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Article 370 (2024)
A Movie Quite Well Done
The movie will serve as a reminder for some and as a Handy book for others as to how an article was used to keep India's territory separate via nefarious shenanigans by corrupt politicians.
It was very heartening to see the movie being carried by two capable female leads. A good choice to cast Mr Govil as the Prime Minister. The part + performance etched out for the Home Minister left a bit more to be desired though. Mr Raj Zutshi finally has a role in recent times that can be referred to. TV stalwarts showed their mettle as well.
Performance wise the movie should stand the test of times, however certain part are not devoid of slack but they are few, and are far apart. There was a GREAT opportunity to have two halves of the movie being distinct as action thriller and political thriller, but both halves had good bit of slack. More hand to hand combat, on foot chase sequences, better physical transformation of Yami etc would have cemented the first place. Second half having a strong Home Minister picturisation would have given the impetus for the highly charged scenes. The movie still being re-watch worthy means it has clocked a very coveted milestone.
Vikram Vedha (2022)
Doesn't Holds a Candle To The Original. Masala Disappointment
Pick a hit movie, try remodel it with local sensibilities but fail.. cuz copywood, add what you can in oodles - Loud music and Vfx, in-house cheerleaders will post rave reviews... & Then leave it on the fanbois to take your movie through the critical week.
For good measures, throw in the tag line 'Don't Compare With The Original'
The immaturity mentioned leaves no doubts why the actors couldn't bring in the required nuances. The original too was a masala entertainer brought alive due to the chemistry between Madhavan & Setupaty. But when you bring in average to less than average actors in a REMAKE, with other parameters falling apart... You will, and have, fallen flat.
The Kashmir Files (2022)
Raliv, Galiv, ya Chaliv - The Horror That Was Kept Away From Mainstream
Anybody who has read up on the SEVEN Exoduses and Genocides of the Kashmiri Pandits would be able to recognize the scenes shown in the movie.
The movie attempts to show the horrendous plight of the Pandits (and the others who were persecuted) of their past and present. To depict the amount and types of atrocities that the victims had to go through is not possible due to the censoring and the restrictions a feature film's length poses. But despite these major stumbling blocks, the amount of information and hints strewn across the movie about the enormity of the situation is remarkable.
The performances by Mr Anupam Kher and Mr Darshan Kumar stood out. Ms Joshi played her role with aplomb and deserves fair share of the accolades. But Bhasha Sumbli, who played Sharda Pandit, emerged innocuously as a star. The direction was well done though the story appeared to have instances of slack and that of being rushed on a few occasions. Possibly, the censorship cuts played a role here but the movie is still supremely impactful.
The mainstream channels, OTT, and ofc 'bollywood' not only distanced itself but also actively worked against this project. All this amply shows how and why depicting the truth about one of the most heinous pogrom in the history of mankind had not been attempted till now. Salute to the brave Mr Agnihotri. Hopeful that the 'Director's cut' arrives in DVD+BD+Digital options.
This movie deserves the support not just in the present, but the future as well because the rivals of true cinema will not let this slide by just like that.
Special Ops 1.5: The Himmat Story (2021)
'Bas... Motivation Mil Gaya' Seriously?!??
Apart from KK Menon and Vinay Pathak, this mini series became unbearable. I forced myself to watch this only due to lack of half a decent Hindi content. This further confirmed the dearth of watchable stuff.
There were SO many technical blunders for an espionage based series, it was as if they didn't bother hiring a consultant.
(Spoilers ahead)
Maninder getting into beast fighting mode after being hung upside down for a week, landing a complete operation cleanup and walking away with a ramp worthy strut. Just like how he did after his first assignment.
Too many times these 'trained' agents turned their backs on targets who were pinned down or felt no need to keep an eye out for leftovers. Hostages/Prisoners being transported untied?!? Mole recruitment being done within the earshot of the medical attendent? Family calls being taken while your partner is out in the field??
Gun toting fellow casually blinking eyes as if being fully assured that the script won't allow for any turning of the tables. And when the table indeed was turned by Himmat kaka on Maninder model, it was with such composure that would have befitted a sloth. The 'motivation mil gaya' guy, who went super Jason Bourne back in the day, couldn't take a worthy shot at the fleeing Desi Bond.
Vijay taking the bullets after the last supp... Err smile, was the epitome of following the script to the T. The tear jerking scene with revelation of the lady love being the traitor seemed like the homage to slack riddled, half baked attempts from the 60s and 70s. Battle hardened agent welling up with tears as well... Just can't shed the urge to slip in that Desi melodrama. Got to cater to the generation damaged by kekta kapoor and KJo too.
The Chadda and Bannerjee duo were reduced to cardboard characters, and instead of comic relief all there was to see were absolute caricatures. Started to feel sorry for those actors after a point.
As if all this was not enough, the much apparent (and lazy) choreographed fight sequence of 'all smiles for the camera' Farooq making it to the final cut, followed by the ridiculously late dawning that something was amiss on the phone call... We all felt the pinch of the script along with the usually sharp Mr Himmat Singh.
There were so many other scenes as well (just how was Himmat moving his badly sprained hand so dextrously that was bandaged a few hrs back... while using/holding a fork at that??) , but I would spare myself the agony of recalling everything there was to endure.
The director has such slack in his other projects consistently as well. Just can't deliver a tightly woven product. Pity.
Malik (2021)
Good acting. The movie itself is not outstanding
The performance by lead actors is really good. The camerawork deserves praise as well. The plot had potential, but the final product failed to reach the crescendo it had the potential for. Various plot lines criss cross and teases the audience with a hurrah towards the end. It doesn't touch the level the build up promised. The line about temples getting special treatment was ridiculous and looked inserted.
Radhe (2021)
Serial offender in movies as well
His ploy to reconstruct his image via movies has finally run out of steam. A serial offender in real life, hoodwinking the people via remakes of over the top movies had to fall down with a flop. And this one is a grand daddy of flops. High time that people noticed what he has been upto, and same goes for the sham organization that goes by the name (ironically too) 'being human'
Tom and Jerry (2021)
Farce
The movie failed to take off the way it was expected. The theme, the setting, and the content... Nothing appealed in the manner it was expected.
Tandav (2021)
There is a clear agenda and a plan to target beliefs.
Be it the Padma Shri, or be it the comments about country's legacy, there is no doubt that the lead actor has had clear designs to keep the uncertainty and confusion about the country where he lives, got respect, fame, and earns his livelihood. This series gets onto the same bandwagon. This is not just a waste of time, effort and money, it is also an another addition in the list of so called 'entertainment material' to launch a tirade against a set of people. The ability and means to allow people to launch a project carrying such bias and hatred needs to be looked into.
RangiTaranga (2015)
Glaring shortcomings, but Kudos to the one man effort.
Saw this movie after hunting for ages the combo of Original language and subtitles. Had to refuse the Sunnxt version as it was a truncated version. Found a proper one with some effort. Now for the review.
The movie has been drafted nicely, but the execution shows the immaturity and shortcomings. Lack of character development, immaturely inserted sound bits, unnecessary humour, and the lack in creating the stage that was required for marquee scenes. Unnatural human reactions are scattered throughout, making the scenes cringe-worthy. There is predictability in there as well as the villain was apparent quite early into the film.
The project could have been better, but the slack in the making made the movie dip in quality. But, as I read about the trivia and other details, it was understandable that this was an out and out Mr Bhandari's project and I think he will only get better with time. From what is mentioned about his contributions, for a single person to chip in with this much the chances of quality taking a hit increases. I wish him all the best and will be keeping an eye out for his future projects. He has shown a penchant to be taking the onus and that must be lauded. This is no mean feat for a single person.
Laxmii (2020)
Rotten product, just like the factory it came out from.
What exactly were they thinking while dishing out this drivel? The so called bollywood has stopped being original anything, and even while copying Kanchana, they flopped so bad. The other unnecessary 'twist' they did has been widely criticised and they were rightly panned for it. I sure hope this jolts them properly and they stop taking unfair advantage and move away from wasting people's time and money.
Special OPS (2020)
Slack Ops: Slack all over and an awful + bizarre ending
Wanted to enjoy this and thought this ll be something with the finesse of the movie 'Sehar', but KK Menon's acting is the only thing that I will reminisce about. Too many scenes where the immaturity and lack of finesse stuck out like sore thumbs. The budget for this seemed to be lavish, but overall execution left much to be desired. Fight scenes too lacked the zing, with fight choreography again being in the same 'slacky' class as that of overall direction. Maybe the creators know it well that pelt any okay/mediocre level stuff and a good chunk of people will turn cheerleaders anyhow. Watched only to not be missing out on discussions during meet ups with friends and family.
Rebecca (1940)
Hitchcock seemed a bit off color here. Too much effort to create his brand of movies with varied results.
I guess it is the sorts which either takes you on a ride and you go along with it, or it just doesn't works for you. Took many an efforts to finish this one off.. such was the loss of momentum and failure of creation of Hitchcockian allure for me.
Loads of laboured scenes, too much of make believe stuff, and general lack of effort with script/dialogues. Just didn't come along as other movies by the same director. Citizen Kane was an abs master piece, this one kept fizzling out every other scene or so.
Sacred Games (2018)
Classy stuff. A big tight slap to the Indian Censor Board.
The adaptation by Mr Grover has been fantastic. The combo of Kashyap And Mr Motwane working in tandem with the direction has yielded some fabulous results. Credit is due for the casting dept as well. Aniruddh Mehta has brilliantly done the artwork.
Siddiqui holds his sway and it was expected. The work of Ms Apte and esp Mr Joshi get a special mention here. How crucial a capable director is to a project, that has been amply depicted here. The audience get to see (after Being Cyrus and Omkara), a good performance by Saif. I would have preferred more 'normal' moments to either build the scenes, or for allowing the audience to gradually slide into the tight settings of this show. The storyline has been adapted to modern times than the original novel's for better relevance and the effect shows.
Indian audience has been lapping up international shows since quite sometime and the sanskaari/aadarshvaadi CBFC has failed to keep up with times. Infact, During its formative years, India had THE most liberal setup. For a country that had prolly the most liberal set up, strangulating the content AND the makers has only been damaging. I also hope that the content makers do not go overboard with the 'freedom' and bring up content which can work nicely even if the words/scenes have to be 'sanitized'. That ll help broadcasting esp on the reg cable network. Hopefully all this will expedite the much delayed maturing up of the approach.
Coming back to the series: The direction has been tight and actors have done a real good job here. Season 1 has covered around 1/3 of the novel, hence looking forward to the second (and maybe even a third season).
Breathe (2018)
Predictable, average direction, carries simple and basic flaws.
I was pretty excited to see Amazon going in with Desi content. Finally the male audience would return to the television, and there ll be an option to escape from the drivel of multiple zoom fests, screaming contests, background cacophony laden sorry excuses of series that we have been tortured with on the Indian tv in the past decade, or so I thought. Hopes evaporated within 2 episodes of Breathe.
Poor direction and lousy editing doesn't helps the series get off the ground. Not only is the series utterly formulaic (and fails at that as well), it has been executed poorly while leaving in some basic mistakes. The lingering disappointments came to their elements in the form of the series finale. Episode 8 was not only utterly predictable, but it was done even more poorly. The last few lines and acts were cringe worthy, reminding one of the low budget movies. There seemed to be no intent to compete with the international standards and instead, the makers conveniently took the easy way out by serving an under-cooked dish while banking on a glossy platter to bail them out. I expected better from an Amazon original series.
Feluda: Sheyal Debota Rahasya (2017)
Stylish direction.. But, unfortunately, not a whole lot of substance.
First things first, it is a very good effort. The acting is top notch, and the treatment meted out vis-à-vis the camera angles, cinematography, pacing etc, all these have been dealt with quite deftly. To have carried it out consistently for all four segments was quite good to see. Parambrata Chatterjee is a fairly good actor and looked like a fitting choice as Feluda 2017.
Sadly, the way the whole story was made to unfold, it was all too predictable. There were some very obvious references and hints thrown in, which made the guessing a straightforward task as to who was the actual perpetrator. The plain old trick of trying to trick the viewer and throw him offtrack is simply not going to work in today's times. Audience have matured, and over the course of history, there have been many projects where viewers have been hoodwinked. It is tough to be easily fooled twice.
Then there is also the bar to match/scale which has been upped by the new Sherlock Holmes. Thankfully, the modern touch has been imparted here, but if the show is to hit the sweet spot.. even the smaller details need to be executed properly still (that Anubis statue was very sub par). I hope the director will add more layers to the plot and will do justice to overall efforts. Hoping that this thing continues for few more seasons. Badly need quality content on TV.
The Ghazi Attack (2017)
Had potential, but as usual.. Poor execution.
The buzz around the movie was unmistakable. The attempt was first of its kind, and for once, everybody expected a tightly woven tale with worthy gfx in tow. But if one thought that even after a rich history and experience of producing movies since decades + advancements in affordable gfx will finally deliver a tout all time hit, those people need to think again.
The movie starts off nicely. First the baritone of Mr Bachchan, and subsequently the scene involving (Late) Om Puri and Nasser looked like the harbingers of a successful venture. The movie looked en route to a successful journey from the word go. Even after a few minutes had lapsed, one could sense that this is not going let up, as there was very less margin to do so. It had a dash of history, backing of good actors, and tech advancements on its side. But things started to nose dive soon.
While KK Menon looked set to deliver a powerful performance, and ditto for Mr Kulkarni as well, the talent available at hand was not utilized fully. Tapsee Pannu's role could have been managed via an anecdote. The direction just was not able to pull off a nerve wracking thriller expected out of it. Add to it the penchant to include queasy melodrama, and reluctance to learn from existing epic projects, all these became the undoing of a potential hit. There were moments where the direction could have been tighter, and some slick editing would have at least saved the day, but it seemed as if the movie tried hard to include the forced antics. The graphics are good, but do not hold a candle to the ones people are now accustomed to. The maker(s) must have been counting on the emotional + 'its one of a kind' sentiment to see the movie pull itself over the line.
Rana Daggubati does well in bit n pieces, but lacked the aura expected from a defense personnel. Making matters worse, the predictable nature of some of the key scenes stuck out like a sore thumb. They just had to bring in some clichéd stuff and forced suspense.
The audience is now much more mature, and the movie makers have repeatedly failed to acknowledge this fact. The dangerous trend of declaring a movie 'hit' based on box office collection and paid reviews may give such films a fake certificate of success, but unfortunately for the team, such movies will not morph quality-wise in the future and will be panned even more.
I expected a natural progression from the days of 'Lakshya', which was a brilliant movie, but was left sorely disappointed. The Ghazi Attack goes down not mainly due to the weight of a debutante director, but due to the act of pandering to the lowest common denominator.
The Big Bang Theory: The Scavenger Vortex (2013)
Lacked finesse
Although i am giving it an 8 on 10.. it is because i cannot assign something like 7.5 or something similar. Don't get me wrong, it had many moments.. But was lacking the finesse which regular watchers of BBT have witnessed in Season 1/2/3.
The pairing was done pretty well and really, this is THE way to bring out the relationships forward on the BBT show. Of late it had been a drag really with less science/comic book quirkiness.
*** SPOILER ALERT *** Lacking: The scene where Raj brings out his 'showmanship', it looked a bit labored. Sure the scene where he coughed on the ninja bomb smoke was hilarious and i appreciate that the writers are getting back to what BBT was, but they are still far from it. But coming back, Howard's reaction was out of place. Penny/Kaley hasn't been very good at expressions, and he reaction needed fine tuning. The part where Bernadette makes up the story could have been more well written, preserving the old flavor of BBT from first 3 seasons.
These guys could have written in the script that the team entering the comic bookshop MUST purchase something from Stewart else entering is forbidden.. Giving Stewart a chance to fleece some good money (so he can have meat this week.. ) Maybe A fight could have been shown between intra/inter team members, with people fighting for articles. The writers did missed few tricks like these, and it's not a lone incident of late.
I can go on and on, but there could have been fine tuning attempt at various places. Good ep, but second viewing makes those glaring errors pop out in 3D.
Jung on zo (1993)
Wish Jackie Did more such movies like this one.
Being a fan of Chan's work for about 20 yrs now, i think i have FINALLY got hold of a movie which i can say is my favourite from his line of work. Not that he hasn't impressed with his work earlier, this one kinda stands out. No trademark slapstick/light motif spread all over the movie. The direction is very good for most part and so is Jackie Chan. The action is very much there, and in just the right quantity and 'type' that should have been there. People might say this is offbeat, but according to my humble opinion.. this is JUST THE KIND Jackie really should have attempted majorly. He is def not a bad actor, and such movies would have given him enough chance to exhibit his talent the audiences haven't seen enough of.
Recently Chan has been saying that he would like to concentrate on non action films, films which have more 'acting' in it than action alone.. I think movies like Crime Story would have made him even more popular! It's a shame that nobody recommended/mentioned about this one and it took me so long to reach out to this one, but i am glad i have finally watched it. Def worth treasuring!
The Americans (2013)
Solid start to the series. Something subtle, Something powerful
I picked this up quite accidentally.. And i had absolutely no idea about the cast and anything else beside the tagline here on IMDb.
How a spy's life can get twisted in his/her line of work has been delivered in a no non sense manner right from the first episode. How the spy starts to believe in the lie of their fake identities and subsequent emotions while carrying out their mission, leading to conflict in every aspect of their daily lives has been depicted very effectively.
The pilot episode built itself quite nicely and never allowed the grip to loosen up. The actors gave a powerful performance and created an ambiance of palpable tension/anxiety/thrill and looked very professional while going about it. Cinematography seems to be very apt and complimenting as well. Must add.. The makeup artist/professionals need to be commended here. Solid start to the series.
As i am not going to supply any spoilers, i will not be indulging too much here, but this series seems to be having the potential to carry itself in a subtle fashion, or it might morph into something very tense and power packed. Should keep the audience interested.
Brave (2012)
A Fine (Brave if u would pls) Way to Ruin yer Monnie !
Okay, i been waiting a long time to see this movie. Reasons: 1) I missed this on the theater, 2) A female protagonist.
So finally i got the chance to see it at home. Corn rings and soda ready for the movie and it just started to go downhill from maybe 10 mins into the movie?
The girl likes to shoot.. and i thought it ll be something about finding a suitable prince or story about charming or an uncouth girl who is courageous etc etc. I was wayy off the mark. Nothing really gelled within the movie. Events were badly stitched.. maybe the writer/director was heavily confused. You make mistakes like going wrong with the screenplay.. but you Don't GET AMNESIA.
I wanted to dwell on the mistakes committed here, but that would mean i ll have to flag this off as a spoiler containing note.. which i don't want to, as this should serve as a 'Caveat emptor' to the folks who plan on watching it. I would rather watch tangled twice (which i disliked as well)
Serbuan maut (2011)
One time watch. (Spoilers ONLY AFTER where mentioned)
*** Spoilers ONLY AFTER where mentioned ***
Apart from 4-5 blunders, Decent job. One time watch.
Saw the rating and assumed it ll be a good movie, top of the line stuff.. but it was not the sorts. Main actor does commits 4-5 huge blunders in general and that was the definite dampener.
Spoilers: He ditches the gun. Never bothers to pick the baton. Doesn't lets his partner do it either. And all this while he was trying to protect 2 bodies in the enemy's den. How much more stupid can you be? Start was brilliant, but the tempo just waned out as it progressed.
Apart from the non stop action, the general acting is nothing to write about. All this much done and to be faltering on obvious steps is just lame from the movie makers. /Spoilers
Sherlock: A Study in Pink (2010)
Lost itself somewhere
I was just thinking, that if this wasn't the first ep of the series.. would have gone down as pretty mediocre.
The introduction for Dr Watson was meant to start with a bang, literally. The deductions were fairly dwindling to being silly and did breached the coveted line a few times. Then came the revealing of the perpetrator and it actually went spiraling down.. a virtual tailspin. Sorry writers, sorry directors.. not been faithful.
The treatment of the characters and their development seems to be on the right course though.
Hoping to see better episodes later on.
The Big Bang Theory (2007)
Show needs a reboot. Bring back the BBT of Season 1,2,3.
Saw S5E12 a while back, so take that as my timestamp.
The show is going down. It used to be an 'Intelligent fun' earlier, but now it seems like its more of a glorified FRIENDS.
I had read that they hired a science adviser for the show and the info and really witty jokes based on scientific facts used to shine more than the characters. Now they don't want to bring the stuff back. More like happy to keep milking the cash cow. Seems like they have fired that adviser (no offense if u still are working Mr Adviser, maybe writers just forgot the basic plot here. Ironic)
Anybody who has seen first 3 seasons, esp the first 2.. will understand the gist (third season was the best imo). Introduction and more focus on gfs, homely issues etc are really making it go down the road traveled by so many other shows. Characters other than the main cast should have been used to the point and in short bursts. Like Bernadett n Amy usually seen at work, or for 5 mins worth of outing scene's clip. Twice in a season seen on a proper date to satisfy the relationship mandates. PERIOD.
Maybe a bit like UK shows.., not laced with sugar syrup content the American sitcoms usually are. The Season 1 of BBT is a very good example.
Show needs a REBOOT. Stop the mushy relationships of howard going so fast. Marriage already ?? Next is what.. diapers??
I am aware this show has been renewed for 2 seasons, lets hope they don't keep sitting on their laurels and the show slowly starts to become bland and makes its patrons feel indifferent on Thursday nights.
The Big Bang Theory: The Shiny Trinket Maneuver (2012)
BBT: Doesn't feels anything spl now.
The show is going down. It used to be an 'Intelligent fun' earlier, but now it seems like its more of a glorified FRIENDS.
I had read that they hired a science adviser for the show and the info and witty.. i mean really witty jokes based on scientific facts used to shine more than the people. Seems like they have fired that adviser (no offense if u still are working Mr Adviser, maybe writers just forgot the basic plot here. Ironic)
Anybody who has seen first 3 seasons, esp the first 2.. will understand the gist. introduction and more focus on gfs, homely issues etc are really making this show go down the road traveled by so many other shows. Characters other than the main cast should have been used to the point and in short bursts. Maybe a bit like how UK shows are, not laced with sugar syrup content the American sitcoms usually are. The Season 1 of BBT is a very good example.
I am aware this show has been renewed for 2 seasons, lets hope they don't keep sitting on their laurels and the show slowly starts to become bland and makes its patrons feel indifferent on Thursday nights.
Ra.One (2011)
Spend money on script/actors and not eye candies
The lad can only 'act' in movies where script demands the person makes a fool of himself. SRK's formula has been: 1st half = Silly stupid comedy.. 2nd half = Melodrama + Teary happy ending. Indian audience is no more interested in reliving the 90s and SRK should accept that as well. Till date he has only acted in DDLJ and Chak De India, with Darr being noteworthy.
What is appalling is that he has the cheek to call few reviews silly and mention that they are looking at OTHER ASPECTS of the movie. Somebody should explain him slowly that those 'aspects' basically mean the acting and script writing, both of which are absent in his movies off late.
He should quit trying to be an action hero. He never was and never will be One. (creepy chill on my spine as i write the word ONE.. brr )