Going in for this one, I had not the least bit of expectations. As it turned out, seeing what was on offer made me think of what it could have been as against what it has turned out to be - a joke of a film. Aladin is Arabian Nights mixed with a dash of Harry Potter when it comes to the parental backstory, whose Voldemort is aided by a bunch of X-Men bred in Arkham. It's a cake that's not even half baked. It's steak not well done but sadly, not medium rare either.
Being a fantasy film, you expect to encounter a whole load of unbelievable elements in the plot but after watching this, you couldn't help but feel sorry for the kids in the audience. Seriously, how do you expect tweens to follow the events which unfold on screen in a very bizarre sequence? It would probably have made for really slick narration, but only if the story (or at least some of the events that formed a part of it) treaded anywhere near the realm known as the real world. Forget that - here's a film that could've referenced films of yore, touched upon global classics, depicted the generation gap and relocated the classic tale to our own backyard, among other things. Heck, it tries to do all that, but fails miserably on all counts, and it is the margin by which it is off the mark that actually hurts.
Mention Sujoy Ghosh and only one thing comes to most people's minds - 'Jhankaar Beats'. As it turns out, Panchamda's music is not the only thing Mr. Ghosh is crazy about. In this fantastical disaster, he tries to go all the way. So we have Genius (Amitabh Bachchan in a performance that, but for a couple of scenes, ranks just a couple of notches above Babban from 'RGV ki Aag'), a, well, genie who obviously belongs to an older generation and (apparently, hence) whose idea of romance involves around words such as 'saiyya' and 'sawariya', dialogues topped with extra cheese and more than a few plot events that a throwback to the times gone by. Of course, there's the music - not only do the (very humdrum) songs seem like they belong to the 80s, they crop up at the most inopportune moments just like 2 decades ago - and since they keep coming at you one after the other without a pause, you are literally left gasping for breath. Then there's the mandatory pre-climax song-and-dance sequence that involves all the heroes, villains and the sidekicks on both sides, along with a host of extras.
On the bright side, Aladin deserves to be lauded for its look, and by it I don't just mean the cinematography. Sure, it oozes class to an extent that the whole setting (mostly an imaginary city called Khwaish) seems improbable (Is it really in India or somewhere in Arabia? What is the era depicted?). I'm also referring to the ladies, especially the debutante heroine - Jacqueline Fernandez cannot act (or dance) to save her life, but she sure can look hot as hell. Then there is the attention paid to certain small details (eg: the cars in Khwaish all have number plates that start with KHW) which are so few and far between that they most probably happened by chance.
To sum it up, it is a squandered opportunity. Mr. Ghosh had in his hands the ideal ingredients to make the perfect tribute movie, but unfortunately he chose to follow the recipe for disaster. The end result is for all to taste.view less
Being a fantasy film, you expect to encounter a whole load of unbelievable elements in the plot but after watching this, you couldn't help but feel sorry for the kids in the audience. Seriously, how do you expect tweens to follow the events which unfold on screen in a very bizarre sequence? It would probably have made for really slick narration, but only if the story (or at least some of the events that formed a part of it) treaded anywhere near the realm known as the real world. Forget that - here's a film that could've referenced films of yore, touched upon global classics, depicted the generation gap and relocated the classic tale to our own backyard, among other things. Heck, it tries to do all that, but fails miserably on all counts, and it is the margin by which it is off the mark that actually hurts.
Mention Sujoy Ghosh and only one thing comes to most people's minds - 'Jhankaar Beats'. As it turns out, Panchamda's music is not the only thing Mr. Ghosh is crazy about. In this fantastical disaster, he tries to go all the way. So we have Genius (Amitabh Bachchan in a performance that, but for a couple of scenes, ranks just a couple of notches above Babban from 'RGV ki Aag'), a, well, genie who obviously belongs to an older generation and (apparently, hence) whose idea of romance involves around words such as 'saiyya' and 'sawariya', dialogues topped with extra cheese and more than a few plot events that a throwback to the times gone by. Of course, there's the music - not only do the (very humdrum) songs seem like they belong to the 80s, they crop up at the most inopportune moments just like 2 decades ago - and since they keep coming at you one after the other without a pause, you are literally left gasping for breath. Then there's the mandatory pre-climax song-and-dance sequence that involves all the heroes, villains and the sidekicks on both sides, along with a host of extras.
On the bright side, Aladin deserves to be lauded for its look, and by it I don't just mean the cinematography. Sure, it oozes class to an extent that the whole setting (mostly an imaginary city called Khwaish) seems improbable (Is it really in India or somewhere in Arabia? What is the era depicted?). I'm also referring to the ladies, especially the debutante heroine - Jacqueline Fernandez cannot act (or dance) to save her life, but she sure can look hot as hell. Then there is the attention paid to certain small details (eg: the cars in Khwaish all have number plates that start with KHW) which are so few and far between that they most probably happened by chance.
To sum it up, it is a squandered opportunity. Mr. Ghosh had in his hands the ideal ingredients to make the perfect tribute movie, but unfortunately he chose to follow the recipe for disaster. The end result is for all to taste.view less
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