BornAndBred Reviews

Animal (I) (2023)

If Andrew Tate Made a Bollywood Movie

[2/10 · 3 December 2023]

I swear, Sandeep Reddy Vanga hates women. I really didn't think his movies could get any more misogynistic than Arjun Reddy or Kabir Singh but, hats off to the "creator", he's managed to surpass himself by creating the vilest, most toxic protagonist/"hero" I have ever seen on the big screen.

Ranbir Kapoor's Ranvijay Singh Balbir has absolutely zero redeeming qualities. Now, usually there is nothing wrong with that as we have seen our fair share of psychos in films that we have appreciated but Vanga makes abundantly clear that not only are we meant to understand his protagonist's intentions, we are actually supposed to root for him. We are supposed to laugh and hoot as he denegrades women every chance he gets and then nod accordingly when he attempts to justify why he is behaving the way he is. To say I was squirming watching this with my wife would be the biggest understatement of the decade.

I was hoping the promised over-the-top action set pieces and the acting from seasoned performers like Anil Kapoor, Suresh Oberoi, Prem Chopra and Bobby Deol would make some of the vileness worthwhile but it didn't come anywhere close.

There are a couple of enjoyable and applaudable moments in the film like a young and rambunctious Ranbir defends his sister against bullies at college, Ranbir Kapoor's quarrelling with his brother-in-law at his father's birthday party or Ranbir Kapoor gathering his troops in Punjab but these fleeting moments don't make up for sitting through over 3 and a half hours of something that comes across as an extended advertisement of masculinity made by the Tate brothers.

If this film is lauded and becomes a blockbuster amongst Indians, I can only sympathise with the stature in which women are perceived by Indian males.

Kohrra (2023– )

A Slow-burning Character Study That's Not for an Indian Audience

[9/10 · 20 July 2023]

This is quite simply a fantastic show that's way ahead of its time from an Indian point of view. I have read some ridiculous reviews about how this show is just full of "social commentary". This is the level of comprehension for some Indian audiences.

But nothing could be further from the truth.

This show is like a python that slowly grips you and never lets up. It's a character study in the guise of a murder mystery full of nuanced (and brave) performances. If I have one gripe it's that it tackles one too many themes. With a little more focus on just a few threads it could have been tighter and even more compelling. But that is a very minor complaint.

Do yourselves a favour and give this one a watch. It's the best show to come out of India in a long time.

Also, kudos to the makers for sticking to the authentic Punjabi language throughout. It added an extra layer of authenticity.

Panorama: SAS Death Squads Exposed: A British War Crime? (2022) Season 70, Episode 26

One Word Review: HARROWING

[9/10 · 4 August 2022]

These so called "kill squads" were nothing more than a bunch of cold-hearted, brutal maniacs.

Sure, there will be plenty of apologists for them who will try and justify their actions by saying "that's what war is and what it does", but if you kill innocent men, women and children then what's the difference between "soldiers" and the terrorists they are supposedly trying to save people from?

Anek (2022)

Don't Believe the Andh Bhakt 1 Star Reviews

[8/10 · 26 June 2022]

What's happening in India right now is incredibly sad and extremely dangerous. The hostile political crisis is now seeping its way into anything and everything, including movie reviews for films like Anek that dare to shed some light on subjects like the discrimination faced by Northeast Indians.

This film pulls no punches (pun intended) and Ayushmann Khurrana is in top form once again along with Andrea Kevichusa, who is a revelation in the movie. Yes, the movie is a tad slow in places but it is well acted, well directed and very engaging. Please give it a watch.

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

Now THIS.....

[9/10 · 28 May 2022]

....THIS is how you do fan service, The Last Jedi.

The only bit of trepidation I had before going into this was then Luke Skywalkering Maverick. But, I'm happy to report that that's not the case. Yes, the dialogue is a tad corny, of course it's more than a little cheesy in places, but that's EXACTLY what we (the 80's kids) wanted.

Thank you, Tom Cruise. Thank you, Joseph Kosinski.

Bad Vegan: Fame. Fraud. Fugitives. (2022)

I Try Not to Judge People....

[8/10 · 16 March 2022]

But after watching Tinder Swindler and then this, I have to wonder how people become this gullible and, quite frankly, dumb?

Anyway, this is worth watching just to see the kind of Kool Aid people are willing to drink.

Pig (I) (2021)

It's Not About a Man looking for his Pig...

[9/10 · 16 January 2022]

It's about a man (and others) dealing with immense grief. And if you understand that, you'll love this film. If you have a tendency to moan about a lack of action or any kind of revenge/vengeance, then you will hate this. I loved it. And to the people who have the temerity to give this film one star (seriously, ONE??), please just stick to watching the Fast and the Furious franchise.

Moosa Jatt (2021)

Stick to Singing Sidhu

[2/10 · 9 October 2021]

I love Sidhu Moosewala but the guy can't act to save himself. This film was an utter cringe fest from start to finish. Horrible acting, boring story and the less said about the direction the better.

Stick to songs Sidhu, because you are no actor.

Baaghi 3 (2020)

Who even watches films like this anymore?

[1/10 · 21 August 2021]

Thank God I didn't waste any money watching this at the cinema. Got to the hour mark and couldn't watch anymore. After seeing Tiger Shroff's horrendous entry, I thought maybe it could be one of those "so-bad-it's-good" movies. It's not. It's just bad. Very bad.

World Famous Lover (2020)

Quite Possibly the Most Misogynistic Film I Have Ever Seen

[1/10 · 22 April 2020]

Won't bother writing too much in my review as most of the other 1 star reviews have covered it. But don't waste your time with this misogynistic trash.

The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019)

I Really Hope All of the People Complaining about the Race of the Characters Never Go to the Theatre

[9/10 · 9 February 2020]

They might have a heart-attack at seeing a Black Romeo with White parents or an Asian Dr. Frankenstein.

Honestly, do people really not grasp the concept of Blind Casting? Can they really not appreciate a film if Victorian England in a FILM doesn't have an all White cast? Seriously people, broaden your horizons just a little bit.

Coming to the film, I adored it. The cast are having so much fun and play their roles superbly. Special mentions for Tilda Swinton, Hugh Laurie, Ben Wishaw and, of course, Dev Patel. I will admit, I'm no Dickens fan so I really can't comment on the film's loyalty to the novel, but as a Drama/Comedy film it was fantastic.

Long Shot (2019)

Ignore The Clearly Fake 1 Star Reviews

[8/10 · 16 May 2019]

One look at these people's history of reviews (or lack thereof) will tell you all you need to know.

It's a sad state of affairs when you can scroll down to an 8 Star review quicker on garbage "comedies" like Fist Fight than you can on a genuinely funny film like Longshot which, was not only hilarious in many places, but also a lot more layered than I expected from a Seth Rogen film.

Watch it!

Ra.One (2011)

That's it? Really? That's it???

[3/10 · 27 October 2011]

!!!SIGH!!! Where to begin? This was supposed to be India's definitive Superhero film. A film that was supposed to, if not rank alongside Hollywood efforts, then at the very least be comparable to some degree. But the sad fact of the matter is that if "Ra.One" really is the best India is able to produce in terms of Superhero films, then it's time for Bollywood to quit that genre.

"Ra.One" takes no more than 10 minutes before people will start rolling their eyes at some of the stupidity. The opening dream sequence is just about forgivable (though still a bit cringy) but some of what follows is excruciating to watch. YES! Blondes are dumb. It's an old and very tired joke. But are we now supposed to believe that a set of keys can land on their half exposed breasts and they won't notice? Give me a break! And the scene were learn-ed and educated people try to touch invisible entities such as WiFi Radiowaves after an explanation of how they surround us raised quite a chuckle in my cinema hall. Then the silly Indian mentality of overdoing how much people earn abroad. Even the most experienced of Game Designers would struggle to pull anything more than £50,000 a year in the UK. Yet here's Shekhar (SRK), the only earner in the family and living in Central London in a detached house in its own private area with two cars in the driveway that would probably set someone back at least 3/4 of a Million Pounds. And since when did it become a necessity for Games Designers to construct full size prototype suits and "HART"s for virtual characters? I can only imagine what the offices of the designers of the Resident Evil games must have looked like! I could go on about the ridiculous and unbelievable Boss played by Dilip Tahil, how a completely wrecked room complete with the dead body of a designer goes unnoticed for days in an office building, how a young boy who is still being taught how WiFi works at school is somehow a computer genius or the absolute bogus explanation of how the virtual characters enter the real world ("Sync With Prototype"? REALLY??) but I won't bother.

Now, ALL of what I have mentioned above can be forgiven if the Superhero elements, Special Effects and the action set pieces live up to the hype. Well, I'm sorry to say that not only do they not live up to the hype, they don't even come close.

There is not a SINGLE action set piece that makes you want to get to the edge of your seat. There's a chase sequence through London with Ra.One jumping from car to car. Nothing we haven't seen in Krrish back in 2006. The entry of our hero G.One is very underwhelming and his opening gambit involves making junk yard cars float around for a bit and running up walls. Woohoo indeed! And then, because it's a Bollywood film, the hero (even if he is a Superhero) has to face off against local "mawaalis" in a pretty rubbish fight scene. Then there is the out-of-control speeding train scenario which involves G.One wasting time floating around the sides of the train (Hey, G.One! Won't it be A LOT faster to just run on top of the carriages to get to the front of the train?). And the FINAL SHOWDOWN? The Coup de Grâce of any Superhero film? The biggest damp squib of the lot! So what went wrong? Simple. BUDGET. Special effects cost a lot of money. Decent special effects cost a HECK of a lot of money. And state-of-the-art special effects cost an EXTRAORDINARY amount of money. Money the Indian Film Industry just doesn't have to spend on a film in order to make a profit. This is precisely why G.One and Ra.One who are based on computer game characters, and therefore have the potential to have virtually ANY super power, end up being such half baked creations. G.One can float, run up walls and fire energy balls that, frankly, never do any noticeable damage to anything in the film. Ra.One, the so called indestructible Super Villain, can float around, fire the same type of energy balls and take the form of anyone he touches. Now the effects of Ra.One rebuilding himself are actually quite good. But they are probably on par with the T-1000 effects in Terminator 2. A film that came out 20 years ago.

Therin lies the rump. A single special effects scene in a Transformers movie would cost over half the entire budget of "Ra.One". Hollywood can afford to splash such amounts on films because their films have genuine Worldwide appeal. Audiences from all cultural backgrounds all over the world will watch a Spiderman, a Superman, an Iron Man or the X-Men which equates to mega bucks at box offices all over the globe. An Indian film will only be watched (mainly) by people from Indian/Pakistani backgrounds only. They just don't have the appeal to pull in a large number of foreign/Western audiences. Therefore ANY special effects film from India will always be hamstrung like "Ra.One" which may well be the most expensive Indian film ever, but as far as making a decent Superhero film goes, was made on a peanuts budget.

BUT, laying the blame on lame Super Powers for the Hero/Villain and average Special Effects would be incorrect. The other problem is the story itself. Let's face it, Batman doesn't have any Super Powers but his background story and character arc is tremendous. G.One and Ra.One's background is plain boring and you feel nothing for Shekhar, his wife or his kid. The danger the wife and the kid are in has little to no effect.

In a nut shell, "Ra.One" is a half-assed, half-baked Superhero film with average performances, a weak script and, at times, laughable dialogue.

Dabangg (2010)

WARNING: This film is NOT for Pretentious Snobs!

[8/10 · 17 September 2010]

I don't normally bother to write any reviews for films I have watched. But after reading some of the reviews of imbeciles who CLEARLY missed the point of Dabangg, I felt compelled to add my two cents.

Firstly, to all those people who are bashing Dabangg because it's action scenes are over the top, or it can't decide whether it's an action film/comedy/drama etc........here's a thought.....do you think maybe (just MAYBE) that was the whole point in the first place??

This is generally the problem with the nouveau Indian cinema goers of the multiplex era. They will happily watch Bruce Willis in Die Hard 4 bring down a helicopter with a taxi cab. They will applaud when Jason Statham drives a car off a bridge and lands it perfectly on to a moving truck in The Transporter. They will not bat an eyelid when Pierce Brosnan drives around in an invisible car in Die Another Day. Uma Thurman single handedly killing a hundred Chinese assassins with a sword in Kill Bill? "Sure, that can happen. And a very good movie from Tarantino" they might say. But GOD FORBID that any Indian movie has action scenes where the hero launches a guy in front of a speeding train and pulls him back just before the train smashes into him. "NOOOOOOO!!!!" they will scream. "That is so stupid!" they will say. "Where is the REALISM?" they will exclaim. A bunch of HYPOCRITES if you ask me! I mean honestly, any person who expects a serious and realistic action film after the first scene in Dabangg where the two main character's names are established as "Chulbul" and "Makkhi" (and after seeing the trailers of the film no less) is, quite frankly, a moron of the highest order.

Dabangg is a film which doesn't take itself seriously for a single second (which already makes it FAR superior and a more honest effort than the over-hyped Ghajini that took itself ridiculously seriously while at the same time offering NOTHING new). It is what it is; a complete no-brainer masala film. And tell me, what is wrong with that? Reading some of the reviews here about how Dabangg is "taking the Hindi Film Industry backwards" you would think that other film industries all over the world just churn out serious films all the time. NEWSFLASH! They don't (as you can see from the list above). Then there are complaints about how some action scenes are copied from Western films (namely Salman's opening scene resembling Transporter), second NEWSFLASH! Hollywood copies A LOT of it's action scenes from Hong Kong and Chinese cinema all the time. But do you complain about that? Of course you don't. Because you are either ignorant or, as said before, hypocritical. As long as the scene is done well, who cares if it's copied from another film?

Dabangg sets it's stall out very early on in the proceedings and it has a fabulous kitsch appeal to it. Salman Khan bites into his role with relish and he is clearly having a lot of fun playing Inspector Chulbul Pandey. This material in the hands of other actors might have gone down in flames, but Salman grabs the film by the scruff of it's neck and runs with it. Make no mistake about it, this film is a one-man show and, luckily for us, Salman carries it off with élan. He plays the role of Chulbul with just the right amount of self-mockery (the type of which Shahrukh Khan was aiming for in Om Shanti Om but failed miserably at). There are moans about how actors like Om Puri and Anupam Kher aren't given enough scope, but who cares? Like I said before, this film really doesn't require brilliant performances from secondary characters. Character development is not the agenda here. However, it has to be said that débutant Sonakshi Sinha does perform very well in her (smallish) role.

Bottom line: if you are expecting an intelligent and realistic action thriller like any of the Jason Bourne series, then avoid Debangg at all costs. With that sort of mindset you are sure to be disappointed. BUT, if you are in the mood for an old fashioned masala movie in the mould of films such as Die Hard 4, Kung Fu Hustle and Desperado, then you are in for a treat. Just sit back, relax, accept the film for what it is (a pure popcorn and purposefully OTT flick) and let Salman Khan entertain you.

The Great Ecstasy of Robert Carmichael (2005)

A good film COMPLETELY ruined by the last scene

[3/10 · 5 June 2007]

This film is beautifully shot and the three main leads are complete naturals. The film accurately portrays life in Blair's Britain. BUT then we get to the unnecessarily and completely gratuitous gang rape scene at the end of the film. It was an absolutely pathetic attempt from a débutant director to get noticed and talked about. Its obvious Clay believes that ANY publicity is good publicity. That final rape scene is absolutely indefensible and horrific. The worst thing is that the film already has a powerful rape scene in the middle of the film - a group of guys take a girl that they have drugged into the back room of a flat but the camera stays outside and we occasionally hear the girl's screams whilst a DJ spins records outside. Its a fantastic scene that conveys all the brutality of rape without the need to be explicit. Oh how I wish the director had kept the same mentality during the climax rape scene. If he had simply panned the camera away at the point Carmichael starts to use the wine bottle and the sword (Jesus, WHY a sword??) to the tied up husband who is being forced to watch his wife go through this terrible ordeal then the scene would have remained powerful and conveyed the same message. Clay definitely crossed a line by forcing the scene upon the audience. And to then cut the scene with genuine war footage is just plain offensive. WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY CLAY?? That this violence is influenced by the war violence people watch on TV? And then you go and show us horrific staged violence thats worse than any REAL violence I have ever seen? Give me a break you hypocrite! This film is genuinely good in places but the only thing I remember is that last scene. This basically means I will not be watching this film again.

Don (I) (2006)

A fitting tribute to a classic thriller

[6/10 · 22 October 2006]

Well just watched the film last night.....and..........I have to say...............IT WAS AWESOME!!!!! Jeez!!! I am not going to make any comparisons with the original otherwise its going to take all day. What I can say is that Farhan's expert direction has definitely helped to flesh out many of the characters, particularly those of DCP DeSilva and Roma. SRK was good, very good. He really plays the evilness of Don's character brilliantly and he really bites into the role of the anti-hero with relish (its obvious he missed playing parts like this after being stuck in the romantic hero mould for too long). Alas, it has to be said his portrayal of Vijay is not quite up to the mark. He hams it up a bit too much when hes in the Bihaari mode and you never quite appreciate Vijay's plight when he is trying to convince everyone hes not Don. He doesn't play up the fear factor enough like Amitabh did so brilliantly in the original. But this is a minor negative in a film full of positives. Priyanka Chopra is simply rocking as Roma. She really makes you believe that this is indeed a deadly woman you do not want to mess with. Surprisingly Kareena has acted very well in her cameo role too, as have Boman Irani and Om Puri (in what little footage he has) in their roles. And the action? Fantastic. Some truly excellent set pieces. The car chase scene when the police are chasing Don has been brilliantly executed, though a tad too long, and the sky diving sequence (which is heavily influenced from the Bond film Moonraker) was very, very good too. Kudos Farhan. And then we come to one of the best features about the film............THE TWIST!!! Oh yes, there is one and it is completely and utterly unexpected and absolutely compelling. But of course, I'm not going to tell you what it is. In the words of Morpheus from the Matrix, "You have to see it for yourself". Of course some Don purists will probably not take to Farhan's version too much. Granted in many scenes that are direct lifts from the original SRK doesn't even compare to the Big B. Neither does SRK infuse the manic energy that Amitabh did into his version of Kahaike Paan. But like I said before, these issues are minor in the big picture. Who steals the film? Well acting wise both SRK and Priyanka Chopra have done very well but the film belongs to just one man. Farhan Akhtar. Enough said.

GO WATCH IT!!!

Zinda (2006)

If you liked Oldboy DO NOT watch this crap!

[2/10 · 2 March 2006]

It plain and simply SUCKED!!!! Sanjay Dutt is a fabulous actor and gave his absolute all to breathe some life into this corpse of a film called Zinda but alas, he couldn't manage it. Oldboy is a masterful piece of work. A fantastic film that just couldn't have ever been translated into a bollywood film. Sanjay Gupta made a complete hash of it. He bathed his camera lens in blue to make the film seem more....I don't know.......seedy? Creepy? God knows what he was aiming for but it looked annoying after about half an hour. It was an obvious gimmick from an average director trying desperately to look more technical and Hollywood. Oldboy has a memorable sequence that had Dei-Su (the Korean characters name) fighting off dozens of goons with a hammer down a thin and claustrophobic hallway. It was all done in one take with the camera placed on a side view following the hero very, very slowly. It was an amazing sequence. Needless to say it was ruined in Zinda in a shot that just ended up looking like a typical bollywood sequence where the hero bashes up 100 villains with some very crappy fight choreography. And Lara Dutta as a Bangkok cabbie????!!!!!??? DO ME A FAVOUR!! If a girl that good looking were to drive a taxi in the seedy areas of Bangkok where she so effortlessly drives through then she would be molested ten times over! Wheres the realism?? Mahesh Manjrekar goes into his over acting mode again (HONESTLY! Who told this guy he could act??) and John Abraham never convinces as a guy seeking vengeance. Then the entire premise for John Abrahams hatred towards Sanjay Dutts character is so ridiculous it insults the viewers intelligence!! A young Dutt lies about having had sex with John Abrahams sister and spreads the rumour around his school. His evidence? A pair of panties that he himself bought and claimed he got them off her!!!! Why would anyone believe him?? Can some guy really buy 40 panties and then manage to convince people that he slept with 40 girls? Now the brilliant Oldboy tackled the subject of a brother-sister incestuous relationship and that kind of reputation really could drive a girl to suicide. Its so much more believable than a girl committing suicide because a guy claimed he slept with her. And then we come to the ending.....OH MY GOD!! The ending of Oldboy was so shocking, so unexpected, it just rose the film to an even higher level. It was brilliant. Then we have Zinda's ending which is no where near in the same league. When De-Su breaks down at the end and begs in front of the villain you feel for him. You are filled with pity and disgust at his behaviour. Sanjay Dutts breakdown is so half-assed you will find yourself looking at your watch wondering when this is going to end. And as for the Zinda twist? Its as damp as the film. Bollywood is simply not brave enough to tackle the subject of incest so Oldboy shouldn't have been re-made in the first place. The attempt at "Indianising" the film is what has ultimately led to its downfall. Of course you can forgive ALL of this if the film was well made but there is too much wrong with it. As well as the ridiculous casting of Lara Dutta there are other things that rankle you like: Dutt recognising the delivery boy from his boots. Why the hell would someone wear the same boots for 14 years?, then there is a scene where John shows Sunjay a photo of himself with Dutts wife from 14 years ago. Who is Johns plastic surgeon because he hasn't aged a single day! Enough said. Like I said at the top, if you have seen Oldboy then avoid this lame attempt.