Story:Gautam likes Veronica. Veronica likes him too. Gautam falls for Meera. Now what does Meera do? Three close friends find themselves caught in a vortex of emotions.
Critic's Rating:
Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone, Diana Penty, Randeep Hooda
Direction: Homi Adajania
Genre: Romance
Duration: 2 hours 25 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review: Two's company; is three a crowd? Homi Adajania's romantic comedy Cocktail is a slice-of-life film mounted beautifully and imaginatively on a large canvas with the vibrant colours of London, Cape Town and New Delhi. The film addresses the proverb--two is company; is three a crowd--situation throughout. With some super-light, sweet moments that one has seen in the mid-90s American sitcom Friends; that revolved around a group of friends in Manhattan; Cocktail deals with the fun moments and then the emotional turmoil faced by three Indian friends settled in the UK, whose paths cross inadvertently.
Story: Low-life thief Shiva and top-cop Vikram Rathore are identical. Vikram's killed by foes but his daughter thinks Shiva's her dad - can this Rowdy win respect?
Movie Review: In case I get a spelling wrong, that's because my ears are still ringing with all the seetis and taalis at Rowdy Rathore. The film's an unabashed, gunpowder-hot, sambar-spiced star-vehicle which runs along energetically most of the time because its star - Akshay Kumar, essaying a double role as Rathore and Shiva - is worth it, something that's emphasized often. At one point, a girl asks Shiva, pursuing pretty Paaro (Sinha) from Patna, 'Na tum mein Hrithik ke looks hain, na Shah Rukh ka charm, na Aamir ki cuteness, na Salman ki body - what's so cool about you?' Akshay drawls back, "Lagta hai Khiladi ko bhool gayi aap." Cue for crowd - erupt in rapture.
ROWDY RATHORE OFFICIAL TRAILER (HD)
Multiply that moment by 100 and you have Rowdy Rathore, a peppery pot-boiler brimming over with action, slapstick comedy and romance, dynamite lines and Akshay Kumar - lots of Akshay Kumar, channeling vintage heroes Dharmendra, Vinod Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, adding a dollop of Jeetendra, topping with his trademark flair as he snarls, tongue deeply in-cheek, "Don't angry me!"
A lull in its second half aside, Rowdy's mostly quick-stepping, moving from Mumbai's malls to medieval Bihar where Baapji (Nasser) and his hamming henchmen terrorise Devgarh's townsfolk through pillage, beatings and rape. Till cop Vikram Rathore (Kumar) arrives on the Shramjeevi Express, assaulting local yokels with handy gannas, infusing new meaning to 'sugar-cane'. With terrific overhead shots capturing his exploits, the fearless Rathore even bumps off Baapji's vicious beta Munna, so Baapji won't rest till Vikram is killed.
SEXY SINHA: SONAKSHI SINHA
Despite an injury to his brain (which the doctor says causes 'hammo-rage'), Vikram and his little daughter Chinki reach Mumbai. Here, their paths cross with Shiva who adopts Chinki when Vikram's felled. And goes to Devgarh where he tells Baapji, 'A village can have only one Rowdy.' It's time Baapji - or 'lemon-chus', as Rowdy addresses him - shoved off.
This involves toe-curling violence though. A guy gets stabbed in the mouth, a head's crushed on a rock, swords slash through navels. Against the gore, Shiva's dancing with Paaro provides breezy relief but the music itself is unmemorable. In a Prabhudheva picture, expectedly the dances are eye-catching, some moves like sweet caresses, some sexy little bites. Sonakshi glows as Paaro, a spunky Indian beauty showing flashes of her star-father's confidence when she snarls at the villains, 'O saand ke bhes mein kukur." This Patna girl's stepped out in style with Rowdy. But the same can't be said for those playing Devgarh's dread-struck. Apart from Yashpal Sharma (sincere as a junior cop), the rest are unconvincing, as is the villainous set-up itself, located somewhere oddly between feudal Bihar, accented Andhra and Sholay's bandit lair.
Indeed, Rowdy Rathore pays homage to iconic filmi characters - identical heroes, golden-hearted chors, brave Men in Brown beating evil people to pulp. However, it pays most homage to its own star, Akshay Kumar, who pulls off Shiva with style but Vikram less so, possibly because all that violence overwhelms acting itself. Not that the crowd seemed to mind. As Shiva exhorts a woman raped by Baapji's son to beat him up, the girl next to me cried, "Why doesn't she?" Her neighbour replied, "She will." And she did - much to the crowd's Rowdy delight.
Tip-Off: Fans will love Akshay's mooch-twirling masala-act but be ready for hardcore action too - some pretty gruesome.
Story : A couple of British retirees have their own share of problems to deal with. It's only after they reach a not-so-happening hotel in India that life turns into a roller coaster ride...
Critic's Rating:
Cast: Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson, Hugh Dickson, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith
Direction: John Madden
Genre: Drama
Duration: 2 hours 4 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review : Life begins at 60... at least for a group of seven 'old and beautiful' lot in this British film. Of course, there's a pretty tough ride they've got to first undertake. 1) Evelyn Greenslade (Judi Dench) is stuck with her broadband connection since it's in her late husband's name. 2) Muriel Donnelly ( Maggie Smith) is on the lookout for a cheap hip replacement. But then the doctor, for her, has to be English. 3 & 4) Douglas and Jean Ainslie (Bill Nighy and Penelope Wilton) who have made their unhappy marriage work just for the fear of society now have a financial crisis to deal with. 5) Retired judge Graham Dashwood ( Tom Wilkinson) wants to get back to India in search of his love. 6) Madge Hardcastle (Celia Imrie) is out in search of companionship, while 7) Norman Cousins (Ronald Pickup) is all desperate to find someone for a one-night stand. What next? Destination: India calling. To be precise, it's the Best Exotic Marigold hotel -- a hotel for the old and beautiful -- at Udaipur.
Now just when you think this one is going to be yet another when-Hollywood-meets-India story, director John Madden proves you wrong. It's more about hope (Evelyn at 60 is on the lookout for a BPO job). It's all about the need to keep trying (Muriel not only gives up her wheel chair, but finds a new purpose in life). It's all about diving into India -- a riot of noise and colour (Graham finds true joy in playing galli cricket with the local kids). Needless to say, all this would actually seem been-there-seen-that had it not been for the performances of the seven veterans. So much so, even the subplot of a budding romance, topped with an over-protective mom (Dev Patel-Lillete Dubey) seems unwanted. In fact, you can't really tell who (amongst the seven) is better than the other. And it's not just serious stuff we're talking about. Watch the bonding amidst some heart-felt emotions, dialogues, respective tales, fears... and English wit.
But then, it's the desi wit with its typical cliches -- roads full of camels, elephants; a bumpy crowded bus ride, a photoshop-ed hotel full of pigeons and cockroaches; the untouchable domestic help... that somewhat forces you to ask this: Does this (still) happen in India 2012?
Seven people. Seven stories. Seven problems. Seven different reasons to travel to India... a country, as the movie says, where everything will be alright in the end. And alright it is! Now, that (surely) happens only in India!
Tip off: Only for those who think age (and the pace of a movie) is no bar when it comes to living life all over again... falling in love all over again... and above all bonding with India all over again.
Story: Damyaan, the evil snake of Sonpur, is simply a step away from being over powerful and immortal since he has access to the Book of Magi. What's stopping him? The curse that has him locked inside a palace for ages... a curse that shall be broken should the king of Dholakpur set him free. Now, the king does set him free (by mistake) and then chaos forms the order of the day. Can Chhota Bheem and team stop Damyaan from doing the unwanted? Can Chhota Bheem and his team make Dholakpur one happy place to live happily ever after in?
Critic's Rating:
Cast: Voice by Kaustav Ghosh, Rupa Bhimani
Direction: Rajiv Chilaka
Genre: Animation
Duration: 1 hour 27 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review : Jham, jham, jhambhura! Now we know why our tweeny lot always maange more of Chhota Bheem. After all, our hero can do anything and everything that every Bollywood mainstream hero does. Chhota Bheem can save the girls from being kidnapped. Chhota Bheem can fight a dozen of bad guys at the same time. Chhota Bheem can fight tigers and snakes. And, most importantly, Chhota Bheem knows how to be in sync with the time - he can play (and win) the T20 cricket tournament in town. Not to miss out is his looks: Chhota Bheem is a hit with girls in his kingdom (He looks rather cute), and has a couple of pretty things hitting on him!
Now for the movie. Talk of animation and it's bright and colourful, though not really sharp.
Next, talk of music and there's ample to tap your foot. In fact, the theme track (sung by Shaan) works well. As for the fun, it's all in there to make our under-12s happy. Case in point, Chhota Bheem goes all dishum dishum with Damyaan, Bheem and his team being gifted with magical powers. However, the wait for fun unlimited is a bit too long. And if tween claps is what you are on the lookout for, there's ample scope particularly when our little hero fights one enemy after the other... all in a row: first the giant spider, then the tiger, then the MMA warrior, then the snake guy.... Finally, those into sci-fi stuff can have there share of time travel as well - of course, it's absoluetly desi in every sense of the word.
Sadly it's the voice-over that just does not seem to connect well specially for a face like that of Chhota Bheem. But then you might choose to overlook that considering there is hardly happening entertainment for kids in desi cinema. Right bachcha party?
Story: It does not take long for Edgar Allen Poe's murder mystery tales to turn into reality, courtesy a serial killer. Now, what will it take to stop those gruesome murders?
Critic's Rating:
Cast: John Cusack, Alice Eve, Luke Evans, Brendan Gleeson
Direction: James McTeigue
Genre: Thriller
Duration: 1 hour 50 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review: Those into Edgar Allen Poe shall be left satisfied. The first shot of the movie tells you this one is possibly on the lines of a biography: There have been lots of theories as to how Poe died; The Raven adds a new dimension. Those into his tales of mystery too shall have no reason to complain. The Raven is an amalgamation of a couple of whodunnit tales from the greatest inventor of the detective genre. And those into neither, can treat The Raven as your usual dose of murder, mystery and thrill.
THE RAVEN OFFICIAL TRAILER (HD)
First, it's two women who are murdered in a locked room. Enter detective Emmett Fields ( Luke Evans) who traces it back to Poe's The Murders in the Rue Morgue. Next, a man is discovered sliced into two, just as in Poe's The Pit and the Pendulum. Enter detective Fields... this time with Edgar Allen Poe (John Cusack) himself. Interestingly, it's Poe himself who ends up solving his own murder mysteries. But then you've got to pay the price. In this case, blood, gore and soul-stirring crime, specially when the pendulum cuts the man into two. As for John Cusack, he is bang on as Poe when it comes to the looks. As for Poe's character, it comes rather naturally to the actor.
Back to the murder and thrill. There are tense moments, chases, one puzzle leading to the other. There's also a Victorian setting, a serial-killer, his tricks... and of course, Edgar Allen Poe's macabre tales.
Like other Ram Gopal Varma (RGV) films, Department has an idea - a force to finish the underworld by stepping over the law's boundaries. But like other RGV flicks, this one also blasts itself out of the water, leaving you savouring jarring camerawork, flimsy acting and over-the-top violence. Inspector Mahadev Bhosle (Dutt) creates Mumbai's department to battle, ahem, mafia dons Mohammad Ghori and Sawatiya (Raaz). Bhosle inducts Shivnarayan (Daggubati) and with skulls crashing on walls, children flung out of windows and criminals impaled on rods, they take on the underworld. So far, so gross, but the film pulls along, powered largely by Daggubati whose smokin' machismo holds Department together - but not for long. That's despite Bachchan popping up as don-turned-politico Sarjerao Gaikwad, all silvery hair, dark glasses, manic laughter and a tinkling bell. Bachchan's clearly having fun - but few viewers are.
That's because Department, which should've been a taut, tense encounter between three strong men, is instead ripped to shreds by too many weak actors given puzzlingly large roles. There's a most non-don-like Raaz, living in a shed, sporting an enviably slender waist exposed by mysteriously thin dhotis. His sullen sidekicks DK (Singh) and Naseer (Shalini) make one of the most unattractive screen duos ever. They mouth lines banally, shoot bullets expressionlessly, blow smoke dully into each other's mouths, yet have more screen time than Bachchan even. Others - like Shiv's wife Bharti (Sukhani, pleasant) - have little to do except dodge those bullets and bodies.
Watch Department Movie Trailer (HD)
The violence might even have clicked, considering the tale's twists - but crazy camerawork makes you forget all that. Varma's experimented, placing multiple cameras at different angles, treating you to close-ups of bottles pressed to mouths, lips sucking cigarettes, zooms up Dutt's hairline. The camera even flips upside down, puncturing the tension that should've vibrated between Bachchan and Dutt. One line - "Chamatkaar ko namaskar" - nails it. You stagger out sensing something wasted - Nathalia Kaur's item number's more hideous than hot, the prettiest thing around is a translucent tea-cup, the action is mind-numbing. Losing the plot and three strong stars, Department shoots itself in the foot.
Story:Where love and hate collide, this love story is born. Two people who're raised hating each other, break the unwritten family dictat; and fall in love. These outlaws of love thus start a new war.
Critic's Rating:
Cast: Arjun Kapoor, Parineeti Chopra
Direction: Habib Faisal
Genre: Romance
Duration: 2 hours 30 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review:It's the war of the roses. And it's as (t)horny as it can get. Splattered with bandooks and badmaashi, goondas and gaalis - starts this ajab prem kahani. Firebrands Parma (Arjun Kapoor) and Zoya (Parineeti Chopra) are childhood hate-mates, born into politically warring families who've avowed to hate unto death. So, in the rustic and earthy brown landscape of small-town Almore - where pocket guns are a fashion accessory, and local yokels could kill for anything - diesel or dancing girl Chand (Gauhar Khan), the Queen of 'KwalityBaar' - a love story blossoms between loveable rowdy rascal Parma and feisty, free-spirited Zoya. They growl at each other with the same fierce passion with which they grope each other and get-it-on. Most riveting in this love-hate plot, is the (fore)playful chemistry between the two, with their volatile verbal wars, and sexed-up lovemaking; even between chases and gunshots. Rare indeed to find such a beautifully complementing debut pair onscreen.
ISHAQZAADE OFFICIAL TRAILER (HD)
In an impressive debut, Arjun Kapoor believably plays Parma with dollops of arrogance, energy and unabashed guts; chomping with the same crudity with which he shoots, spits gaalis, pisses on posters, manhandles his girl and makes raw love. He uses his boy-man charm topped with that infectious 'batteesi' effectively, and keeps up the temperatures throughout.
Parineeti Chopra is fabulously effervescent. As the 'mango 'ishmile' flashing Zoya, she's adorable and admirable. She lacks the obvious, larger-than-life mega-screen presence, but wins you over with her 'item'bomb' simplicity.
Gauhar Khan 'reveals' a lot more, of her acting skills that is.
UPCOMING VOLCANO: Parineeti Chopra
Director Habib Faisal takes you into the heart of this small-town story, creating a politically-divided Almore with elan - penning gripping characters (a rigid and arrogant Dadda, a suppressed, dukhiari Amma, two overbearing brothers), but fails to maintain the crescendo in the second half. After highlights like a sensitively shot lovemaking scene on a rusty train berth, a subtly picturized romantic song (Pareshan), and a shocking pre-interval scene, it starts falling apart like a house of cards; ultimately folding into a predictable climax. The flatness of the second half is what takes away from the pace of a launch vehicle that could've been memorable.
'Ishaqzaade' starts with a bang-bang, but ends up firing blanks.
Story: Mei (Catherine Chan) is wanted by all -- the Triads... The Russian mob... The NYC super and corrupt cops. Why? She has the secret code to the safe. Enter Luke Wright (Jason Statham), her protector... and the one who ultimately gets access to the safe.
Critic's Rating:
Direction: Boaz Yakin
Cast: Jason Statham, Catherine Chan, Chris Sarandon, James Hong
Genre: Action
Duration: 1 hour 34 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review : It's a Jason Statham movie where the actor is once again seen paving his way to victory while sorting the good from the bad. So no prizes for guessing what lies in store: gun firing in loads and fist fights in aplenty. Add to that some Statham-ism and there's no looking back. Now, how many actors do we have out there who pick up call girls in NYC, pay them plenty of that dollar, get an entry into a sizzling restaurant and ask them to leave immediately. Or for that matter, how many Medowlands (New Jersey) ex-fighters do we have dressed in an executive suit breaking tracheas of the bad guys. Statham fans, there's enough of the suave in here.
A still from the movie
But then, Jason Statham has competition in Safe. And this competition is a pretty tough one for it comes from the little Catherine Chan. With hardly any dialogues (in English) to herself, Chan actually keeps you asking for more each time she (or Statham) are missing in action. In fact, it's not just her computerised memory that helps her remember all important bank transactions in the Chinese world, it's her ultimate understanding of the big bad biz world (she excels in distinguishing between good business and the bad one) that takes you by surprise. Make sure you catch Catherine's Mei calling the shots - in every way - in the last sequence.
Of course, the two (Statham and Catherine) together make this gang war for the green bills in the bustling narrow bylanes of New York's China Town worth a watch. The action, on the other hand, is crispy and smart. As for the storyline, guess it was always meant to tread on safe ground... nothing that you have never seen before.
Story: The gory climax might make some peoples stomach churn, but then it's essentially a Tamil film, could have some nativity issues as well.
Movie Review: A dubbed version of the 2007 Tamil cult classic, Paruthiveeran, Malligadu is releasing four years later in Telugu but is still makes for a bewildering cinema experience that evokes awe and disgust in equal measure. Awe for the sheer caliber of filmmaking that captures nuggets of rustic village life - dancers in exotic costumes, loudspeaker announcements, cattle with balloons tied to their horns, card players oblivious to the ear-shattering noise around them, eunuchs performing - these opening frames transport you into another realm.
Then there scenes in which you have Malli (Priyamni) vomiting all over the screen and in others where women are repeatedly slapped and smashed against walls and shoved and raped and murdered, all captured in graphic detail. Well, the rustic romance between Malli Babu ( Karthi) and Malli is disarmingly cute.
Malli Babu is village ruffian who spends most of his life going in and out of jail. His life's ambition is to do something so notorious that would get him on TV before landing in the central jail. His only friend is his uncle Sivayya (Saravanan) who is just as jobless and ready for adventure. Malli is his cousin who swears undying love for Malli Babu after he saves her from drowning in the river as a kid. Malli Babu ignores her romantic overtures but eventually falls for her.
Their families however, are sworn enemies and are dead against their marriage. So the lovers elope to live the life of their dreams, but their families are determined to punish them. What ensues is some pretty intense cinema.
Story:In the big bad city of Mumbai, four people are on a 24-hour mission to survive. Some make it, some don't. Caution: If you thought a drive down Mumbai's over-flooded, potholed roads was a nightmarish experience, sample this.
Critic's Rating:
Direction: Rakesh Mehta
Cast: Kay Kay Menon, Ranvir Shorey, Pradhuman Singh, Neha Bhasin, Manu Rishi
Genre: Comedy
Duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review: Salman (Kay Kay Menon), son of a one time underworld biggie ( Jackie Shroff, in a flash of an appearance), is on a mission to nail the murderer of his parents, even before he's started mourning their sudden death.
ACP Chautala (Manu Rishi) is chided by his bully boss and packed off from the capital city to Mumbai's underbelly, to track four Nigerian drug peddlers (referred to as kaale throughout the film). The gold medalist cop, who prides himself on being Haryane-da-sher, cruises his way around Mumbai's gallis with ease, but struggles with Mumbaiyya lingo.
Amol Ganguly (Ranvir Shorey) quits his job as a chef in UK and dashes back to Mumbai to his beloved, only to find out that she's ditched him for an ugly millionaire. Distraught, he seeks comfort in his wannabe rockstar friend, dope-head Ajoy Ghosh (Pradhuman Singh), who walks around in boxers with sazaa-e-maut tattoo on his back, chants 'The Bengali will rock', has 'Mother Chucker' sprawled on his walls, scratches his privates (yuck!) and 'Doogle'-searches ways to commit suicide, for his heart-broken Bong buddy. Chandigarh ki chori, Dolly (Neha Bhasin), a struggling starlet is on a mission to dupe Mumbai's rich men to recover some of her losses (money and dignity). They all converge at the shady Hotel Plaza, amidst bullet showers, purposeless blood-baths, and a climax that leaves an after-taste of stale vada pau.
Ranvir Shorey, as the loser boyfriend looks the part, but only for a few scenes. He loses steam along the way, and boringly finishes the rest. Much-caked-up Menon, tries hard to force intensity, but fails to evoke any emotion. Amidst all this mayhem, Manu Rishi breathes some life and laughs in this movie. Pradhuman Singh as a pseudo rockstar is exaggeratedly stereotyped, driving us to hair-tearing moments. In her debut film, singerNeha Bhasin, looks desperate to make a mark, but has slim chance.
For eons, Mumbai has spurred creativity in filmmakers. Some good, some bad. Some grossly confused. Like this one. Director Rakesh Mehta tells a story which is more cramped with characters than Mumbai's local trains. The dialogues are unmoving and script more disoriented than the city's unbearable traffic. While trying to create a montage of a struggling day in the life of Mumbai, the real story is stuck in some galli of Crawford Market.
Watch it at your own risk, but remember, we warned you. Given a choice, we'd like the real city and a drive on Mumbai's roads - it probably has fewer potholes than this story.
Movie Review: Look carefully - Tezz shows you a London Bollywood hasn't explored before. Forget those chiffon saree-soirees, lush parks and cream teas - Tezz's London showcases illegal Indian migrants trapped between violent ghettoes and furious policemen, wet sewers, oily garages and bomb-strapped garbage bins. This is a gritty city, normally shown as every Indian's vacation paradise - but what happens to those who want to live there, even illegally?
Tezz follows engineer Akash Rana's (Devgn) life unraveling as he and his workmates Megha (Reddy) and Adil (Khan) get hunted by British immigration. Rana suffers the cruelest cut - his marriage to British citizen Nikita (Ranaut) is declared invalid, he's deported, she's jailed for unpaid loans. But it's not over - four years later, Rana returns seeking revenge and the London-Glasgow Express, 500 people on board, finds itself laced with a bomb that'll explode if the train drops under a certain speed.
Sounds familiar? Tezz draws from different vehicle-thrillers, reminding you of Keanu Reeves' Speed one moment, Vinod Khanna's Burning Train another. But it isn't just another machismo-fueled race - instead, Reddy is Tezz's surprise package, pulling off devilish stunts, looking stunning in the short life of a desperate Megha. As Counter-Terrorism Command Chief Arjun Khanna, Kapoor looks good too - and with one glance at a boy with bandaged eyes, he reminds you of the acting power-house he is.
In Tezz, he's pitted against Devgn (the latter can play 'smouldering' in his sleep apparently) and occasionally, Boman Irani as Sanjay Raina, Railway Traffic Controller. In one tense scene, Irani controls a track-switch, trembling almost like a music conductor commanding a symphony. There's a shout-down between Kapoor and him - over far too soon. In fact, you're left wishing Tezz had more dramatic face-offs between its fine actors but instead, the film diverts into several tracks too many.
Mohanlal is poorly used as policeman Nair escorting a criminal via train. As is Ranaut, pretty in her now-familiar 'impending doom' style, but with little to do. Khan looks fresh but has a shaky role - topped with a thrilling chase. Mallika Sherawat performs an item number in the 'Desi Club', asking, "Do you wanna get hot? Do you wanna get wet?" - but after all that promise, dances little and smiles even less. Tezz's London, overrun by Indians, is also populated by Brits speaking hilariously fluent Hindi and despite pumping background music, features few pleasing songs, snatches from just one qawwali, Tere Saaye Mein, standing out. Otherwise, it's gunshots and grim lines, some pacey - "Ye koi naya kameena hai," quips Kapoor of Devgn - some not.
Despite slick action and stunning scenes - bullets ramming underwater into a sunlit stream, a violet flower-bush before a cop-car - Tezz loses speed often. Here's possibly why - director Priyadarshan's oeuvre is putting characters in desperate situations and watching them respond. It works beautifully in comedies - but Tezz needs relentless pushing, not frequent stops pondering over the unfairness of citizenship. You can't run fast carrying heavy baggage - that's why Tezz huffs and puffs a little too much.
Story: Journalist Kavya Krishna loves tycoon Siddharth - who uses and abuses her. How far will Kavya go to get revenge?
Critic's Rating:
Direction: Vivek Agnihotri
Cast: Paoli Dam, Gulshan Devaiya, Nikhil Dwivedi
Genre: Thriller
Duration: 2 hours 15 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review: So, yeah, Hate Story exposes a lot - underneath Delhi's surface, that is, not really, as the adverts so tantalizingly showcased, of leading lady Paoli Dam. The film instead blows the top right off the dirty deals, the, well, intercourse between different power spheres ruling India's capital - business, politics, journalism, police, all meet in this slick flick. Depending on who you are, the intersections provide some pleasure - and lots of pain.
Hate Story starts with reporter Kavya (Dam) joining photographer-friend Vicky (Dwivedi) in exposing cement tycoon Siddharth Dhanrajgir (Devaiya) bribing a judge. Enraged, 'Sid' takes revenge - sweetly. Ignoring Vicky completely, he offers Kavya the sky if she works for him, letting him, as he terms it, use her talent. Remarkably, Kavya instantly agrees. Hugging a huffy Vicky goodbye, she leaps into Sid's deals, winning him a biggie in Mumbai. As a result, the tycoon takes her to dinner - and to bed.
But it's not quite as charmless as that - Sid makes love to Kayva in gentle rain, in fluffy duvets, in the shower, pouring her with expensive watches and a big diamond. Swept off her feet, Kavya's in love - till Sid drops the honey-brush, slaps her one and throws her out of work with chilling contempt. She's also expecting - but he'll have none of it. A forced abortion follows after which her unconvincing 'middle-class family' (spot Pitaji by his red muffler) abandons her. Seeking revenge, Kavya approaches Delhi's most plush and padded prostitute, demanding seduction classes. These last one hot little moment - but more sex with more men follows, all leading towards entrapping Sid within a web of truth and lies, exposing and exposes.
Interestingly, Hate Story isn't just one woman hating one man - it's also a tale of hateful deals, corruption, brutality and sleaze tiling the farmhouses fringing the capital, glistening in hotel bars, twinkling wickedly off the sunlight on the NCR's corporate buildings. It would all be so interesting - if only deeper and tighter. Instead, we get little sense of the porcelain-faced Kavya's torment, sliding from reporter to prostitute. We get even less sense of backup-BF Vicky's feelings - while we get way too much of Delhi's street-shots, wasted lines, lip-gloss thick as a moustache, bathrobes, jacuzzis and cars, all burdening Hate Story by about 30 minutes too many.
Underneath this, even the sex-scenes sag - the frontbenchers clap most wildly not at Dam's bare back when she's riding Sid's brother Raj, but at a Haryanvi cop telling her when arrested for Raj's murder, "Kuch kapde pehen lete toh theek hota." Better acting and more music under-wiring this plot would've helped - the only memorable melody is the velveteen lament 'Dil kaanch sa', layering Kavya's trauma after Sid's brutality.
But there are pluses too - Devaiya stands out as a stammering little egomaniac and the electricity between him and Dam crackles. There are memorable shots - Dam staring with agonised eyes at Sid's office while having car-sex with a stranger outside, a moment of acute tension when she meets Raj's wife in court. One more encounter follows - but let's leave something to the imagination. Appreciate, if you will, the thriller, not the diet-erotica - that's rather an anti-climax.
Story:Gautam likes Veronica. Veronica likes him too. Gautam falls for Meera. Now what does Meera do? Three close friends find themselves caught in a vortex of emotions.
Critic's Rating:
Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone, Diana Penty, Randeep Hooda
Direction: Homi Adajania
Genre: Romance
Duration: 2 hours 25 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review: Two's company; is three a crowd? Homi Adajania's romantic comedy Cocktail is a slice-of-life film mounted beautifully and imaginatively on a large canvas with the vibrant colours of London, Cape Town and New Delhi. The film addresses the proverb--two is company; is three a crowd--situation throughout. With some super-light, sweet moments that one has seen in the mid-90s American sitcom Friends; that revolved around a group of friends in Manhattan; Cocktail deals with the fun moments and then the emotional turmoil faced by three Indian friends settled in the UK, whose paths cross inadvertently.
Story: Low-life thief Shiva and top-cop Vikram Rathore are identical. Vikram's killed by foes but his daughter thinks Shiva's her dad - can this Rowdy win respect?
Movie Review: In case I get a spelling wrong, that's because my ears are still ringing with all the seetis and taalis at Rowdy Rathore. The film's an unabashed, gunpowder-hot, sambar-spiced star-vehicle which runs along energetically most of the time because its star - Akshay Kumar, essaying a double role as Rathore and Shiva - is worth it, something that's emphasized often. At one point, a girl asks Shiva, pursuing pretty Paaro (Sinha) from Patna, 'Na tum mein Hrithik ke looks hain, na Shah Rukh ka charm, na Aamir ki cuteness, na Salman ki body - what's so cool about you?' Akshay drawls back, "Lagta hai Khiladi ko bhool gayi aap." Cue for crowd - erupt in rapture.
ROWDY RATHORE OFFICIAL TRAILER (HD)
Multiply that moment by 100 and you have Rowdy Rathore, a peppery pot-boiler brimming over with action, slapstick comedy and romance, dynamite lines and Akshay Kumar - lots of Akshay Kumar, channeling vintage heroes Dharmendra, Vinod Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, adding a dollop of Jeetendra, topping with his trademark flair as he snarls, tongue deeply in-cheek, "Don't angry me!"
A lull in its second half aside, Rowdy's mostly quick-stepping, moving from Mumbai's malls to medieval Bihar where Baapji (Nasser) and his hamming henchmen terrorise Devgarh's townsfolk through pillage, beatings and rape. Till cop Vikram Rathore (Kumar) arrives on the Shramjeevi Express, assaulting local yokels with handy gannas, infusing new meaning to 'sugar-cane'. With terrific overhead shots capturing his exploits, the fearless Rathore even bumps off Baapji's vicious beta Munna, so Baapji won't rest till Vikram is killed.
SEXY SINHA: SONAKSHI SINHA
Despite an injury to his brain (which the doctor says causes 'hammo-rage'), Vikram and his little daughter Chinki reach Mumbai. Here, their paths cross with Shiva who adopts Chinki when Vikram's felled. And goes to Devgarh where he tells Baapji, 'A village can have only one Rowdy.' It's time Baapji - or 'lemon-chus', as Rowdy addresses him - shoved off.
This involves toe-curling violence though. A guy gets stabbed in the mouth, a head's crushed on a rock, swords slash through navels. Against the gore, Shiva's dancing with Paaro provides breezy relief but the music itself is unmemorable. In a Prabhudheva picture, expectedly the dances are eye-catching, some moves like sweet caresses, some sexy little bites. Sonakshi glows as Paaro, a spunky Indian beauty showing flashes of her star-father's confidence when she snarls at the villains, 'O saand ke bhes mein kukur." This Patna girl's stepped out in style with Rowdy. But the same can't be said for those playing Devgarh's dread-struck. Apart from Yashpal Sharma (sincere as a junior cop), the rest are unconvincing, as is the villainous set-up itself, located somewhere oddly between feudal Bihar, accented Andhra and Sholay's bandit lair.
Indeed, Rowdy Rathore pays homage to iconic filmi characters - identical heroes, golden-hearted chors, brave Men in Brown beating evil people to pulp. However, it pays most homage to its own star, Akshay Kumar, who pulls off Shiva with style but Vikram less so, possibly because all that violence overwhelms acting itself. Not that the crowd seemed to mind. As Shiva exhorts a woman raped by Baapji's son to beat him up, the girl next to me cried, "Why doesn't she?" Her neighbour replied, "She will." And she did - much to the crowd's Rowdy delight.
Tip-Off: Fans will love Akshay's mooch-twirling masala-act but be ready for hardcore action too - some pretty gruesome.
Story : A couple of British retirees have their own share of problems to deal with. It's only after they reach a not-so-happening hotel in India that life turns into a roller coaster ride...
Critic's Rating:
Cast: Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson, Hugh Dickson, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith
Direction: John Madden
Genre: Drama
Duration: 2 hours 4 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review : Life begins at 60... at least for a group of seven 'old and beautiful' lot in this British film. Of course, there's a pretty tough ride they've got to first undertake. 1) Evelyn Greenslade (Judi Dench) is stuck with her broadband connection since it's in her late husband's name. 2) Muriel Donnelly ( Maggie Smith) is on the lookout for a cheap hip replacement. But then the doctor, for her, has to be English. 3 & 4) Douglas and Jean Ainslie (Bill Nighy and Penelope Wilton) who have made their unhappy marriage work just for the fear of society now have a financial crisis to deal with. 5) Retired judge Graham Dashwood ( Tom Wilkinson) wants to get back to India in search of his love. 6) Madge Hardcastle (Celia Imrie) is out in search of companionship, while 7) Norman Cousins (Ronald Pickup) is all desperate to find someone for a one-night stand. What next? Destination: India calling. To be precise, it's the Best Exotic Marigold hotel -- a hotel for the old and beautiful -- at Udaipur.
Now just when you think this one is going to be yet another when-Hollywood-meets-India story, director John Madden proves you wrong. It's more about hope (Evelyn at 60 is on the lookout for a BPO job). It's all about the need to keep trying (Muriel not only gives up her wheel chair, but finds a new purpose in life). It's all about diving into India -- a riot of noise and colour (Graham finds true joy in playing galli cricket with the local kids). Needless to say, all this would actually seem been-there-seen-that had it not been for the performances of the seven veterans. So much so, even the subplot of a budding romance, topped with an over-protective mom (Dev Patel-Lillete Dubey) seems unwanted. In fact, you can't really tell who (amongst the seven) is better than the other. And it's not just serious stuff we're talking about. Watch the bonding amidst some heart-felt emotions, dialogues, respective tales, fears... and English wit.
But then, it's the desi wit with its typical cliches -- roads full of camels, elephants; a bumpy crowded bus ride, a photoshop-ed hotel full of pigeons and cockroaches; the untouchable domestic help... that somewhat forces you to ask this: Does this (still) happen in India 2012?
Seven people. Seven stories. Seven problems. Seven different reasons to travel to India... a country, as the movie says, where everything will be alright in the end. And alright it is! Now, that (surely) happens only in India!
Tip off: Only for those who think age (and the pace of a movie) is no bar when it comes to living life all over again... falling in love all over again... and above all bonding with India all over again.
Story: Damyaan, the evil snake of Sonpur, is simply a step away from being over powerful and immortal since he has access to the Book of Magi. What's stopping him? The curse that has him locked inside a palace for ages... a curse that shall be broken should the king of Dholakpur set him free. Now, the king does set him free (by mistake) and then chaos forms the order of the day. Can Chhota Bheem and team stop Damyaan from doing the unwanted? Can Chhota Bheem and his team make Dholakpur one happy place to live happily ever after in?
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Cast: Voice by Kaustav Ghosh, Rupa Bhimani
Direction: Rajiv Chilaka
Genre: Animation
Duration: 1 hour 27 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review : Jham, jham, jhambhura! Now we know why our tweeny lot always maange more of Chhota Bheem. After all, our hero can do anything and everything that every Bollywood mainstream hero does. Chhota Bheem can save the girls from being kidnapped. Chhota Bheem can fight a dozen of bad guys at the same time. Chhota Bheem can fight tigers and snakes. And, most importantly, Chhota Bheem knows how to be in sync with the time - he can play (and win) the T20 cricket tournament in town. Not to miss out is his looks: Chhota Bheem is a hit with girls in his kingdom (He looks rather cute), and has a couple of pretty things hitting on him!
Now for the movie. Talk of animation and it's bright and colourful, though not really sharp.
Next, talk of music and there's ample to tap your foot. In fact, the theme track (sung by Shaan) works well. As for the fun, it's all in there to make our under-12s happy. Case in point, Chhota Bheem goes all dishum dishum with Damyaan, Bheem and his team being gifted with magical powers. However, the wait for fun unlimited is a bit too long. And if tween claps is what you are on the lookout for, there's ample scope particularly when our little hero fights one enemy after the other... all in a row: first the giant spider, then the tiger, then the MMA warrior, then the snake guy.... Finally, those into sci-fi stuff can have there share of time travel as well - of course, it's absoluetly desi in every sense of the word.
Sadly it's the voice-over that just does not seem to connect well specially for a face like that of Chhota Bheem. But then you might choose to overlook that considering there is hardly happening entertainment for kids in desi cinema. Right bachcha party?
Story: It does not take long for Edgar Allen Poe's murder mystery tales to turn into reality, courtesy a serial killer. Now, what will it take to stop those gruesome murders?
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Cast: John Cusack, Alice Eve, Luke Evans, Brendan Gleeson
Direction: James McTeigue
Genre: Thriller
Duration: 1 hour 50 minutes
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Movie Review: Those into Edgar Allen Poe shall be left satisfied. The first shot of the movie tells you this one is possibly on the lines of a biography: There have been lots of theories as to how Poe died; The Raven adds a new dimension. Those into his tales of mystery too shall have no reason to complain. The Raven is an amalgamation of a couple of whodunnit tales from the greatest inventor of the detective genre. And those into neither, can treat The Raven as your usual dose of murder, mystery and thrill.
THE RAVEN OFFICIAL TRAILER (HD)
First, it's two women who are murdered in a locked room. Enter detective Emmett Fields ( Luke Evans) who traces it back to Poe's The Murders in the Rue Morgue. Next, a man is discovered sliced into two, just as in Poe's The Pit and the Pendulum. Enter detective Fields... this time with Edgar Allen Poe (John Cusack) himself. Interestingly, it's Poe himself who ends up solving his own murder mysteries. But then you've got to pay the price. In this case, blood, gore and soul-stirring crime, specially when the pendulum cuts the man into two. As for John Cusack, he is bang on as Poe when it comes to the looks. As for Poe's character, it comes rather naturally to the actor.
Back to the murder and thrill. There are tense moments, chases, one puzzle leading to the other. There's also a Victorian setting, a serial-killer, his tricks... and of course, Edgar Allen Poe's macabre tales.
Like other Ram Gopal Varma (RGV) films, Department has an idea - a force to finish the underworld by stepping over the law's boundaries. But like other RGV flicks, this one also blasts itself out of the water, leaving you savouring jarring camerawork, flimsy acting and over-the-top violence. Inspector Mahadev Bhosle (Dutt) creates Mumbai's department to battle, ahem, mafia dons Mohammad Ghori and Sawatiya (Raaz). Bhosle inducts Shivnarayan (Daggubati) and with skulls crashing on walls, children flung out of windows and criminals impaled on rods, they take on the underworld. So far, so gross, but the film pulls along, powered largely by Daggubati whose smokin' machismo holds Department together - but not for long. That's despite Bachchan popping up as don-turned-politico Sarjerao Gaikwad, all silvery hair, dark glasses, manic laughter and a tinkling bell. Bachchan's clearly having fun - but few viewers are.
That's because Department, which should've been a taut, tense encounter between three strong men, is instead ripped to shreds by too many weak actors given puzzlingly large roles. There's a most non-don-like Raaz, living in a shed, sporting an enviably slender waist exposed by mysteriously thin dhotis. His sullen sidekicks DK (Singh) and Naseer (Shalini) make one of the most unattractive screen duos ever. They mouth lines banally, shoot bullets expressionlessly, blow smoke dully into each other's mouths, yet have more screen time than Bachchan even. Others - like Shiv's wife Bharti (Sukhani, pleasant) - have little to do except dodge those bullets and bodies.
Watch Department Movie Trailer (HD)
The violence might even have clicked, considering the tale's twists - but crazy camerawork makes you forget all that. Varma's experimented, placing multiple cameras at different angles, treating you to close-ups of bottles pressed to mouths, lips sucking cigarettes, zooms up Dutt's hairline. The camera even flips upside down, puncturing the tension that should've vibrated between Bachchan and Dutt. One line - "Chamatkaar ko namaskar" - nails it. You stagger out sensing something wasted - Nathalia Kaur's item number's more hideous than hot, the prettiest thing around is a translucent tea-cup, the action is mind-numbing. Losing the plot and three strong stars, Department shoots itself in the foot.
Story:Where love and hate collide, this love story is born. Two people who're raised hating each other, break the unwritten family dictat; and fall in love. These outlaws of love thus start a new war.
Critic's Rating:
Cast: Arjun Kapoor, Parineeti Chopra
Direction: Habib Faisal
Genre: Romance
Duration: 2 hours 30 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review:It's the war of the roses. And it's as (t)horny as it can get. Splattered with bandooks and badmaashi, goondas and gaalis - starts this ajab prem kahani. Firebrands Parma (Arjun Kapoor) and Zoya (Parineeti Chopra) are childhood hate-mates, born into politically warring families who've avowed to hate unto death. So, in the rustic and earthy brown landscape of small-town Almore - where pocket guns are a fashion accessory, and local yokels could kill for anything - diesel or dancing girl Chand (Gauhar Khan), the Queen of 'KwalityBaar' - a love story blossoms between loveable rowdy rascal Parma and feisty, free-spirited Zoya. They growl at each other with the same fierce passion with which they grope each other and get-it-on. Most riveting in this love-hate plot, is the (fore)playful chemistry between the two, with their volatile verbal wars, and sexed-up lovemaking; even between chases and gunshots. Rare indeed to find such a beautifully complementing debut pair onscreen.
ISHAQZAADE OFFICIAL TRAILER (HD)
In an impressive debut, Arjun Kapoor believably plays Parma with dollops of arrogance, energy and unabashed guts; chomping with the same crudity with which he shoots, spits gaalis, pisses on posters, manhandles his girl and makes raw love. He uses his boy-man charm topped with that infectious 'batteesi' effectively, and keeps up the temperatures throughout.
Parineeti Chopra is fabulously effervescent. As the 'mango 'ishmile' flashing Zoya, she's adorable and admirable. She lacks the obvious, larger-than-life mega-screen presence, but wins you over with her 'item'bomb' simplicity.
Gauhar Khan 'reveals' a lot more, of her acting skills that is.
UPCOMING VOLCANO: Parineeti Chopra
Director Habib Faisal takes you into the heart of this small-town story, creating a politically-divided Almore with elan - penning gripping characters (a rigid and arrogant Dadda, a suppressed, dukhiari Amma, two overbearing brothers), but fails to maintain the crescendo in the second half. After highlights like a sensitively shot lovemaking scene on a rusty train berth, a subtly picturized romantic song (Pareshan), and a shocking pre-interval scene, it starts falling apart like a house of cards; ultimately folding into a predictable climax. The flatness of the second half is what takes away from the pace of a launch vehicle that could've been memorable.
'Ishaqzaade' starts with a bang-bang, but ends up firing blanks.
Story: Mei (Catherine Chan) is wanted by all -- the Triads... The Russian mob... The NYC super and corrupt cops. Why? She has the secret code to the safe. Enter Luke Wright (Jason Statham), her protector... and the one who ultimately gets access to the safe.
Critic's Rating:
Direction: Boaz Yakin
Cast: Jason Statham, Catherine Chan, Chris Sarandon, James Hong
Genre: Action
Duration: 1 hour 34 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review : It's a Jason Statham movie where the actor is once again seen paving his way to victory while sorting the good from the bad. So no prizes for guessing what lies in store: gun firing in loads and fist fights in aplenty. Add to that some Statham-ism and there's no looking back. Now, how many actors do we have out there who pick up call girls in NYC, pay them plenty of that dollar, get an entry into a sizzling restaurant and ask them to leave immediately. Or for that matter, how many Medowlands (New Jersey) ex-fighters do we have dressed in an executive suit breaking tracheas of the bad guys. Statham fans, there's enough of the suave in here.
A still from the movie
But then, Jason Statham has competition in Safe. And this competition is a pretty tough one for it comes from the little Catherine Chan. With hardly any dialogues (in English) to herself, Chan actually keeps you asking for more each time she (or Statham) are missing in action. In fact, it's not just her computerised memory that helps her remember all important bank transactions in the Chinese world, it's her ultimate understanding of the big bad biz world (she excels in distinguishing between good business and the bad one) that takes you by surprise. Make sure you catch Catherine's Mei calling the shots - in every way - in the last sequence.
Of course, the two (Statham and Catherine) together make this gang war for the green bills in the bustling narrow bylanes of New York's China Town worth a watch. The action, on the other hand, is crispy and smart. As for the storyline, guess it was always meant to tread on safe ground... nothing that you have never seen before.
Story: The gory climax might make some peoples stomach churn, but then it's essentially a Tamil film, could have some nativity issues as well.
Movie Review: A dubbed version of the 2007 Tamil cult classic, Paruthiveeran, Malligadu is releasing four years later in Telugu but is still makes for a bewildering cinema experience that evokes awe and disgust in equal measure. Awe for the sheer caliber of filmmaking that captures nuggets of rustic village life - dancers in exotic costumes, loudspeaker announcements, cattle with balloons tied to their horns, card players oblivious to the ear-shattering noise around them, eunuchs performing - these opening frames transport you into another realm.
Then there scenes in which you have Malli (Priyamni) vomiting all over the screen and in others where women are repeatedly slapped and smashed against walls and shoved and raped and murdered, all captured in graphic detail. Well, the rustic romance between Malli Babu ( Karthi) and Malli is disarmingly cute.
Malli Babu is village ruffian who spends most of his life going in and out of jail. His life's ambition is to do something so notorious that would get him on TV before landing in the central jail. His only friend is his uncle Sivayya (Saravanan) who is just as jobless and ready for adventure. Malli is his cousin who swears undying love for Malli Babu after he saves her from drowning in the river as a kid. Malli Babu ignores her romantic overtures but eventually falls for her.
Their families however, are sworn enemies and are dead against their marriage. So the lovers elope to live the life of their dreams, but their families are determined to punish them. What ensues is some pretty intense cinema.
Story:In the big bad city of Mumbai, four people are on a 24-hour mission to survive. Some make it, some don't. Caution: If you thought a drive down Mumbai's over-flooded, potholed roads was a nightmarish experience, sample this.
Critic's Rating:
Direction: Rakesh Mehta
Cast: Kay Kay Menon, Ranvir Shorey, Pradhuman Singh, Neha Bhasin, Manu Rishi
Genre: Comedy
Duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review: Salman (Kay Kay Menon), son of a one time underworld biggie ( Jackie Shroff, in a flash of an appearance), is on a mission to nail the murderer of his parents, even before he's started mourning their sudden death.
ACP Chautala (Manu Rishi) is chided by his bully boss and packed off from the capital city to Mumbai's underbelly, to track four Nigerian drug peddlers (referred to as kaale throughout the film). The gold medalist cop, who prides himself on being Haryane-da-sher, cruises his way around Mumbai's gallis with ease, but struggles with Mumbaiyya lingo.
Amol Ganguly (Ranvir Shorey) quits his job as a chef in UK and dashes back to Mumbai to his beloved, only to find out that she's ditched him for an ugly millionaire. Distraught, he seeks comfort in his wannabe rockstar friend, dope-head Ajoy Ghosh (Pradhuman Singh), who walks around in boxers with sazaa-e-maut tattoo on his back, chants 'The Bengali will rock', has 'Mother Chucker' sprawled on his walls, scratches his privates (yuck!) and 'Doogle'-searches ways to commit suicide, for his heart-broken Bong buddy. Chandigarh ki chori, Dolly (Neha Bhasin), a struggling starlet is on a mission to dupe Mumbai's rich men to recover some of her losses (money and dignity). They all converge at the shady Hotel Plaza, amidst bullet showers, purposeless blood-baths, and a climax that leaves an after-taste of stale vada pau.
Ranvir Shorey, as the loser boyfriend looks the part, but only for a few scenes. He loses steam along the way, and boringly finishes the rest. Much-caked-up Menon, tries hard to force intensity, but fails to evoke any emotion. Amidst all this mayhem, Manu Rishi breathes some life and laughs in this movie. Pradhuman Singh as a pseudo rockstar is exaggeratedly stereotyped, driving us to hair-tearing moments. In her debut film, singerNeha Bhasin, looks desperate to make a mark, but has slim chance.
For eons, Mumbai has spurred creativity in filmmakers. Some good, some bad. Some grossly confused. Like this one. Director Rakesh Mehta tells a story which is more cramped with characters than Mumbai's local trains. The dialogues are unmoving and script more disoriented than the city's unbearable traffic. While trying to create a montage of a struggling day in the life of Mumbai, the real story is stuck in some galli of Crawford Market.
Watch it at your own risk, but remember, we warned you. Given a choice, we'd like the real city and a drive on Mumbai's roads - it probably has fewer potholes than this story.
Movie Review: Look carefully - Tezz shows you a London Bollywood hasn't explored before. Forget those chiffon saree-soirees, lush parks and cream teas - Tezz's London showcases illegal Indian migrants trapped between violent ghettoes and furious policemen, wet sewers, oily garages and bomb-strapped garbage bins. This is a gritty city, normally shown as every Indian's vacation paradise - but what happens to those who want to live there, even illegally?
Tezz follows engineer Akash Rana's (Devgn) life unraveling as he and his workmates Megha (Reddy) and Adil (Khan) get hunted by British immigration. Rana suffers the cruelest cut - his marriage to British citizen Nikita (Ranaut) is declared invalid, he's deported, she's jailed for unpaid loans. But it's not over - four years later, Rana returns seeking revenge and the London-Glasgow Express, 500 people on board, finds itself laced with a bomb that'll explode if the train drops under a certain speed.
Sounds familiar? Tezz draws from different vehicle-thrillers, reminding you of Keanu Reeves' Speed one moment, Vinod Khanna's Burning Train another. But it isn't just another machismo-fueled race - instead, Reddy is Tezz's surprise package, pulling off devilish stunts, looking stunning in the short life of a desperate Megha. As Counter-Terrorism Command Chief Arjun Khanna, Kapoor looks good too - and with one glance at a boy with bandaged eyes, he reminds you of the acting power-house he is.
In Tezz, he's pitted against Devgn (the latter can play 'smouldering' in his sleep apparently) and occasionally, Boman Irani as Sanjay Raina, Railway Traffic Controller. In one tense scene, Irani controls a track-switch, trembling almost like a music conductor commanding a symphony. There's a shout-down between Kapoor and him - over far too soon. In fact, you're left wishing Tezz had more dramatic face-offs between its fine actors but instead, the film diverts into several tracks too many.
Mohanlal is poorly used as policeman Nair escorting a criminal via train. As is Ranaut, pretty in her now-familiar 'impending doom' style, but with little to do. Khan looks fresh but has a shaky role - topped with a thrilling chase. Mallika Sherawat performs an item number in the 'Desi Club', asking, "Do you wanna get hot? Do you wanna get wet?" - but after all that promise, dances little and smiles even less. Tezz's London, overrun by Indians, is also populated by Brits speaking hilariously fluent Hindi and despite pumping background music, features few pleasing songs, snatches from just one qawwali, Tere Saaye Mein, standing out. Otherwise, it's gunshots and grim lines, some pacey - "Ye koi naya kameena hai," quips Kapoor of Devgn - some not.
Despite slick action and stunning scenes - bullets ramming underwater into a sunlit stream, a violet flower-bush before a cop-car - Tezz loses speed often. Here's possibly why - director Priyadarshan's oeuvre is putting characters in desperate situations and watching them respond. It works beautifully in comedies - but Tezz needs relentless pushing, not frequent stops pondering over the unfairness of citizenship. You can't run fast carrying heavy baggage - that's why Tezz huffs and puffs a little too much.
Story: Journalist Kavya Krishna loves tycoon Siddharth - who uses and abuses her. How far will Kavya go to get revenge?
Critic's Rating:
Direction: Vivek Agnihotri
Cast: Paoli Dam, Gulshan Devaiya, Nikhil Dwivedi
Genre: Thriller
Duration: 2 hours 15 minutes
Avg Readers Rating:
Movie Review: So, yeah, Hate Story exposes a lot - underneath Delhi's surface, that is, not really, as the adverts so tantalizingly showcased, of leading lady Paoli Dam. The film instead blows the top right off the dirty deals, the, well, intercourse between different power spheres ruling India's capital - business, politics, journalism, police, all meet in this slick flick. Depending on who you are, the intersections provide some pleasure - and lots of pain.
Hate Story starts with reporter Kavya (Dam) joining photographer-friend Vicky (Dwivedi) in exposing cement tycoon Siddharth Dhanrajgir (Devaiya) bribing a judge. Enraged, 'Sid' takes revenge - sweetly. Ignoring Vicky completely, he offers Kavya the sky if she works for him, letting him, as he terms it, use her talent. Remarkably, Kavya instantly agrees. Hugging a huffy Vicky goodbye, she leaps into Sid's deals, winning him a biggie in Mumbai. As a result, the tycoon takes her to dinner - and to bed.
But it's not quite as charmless as that - Sid makes love to Kayva in gentle rain, in fluffy duvets, in the shower, pouring her with expensive watches and a big diamond. Swept off her feet, Kavya's in love - till Sid drops the honey-brush, slaps her one and throws her out of work with chilling contempt. She's also expecting - but he'll have none of it. A forced abortion follows after which her unconvincing 'middle-class family' (spot Pitaji by his red muffler) abandons her. Seeking revenge, Kavya approaches Delhi's most plush and padded prostitute, demanding seduction classes. These last one hot little moment - but more sex with more men follows, all leading towards entrapping Sid within a web of truth and lies, exposing and exposes.
Interestingly, Hate Story isn't just one woman hating one man - it's also a tale of hateful deals, corruption, brutality and sleaze tiling the farmhouses fringing the capital, glistening in hotel bars, twinkling wickedly off the sunlight on the NCR's corporate buildings. It would all be so interesting - if only deeper and tighter. Instead, we get little sense of the porcelain-faced Kavya's torment, sliding from reporter to prostitute. We get even less sense of backup-BF Vicky's feelings - while we get way too much of Delhi's street-shots, wasted lines, lip-gloss thick as a moustache, bathrobes, jacuzzis and cars, all burdening Hate Story by about 30 minutes too many.
Underneath this, even the sex-scenes sag - the frontbenchers clap most wildly not at Dam's bare back when she's riding Sid's brother Raj, but at a Haryanvi cop telling her when arrested for Raj's murder, "Kuch kapde pehen lete toh theek hota." Better acting and more music under-wiring this plot would've helped - the only memorable melody is the velveteen lament 'Dil kaanch sa', layering Kavya's trauma after Sid's brutality.
But there are pluses too - Devaiya stands out as a stammering little egomaniac and the electricity between him and Dam crackles. There are memorable shots - Dam staring with agonised eyes at Sid's office while having car-sex with a stranger outside, a moment of acute tension when she meets Raj's wife in court. One more encounter follows - but let's leave something to the imagination. Appreciate, if you will, the thriller, not the diet-erotica - that's rather an anti-climax.
