjun Rampal.
Well in the process , SRK gets bumped off & now we see him in another avatar.This time he is the new superstar-Om Kapoor, son of a popular former superstar played by Javed Shaikh.The rest of the story is all about how SRK remembers his previous avatar & then takes revenge.The climax is differently taken.
Be it the opening scene ( Rishi Kapoor shooting for the Om Shanti Om number in Karz :) ), or the Film Fare awards scene ( brilliant) or the tamil movie shooting staged by SRK to impress Deepika ( hilarious), the song with 31 stars or the now famous Dard-De - "6 pack abs" Disco song, there's enough & more gags to keep you glued to the screen.
SRK, the actor is in good form & hams a lot , but here thats what the script demands.Deepika makes a great debut.She doesnt have to speak much, but her presence is heightened in all her scenes.Arjun Rampal & Shreyas Talpade impress. Kiron Kher is quite funny.Manikandan's camera work,Sabu Cyril's art work & Vishal-Shekhar's music elevate the film a lot.All the songs are good, quite a rarity these days.
And the song during the end credits- mindblowing as Farah introduces the entire crew to us.How many film makers acknowledge the rest of their crew this way.
Farah & SRK , take a bow.You have a winner in your hands.
Rating- 3.5/5 ( 0.5 extra for the end credits)
If the answers to all these questions are yes, then its cheers all the way.Pop up the champagne, wear your party wear & party hard.OSO is one hell of a party all the way.Its all about SRK, its all about Farah Khan & her tribute to the 70's ka bollywood.No this one isnt just a 70's styled movie, its a take off or spoof on the 70's.Be it a look at filmmaking styles, sets, references to numerous film personalities etc.
And yes, did you ask whats the story?Well its one of the most filmed subjects in bollywood- reincarnation.SRK is Om Prakash Makhija- a junior artiste & a wannabe superstar.Supporting his dreams are his friend- Shreyas Talpade & his mother Kiron Kher- a former junior artiste herself.SRK is also dreamy eyed about the reigning bollywood queen- Deepika Padukone.
On a film location, SRK saves Deepika from a fire ( remember Sunil Dutt-Nargis story on the sets of Mother India?) and they get friendly.Just as SRK starts feeling his dreams are in control, he realises that there's something more than professional relationship between Deepika and a hot shot producer, Arjun Rampal.
Well in the process , SRK gets bumped off & now we see him in another avatar.This time he is the new superstar-Om Kapoor, son of a popular former superstar played by Javed Shaikh.The rest of the story is all about how SRK remembers his previous avatar & then takes revenge.The climax is differently taken.
Be it the opening scene ( Rishi Kapoor shooting for the Om Shanti Om number in Karz :) ), or the Film Fare awards scene ( brilliant) or the tamil movie shooting staged by SRK to impress Deepika ( hilarious), the song with 31 stars or the now famous Dard-De - "6 pack abs" Disco song, there's enough & more gags to keep you glued to the screen.
SRK, the actor is in good form & hams a lot , but here thats what the script demands.Deepika makes a great debut.She doesnt have to speak much, but her presence is heightened in all her scenes.Arjun Rampal & Shreyas Talpade impress. Kiron Kher is quite funny.Manikandan's camera work,Sabu Cyril's art work & Vishal-Shekhar's music elevate the film a lot.All the songs are good, quite a rarity these days.
And the song during the end credits- mindblowing as Farah introduces the entire crew to us.How many film makers acknowledge the rest of their crew this way.
Farah & SRK , take a bow.You have a winner in your hands.
Rating- 3.5/5 ( 0.5 extra for the end credits)
Azhagiya Tamil Magan- A Quick Review ( Tamil)
Though this was the most eagerly awaited Kollywood diwali release, Vijay's Azhagiya Tamil Magan has turned to be a damp squib.Directed by Bharhathan it also has Vijay in a dual role for the first time.
The first vijay (good guy) is an MBA student & ace athlete who falls in love with Shreya, a very rich industrialists daughter.One fine day out of the blue, he realises that he has extra sensory perception (ESP) & in one of his visions he sees himself stabbing Shreya.So in order to avoid this happening he goes away from there.
Here comes the other Vijay ( bad guy) who is a crook.Shreya mistakes him for the good guy & brings him home. Now he begins to have a great time at the good guy's expense.When the good guy knows this he comes back to confront the bad guy & how the story culmintates is what this excuse of a movie is all about.
If Vijay thought a dual role is only about voice modulation ( the bad guy's way of speaking gets irritating after a while) then he needs to avoid doing any more dual roles.Shreya does not have much to do.Ditto for Ashish Vidyarthi & Sayaji Shinde.Namitha is there in a blink & miss role ( 2 scenes & a song)Santhanam's comedy is o.k.Music by A.H.Rehman is so bad, you cringe when you remember it is his work.
Technically also the movie is quite shoddy.All in a all its a losing proposition for Vijay, Bharhathan & Appachan ( producer).
Rating- 1.5/5 ( I think I have been a bit liberal here :) )
The first vijay (good guy) is an MBA student & ace athlete who falls in love with Shreya, a very rich industrialists daughter.One fine day out of the blue, he realises that he has extra sensory perception (ESP) & in one of his visions he sees himself stabbing Shreya.So in order to avoid this happening he goes away from there.
Here comes the other Vijay ( bad guy) who is a crook.Shreya mistakes him for the good guy & brings him home. Now he begins to have a great time at the good guy's expense.When the good guy knows this he comes back to confront the bad guy & how the story culmintates is what this excuse of a movie is all about.
If Vijay thought a dual role is only about voice modulation ( the bad guy's way of speaking gets irritating after a while) then he needs to avoid doing any more dual roles.Shreya does not have much to do.Ditto for Ashish Vidyarthi & Sayaji Shinde.Namitha is there in a blink & miss role ( 2 scenes & a song)Santhanam's comedy is o.k.Music by A.H.Rehman is so bad, you cringe when you remember it is his work.
Technically also the movie is quite shoddy.All in a all its a losing proposition for Vijay, Bharhathan & Appachan ( producer).
Rating- 1.5/5 ( I think I have been a bit liberal here :) )
Vel- A Quick Review ( Tamil)
Hari is back with what he knows best - movie set in South Tamilnadu with loads, of action laced with family sentiment.This time in Vel he has Surya in a double role.Though the plot is very very predictable, credit goes to Hari for making it fast, engrossing & trying to steer away from cliches most of the time.
Charan Raj & Saranya are the parents of twin sons.One night in a train, a beggar kidnaps one of the babies for the jewellery lying on the baby.This Surya is taken up by a large family headed by Lakshmi in rural Dindigul.The other Surya grows up in Chennai with his parents.While the one in Dindigul becomes a typical zamindar heir with lots of temperament for settling things with the fist, the other is a composed detective in a private detective agency.
The city Surya falls in love with Asin ( 7 Up Swati- a T.V Anchor!!!) & after some hitches their romance gets going full swing.On one visit to Chennai, the rural Surya gets to see the city Surya & his parents.Similarly the city Surya comes to know about the other Surya's existence & hence decides to go over to the village & meet the other Surya & the family.
After some melodrama both the brothers swap places.The city Surya who is now in the village goes hammer & tongs to take revenge on the villain Kalabhavan Mani who had killed the other Surya's foster parents.Of course after all this there's the mandatory happy ending.
Surya looks convincing in both the roles.Asin is quite adequate & Kalabhavan Mani hams a lot.Music by Yuvan is a big let down.All in all a good diwali entertainer.
Rating- 2.5/5
Charan Raj & Saranya are the parents of twin sons.One night in a train, a beggar kidnaps one of the babies for the jewellery lying on the baby.This Surya is taken up by a large family headed by Lakshmi in rural Dindigul.The other Surya grows up in Chennai with his parents.While the one in Dindigul becomes a typical zamindar heir with lots of temperament for settling things with the fist, the other is a composed detective in a private detective agency.
The city Surya falls in love with Asin ( 7 Up Swati- a T.V Anchor!!!) & after some hitches their romance gets going full swing.On one visit to Chennai, the rural Surya gets to see the city Surya & his parents.Similarly the city Surya comes to know about the other Surya's existence & hence decides to go over to the village & meet the other Surya & the family.
After some melodrama both the brothers swap places.The city Surya who is now in the village goes hammer & tongs to take revenge on the villain Kalabhavan Mani who had killed the other Surya's foster parents.Of course after all this there's the mandatory happy ending.
Surya looks convincing in both the roles.Asin is quite adequate & Kalabhavan Mani hams a lot.Music by Yuvan is a big let down.All in all a good diwali entertainer.
Rating- 2.5/5
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