Thursday 28 February 2013

ZILLA GHAZIABAD - Movie Review




ZILLA GHAZIABAD reminds you  of that unsavory half baked cake which you buy but are not able to relish it despite presence of walnuts, almonds & other garnishings in it. The same ordeal happens in the case of ZG where big stars coupled with high octane action stunts  fail to impress you in absence of a a strong script and an even screenplay. Finally the movie turns out to be nothing but a shoddy hatchet job that is extremely excruciating on your senses.


SCRIPT & SCREENPLAY        :                              Script and screenplay by VINAY SHARMA is one of the biggest let downs of this movie along with a couple of other factors. The biggest casualty in all this gore-mongering is a logical pattern of story telling where in focus has been given to accommodating more of optimum punches rather than telling an anchored story.The narration leaves no room for any kind of emotion to take place and just concentrates on swearing enemies spilling rival blood scene after scene. We meet the characters as blood thirsty creatures of underground with their own internecine intentions. This is a kind of staged drama where lawmakers and lawbreakers behave with equal impunity. Both sides are wedded to anarchy and believe in screwing the emotions which makes it look like an orgy of elemental escapades.After reading all this do you guys still want me to write something about script .....Anyways I will ..So the movie oh the mayhem begins with Fauji (Arshad) who is a henchman of Chairman (Paresh) making a loot and bashing up cops. Next you see Master Satbir (Vivek) ,a multitasker who teaches students about values of non violence, is legal advisor of chairman and is love interest of  Chairman's daughter. But Faqira Greedy bro in law of CM incites Fauji to eliminate Master by shaking hands with CM'S rival Rashid Ali (Ravi Kishen) and become undisputed power controller. After this a blood battle begins challenging your memory to keep counting the number of gory deaths that include Satbir's bro, his wife, his friends, Fauji's bro, C.M....i'll like to stop here as the list is endless. So to stop all this mayhem Sanjay Dutt( Thakur Preetam Singh) enters the movie, who although is a cop but believes in glorious guttural outflow of gore blood,bullets and profanities by playing mind games.


STARCAST                      :                                       One thing that intrigues me is that howcome all these big stars as well as good actors could not sense the potholes in this wafer thin screenplay. Most of the stars in this movie are veterans who are all aware that what holds their elements together and has the potential to accentuate their character is a script which is prominently missing from this movie. So even SANJAY DUTT who is a cut out for this kind of role fails to impress as his character has not been sketched well at all. The kind of action scenes, dialogues and even dance moves assigned to him go completely over board. VIVEK OBEROI alias Satbir of this movie who has already proved his mettle by playing gangster in his earlier movies also falters this time. ARSHAD WARSI , known more for his comic talent has shown his versatility and shines amongst others by slipping into character displaying rugged roguery with ease but is let down by screenplay. Amongst the other ensemble actors we have PARESH RAWAL, SUNIL GROVER, CHANDERCHUR SINGH, ASHUTOSH RANA but It is RAVI KISHAN who has managed to impress audience. In this ode to mayhem and machismo the ladies have little to do besides shake a leg and shed a tear which include DIVYA DUTTA, CHARMI KAUR, MINISSHA LAMBA & ZARINA WAHAB. This movie sets another fine example for makers that big budget lavish production coupled with Star power of good actors is no more a sure shot recipe for success until it is backed up with solid content.

TECHNICAL VALUES                                               :       PRITAM has been credited as the music director of this movie but his usual groovy penchant is missing from most of the tracks. Cinematography is by  N.K.EKAMBARAM which you are unable to relish because of the blood bath going around in the movie and that too very frequently. Stunts and fights are by KANAL KANNAN who has undoubtedly worked really hard for fight sequences in this movie. But the problem is that he goes overboard in trying to provide action scenes in truly desi matrix style. He seems to have zero respect for Newton's law of universal gravity and in fact by making mockery of gravity makes most of the protagonists not only fly but in the climax makes Sanjay Dutt walk across on a side wall while firing gun shots. I am sure poor Newton might turn turtle in his grave if we show him this movie's action snippets. The editing of this flick has been done by BUNTY NAGI. Director of the movie ANAND KUMAR got a big opportunity to helm a lavish production studded with excellent actors having star power which he unfortunately failed to utilize. The narration looks like a staged drama where you see  restless vapidly violent characters killing brutally. The script would have looked more
logical had it shown these characters doing introspection of situation while undergoing emotional turbulence  with respect to their acts of  violence. This might have earned some empathy for these characters  who live & die by gun but in the present script the death of these characters brings respite to harried audience who not only rejoice their death but also exclaim that these characters deserved this death for making audience sit through this ordeal. 


WOW MOMENTS                     :                                    Movie on the whole did not leave any scope in my mind for remembering even a single WOW Moment.


OVER THE HEAD                        :                                    In case i mention any particular scene to baaki saare bure scenes (huge in number) naraaz ho jayenge so please pardon me as i'm skipping this section.


CONCLUSION                               :                             I recommend this movie to two kinds of  audience. Firstly to those who like to watch the violent glorious guttural outflow of gore blood bullets and profanities. Secondly to those who are suffering from insomnia as this movie might prove to be a better option than your doc's medication in instantly putting you to sleep.



ROHIT SHARMA.
Follow me on twitter at https://twitter.com/smgr105

rohitreview@gmail.com








Sunday 24 February 2013

Movie review of " KAI PO CHE " .




Kudos to ABHISHEK KAPOOR who has not only adapted Chetan Bhagat's tale into a brilliant cinematic experience but in the process has managed to take it several notches higher.There's something which is uniquely endearing and extremely poignant about KPC. Whether it is the   ambitious narrative or captivating performances ,poetic cinematography, KPC is superior in texture and commendably subtle.        



SCRIPT & SCREENPLAY   :                               Both ABHISHEK and CHETAN who have written the script along with PUBALI CHAUDHARY & SUPARTIK SEN have themselves admitted that while scripting they cut the novel to a minimum level, leaving out many chunks of the books' narrative in order to  focus more on the friendship of three protagonists, and how their relationship withstands the devastating time of earthquake in Gujarat(2001), communal riots(2002). The story begins with three young men whose dream was to start a sports goods shop outside a temple along with a cricket coaching academy finally coming true.   But how their personal aspirations coupled with natural disaster and communal flare affects their friendship & lives, forms the rest of the story. The first half of the movie focuses on the camaraderie between three, with light moments establishing their character traits.  However it is the second half where the pace picks up as their town is caught in tragedies of earthquake followed by riots. These events act as catalyst, showing us the true colors of the three lead characters, as they struggle to not only keep their friendship alive but also come face to face with their inner demons.


STARCAST                          :                               RAJ KUMAR YADAV  has played the character of  GOVIND who is a dreamer with business sense whose ultimate aim is to start his own sports talent agency. He looks and behaves very much like a typical money minded person who always prefers to stay away from adventurous activities.  I feel there is revelation of a new AMIT SADH ( OMI ) from this movie as he has delivered a brilliant performance as son of a priest who later on joins politics on insistence of his maternal uncle. His face expressions,body language and anguish in eyes, on death of his parents contain a lot of maturity and speak for themselves. But it is SUSHANT RAJPUT ( ISHAAN )  who walks away with maximum applause as his character is that of a doer who believes in doing things his own way. In fact from the promos it was looking to be a Sushant's movie all the way but in the movie all three have been able to hold their forts with conviction. Not to forget AMRITA PURI ( VIDYA ) & MANAV KAUL (MAMA) who shine in their respective characters. In fact Abhishek Kapur's decision of using raw and talented actors  instead of accomplished stars really works in favor of the movie. RajKumar Yadav has essayed his role convincingly and has already given some memorable performances in the past but it is Sushant & Amit who turn out as surprise package. The confidence of Sushant in front of camera is surprisingly impeccable and after this performance he is definitely going to be in for a long run .

TECHNICAL ASPECTS        :             If a movie works well despite non inclusion of big stars than definitely the technical finesse of the movie definitely deserves applause. Background music is by HITESH SONIC who has done an impressive job with respect to narrative of the movie. AMIT TRIVEDI's music has variety as well as eclecticism, and his exquisite melodies reiterates the troika's exuberance and idealism. ANAY GOSWAMI as cinematographer has radiantly captured prerogative of buddy-dom and lit up every frame with finesse. MUKESH CHHABRA who is the casting director also deserves applause for putting together such an appropriate cast. Not to forget the contribution of editor DEEPA BHATIA who has kept the momentum going throughout the movie because of her crisp editing. But it is ABHISHEK KAPOOR who deserves to walk away with cake for brilliantly executing this tale in his own cinematic vision. Kapoor clearly recognises the strengths & limitations of this tale as a motion picture and labours to compound an emotionally worth rooting even if it means significant departure from the source. It's a risk that he took which totally worked in his favor as Kapoor's vision and execution seem to be in sync

WOW MOMENTS                    :                               This movie is bag-full of wow moments but a scene  where Sushant is sitting in solitude on the rooftop and his sister comes to cheer him up is quite emotional. Rajkumar running barefoot to check the condition of his store on the advent of earthquake has come out well. Watch out for the scene where Amit Sadh exhibits emotional trauma on receiving news about killing of his parents.

CONCLUSION                           :                                       It is one of those rare movies that reveal a shrewd oxymoron of ambition and reality that characterises the zeal and anxiety of youth.Whether it's the captivating performances, the ambitious narrative or poetic cinematography , KPC is superior in texture and commendably subtle. It is refreshing to see three young men on celluloid who are not chasing chicks on campus riding flashy vehicles, no woman stepping into the equation to cause an imbalance. So go and watch KPC if u like subtle refreshing cinema full of soul executed deftly with a touch of realism in it.

ROHIT SHARMA.
Follow me on twitter at https://twitter.com/smgr105

rohitreview@gmail.com

Tuesday 19 February 2013

Movie Review Of SINGH Vs KAUR (Punjabi Flick)

                                                                                                                   




 

We've seen it all in Bollywood : Good meaty chunk of pointless predictability,sadistic violence,mindless one liners,exotic locations and all-powerful Protagonist who can alone rescue the leading lady as well as us from boredom. SINGH vs KAUR takes the same genre forward but in Pollywood. Since the advent of technically superior Punjabi cinema involving huge budget has just begun, so makers focus on churning entertainers can be anticipated.


SCRIPT & SCREENPLAY    :                                                                 The credit for the story and screenplay goes to DHEERAJ RATTAN  who has weaved a story with all kinds of commercial elements thrown in required to make a entertaining potboiler. Hero of the movie Nihaal Singh (Gippy) is a village bumpkin and an eyesore for villagers due to his notorious actvities . Situation turns ugly when he lies about having a Canadian girlfriend named Jasneet (Surveen) and his friend n partner in crime Taari (Binnu) shows a picture of her that he's downloaded from Facebook. Cut next on emotional persistence of her mother our hero flies to Canada and meets Taari's uncle (B N Sharma), his son and Simrat (Japji Khaira) who help him to locate Jasneet who turns out to be a late billionare's only daughter and is truly in love with someone else. Jasneet faces threat to her life,our hero rescues her and becomes her bodyguard, brings her to India for her safety where His mother n villagers start treating her as his wife. Later Simrat too turns up in village n her parents take Nihaal to be her husband. I hope you would have imagined the rest.

STARCAST         :                                                  The whole movie revolves around GIPPY GREWAL who has been definitely proving his finesse as a singer and lent his star value to lot of earlier Punjabi flicks. But in this movie he has come out good as an actor especially in Comedy genre. His face expressions & intensity have improved tremendously and the director has helmed some excellent action scenes to project him as next Turbonator. SURVEEN CHAWLA  shines as far as her looks are concerned but on the acting front she gives an impression of still being puerile and unfledged. BINNU DHILLON once again proves why he is rated as one of the best and most versatile comedians of Industry and you chortle when he comes on screen. In fact JAPJI KHAIRA deserves a mention as she has come out really good in this movie. B.M.SHARMA & KARAMJEET ANMOL also succeed in bringing a smile to your face although their screen presence is very reistricted and both deserved a couple of scenes more.

TECHNICAL ASPECTS     :                                JATINDER SHAH who is the music director of this has managed to dole out average numbers and none apart from MASSI song has become a Chartbuster. Cinematography is by JITAN HARMEET SINGH who has credibly been able to capture some real good moments behind his lens. Action is by RAM LAXMAN who have done a commendable job and have given some great action scenes ever seen in Pollywood and made GIPPY GREWAL look like a real action hero. Editing by MANISH MORE is slick but the real concern is length of the movie which is around 150 minutes. NAVNIAT SINGH as a director has done a good job as he has paid deft attention to maintain overall looks of the movie. The drawback of the movie is that makers have tried to put in too much of every emotion consisting of comedy, romance, raw action, family values which not only varies the pace of narration frequently but also increases the final length of movie. Had DHEERAJ & NAVNIAT  who although have done a good job taken care of this aspect too, S w K had the potential to become a real huge hit.

WOW MOMENTS                :                                 Watch out for the scenes of Gippy with village fatso girl as they are real witty. Confrontation of villagers with Gippy n Binnu is full of outrageous laughter. A couple of action scenes have been shot very well in Punjabi Matrix style.

CONCLUSION                      :                                  This movie has been made with just one intention which Vidya Balan stated in The Dirty Picture i.e. Entertaiment 3 times. It is undoubtedly a good attempt in making commercial Pollywood movie but it might not appeal to all sections of the crowd.



Friday 15 February 2013

NAUGHTY JATTS (Punjabi Movie) Cast n crew profile.

                                                                                                  

Name :         SAVIO BARNES


Profession : CHOREOGRAPHER


Zodiac Sign : CANCER

Fav.Movie(Hollywood) :   FAST N FURIOUS

Fav. Movie(Bollywood) :   DIL CHAHTA HAI 

SAVIO BARNES has become a household name especially in Punjab after showcasing not only his   Choreography skills but also his muscle strength by lifting Punjab's favourite female comedian BHARTI SINGH in the dance show Jhalak Dhikhla Ja. Savio is very excited as this is the first time that he is choreographing for a Punjabi movie and is doing two peppy songs of NAUGHTY JATTS. But he is very much accustomed to Punjabi music n Punjabis as earlier all his three partners in Jhalak Dikhla Ja were Punjabis. He is in awe with Punjabi culture,cuisines and their Happy go lucky nature as well as loves travelling to Punjab and being with Punjabis.( Which was clearly evident from his level of excitement and comfort level on sets ). He's also of the view that Punjabi cinema has taken a big leap ahead in terms of technical values,professionalism and of course budget hence churning out excellent movies.

                                        With Savio around how can cheesy talks about Jhalak n Bharti be missed !! So with a grin on face he fairly admits that he was clearly apprehensive when he was assigned BHARTI SINGH as his partner on Jhalak. But on the contrary it turned out to be a blessing in disguise for him & being a typical cancerian he gives all the credit to her. He is of the view that she really worked hard and overcame all her inhibitions, bodyaches n injuries while practicing hard during rehearsals with him.(But Mr. Savio you need lot of guts n strength to do lifts with her). He took it as a challenge and In the end he n Bharti not only went a long way ahead in Jhalak but have become best of friends & are performing shows all over the globe. 

      An Incident when his Naughtiest Side Took Over His Rationalism    :          When we are having this conversation on the sets of NAUGHTY JATTS how could i miss the opportunity of making him reveal his naughtiest incidents that he remembers. Although being a cancerian he was more subtle n quiet when i first met him a fortnight ago but slowly n slowly he came to his elements and was at his revealing best. He's played quite a lotta pranks but one indident that he remembers happened way back when he was a bachelor. Once his best pal called him & for their friendship sake asked him to reach airport in half an hour and fly with him to Bangkok. And our humble Mr.SAVIO BARNES left from his home with passport in pocket but minus any baggage by telling his parents that he is going to the market for some shopping n reached Bangkok
with just one pair of clothes that he was wearing. And informed his parents later when he reached Bangkok.

                                 One of the best choreographed songs in his early days is " Pyaar ki ye kahaani suno" from the movie " Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd ". But he would definitely like to choreograph a song for Mr.Amitabh Bachchan as he feels AB is a real versatile actor who has always been re-inventing himself with the time. Savio feels AB's dancing style has been restricted to a couple of typical steps but he has the skills to perform any dance with ease . He is a big fan of animated movies from hollywood as for the creative skills involved in filming them. He has a dance academy by the name of DKS ACADEMY OF DANCE in Mumbai. Those who want to get in touch with him can contact him at savio.barnes@gmail.com .You can also find him on Facebook as Savio Barnes.

  Will be soon posting small cheeky interactions wid Team of NAUGHTY JATTS. Till than  SAYONARA.

        ROHIT SHARMA.
        rohitreview@gmail.com
        
              

Saturday 9 February 2013

Movie Review of SPECIAL CHABBIS


        



Hats Off to NEERAJ PANDEY for making this movie after his last flick WEDNESDAY. "Special 26″ is not a film that favours soft creative options. It takes the heist-story audaciously through a complicated maze of morality without getting snarled in sermons and messages. This is a film that engages you while letting the protagonists cross mischievously from one side of the line of morality to the other.



SCRIPT & SCREENPLAY :                                      The script has been written by NEERAJ PANDEY himself in which socio-political anomalies with edge-of-the-seat excitement comes into full play. No character who goes so audaciously against the law in “Special 26″ seems particularly wounded or terrorised. You suspect they are all in it for fun.The characters are not in search of a moral payoff and we are not eager to find it for them.Pandey weaves vivid vignettes into the main heist-format from each of the four protagonist’s personal lives.There are two sets of CBI officers on duty in this deviously-plotted tale of daredevilry and drama in real life. The real-life incident involving the CBI scam, which shook the nation, is given a sensuous spin that culminates in a completely unexpected and spectacular culmination.



STARCAST :                                                                         The story is about two real and fake CBI teams that are respectively helmed by Manoj Bajpayee and Akshay Kumar. Both put in impressively understated performances. AKSHAY KUMAR gives ample proof that he has really matured as an actor with his dynamic portrayal of a learned con-man leading from the front and mind you minus all his Khiladi antics he gives stupendous performance. MANOJ BAJPAYEE whose role is almost parallel to that of Akshay minus the romantic track looks every inch of the character he has portrayed and has given an idealistic performance. But it is ANUPAM KHER who has given a superlative performance as Akshay’s right-hand man & a nondescript family man with an unending brood of children. KAJAL AGGARWAL who made her debut in Bollywood with SINGHAM fails to impress as the leading lady in this movie as probably she is not cut out for the kind of character she had to play in this movie.Instead our Punjabi Juliet NEERU BAJWA syncs well with Akshay while dancing with him in a song track and their on screen chemistry looks better than that of Akshay n Kajal. She would have been a better choice as the female lead of this movie but anyway I am quite certain the day is not far off when NEERU BAJWA who is a powerhouse of talent will mark her impression in Bollywood as a versatile actress. Not to forget JIMMY SHERGILL who has lately shaped into one of our finer actors has given another reined -in but riveting performance.Even ensemble actors RAJESH SHARMA, DEEPRAJ RANA, DIVYA DUTTA, VIPIN SHARMA have played their characters to perfection adding authenticity to the narrative.


TECHNICAL ASPECTS :                                                   Music by M.M.KAREEM is just passable and none of the tracks has been able to make it to top of music charts. Editing by SHREE NARAYAN SINGH truly deserves a special applause as he has not only given prominence to most characters but also builds up their sketches albeit in short duration. Cinematography is by Late BOBBY SINGH who sadly expired a month ago but the excellent way in which he has captured illuminating frames of this movie will make him immortal in our hearts. But the man who deserves the biggest credit is the chief of operations who in this case is writer as well as director NEERAJ PANDE who has taken care of even the minutest nuances of 1980's era to give movie a authentic look. The period detailing of cars,hotels,costumes,hairstyles is very apt and u'll see more of Marutis,Ambassadors & Fiats on roads. Pandey adds considerably to his narrative's credible climate by shooting on real locations, wherever the pseudo-raids take our hero and his three associates. Best part is that Pandey ensures goings-on resonate in rapid fire speed imparting certain kind of urgency to the proceedings.


WOW MOMENTS  :                                                          Watch out for the high energy introductory chase scene of Manoj Bajpayee in CP New Delhi. Scene where our fake CBI team conducts a raid at Kolkata is also very amusing. I'll say second half of the movie is really pacy and full of twists and turns making you gasp for more.


CONCLUSION   :                                                                       Special 26 achieves a rare synthesis of real life credibility and cinematic flamboyance where-in narrative's over-all mood is one of urgent crises-point reached with minimum fuss and optimum energy. Its one of the best thrillers i have seen in a long time which has come out good minus those exploding cars,screeching dialogues and item numbers.                                                                                                       



ROHIT SHARMA.
rohitreview@gmail.com

Friday 1 February 2013

DAVID










Just saw DAVID by Bejoy Nambiar,Anyone who likes path breaking cinema should not miss this.The movie is not only stylized,scruffy,crisp and intriguing but also a visual delight. But i am really disappointed with the plight of good movies as there were only 3 audience present in the hall for such a commendable movie. When i saw Dabangg 2 or even Punjabi flick Tu mera 22 audi was almost 90 % full which were duds when compared to DAVID as a cinematic experience. This clearly proves why there's such a vast difference in the scripts n movies of Hollywood wen compared to Bollywood. My heart bleeds for success of directors like Bejoy Nambiar who dare to make such challenging Cinema !!
Complete review coming !!

http://rohitmoviereview.blogspot.in/    
rohitreview@gmail.com