Category: Movie Reviews

Interstellar | Movie Review

interstellar-poster

Christopher Nolan you beauty! Where do you get your ideas from, seriously? While everyone else is stuck making movies on Earth, Moon or about Aliens, this guy actually has the audacity to picture interstellar travel. Man, take a bow!

If Inception was beyond your reach, wait till you watch this one. In the distant future, where Earth is almost dead, our protagonist leads a mission to find a habitable planet beyond the Solar System while leaving his young kids behind. Whether he is able to save his family and the human race from extinction is the million dollar question. Scripted and directed by Nolan, the movie is pretty complicated for there’s science and fiction amalgamated together. It starts of terribly slow and it’s not until the first landing that it gets interesting. Nevertheless, Nolan succeeds in setting up a larger than life epic with some intense drama. Direction is absolutely spot on and screenplay is perfect, if only he had a stronger script. The run time could have been trimmed, but again, you’re talking about 100 years in less than 3 hours. From Memento to Interstellar, Christopher Nolan has come a long way, challenging himself with every film and setting the bar higher. What next?

If you thought this movie is all about Nolan, you’re mistaken. Matthew McConaughey is exceptional in the lead role and carries the entire movie on his shoulders. His performance in the scene where he watches his kids messages is outstanding. Anne Hathaway is decent. Jessica Chastain is pretty good, and so is Matt Damon in his brief appearance.

Music by Hans Zimmer is excellent. His score in the scene where the spaceship docks with Endurance is remarkable. Editing by Lee Smith is neat. However, few of the initial scenes could have been trimmed. Cinematography by Hoyte van Hoytema is again, beyond praise. The IMAX visuals were magnificent (and I wouldn’t mind watching movie again just for the visuals). Technically, the movie is a treat!

Is it worth your time and money??: Interstellar is not your regular weekend stress-buster movie. It’s one which makes you rattle your brain to make sense (and it still might not). While not a perfect movie on script front, its sheer magnificence makes it a must watch for any movie lover. Add to that some great acting and music, and you have a winner.

Do stay away if you don’t like intense movies which require a lot of thinking and understanding!

Worth mention: Sheer grandeur of the movie. The IMAX scenes were out-of-the-world good!

Acting: 9/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 8.5/10
Technical Aspects: 9/10

Verdict: 9/10

Fury | Movie Review

Fury-2014-Movie-Poster

Is it worth your time and money??: While it’s not a brilliant war film, Fury is a decent entertainer. Plus points are exceptional acting, especially by Brad Pitt and Logan Lerman, and spectacular cinematography. On the downside, the movie is too long and the screenplay could have been better. Give it a shot if you have nothing else to do!

Worth mention: Great visuals.

Acting: 8.5/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 7/10
Technical Aspects: 8/10

Verdict: 7.5/10

Gone Girl | Movie Review

gone girl

David Fincher has been known to make different kinda movies. Ben Affleck is an actor you can’t get enough of. Them working on an adaptation of a best-selling novel results in one the weirdest movies I’ve ever watched.

The movie starts off as a mystery; a man is in search of his wife who disappeared from their house. It soon turns into a drama about marital issues. Then it turns into a thriller where you’re expecting something unexpected to happen the very next moment. And then, it end so weirdly that you’re left in awe, with mouth wide open, literally. I haven’t read Gillian Flynn’s novel, but boy, that was one hell of a story. David Fincher does a great job of putting it on-screen with just about perfect direction. Add to that some excellent screenplay by Flynn, and the movie is perfect to watch.

Ben Affleck is great as the carefree husband. He has put on a lot of weight for the role and it felt as if the character was written for him; he was that good. Rosamund Pike is absolutely brilliant as his wife, and is actually better than Affleck. Neil Patrick Harris appears briefly as an obsessed boyfriend and is good. Carrie Coon is decent while Kim Dickens comes up with a good act.

Music by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is haunting yet very subtle. Editing by Kirk Baxter is perfect, and cinematography by Jeff Cronenweth is good. Again, no qualms on technical front.

Is it worth your time and money??: Gone Girl is a weird good film. The problem here isn’t with the acting, direction or screenplay, it’s with the ending for you either like it or you don’t. Of the 150 odd minutes, you’re at the edge of your seat for almost 125. What happens in the next 15-20 minutes is a gamble you ought to take. It all depends on how you handle it. 😀

Worth mention: The weird ending!

Acting: 9/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 8.5/10
Technical Aspects: 8/10

Verdict: 8.5/10

Happy New Year | Movie Review

HNY

They might have had their differences in the past, but Farah and SRK do have some great chemistry together; and that comes across on their hat-trick venture Happy New Year!

It’s no new story and like with the recent few movies, you’ve seen it all before. A family is destroyed because of the antagonist, and the family is thirsty for revenge (doesn’t this remind you of Bang Bang??). The family here happens to be a bunch of buddies, who decide to rob a high security vault, aka Ocean Eleven style, to put the villain in trouble. Though it all seems redundant, Farah does a decent job of keeping the film on track without making it boring. There is a lot of richness associated with the movie which gives it a nice look and feel. While direction is pretty neat, the screenplay could have been a better. A movie like this needed to be crisp, and a run time of 180 minutes just bogs you down. Nevertheless, she does a good job altogether for the movie is pretty entertaining. And ya, worth mention are the witty one-liners from old classics (should I be referring them to as classics? :-O)

On acting front, it’s SRK show all the way. And for once (after long), he puts away his stupid antics and comes up with a neat performance. While his body did look good, his face is starting to show age. Deepika comes into the movie one hour through, and does a decent job. I thought she looks over-toned, and would have looked better with some flesh on her belly. Abhishek overacts (like usual); good for him that his character needed over-action. Boman Irani is pretty good as the old chap, while he too seemed to overact on occasions. It’s nice to see Sonu Sood playing a positive role, and he comes up with a good act. However, his intro and first fight were sad and totally unnecessary.

Music by Vishal-Shekhar is could have been way better. But for the title track, everything else is more or less mediocre. Background score by John Stewart Eduri is decent. Editing by Anand Subaya could have been crisper. As already mentioned, the length pulls you down and a few edits seem really necessary. Cinematography by Manush Nandan is neat. Dialogues by Mayur Puri are entertaining. On the downside, you’d expect better dances in a film by a choreographer.

Is it worth your time and money??: The movie is entertaining and you never tend to get bored. The plus points are star cast and lavish sets and locales, while the length and pace play spoil sport. A few edits would make the film more engaging. It’s a good watch nevertheless, but only if you walk in without any pretensions; otherwise, you’d find it to be another run-off-the-mill flashy masala films.

Worth mention: The dumbness of the entire plot.

Acting: 6.5/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 6/10
Technical Aspects: 7/10

Verdict: 6.5/10

Haider | Movie Review

Haider

Vishal Bhardwaj has always made movies which stand apart from the rest. He’s already adapted two of William Shakespeare’s classics in the past (Maqbool – “Macbecth”, Omkara – “Othello”), and Haider (an adaptation of “Hamlet”) is another example of why he’s one of the finest Indian directors today.

Kashmir is considered paradise on earth, and Haider is a movie which showcases the plight of the people living in this paradise. Vishal does this by seamlessly integrating the tragedy of Hamlet into the riots of Kashmir (1995) which causes a number of civilian disappearances. Though a little slow towards the beginning, Haider kicks in beautifully thanks to some exceptional screenplay and direction. The way the entire storyline is showcased in one song is pure brilliance.

Shahid does an exceptional job in the lead role, and his performance at Lal Chowk is absolutely brilliant. Kay Kay Menon gets a meaty role, and for the fine actor that he is, performs with great ease. Sharddha Kapoor looks perfect as a Kashmiri beauty, and Irrfan shines in his brief appearance. But the real star of Haider is the mother torn between her man and son, Tabu She downplays for the most part, but does it so beautifully that you can’t help but fall in love with her character. Brilliant!

Music by Vishal Bhardwaj is another asset to this beautiful tragedy. The background score is probably the best I’ve come across for a Bollywood film – exceptional. Editing by Aarif Sheikh is perfect and cinematography by Pankaj Kumar is beautiful.

Is it worth your time and money??: As a film, Haider is exceptionally well made. But unfortunately, it isn’t a movie for everyone. So watch it only if you enjoy tragedies, or are eager to watch some amazing performances entwined into a perfect script.

Worth mention: Tabu; Shahid’s performance at Lal Chowk; background score.

Acting: 9.5/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 9/10
Technical Aspects: 9/10

Verdict: 9/10

Bang Bang | Movie Review

Bang-Bang

The trailer made a lot of noise, and the promotions have been extensive. If that’s anything to go by, the film’s a disaster. And bingo!

I’ve never been impressed with Siddharth Anand. All his previous films bombed big time at the box office, so one would have thought that he’d make sensible films now at least. But no, all he does is make a film which makes no sense. Bang Bang is an empty pot, makes a lot of noise. And he does this when he has a relatively average script (Knight and Day) at hand. Instead of just sticking to it all through, he just creates a mess, thanks to some slow and terrible screenplay. I mean, he ripped most of the original’s dialogues and some episodes frame to frame, then why not stick to the original screenplay in whole? Right from the word go, everything in the movie seemed too contrived, and there’s no such thing like logic. Common, no one moves countries so easily without being noticed; and what’s with the race car? Another big problem is that Bang Bang feels like a Hindi movie you’ve already seen, and therefore is very predictable. Direction is mediocre, and someone needs to tell Siddharth Anand that just visuals, stunts and fights aren’t good enough; he still needs to use the script which he officially borrowed (apparently) in an slick manner. It’s supposed to be a thriller for gods sake, not a drama!!

Hrithik looks amazing, and puts his best foot forward (like always). He carries the entire film on his shoulders, but that isn’t good enough. Katrina looks fine and acts in bits and pieces. She’s hot, ok, but she’s no Cameron Diaz! Both of them dance exceptionally well, especially in the title track. The rest of the cast, well, is alright.

Music by Vishal-Shekhar is decent. The title track is really peppy and ‘Meharabaan’ is good as well. Cinematography by Vikas Sivaraman and Sunil Patel is pretty good. Editing by Akiv Ali could have been way better.

Is it worth your time and money??: Unless you have nothing better to do over the weekend, give Bang Bang a miss. Hrithik is the only plus point in this sinking film.

Worth mention: Hrithik’s MJ moves in the title track. But you have to sit through 156 minutes to see this, so all hail YouTube!

Acting: 8/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 5/10
Technical Aspects: 7.5/10

Verdict: 6/10

PS: Why would you want to remake a movie which in itself wasn’t a success?? :O

Loukyam | Movie Review

Loukyam

At at time when hero has to flex his muscles or say a punch dialogue in almost every scene, when fights dominate most of the movie while logic goes for a toss, here comes an entertainer with just 3 fights in the entire movie (I wish I could say logical, but err… never mind).

Like every other movie in recent time, Srivas’s Loukyam borrows a lot of content from other films; hero helps villain’s sister escape from wedding, later falls in love with another sister, and then tries to make mends with him. Watched it already, haven’t you? But what makes this film different is the directors take on the same old story. Srivas brings in a lot of freshness while infusing abundant amount of comedy, thus producing a perfect entertainer. Overall, direction is neat while screenplay could have been better. If only he could make it a little more realistic (I know that’s a big ask for today’s Telugu movies).

Gopichand looks really fit and comes up with a pretty good performance. Rakul Preet Singh looks great and does a decent job. She does look to have a bright future. Chandra Mohan has a meaty role and does well. Sampath Raj is decent, while Rahul Dev, and to an extent Mukesh Rishi are wasted. Pruthvi Raj is brilliant as “Boiling Star”, especially during the climax fight. But the real star of the movie is Bramhanandam. He does a full length role and entertains to the maximum. If not for him, Loukyam would have been out and dusted by now. Hats-off to Srivas for utilizing him perfectly.

Music by Anoop Rubens is forgettable, and background score should have been better. Cinematography by Vetri is good while editing by Sekhar is alright. There were a couple of sound/dubbing issues which should have been taken care off.

Is it worth your time and money??: Yes, we have an entertainer at hand. It might not be the best film you’ve watched in recent times, but it sure makes you walk out of the theatre satisfied. Plus point is comedy while the routine storyline might disappoint a few. Nevertheless, it deserves a watch.

Worth mention: Bramhanandam’s track and Pruthvi Raj’s episode during the climax fight.

Acting: 8/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 8.5/10
Technical Aspects: 7/10

Verdict: 8/10

PS: Finally we have a Telugu film which uses correct English: Smoking and Drinking are injurious… And good to see our once upon a time tenant “Boiling Star” do well for himself 🙂

Aagadu | Movie Review

Aagadu

What happens when you replace Pawan Kalyan with Mahesh Babu in Gabbar Singh? What happens when you have left over script from Dookudu? Well, I’m guessing you have the answer.. you get Aagadu!

Srinu Vaitla has been on a roll in the recent past. His combination with Mahesh has proved successful, and the expectations on this film are very high. In order to meet them, all he does is a pot-pourri of two successful films. The first half is entertaining with a lot of resemblance to Gabbar Singh. Right from the title track to the game show episode, it all seemed a repeat with a new flare, thanks to Mahesh. Come second half, the pace reduces and we have another version of Dookudu. Srinu did try to make it interesting by making the villain dig his own grave, but it seemed too contrived. Dialogues are good, screenplay is neat, and direction is alright; if only the movie had original script.

It’s a cake walk for Mahesh for most of the movie. The only point where it gets difficult is when he steps into Pawan’s shoes. Thanks to his own style of acting, he does a commendable job, but one cannot stop compare these fine actors. On looks front, he’s shed weight and looks really dashing. His dance moves are worth mention. Tamannaah has limited screen presence, and does a good job. Bramhanadam entertains with his style of comedy (becoming the bakra), while the rest of the cast is alright. For Sonu Sood, it’s just an extension of his character from Dookudu. Shruthi Haasan sizzles in the item song.

Music by Thaman is more or less mediocre (but for ‘Saroja’), and the background score was no better. It’s time this guy took a break from movies rather than repeating the same old tunes over and over. Editing by Varma is decent, and cinematography by Guhan is excellent. However, there’s too much CG work, and that kinda spoils his work.

Is it worth your time and money??: You’ve seen it all in the past, so it all gets down to perspective now. I walked in with no expectations and walked out entertained, so I suggest you do the same as well if you’re planning to give this a watch. In one line, Aagadu is definitely an entertainer, but to what extent it entertains depends on your expectations; and patience 🙂

Worth mention: It’s all Mahesh. Other entertaining episodes are the game show and Bramhandam (CG) dance in the climax.

Acting: 8/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 7/10
Technical Aspects: 7.5/10

Verdict: 7/10

PS: It’d be nice if Telugu industry realizes the difference between Eunuch and homosexual (gay).

Anukshanam | Movie Review

anukshanam

Ram Gopal Varma is one of the finest directors in Telugu industry. Unfortunately, thanks to his obsessive disorders, he ends up making some pathetic movies (like he’s been doing in the recent times). But if he puts his best foot forward, he definitely impresses one and all.

Anukshanam is a Psycho kinda dark film, where in a psycho killer is on a rampage in Hyderabad. There’s not much to showcase here but for the killings and the investigation; that’s where a director’s talent actually comes across, and RGV does a fabulous job. The 90 off minute movie is very gripping, and for a change (in Telugu industry), is more or less logical. The screenplay is crisp, and RGV gets the best out of all his actors. The way he handles the box sequence shows his calibre as a director.

Vishnu looked really dashing as the police officer investigating the murders. This is probably one of the best looks he’s had in all his movies. Revathi comes up with mature performance sans make up. Surya, the guy who plays the psycho killer is really good. RGV was able to bring out right emotions and expressions from him. Madhu Shalini was loud at times. The rest of the cast is alright.

Music and sound effects are the most important aspects for a film of this genre (apart from screenplay and direction of course), and they don’t disappoint. Editing by Kamal and Santosh is perfect, and cinematography by Nani is excellent. The visual look really good.

Is it worth your time and money??: If you like dark films, then Anukshanam isn’t gonna disappoint you. One might argue that there are better foreign films in this genre, and I agree. But this is definitely a good start for us. Lemme reiterate, it’s not a great film, but a good one nevertheless. RGV finally stands up!

Worth mention: The box opening sequence.

Acting: 8.5/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 7.5/10
Technical Aspects: 8/10

Verdict: 7.5/10

Finding Fanny | Movie Review

finding_fanny

You’ve got three amazing actors, beautiful visuals, soothing music.. what more do you need for a perfect film?? It seems like you have a winner at hand, right? But…

Scripted and directed by Homi Adajania, Finding Fanny, as the name (and the trailer) suggests, is the story of an old man, Ferdie (NS), who is in search of his long-lost love. Helping this man find his Fanny are his best friend Angie (DP), her mother-in-law Rosie (DK), Angie’s childhood love Savio (AK), and a painter craving for Rosie’s portrait, Don Pedro (PK). Their road trip starts of well, and you are in for some fun in the first half of the movie. But come second half, the movie hits the bump for the script isn’t going anywhere. It’s vague, boring and plain stupid (that’s what I thought). I really don’t understand what the director was trying to showcase. The emotions are perfect, and there are some moments of sheer brilliance and dark humor, however it all yields into nothing. Add to this a mediocre screenplay, and the brilliant movie you were hoping for becomes just average. Why do today’s generation of directors forget that script is the core of any film?

On acting front, I have nothing much to say for you are talking about legends. Naseeruddin Shah is absolutely charming as Ferdie. The opening shot of the movie once again proves how good an actor he is. Pankaj Kapoor, with his expressions and antics, is brilliant as Don Pedro. The best of the lot was Dimple Kapadia, and I’m short of words to put her performance into perspective; she was absolutely mind-blowing. Deepika looked really hot and comes up with a commendable performance, and so did Arjun. These guys actually made their presence felt around legends.

Music and background score by Mathias Duplessy is good. ‘Bootiya’ composed by Sachin-Jigar is alright. Cinematography by Anil Mehta is pretty neat and editing by Sreekar Prasad is perfect.

Is it worth your time and money??: I would have so loved to say yes, but. The acting is brilliant and so is everything else, but the script plays spoil sport. It might probably help if you walk in without any expectations, just for the acting. Or just wait for the DVD.

Worth mention: Performances by Naseeruddin Shah, Pankaj Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia.

Acting: 9/10
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 5/10
Technical Aspects: 8/10

Verdict: 6.5/10