STRIKER – Movie Review : Only the game is new here and rest is all the same. (Review By Bobby Sing)

Multiplex culture has opened new avenues for many talented film makers, who have great ideas in their minds, waiting to be executed on the screen within a smartly planned budget. It’s a welcome trend for sure, but sadly very seldom we get to see a thoroughly enjoyable flick in this particular genre, wherein a director successfully is able to transform an interesting idea on paper into an equally interesting movie on the celluloid.

Chandan Arora’s ‘Striker’ also falls in the same category in which the subject of an exceptional carom player seems to be far more exciting than the actual final product in the theaters. The story of a young unemployed boy, who is great at playing carom and wants to go to Dubai to earn a lot more, had surely got some box office potential in it. But the end product completely fails to win over the viewers mainly due to its repetitive scenes and too lengthy narration. To be straight, the game is new and the treatment is right but a lousy script with many unwanted angles and subplots simply turns a potential good movie into a below average one.

Unexpectedly, ‘Striker’ keeps hanging between different story plots, taking the viewers attention away from its novel concept of a carom gambling racket. Deliberate insertion of 1992 communal riots of Mumbai, further ruin the movie, which otherwise could have been much better if the director had kept his focus on the game and its gamble alone. The movie starts off well with the story moving around characters living in the slums and its small illegal clubs. But soon with the introduction of more undeveloped characters on the screen, it loses its way completely. For instance the love angle in the first half finishes off just like that and never returns back, the 1992 riots come into the narration from no-where without any specific purpose to fulfill and the lady owner of a small hotel is added in the script only to provide a little eroticism on the screen. Moreover the time span of the movie which keeps shifting between flashbacks of few years, also becomes confusing for a while.

The casting too, forcibly involves few well known faces of Bollywood, who are there only to add some more commercial value to the project. Like, Anupam Kher has nothing great to do in the movie as a Police Officer and his part could have easily given to a lesser known actor. Vidya Maldave does not look like a poor young girl living in the slums. Seema Biswas is completely wasted in a tiny role. Anoop Soni as the elder brother performs a similar act close to his ongoing T.V serials and Aditya Pancholi plays the bad man exactly like he did a few years back.

However there still exists a shining silver line in the black clouds which is represented by the brilliant performances by both Sidhharth as Surya and Ankur Vikal as Zaid. Siddharth delivers a fine natural act, but also gets caught doing it over the top in a few scenes. As Surya he surely gives a competent performance on the lines of his “Rang De Basanti”. But the real act comes from Ankur Vikal, who is simply superb in the role of Zaid, Sidhaarth’s childhood friend. After few initial scenes he quietly goes on impressing the viewers with his brief dialogues and comes out as a clear winner of them all.

The songs are just fine as they don’t become an obstacle in the movie but background score catches your attention more. Cinematography is great capturing the slum ambience in the right way. Actually editing is the main culprit here, resulting in a 2 hour (still) lengthy movie with many repetitive and seen before sequences in the story. In reality the game of Carom lacks the nail biting essence of an electrifying sport. Therefore it becomes a little boring after the few initial scenes and as a result hampers the beauty of an otherwise new sport on the screen.

To sum up, Chandan Arora, thought of a good subject which did have a novelty value associated with the game of carom and its gambling clubs. He certainly excels in the few sequences depicting the conflict in the life of young unemployed boy. But with a spineless script in hand, he could not turn the novel subject into a great movie for his viewers. Personally I enjoyed his earlier projects a lot more than his latest one.

Rating : 2 / 5

(Originally Posted at www.bobbytalkscinema.com) 

RANN – Movie Review : Only RGV and no other film maker in the whole Bollywood could have made this eye-opener. (Review By Bobby Sing)

A hard hitting RGV kind of a movie was long due from the experimental director Ram Gopal Verma. And with “Rann” he strongly strikes back with his own kind of cinema, wherein he only believes in telling his stories as they are, irrespective of their expected prospects at the box office. Hence, you may love it or not, but “Rann” has something to tell to the wide unaware population of the country, who just go on believing whatever they see on the small screens playing in their houses.

The movie is based on the news channel networks in the media and talks about the unhealthy competition prevailing within the industry to get higher TRPs than the rival channels. RGV in his own unique style blatantly reveals the hidden truth behind the so called Sting Operations shown on the news channels, which are capable of generating a massive reaction among the general public. With “Rann”, he tries to enlighten the viewers with the real purposes of these cunning & deliberate operations tried by one party of a country against the other.

As it should be, RGV straight away comes to the point in the first 15 minutes itself and does not waste time in establishing his artists in their respective roles. The viewer simply is given the hint, that this is not a usual kind of drama comprising some unwanted romantic angles inserted in the storyline and a few song sequences to ease him out. So, the director makes his intentions very clear right from the start.

But as expected, “Rann” is not a media bashing movie. Instead it’s a movie more interested in showcasing the underground nexus existing between the clever politicians and media networks who are helplessly dependent upon the mercy of these policy makers. It tries to awaken the general public with the fact that today, news is not being reported truthfully, but it’s being created tactfully in order to survive in this tiring competition. So, everything seen on the news channel may not be true and hence the public has to take the right decision with its own intelligence and instinct. Otherwise the common voter is nothing but only a puppet in the hands of this combined group of corrupt politicians and media men.

However, “Rann” does not entirely focus on the negative side of the topic. RGV rightly shows both the positive and negative sides of the people involved in the nexus and has his lead characters in the storyline, still having their truthful conscience alive and kicking. Moreover, very insightfully, the director shows Three kinds of mindsets prevailing in a society. Amitabh & Ritesh are the two protagonists fighting for their true spirits of a sincere journalist. Paresh Rawal, Rajat Kapoor, Sudeep, Mohnish Behl and Suchitra Krishnamurthy are the ones only interested in the wrong side of the game. But the third section is full of people like Gul Panang, Neetu Chandra and Simone Singh who are neither interested nor willing to participate in any such activity on the social front. Sadly these are the kind of people who constitute a major part of our huge population and let the bad people continue with their ugly tricks of the trade.

“Rann” commences slowly, comes to the main point directly and starts making an impact. It leaves you thinking with an interesting intermission and then goes on to reveal the darker side of the greedy personas on the screen dressed in all white. The climax comes up with a well written and superbly rendered speech by the one & only Amitabh Bachchan who is ashamed of himself being a part of the game played on his own channel unknowingly. Amitabh is once again superlative in his brilliant act of a sincere owner of a news channel who wants to run his channel on his own moral principles. But surprisingly, he hasn’t got many scenes in the movie apart from the main climax. In fact the movie majorly revolves around Sudeep, who plays Amitabh’s son and performs brilliantly in the role assigned. He manages to impress, standing in between the giants of Indian cinema (Amitabh & Paresh Rawal). RGV once again gives the Industry a rather unknown actor who has got the talent and capabilities to handle tougher roles as proved in “Rann”.

Paresh Rawal, returns on the screen as the main villain and proves why he is considered as one of most talented actors of the current times. Ritesh Deshmukh surprises you with his superb portrayal of a calm and sincere journalist, who refuses to accept the unhealthy norms of the trade and is willing to quit. Mohnish Behl is great as the owner of a rival channel. Rajat Kapoor fits to his role of an Industrialist as a T. Suchitra looks ravishing and acts well as the in-house spy. Gul Panang looks delightful on the screen. Both Neetu Chandra and Simone Singh are just fine and Rajpal Yadav does bring some relief moments in the tense script.

Interestingly, Censor banned the use of “Jan Gan Man” composition in one of the songs in the movie, but quite amazingly missed out on the lyrics of all the other tracks used in it. Try to hear the cruel remarks made in the songs running in the background. Cinematography is of top rate especially in the climax speech of Amitabh. Dialogues are sharp and hard hitting as expected from an RGV film made on social issues. Background score is well arranged and adds to the tension created on the screen.

The movie has its own drawbacks as there are very few relief moments in its narration, becomes a little slow in the second half and has a basic plot resembling with Madhur Bhandarkar’s “Corporate”. But it’s unarguably more thought provoking and relevant in the current scenario. Ram Gopal Verma is right there visible in the entire film and impresses you the most in the scenes where Paresh Rawal is interacting with his silent mother, Amitabh is explaining the irrelevant difference between a Hindu and a Muslim, Sudeep trying to cope up with the extreme pressure of being successful, his suicide scene and the well written climax where the truth prevails in the end.

Here, it must be noted that many viewers may find it hard to digest and unentertaining as they may argue that they don’t buy a ticket for getting preached. But for that section of the viewers I would like to say that Cinema not always should be a means of entertainment alone. At times it’s the duty of the intelligent film makers to come up with films which are capable of starting a debate especially among the younger college going generation, who have the power and enthusiasm to bring the desired changes in the society.

In the past, “Ankush”, “Yuva”, “Rang De Basanti”, “Swades” and many more such films were made by the thoughtful film-makers on the similar grounds of starting a debate. With “Rann” RGV contributes to the same new age wave and keeping the box office results aside, I hope it is able to burn a new candle in the dark lives of our directionless youngsters.

In the end, I would like to add that in our Film Industry, where everyone is more concerned about the financial prospects of a venture, only Ram Gopal Verma and no other film maker in the whole Bollywood could have dared to attempt a movie like “Rann”. It’s a must watch for all who have a thinking soul and know the value of that one single vote you have in your hands which can make all the difference.

Rating : 3.5 / 5

(by Bobby Sing from www.bobbytalkscinema.com)

ISHQIYA – Movie Review : Its cunningly rustic and made with the clear intention of strengthening the Indian Tarantino Movement started by Vishal Bhardwaj. (Review By Bobby Sing)

Vishal Bhardwaj initiated his offbeat Tarantino style movement in India with the much acclaimed “Maqbool” which also had many commercial elements incorporated in it. But with “Omkara” & “Kaminey” he revealed his clear intentions of following a different path altogether on the similar lines of Quentin Tarantino & Guy Richie kind of cinema. And with “Ishqiya” directed by his associate Abhishek Chaubey, Vishal comes up with another movie contributing in the said movement following the same formula of surprising the audiences with its realistic characters, on-screen abuses, bold language and expressive sexual sequences.

In real terms, “Ishqiya” straight away won over the viewers before its release, with its brilliantly compiled, earthy and sexual promos supported by few well composed songs, just as “Kaminey” did a few months ago. But as seen in the case of “Kaminey”, due to some major serious issues, “Ishqiya” may also witness a divided box office result between its critical acclaim and the actual universal response in the coming weeks.

The movie revolves around the story of two conmen who are running to save their lives from their boss and find shelter in the house of a young and attractive widow. During their extended stay, the lady starts flirting with both the men, as she has a hidden agenda to get a task done by the two, which is revealed to the viewers after a good one hour in the film. So, “Ishqiya” does have an intelligently chosen and interesting story plot, told in an amusing style with some soothing and melodious songs to enjoy. And no doubt, it’s well directed by the debutant director Abhishek Chaubey who never gives you any glimpse of a first time project.

But the main drawback in the movie is that its starts too slow and picks up too late. In fact it actually starts coming to the point just before the intermission and till then the viewer desperately keeps waiting for something explosive to happen on the screen as expected. Surprisingly, the real interesting plot of planning the kidnapping of a rich industrialist starts right after the interval. In other words the film shows everything in store for the viewer only post intermission and that too in such a hurried pace which further leads to many confusions and chaos towards the climax. The love triangle plot in the script, left with an open end in the last scene, also may find less takers among the viewers in the smaller centers.

However, the best part of the movie remains its performances, where every character enacts his part in a highly realistic and amusing way with just the right lingo, style and attire. Naseeruddin Shah gives a splendid performance as a lonely one sided lover and impresses the most. Arshad Warsi is simply brilliant with his earthy language and freaking out style. Vidya Balan once again delivers a winning act after “Paa”. She also dares to give her most intimate kissing scene on the screen with Arshad which is a well directed one too. The rest of the cast is also a treat to watch with everyone playing their parts with sheer conviction.

Musically, it has a great soundtrack to enjoy with gems like “Ibne Batuta” and “Dil To Bachha Hai Re” in the incomparable style of Vishal Bhardwaj and Gulzar together as a team. Still, I felt the song picutrisation could have been better at some places. Cinematography adds value to the project and the overall earthy look of the movie has been well worked upon.

But the project leaves many questions unanswered such as:

1. Why the movie was promoted as a Vulgar Language flick when there are hardly any dialogues (very few) of such sort?

2. Why it was projected as a witty and interesting comic venture when in fact it was not a comedy but a dark and slow crime thriller?

3. Why the actual interesting kidnapping plot starts after the intermission, where as the film has got nothing great to showcase in its first hour?

4. Has Vishal Bhardwaj decided that all his produced or directed films will always have a pre- release hype dependent on vulgarity, abusive language and sexual scenes?

In short, if you are expecting to see a highly entertaining or light comic movie as projected by the well designed promos of the movie then you are sure going to be disappointed to a great extent. All the humorous and enjoyable comical scenes which were there in the promos of “Ishqiya” are scattered here and there in the film which fail to generate a collective entertaining impact as seen in the 3 minute trailer of the movie before its release. On the contrary it’s a slow paced and dark thriller which will surely get appreciation from the section of viewers who loved Vishal’s “Kaminey”. But a unanimous appreciation from all the centers is quite questionable.

To sum up, from a film-maker or film student point of view, “Ishqiya” is not perfect but still good work done. But from a common man’s viewpoint, who is there in the theater to get entertained as promised by its trailer, the movie leaves him unattended.

Rating : 2.5 / 5

(Originally posted at www.bobbytalkscinema.com)

VEER – Movie Review : Salman lives his dream majestically but the film impresses only partially. (Review By Bobby Sing)

There were mixed reactions about “Veer” before its release, since it was a period drama dealing with the same old Rajput Kings, Britishers and their revolts. The subject had its own limitations, holding a restricted appeal for the viewers especially for the young college going crowd, who don’t find historical dramas exciting enough to watch. But there was Salman Khan, on Veer’s side, with a gigantic fan following, who were all eager to see their favourite star in a new avatar of a revolutionary fighter.

So, the stage was all set for Salman to once again win over the box office with his majestic project which also had few melodious songs to its credit. But after watching more than 160 minutes of this fictional period epic, sadly Salman Khan himself, Mithun Da and the few well composed songs, remain the only worth mentioning features of this costly affair called “Veer”.

In few words, the movie which successfully manages to impress the viewers with its powerful content in the first half, fails miserably post intermission and becomes a great let down after its initial one hour. Revolving around a revolutionary tribe named “Pandari’s” which existed in the period of 19th century, it talks about the same old father-son vengeance story, which also involves the angle of The Ruling Britishers, their relationships with the Rajput Kings and their mean betrayals.

Truly speaking, “Veer” starts off quite well, with an explosive & impactful opening sequence which right away forces every person in the theater to take it seriously. Justifying all the historical events happening on the screen with a voice over, the movie makes a successful start and the powerful scenes of Mithun Da & Salman Khan together raise the bar further. “Taali” the first song of the movie, also makes an impression, as its well shot and choreographed, with more than 100 people dancing on the screen in their own styles. The song even reminded me of one similar dance sequence in the famous cult movie “Fiddler on the Roof”.

In fact, the first half of “Veer” has some excellent scenes, both acted and directed brilliantly. Like the one against animal sacrifice in the name of Religion, the shot with the graphical representation of London in the 19th century, the University scene where Salman answers back to his racist professor and the punishment scene right after. But the real problem starts just before the intermission where Salman performs a lethal bloodshed killing several British soldiers along with the two Rajput brothers of the leading lady.

Actually all the liberties taken by the script writers, which have no logical explanations, start right after the intermission when suddenly you see both Salman & Sohail returning to India (just like that), after mercilessly killing so many people right in the University Grounds in front of all the students. From here on the film takes a negative ‘U-turn' and with every new scene progressing on the screen, you start forgetting the excellent scenes witnessed in the first half. After the interval, the narration slows down majorly, as the love story takes the front seat and till the climax, we are not served any more worth mentioning scene at par with the few seen before. Moreover, the final moments of the movie are also not capable of awakening the patriotic emotions in the viewers as usually seen in the movies made around the subject of India and its Freedom.

Visually, “Veer” is grand, royal and well worked upon. Cinematography, Visual Effects and Art Direction have a stunning impact and play as another character in the story on the screen. Musically it’s undoubtedly among the top 3 musical scores of the duo Sajid-Wajid and they have delivered some real soulful numbers such as “Sureeli Akhiyon Waley” & “Salaam Aaya”. The well composed amalgamation of the Hindi-English lyrics with their contrasting arrangements is indeed worth listening. Gulzar once again comes up with some logically unexplainable but great deep meaningful words. Only the person who had written “Humne Dekhi Hai Un Ankhon Ki Mehakati Khushboo”, could have written “Sureeli Akhiyon Waley”. Other than its melodious songs, the background score is also well composed according to the requirement of the subject.

As expected, the movie completely belongs to Salman Khan and his dominant screen presence. He realistically lives the character of Veer and delivers a fine performance, but the period feel of the movie may disappoint lot of his young fans who love to see him dressed in cool denims and open shirts. After Salman its Mithun Da to watch out for, with his piercing eyes and strong dialogue delivery, which is missing in most of the current heart-throbs of Bollywood.

Zarine Khan, no doubts resembles Katrina, but she still looks pretty, though a little overweight. She may be taken in for a specific purpose but manages to give an ok performance in the movie. Jackie Shroff has slightly done it over the top. Sohail Khan does the usual act similar to his previous flicks. Both Puru Raaj Kumar & Aryan Vaid don’t get enough scope to make an impact but Neena Gupta shines in her few scenes. Interestingly there are no familiar faces in the actors playing the British Officers and they all do the usual stuff without making any great efforts. “Veer” also has its resemblances with “Taras Bulba” (1962) and “Kranti” (1981). Apart from a similar climax, it even has a half arm person in the form of Jackie Shroff just as there was Prem Chopra in “Kranti”.

Anil Sharma, tries to revive the magic of “Gadar” with many similar kind of heroic sequences using the current He-man Salman, following the legacy of Dharmendra & Sunny Deol. But in absence of a logical script and a tight edit, he fails to connect with the audiences after few initial engrossing moments and thus could only deliver a half hearted project.

In the end, I would sincerely like to add, that “Veer” could have been a much better movie with a more realistically directed and written second half. It is clearly the fault of the script writer and the director that the movie which reasonably impresses you in the first half, works so negatively post intermission. As Salman has reportedly written the main story of the movie, I doubt whether this was exactly the tale he wanted to bring on the wide screen. Anyway, if you are a Salman Khan fan, then you are surely going to like it, especially before intermission. Otherwise the magnum epic satisfies the viewer only partially.

Rating : 2.5 / 5

(Originally Posted at www.bobbytalkscinema.com)