Reviews

Despite the partially successful efforts in creating a very complicated and intriguing plot in Season 3, like in Season 1 and 2 - the side effect or the cost for it was that it became highly irrational and idiotic, to the point that it became unbearable.

Common Sense and logic were the sacrifices writers made in Season 3 to add enough(in their or someone else's expert opinion) drama, emotions and complexity to the plot, to ironically result in a very poor quality of drama and emotions. This was remotely experienced in Season 1, so it was or could be ignored; it was rare to occasional in Season 2, to barely get our full attention; but in season 3 this was evident wide and clear!

The result was the extreme frustration and irritation one feels on watching Season 3.

I can still tolerate boredom or shorter season or average plot with regards to the interest and intrigue it generates, but can't tolerate the absence of common sense and total irrationality.

This is one of the best horror and suspense movies I have seen in my whole life and I have seen a lot. But still a rating of just around 6 tends to show that the Dutch people must be very selective and choosy and very hard to please and satisfy.

This movie is highly underrated by the Dutch and I call upon the rest of you to watch this and not spoil this excellent opportunity. You will surely appreciate this and enjoy the experience.

The best thing about this movie is the novelty of the concept. This is not just another good iteration or copy of just another good horror story or movie or concept. You will surely be awestruck at the raw creativity.

This movie is in desperate need of good and more marketing and should approach a much wider audience.

And for anybody who's wondering: I am a humble servant of The Dutch East India Company and a retail/small investor in The Royal Dutch Shell.

I have not read the books and I didn't like the show very much. The show starts excellently and develops and progresses suspensefully and thrillingly but in the end, the viewer is left confused, scratching his/her head.

One must wonder: What's the point after all?! The last episode seem to have forced to show and contain too much in too little space/time. There are atleast 2-3 episodes in that last episode!

Also, the very beginning of the show is too short, unclear, confusing and lacking.

One important and intriguing thing which makes no sense and left me scratching my head was the inaction of Perrin in last episode. The director turned full 'Indian mystic guru' in the last episode. These kind of directors deserve nothing but our full contempt.

This movie could have been made awesome if not for the mediocre to poor direction and writing.

The topic/subject is excellent and very interesting - the reason I watched the movie in the first place.

The actors are good, but when the direction and writing is not good, they can't do much and their true skills and potential is far from realized.

The dialogues at times, are clearly very poorly written.

And it's no wonder - if you look at the Filmography of the Director, he has directed several films till now. If he was really a good one, we would have heard/known atleast one of this previous films.

Bad choices ruined an excellent subject.

That's the problem with this movie too! That's why a 7 instead of an 8 or even 9.

The detective never explains how he reached his conclusions at the end. That's a recurring problem with every movie or TV series based on Agatha Christie's novels, without exception!

What is this ending?!! Is this an ending or KLPD??!!! There is an absolute improper and incomplete closure. Ending is a disaster. You can't just leave a TV Series like that, especially when you don't have launched Season 2 simultaneously!

I have seen the first part. Rated it 6. There are very few movies, which excel over the original/first part, and this is one of them. Hell, I can even recommend someone to watch the first part, just so that he can enjoy this movie! I didn't like the jokes very much in the first part, but I very much appreciate the way this movie develops on the same jokes.

The great expectations you might have developed after watching the trailer, will surely be let down in this film. The film is perfectly mediocre and somewhat unsubtle, but with excellent performance by Akshay Khanna and, Production and Set Designers.

The film might have been made very well with in the hands of a good director. I have not read the book so I can't say very surely but it does seem like that there were huge flaws in adapting Baru's book into a film's screenplay. The result ? The film becomes boring to watch after a while; if the screenplay was written better, this could have been much more interesting and thrilling to watch!

The film is so unsubtle, it's message so obvious - given to the viewers ready and cooked on a plate, the characters so one dimensional - that it starts to seem like a borderline propaganda film.

Anupam Kher's acting also doesn't seem very good, inspiring or exceptional. However, given that he portrays someone who is so difficult to emulate and portray, I won't judge him too harshly.

The positives are that the film will surely be somewhat informative for the general public, to varying degrees, depending upon how much one already knows how the PMO and related politics works, AND also that this is somewhat a first film of it's kind in India.

As a side note - Akshay Khanna's good acting should come as no surprise. The man has not acted bad in even one film, and is the most underrated actor in the industry. I don't know why some good directors of the industry don't work with him.

On a lighter and comic note - For whoever has watched Dhinchak Pooja's song "Daru Daru Daru", I will like to dedicate below song to this film's source 'Sanjay Baru' :-

Baru Baru Baru Oye !

Baru Baru Baru Oye !

Baru Baru Baru Oye !

Jo Na Chhaape Usko Maroon..!

This was a big drawback of the movie. Not all of us are experts on the status of sanitation and toilets in Rural places.

The movie(especially the attitude of the father) didn't make much sense to me because of all of the time I assumed that there is a sewer line obviously, at the place shown in the film. I had no idea how the toilets are constructed in rural areas where there are no sewer lines. If this was somehow(may be subtly or indirectly), communicated to the viewers, many of us would have enjoyed the whole movie a lot more and it would also have been much more meaningful to us!

I would have easily given this film a 8 or 9 stars, but when a very important element of the story is just simply not cared to be shown or explained, then I can't help it, because obviously it greatly frustrates and disappoints a viewer. It would have not, if the film was otherwise not so good, but it does because it's like: 'If only that thing was there, the film would have been near perfect!'

I don't need to tell what part is that, because it's so obvious, and if dealt with properly, it might have added a good thrilling 10-15 minutes to the film(in between, not at the end).

Also, VFX at some places, is not so good. Otherwise, VFX is very good and top class. Obviously, these kind of exceptions in the quality of VFX also feel very frustrating and disappointing.

I have gone to watch this movie with high expectations, built up by the very good reviews on many media outlets and the very enticing plot summary here on IMDb. However, I was disappointed.

The first reason I will like to mention is, the totally deceptive and falsely enticing, plot summary, mentioned on this film's IMDb page:

"He sees what he shouldn't. She sees what he couldn't. So the question is, does he see it or not?"

The movie is unlike from whatever idea you might get from above. There is no suspense or doubt regarding his seeing abilities in the entire movie. There are some other hints and ideas you might get from the summary and all of them come out to be false on viewing.

(this plot summary was written well before release, so I suppose it probably was the work of someone from the film making crew)

Second, the movie is a roller-coaster ride, in a bad sense. Let me explain: there are some films with twists and turns, you enjoy and appreciate, while there are others, like this one, in which the twists and turns, seem artificial, enforced and don't make any sense because they don't seem to go anywhere meaningful.

Other major disappointment was the improper and incomplete closure around many plot elements. Also, there could be many interesting things which could have been done with the character of Radhika Apte, but sadly wasn't.

If you go to watch this, without any high expectations, it might prove a good one-time watch.

If you are one of those people who hate English subtitles in a Hindi movie, my sincere suggestion to you is to check before-hand if the subtitles are shown in the show you are going to watch.

I watched this movie, at INOX Bhubaneswar. God knows, who is the culprit behind this idiocy.

Apart from that, the movie is good, atleast from what I was able to make of it, despite the difficulty and frustration in understanding the dialogues, because of the subtitles. The acting of Nawaz is terrific. The insertion of his short-stories, into the film, is also well-done and blends near perfectly.

One thing, which I didn't like and was clearly avoidable, was the fact that the movie is not completely sincere, honest and accurate in it's depiction of Manto's life. For example, Manto started facing court trials in India only, and it did not start in Pakistan. He faced fine in only one of the total of six trials he faced. I am not fully aware of the financial hardships faced by him, but the effect and impact of the fine or the court decision, certainly seemed a bit exaggerated.

When you start seeing this film, you will appreciate some plot elements and develop interest and anticipation. But the sad thing is that many of the very good story/script elements, you see from around start to around mid of the film, were not developed and executed, even satisfactorily, further in the film. This is very disappointing.

One other thing which frustrates a bit, was the fact that many things were left mostly unexplained. The story was not sufficiently clear and there wasn't a proper closure around many elements.

I went to see this film because of the Director, who has directed several good films in the past, but this movie is an exception in that regard. Movie, ultimately, at the end, comes out as very underwhelming. Should be avoided unless you are a die hard fan of the franchise.

Stree is a very novel and unique film. I am not sure if there is another Bollywood or Indian movie, which so clearly belongs to the 'Horror-Comedy' genre, and even if there is, I don't think this genre was ever so creatively and wonderfully exploited, as in this film.

The film has a very good, subtle and unique sense of humor. It's a laughter riot AND it cleverly and subtly delivers many social messages and commentaries.

The plot is satisfactorily complex and keeps you interested. Plus point is that the film is not very long(only 2 hrs. and 10 min.), so there are no moments where you might feel bored or uninterested.

I should reiterate this : This is a very unique and novel film. So, in a way, it's a must watch. Very few, if any, films have ever been made of this kind.

A key(good or bad, depends on how you see it) feature of the film is that it is very open-ended and ambiguous. Many things have been left without a proper explanation.

I don't know what were the reasons for it; whether it was genuine or an attempt for a successful sequel. I personally, wasn't so much bothered by this - may be because I have already experienced this in many Hollywood films so got a bit comfortable with the idea.

Also, I don't know why, but I think that this ambiguity and improper closure, near perfectly fits the film and it's composition. It seems that the film was made for this. Anyways, it doesn't really take much fun away from already what's there.

Thank God, I didn't saw the IMDB rating or the reviews here(which I usually do(atleast the rating)), before going to watch the movie. For if I had, I might have missed this powerful movie with a strong and important message.

I searched for reviews on Google, before watching this. I didn't read any and only scrolled through the headlines on Google Search Result page. I think there seemed to be only one, clearly somewhat negative review and that was from Hindustan Times, which was titled:

"Mulk is a very powerful story told poorly"

While to put it that simply and overall for the whole movie, I think, will be an exaggeration, but I think, that statement somewhat holds true for some bits here and there, because as I have written above in the title, the movie, at times, for a moment here and there, felt a little cheesy and unrealistic.

I don't know what caused this. Was it the attempt to commercialise a very authentic and realistic movie? Was it to make it more clear and nearly spoonfeed, the message, the Director seemed to be wanting to convey to the audience and public at large. Or was it a genuine error, a simple mistake? I don't know.

Mind you, I am in no way criticising the message itself. In the times, we are living in, the message in the movie, is very good, important and crucial, for people to understand. I am just saying, it could have been conveyed in a bit more subtle way, through a little more realistic story-telling.

I am saying this because at times, movie starts seeming more like a borderline Anubhav Sinha's lecture on morality and Hindu-Muslim Relations, and less like a genuine movie/story.

I must say this:

-If you are not too much prejudiced against Muslims/Hindus, and do not belong to the extreme Hindu/Muslim Right, you are definitely gonna enjoy and appreciate this movie. Some bits from Ashutosh Rana will, amazingly and delightfully, make you laugh, even in between the very serious courtroom drama.

-If you do belong to the extreme Right and have somewhat or extreme negative views and/or prejudices about the other community, in general - then you probably may not like this movie, but this movie may change your mind; it will challenge your strongly held views and beliefs and will probably make you think and ask yourself some tough questions. But you need to watch it with an open and receptive mind. This movie was made for people like you, so please go and watch.

Lastly, and this is needless to say, ignore the rating and the negative reviews here. There are people with an agenda, who are vote stuffing, to manipulate the rating by downrating it. My best guess for the culprit - BJP IT Cell. It seems that either they have a loads of free time or they are so scared of the message this movie is trying to deliver.

America is doing wrong by staying and fighting in Afghanistan - REALLY?!!!? This is a well-acted and well implemented movie, but the whole anti-war message it is trying to deliver, spoils the show.

I agree that U.S. decision to invade Iraq, in the first place, was absolutely wrong and immoral and unethical. But, if someone says that US should stop fighting and leave the place, then in my view, that person is literally an idiot!

With respect to Afghanistan(depicted in the movie), nothing is wrong or unethical or immoral. Fighting Bin Laden or Taliban are noble causes, without any doubt or debate, notwithstanding some other minor collateral intentions or causes, on the US side.

I seriously think the director and the writer are idiots, when it comes to common-sense and general knowledge about the world. They should stick to film-making only, instead of trying to lecture on morality and international politics/relations.

This is a film with outstanding writing/screenplay - PERIOD! There are many kinds of films...some are acting centric, some are direction centric and some are visual centric, this is a writing centric film, which means it's screenplay, is outstanding compared to it's other aspects, and comes out as it's primary selling point and attraction.

It's been some time since the era of screenplay centric films in Bollywood began. I think, now it is flourishing.

Humor is good, subtle, novel, and is well written into the script. Some new, refreshing and skilled cast is also a plus point.

I have only one major complaint with the movie and that is it's abrupt ending. The ending is unexpected and surprising in the sense that at that point, it seems that the film will go on for atleast 15-20 minutes more. There is an improper closure, and viewers would have to use their imagination a bit to conclude things; I would have preferred a more proper closure to the investigation. But taking this aspect of the ending out, the ending seems well written with a good touch of irony.

I liked Black Panther in the Civil War and was excited about this movie. I hoped to see some amazing adventure and action by Black Panther in this movie but what I got was a family power struggle for the throne of a kingdom/country.

Many action scenes and a big part of the storyline doesn't even involve the Black Panther with all his powers and abilities. That was a bit disappointing. At the end, I remained thirsty for some Black Panther action involving his powers and abilities.

The movie is good in what it's trying to show but I disliked the acting by the mostly Black cast in this movie. That doesn't mean I don't like Black actors; I have admired many times acting by Black actors/actresses. I don't know. Even Daniel Kaluuya whom I liked and appreciated so much in Get Out, seemed like a novice actor in this movie.

The end credit video song is awesome in my view and it's worth purchasing the whole movie ticket for. I am not talking about just the song but also the picturization and the way it's perfectly fits and harmonizes with the whole movie.

The movie is good with awesome performance by Vineet Kumar Singh(more lead roles should be given to him), Jimmy Shergill and Ravi Kishan.

It has a lots of twists and turns, and is very engaging. But I found the movie a bit below Anurag Kashyap level. I felt a little unsatisfied, as it was an Anurag Kashyap movie, so I had greater expectations.

The lead actress is also very good in her role, and she near perfectly suits the role she is playing. Good job from whomever selected her for the role. She has unique and fine features.

Many times, it disappoints in the twists and turns, as the story goes in a direction which you were not anticipating/expecting, but if you go with the flow, you can't help but appreciate the overall performance of the whole crew.

Seriously?!? There is no better way to demotivate/dispel the prospective audience from watching a movie than to make it in black n white.

Why? Why did the filmmakers have to do it? There seems to be no sane reason for it. It spoils the whole movie completely! The movie seems repulsive and old fashioned.

This movie could have been so good and entertaining, if only....if only, it would have been made in technicolor.