Biswas_'s Reviews

Srikanth (2024)

8/10

11 May 2024

This is a really nice film but falls way short of being a brilliant one .

The film traces the journey of Shrikanth Bolla, who is a blind person but with superb grit and vigour in him . He is a person not interested in getting sympathy for his disability . He is a person who believes he can do everything.

Rajkumar Rao as Srikanth is terrific. He completely gets into the character of Srikanth and gives an authentic and natural performance. Some of his dialogues can make you laugh while some while make you emotional. The good thing about the film is that it doesn't get boring anytime thanks to an interesting narrative style and some amazing moments of Srikanth .

Jyothika , just coming out of a terrific performance in Shaitaan , shines even further in this film as Srikanth's guardian . Her character gets to portray a greater range than in Shaitaan . Sharad Kelkar too does a good job while the others have also done a fabulous job (atleast Aleya F gets a better role here than her previous horrendous outing BMCM).

However , there are problems. In an attempt to keep the film to just 2hr 15 mins, the makers have hastily skimmed through all chapters of Srikanth's life . They don't allow any sequence or scene to settle in your mind properly . Due to this, the film won't actually leave a lasting impact on you . I almost felt I was just watching the highlights of Srikanth's life .

The second half dips as well when Srikanth gets involved in politics . All those parts felt a bit half baked . Nevertheless, the film revives itself in the climax . In fact many things in this film is treated in a way too generic manner , almost showing Srikanth ending up winning in every place .

The song PAPA KEHTE HAI works so well in the film . Remaining songs are okayish and only present only to serve the romantic purpose of Srikanth .

Overall, this is a good film and you can easily watch it in theatres.

5 out of 6 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Do Aur Do Pyaar (2024)

7/10

Decent but nothing extraordinary

21 April 2024

It's nothing extraordinary. The topic of this film was last seen in the movie "Gehraaiyan" but had a really poor execution. DADP gets the execution right of a couple in extra marital affair because life seems boring in their current marriage. What eventually happens is pretty much known .

The performances in the film actually make the film one step above ordinary . Pratik Gandhi and Vidya Balan share a lovely chemistry. Their conversations keep you hooked to the otherwise what could have been a really boring watch. The humour often works really well especially the portions in Ooty .

The songs are nice, not chart busters but go really well with the mood of the film. Climax of the film was plain ordinary and nothing out of the box . This is why the film as I mentioned earlier is nothing extraordinary.

Overall, a decent one time watch !

2 out of 2 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Bade Miyan Chote Miyan (2024)

1/10

Akshay , please stop !!!

20 April 2024

These kind of cliched films need to stop. Although I admit the concept of the film is interesting but the things like the villain threatening the heroes with dialogues like "India ko nakshe se mita denge" or the usual india Pakistan china conflict stories need to stop .

On top of that the story execution is bad. The acting is even worst ! Akshay is not even interested in this film , he carries this one expression throughout the film . Tiger seems to be still in Ganpath mode and the remaining three actresses are one step close to disastrous (not to forget Aleya F's sickening character ). Prithviraj is still ok but has nothing more than just threaten everyone with his heavy modulated voice . Also I don't understand the reason for wearing the mask for half the film and removing it for the rest .

Songs are forgettable. Action sequences are not presented well. To the naked eye , the makers might have assumed it was amazing but what is presented on screen is often long, boring or repetitive. Same old cars exploding , heroes firing weapons in slow motion continues till the end until you are actually pissed off . Jokes are there few work , most don't . The Pubg FauG one made me grin actually.

AAZ needs to realise that just good action will not get his film right . His previous venture Bloody daddy too wasn't anything great it was plain ordinary and BMCM is ten steps behind it . Everything needs to be collectively decent for the film to be good enough even for a one time watch. BMCM only boasts of decent action set pieces , rest everything is just bad .

2 out of 2 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Maidaan (2023)

9/10

Give the film its due !! Don't let it flop

19 April 2024

MAIDAAN at first might look like a lookalike of the 2018 Akshay Kumar film GOLD. But one must realise that the story of both the films is nearly the same and hence it's hard to present both films in very different ways.

MAIDAAN however I felt was a tad better than GOLD. The film is about the former Indian Football coach S. A. Rahim and how he formed a team which went on to win the gold medal for the first time at the Asian Games 1962, against all odds.

MAIDAAN is an initial slow burn but this is what I loved !! It sets up the film brilliantly for an engrossing second half. Only cinephiles will appreciate this move , otherwise masala lovers who only want fast paced screenplay will complain . The film does a great job in establishing the character of SA Rahim and the unjust world around him . By unjust , I mean the then ongoing politics in the football federation where Bengalis didn't like the presence of an outsider in their committee which meant the odds were against Rahim, who was from Hyderabad. The first half also does a great job in establishing Rahim's personality as well. What I really liked is there were no unnecessary songs that disrupted the screenplay .

The second half is just pure gold . The build up to the Asian Games and finally the football matches !! Ohh they are shot so brilliantly, Bollywood has never captured football matches of this level and Maidaan has set the bech mark very high. The camera work in the final match was just, just extraordinary, keeping you hooked to the match like superglue . Don't like football? Doesn't matter you will still be engrossed . The BGM , the emotions , the pain of the ailing coach and the rage in the eyes of the players , all are brilliantly captured in the second half making this film an absolute 3 hours marvel !!

By the way, it was great to see real names kept for the footballers and there is an additional surprise for audience at the end so watch out for that (will be a treat for football fans ).

Negatives - Poorly written negative characters . Rudranil and Gajraj have one dimensional characters and have nothing to do other than just pop up out of no where to spread negativity. The footballers like Chuni Goswami , PK Banerjee etc could have been introduced better by cutting down some unnecessary family sequences of SA Rahim in the first half .

Overall, this is 2024's must watch film. I am shocked that such high quality cinema is getting no chances from the audience. If you are reading this review, do give this film a chance , you won't be disappointed.

1 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Pestilenz (2019)

1/10

Yawn !!

9 March 2024

I am a huge fan of FF (Found Footage) horror films and in my search for them online , i came across this German film that had a promising description.

The film has a very usual FF horror technique. A team of 3 decide to document mysterious deaths in San Diego Village what seems like plague but doctors are unable to explain the cause .

The first signs of crack in this short film comes when the team members start arguing and fighting over personal things . It just irritated me and the fact is , it just doesn't stop until the climax. Just a few creeps come here and there as the masked dude pops up from random places until at the end they are confronted by the masked dude and the rest is pretty much known .

Trust me, the climax is such a yawn fest, no chills, no creep nothing . The fat lady just keeps running around the house instead of running away from it , trying to outsmart the masked dude which imo was pretty silly and hilarious but the way it is shot is pretty boring .

Instead the film leaves you totally confused as to what exactly is happening in the village. There is no clear answer given really.

Overall, a pretty much waste of time.

0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Dunki (2023)

6/10

Not a memorable Hirani project !

6 January 2024

Hirani is known for his cinematic masterpieces. His choice of topics , his way of presenting them all, everything caters to family and youth audience and his way of presenting is smart and catchy

Dunki is about the Donkey route taken by illegal migrants to venture into another country of their dreams. Hirani makes a film on this largely non relatable topic and tries to add his flavors to it but i feel the output is largely average forgettable film or at the max, a one time watch.

The part of Dunki where every Indian can actually relate is missing their homes while staying away for job or schooling purpose. This is the only part that evokes high emotions. The rest of the film didnt evoke as much emotions as i would have expected.

In the first half, Hirani follows his usual trope of light hearted comedy. It works fairly well, especially during the IELTS sequence and interviews. There is this weird uncanny similarity to 3 idiots comedy in the first half...from a drunk class sequence...to SRK abusing the wrong person at night to the result checking sequence, all remind you of 3 idiots. In fact some normal sequences also remind you of 3 idiots. The entire Vicky Kaushal sequence has an uncanny similarity to Joy Lobo's sequence, the way Mannu, Guddu, Balli regather in their old age to meet Hardy reminds you of Farhan and Raju regathering to meet Rancho. I almost felt Hirani tried to recreate some 3 idiots sequences for Dunki but in different ways so as to not get exposed.

The second half is where the film falters a lot . It has some emotional moments and some laughs, but overall, the second half doesnt really evoke much emotions largely due to the non relatable illegal immigrant topic. Hence the film does fall way short of being memorable.

Vicky Kaushal has to be stand out performer here yet again after Sam Bahadur. He has had a memorable year. His desperation and his pain can be seen through his expressions. Vikram Kocchar is next with his amazing comic timing and so is Arun Grover (Sunil Grover's brother). I liked the fact that SRK doesnt steal all the screen space being the bigger star than all, he too gives a good performance but nothing memorable like Amir Khan in 3 idiots (if you look carefully, SRK is nothing but the Rancho of this film, even saying "Sab Changga si" instead of "Aal izz well"). Tapsee is also decent but nothing extraordinary.

Songs are the highlight point of this film. All of them are just terrific. Chal Ve Watna and Nikle they kabhi hum ghar se really tug at your heart. Lutt putt gaya is one of the most fun loving songs of this year, and has this Aal izz well like enjoyment to it. Maahi Ve is a beautiful song and is going to be a sensation .

Overall, a decent film but not of Hirani's sky high standards. Did Hirani miss the mark here by not working with his best friend Vidhu Vinod ? Because Vidhu Vinod himself managed to churn out a masterpiece in the same here but Hirani failed. I think VVC's inputs would have greatly helped Hirani in the emotional parts of the film. Weakest Hirani project. Weakest Hirani project.

1 out of 2 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Sam Bahadur (2023)

7/10

Its an entire Vicky show !

4 January 2024

Sam Bahadur is all about the life of Field Marshall Sam Mankeshaw and his contributions to key chapters in Indian war history.

While the film does show good insight on Sam's contributions, the films genuinely lacks thrill. We only get to see the planning phase of key chapters in Indian history where Sam is involved but get to see nothing in the execution phase. It seems the film is focused only on showing the contributions of Sam briefly. Its like the film has many chapters and the it just skims on top of them without going into excessive details.

On the positive note, the film on a whole belongs to Vicky Kaushal. You can easily see the tremendous effort he has given to this role. You completely forget that its Vicky and not Sam himself playing the role of Sam in the film. He gets the walking, talking and body postures of Sam on point. When Akshay played Prithiviraj, we couldnt see Prithviraj but only Akshay in the film, but when Vicky played Sam, we couldnt see Vicky, but only Sam in the film. Thats the difference.

Despite the episodic nature of the film, the film is still quite interesting to watch especially for those who have little knowledge about Sam. Whatever is presented to us on screen is well made and well presented. Cinematography is also really good and BGM is good as well.

Some more negatives - the costume design of Fatima Sheikh is hilarious, probably the worst Indira gandhi make up i have ever seen. General Yayah Khan played by Zeeshan Ayub suddenly transforms into someone odd looking. Songs are forgettable.

Overall, a good film that must be watched for Vicky Kaushal's outstanding performance and also for Sam Manekshaw.

0 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Animal (I) (2023)

6/10

A differently styled mass film that many may not like!

1 December 2023

ANIMAL was expected to be a high octane action mass film with an emotional father son story underlying. However, upon completion, i realised...it's definitely what i thought but the way it's treated is something that many may not like or many may like. My verdict is somewhere in between but mostly towards the positive side.

I want to start with the screenplay. This is what plays the decider. The film moves in a non linear fashion especially in the first half . The film heavily relies on conversations between characters and the tension that arises between them . Hence , anyone expecting an out an out mass film with action every five minutes or so is sure to get bored or disappointed. In fact for me too, many parts of the film felt really slow .

The problem is that the mass moments in the film are few and far apart which is why mass lovers are sure to get bored in between. However, if you genuinely love to hear the conversations between characters patiently, you will realise you get sucked into the world of Animal. This is where the film shines. The conversation between Rashmika and Ranbir in the second half (the one where Rashmika was heavily trolled for not uttering the words clearly) has to be surprisingly the best of Rashmika and one of the best moments in the film.

The mass moments are just terrific. That one college scene, the crazy interval sequence are some of the best in the film. Another sequence where Ranbir strangulates a close family friend (in the first half) is just brilliantly executed with the dying man struggling with the music beats . Vanga definitely has the potential to be a terrific mass director. Some sequences have gore and that's why the film is rated A .

Somewhere I feel, the father son story gets lost in between. I thought Vanga would flesh out the bond really well but actually it's kind of mid. I don't really see Anil Kapoor in the film for a very long time. It's all Ranbir Kapoor or Rashmika. Also, many sequences felt a bit disjointed. The climax arrives all of a sudden and finishes abruptly.

The film contains Vanga flavors of male chauvenism, controversial remarks on women etc that were seen in films like Kabir Singh so that's why many might find them disturbing while many might enjoy them (especially the men).

This film is an all Ranbir Kapoor show where in , he gives one of his career best performance in a never seen before avatar of his. His voice has the proper intensity with rage . He nails the action sequences as well.

Anil Kapoor does a good job as well but I would say his screen presence is overshadowed by Ranbir and Rashmika. Rashmika is given too much screen space than required.

I was heart broken to see Vanga completely under utilise Bobby Deol . He doesn't have any more sequence than was shown already in the trailer which deeply disappointed me. He enters the film late and leaves within probably 20 mins of screen presence. Very dissatisfied here.

Tripti Dimri has a very short role but is guaranteed a bigger role in the upcoming sequel.

Songs are good but none as memorable as Kabir Singh or many other better albums that released this year.

The crazy post credit sequence (which actually felt slightly inspired by Rolex in Vikram's post credit sequence) establishes the upcoming sequel "Animal Park...come visit soon" .

Overall, for me this was a decent film but expected much more because the expectations for me were too high.

2 out of 9 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

The Railway Men (2023)

9/10

Interesting and horrifying

19 November 2023

We all have seen multiple documentaries and films based on Bhopal gas tragedy . These showed us only the main events of the tragedy and the aftermath. However, none covered the few acts of bravery on that tragic day that saved countless lives. The Railway Men captures one such totally unknown act of bravery at the Bhopal railway station that saved nearly 1000s of lives.

Many might assume the event shown in this series itself is a fiction but it's not. It's a true event based loosely on the act of bravery by stationmaster Ghulam Dastigar , but this true event has been presented in a more fictionalised way. His role is played by KK Menon, who is named as Iftiqaar Siddiqui. On the night of tragedy, he , assisted by few more people, made sure that the passengers at the railway station were safe and was also responsible for quickly flagging off the Gorakhpur express from Bhopal station, thus lessening the casualties (although there were many at the station).

The series is fast paced and doesn't dive into anything unnecessary (although there is something I will talk about later). It's engaging while also being pretty horrifying. The makers did a commendable job in recreating certain scenes as seen from old pictures like that of the UC plant, the dead bodies lying on the floor , the patients in the hospital etc. We get to witness acts of bravery from not one, but three people, Iftiqaar, Balwant and Imad who , despite being affected by the gas, give their heart and soul to save whoever could be at the station. Since it's a fictional representation, so i didn't bother to recheck facts because the base facts on which the series is built are , at the end of day, true.

The night of the tragedy is also captured well although I feel Bhopal: a prayer for rain did that even better in its 25 mins climax. Still, Railway Men is no far.

Performances are the key highlights of this series. KK Menon is the superstar of this series as he is the one who shoulders the responsibility to take care of the passengers while desperately calling for help from other stations and also making sure the incoming Gorakhpur express leaves asap to avoid passengers in it to get affected. Next is Babil Khan as Imad who does a terrific job as the selfless worker. His dialogues like "Kaam chor ke ayenge to ammi daantegi" really work well. Dibyendu Sharma as Express Bandit Balwant yadav does a good job but his character could have been written better. R. Madhavan doesn't have much to do tbh apart from arranging for relief supplies to reach Bhopal while breaking all orders given to him. His little speech to his colleagues before setting out was pretty good.

Sunny Hinduja has a key role to play as the reporter Kumnawat (maybe fictional Rajkumar keswani) and Dibyendu Bhattacharya is the hidden gem of this series, completely dominating the first episode.

There is just one song at the end and it's placed pretty well.

Negatives - the Hindu Sikh angle in the tale could have been avoided in my opinion. The express bandit angle too could have been avoided although it doesn't interfere much tbh. The Englishmen in the series needed better portrayal than the usual caricatures they are shown in every other film in Bollywood.

Overall, a series that deserves atleast a time watch opportunity. The efforts are genuinely visible in the series and we all need to know such acts of bravery by unsung heroes who were forgotten.

43 out of 44 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Apurva (2023)

6/10

Established the plot well but falters towards the end

16 November 2023

Apurva is the story of a girl named Apurva who gets kidnapped by a gang of four gangsters and how she manages to escape from their clutches is the main story . It basically carries the NH10 flavors in it.

Apurva starts off extremely well. The four gangsters played by Rajpal Yadav, Abhishek Bannerjee, Sumit Gulati and Aditya are introduced as goons who enjoy watching people dying, screaming in pain , crying etc . A sense of terror is well established at the start. This continues for the whole of first half when Apurva gets kidnapped.

However, from the second half onwards, the film dips. Not only does it become a bit repetitive but it feels Apurva is managing to outfox the goons pretty easily. Repetitive because it just involves a hide and seek game in one location (which gave me Honeycomb maze vibes from Takeshi's castle) and it seemed the goons don't put forward the best effort possible to search.

The goons also don't pose any major challenge to Apurva and hence Apurva manages to outfox them pretty easily. This was something i did not like at all. I felt the challenges posed could be greater.

Like I said performance wise everyone including Tara Sutaria have done a great job. In fact this is the first time Tara gets to feature in a proper meaty no-nonsense role. It's definitely visible that she's worked hard for the role of Apurva which genuinely needed some grit.

There's a lot of gory scenes in the film. The shots taken of blood and flesh were pretty disturbing.

Dhairya as Apurva's finance is a waste. At the end you will realise he's there for nothing. His parts in the present timeline could have easily been chopped off.

Overall, a decent one time watch. A better second half treatment could have made the film to NH10's level.

1 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Mission Raniganj (2023)

7/10

Many flaws yet a decent tense watch !

8 October 2023

Mission Raniganj is based on the coal mine in Raniganj where many miners got trapped when water gushed into the mine killing a few even . How a Sikh named Jaswinder Gill managed to rescue them in record time using a first time in India technique is the plot of this completely ignored poorly promoted film.

The story no doubt is interesting by default. Any story based on such intense rescue missions which are basically race against time are always interesting. It's just the way these stories are presented. The first half actually felt pretty average with pretty average camera works (fast forward camera works that amateur directors mostly use). The villagers and miners talking felt like some serial or skit going on. However , as the interval arrives, the film starts to come back to form.

The second half is where things get really interesting and tense where we are shown a timer as Jaswinder races against time to rescue the survivors. This is where we are introduced the new method of rescuing miners from underneath is explained. Also not the water, but another deadly factor forces Jaswinder to speed up everything (watch the film to find it) . Many hurdles also are shown , all these factors make the second half and tense and worthy watch.

The VFX is pretty bad, not even below average. The gushing water has such bad VFX , it literally pricks your eyes like thorns. Clearly no budget was allocated for VFX (a problem with most Indian films).

The miners performance could have been more grounded. Their performance is way too over the top that at one point their shouting and screaming in bihari was getting on my nerves.

Introduction of negative characters just for the sake of making the film more interesting is okay but should have been fleshed out better. The negative characters which include Dibyendu Bhattacharya felt cliched and just added with lazy writing in the film.

As i mentioned before, I am not a fan of the often used fast forward camera work used in the film. It gave the film a lower grade feel. Just a personal opinion, yours could differ, you may like or not bothered with this.

Also, the setting of the disaster was too rushed . A bit of time taken to set up the disaster would have created a greater impact.

While Akshay Kumar and kumud Mishra were in fine form in the film, Pareeniti was an unnecessary addition just there for the money. Talented actors like Rajesh Singh and Dibyendu are wasted .

No songs in between the film is a big plus point and hence these things don't hamper the screenplay . The only thing that hampered the screenplay sometimes in between was Pareeniti calling Akshay in between the tense situations.

Overall, a flawed yet decently engaging film that should actually be watched to know about Jaswinder Gill . It's a shame that this film was not promoted at all and hence suffering at the box office.

6 out of 7 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Fukrey 3 (2023)

9/10

Laughter riot but fails to deliver the social message

30 September 2023

Fukrey franchise has always been this stupid no brainer that uses childish jokes very smartly to make the audience laugh . Mostly the jokes have been around Choocha .

Fukrey 3 continues the story of Honey, Choocha , laali, Panditji and of course, Bholi Punjaban , the lady always against the Fukreys but somehow always has to give in to fight a common enemy. This time Bholi decides to stand for election but when she realises that even Choocha is standing for the elections, a battle ensues.

Fukrey 3 heavily relies on its Choocha jokes , toilet jokes and on Panditji and thankfully both Choocha and Panditji have managed to pull off a stunner in what could have easily become a headache of a film considering the jokes are extremely silly and stupid and borderline childish . It's the good writing of this film and the prefect placement and delivery of the jokes that makes Fukrey 3 an absolute laugh riot . I absolutely laughed my hearts out at certain places. In many serious conversations , some funny scenes are infused so smartly that it would definitely make you laugh like in one sequence, Honey and Bholi are having an intense conversation in bholis house as Laali keeps interrupting in between asking the ingredients of the tea he needs to make, lol!!

Each Fukrey film introduces a new wacky / silly thing . Like the last film introduced De ja Choo, this film introduces a new thing that honey and Choocha together make which also forms a part of the plot. This exact thing is expected to take the franchise forward with a missing cast about to play a major role in the next film, revealed at the end. (You know who it is).

Without this star cast, it would have been impossible for Fukrey 3 to survive . Varun Sharma as usual is terrific in his comic timing and even better than him is Pankaj Tripathi who absolutely hits the balls out of the park with his comedy . Laali too has some amazing hilarious moments while Pulkit is relatively a sidelined character now . I also enjoy those two Africans Eddy and bobby I just wish they are never excluded from the franchise .

The biggest negative of this film is that it has a social message that it fails to deliver . It sandwiches the message in between its jokes and that makes the message lose its essence completely. Songs are pretty below average as well.

Overall, I think this is the best comedy of the year in theatres surpassing dream girl 2. If you are a Fukrey franchise lover , just close your eyes and buy tickets for this film and watch it making sure you leave your senses and brains at home .

2 out of 15 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Jaane Jaan (2023)

7/10

No jaw dropping ending but still decent watch

24 September 2023

Jaane Jaan marks the debut of Kareena Kapoor on ott. It is the official adaptation of the novel " The devotion of Suspect X", a novel that inspired Drishyam . Once you complete Jaane Jaan, you will realise that actually both films are pretty different although they reek of nearly the same smell. Even the endings of the two films are far from each other .

So jaane Jaan is a film about a mother, her daughter and a lonely teacher who get involved in a crime. The story revolves around how this lonely teacher named naren helps this mother to cover up the crime and prevent the investigating officer from tracking the crime.

First, I want to talk about the cinematography. It is just terrific. This film has a dark tone to it and quite a lot of set pieces and scenes have an eerie Japanese look and feel to it. The film captures Kalimpong beautifully. Full credits to the cinematographer.

Next, I want to talk about the pace. It fluctuates between mid and slow. However the pace is good enough to keep you hooked till the end. Thanks to an interesting screenplay.

What I really felt bad was the climax. The film very nicely builds up the story and the way in which the story progresses I was hoping to see a jawdropping climax just like we witnessed in Drishyam. Jaideep and Kareena do a lot of things to keep the investigating officer Vijay Varma at bay but all of it seems to fall flat when we get to see the climax. It was good but nothing extraordinary and that broke my heart . Drishyam did a much better job in coming up with a terrific climax but not this film.

Jaideep is the star of this film . He's basically what Ajay Devgan / Mohanlal was in Drishyam . His character is written pretty well as a lonely man who seemed to have aged a bit too early but needs love and care and through helping Kareena , he gets little happiness. Kareena Kapoor is also very good but feels sidelined due to a terrific Jaideep and the same applies to Vijay Varma .

Overall, an interesting film but should have had a much better climax . Still it is worth the time.

2 out of 4 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Kaala (2023– )

8/10

Quite engaging with some flaws

24 September 2023

This is the second Avinash Tiwari series that released last year along with Bombay meri Jaan. Kaala is a series about money laundering and much more. It is a story of two generations of enmity. The series focuses on Ritwik an IB officer who is involved in tracking the money laundering case. As he tracks down a big consignment of black money being transferred from India to Bangladesh, he starts to know more about his past, a past that involved his estranged father and his enmity with a person called Balwant who made him a traitor . What this past was actually and how it gets linked to the current money laundering case is the whole story .

I have to say that Bejoy Nambiar is a very interesting filmmaker . His creative choices are quite often spot on. Even in this series, in every episode he would give us glimpses of a certain events only to give its explanations later. A good thing that he does is that he doesn't keep any unwanted intro for this series . The action sequences are pretty well choreographed except that one chase sequence in the second last episode involving Ritwik being chased by two bikers . It involves so many awkward jump cuts that you lose interest out of it.

Coming to the past of Ritwik which involved his father Shubhendu and Balwant . It's pretty interesting . Jitin Gulati plays Balwant whose character is something that will make your jaw drop as the series progresses. For many it might come across as really awkward and hard to digest. But boy, Jitin plays that character of Balwant so well almost that he becomes the star of this series. Shubhendu aka Adinath's story is also really interesting as he tries to hunt down his enemies . His character too has many layers.

The slightly non linear screenplay makes sure that you are always in hunt for answers and the series has them ready at proper moments. The emotional quotient often does not work than does . They are not properly fleshed out.

What I found surprising was that characters spoke less slangs in this series (which is a forced trend in every series these days). The Bengali accent use is a bit of hit and miss with many nailing it while many missing it. Mita Vashisth's Bengali accent sometimes sound spot on sometimes awful.

The pacing tbh is a bit uneven. I lost interest at certain points due to this but it's not a big concern I eventually watched the whole series quite comfortably. Apart from Balwant , the other villains like Naman, Bismil etc are poorly shaped by the series. The songs used at many places are really good. The failure to establish proper emotions results in certain sequences like Shubhendu being cremated feel lifeless.

Overall, a decent one time entertaining series .

2 out of 3 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Bambai Meri Jaan (2023– )

9/10

Gripping to say the least!

24 September 2023

Bollywood has made many movies on Dawood Ibrahims life which include D-Day, Once upon a time in Mumbai etc. But all these films only cover a certain part of Dawood's life. Even a film like Haseena Parker covered the life of only Haseena Parker in brief.

Bambai Meri Jaan however manages to cover the entire life story of Dawood and his family right from the time he was a kid to the time he became the king of underworld .

This means that the story begins from 1960s when Dawood was a kid and his father Ismail was serving the police as an honest cop . I would like to start using the name Dara Quadri instead of Dawood as that's what his fictional name is in this series . During that time , the underworld was ruled by two big gangsters Haji Mastan and Pathan . The entire series shows us how the Qadri family is forced to become involved with these gangsters and how ultimately Dara rises above these two gangsters to become the only one ruler of underworld.

First thing that we must make sure that these kind of series are not meant to be glorified and only meant to be enjoyed as an entertainment series. Dawood was a terrorist and by no means is he supposed to be sympathised with in anyway, no matter how much emotional things are shown in the series.

One thing that really impressed me about the series is how well the family dynamics are captured. None of the Bollywood films that were made on Dawood's life focused so deeply on Dawood's family dynamics. Bombai meri jaan shows us the deep relations between Dara and his father, Ismail and also with his brothers and his sister Habiba (The fictional name for Haseena). In this series, we get to see how as Dara gets involved in the Haji Mastan gang, his father Ismail starts to distance away from him. As Dara gets bigger, we get to see how his brothers also, who were very close to him, start to distance away from him. All these things are beautifully captured by the series.

The series has a lot of blood shed. There are a lot of terrifies sequences as well. There is one particular rape sequence which will make your blood freeze. Apart from this, there are a lot of gang war sequences which are quite interesting to watch.

The set pieces of the series is a hit and miss. While that costume choices and the looks and feels of the series is quite good, in many scenes, the background looks very artificial and looks like a lot of green screen has been used.

Let's talk about the performances. Avinash Tiwari as Dara is quite impressive. Initially he takes time to get into the character of Dara, but once he does, he hit the balls out of the park. K K Menon as as his father Ismail is just terrific. His eyes and facial expressions do a lot of talking. He doesn't speak much towards the end, but it is clearly evident through his facial expressions how he is pained to see his son Dara distance away from him and choose the wrong path. Jiten Gulati plays the role of Dara's brother Sadiq and he does a terrific job. Kritika Kamra plays the role of Habiba and I think she does a better job than Shraddha Kapoor as Haseena Parkar in her film. Saurabh Sachdeva as Haji Mastan is just terrific. Others have done a good job as well.

Since this is Dawood Ibrahim's whole life story, we have a few characters that you might have seen before in Bollywood films as well, one of them being Manya Surve (from shoot out at Wadala) here named as Ganya Surve. His role is played by Sumit Vyas and I did not like his portrayal as his character comes out caricaturish.

We also have at the end is supposedly fictional. Chhota Rajan played by the very talented Aditya Rawal. He does a great job as well.

Many were saying that the pacing of this series is very slow. That's not the case for me. It was quite well paced and the fact that it had such a riveting story telling, it kept me hooked till the end. The series will continue into season two as we get to see more of Habiba and Dara as they extend their terrorist activities.

Overall, if you're looking for some gangster, entertainment series, Bombay meri Jaan should be in your watchlist. Watch it for the riveting storytelling and some terrific performances and detailing.

4 out of 5 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Jawan (2023)

8/10

Mass at its best with a decent plot

9 September 2023

SRK's last mass film Pathaan had several shortcomings, one being a strong story . Jawan manages to resolve this issue and offers even more.

Now once you complete the film, you will realise it's a mix of a few Bollywood films, imo, they are Rowdy Rathore and Satyamev Jayate. Jawan is a mix of these two films. But i will keep the overall plot under wraps in this review but if you have seen those two films, you know what's coming .

The first biggest plus point of this film is the superb presentation of SRK. It's not a spoiler that SRK has played a father son double role and it's evident from the trailer. The presentation of SRK son is pretty good but the presentation of SRK dad, uffffff!!! The crowd went wild seeing SRK dad version for the first time on screen. But then again i have to say that SRK dad is actually a bit inspired by Allu Arjun's AVPL style. His dialogue delivery is just terrific!!

Next are the mass action sequences. The biggest bombastic sequence was the one just before interval. Absolutely that sequence made the crowd go mad with cheering and hooting. Next in line is the highway action sequence, it's very well shot and keeps you entertained in that entire sequence. Many others are there, all are quite thrilling to witness but the ones i mentioned are the best ones.

Screenplay I would say sometimes drops here and there but mostly is fast paced. Wastes no time in taking off.

The film atleast has a good message to deliver to us . It has a lot of emotional moments especially in the second half and it works pretty well.

Performances are quite good although I felt Sunil Grover was a bit wasted . This is a female oriented film with SRK at the center so the female leads like Nayanthara, Sanya, Priyamani etc have done a very good job.

Negatives - Vijay Sethupathi!! His character neither has good dialogues and neither does his character have depth. His character is cliched and felt like makers spent only a few minutes to write his character. Songs are mid. Also one thing I notice in south director films especially the mass ones is that they don't allow many scenes to settle , it's like they want to move to the next scene in a flash of a second. Jawan too falls prey to this .

Two cameos are there in the film, one which is already known and the other is hidden for you to go watch the film and discover. The known one has a sort of a long cameo actually.

Overall, a highly enjoyable film that presents SRK in his massiest avatar ever and you don't want to miss it in theatre .

15 out of 26 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Dream Girl 2 (2023)

6/10

Not as great as Dream girl 1 but still can entertain

26 August 2023

Dream Girl 1's biggest USP was Ayushman as Pooja and how he leads to a comedy of misunderstandings which made up for a laugh riot something that Bollywood misses these days.

Four years later comes Dream girl 2, a film with almost the exact same cast but different roles (except a few , like Annu Kapoor's role is the same ). Mind you it's a totally different story but again set in the same region.

Just like the first part , Dream girl 2 is yet another comedy of misunderstandings and yet again we have Ayushman as Pooja but his reason for transforming into Pooja is different this time. The comedy honestly speaking does entertain you but only if you are with a group of people (in a theatre or watching at home with a bunch of your buddies ). If you watch it alone, the comedy will definitely feel force fed and crass-cringe . With audience around, still i felt some comic portions as force fed and not funny . The rest of the comic portions were quite enjoyable, few being absolutely laugh out loud !

I really appreciate Raaj shandaaliya and his dialogues which definitely can make you laugh but this time I felt he ran out of good ones in certain places. The situational comedy and comedy of misunderstandings is handled pretty well in this film and reminds me of the old De Dana Dan days . Personally, i enjoyed and had a great laughter session in the theatre for most parts but quite some parts couldn't make me laugh and I felt few parts were going overboard.

Everyone has done a great job in this film and it's the cast that actually saves the comedy in many parts where easily a cast of lower standards than this would have derailed the comedy and the whole film . Few mentions - one, after a long time Rajpal yadav could make me laugh and two, i wished Asrani had a bigger role , his character almost felt like the beginning of a laughter riot but the film soon takes him off.

Songs are below average. Atleast the first film had two songs with repeat value (especially Ik Mulaqaat) but this film,.none! And not that when you hear the songs in the film you will feel like adding them to your playlist, no, none of the songs have any repeat value.

More Negatives - very poor climax. Wished for a film with those 2000s comedy film like climax where the entire cast would come together and create a hilarious ruckus but no, instead we yet again , just like dream girl 1, get a social message . It's a dated social message heard in every other woke film these days atleast the first film had a message which many didnt address (loneliness of men). And guess what, the film then ends abruptly! It's as if Raaj shandaaliya got tired and decided let's not think more and end it immediately without a proper ending .

All there factors make Dream girl 2 inferior to the first film but that doesn't take away the fact that it still remains quite entertaining and hilarious in many parts .

2 out of 5 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Gadar 2 (2023)

4/10

Should have selected better side actors and much more!

15 August 2023

Warning: Spoilers

Gadar 2 starts 17 years after the incidents of Gadar in 1947. Now that Tara and Sakina with their son Jeete are settled , a major incident forces Jeete to secretly get into Pakistan only to land himself up in trouble. How Tara Singh rescues him from Pakistan is the story as a villian with a personal vendetta awaits Tara Singh in Pakistan.

I want to first start with the performances because that's the biggest drawback of this film. Anil Sharma once again desperately tries to launch his son Utkarsh into Bollywood with this film. Of course he played the kid Jeete but that doesn't mean you have to again cast him for the same role. This boy Utkarsh just cannot act!! His dialogue delivery will make you vomit!!!!!! My god people were laughing when he was giving threats "Tumhare itne chithre karega" part was so hilarious because his voice itself doesn't have that menacing tone at all. And what kind of character he has? A boy dreaming to be an actor suddenly starts bashing the Pakistani army in Pakistan, dude how?? Does it make any sense? Was it necessary to portray Utkarsh like some mass action hero? Dude he's light years away from that first he should get his acting and speech right.

Ameesha Patel never did acting for a long time and after coming out of that acting exile , she seems to have forgotten acting. She has absolutely nothing to do in this film apart from just cry and smile and run around here and there and even that she couldn't do properly.

The character of Amrish Puri, Ashraf Ali was very well written. He had a side that hated india but also a side that was humane . His negative character felt natural and well balanced. In Gadar 2, Manoj Wadhwa plays the villian Hamid Iqbal who is nothing but an out an out typical villian from Pakistan who has nothing but hatred . His character is too cliched and far from natural which is why I felt despite Manoj doing a decent job , his character was too weak.

Sunny Deol's close friend in Gadar played by the very talented Vivek Shauq is replaced by someone idk who , but cannot do any justice to the standards set by Vivek. Vivek was ready made comedy actor having appeared in Jaspal Bhatti shows but who is this in Gadar 2?? The dude cannot act and in his short screen presence cannot make you laugh as well.

It is only Sunny Deol as Tara Singh who manages to save the film in the second half to just some extent with his shouting screaming and a million "Jeeteeyyyyyyyy"s in the second half. His moments were the ones that brought maximum hoots and laughs in the theatre .

The movie is 2hrs 55 mins long almost close to what Gadar was . While Gadar 's 2hr 55 mins felt like breeze, Gadar 2's 2hr 55 mins felt like painful drag . There's an absolutely cold and bland love story attempted between Utkarsh and new comer Simrat and because both kids can't act, the overall love story crash lands . It just did not have the sweetness of Tara and Sakina from Gadar 1.

In The second half also, despite having some whistle worthy moments, the film becomes so repetitive that you will keep asking in mind "When's this film coming to an end?" The climax goes on and on and on and ultimately becomes extremely tiresome. The climax with those tanks was pretty interesting but stretching it too much resulted in me especially losing interest. Thank God it ends soon after that and not stretching to parts in some final sequence where Utkarsh and Simrat are getting married.

Anil Sharma uses 2023 cameras but his filmography style is stuck in the 90s. He absolutely has no idea when to use slow motion and when fast motion. In one chase sequence, the film starts moving at 4x speed making it feel like a comedy movie (comedy movies have speeds like that to show funny characters running around ) and sometimes the film starts showing slow mo shots all of a sudden where not required also. Women have nothing to do in his film. The editing of this film too is extremely poor . I think Utkarsh's parts should have been chopped off even more but hey, won't the editor get sacked by the director if he did that ??

Music is good.

Overall, Gadar 2 is a film that could have been better if Utkarsh Sharma were thrown out and a more talented young man were taken, if Ameesha Patel was given proper training again before she stepped back on the set and if the editing were better.

6 out of 13 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

OMG 2 (2023)

10/10

Bold and straight on the face !!

11 August 2023

Warning: Spoilers

I watched OMG 2 in Bengaluru PVR Aura Park Square Mall at 6.25pm . The theatre was full upto the brim which really filled my heart with joy because I don't remember the last time I saw an Akshay Kumar film packed with audience in theatres. Despite big A rated boards put right in front of the theatre, people did not care . They brought their children to watch and I was happy that they got an opportunity to watch this film.

OMG 2 is a film that should be watched by all despite its A rating . It's a film about sex education and my goodness, the way it deals with it , must say requires real guts for filmmakers to present in such open and bold way.

The template of OMG remains the same, a man, his problem, a courtroom sequence and above all, a human form God who guides the man . Last time it was Krishna, this time it's Shiva. The problem here in OMG 2 is that Pankaj Tripathi 's son gets shamed publicly for being caught masturbating in school toilet and now Pankaj demands apology from the school for not giving him proper sex education and for defaming his son .

Just like the first film, the second film too feels like it's not an Akshay Kumar film except for the fact that OMG 2 gives that feeling way more than OMG 1 considering his very limited screen presence. OMG 2 is dominated by one and only Pankaj Tripathi.

Pankaj Tripathi delivers one of his career best performance in a film that heavily rests on his shoulders actually. His courtroom scenes just invoked whistles and hoots and lots of laughs often . You won't believe that in a pre-interval sequence, when the judge (played by Pawan Malhotra) accepted to register the case after initially rejecting it, it made the audience go wild with claps !!! You need to watch that sequence to understand why people went so crazy happy. The way Pankaj Tripathi argues why sex education is necessary and explains how Sanatan Dharm had actually talked about it long ago generated hoots and claps from everyone!! Some of the questions he presents to us are hard hitting and thought provoking. Pankaj Tripathi almost felt like he got that Criminal Justice Madhav Mishra soul inside him (which i felt was a bit unrealistic considering Pankaj in this film is not a lawyer but still manages to fight like one).

Many comedy sequences there in this film and surprisingly, all work !! From a scene where Brijendra Kala explains a man why his wife got pregnant despite using condom to Pankaj Tripathi constantly saying "Burger" instead of " Vulgar" due to his poor English made everyone go LOL. However, still I feel the comedy in the courtroom sequences could have been a little less considering the seriousness of the case but nevertheless it kept me entertained.

Coming to Akshay Kumar, he has very little to do this time, even lesser than what he did in OMG 1. His character is a bit more serious and it's understandable because Shiv has a serious personality while Krishna had a more playful personality. His screen presence is also too less . It almost felt like Salman Khan's character in Antim where he played second fiddle to Ayush Sharma similarly Akshay plays second fiddle to Pankaj. Their bonding is nice to see but i felt the bonding of Paresh and Akshay in OMG 1 was way better and impactful. The impact and chemistry went somewhere missing between Pankaj and Akshay and it's solely because Akshay is given less screen time .

Yami Gautam can never go wrong in a negative shade . Limited space to gain spotlight but she does her job well. Pawan Malhotra's judge character is an exact copy of Saurabh Shukla from Jolly llb 1, trying to be serious but ends up often being funny . His reactions to certain arguments made by Pankaj were just priceless to watch xD.

Songs - none memorable but yaa, they go well with the screenplay no doubt. Really missed the Go go go Govinda song from OMG 1. Everytime I think of OMG , that trademark song comes into my mind .

Overall, OMG 2 is a simple yet bold and important film. I would agree that OMG 1 had a more quirky plot but OMG 2 has a more important and bold plot . Definitely a worthy sequel to the first film . If you plan to watch OMG 2, make sure you watch OMG 1 not because of story (both have different stories completely) but you will get an idea about the template of this franchise.

8 out of 16 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

The Hunt for Veerappan (2023)

10/10

Interesting and spine chilling

5 August 2023

There's no doubt about one thing , the life of Veerappan and the major attempts made by the govts of Karnataka and TN itself is a full real life movie experience. Witnessing it unfold in this documentary was no short of a blockbuster thrilling movie.

I had the basic knowledge of Veerappan that he was someone who was difficult to catch but how and why I never really bothered to research , after all why would I research about a criminal. This is why I decided to watch this documentary which presents a pretty detailed picture of who exactly Veerappan was, what he did, what turned him into the monster he became and simultaneously what were all the efforts made by the police to nab him. All was extremely interesting yet spine chilling for me to hear.

The spine chilling parts were especially to witness the constant defeat of police force and the rare pictures shown in this documentary of the bombing or killing sites . Veerappan was always one step ahead of the police. The fictional character Pushpa (Allu Arjun ) is heavily inspired by Veerappan actually and one realises this when one sees both characters. It was quite shocking to see Veerappan make the govts of two states dance to his tunes , something I was never aware of.

Many narrators present in this documentary from policemen to journalists to insiders of Veerappan gang narrate the tale and it's always interesting to hear it directly from their mouth but the makers struck gold by getting in the wife of Veerappan Mutulakshmi who manages to give us an insight into a never heard before Veerappan's mindset and what he used to think from his pov , for example when his men got killed how angry he used to feel which forced him to take revenge against policemen like Shakeel Ahmed . You will see a sense of no remorse on MutuLakshmi's face when she says what Veerappan did was absolutely right which again sent shivers down my spine .

Go watch this series if you want some insight into Veerappan and all the hohum around him . Literally this man was exactly what Osama was to US . This documentary is your time worth spending !

18 out of 21 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

The Trial (2023– )

4/10

An earnest Kajol can't save this flawed series

19 July 2023

The remake virus is slowly spreading to OTT . Uptil now, most remakes of rather unknown series were done pretty well, which includes the remake of a not so unknown series The Night Manager, The Trial fails to even impress me despite not having seen the original. Both Night Manager india and The Trial have been produced by Banijay Asia , while the former was terrific for me, the latter is just the opposite.

It's a remake of Good Wife, whose name surprisingly is taken multiple times in this series as if announcing loudly that yes this is a remake. It is a courtroom cum family drama series. They had a terrific director in hand Suparn Verma (who previously made Rana Naidu in March ) but sadly he couldn't execute it well.

The courtroom sequences are extremely poorly fleshed out. It's all in a haphazard. First, none of the cases (I mean the incidents on which the cases are being fought), except one or two, are shown to us so we have to just make it up in our minds . A glimpse of the incidents would have had greater impact on the cases. Second, not much space is given to any case. Each case comes and goes within less than half an episode. Cases are solved with ease, not much research is done and some research work done is not even shown to us. Some cases just don't end properly or have an abrupt ending and after that noone talks about it (except the one Juhi case). So many cases cramped in 8 episodes but none given ample time to be fleshed out...all because the series gives more focus on Noyonika aka Kajol's personal life.

Coming to the personal life part, only the Kajol part of managing her own family single handedly felt good and well fleshed out solely because it gets ample space . Other relationships like Kajol and Vishal's relationship, Sana's relationship, Kajol's relationship with Illyas and some other here and there add to the bore factor in this series. This was the same problem with a series in Prime named Guilty which has some terrific well fought courtroom sequences (which is clearly missing in this series) but had faltered in the personal life part.

I would like to mention one stand out performer in this series and he is the man who played Daksh Rathod. Terrific performance!! His attitude and words make sure he fans enough hatred amongst audience to make them feel like slapping him. His way of exploiting a helpless Juhi really made me fume .

I am seeing Alyy khan after a really long time . The man is a very confident actor and has a very mature voice . But sadly his character goes from terrific to really heart broken nibba types which extremely disappointed me and it's not his fault , it's the character given to him to play's flaw.

Kajol definitely does a terrific job in this series and certainly proves why she's still a really talented actress. But i really didn't find anything special in the chemistry she shares with anyone in this series.

Overall, a series that's more of a family drama than a courtroom drama where non work really well. They have left it for S2 but i really don't think it was needed because after this I feel it's gonna become some tv serial like series .

0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Kohrra (2023– )

9/10

Raw and Real !

17 July 2023

Kohraa is basically a investigation thriller that take you on a journey that unravels several brutal and dark aspects of families and relationships.

First, the pace ! I had a absolutely no problem with the pace. These series are made to move slowly and if one can't consume such slow burns should not watch and review them. The conversations and developments kept me hooked to the series despite its slow pace. What further kept me hooked was Barun Sobti's serious yet sometimes spot on humorous dialogues that come so naturally.

Second, this series is way more than an investigation. It takes us through the dark secrets of families and relationships. How jealousy starts to affect one person, how father's can become so possessive of their daughters that they don't care about their happiness but only want what her to do what they wish because they feel it's good for their daughters. We also get to see the drug condition in Punjab that comes across the investigation path rather than just showing it separately and giving lecture about it which was good. And lastly , nothing new, the acceptance of homophobia in Indian families that still remains a huge problem.

Third, the portrayal of Punjab is raw. You get to see what Punjab is exactly and not like how films show like people doing Bhangra everywhere or showing Punjabi families as typical cliched types . The series shows the rusty lanes of Punjab, the proper way in which they talk etc. There isn't much use of bgm so the series stays raw.

The dialogues of this film are close to realistic with no nonsense being shown. The climax is a shocker although many might predict it .

Everyone has done a terrific job in this series.

Overall, a great watch. If you love slow moving series that are gritty and real, this ones for you .

23 out of 42 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Neeyat (2023)

7/10

The biggest twist is actually a copied concept !

8 July 2023

Neeyat is an Agatha Christie styled investigation thriller wherein a CBI officer Mira Rao is forced to investigate a murder that occurs on the birthday night of a buisness Tycoon Ashish Kapoor. Who got murdered and who is the murderer and what all shocking events happen in the climax is all the film has to tell.

First thing, the fact that why it's based in Scotland is logically justified by the film and so is the presence of the CBI officer. So don't think why makers had to set it outside India and not in India, just watch the film , you will understand.

Second, I always love this Agatha Christie styled presentation of whodunit thrillers. It will remind you of films like Knives out but it's far from that film. The film moves at a solid pace and there isn't a single boring moment.

Third, i felt the performances were a mixed bag. Ram Kapoor and Vidya Balan do a good job . Others i felt were really ordinary with the kids having this weird American accent (god knows why Indians pride in speaking American English, 3rd world country dreams huh).

Fourth, the climax and twists. Lots of twists and turns as the revealations take place. I felt the investigation done was too surface level and the revealations were done in such hurry as to who is double crossing whom.

It seems as if the makers wanted to quickly jump to the two MASSIVE twists in the climax part 2 ( ya you could say this film has two climaxes, one about the revealations and two which involves the twists ). That is why the investigation and revealations are done in no time !

Talking about the twists. In my opinion, the first big one was very unpredictable but the 2nd one i actually smelled it coming (see if you can as well ). The 2nd twist concept is actually a copy from another Hit Bollywood film that released few years back (that too was a remake tbh lol) and the 2nd twist brings in a mini cameo by a renowned actress so watch out for that. Although many will like these two major twists, those who have seen that successful Bollywood film few years back , for them they will feel it has been copied.

Oh btw i forgot there are 3 twists actually, one which comes in between the second half but i felt it was just forced one so didn't bother considering it.

So overall, it's a decent one time watch. Definitely i won't recommend watching this in theatres but do watch it on Prime once it comes, you won't regret it despite the film having flaws and a copied twist .

8 out of 20 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Adhura (2023)

6/10

Predictable story but has some terrific moments

8 July 2023

The story of Adhura and even some mysteries can be predicted by just seeing the disclaimer itself. And even if the disclaimer doesn't give you a hint, the first two episodes will easily.

It all then boils down to how and who because you know what happened and why happening. So this is a horror suspense thriller where an angry spirit takes over a little boy Vedant and all we need to know is his intentions, which , for me atleast was pretty clear from just reading the disclaimer of the 1st episode. Everything dates back to 15 years ago (set presently in 2022) when something horrifying happened on the last day of the batch of 2007 students, which include Ishwak Singh and Zoa morani . This batch comes for a reunion during Vedant's time and start experiencing terror as Ishwak looks for clues to search for his missing best friend since the last day of their school.

Did I give away a bit too much despite not revealing much? Yes and no. Yes, because the last lines of my last paragraph might give you a hint about the spirit and his intentions and even what happened to him. And No, because the whodunit part was done pretty well imo.

So the main topics covered in this series is bullying and friendship. I think the friendship part is decently fleshed out and further heightened in the last episode. The bullying part is also decently fleshed out.

Since by the 2nd or 3rd episode the story and even what happened on the last day of 2007 batch becomes pretty clear, it becomes a bit of a stretch to actually reach the final episode which i felt was the best of the lot where we get to know what really happened and also what i liked was it presented some startling surprises which the series managed to hide till the end very well. Kudos there.

The last day of 2007 shown in the final episode is pretty flawed and cringy, especially the part 2 of the last day shown which was kept a secret. Let's me try explaining without giving away much. In part 2 of the Last Day, the injured bleeding victim suddenly gets up and starts walking like a fit horse like nothing happened and even starts arguing with one person (will not reveal this as this is the surprise part). I cringed at this point like how dude?? You are injured!!

Many past events are just shown through random sequences and this broke the flow often.

The horror absolutely does not work despite it being everywhere in the series. India needs to work more in this area.

One character that springs a huge surprise and is a big mystery is Rasika Duggal aka Supriya. As the series progresses, you realise she is a mysterious women and even the 7th episode makes her character further mysterious and wanting to know more about her.

The batchmates of 2007 under the scanner have pretty much caricaturish characters with not much fleshed out of them. Zoa morani is the worst of them, carrying an expressionless stern face throughout. The little boy Vedant does a good job though and so does the spirit's real character.

Overall, a okayish one time watch . Some mysteries are well kept but overall story should have been more well narrated .

11 out of 14 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Satyaprem Ki Katha (2023)

8/10

Wished it ended better...

1 July 2023

Satyaprem ki Katha or SKP is supposed to be a romantic film but it actually carries a very serious topic for discussion.

The film starts off very average with some poor comedy scenes and some forgettable dance numbers but after 30 mins , the film starts to sail and sails at full speed revealing some shocking facts about Katha.

Let's talk about how maturely the director has churned out this sweet romantic film. The film never jumps to kissing or such things but very slowly and steadily and very carefully moved the romantic track forward and knowing the story of Katha , this kind of treatment is very mature and needed. A blank faced Kiara slowly and steadily shifts to a more happy joyful faced Kiara and the transition is done beautifully!!!

Dealing with the story of Katha, SatyaPrem aka Sattu also is handed a very mature character, never really jumping to doing odd stuff but makes sure he slowly and steadily and carefully takes steps forward in comforting and solacing Katha and this is where the beautiful chemistry arises between them that never never never felt forced but comes naturally and you start to get invested in their love story . Kudos to Sameer Vidhwans for handling this sensitive romantic film so well. These days romantic films have a tendency to jump too quickly to adult scenes but not this one. FOR THE LOVE STORY AND THE SERIOUS TOPIC , KUDOS TO THE MAKERS!!

However, it's not perfect. The comedy is a hit and miss especially the dysfunctional comedy in the first 30 mins. Few comic sequences later do make you grin but overall, i felt these sequences could have been reduced and hence reduce the overall running length of the film. The songs are the biggest negative point imo. They are placed badly , and yeah, the nightmare is true, Pasoori Nu is actually present right inside the film and doesn't fit the sequence where it is presented at all. You see a film like Akash Vaani where there was a similar sequence in the snow with the beautiful song Padh Gaye Ji and it suited the sequence so well. Wished a similar kind of song was present in that sequence in this film. Also, the climax , the Puja sequence, very poorly ended!! It almost felt the film was about a start a new chapter (or rather you would feel the climax is about to start there ) and to my utter disappointment, the film actually ended there (meaning it was not the start of the climax but the end of the film there) !! A courtroom sequence would have done so much more justice to the ending instead of an abrupt ending.

Performance. Kiara Advani is the star of the show . Her transition from a depressed lady to a happy joyful comfortable lady is just flawless. She nails the emotional scenes in this film. Next is Kartik who handles a mature character very well and brings in the natural innocence he brings with every such character he plays . His transition from being a zero to a hero is commendable. His scenes with Kiara are so beautiful and heartwarming. Gajraj rao shares a terrific chemistry with Kartik .

Overall, SKP is a must watch. I don't know how you guys tolerated TJMM but SKP is a million times better than that film in terms of chemistry and love angle.

28 out of 36 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Biswas_

Reviews

Tell Your Friends

Recently Viewed