Reviews

A thoroughly confused film, that struggles to be serious, and is also not funny. Far from being a slick spy flick, there are numerous occasions where one is compelled to pause and wonder about the credulity the filmmaker assumes the audience to have. It appears that the movie has been made to kill time.

The basic problem seems to be with the script and story. Only individual performances redeem the film in some scenes. Usually a thriller is supposed to captivate till the climax. In this case however, it took a lot of will to complete the movie.

A substandard work from the director, who is not usually known to make movies for the heck of it.

Avoidable.

From the title song to the last scene, nothing makes sense in this show. There would have been some really compelling reason why the show was created; it could not have been entertainment though. Perhaps Netflix has some lingerie companies for investors, and they wanted it to create a long advertisement. That's possible. But if it is the case, Netflix could soon lose that investment as well.

By naming it Comedy Premium League, the show creators cannot be faulted for not warning the audience what was in store. Still, it is important to write down, what absolute trash this show is.

The format of comedians competing against each other in teams is hardly new, even in India. There are hundreds of hours of the Comedy Circus series available on YouTube.

CPL is far worse than any other show you might have seen. There is absolutely nothing in it. Except for potential. The potential to drive you nuts through poor jokes delivered by people who earlier called themselves stand ups and now are trying to carry the baton of comedy.

The "comedians", of they can be so called, will bore you to death and beyond. In that sense they remind you of the many comics that arrived with the Laughter Challenge and soon became a source of forced laughs before people figured out there was nothing funny about it.

There is overacting, shoddy slap stick humour, and horrendous writing. The show makes Comedy Nights with Kapil and Comedy Circus series look like masterpieces.

After watching the series, it seems that hardly two or three members of the cast acted. The rest were were just acting.

It is hard to pin point what went wrong, but the show was quite hollow. Even when supposedly tragic events unfold on the screen, one does not feel sympathetic, leave aside empathetic towards the aggrieved characters.

Yes, there are some captivating and moments in the show; but because of the story and not the way they are portrayed on screen.

In fact, one could really get confused, watching any scene, because in the same scene, some would be overacting while others not acting at all.

The better actors in the show are the usual suspects viz. Ram Kapoor, Vijay Raaz, Ranveer Shourie, Rasika Duggal Apart from them it is a just list in descending order of tolerability. Ishaan Khattar, for one tops this list as he delivers a genuine performance. Namit Das ranks second. The rest I leave to your imagination.

If I may dabble in metaphysics, this series missed a soul.

This show does not merit a review. However, I found its title and the name of one of the protagonists in this show, quite interesting. The title of my review is, in turn, inspired by the aforesaid two names. And since I am writing something here, I would rather, that you watch a scene from Badshah where Amrish Puri meets Shahrukh Khan for the first time in a club. Thank Yo.

I truly have underestimated the acumen of the producers of this franchise. While reviewing Baaghi-2, I could not have imagined that that was only the tip of the iceberg, speaking proverbially.

There is no point in saying anything about how ridiculous the story is or how bad the acting. It would be a very tedious exercise.

However, I would conclude this short "review" by saying that if indeed the "bad" guys of the world were as incompetent and stupid as they are in this movie, the world would be a safer place. Provided the "good" guys are not as idiotic as they are in the film.

One thing that is good about the show, are the great performances by both Neena and Masaba Gupta. At the same time the rest of the case, doesn't do half bad a job.

The writing while not out of this world, does deliver some serious punches in a few episodes and weaves funny moments. The same goes for dialogues.

At times, it seems, the story is hell bent upon running itself down, but somehow manages to evade collision and chugs along.

The season only had six episodes. The plot , one feels could have allowed a longer season . But then again, the directors managed to keep up the tempo through the season, no matter how short it was. This is a good thing.

I would definitely watch the second season, if one is in the making.

It is incredible that this movie was even made. The producers of the film should be have taken pity on the people under lockdown and not released it.

The story is terrible, screenplay horrendous and the acting is downright poor. Most of the dialogue in the film can be simply defined as "ghisa pita".

Whenever the plot, rises ever so slightly , to sprout some interest, the filmmaker destroys that potential without delay.

The viewer is confused about the tone of the film. Is it supposed to be dark? Serious? Parody? Are the actors acting the way they are, because they have been instructed to sabotage the film ?

The music is forgettable. Sets, art and production designers have painted a migraine on screen. The Make up is farcical.

The list is endless. I can't go on. But I think you catch the drift.

To those whose curiosity is still not satiated, can of course watch the movie. It will offer a lot of moments when you would wonder why you are watching it.

Under ordinary circumstances , I would never have watched this film, given that it is an official remake of a film that I would not have watched even in extra-ordinary circumstances. But the unfortunate and untimely demise of Mr. Rajput played some part in impelling me to watch the movie.

I solemnly affirm that I tried my best to watch the movie in its entirety ,but failed multiple times,because, the movie, is admittedly quite poorly made. There is no grip in the plot, the dialogues are cheesy or stale,the music and background score is unimaginative and imitative.

The movie of rife with jejune sequences,that neither fit in the story nor the cultural setting,where the director decides to insert them. On the whole, one can attribute the lacklustre effort to the director as also the basic story line.

I tried my best to not let sentimentality get the better of judgment ,and consequently, I concluded that barring the basic theme of the story, Dil Bechara is a nondescript affair that can be easily avoided.

Well, there is nothing much to say. And all there was to say has been explicitly described in my review of the first season of this show that I was able to watch somehow.

However, even the lockdown couldn't compel me to watch more than a few episodes of the second season. It is terrible much like the first one. If you are reading this and haven't yet wasted your monthly data on the show, I implore you to keep things that way.

If there another season coming ( I hope it does not) before it does, I hope the scientists develop a vaccine against this pretentious gigantic stupidity.

Containing a heavy dose of symbolism, Bacurau, provides a gripping plot that has enough going for it, in its own right.

The setting is intense and enigmatic as the director reveals his cards patiently and with good timing.

However, a valid objection that may be raised against the movie is that it may be too stretched or that the story is not very original.

The acting is nothing great, since the movie is no conventional fare. The script demands theatricality. The character development is not impressive though. A lot more could have been done but wasn't.

The movie, however, scores highly on its action scenes and sequences.

All in all, the movie the US just fine. Not spectacular not disappointing. It has good dark humor, an engaging story and decent material.

It is not possible to watch this film for its entire run time. At least in one go. However, if you are watching it on an online streaming platform, you are in luck, for the movie can be fast forwarded. I watched the 2 hr and 10 minutes worth of film in around 30 minutes and I am grateful to the director for making a movie that can be watched like this without missing anything indispensable to connecting the dots.

There are some funny moments in the films. I must admit and all said and done one does get some information on India's the mars mission in an entertaining way.

But there is too much tomfoolery going around. Nothing is left to imagination as each reference has to be accompanied by a visual. As expected the movie is replete with nationalistic messaging and religious references too. True to the times , there is a very strong emphasis on highlighting the power of women.

The set and art design are unmistakable copies of those in Hollywood movies. Even the logos of the Indian Space organisation is modeled as such.

The special effects range from average to below to terrible.

I did not watch any song so cannot comment on the quality of the music.

As far the cast is concerned there is nothing great about heir performances. They all do a passable job that is in line with the overall quality of the movie.

The movie can be avoided and if you choose not to watch it on fast forward. However, to be sure, the Indian Mars mission is something worth reading about for unlike this movie, it was a spectacular achievement.

Season one, with a compelling narrative and well-paced plot mixes humour and realism effectively yet unconventionally. Technical production value is good which is a great relief.

Interestingly, despite being a female driven series the creators succeed in creating a gender agnostic environment. KE breaks important ground for it is divorced from mindless gender chirality by refusing to exalt one gender over another.

The series is replete with unrelenting display of violence accompanied by shocking imagery delivered with nonchalance. The concept of love and romance is dealt with in a chillingly surreal fashion that is quite refreshing in a way.

That the show, like many others depicting violence, has been accorded a 15+ rating, only goes to show that acceptance of brutality and violence as essential ingredients of entertainment.

The story focuses on the lives of two women, one of them being the eponymous Eve. However, it is pretty evident that the choice of the name Eve is intentional and the story itself is vaguely allegorical.

Jodie Comer is the pick of the actors with Kim Bodnia complimenting her ably. They feature in the more entertaining scenes from the show being extremely versatile within the breadth of their characters. Fiona Shaw also delivers a professional performance, that sits well with her on careen character.

Notwithstanding the high points, Killing Eve is a complicated show to describe as it is to watch. Despite many things going for it, one feels there still is something lacking. The cogs run well but the wheel does not turn completely. Though the momentum and intensity served at the beginning starts fizzling out towards the end of first season, it is fairly captivating.

However, season two, conspicuously moribund and incoherent, drains down rapidly, leaving no mark on the scene. There are sporadic moments that may tickle or shock or hold your attention, but they are few and far between.

Moreover, there are multiple instances when the plot unthreads rather abruptly and is riddled with endless undulations. It is very hard to zone out when the plot becomes circular and self-indulgent. It appears that the creators are trying too hard to give a simple story line a coat of contrived complexity. Minimalism is supplanted with a clutter of open ended narration. A lot of things, that seem to be central to the plot are abandoned unceremoniously. This neither helps the story nor the narration.

To make matters worse, especially in season two, Sandra Oh's acting becomes irksome and so does her character. Her performance is lackluster and she single handedly dilutes whatever chemistry the creators sought to create between her and Jodie. The creators seem to rely a lot on unpredictability to provide shock value to the show. However even this unpredictability is used so frequently thereby making the show extremely predictable.

The show does not have any depth and treats every element superficially. It is a shame, for it could have done much better. The only discernible reason for the show winning numerous awards is rooted in gender politics than creative brilliance.

I will desist from intellectualizing this review by pretending to talk about socio-political aspects of this movie. Nor shall I try to draw comparisons between the film and other Bat-verse features.

The long and short of it is that Joker is a well made movie, that owes much to a fine display of acting by Phoenix who plays the eponymous Joker. To be sure, one can catch a glimpse of his potential in Gladiator where he played a similar unbalanced character.

Even if one disregards the macro-mythology around the Joker and his deeds, the film comes across as a good stand alone venture.

There are times when one can accuse Pheonix of over doing it, but then psychosis is never easy to portray. And there is nothing definitive about it.

The movie gets pretty violent, which is something in vogue these days. However, it is the passive exhibition of anger and frustration that makes the film menacingly tense.

This movie is definitely worth a watch.

High Noon is not a typical western fare. The protagonist is not a hand gun virtuoso who can shoot down an army of opponents. He is a simple duty conscious sheriff who has no illusions about what he can or cannot do. His strong resolve is pitted against the vulnerable situation he finds himself in, where he must face four criminals looking for revenge. This he must do without any back up or even moral support. Unlike, many films of the genre, High Noon, presents the situation, as it is. Four men are more than enough to make any reasonable man scared and our Sherriff here is a reasonable man. Almost the entire run time of the film is devoted to a very interesting buildup where the director succeeds in conveying his messages without melodrama. There is a saloon, there is a church, there is a barber and a drunk cowboy. But there are also exceptionally drawn characters that provide credible rationales for being what they are in the frontier. Cooper's growing dejection and revulsion towards the townsfolk is finely sketched. The shoot-out sequence that runs for only 11 minutes or so towards the end, is fairly balanced and devoid of stylized violence that we are so accustomed to see in westerns. With many things going for it, the movie is a must watch, for exhibiting reserve in this genre.

John Wick Chapter 3 is not a movie but a collection of fantastically choreographed action scenes. Right from the word go, one witnesses innovative sequences that firmly place the movie at the helm of the action movie genre in the last few years.

There is nothing much to talk about when it comes to the story. But then there wasn't much Story to begin with. The director doesn't try to add depth to the plot.

In fact the fictional setting is made even more incredulou. Contrary to what I would have normally presumed, this exaggeration makes the movie more entertaining.

There are some scenes that may appear repetitive or reminiscent of some classic duels from the 70s, but Keanu Reeves pulls off another spicy entertainer with this one.

Like its predecessors, Chapter 3 doesn't burden your mind and is a good movie to watch.

There is no reason why I should be writing this review. I will not add any value whatsoever. However, I am writing in to express my shock , when I found that people have indeed rated this movie 10.

Article 15 touches on a very important theme, but it is not a well made movie. The story and character development lack depth and despite some scenes that try to show the brutal reality of cast based discrimination with exceptionally blunt honesty, the whole effort falls far below the hypothetical benchmark.

To begin with, the story and screenplay themselves are shallow. Elements are introduced abruptly and are mistreated by some ordinary writing and flaccid dialogue. The plot appears to have been underdeveloped but tries to pass off as wholesome through visual props.

Moving on, the character development is next to non-existent. The director does try, he cannot be wronged for that. But sadly he fails. The audience is left pondering over the antecedents of each character. Each character, at the end, turns out to be a stereotype, some ironically defined only by their cast. The director thus falls prey to the same disease that he intends to eradicate. Replacing individuals by communities.

The actors have not a bad job though. Although one has now become accustomed to seeing some supporting actors reprising similar rolls and with a similar lingo. But the weak screenplay really corrodes the performances. " Get the f-word out of here!!! " is the lead character's punch line in a couple of scenes , showing the poor literary skills of the writer.

There is no doubt the film could have been produced better but to do that the directorial and writing team would have had to change.

Patchwork is one word that comes to my mind when I try to describe this movie. There is, undoubtedly , a strong storyline that supports the sub plots , but one can clearly identify the seams.

Just as the film tries to depict an era of transition in Hollywod, one can not miss a similar transition in Tarantino's directorial ventures. This transition was partially visible in Inglourious Basterds (2009) and pretty evident in Django Unchained ( 2012). The Hateful Eight (2015) could be called an exception, for despite the lukewarm reception it got from some quarters, it definitely is reminiscent of old school Tarantino. However , with Once Upon...Hollywood (OUH for short) Tarantino seems to have marched up to the precipice.

There is abundant absurdism in the movie that is quite welcome. Tarantino also makes good use of most of his actors but they are undone at times by the patchy plots.

It seems the whole film is grappling with irreconcilable elements, although each element in itself is fairly entertaining.

The movie chugs along at a languid pace in the first half. The director succeeds in presenting an engaging picture of Hollywood and also treats the story itself respectably.

The second half of the movie is only marginally quicker in progression than the first. But it is also the half where the movie falters a bit. On the one hand the turn of the plot is well arched and like any good story has a lot of implicit stimuli. On the other hand, the trajectory seems a bit wayward. The action sequences that appear are shot well and are gruesome ( as expected) and do balance the wheel.

But there is always something that is missing in the narrative- is it the bite in dialogue? the sharpness in shifting between plots? Character development? Or the absence of substance in some scenes?

May be it is just a phase that marks the completion of transition in Tarantino's film making.

Whatever may be the case, the movie is a decent effort with some fairly entertaining scenes. I wanted to give it 7.8 . Alas would have to give the movie an unfair 7.