Tamasha

Tamasha holds different meaning for each of us than what it actually means.

I will admit to the fact that having seen the trailers of the movie, I had determined this movie to be a flop. Along with the fact that the stars of the movie were seen across attending so many TV shows to promote their movie only give strength to that thought.

The movie takes you on a different level which is very evident from the start. Having said that, this is not your regular movie of what you see is what you get. You will have to put your thinking cap on all the time to understand what the movie is all about.

The plot of the movie has been written by Imtiyaz himself and that I could not help but think how the characterization of each of the character was done while he came up with the story.

For example, the storyteller in the form of an old bearded guy reminded me of Kabuliwala who keeps the young Ranbir engrossed with his stories.

We all knew that this is a love story but this one is a love story wrapped around with the main ingredient in between. It’s up to if you get to know what the movie is about.

The movie kind of reminds of the Before Sunset movie series featuring Julie Delphy & Ethan Hawke. The only difference that they never plan to meet again.

The girl hopes to live in the fantasy as she desperately tries to find the guy and succeeds. Reality hits as she finds him to be like any other average guy and not the Don that he was with her.

It’s here that things take a turn as Ranbir is unable to deny or run away from that personality of his that he had kept hidden from the world or from himself too. Somehow the extremities have gone too far when confronted. One starts to wonder if he has a split personality. Though it was not explained it can be only assumed that he was in touch with his inner self but not ready to bring it on the outside.

The path of realization has been well depicted in two scenes. One in the form of conversation with the auto guy. Secondly, the story he narrates to his family.

The execution and storytelling method is on a different level that one has not witnessed in the Indian cinema. It could be put on a level of Christopher Nolan’s movies only that is this is more understandable if you put your mind to it.

All & above, this movie has been made with a lot of thought and the direction up to the mark and does not divert. Small things like chapters title of the movie is something that keeps you engaged and wonder.

Both Ranbir & Deepika have excelled, showcasing their skills of acting.

Do watch it and again, if you don’t get it the first time :)

Maze Runner: The Sorch Trials

If you thought that Thomas (Dylan O'Brian) and his friends orderal ended by getting away from the Glade then you are wrong. It only got worse to the point that they needed to comprehend the intricacies of being entangled in the puzzle they wish to solve.

The movie which is the second installment of the series explores the survival of Thomas & his friends when they come to know that the safe haven they have been brought too is not one...

Thomas with the help of Aris Jonas (Jacob Lofland) comes to know more about the facility and yes that Ava Paige (Patricia Clarkson) is still alive and that the safe haven is run by her through Janson (Adian Gillan) to continue carry out experiments with the children.

Thomas & his friends make their escape good only to come across the outside deserted world  the Sorch and should fight for survival to reach to the The Right Arm, a resistance group at the Mountains.

The movie keeps you engrossed and yes there are times when you do get to a point on when it will get over as it keeps moving. The scripting of the movie certainly needed to be tight at places like the survivors reaching at a place where they find people living on their own and no explanation on how they survived and what their motives are in this topsy turvy world.  

When they do reach the Right Arm, the survivors in fight with WKCD but with hardly any resources at their reach. The film put everything on the shoulders of Thomas to put an end to it...

The climax of the movie is a big let down and yes as a audience I expected it to be better.

The movie in comparison to the first installment fails to keep you hooked or narrate the plot in a way that keeps the audience enthralled.

The third installment of the movie is supposed to be released in the year 2017.

This is a one time watch movie...

Killa

This is a story about a boy Chinmay who tries to find ground for himself at a new place with his mother who got transferred in a village in the Konkan region.

The new surroundings, first day in school would remind many of their school days. How friendship is made and how scary one is of other kids so that they don't end bullying you.

Chinmay makes news friends and then the visit to the killa changes everything. Chinmay finds himself immersed in the beauty of the fort that he strays from his friends and then it rains heavily and as he searches for his friends. He finds them having left him alone.

This incident changes him as he makes pleas to his mother to move back to their old place. Even as she is struggling with her job as she is accused of not following regulations in her work.

Her turmoil of struggling with work is also depicted.

Her job leads to again transfer in job and this means Chinmay leaving his friends behind.

Does he forgives his friends for their mistakes is the highlight of the movie.

As they travel through the bus, Chinmay looks out at the window looking at the fort reminding of the happy memories of his friends.

Archit Deodhar does a good job as Chinmay and so do Amruta Subhash. The attention of the movie is caught with acting by Parth Bhalerao who was the child actor in Bhootnath Returns.

The film can be a bit slow for the audience and might not be appreciated by everyone.

Have to add that the Marathi Cinema is coming on its own with the originality of the scripts.

Watch it if you wish to reminisce your childhood/school days.

Insidious: Chapter 3

When you go into a theater to watch a horror movie, what do you expect to see on the screen?

Think about it for a minute and proceed.

Whenever there is a trilogy movie, its not always that all the movies do good always. So after the success of Insidious 1 and 2, making a third movie puts in a lot of pressure.

Especially if the movie is directed by the writer and not the director of the first two installments.

Insidious 3 happens to be prequel of the two movies and is all about Elise Rainer (Lin Shaye) who after her husband's death stops her reading but does it for Quinn Brenner (Stefanie Scott) who was trying to get in touch with her dead mother. 

The reading ends abruptly and everything after that gets spooky for Quinn who ends up with an accident her both legs fractured and then getting the feeling that someone is around.

Its also happens to be a trial for Elise who is threatened in the dark world by the Black Widow that she will kill her if she come back. How Elise overcomes her fear and if she is able to help Quinn in time with the help of bloggers Specs and Tucker.

I am not going to tell you what happens in the movie, you will have see it to know. 

This movies by far gives you enough goosebumps that I have not come across for a long while now. They will scare you out of your seats. They are that good.

The buildup to such scenes have also been well executed. A good job done by Leigh Whannell who debuts as a director for the movie. At the same time being the writer. 

The concept of the trilogy is very different from the regular horror movies that one comes across.

If the first two movies were the cake, then this was the icing on the cake.

Never thought that it will live upto its expectations, but it sure made one hell of an impression.

The movie keeps you on your toes from the begining to the end and yes the credit will go to the people behind the scenes who pulled it up. Yes Stefanie and Lin did their job but its the scare effect that comes as brilliant if I may say.

Don't miss this and yes watch it in a theater if you are not a scaredy cat...

Dil Dhadakne Do

Before we get down to the movie review, I have two question to ask.

Firstly when you watch our Hindi bollywood movies, why do the families are always shown rich. Have you ever seen a Karan Johar movie where the hero, heroine are shown poor, middle class eh? Think about it for a min.

Second, do you read the page 3 about the social happening parties and wonder about the people who get clicked. Secretly desire to be part of it and wish to know about their lifestyle and lives these people live.

If you are ok with the first question of not showing the poor, middle class and yes for the second one too, then your wish is granted. Yes, this movie is made only for you to know the lives of the filthy rich.

The story is about the intricacies of the lives that the wealthy rich people live and we are given a peek into it.

Its the Mehra's who are celebrating their marriage anniversary on a cruise and the turn of events that ensues within the family and the plot of mixing business with relations to protect one's wealth.

One has to really ponder on what made Anil Kapoor go all white and take up this role. Has he realized that he will now only be given character roles like Rishi Kapoor until something better comes along. 

He along with Shefali Shah are the parents of Priyanka Chopra the elder daughter and Ranveer Singh who is supposed to take over the business but has no ambitions other than flying planes.

Anil Kapoor has done well in his role which well supported by Shefali. The scene where she is shown gorging on the food is well shown and depicted trying to compensate for one's emotions.

The camaraderie between Priyanka & Ranveer as sister brother looking out for each other can be seen throughout. Ranveer does justice to his role as an immature young guy while Priyanka though donning a different role from her previous roles appears nibble.

Rahul Bose does his job well as Priyanka's husband and leave no room for nitpicking.

Its the roles of Farhan Akhtar and Anushka Sharma that makes you think. Not much has been revealed about Farhan's character when he joins the cruise. We are kind of left to imagine. Anuska though have done her role well but the way her character responds to Ranveer's engagement news is somewhat that could have been done better.

The movie support cast does a good job which also includes Divya Seth & Parmeet Sethi whose presence has been wasted in tid-bit roles.

Who can forget the dog voiced by Amir Khan which narrates to us about the Mehras. The dog just fails to kindle anything in you as it carries the same expression and not shown to take active role.

Its the climax of the movie that lets you know down completely. It as if the writer and the director were in a hurry to complete it. The way it was shot is nothing but chaos and yes common sense cannot be applied.

This is certainly not one of the best works of Zoya considering that she has directed and has written the screenplay along with Reema Katgi (Director of Honeymoon Travels) of the movie.

The movie keeps you hooked but leaves a lot to be desired. A lot of it is expected to be understood by the audience rather shown on the screen. The climax though is a complete let down and surely not the way to end a movie.

You can avoid this cruise and if you still insist on watching, please wear a life jacket.  

Furious 7

When you says Fast & Furious, one's imagination lights up with cars engines roaring, rubbers being burned and chases down the road.

The Furious 7 is no different in the series that has followed.

This time too they end up racing but for their own lives as Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) big bad brother of Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) seeks revenge from Dom and his team.

It's the chase of a cat and mouse where the mouse is played by Deckard who is a black ops. man becoming dark shadow agent taking upon the gang of race drivers.

Luke Hobss (Dwayne Johnson) finds himself in the hospital very early in the movie and has very few scenes in the movie. Disappointment as he could have been utilized in a better way or the writers could have just kept his character off the script.

If you are wondering why there is no mention of the story plot here, coz movies like these don't have one.

The only thing that matters is the action packed car chases, thrills, fights and stunts that blows your mind.

It not only takes the stunts to a different level but the car jump from not one but through three buildings was literally could not be thought of...

Jason Statham plays the villain to the hilt with no remorse on his face. You cannot help but wonder if he carries the same expression. Watch Death Race and see if it’s otherwise.

The scene where Paul Walker is shown to accelerate the car which later turns out to be a mini van is hilarious as he misses his past life and is now shown taking caring of his family.

Vin Disel is the spirit of the movie without whom it will be just a hole in the tyre. He plays his part well.

Tyrese Gibson does have a special mention as he cracks up the audiences with his antics especially when he delegates.

The rest of the cast do well to support the movie which would also include a cameo by Kurt Russell. It also stars Ali Zafar an Indian actor making his mark worldwide through this movie.

The movie loses the plot in the end where the climax seemed to be more inspired from the Hindi film industry and that too from the 80’s and 90’s era.

There’s a helicopter with weapons shooting, launching UAV in the US and there is no alert to the armed forces!!

The presence of Dwayne in destroying the UAV by coming over the tunnel by an ambulance was nothing short of a miracle. Later on he reaches to the location where Vin and Jason are locked into a street fight. Did he had the God’s eye with him all along the movie?

There are no explanations.

If that was not enough Dom attempt to hit the helicopter with his car is missed but manages to put a bag of grenades on it and then crashes down.

As he remains unconscious, Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) reveals that she has regained her lost memories which bring Dom back and yes without a single scratch to his body.

This is something the Indian audience has already seen in the past era of 80’s and 90’s. 

It’s like knowing what was going to happen.

The writer Chris Morgan surely could have written a better ending which looked like a quick chop to end the movie.

The movie directed by James Van is worth a watch but the unexplained appearances of Dwayne out of nowhere and Dom’s survival from a high fall was somewhere lost in the translation of the direction and editing table.

The tribute given to Paul Walker is worth a watch and don’t think that it can be bettered.

His brothers Caleb & Cody were used to complete his remaining scenes.

The movie is worth a watch if you like actions movies and cars.

If not, watch it for Paul Walker for one last time on the screen.

P.S. On a funnier note, the movie and the team is now rumored to be blessed by Rajnikanth to preform such stunts and yes of course the climax dedicated to :)

Dum Laga Ke Haisha

If you don't have a Love Marriage then Arrange Marriage appears to be the only option for the single ones whose families are hell bent on getting them married be it at any cost.

The story of the movie is also on similar line and yes also touches upon the concept of Arrange Marriage which need not be a matter of two souls coming together for they like each other. It could also be due to economic viability.

Its the story of Prem Prakash Tiwari (Ayushman Khurana) set in 1995 who is a school drop out and runs a cassette shop and Sandhya (Bhumi Pednekar) whose lives together gets entangled under arrange marriage.

Prem who did not wish to marry had to bow to his parents wishes to marry Sandhya who happens to be on the healthier side.

Her size becomes an issue with him eventually leading to confess among his friends about it which his wife listens too and then leaves the home.

Sandhya is shown as an educated women who is also independent to take matters in her own hands. Once knowing that the marriage was a farce. She decides to give him divorce something that could not be think of for a women coming from a small town.

The court gives them six months to try it out. Its then that cupid plays its part as they try to understand each other.

Its the contest of carrying one's wife on their back that bonds them together making the love blossom between them.

Both Ayushman and Bhumi do a great job that ends up making this a feel good movie.

The scenes especially wherein they keep changing songs in tune to their feelings and the court scene is hilarious. 

Its has been well paced and kept tight that it will keep you glued to your seats.

The movie is directed by Sharat Katariya and has also been well written.

Its a recommended watch :)

Badlapur

The movie got me thinking what it was all about once it ended.

Like its tagline, if you miss the beginning, you would think that Varun Dhawan has gone mental...

This movie by Sriram Raghavan who also happens to be the co-writer explores the dark side of the humans much like his earlier movies Ek Hasina Thi and Johnny Gaddar.

The film is about Raghu (Varun Dhawan) who loses his wife Misha (Yami Gautam) and son in a bank robbery that goes bad.

Even though one of the robbers Liak (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) is caught knowingly, it fails to satiate Varun as he searches for his partner in crime Harman (Vinay Pathak) who vanished with the booty.

The movie is all about revenge. Raghu's time and patience is checked as he searches for his partner and awaits till Liak is released from prison 15yrs later due to cancer.

From there on, its the plot that's laid on the ground to exact his revenge for the loss of his family.

What does get you thinking is if Liak had not accepted the part where he admits to kills his partner (even though he did not). What was Raghu's plan of action would be given that the investigating cop knew he was behind the killings and Liak had not done the confession.

Something that we will never know. 

The movie keeps you hooked till the end not knowing what to expect next.

Varun Dhawan does okay but yes Nawazuddin catches your attention especially with his temper lost. Yami Gautam was hardly there.

Huma Qureshi needs to make use of more facial expressions otherwise its just words coming out.

The movie climax fails to gives the audience the closure that the character Raghu was looking for...

Maybe it was kept that way to feel what Raghu was feeling but the question is how many did actually got that.

Its worth a watch especially for Sriram and Nawazuddin.

Nightcrawler

Just when you think you have seen it all, there will be a movie which will prove you otherwise.

Nightcrawler is one such movie. It explores the dark side of the humans and shows it as it happens as one vies for better life.

It’s the story of a thief Louis Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal) who is always thinking of making money and also tries his hand at getting a job. He is constantly learning through videos of the internet.

On one such night, he witnesses an accident and camera crew filming it. That gives him an idea to get a camcorder and radio scanner. He starts filming accidents/incidents and then sells it to the TV channel news director Nina Romina (Rene Russo).

He hires up an assistant desperate for a job and then also later on shown to promote him to the position of VP before getting him killed. The assistant had tried to blackmail him of his illegal activities.

Lou is shown as sociopath who is shown to be knowledgeable and would do anything to gather more attention even if it meant to fiddle with crime scene. There is no reasoning behind his action.

Jake has done a great job portraying him, a special mention for his eyes as they express his action and intent. The direction of the movie keeps you hooked all the time not knowing what to expect next.

It’s the crime scene of a drug deal gone wrong that gets him the attention and due to the footage gets hounded by the cops and making the TV channel think if its ethical at all.

Rene Russo does a good job in a short role and yes she does makes you wonder on where to draw the lines of ethics when showing such videos to the people.

The movie asks a lot of question subtly about the morality of people making choices, driven by their aspirations.

This is director Dan Gilroy debut movie and one can only expect more from him in coming years. He also happens to be the writer.

It’s a must watch for Jake Gyllenhaal who has given his one of finest performances.

Hunterrr

Wondering where to start off with, with the present or the past or in between somewhere in the flashbacks that tells the exploits of a man who preyed on women for their abode and never found himself giving up on it until……

Well, you would have to watch the movie for that why give it all away.

Hunterrr is one of the movies that probably every boy, man fantasizes in the land of Kamasutra but seldom is our society open to talk about sex.

It’s good to see movies bringing sex out in the open than behind closed doors.

The movie revolves around Mandar Ponkshe (Gulshan Devaiah) and his sex life wherein he is more interested in getting laid than to find a true love and settled down in life.

His exploits are the highlight of the movie as flashes of his life from the present and past is shown along with women with whom he has affairs.

As he starts ageing and the societal pressure starts to build up on him, he begins his search for his bride through the arrange marriage route and yes the dilemma of speaking the truth about his past hangs like sword over his neck.

He meets Trupti (Radhika Apte) the one girl whom he could have opened about his past but lies. If wondering why, it’s because she had a past too.  

Her ex-boyfriend haunts him like anything making him think if he should tell her the truth or not. His past addiction is on the verge of breaking his start off on a clean slate.

The movie starts well with witty dialogues and then later the flashbacks happen between the present and past. One starts wondering if the director wanted us to compare Mandar’s past and present. I am not sure how many people have got that.

It also tells the story about his cousin Kshitij (Vaibhav Tatwawdi ) who due to his mischiefs is put in army school and yes he too woos the gals his way with his army uniform. Then it takes a turn where he beats up a father for raping his daughter and then ends up marrying her who also is shown to have a darker complexion. Something that makes you think.

Mandar never gets why he does that even when Kshitij could have good looking one’s for marriage.

It’s the climax of the movie that leaves you down wanting for more. The scene especially when he tells her the truth and her response could have been better written. It leaves you wondering “bas itna hi aur kuch nahi”

The only scene that I did not like is the way kids are shown to brush against women in open place. I don’t think that is something that was needed to be shown but my guess is that they probably wanted to show the reality.

The movie is worth watching especially for Gulshan showing his acting prowess and well supported by the rest of the cast. Another one to watch out for is Vaibhav Tatwawdi. Nitesh Pandey does his bit in a blink and miss scene.

The movie does give a feel of a Marathi movie. It has been well directed by Harshavardhan Kulkarni who also happens to be the writer.

The men are going to enjoy this movie a lot more than women. If you are women and liked the movie please do share your thoughts.

The movie is a must watch for Gulshan Devaiah’s acting.

The Imitation Game

This movie is about the life of Alan Turing of who most have not heard of but is often called as the father of computer science.

The movie also touches his personal life and the stigma of his sexuality as he breaks the code that helps the Allies to win over the Nazis in the World War.

The lead is played by Benedict Cumberbatch as Alan Turing who does a good portrayal and does justice to the role. He is well supported by Keira Knightley and Matthew Goode.

The movie maintains a good pace and the flashback in his life shown well by the director Morten Tyldum and well scripted too by Graham Moore.

After the movie I did some research on the man and it’s sad to know that a man who helped to win the war got detained for his sexuality as a homosexual which was considered to be a crime those days. 

Eventually he committed suicide at the age of 41.

Much of the recognition of his work came later post his death as deemed confidential by the government then.

In 2009, following an Internet campaign, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown made an official public apology on behalf of the British government for "the appalling way he was treated". Queen Elizabeth II granted him a posthumous pardon in 2013.

It’s a Must Watch for the man unknown and also for the good performance put up by Benedict.

Playing It Cool

One must have watched so many rom coms (romantic comedy) that at one point of time that you can actually guess what will happen in the next scene. 

That may make you think that you have the potential of becoming a scriptwriter but no. It’s just the same old formula is used repeatedly with lack of any of innovative ideas/writing coming up.

Playing it cool is one such movie though a different approach has been taken the story goes through the cliché wherein the guy does not believe in love until he falls in one and that he has a hard time accepting it.

The movie is directed by Justin Reardon and written by Chris Shafer and Paul Vicknair. It stars  Chris Evans, Michelle Monaghan, Anthony Mackie, Aubrey Plaza, Patrick Warburton, Ashley Tisdale, Ioan Gruffudd,Topher Grace and Giovanni Ribisi.

The movie is about a writer who is told to write a romantic movie but struggles with it. His mom abandonment is the reason behind his failed relationship. 

His necessity to write a romantic is shown through the stories of his friends who incidentally are also writers/poets, etc. and later on he falls in love with a girl who is engaged to get married.

There is nothing much new over here and Chris Evans and Michelle Monaghan do their job quite well supported by other cast.

The script lacked the depth that could have turned this movie around. Instead they choose to go with which we have already seen in earlier rom com movies.

The movie is a one-time watch.

As Above, So Below

A storyteller has the ability to keep his audience engaged as they listen and explore the imagination of their mind which makes the story vivid and thrilling.

This is the thought which comes to my mind when I think about this movie directed by John Erick Dowdle and written by Dowdle and his brother Drew.

Most of the horror movies have the same old story and one can see a pattern in the stories that they can predict the whole story of what’s going to happen next. At least I use to do that.

Recently there has been a different approach to the storytelling of horror movies with a tight script and yes they have the ability to keep you intrigued. Insidious, Insidious Chapter 2 are fine examples of it.

This movie stands apart from the horror movies that you must have watch till now and yes it plays with your imagination as you tried to get grip of the plot as it moves.

It’s the story of Scarlett Marlowe (Perdita Weeks), a young alchemy scholar who goes in the search of the Philosopher Stone continuing her Dad’s research.

It takes her from the caves of Iran to Paris wherein they search within the catacombs beneath the city for the stone. It leads to all kinds of events taking place and death of group members one by one.

I must applaud the writers for coming up with such a script that keeps the audience abound. The movie has been shot in a documentary style format and yes it is captured beautifully.

Scarlett was supported by ex-boyfriend George (Ben Feldman), Explorers Papillon (François Civil), his girlfriend Souxie (Marion Lambert), and friend Zed (Ali Marhyar).

Scarlett role played by Perdita does justice to her role and while others have done their job considering there was no meat in their roles.

The movie stands out with its story, documentary style shooting and direction.

This movie can certainly be watched more than once.

It’s a MUST WATCH.

John Wick

I have been waiting for quite a while to watch this movie and finally I did. This was an out and out action movie where words spoke less than bullets.

Keanu Reeves was the one for whom I watched the movie but yes the plot could have a better story.

The movie directed by Chad Stahelski and David Leitch tells the story of John Wick who had lost his wife and trying to recuperate his life back to normal with a puppy gifted to him by his wife.

A chance encounter with the Russian mafia over his 69 Mustang at a gas station leads to killing of his dog and been badly beaten with the car being taken away for which they had offered price to him but he said no.

It’s revealed that John was the killing machine of the Russian mafia who left his past behind to lead a normal life. The Russia mafia kingpin Viggo Tarasov tries to make amends so that John lets his son live but that was not going to be the case.

It becomes a game of cat and mouse where both try their hands to kill each other. The execution in the first half is slick and yes keeps you glued but it loses its plot when he checks into a hotel that caters exclusive to assassins.

Seriously one could think of many other ways but this was certainly a piece of the puzzle that did not fit. 

Along with that the character of John is shown to roam freely even with the prize on his head and the way he goes for his kill is just too easy.

The script could have been slicker but it fails miserably. The part where the father tells his son hideout does not makes sense. The climax of the movie leaves you with a desire of wanting more but it fails to deliver.

What started out as a slick movie in the beginning fails to remain consistent in the end.

Willam Dafoe has not been fully utilized of his abilities. Keanue does best what he knows.

It’s a one-time watch and it’s okay if you pass over on this one.