The Amazing Spiderman (English)

A decade after the last ‘Spider-Man’ movie series starring Tobey Maguire and Sam Raimi came up; Sony Pictures have churned up a franchise reboot. With fresh faces and a new director, Marc Webb, Spiderman has become more realistic as it gets closer to its comic book roots and hits the screens with far more exciting stunts.

The story traces the character’s origins, his transition from a shy, nerdy and aloof schoolboy, Peter Parker to a superhero, Spiderman. One day in the boring life of Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield), he stumbles upon a lost research piece on cross-species genetics his dead father was working on. In an effort to find out what happened to his father, he reaches his former collaborator Dr Curt Connors at Oscorp.

Connors (Rhys Ifans) is working on a cure for his lost arm based on repties’ ability to grow new limbs and is under pressure from the corporate honcho Rajit Ratha (Irrfan Khan) to deliver results. Things go terribly wrong when Connors tests the new genetic concoction on himself and turns into the ‘Lizard’. Meanwhile, Parker has been bitten by a genetically altered spider and gains superhuman strength and spider skills.

The bulk of the 132 minute runtime is spent on how Parker comes into terms with his new powers, how losing Uncle Ben prompts him to turn superhero, his runs-in with the law and having some fun handling school bullies; all this when he is not busy with his girlfriend Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone). Towards the end, when the challenge of saving the city from the Lizard emerges, Spiderman is ready for the challenge.

After watching reboots, it is impossible to resist the temptation to compare the film with the previous versions, especially since they were successful in the past. Per se, it would be unfair to compare special effects since technology improves with the passing of time. Even otherwise, the latest edition is better than its predecessor.

One, better cast: Andrew Garfield (from ‘Facebook’ fame) gives a more realistic Peter Parker without making him look like a wimp as Maguire did. And it’s great that the series bid goodbye to Kirsten Dunst who didn’t look one bit like a superhero’s girlfriend. Emma stone who was seen recently in ‘The Help’ is an apt choice as Parker’s girl and confidante. The lead pair share some great on-screen chemistry.

The lead pair is effectively complemented by the villain in Rhys Ifans, Martin Sheen playing the father-figure Uncle Ben, Sally Field as Aunt May and Dennis Leary as Captain Stacy. Irrfan Khan’s role is best described as understated but effective. Surely, it’s way better than Anil Kapoor’s unfunny gig in Mission Impossible 4.

The second key improvement is the emphasis on Parker’s intellect as he uses technology to spin webs like in the comic books where he gets his natural web much later. Thridly, the transition from a regular kid to Spiderman is handled well. The subway train scene and the one in the abandoned shipyard are very well done.

A notable absence in the new film is Parker’s employer ‘The Daily Bugle’ and its editor who portrays spiderman negatively in the media. Here, he has a disbeliever in the local police chief Captain Stacy who also happens to be Gwen’s father. The famous line by Uncle Ben ‘with great power comes great responsibility’ is missing too.

The film is not without shortcomings. The weirdest thing is that the high-security Oscorp building seems to allow unfettered access to interns who seem to know everything that happens there; pretty amazing huh? In the climax scene, he may have lost his webbing machine, but why does he find it difficult to cling to surfaces?

Every relaunch attracts a new segment of the audience and so would this latest edition of Spiderman. What’s best is that the film-makers have ensured that the usual Hollywood superhero movie fans are kept happy too. For all the exciting action it has to offer with minimal drama sans sentimental garbage, ‘The Amazing Spiderman’ is a go!

Rating 7/10: Refreshing reboot with great lead-pair chemistry!

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Aashiqui 2 (Hindi)

For starters, I really wonder if this was actually a movie themed on love or was it a two hour plus lesson on ill-effects of alcohol addiction. Guess what, I haven’t been able to figure it out yet! The sequel to the 1990 musical hit ‘Aashiqui’ doesn’t match up to expectations. Here’s why:

The film begins at the scene of a rock concert by a fallen star Rahul Jayakar (Aditya Roy Kapoor) whose best days are already behind him and he is now suffering from heavy alcohol addiction that often gets him into trouble. After an incident that disrupts the concert, he drives around Goa, rams his car into a tree and goes around looking for booze. He then spots Arohi singing at a bar, discovers that she dreams of being the next Lata Mangeshkar and feels that she has the potential to get there.

The film actually never explains why Rahul is insanely addicted to alcohol, something that even true love can’t cure unlike what we see in most films. Here, one would also be reminded of ‘Woh Lamhe’ where a character’s troubles take her down the drain. In ‘Aashiqui 2’ though, it gets ridiculous at times, where the protagonist guzzles one bottle after another, neat, at a frequency as if it were plain water. And despite that, he hardly looks drunk. Rather, the actor was quite bad at playing drunk.

Continuing with the story, Arohi soon tastes success as a playback singer and wins the award for the best singer of the year, an event where he makes an unceremonious exit, and ends up drunk on his penthouse’s terrace. He is concerned about his problems having effect on her success. And despite this, Arohi chooses him over success saying that any success without him is of no avail.

‘Aashiqui 2’ can also remind you of Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s 1973 film ‘Abhimaan’ where a singer, Amitabh Bachchan’s character finds talent in Jaya Bachchan’s. Then they fall in love, and the green monster of jealousy strikes him when she becomes more successful. Despite some resemblance, ‘Aashiqui 2’ is more about Rahul coming to terms with his reality, building his dreams on Arohi and encouraging her to do better and his problems are drinking and unable to handle his fall well.

On acting, Aditya Roy Kapoor is decent but is not convincing enough. Surely, he has a bigger potential than what Director Mohit Suri has explored in this film. Shaad Randhawa who plays Vivek, his long time friend and manager is good. Some of the worst actors are those who played Arohi’s parents.

Shraddha Kapoor is good with emotional scenes and enacts the from-the-bottom-of-the-heart kind of love with all earnest. Her girl-next-door looks make her perfect for her role. Her performance is an improvement over her debut film ‘Luv Ka The End’. If you didn’t know it yet, she is the daughter of Shakti Kapoor and niece of Padmini Kolhapure. Obviously she got her looks from her mother.

What works is its 90’s charm of sweet love stories that aren’t about selfish backstabbing romances or suspense thrillers we see today. Neither does Rahul’s character despise her success at the cost of his own fall from grace, nor does Arohi dump him even when her career looks bright and his drinking problem is too much to handle. It’s about stories where they are willing to put everything aside for the sake of love with utmost honesty. Songs ‘Tum Hi Ho’ & ‘Sun Raha Hai’ are nice and are popular already.

Where it fails are some clichéd scenes and dialog. The situation of the girl’s parents over-the-top dramatic and what was the need for Rahul’s dad’s voice-over through phone calls? Also, a girl who sings his songs for a living can’t recognize him in one scene and she later recognizes him all of a sudden. And the scene from his apartment clearly isn’t Mumbai. Was an overseas location really necessary?

Still, there are a couple of scenes stand out as exceptions where Mohit Suri’s directorial talent is seen such as; ‘Tum Hi Ho’ song, Rahul’s exchanges with Vivek , his pep talk with Arohi before her first big recording. The one that takes the cake though is Rahul and Arohi’s conversation across the door.

The Verdict: If you are sucker for love stories, you’ll love the mushy element. If you only liked a couple of songs and care not about the rest, better watch the songs on YouTube. For those who detest Bollywood romances, keep away from it. Nonetheless, despite a few slippages here and there, the honest story and the deep love they portray keeps the film from totally going down the drain.

Rating 4/10: Master Class on Alcohol Addiction garnished with songs  

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Bombay Talkies (Hindi)

May 03, 1913 marked the day when motion picture was born in India, the day that Dadasaheb Phalke’s silent film ‘Raja Harishchandra’ was released. A bit of trivia there is that the female roles in the film were also played by male actors, and the acting talent was drawn from theatre.

Till date, the influence of theatre, and especially the roots from Sanksrit drama still play up in Bollywood’s films. Surely, we love all the extra drama, sometimes characters yelling out lines as if they were on a stage before mikes were invented and the truly inimitable song and dance.

And a film that is supposed to pay a tribute to a century of celluloid adventures of Bollywood that have enthralled not only Indians but even those abroad, ought to have been better. What was supposed to have been an extravagant celebration of cinema merely ends up like a moist firecracker.

‘Bombay Talkies’ is about four independent stories, directed by four reputed Bollywood directors, Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar & Anurag Kashyap. Any analysis of the movie would have to be broken up across each of these four short stories, rather short films of 30 minutes each.

#1 Ajeeb Dastaan Hain Yeh by Karan Johar has an urban couple Gayatri (Rani Mukherjee) and Dev (Randeep Hooda) whose lives go for a toss when a young gay intern Avinash (Saqib Saleem) enters their lives. The very predictable ending and the men kissing each other has a shock value and the story has actually no connection to the overarching theme of cinema or the centennial anniversary.

#2 Star by Dibakar Banerjee is probably the better one of the lot. It has Nawazuddin Siddiqui as Purandar who has failed at business and employment. Just then, out of the blue, comes an opportunity to act as an extra where he shares screen-space with a big star. This brings out the inner theatre actor in him that had starred in a couple of plays after his father, also an actor had passed away. The animated enactment that he performs for his daughter at the end is indeed very touching.

#3 Sheila Ki Jawaani by Zoya Akhtar is about a little boy called Vicky (Naman Jain) who is attracted to the idea of dressing up as a girl and yearns to be a dancer a la ‘Sheila’ from ‘Tees Maar Khan’. His father (Ranvir Shorey) is obviously annoyed at the idea. Nevertheless, the boy is supported by his sister. This segment has a cameo by Katrina Kaif who extols the idea of following one’s dreams. Still can’t really figure out whether there was even the remotest possibility of it being linked to the centennial.

#4 Murabba by Anurag Kashyap is quite decent. A young man from Allahabad, Vijay who, as per his ailing father’s wishes visits Mumbai to feed a Murabba to Amitabh Bachchan. He hangs around his Bungalow like many others who stand there for hours for a fleeting ‘darshan’ of the super-star. His money is drying up and he needs to hurry! On a stand-alone basis it would have made a good short film that on one hand, exalts the stars and then in the end, exposes the pointlessness of all fandom.

 Did you know? There was a real studio called ‘Bombay Talkies’ in Mumbai from 1934 to 1954 and produced 102 movies. It was a public limited company that was listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange. Founded by actor Himanshu Rai and financed by Rajnarayan Dube, some of the names associated with this marquee include Devika Rani, Ashok Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Mehmood Ali, Madhubala & Dilip Kumar.

The movie itself, however is absolutely underwhelming and leaves you a feeling of why did you even choose to watch this film. Some of the situations in some stories are so contrived, convenient and at times inappropriate too. One striking example of the absurdity comes from the first story, where an intern has the gall to make a first conversation loaded with innuendos to the assistant editor in his office. That is just one of the many things that won’t fit into any reasonable logic, outright.

Verdict: ‘Bombay Talkes’ is your typical pseudo-intellectual film. So, if you have a thing for parallel cinema, this is just the film for you. But, in the context of the occasion, it just not a film that pays tribute to a hundred years of Indian cinema. Only for that reason, I rate it as film that struggles to even make it to ‘average’. The montage of all the stars in the end, which is actually a bunch of green-screen stuff put together, doesn’t help either. So, don’t waste your money on this one!

Rating 4/10: Bollywood’s Centennial deserved a better tribute

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Ek Tha Tiger (Hindi)

Describe a typical love story: It begins as Boy meets Girl, they don't like each other initially, but love blossoms; then parents oppose and then the couple runs away. But they are chased by both the families who are out to finish them off. Now, just scale-up the scene to two countries, instead of families and you get 'Ek Tha Tiger'.

Timed for release on Eid, Salman's presence ensures a big collection at the box office, irrespective of how the movie actually turns out. Most multiplexes screened shows at hourly intervals across screens to make the best of the long weekend.

Salman Khan plays Tiger, a much sought after RAW field agent who has spent a decade away from home in many adventurous missions. Upon returning from Iraq, Tiger is assigned the task to collect information about an Indian-origin Irish professor (Roshan Seth) facing suspicion of selling missile secrets to Pakistan.

On his mission, he falls in love with Zoya (Katrina Kaif) who is soon revealed to be an ISI agent trying to hack into the professor's computer. At this point, it seemed as if the film would go the 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith' way, but rather sticks to its roots as a love story. Now, the two agencies, RAW & ISI are out to finish off Tiger & Zoya.

There are claims that story was inspired by real-life spy Ravindra Kaushik who is said to have served in the Pakistan Army and passed on valuable information to India. The similarity with the story would be that Kaushik fell in love with and married a local Pakistani girl, an uncanny resemblance with Ek Tha Tiger.

Talking about performances, Ranvir Shorey does a good job as Gopi, Tiger's friend and fellow agent who is later sent by his bosses to hunt down Tiger. Girish Karnad returns to the big screen after a long time and he plays Tiger's boss Shenoy. About Katrina & Salman's acting, lesser said the better. In any case, Salman's role is not as annoying or silly as most of his other roles are and he takes off his shirt only once.

The good part in the film is some awesome stunts and stunning visuals, the latter being the signature style of its director Kabir Khan, best remembered for 'Kabul Express'. The desert scenes are filmed in Turkey stand out, the best are those filmed in Cuba with a 60's charm. The good part is let down by a sloppy writing in some parts and a general lack of suspense or thrill, something germane to an espionage setting.

Although the film may perform well due to its star-cast and timing of its release, it will never be considered a good film by any segment of the audience. While the lack of an engaging story will not interest the discerning type, the lack of good songs that flow with the story will not go well with the masses. The popular song 'Mashallah' is played with the closing credits, a time when most people leave the movie hall.

Verdict: Salman fans may love the film and his critics may  flay it, some may just watch it for Katrina. At best, this entree will pass off as an average pastime flick.

Rating 5/10: Typical romance flavored with espionage; a pastime flick

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Murder 3 (Hindi)

The Bhatt camp has off late done good business with formula movies. 'Murder' series eponymously concerns murder mystery, 'Raaz' that has something to with the supernatural and 'Jism', well the name says it all. One common factor is skin-show and songs that go on to become hits. And there's the Emraan Hashmi factor.

First time Director Vishesh Bhatt is believed to have said that their films are "succeeding backwards". True, the quality is depleting but this hasn't really affected their business. So, is this movie a game changer for Bhatt camp or not?

An official re-make of the 2011 Spanish film "La cara oculta", the film is about a successful model photographer Vikram (Randeep Hooda) who finds his girlfriend Roshni (Aditi Rao Hydari) suddenly gone missing and the events that follow thereafter. One drunken night in a bar gets Vikram close to a hostess Nisha (Sara Loren) who soon start a romance. But Vikram's house seems to have some dark secrets.

The dullest part in the movie is the first half, which seems like a series of songs with a bit of story thrown in and is exceptionally boring. At first we are told how Vikram met Roshni in Cape town, and then dealing with his romance with Nisha. The hero is shown to be living alone in a palatial home on the outskirts of Mumbai. Wondering how on earth did he manage to commute everyday in a self-driven car! Phew!

And if you can manage to sit through this for an hour, then comes the surprise! The whole story goes into a different tangent from there on. Although a bit contrived, you soon accept it and flow along with the story. As with any suspense film, you are better off not knowing it till you actually see it. Then, the problem is that, by the time the film starts to get better, it may have alas, lost its audience already.

Randeep Hooda, who looks more a goon than an actor makes a sincere attempt to act, in a role where he is brooding and mysterious. The girls on the other hand outshine him. Sara Loren, who earlier made a debut as Mona Lisa in 'Kajraa Re' with Himesh Reshammiya is here with a changed name. And there's Aditi Rao Hydari playing the kind hearted girl who leaves everything behind to travel with her lover to India.

The biggest blunder is that the set hardly looks realistic. The home, which we are made to believe that it is from the pre-independence era doesn't remotely look like one. It is difficult to describe the lacunae further without discussing the suspense. Hence, leaving it at this so that you can figure it out. But for their own good the Bhatts need to pull up thier socks rather than stay in the 'succeeding backwards' comfort zone.

Given the kind of movie that 'Murder 3' is, it is an outright verdict is difficult. If you are looking for Emraan Hashmi style sleaze and songs a la Bhatt camp style, this movie doesn't have those. If are looking for edge-of-the-seat thrills throughout, then look elsewhere. Instead, if you are willing to sit through and daydream till interval time, your immense patience would be rewarded with a watchable suspense.

Rating 4/10: A watchable suspense in the second half 

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Kai Po Che (Hindi)

Chetan Bhagat should be one happy man! This is the third of his books to make it to the big screen, after 'One Night @ the Call Center' turned into 'Hello' and 'Five Point Someone' lit the screens as '3 idiots'. This time it is 'The 3 Mistakes of My Life'.

The film begins in the present day setting where Govind Patel (Raj Kumar Yadav) makes a slick presentation on his academy 'Sabarmati Sports'. He then picks up Omi Shastri (Amit Sadh) from a prison and they drive towards a stadium. On the way, the film cuts back to 10 years in the past, to a story of three friends, the third one being cricket freak and otherwise lazy Ishaan Bhatt (Sushant Singh Rajput).

The trio, who are otherwise not gainfully employed full-time, start off a business. While Govind is the more calculative businessman, Omi brings in the bucks by way of support from a doting uncle Bittu Mama who is a local politician and is keen to see Omi joining the party. Ishaan is the emotionally driven one and coaches cricket, something he loves most and from his experience as a district level player.

The business takes wings quickly and they are about to expand too. In the meantime, Ishaan has identified a local talent Ali, a shy boy and the son of Omi's uncle's political rival. And with Govind teaching Maths to Ishaan's sister Vidya (Amrita Puri), sparks fly between them and a new romance develops, unbeknownst to Ishaan. Suddenly, things are set to change when an earthquake strikes and riots happen!

'Kai Po Che' which stands for a cry when a rival's kite is cut in a kite festival, has a very earthly charm with realistic characters. In a way, not having star power for its lead actors works well in the film's favor allowing the script to prevail. While its lead actors and especially Raj Kumar Yadav & Sushant Singh Rajput do well, probably the most powerful performance comes from Manav Kaul as Bittu Mama.

Edited with precision mostly seen in Hollywood, 'Kai Po Che' has a runtime of hardly over two hours and manages to capture a whole gamut of events, transformation of characters and still managing to leave an overwhelmingly heavy feeling in the end. Nowhere is time lost for songs as Amit Trivedi's soundtracks blend into the setting and the story. The song 'Manjha' is already popular and works as its soul.

Real life events, the 2001 Gujarat earthquake and the 2002 riots that happened in the aftermath of the inhuman burning of pilgrims at Godhra where one of the key characters is shown to have lost his family in the fateful coach that was burnt. In what could be described as controversial, the film takes the liberty to portray one religious community as an aggressor and the other, mostly as a victim, thus playing it safe.

To sum up, 'Kai Po Che' is definitely recommended, irrespective of whether you watch it with friends or family. Let the hype around the movie not raise your expectations beyond what the movie can deliver. All that it has to offer is a drama that dwells on the lives of three friends and some events that seem to change their lives forever.

Rating 7/10: Must watch for a well told story and great editing

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Cocktail (Hindi)

Although 'Cocktail' was peddled as a movie for the those in their 20s, there was nothing in particular that pertained to the youth. In fact, if the writers thought that the 20's something generation was as shallow as their characters, they are surely mistaken. 'Cocktail' is just your average desi romance flick with some good songs.

The film opens with Gautam Kapoor (Saif Ali Khan) flirting with a flight attendant on the way to London, something he repeats with many girls in the film. On another flight is a newly wedded conservative girl Meera Gupta (Diana Penty) on her way to meet her husband of a sham wedding. And then there is the carefree Veronica D'Costa (Deepika Padukone) for whom partying is a way of life.

Circumstances lead to a helpless Meera finding shelter in Veronica's home. The two soon become close buddies. Gautam who is in a casual relationship with Veronica moves in with them. Later, after a run in with his mom and uncle who may not be approving of Veronica, he pretends that Meera is his girl. The two don't like each other much, but as the movie progresses, sparks fly between them.

While we are accustomed to seeing Saif in yippie playboy roles in 'Hum Tum', he must realize that many years have now passed since he did them. And his age now shows. Although his mom in the film Dimple Kapadia says he is 32, he surely looks a decade older, closer to his actual age, 42. Despite this glaring drawback, some of his Casanova antics are funny although some others are way overboard.

There was a quite a bit of noise about Diana Penty's debut but there is nothing remarkable about her. She is overshadowed by Deepika, both in the looks department and acting. In fact, Diana Penty was the first choice to play Ranbir's love interest in 'Rockstar' which eventually went to Nargis Fakhri. After watching cocktail, it was evident that if Penty was cast in Rockstar, the film wouldn't have had as much impact.

Deepika Padukone, for one, has actually learnt some acting skills. Compared to what she was in 'Om Shanti Om', she has come a long way. Also, she carries off her designer wear with aplomb. Amidst all the gloom, her acting is an asset to the film.

Where the film fails are with its poor writing and shallow characters who are seen partying around most of time as if they are on an unending holiday. None of them have must depth to their personality. Boman Irani & Dimple Kapadia contribute to some funny moments, but isn't enough to keep it going.

The worst thing about cocktail is that it aligns with the hypocritical Indian moral view where Veronica, the promiscuous party-girl is a bad girl while a god-fearing and docile type casted Meera is supposedly virtuous and gets the guy in the end. All this when our hero manages to 'patao' every other girl around except Meera. Maybe it's only the hunt that gets him interested in her rather than anything else.

Songs like 'Tumhi Ho Bandhu', 'Daaru Desi' are already runaway hits. But with Pritam being the Music Director, we would never know the source till one looks up YouTube with the search string 'pritam songs + copy' . As far as the Punjabi folk song 'Jugni' is concerned, the movie makers have purchased rights for its use.

'Cocktail' comes across as a confused film. Did they want to show a purely romantic flick like 'Love Aaj Kal' exploring urban relationships? Or did they want to play safe with some 'homely girl vs. party girl: who gets the boy' theme? Or was this meant to be a comedy? In fact, it is a cocktail of these three, with the recipe gone awry.

Now for the verdict: Don't be fooled by its name coz this cocktail isn't going to get you intoxicated. Probably, one can call it a mock-tail instead. Don't even watch it on TV.

Rating 4/10: Average fare romance flick with shallow characters

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Skyfall (English)

Bond is Back!! Or that's what we have been made to believe. 'Skyfall' or Bond 23 is being touted as the best James Bond movie ever. But to the purists among Bond fans, this would come across as a dull, conversational flick with occasional bursts of action sequences and the humming of the classic James Bond tune.

The pre-title sequence starts with the trail of a stolen hard drive in a Turkish town, that culminates in a first-fight atop a train, as seen in the trailers. Oh yes, this was supposed to be filmed in India, but didn't happen because the requisite permissions weren't given! At the end of the sequence, Bond is shot and an obituary is written.

Although the start seemed promising, the film goes downhill afterwards. It turns up that the hard disk has the names of secret agents operating in the middle east; remember 'Mission Impossible' anyone? After hearing news of an attack on MI6 headquarters, Bond returns from playing dead to find the bad guy and recover the list.

The bad guy, as it turns out is a hacker; Oh, when James Bond had to come out of the cold war era and appear modern, are computers and hacking the only convenient way to show modernity? What happened to the built up in the previous two Craig movies that dealt with serious themes like terror funding and natural resource monopoly.

While it is tempting to write more about the plot holes, I'm holding short only because those of you who are still keen to see the movie don't get to know how it's going to end. But, all that can be said of 'Skyfall' is that it is hardly a James Bond movie.

Anyone who is familiar with the 20-odd moves made in the Sean Connery to Pierce Brosnan era would agree that Daniel Craig's avatar as Bond is different from the rest. Craig seems more like a street thug in a tuxedo and lacks style and humor. Whatever happened to all those famous one-liners that bond is known for?

Another quintessential missing element is gadgetry from the Q-department. This time, all that he gets is a gun that responds only to his palm-prints and a radio transmitter. The phone that Bond uses looks lousy too. But yeah, it was interesting to see the return of the famous Aston Martin DB5 that first appeared in Goldfinger.

Skyfall has very little role for its lead ladies, Naomie Harris who is shown in the trailers to be taking a shot at 007, plays a fellow agent and Bérénice Marlohe is a woman who gets him to the villain looks exotic but hardly has a few minutes of screen time.

There is nothing exciting on locations either. A major portion of the film is shot indoors and underground including caves, tunnels, or old houses. However, two shots stand out. One, Shanghai skyline at night and two, the deserted island lair of the villain, which is actually an abandoned coal mining colony off the coast of Nagasaki.

The film scores for some extraordinary stunts. The bike chase on the rooftops of the grand bazaar in Istanbul, the train-top sequence and the one involving the London Tube. Bond films are usually good with their camera-work and Skyfall is no less. The overhead shots of Scotland stand out. But there isn't enough for action junkies either.

The other plus is some good acting. Daniel Craig lacks the looks and isn't a suave Bond, but is a good actor. Judy Dench and Ralph Fiennes deliver some good performances. The Academy Award winner Javier Bardem plays a good villain. And this time, James Blond, err Bond and his enemy are both Blonds.

The film's release marks 50 years from the date of the first Bond film, 'Dr No' that starred the legendary Sean Connery. This will be the last film where Judi Dench plays 'M'. If this was a farewell movie for her as it seemed from its plot, then it's an apparently a bad and boring idea. Hope they turn up with a better movie next time!

Rating 5/10: Scores for stunts & acting, fails with its plot

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Dabbanng 2 (Hindi)

Dabangg 2 is another one among the many of the south-style flicks that are raking in the big bucks these days in Bollywood. Specifically the genre is Telugu-Tamil mainstream style which is usually about unrestrained machismo, a homely looking damsel in distress, some Newton-defying stunts and an odd item number.

Per se, I'd avoided the first 'Dabangg', presuming it to be a mindless film. But, this one happened more because it was with a large group, where any movie becomes bearable. After all, one goes to movies like these expecting absolute garbage.

So, the movie is about the Robin Hood Cop, Chulbul Pandey (Salman Khan) who has now taken a transfer to the big city, Kanpur. There, he runs into the local goon and politico Bachcha Bhaiya (Prakah Raj). One thing leads to another and Chulbul kills Bachcha's brother who has threatened a local girl, sending these two on a warpath.

Chulbul's wife Rajjo (Sonakshi Sinha) is now pregnant and his well wishers, including his perpetually hungry foodie boss (Manoj Pahwa) convince him not to engage in a tiff with Bachcha Bhaiyya as he is now a family man and has lot to lose. But, Chulbul can't be talked out of it so easily. When Bachcha hits it below the belt, Chulbul vows revenge which forms the rest of the story. How these movies end is an easy guess!

Talking about Acting, Salman Khan still can't act and director Arbaaz sleepwalks in his role as Chulbul's brother Makkhi. And all that Sonakshi Sinha had to do was to look homely. And then, what's the obsession with Prakash Raj as the villain? As good an actor that he may be, it has become too tiresome actually!!

What sucks is its woeful editing, one scene cuts from the other suddenly. Seems like a hurriedly packed up jumble of scenes placed in the following order: there is a joke, followed by a stunt, followed by a song; and the cycle repeats over and over.

The much talked about item song 'Fevicol Se' has Kareena Kapoor gyrating to some desi beats and hinglish lyrics. But, it lacks the zing that 'Munni Badnaam' had created in the earlier Dabangg. But, silly as it may be, the song stays in your mind.

In short, Dabangg 2 is a film that you can watch if you leave your brain in the car park, not expecting the least bit of logic from it. If the current trend is to be believed, the day is not far when there will be hardly any difference between Telugu-Tamil movies and Bollywood flicks, barring language and the lead star hailing from the Hindi belt.

As such, Salman Khan's name is enough to draw crowds. So, the mantra seems to be: 'who cares about logic as long as people laugh & producers make fast buck!!'

Rating 4/10: Crass movie, but doesn't give you a headache!

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Ek Thi Daayan (Hindi)

For an audience that has gotten used to spooky flicks that range from scary to sorcery, flying ghosts, witches, sudden shock element, etc., it is incredibly tough to come up with something new. This is especially true of Bollywood that has seen an overdose of Ram Gopal Verma flicks. Amidst all the gloom comes a refreshing ‘Ek Thi Daayan’ with a gripping story, although the climax goes tad haywire.

Magician Bobo (Emraan Hashmi) is a successful magician who suddenly is being troubled by strange visions. When hypnotized, it is revealed that he holds a dark secret to how his sister and father died and the story being the spooky elevator in the building where he lived as a child. The more he seems to dig into the past to unearth its antecedents, the deeper he gets into the mystic world. Not any more should be revealed about the story because it is a worthy suspense.

The first thing I did after watching ‘Ek Thi Daayan’ was to Google out the difference between a ‘Chudail’ and a ‘Daayan’. As it turns out from a random web page, a ‘Chudail’ is an ugly demon that emerges when a woman dies during childbirth and lives in remote areas. A ‘Daayan’ is a beautiful enchantress that has become one on account of harassment during her lifetime and therefore attacks men and usually lives in urban areas. Whoa, who could ever guess that!!

Some of its songs are impressive. The best of those is ‘Yaaram’ that’s performed at the housewarming hosted by Lisa, followed by the eerie ‘Lautungi Main’ but Punjabi flavored ‘Totey Ud Gaye’ sounds lame. A few more impressive numbers could have carried ‘Ek Thi Daayan’ even further.

The choice of locations is impressive. The opening scenes are filmed at Gurgaon’s “Kingdom of Dreams” which stages an extravaganza of sound and light with impressive transitions, a must see for those visiting the region. The locations for the eerie home and the lift are neat too. The hypnotic background in the psychiatrist’s office is an interesting piece of décor and serves as a backdrop to some key scenes.

Talking about acting performances, Emraan Hashmi does what is best at. It’s amazing that despite such type-cast roles and similar performance in all films, his movies still work well at the Box Office. But, Konkona is the better actor in this film. Kalki and Huma Qureishi also do reasonably well.

The Verdict: Unfortunately, not much of the story can be discussed in a review without revealing a bit of the suspense. So, if you want to know what it is, it is better to catch it while it is still in the cinema halls. This is surely not a movie that you could wait till it comes on TV. Although one shouldn’t watch it with exalted hopes, since it fizzles out towards the end, you wouldn’t regret watching it at all.

Rating 6/10: New kind of thriller with a couple of nice songs

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Silver Linings Playbook (English)

Silver Linings Playbook, adapted from a novel of the same name by Mathew Quick drew acclaim and 8 Academy Award nominations. it is also the first film in 31 years to be nominated in all four acting categories. While all the performances were top-notch, Jennifer Lawrence won the Best Actress Oscar. All this is alluring enough to make a movie buff watch the film. And it turns out to be totally worthwhile.

Pat/ Patrizio Solitano Jr. (Bradley Cooper) is released into the care of his parents after having spent a while at a mental health institution. Although under treatment for Bipolar Disorder, he detests pills and has a hard time dealing with the fact that his wife Nikki has now moved on after an episode when Pat beat up her paramour in fit of rage and he faces a restraining order from her and the school where he used to work.

Ronnie, a friend of Pat's invites him over to his place for dinner, where he meets his sister-in-law Tiffany Maxwell (Jennifer Lawrence) who recently lost her husband and has her own share of psychological issues which manifests in the fact that the whole town seems to know for her freewheeling promiscuity. Oddly though, both hit of well over a conversation about the medication they have been on and bond well thereafter.

The best written parts in the story are the conversations between Pat and Tiffany, in what can be described as 'no holds barred'. There's a time when Pat says "I don’t have a filter when I talk", which essentially describes their condition and bonding over the fact that they don't have to pretend with one another, unlike the rest of the society.

And among the most hilarious instances is when Tiffany chases Pat,

he tells her "I'm married" to which she says "So am I",

Pat: "But, your husband is dead", Tiffany: "where's your wife?", Pat: "You're crazy?"

Tiffany "I'm not the one who just got out of that hospital in Baltimore"

The other characters, Pat's parents Patrizio Sr (Robert De Niro) who is probably as 'differently wired' as his son, Pat's mother (Jacki Weaver), his humorous friend from the Baltimore institution Danny (Chris Tucker) and therapist Dr Patel (Anupam Kher) also manage to leave their mark as the film allows these characters to take lives of their own without getting into unnecessary details or sub-plots.

Strong script, Yes! But the film also draws its strength from powerful performances. Bradley cooper is very convincing as the man on recovery mode, taking to fitness. Tiffany as the girl who found a socially unacceptable way to deal with her loss, De Niro as the gambling addict and Anupam Kher, a serious therapist who turns out to be a crazy Eagles fan. Chris Tucker is a great addition to the film despite the small role.

Well, what does the title actually refer to? The silver lining is driven by the strong belief that Pat has in happy endings. His feelings are evident in an animated conversation that Pat has with his parents in the wee hours debating on why in one of Hemingway's books does the story has to end with somebody's death. He is driven by the principle 'Excelsior', the latin word for 'ever upwards' which he keenly lives by.

Some pitfalls in the movie could be that the romance in the story is very predictable and that may not have ended in any other way. Generally, that is true for most romances that thrive on culminating in happy endings. Another is question on whether or not this role of Bradley Cooper is an accurate portrayal of Bipolar Disorder or not. And then the obsession of De Niro's character on betting all his money over superstition.

The verdict: The Oscar nominated movie 'Silver Linings Playbook' is definitely worth a watch for the skilful writing and humor brought out in the oddest of circumstances. While the movie is careful enough not to poke fun of any mental condition, those that have reservations about its portrayal on screen, could better stay away.

Rating 8/10: Deliciously funny script despite being a predictable romance

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Special Chhabbis (Hindi)

In the recent past, Akshay Kumar has mostly been seen in comic flicks, barring the odd stunt-based brain-dead crass films like Rowdy Rathore. Amidst all this, 'Special Chabbis' comes as a welcome break with director Neeraj Pandey delivering yet another gem after his much acclaimed 'A Wednesday'.

The film is inspired by the real life 1987 Tribuvandas Bhimji Zaveri Jewel heist where a middle-aged conman had posed as an Income Tax Officer staging a raid with 28 'newly recruited' officers who were told that they were doing a mock-raid as a part of their training. The thief, who called himself Monsingh disappeared with the Jewellery and was never caught. To date, this is said to be an 'unsolved mystery'.

While picturizing a single event would have looked like a documentary, the writers have added more meat to the film through events and developing each of the key characters, presenting most aspects of their lives, love interests, family, etc., Sure, the storytelling has repeated shots of people walking or driving for dramatic effect, which gets tiresome after a point. But then, the story doesn't lose pace.

The first scene shows a walk-in interview to recruit CBI Officers. Cut to flashback, Ajay Singh (Akshay Kumar), PK Sharma (Anupam Kher) along with Joginer & Iqubal are seen raiding a Minister's house in Delhi assisted by a cop Ranvir Singh (Jimmy Shergill). After they have recovered lakhs, it is revealed that the four men posing as CBI officers are actually fakes. The four soon disappear into the crowd with the loot.

Fearing loss of face, the minister refuses to lodge a complaint, much like most of their earlier victims. It is revealed that the conmen use the fear of law to loot black money whose owners would never want the public to know that they had it in the first place. Soon, the news of the loot reaches the real CBI where Wasim Khan (Manoj Bajpai) is tasked with finding them. He is helped by the now-suspended cop Ranbir Singh.

What follows is a very interesting chase across cities, peppered with the right dose of comic lines delivered at the right time. In a way, the movie reminds you of Tom Hanks, Leonardo DiCaprio starrer 'Catch Me If You Can' and the famous 'Ocean' series and packs in adequate drama. Although many Bollywood filmmakers have heist flicks before, only a rare few could get the formula right and 'Special Chabbis' is a good one!

Some may argue that the film surely has a moral dilemma angle to it. One, that it makes heroes out of conmen. But the other argument would be that the people they robbed were bad anyway. The weakest link is probably the love track which rather delays the film, and some repeated footage that could've been avoided.

On acting, the best among them is Anupam Kher who plays the greedy old man, which is closely followed by a predictably good performer in Manoj Bajpai and Akshay Kumar demonstrating that he hasn't forgotten acting. Kajal Aggarwal, as Akshay Kumar's love interest, at best is a pretty distraction and hardly has much to do. Jimmy Shergill as the cop and Divya Dutta who plays his assistant perfectly fit their roles too.

The single biggest achievement in the film, is its production design: portrayal of 1980's India with traffic free roads, no cell phones, no modern cars, etc. And this had to be repeated for all the cities that the story is depicted in. The best of such scenes is an overhead shot of Delhi's Connaught Place which zooms down to Manoj Bajpai riding a scooter. There are some other scenes that are tacky, but can be pardoned.

Take my advice and don't wait for it to come on TV. With tons of advertisements to interrupt the show, the chase drama would lose its charm. For all the good screenplay, intelligent dialog, occasional humor and some twists, make sure that you don't miss 'Special Chabbis', what many believe is the Indian answer to Ocean's series!

Rating 8/10: Heist movies have come of age in Bollywood!

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Iron Man 3

After Batman, Iron-Man is probably the coolest one among super-heroes not just because the suits and gadgets, but because of the attitude with which they carry on their tasks of being vigilantes. Incidentally, the films made on them in this decade have had intriguing villains and have been enormously successful and have been visually stunning. Super-heroes and all the swashbuckling action is here to stay!

In the third edition of 'Iron-Man', the focus is mostly on Tony Stark rather than the antics his suit can perform. It's more an effort to portray that Iron Man is more about him rather than the suit. To that extent, they have succeeded but, as a result, the movie seems rather bland as compared to the stylized effects we'd previously seen.

The film flashes back to Switzerland to the New Year's celebration at the turn of the Millennium where Stark (Robert Downey Jr) is busy hanging out with botanist Maya Hansen (Rebecca Hall) that  he ignores a crippled scientist Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce). An unexplained blast briefly disturbs their night; but this is soon forgotten.

Cut to present day, America seems to be haunted by a new villain who calls himself the Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) claiming responsibility for blasts that seem to be occurring just about anywhere. And, a new version of Killian, now well built and suave approaches Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) at Stark Industries seeking a partnership to advance his genetic technology called Extremis, which she refuses.

A turn of events leads to Tony Stark challenging the Mandarin to a fight, at his home, to which the villain promptly responds by destroying it. Stark and Potts barely survive the attack and the former now seeks to get to the bottom of this.

Some spoilers; we are told that the genetically modified bodies heat up to three thousand degrees before blowing up. And while everything around them is vaporized, their clothes are only slightly tattered. Fire resistant clothing, huh? And there is no real clarity on what can actually destroy the genetically modified villains.

The most annoyingly boring scenes include those in Tennessee. Did Stark really have to go there? And what was so significant in that file that he tries to retrieve? And what was that precocious kid doing out there, all by himself! If at all an Indian film maker came up stuff like this, the audience and critics would have ripped it apart.

Putting this aside, the visuals effects are spectacular. If Iron-Man 2 sported a suit that comes out of a briefcase, Iron-Man 3 has a Mark 42 suit whose parts are programmed to remotely fly down towards him and get attached to Stark. Also in the movie is Colonel Rhodes' War Machine branded as Iron Patriot in Red-Blue-White.

The villain is menacing and makes Iron-Man's life difficult. He is not only physically strong but is also smart enough to be manipulative. Nothing more can be disclosed in a review without disclosing the details. Just one mention; since the villain is named the Mandarin, he is shown sporting Chinese tattoos and also breathes fire.

Acting performance is on par with the previous versions with Downey Jr, Paltrow and Don Cheadle reprising their roles. Guy Pearce and Ben Kingsley do well in their respective roles while Rebecca Hall didn't have enough screen time. Some info, Gwyneth Paltrow actually has six-pack abs. How cool is that!

The Verdict: Okay, granted that it has some failings and does get boring in parts; but the sheer star-power of Robert Downey Jr and some cool action keeps it alive. The post-credit scene also shows Stark meeting up with Dr Bruce Banner a.k.a Hulk. Is an Avengers movie lined up? Never mind what's in the pipeline; watch 'Iron-Man 3'.

Rating 7/10: Not overwhelming but entertaining enough

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Shootout at Wadala (Hindi)

Sanjay Gupta and Balaji Telefilms are back with another Shootout. After their 2007 film that was based on an incident of 1991 that took place in Lokhandwala, this time, they portray the 1982 killing of gangster Manya Surve. An incident which is known as the first ever 'encounter' by Mumbai Police, which triggered a series of them.

Based on the book 'Dongri to Dubai', the film tries to bridge between fiction and real life incidents and attempts to make it as real as possible. However, barring the lead character, the rest of the names have been changed for obvious reasons! Also, since the title itself reveals what the movie is all about, there is no suspense there.

The story starts off with a scene in Kirti College, Mumbai where a studious Manohar Surve (John Abraham) is writing his exam paper and refuses to show his paper to his girlfriend and classmate Vidya (Kangana Ranaut), thus establishing him as an honest-to-the-core character. He is keen to avoid the murky past of his father and his step-brother and seeks to make an honest living after completing his studies.

However, a freak incident changes it all and Manya is falsely implicated in a murder case along with his step-brother who actually committed it. With dreams shattered, and a hard time in prison, he bulks up, learns to fight and Manohar turns into Manya. While serving his sentence, he teams up with a fellow convict Sheikh Munir (Tusshar Kapoor) and the duo stage an escape after having done time of around nine years.

Manya returns to the Mumbai and seeks employment with the Haksar brothers Zubair (Manoj Bajpai) and Dilawar (Sonu Sood) who are seen as a challenging force to the Pathans. When he is denied entry, Manya decides to form his own gang and challenge them to the supremacy towards proclaiming himself as the 'Baap' of the city.

On the side, his love tale also evolves, since Vidya is now a widow and the couple rekindle their romance. And this eventually proves to be his Achillies heel when a cop Afaaque Baaghran (Anil Kapoor) along with his colleagues Tambat (Ronit Roy) and Shinde (Mahesh Manjerekar) chooses to eliminate Surve and his likes.

The movie attempts to portray the dark days of Mumbai when gangs ran the show and how an innocent college lad turned into a fearsome goon, thanks to the pathetic justice delivery mechanism and the corrupt establishment. The story shows how cops wait on the sidelines as one gang tries to eliminate the other. And when it comes to picking a target for an encounter, they obviously pick the easier one.

What stands out in the film are some good performances. John Abraham looks the part as the goon who was once held the title of 'Mumbai Shree' as a professional Bodybuilder and delivers an honest performance. Manoj Bajpai does well as usual while Sonu Sood delivers a powerful performance. Anil Kapoor is good enough too.

Among other actors, Kangana Ranaut readily fits the bill of the 70's and 80's look and acts reasonably well. Tusshar Kapoor does ok and his character does bring out occasional laughs. Shakti Kapoor's son Siddhant makes his debut as one of Manya's gangsters. Bollywood's noted yesteryear villain Ranjeet, who was last seen in Housefull 2, makes an appearance as Bhaskar Dada, who has a skirmish with Manya.

The songs aren't memorable, except that they are played repeated on television. The oft repeated ones are its three item numbers, one each by Sunny Leone in 'Laila', Priyanka Chopra in 'Babli Badmaash' and Sophie Chaudhary in 'Aala Re Aala'. Well well, no prizes for guessing which of these three is better!

Verdict: When a movie has good acting and item songs, and yes, dialog loaded with swear words, there is a tendency of such movies to gravitate towards mass appeal. Nonetheless, for all that it offers, 'Shootout at Wadala' is a decent watch. But, those of you who detest gory violence are better off staying away.

Rating 6/10: Typical gangster tale, for mass entertainment

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The Hangover III (English)

The Wolf Pack is Back! Four years after the 2009 film "The Hangover" that set the trend of bachelors party gone awry, which was in turn copy-pasted in a Bangkok sequel in 2011; now comes the grand finale to the trilogy!

Contrary to what one would expect, the story has no bachelor parties, no one gets drugged or goes missing and there are no tigers or monkeys. Just the good old bunch of three best friends reprising their roles and the amusingly criminal Chow.

The film opens with Chow staging a prison break in Bangkok. Cut to Alan who off his meds and letting his mind take off on its own as he grabs headlines for causing a highway accident. His stressed father passes away and his family decides to put Alan into a rehab in Arizona. Obviously, the duty falls on Phil, Stu & Doug to drive him there.

Enroute, they are intercepted by a drug lord Marshall and Doug is taken hostage. In return, they are told to find Chow and retrieve the gold that the latter stole from Marshall. The film then turns into an adventure-comedy as they find Chow and participate in a heist, which predictably goes wrong.

Since we know that the other films in the series have happy endings, the third one too ends with everyone being happy. But, it is the journey that makes the film interesting. While not being an outright comedy, it dabbles with deliberate drama to deviate from the predictable styles which marred the second film. And they succeed at that.

Shock value, which was the key theme in the series has also been toned down. There are no mind-numbing 'Oh My God moments' like the photographs in the credits we are used to either. By the way, if it is not much of a spoiler, Alan finds his true love in the end! But well, yeah, be prepared for one surprise from Stu in the end.

With the same star cast, the acting efforts are the same and convincing enough. Zach Galifianakis is definitely the funniest of them all, playing the man-child we are so used to seeing him as. Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms & Ken Jeong as Phil, Stu & Chow do a good job. But, it would have been a nice experiment a bigger role for Justin Bartha and allow his character to develop. And, Heather Graham makes a brief appearance.

Verdict: The second film had definitely disappointed us by aping the first. But the film makers have shaped up their act with the third installment. 'The Hangover Part III' is not extremely funny as one would have wanted but still qualifies as a decent finale.


Rating 6/10: Befitting Finale to the trendsetter theme

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