Kites Movie Review | The Critique

Google withe Kites+Hindi+Movie and you will find umpteen reviews bashing the movie rejecting almost everything about it. Well, I am not here to praise it. But somehow, I believe that the movie isn't that pathetic as it is being made out to be. They worked hard on this movie but failed to deliver to stand upto the hype being created.

Lets talk about the story. Its weak and totally out of focus. J is a person who forges fake marriages to earn some extra bucks and Linda gets into US by wedding J. She does it for green card. Now, in present J is in relation with a girl Jina, daughter of a bigshot of Las Vegas. In a party, he comes to know that Linda is fiancee of Jina's brother Tony. As expected, Linda (now Natasha) and J falls in love and runaway. Tony, the bad guy is chasing them to hell.

The framework of the story wasn't that bad. They just forgot working on it. Linda and J worked for money since day one, but one night of light romance convince them to runaway kicking the big man. That might have convinced Hrithik but not the viewers. The chemistry between Barbara and Hrithik was missing. It was superficial though apparently they tried their best. Kangana was pathetic in the small guest role she had.

Action was cool. Some sequences were really applaudable but overall fell short of perfection. Anyways, the action team deserve some applause for it. Performance wise Hrithik was average and Barbara was beep. She was a showpiece and lets judge by that standard only. Music, ok. Background score a bit over. Overall, movie... you can give it a miss if you are not a Hrithik fan.

Rating: 2/5 (I am being a bit lenient)

UTTKRISHTT 2010 : POLL FOR THE GREATEST HINDI MOVIES IS ON...

Hello Everyone…

As promised, we are doing something special this edition onwards: Uttkrishtt List Of Greatest Movies. Every year, in second edition we will bring up a list of movies and you will have the right to select the most awesome ones. To begin with, we are having THE UTTKRISHTT LIST OF GREATEST HINDI MOVIES.

We have devised a very complex methodology to rate the movies and the methodology takes care of following points:

1. Our online visitor’s choice, Friends with who have been sharing their kind views for the betterment of TRM and our TRM panelists including the members. The distribution of votes’ weightage will be 30:30:40.

2. There will be a premium added to the votes of old movies. Say a movie of ’60 will get a premium of some value over a movie of ’90. This is being done because it is heavily speculated that viewers of old movies will be less than those of new.

We have created a list for poll constituting 75 movies and will pick top 50 for the UTTKRISHTT LIST based on your votes. The selection of these movies has been done on following merits:

1. Popularity

2. Entertainment Value

3. Impact On Society

4. Development Of Cinema As An Art

5. Overall Experience

We would like to apologies for missing a few names in advance and for letting some really good movies go because to have a good and complete list of great ones, you always need to do a trade-off. We have tried to make our list as exhaustive and inclusive as possible and I hope that after reading the names making it to top 75, even you will feel that keeping any one out might have been a sin.

The voting will start as soon as list goes live and will continue till July 31, 2010. The results will be declared on 16th Aug in our edition. Hope that you will vote for the movies you loved and will be critical of your choice as much as possible.

Love and care…


Sujoy Ghosh

Angry ‘Vijay’ Characters | Under Lens

Amitabh Bachchan has lived the name Vijay innumerous times. With time, the name aged as a symbol of youth and rebellion. From Zanjeer to Agnipath, AB has donned the name and the color of rage many times with great charm.

In Zanjeer, he is a cop who is filled with ethics and anger against a person who wears a special bracelet. He is the villain. As a young cop he weeds out the criminals and poses a threat to that very person. Vijay is an ideal character in Hindi cinema. He fights against the criminals but don’t hesitate in helping ones who promise to change their ways. This once goes against him and on the other hand creates an iconic friend who stays with him till the end.

In ’75 saga Deewar, he is a coolie turned criminal. He is inherently a good person who indulges into the world of crime to earn all the luxuries of life. He has suffered so much that the difference between wrong and right is very minuscule for him. He is a criminal brother of a cop who prefers rags over tainted riches. The character loosely based on Haaji Mastan, is one of the most remembered images of Angry Young Man… Shashi Kapoor might have mother, AB had the whole movie with him.

Agnipath Agnipath Agnipath… Whenever AB has to recite a dialogue of his choice, he starts with Vijay Dinanath Chauhan. Why? Agnipath perhaps was the dusk of Angry Young Man’s Amitabh version but still made an unforgettable image of the character. His father was fixed by a local goon by sabotage and he vows to take revenge. He grows into a big don of Mumbai and begins his journey of bringing respect to his dead father. His principles are ethical and he is a righteous person in a wrong business. Very similar to his role in Deewar, though this is a loud avatar.

Looking forward to more such characters… see you.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Hurt Locker Mini Movie Review | Critique

Rating – 4 Stars

Going in for the movie I expected it to be a very serious affair. I was pleasantly surprised that it had humor, although sarcastic humor. Film opens with a hard hitting scene that prepares the audience for what is in store ahead.

‘Hurt Locker’ presents the story of US army bomb disposal squad, operating in Iraq. The story takes us through different encounters of bombs in some intensely gripping sequences. Head of this team is William James (Jeremy Renner), who is reckless in his approach but is a master nevertheless at disposing bombs. It is actually the humor in between and the whacky characterization of James that keeps the movie from getting too serious.

Verdict-One of the best films of the year, but will not appeal to everybody.

Written By: Ali Naqvi

Badmaash Company Mini Movie Review | Critique

Rating-2.5 stars

Badmaash Company, in its first half delivers exactly as was expected. It is smart, fun filled ride. Second half gets preachy about morals, but that does NOT work. It gets boring.

BC is the story of 4 College-goers in the 90’s who plan to become rich quick by crook. There plan is smart and it works. Once successful they plan out and execute bigger cons. In time, Shahid, the mastermind of the group, starts to feel that he is invincible and in the process alienates his group members.

Talking about the performances every actor performs average. It leaves the audience with the feeling, that movie could have been much better.

Verdict-If you have to watch it, watch it for the first half.

Written  By: Ali Naqvi

Raavan by A R Rahman | Music Review

I dont know if its destiny or pure coincidence that I am coming back on ReelMag reviewing my favorite, A.R.Rahman's work , that too for Maniratnam, which is ofcourse not by chance that His best music has been reserved for him. It’s largely traditional folk-based music, with a modern touch but it will take time to grow on you.

1. Beera : Congo beats welcome you to the world of Beera, the main character. Lyrics by Gulzar are situational and might be more appreciated after the release of the movie. Singing by Vijay, Mustafa are first class with vocals by Keerthi adding drama to the track. A typical Rahman’s experimental with fusion of Indian and Afro music.


2. Behne de : A slow start song, but as it gains pace, oozes melody from start to end. Gulzar’s striking metaphors are a treat to listen to and visualize. Karthik has given his best performance ably supported by Mohamed Irfan.

3. Thok de Khilli : A mixing pot of dholaks, guitars & shenai, takes a start as a dance number. Sukhwinder Singh adding his exotically rich voice and energy with an Arabic essence in the in-between phrases. But not a hit in the offering.

4. Ranjha Ranjha : My favorite in album, fusion of peppy modern beats and traditional folk. Rekha Bharadwaj’s sufi type chanting of "Ranjha Ranjha" is phenomenal blended very well with Javed Ali’s voice and amazingly written lyrics by Gulzar.The richness of Rahman’s music is undescribable.

5. Khilli Re : The only romantic track in album. It is a mix of contemporary music with retro, quite reminiscent of the 80s romantic songs. Lyrically it has nothing special to offer but melodiously crooned by the first-timer Reena Bhardawaj.

6. Kata Kata : A distinct Rajasthani folk has the essence of euphoria with layer upon layer of mind-boggling notes. The multi-faceted singers energize the song, thanks to the folksy lyrics.

Raavan music has variety, class and rustic flavor that deserves repeated listening to be fully appreciated. But one thing, which never before happened with Rahman, that some songs have some similarity to one of his previous compositions, Ranjha – Maiya (guru), Kata – Azeem o shaan (jodha akbar), Behne de – Tu meri (jaane tu).
 
Written By: Neha Jain

Housefull The Review | The Critique

Rating: 1/5

Waste… if a five letter word can describe the movie, this would be it. Man, you had an average story that could have been sculpted into a nice watchable movie and you added so many unnecessary spices… my question is why the hell?? Akshay Kumar, Reitesh Deshmukh and Sajid Khan trio means mindless-laugh-riot but the somehow just ruined it. I missed AK of Bhool Bhulaiya and Hera Pheri.

A boy aka bad-luck gets married to a girl who runs away with her boyfriend and finally meets his love of life. Now, he needs to make his brother-in-law happy and also, unscrew the screwed–up life of his friend and his wife. Obviously, he succeeds. Seems an okay-okay plot? Yeah. Now, big question where it went wrong? Akshay as the I-am-bad-luck alias Panauti is the real problem. He is doing things he should not and that performance is not making viewers laugh at all. Reitesh is messed up. Arjun, as usual plastic. Deepika and Lara did nothing except flaunting their bodies. I think they did justice to their roles as show-pieces.

Excessive use of irritating “panauti” in background ruins everything spared. Every time you hear that word, you feel like cussing. Music is average adnd direction is weak. God bless the movie… Infact there was a particular good scene in the movie… the boy next to me in theatre later told that it was trailer of Raajneeti.

 ;-)

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Fresh Edition...

Greatest Hindi Movies Poll: Coming soon... | Editor's Pen

I hope that you people loved the Adam Sandler Special…

Cinema is always a beautiful experience. Some days back, I was watching Waqt (Balraj Sahni, Raj Kumar, Sunil Dutt and Shashi Kapoor starrer) for the nth time. The court scene was going on Sunil Dutt was in full flow. Even after watching the scene so many times, I was unable to resist the temptation to rewind and have another look. So dramatic and so passionate. There was a fire in his performance that almost overshadowed Raj Kumar demeanor. And the way family united in last 5-6 minutes was something that cannot happen anywhere but the presentation is so convincing that you can ignore materialistic truth that fate is never so generous. In my opinion, Waqt is one of the three torch-holders of Indian Cinema with Sholay and DDLJ.

Somebody said to us that keep experimenting and here we are… bringing out our next ambitious task – TRM List Of Greatest Hindi Movies. In coming edition we will bring out a big list and you can be a part of the mission to select Top 50 movies out of that list. I hope you have a lot to say… so please keep saying…

Love...

Sujoy Ghosh

Viruddh | The Critique

Jessica Lal Murder case and similar incidents have inspired many movies, Viruddh is one of them. Largely inspired and beautifully written, movie is very straightforward in story telling without anything that can be edited after the final print released. Director Mahesh Manjrekar is credited with some great works of cinema like Vaastav and Astitva, and Viruddh is in the same league.

An old couple is living a peaceful life and to add more pleasure, their son comes to India from London with his girlfriend. Happily couple gets them married. Everything is pictured perfect till now but not after that… On eve of his birthday, son gets killed outside a pub while saving some girl. Aghast at the episode, couple lodges complain against a bigshot who with the help of his links proves that their son was a drug peddler. Now, what will the old couple do? Live with the stigma that their son was a criminal. It’s an insult to their son who was perfect in all possible ways.

Amitabh Bachchan as father Vidyadhar and Sharmila as the strict yet loving mother Sumitra was perfect as couple. The chemistry between them was just perfect. May be I underestimate it when I say perfect. The small fights and sweet romance were the moments of first half while their care for each other was simply spectacular performance-wise. Sanjay Dutt’s role as a neighbor was a small one but his impact was outstanding. His support shaped the climax. John was apt. This was one of his better performances.

Watch this movie to see this scene… In a tough moment, when both Vidya and Sumitra are about to cry, Vidya asks for tea. Sumitra leaves and cries in isolation. Next scene, Vidya and Sumitra comes to bedroom and Vidya asks for tea. Sumitra says that she forgot about it. Vidya says that he no longer wants it. Such scene might have been repeated in Indian Cinema umpteen times but the chemistry between the two legends is simply incomparable.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Few Memorable Angry Characters Of Cinema | Under Lens

Bhaskar Bannerjee (Movie: Anand): Some characters support the lead and end up as good as the lead itself. If somebody remembers Anand, he will also remember Babu Moshai. He is a character who is a doctor frustrated by the entire system. He sees people dying of diseases and despite of doing everything possible, cannot make a difference. The introductory scene in which he visits slums, performance is simply out of this world. His strength is his goodness and that is infact eating him up inside. Anand is destined to arrive to save him from self-immolation.

Happy Gilmore (Movie: Happy Gilmore): Happy and angry? If anybody has seen this movie, you cannot forget the ice-hockey player turned golfer and his mannerisms on course. He is messed up in his life because, he has no career, his home is mortgaged at IRS and he has literally no direction. He wants to play ice-hockey, not because he is good at it but because he loves it. He is playing golf because he needs money… and even there, he is good at long shots but pathetic when it comes to finishing. While he is trying hard, there are people who are making him even angrier. Funny movie spun around an angry character ironically named Happy. Adam Sandler just rocked…

Arjun (Movie: Arjun): A nagging mother, non-supportive father, no job and above all, he has ethics that stops him to go in the wrong direction. He is full of anger and doesn’t know where his anger can lead him to. Arjun was one of the most charming characters Sunny Deol played in his career. He is innocent and very powerful inside. He is emotional but that’s his strength, not weakness. As an actor, Sunny marveled in this role and set a new benchmark of “Angry Young Man” as the era was witnessing Bachchan’s decline as the champion of such roles.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

Bommarillu | The Critique

What does a man desire in his life? A happy family but sometimes people get so much involved in making things better for family members that they tend to forget that even these members have an identity of their own outside their circle of influence. Bommarillu is a fun-family drama with three major characters- Siddhu (son-Siddhartha), Aravind (the influential father- Prakash Raj) and Hasini (sweetheart of Siddhu- Genelia).

Directed by Bhaskar, in this telugu movie, relationship between an overprotecting father and a frustrated son is beautiful;ly depicted. Aravind wants to ensure that everything goes right with the lives of his family members including his son Siddhu and on the other hand, Siddhu wants to live life on his own accord. He wants to do business independently and marry girl of his choice. As the fate would have liked it, Siddhu fells in love with a sweet girl, Hasini who lives the life the way she wants. She is a bit careless in many ways but by all means is enjoying her life to the full. When Aravind comes to know about this love story, he asks the girl to stay with family for a week and if everything goes fine, then he will not have any issue.

Unaware of the father-son complex relationship, in a week of stay Hasini finds that Siddhu is a bit different. He is always under pressure and she realises that if things remain like this even after marriage, it will be very difficult for her. So, she says no to Siddhu… Will ever Aravind realise that his caring nature towards his family has done much damage to their indiviodual personalities and how will everything become perfect between Siddhu and Hasini is really watchable…

Bommarillu boasts of a good story backed with some really good performances. Prakash Raj’s performance is a high of the movie. Comedy is just appropriate and so is drama. An overdose of either would have ruined the whole cinematic experience.

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh