Jail Movie Reviews - Ratings, Songs, Videos, Release, Trailers, Cast

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The Lip Shandil Time-Passer

103 0

'JAIL' A Third Degree Brutal Look At Indian Prison Nov 6, 2010

3.5/5

JAIL..*ing Nitin Neil Mukesh, Mugdha Godse, Manoj Bajpayee, Arya Babbar & Siyal Bhagat along with Rahul Singh, Manish Mehta & Chetan Pandit. Director Madhur Bhandarkar & Producer Percept Picture Company.

Rating *** 1/2

Like most films made by Madhur Bhanderkar this one too is not sugar coated nor does it beat round the bush. It just shows the audience a terrifying mirror about the stark reality that is a cold and brutal Indian jail in any major metro of Indian. What makes the film rather chilling and harsh is that it borders too close on reality to make you absolutely discomfortable. The question that haunts you after the movie is long over is what if that happened to me & I was in the shoes of Parag Dixit the lead protaganist & how would I handle it and what if there was not a wishful ending to the sordid torture? Cud My Family & Love Ones Take The Pressure In Those Circumstances?

It's these very disturbing questions that make the film so absolutely realistic and the film so believable actually exactly like most of Madhur Bhanderkar's films right from Chandini Bar till Jail. In many ways Jail is a brutally stark film but at the same time it's also very near the truth and the finer nuances have been captured minus any fancy make-up.

After a decent launch in Fashion Mugdha is repeated in Jail by Madhur Bhanderkar and this time around she is the only heroine in this project unlike Fashion where the focus was mainly on Priyanka Chopra & Kangana Renaut along with her on center-stage. Neil Nitin Mukesh has a plum role and he goes at it with hammer and tongs and the end result is an absolutely fantastic performance that makes you want to reach out and comfort him.Such is the agony & trauma that he projects with his realistic performance of an innocent undertrail who gets implicated falsely and the nightmare never seems to end.

Madhur Bhanderkar may or may not walk away with several awards as is becoming a habit with most of his films but his biggest reward is that his films find an immediate audience inspite of his hard hitting and even disturbing themes and that speaks volumes at his deft filming of intricate subjects with no visible compromising to make it box-office viable!!!

BY THE LIP SHANDIL

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Varun Weekender

126 1

A prison of torture Sep 29, 2010

1.5/5

A realistic piece of cinema covering the life and circumstances of the prison inmates by Madhur Bhandarkar, but fails to impress this time. A stor... read more

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Akshit Mittal Time-Passer

8 0

world of Jail in the modern context Jul 30, 2010

2.5/5

Despite its grim setting, director Madhur Bhandarkar's Jail is his least cynical film in years.t is dark, distressing and deeply disturbing, like m... read more

Despite its grim setting, director Madhur Bhandarkar's Jail is his least cynical film in years.t is dark, distressing and deeply disturbing, like most, Madhur Bhandarkar films. After feeble attempts with CORPORATE, TRAFFIC SIGNAL and FASHION, Madhur roars in form once again. JAIL will have you thinking.

The National Award winning director, this time focuses on the tragic lives of those behind bars. The brokenness they have to deal with, the foolishness of that 'one-second anger' that led to murder, which they are now regretting or even how the innocent battle for justice. JAIL is one such story that focuses on the innocence of Parag Dixit (Neil Nitin Mukesh) and slowly unwraps the other areas, which need to be addressed to the common man. If you have an appetite for hardcore reality cinema, 'This Is It'!

Parag is living a dream life with a good position in a multi-national and Mansi (Mugdha Godse), a girlfriend who understands his needs. One day, things take an ugly turn when his car is intercepted by the police. His roommate who is travelling with him, urges him to drive faster when he sees a cop van trailing. However, Parag slows down, while his friend jumps out and starts shooting at the police. Too shocked to understand what has happened in a split second, Parag sees his roommate being hit by a bullet and a bag full of cocaine recovered from the backseat.

But despite the clunky writing, it's a relief to see Bhandarkar empathasise with his characters rather than exploit them for cheap titillation like he's done in earlier films. In a very simplistic and roundabout fashion, Jail is about hope and making the right choice, but the film is too formulaic to make a hard-hitting statement.
Of the cast, Neil Nitin Mukesh plunges sincerely into the central role, but is at best adequate as the anguished victim. Mughda Godse is unselfconscious as Parag's distressed girlfriend, but has very little to do in a stereotypical part. Arya Babbar plays it broad and is convincing as the top aide of an underworld fixer, but the same sadly can't be said for poor Manoj Bajpai who glowers and glares as Nawab, Parag's only ally in prison. Bajpai's solemn turn adds to the dreariness, making Jail too long and too slow in the end.
Because it's well-intentioned and settles for a hopeful message, you stay with the film despite the fact that it's never quite compelling. I'm going with a generous two-and-a-half out of five for director Madhur Bhandarkar's Jail. It's got its heart in the right place, but sometimes that's not enough.
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