Latest Bollywood Movie Reviews

The much discussed and awaited film on certain periods of Dr Manmohan Singh's tenure as PM is disappointing on the whole and fails to impress. What could have been an in depth analysis of the trials and tribulations of the Prime Minister remains perfunctory and superficial at the best. Lifting it up from mediocrity is the above average performance of Akshay Khanna as Sanjay Baru ( The writer) who operates as the " Sutradhar" of the movie. It is interesting to watch him look into the camera and say that " he is a very weak PM" among other things. He has been given a debonair and suave look by the costume designer with well fitting suits.
It will be interesting to know the views of appointment holders and bureaucrats of those times as to how faithfully Baru and the film director have projected the personality of the enigmatic and low profile ex PM and the events which took place. Purely in cinematic terms the film does not quite register.
Somehow Anupam Kher's interpretation of the PM falls flat and is limited to an imitation which sometimes appears to be a caricature. While the daughter of the PM is shown happy with the book, the PM himself appears highly upset with the book ( The last scene). It is possible that in this case also the book is maybe better than the film.
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There is no other way to describe this film except to say that it is an almost perfect Hindi masala movie having all the components that make such a film which are action, music, dance, family emotions, in the usual proportions. This film is also an out and out Salman product by Salman for his fans and also for general audiences who are bound to leave the theatre more than satisfied. And as the film's earnings go past 100 crores it brings up the usual paradox that a film not liked by critics will invariably do well commercially. Can't blame film makers for catering to the masses and not bothering about a handful of critics who will run down the film. Also such films which do not bother about things like laws of physics and credibility please the masses no end. So we have a 70 plus Salman bashing up 4 ruthless bikers in his typical style. As for glamour, Salman has two heroines, Disha Patni and Katrina Kaif who are attractive and do their dance moves well. The locations vary from a town in Pakistan to Delhi to the Gulf countries to Malta to the high seas ( pirates) to the ground depths ( mining) to a circus etc etc. The makers have left no stone unturned to provide entertainment to the masses whether it is a joker of a merchant navy Captain ( Satish Kaushik) or a Amitabh Bacchan loving Somali sea pirate or a dancing diva Katrina head over heels in love with Salman. There is enough of tear jerking scenes of relatives lost during partition and maybe there is a lesson for the govt for cross border information exchange better late than never.
The movie rides exclusively on the broad shoulders of Salman Khan as he goes through the entire range of emotions from age 25 to age 70 where only his hair turn salt and pepper while brawn and gait remain the same. That's value for money for you.
To hell with the so called realistic artistically formatted serious cinema. Let such cinema be shown in film festivals for the pleasure of critics and highbrow audiences. What this country needs is clean escapist entertainment on Sunday afternoon for family audiences and if it conveys a social message, or suggests a social reform, it is a bonus. less

Directed by R.Balki who has previously directed hit quality movies like Cheeni Kum, Paa, and Ki & Ka. It was eveident that Padman will also linger on an unconventional yet mindful subject. When the trailers of the movie released, it was evident that the movie was coherent with the times of the nation as currently women empowerment is at its peak and feminism & #Me Too movement have started highlighting the pathos and issues that the women have to face. Various movies like Mardaani, Naam Shabana, Anarkali of Aarah, and No One Killed Jessica have established the fact that it is time for women to be treated with respect and dignity. Now, written by R.Balki & Swanand Kirkire and starring the megastar Akshay Kumar in the lead role, the crafty Radhika Apte, and the stylish Diva Sonam Kapoor, the movie revolves around the concept of women being affected by their menses, and then a man setting out to create a sanitary pad machine after realizing the plight to which women suffer due to unhygienic issues. Further, the man decides to provide inexpensive sanitary pads to the women of rural India. The movie is an eye opener as it sheds light on the safety issues that women have to face. It is a movie that induces awareness in the minds of the people regarding the menstrual problems that the women have to tackle in their day to day lives and the amount of diseases that they concur due to the ignorance of the people in the rural areas.

Now, Akshay Kumar deserves a pat on his back for backing up these socio-political issues as he has infused a lot of effort with tireless tenacity. The direction is top notch and the simplicity and innocence that Akshay Kumar imparts to the character is amazing as he abolishes and sheds his superstar aura to delve into the character of a simple middle class man who loves his wife and wants to just develop a safe and qualitative sanitary pad for securing the health of his wife. But, just as the typical middle class Indian mentality comes in the way of his mission, he receives a lot of opposition from the villages due to their conservative mindset and the film beautifully sheds light on the taboos of the Indian society. But, the execution of the concept and the writing is so realistic and mature that the audience gets engrossed in the drama and on the top of that the climax scene with Akshay Kumar’s speech is so riveting that you just cannot resist yourself from clapping and a sense of patriotism engulfs you all around.

In the end, honesty prevails and the Padman wins, not only the hearts of the people, but also the coveted prize from the hands of none other than Mr. Amitabh Bacchan. So, go with your family and enjoy the movie, but most importantly get sensitized by the message that the movie aims to convey. less

It's a multistarrer movie with extra show off of the school students who never really is true. This movie is the 2nd part of the 1st Student Of The Year with Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, and Siddharth Malhotra. Again this movie shows the nepotism that surrounds us and explains how you can be everything if you have money and reach to high-level society. Anyway, this movie starts with Tiger Shroff who is a middle-class boy who gets admission in a prestigious school and makes some enemies too, obviously with the rich boys and there he meets two legs flaunting girls and the story goes on and on and on and ends. This movie is not for serious people or even for whom are finding a great weekend. less

So we have a 50 years young NRI businessman Ajay Devgn in London falling hook, line, and sinker for a 25 year old sexy vivacious dancer Rakul Preet Singh. As psychiatrist counselor Javed Jaffrey puts it, both are looking for something they don't have, she needs money and he wants his youth back.
This is the plot of this film. Maybe in better hands it could have turned out in a much better film. In the present shape it is a not so engaging mix of a romcom and a sitcom with a few emotional scenes thrown in between.
It appears our hero Ajay has a divorced wife ( Tabu) and grown up daughter and son in Manali in India. So Ajay takes his girlfriend to India to generally inform his ex wife and kids that he plans to marry his girlfriend, but lands up in a situation where his daughter's future in laws are visiting. To get out of this tricky situation Ajay is forced to introduce his girlfriend as his secretary while he himself has to pose as his ex wife's brother.
This scenario itself could have been developed into hilarious situations but the proceedings remain lukewarm and lacklustre.
Director editor Akir Alvi does a reasonably fair job and has some well picturised sequences to his credit. Noteworthy is the scene where Rakul is telling Ajay that after marrying her he would be repeating all his experiences once again, which is not a happy proposition for him.
It appears that Ajay is playing a 50 year old for the first time. He pulls off the role with customary charm. Rakul Preet is comfortable in the role and makes the bimbo believable . Tabu has nothing much to do and manages. The supporting cast is passable.
On the whole an average entertainer. less

A small number of soldiers holding a unit or a fort against overwhelmingly large numbers of soldiers or marauders and they finally going down in history as heroes always makes for riveting story telling. The last Hindi movie which comes to mind is "Border". This movie is set in 1897 and is about 21 soldiers of the British army who guard their fort at the peril of their lives against the invasion of around ten thousand well armed Afghani tribesmen.
This movie is slow in the initial part . Director Anurag Singh has overdone the aspect of "establishing of locale and various characters". The narrative meanders and just fails to take off. Luckily the film picks up in the second half leading to a fairly exciting climax. If I were to pick the redeeming features of this film I would go for the inspiring acting of Akshay Kumar, some good dialogue and the superb cinematography.
An interesting moment in the film is when the Afghan leader talks about his bravery and Akshay facing him mocks him" That's why you have brought an army of ten thousand to fight 21 soldiers ". He also tells him that there is no bravery in killing an unarmed woman.There are some excellent scenes of war and action.
Akshay Kumar is the one man show in this movie armed with some effective dialogue. He makes a very convincing Havaldar Ishar Singh. All others in the cast have contributed to make the scenes believable. Parineti Chopra has done a moving cameo as Akshay's wife. She appears in some key scenes.Some of the scenes specially in the climax are indeed moving. All praise for the splendid, eye catching and stunning cinematography. The locations have been well captured in their shapes and hues.

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Not many times do we have mainstream commercial Indian film makers moving into taboo areas. This time director Shelly Chopra Dhar takes up the subject of same gender relationship for life. The subject is dealt with in a "safe" and superficial manner and is kept in a way which should not displease the censors or orthodox audience.
The plot is about a well to do and established businessman of Moga, Punjab who has a pretty daughter sweety (Sonam) and an elder son Babloo ( Abhishek). This brother is overprotective of his sister and keeps a close watch on her. He is the one who first noticed signs of her abnormal over friendliness with other girls and sort of keeps it under wraps. He hopes that she would seen get over it but it doesn't happen. There is a parallel subplot of young man Rajkummar Rao who is into performing in plays and Juhi Chawla who plays a Bollywood crazy aspiring a actress.
Hell breaks loose when father Anil Kapoor comes to know that Sonam is refusing marriage to the selected boy and further shocks all when she says that she wants to marry a girl Kuhu ( Regina Cassandra).
After much raving and ranting Anil gives in to his daughter's demand and gets Sonia married with Regina. Anil ends the episode with the gag that his daughter has taken after him and likes women !
Quite an entertaining film which general audience may like but those who expected a more in depth treatment of the basic idea will be disappointed.

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The film opens with Tapsee Pannu who plays an independent businesswoman and who has been arrested for the murder of her boyfriend. She is now out on bail and on the advice of a colleague she hires noted lawyer Amitabh Bacchan who has 40 years of professional experience and who has not lost a single case so far. The film focuses on the questioning of Tapsee by AB in her apartment and while Tapsee answers, we are taken through a number of flashbacks to give us a record of the backstories at different times. A kind of cold and eerie atmosphere is set up to add to the suspense.( These outdoor scenes are shot in Glasgow, Scotland).
Like all lawyers AB wants 100% truthful answers to all questions covering all details. There are a number of twists in the plot and the director takes us through all possible perspectives and angles thus building up the suspense. The proceedings are dialogue heavy and tend to get monotonous at places but on the whole the film gives the impression of a well presented thriller.
Director Sujoy Ghosh has done a good job
keeping the film at a fast pace using the camera and editing to bring in suspense. However the film comes to a tame ending with some kind of " Faceoff"( pun intended).
In the acting department AB is good as usual. The baritone always works. Tapsee also puts in a creditable performance. The scenes seem to be a carry forward of " Pink". In the supporting cast Amrita Singh impresses.
The cinematography and editing give tremendous value to the film.
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As one watches the film, around the interval two thoughts come up
1. One wishes that Sanjay Leela Bhansali
had directed the film because he would have given it a superlative class to all departments particularly to the spectacle and the dramatic scenes.
2. The film credits indicate that the film has two directors Krish and Kangana Ranaut. Probably that is why the film is unimpressive in some places and there are jumps in the style of presentation. One wishes that only one director was at the helm to give it a much needed smooth flowing narration.
Nevertheless the film keeps one engaged with the narrative right from the time a young Queen excels in Archery and martial arts, her slow awakening to the turbulent happenings around her, to her marriage and subsequent motherhood.
She soon realises that the presence of the East India Company does not augur well for the country and she is very soon in confrontation mode with them. Inspite of personal tragedies of the loss of her husband and son, she as a widow has to overcome the tirade of her orthodox relatives while keeping her focus on the safety of her land. She exhibits exemplary courage as a queen when dealing with the British officers right till the climatic scenes of astounding valour. Kangana excels in most scenes with matching body language and dialogue delivery. I will not be surprised if she picks up a couple of awards.
The film is embellished with excellent production values. The supporting cast consists of some well known actors like Danny, Suresh Oberoi, and Zeeshan Ayub.
The actor playing the British army officer puts in a spirited performance.
Cinematography and editing are of a high standard.
All told while the film is good, one gets the feeling that it could have been better. less

It is very tempting though rude to say that the title of the film represents the value of the film. Very clearly director Anand Rai has bitten off much more than he can chew and the film is a poor show by a director who knows the Indian audience well and is considered a successful mainstream director. All the same time I can imagine how SRK thought that playing a dwarf would earn him accolades but clearly this did not happen. On the contrary the fans felt let down. Anushka plays a wheelchair bound mentally challenged scientist and acts with great sincerity making it a highlight of the film.
Director Anand Rai's treatment of the film is pedestrian to say the least. The film goes on and on with one incongruous scene followed by another. A sub plot inside another sub plot makes for dreary watching. The plot then leads to Space centre in USA with an undercurrent of pathos. This is where I gave up as I went numb with boredom. Oops I almost forgot to mention that Katrina Kaif plays an alcoholic film star and is wasted in this role which sounds hollow. There are cameos by a few female stars which do not help the film in any way. Another unimpressive role is of Zeeshan Ayub.
All told, a dreary watch inspite of some big names in the cast and a talented director. less

This is one more assembly line product made famous by Rohit Shetty in combo with Ajay Devgn. There is a twist in this film in the sense that Ranveer is made to behave like a joker in uniform for the first half. However all the fun and games turn into serious drama when Ranveer becomes involved in investigating the rape of a female teacher whom he regards as a sister. From then onwards he starts planning the trapping of the culprits. Finally after much excitement the vagabonds are caught, poetic justice is done and all ends well.
Director Rohit Shetty has made the film for the masses and has filled the film with songs and dances which keep the audience entertained. What is missing are the car wrecks but maybe they didn't fit in. Newcomer Sara is presented well and seems to have learnt what is required of a Hindi film heroine. For the fans of Ajay Devgn and Akshay Kumar the director has cleverly introduced their scenes in the end which will definitely thrill the fans no end.
An entertainer which will please the masses. less

Blank is not a classic and Blank is not a refreshingly new story either. Yet Blank is a good one time watch because director Behzad Khambata has kept the editing crisp ,the movie is just 107 minutes long. So you don't get much time to think. The twist in the end is reasonably good enough making the whole movie worth the less than two hours that you spend in it.

Sunny Deol is graceful and still has a very good screen presence and his by the book cop SS Deewan is very nicely written too. There is a brief glimpse of how not all is well on his personal front too yet he keeps his focus on his job.

Karan Kapadia as the guy with a question on his head and a bomb on his chest puts in a very decent debut effort.

The best part of Blank is its story which opens with a interesting premises a man is caught with a bomb on his chest connected to his heart beat. Not just this killing him can bring in further loss of lives , how? that would be a spoiler. Who is the brain behind this man or is this man the villain himself are the questions that this whole movie is all about.

Blank is not the kind of suspense film which make it to the classic list but it is worth your money if you keep your expectations in check. That in itself should be a pleasant surprise for the fans of the biggest deol since 1990.

A full three stars and hoping this brings Sunny Deol some good news at the box office.

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