Brothers

Rating : 3/10
Release Date : 14th August, 2015
Time : 158 minutes
Director: Karan Malhotra; Writer: Siddharth-Garima based on the movie Warrior, written by Gavin O’Connor and Cliff Dorfman; Music : Ajay-Atul
Starring : Akshay Kumar, Siddharth Malhotra, Jackie Shroff, Shefali Shah, Jacqueline Fernandez



Most Hindi films suffer from the curse of the second half, where they aren’t able to sustain the story, dialogue all the way through. Not this one. Brothers has one of the worst first halves I’ve ever seen – we are introduced to alcoholism, death, ‘Masoom’-like, estranged step-brothers, a jailed father, kidney failure, financial debt, hallucinations – and, yes, there is maybe 5 minutes worth of fighting too. No one smiles in the entire pre-interval portion and it’s dull, dreary, melancholic, downright depressive, and also, from a story point of view, completely unnecessary. And then, the second half, thankfully, is all about the fighting – though even here they lose no opportunity to bring in the emotional angle…

Story-wise, it’s just enough to say that Jackie Shroff is the father, an ex-fighter and an alcoholic. Shefali Shah, the long suffering mom, Jackie’s wife. Akshay, the elder son, married to Jacqueline (in a non-existent role). And Siddharth Malhotra is the younger (literally) brother from another mother (the Masoom angle). When Jackie is released from jail, two things are clear – a businessman has got permission from the government to bring the sport of MMA (mixed martial arts) to India (kind of legalizing street fighting). And, one brother is not talking to the other or the father… Next thing we know (and after just one street fight each & no core fighting /marital art skill), both the brothers are amongst ten elite fighters from all over the world, chosen for the first finals in Mumbai, competing for a Rs 9 crore prize.

Now, because they spent the entire first half in the soppy stuff, we know none of the other fighters, which makes it drearily predictable in terms of the outcome…

The fight scenes aren’t bad but because we don’t really care for anyone, it’s quite boring in a sense. Rajrendranath Zutshi (remember him from Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak?) as a sports commentator, at least brings a touch of levity and vigour to the proceedings. The performances are half-decent, the songs are terrible, and the item number (with Kareena Kapoor) one of the most ridiculous in terms of either the lyrics, music or choreography.

This is the official remake of Warrior (I haven’t seen it) but I think it’s telling that the original’s length is 100 minutes while this one is bloated by a full, unnecessary hour. I know everyone in the film industry thinks Indian cine-goers need more emotion, drama – but perhaps not by that much or that depressing ?

Mission Impossible : Rogue Nation

Rating : 7/10
Release Date : 7th August, 2015
Time : 133 minutes
Director, Writer: Christopher McQuarrie; Co-Writer: Drew Pearce based on the Television series by Bruce Geller; Music : Joe Kraemer
Starring : Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Jeremy Renner, Ving Rhames, Sean Harris, Tom Hollander, Jens Hulten, Alec Baldwin



It’s an impossible storyline where we watch guys do impossible stunts. But you know what ? We actually have fun, especially with the familiar pulsating theme in the background. Tom Cruise may be older but he’s still got it and Rebecca Ferguson, the Swedish siren, is just va-va-voom !

Tom Cruise and his unit, the IMF, are chasing The Syndicate. Who, in turn, are chasing them and are on to their methods. Back home, Alec Baldwin, head of the CIA, is keen to wrap up the IMF and bring it under his wing. And both, he and the chilling Sean Harris, head of the Syndicate, seem to have a special ‘fondness’ for Tom…

Apart from the well-publicized plane take-off scene with Tom Cruise, there are a few marquee action scenes – a knife fight between Rebecca and Jens Hulten, a high-octane, exhilarating motorcycle chase… And, of course, the one set piece ‘impossible’ heist, which was really over the top. What I like about Cruise is that, even though he looks older, he still feels credible, at least to a degree, knowing that he does his stunts himself. And Rebecca was a revelation – face, expressions, performance, figure – she has it all !

The story is almost laughable in terms of what we’re expected to believe. The face mask trick works just too easily, even with various world leaders, but it’s a good, fun roller-coaster ride, with plenty of thrills and spills. Not often I say this, in many series / franchises, but I wouldn’t mind another one…

Bajrangi Bhaijaan

Rating : 5/10
Release Date : 17th July, 2015
Time : 159 minutes
Director: Kabir Khan; Writer: Vijayendra Prasad; Music : Pritam (background by Julius Packham)
Starring : Salman Khan, Harshaali Malhotra, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sharat Saxena, Om Puri, Rajesh Sharma



If you’re prepared to go past an implausible premise, a lack of logic overall and see a tear-jerker kind of drama, laced with good intentions and a good heart (like our hero), but the same old (especially when it comes to the India – Pakistan theme) and strangely a Salman who behaves most unlike his normal screen avatar (throws four punches in the entire film, goes shirtless only once) and has the expression shown below for 80% of the film…. Then you are a better man than I am, Gunga Din…

Harshaali, a mute girl of 6, is lost in India, left behind by her sleeping mother. She somehow lands up with Salman Khan, just as an uncle in Pakistan consoles her sobbing mother with ‘Koi to nek banda milega use Hindustan mein’ (yes, it’s that cheesy a film). He looks after her, takes her to his future father in law’s place (Sharat Saxena) but then when they discover she is from Pakistan and on being given an ultimatum by his To-be-FIL, he vows to deliver her by himself to her home…

Kareena provides support in India and Nawazuddin does the same in Pakistan – both delivering strong performances – Kareena looking spunky, gorgeous (she’s always had this all knowing, superior kind of look, which suits her here) and Nawaz providing a touch of reality to Salman’s bravado – the response to any challenge is ‘Main Bajrang bali ka bhakt hoon’, which means he wont lie, sneak in, do anything bad or anything that is common-sensical and will bow in front of every simian creature he sees…

The film, more so in the second half, stretches, elongates and uses every trick in the book to try to wring a tear or two from your eyes. Especially with the tried and tested theme of how the people in India and Pakistan are but one, torn asunder by the armed forces and distrust.

Gorgeous visuals are Kabir Khan’s trademark and this movie doesn’t disappoint on that front. The songs are quite ordinary – maybe one which resonates (a bit because it plays in the background and doesn’t halt the story) and no, it isn’t the one with Adnan Sami (found that a bit pretentious). The best part of the film is the early bit in Pakistan when Nawaz is helping them on the run – the humour is subtle but comes through, especially the ‘aur thoda nazakat se’.

Wish the second half had more of that and an editor who could’ve comfortably reduced about half an hour of its current 159 minutes. It’s not a bad film, way better than say Bodyguard or Ready – but its just a little flat, maybe because the makers try so hard, with moist eyes and a jam-packed background score, to make us feel !

Baahubali

Rating : 7/10
Release Date : 10th July, 2015
Time : 159 minutes
Director: SS Rajamouli; Writer: V Vijayendra Prasad; Music : M M Keeravani
Starring : Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Tamannaah, Anushka Shetty, Ramya Krishnan, Sathyaraj, Nassar



Karan Arjun (with a dash of Johar) meets Telegu film sensibilities meets Game of Thrones in a romantic, period drama, action thriller. Good fun, if you’re a fan of the genre and don’t mind being entertained emotionally (and loudly) vs logically…

Simplistic storyline goes somewhat like this. Young baby, carried by noble lady (Ramya Krishnan), is chased by bloodthirsty soldiers at the bottom of a giant, humungous waterfall. The baby, the only survivor, is adopted by a tribal chieftain but always yearns to go on top of the waterfall. After repeated failures, succeeds one day, when he’s grown to be a young, strong man (Prabhas), inspired by a feminine wooden mask, which falls from above. He finds another world at the top – revolutionaries (including his female, Tamannaah), struggling to overthrow a tyrant king (Rana Daggubati), who is protected by a loyal chieftain (Sathyaraj), sworn to protect the throne, despite his disapproval of the way he treats and has imprisoned an old lady, Anushka Shetty, who is awaiting the arrival of her supposedly dead son to avenge her…

Now, at every step of the way, add in hyper-emotion and hyperbole, and you get some sense of what awaits you…

Great special effects (think almost, about 60-70% The Mummy level) and our instantly likeable hero, Prabhas (switches seamlessly from romance to action at the flick of a switch), keep us entertained even when the story drags a bit. The dubbing feels a bit odd at first but you get used to it pretty soon. Tamannaah (could this spelling, be, anymore complicated?), luckily has dresses shorter than her name, and does justice to her fighter revolutionary role too. Sathyaraj & Ramya are very impressive, as is Rana in role in which he matches the hero step by step for the most part.

Period dramas, if done right, not only inspire awe and grandeur but also help transport you to other realms. A measure that they did succeed comes from the fact that you almost feel cheated when you realize that this is the first part of a two part series...and the story is left tantalizingly poised at an intriguing juncture…

Minions

Rating : 8/10
Release Date : 10th July, 2015
Time : 159 minutes
Director: Kyle Balda, Pierre Coffin; Writer: Brian Lynch; Music : Heitor Pereira
Starring : (Voices of) : Pierre Coffin, Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, Jennifer Saunders, Geoffrey Rush, Michael Keaton, Allison Janney Steve Coogan



Non-stop silliness that makes you laugh. Very loudly.

It’s hard to describe what exactly made you laugh. But its great fun, as the adorable Minions, search for an evil master leads them from Arctic regions to America (and a Villain convention) and on to England. Encountering, along the way polar bears, an adorable bank robbing family and the deliciously devilish Scarlett (Sandra Bullock), who, along with her husband Herb (Jon Hamm), has grand plans, involving the Queen, to crown her villainy…

The movie belongs to the Minions though, notably three, Kevin, Stuart and Bob – who leave the rest of the pack in an ice cave – while they travel in their hunt for the heinous. Kevin is the leader of the pack, Stuart, a guitarist who involuntarily signed up for the mission and Bob, the enthusiastic baby of the group…

The music, the jokes, the slapstick humour, the comic timing – make it a rollercoaster ride, but one which, thanks to the gobblydegook language of our Minions, makes it very hard to recount in a review. Was it the escape from a polar bear, the banana hallucination, Stuart’s guitar obsession, the old Royal guard protecting the Crown Jewels, the hypnotic operatic dance, Scarlett’s bedtime story, the sight of the Queen having a pint, the unintentional ways the Minion’s lose their leader or the way the pack tries to find their intrepid three explorers…somewhere in all of that lies the answer to what makes you laugh so hard…on several occasions…

It does stretch a bit in the second half but still fun nonetheless. Go indulge the child in you…

Five Lessons For Writers inspired by Game of Thrones / George RR Martin

My musings today morning on LinkedIn

Five Lessons for Writers

Guddu Rangeela

Rating : 5/10
Release Date : 3rd July, 2015
Time : 122 minutes
Director, Writer: Subhash Kapoor; Music : Hitesh Sonik
Starring : Arshad Warsi, Amit Sadh, Aditi Rao Hydari, Ronit Roy, Rajiv Gupta



It got too serious, especially in the second half, that too with a flawed plot

The first fifteen minutes were fun – an orchestra band run by Arshad Warsi (Rangeela) and Amit Sadh (Guddu), singing songs like Mata Ka Email for jagrans, scoping houses for robbers, Amit leching furiously while checking out the residence, sadhu’s enjoying a game of football, having posters of Messi, Ronaldo alongside their gods, robbery with funny masks, multiple robbers landing up on the same premises…it was all fun and games, making subtle points about the kind of society we’ve become…

Then arrives our villain (Ronit Roy), the man Arshad is seeking revenge against, a toughie who does the dirty work for our hypocritical, moralistic khaap panchayats, and the mood changes. Enter a new cop (Amit Sial), a new compulsion, a shady character, Dibyendu, a kind of informer, who has a simple plot for kidnapping a girl, Aditi, and solving all the problems in one go… but nothing is what it seems…

Till the end of the first half, things are nicely set-up. But then it rapidly begins to slide downhill. Gets too serious, too complicated and too flawed.

Arshad is very good in his comic moments, emotes well and is overall fine except when you suddenly make him a superhero type, beating / shooting a bunch of villains away – that just doesn’t seem right. Amit Sadh is good – he suits this side-kick kind of role, with the lechery, small town act, as is Aditi who moves from being hapless girl to being partner in crime with practiced ease. The whole romance between Aditi and Amit is rushed, quite unnecessary, doesn’t ring quite right. Dibyendu, for me, didn’t quite get his character right, but special mention of Rajiv Gupta, as the simple, fun-loving number two cop, who did and continued to be the entertainment quotient whenever on screen.

Unlike Subhash Kapoor’s previous film, Jolly LLB, which got the balance between humour, plot and seriousness right, this one flounders between the three, especially in the second half. There was a better story to be had with characters as richly drawn as Guddu Rangeela – one with a lot more fun and a lot more subtle points re the khaap panchayats, not the sledgehammer used in this one. I normally give an extra rating point, if the message is right / heart is in the right place, guess here am too disappointed to do so.