ankitj-pec Reviews

3 Idiots (2009)

Contemporary cinema at its best.

[10/10 · 2 January 2010]

You watch 3 Idiots and realize that Aamir has done it again ! It started with Rang De Basanti which instilled the passion of truthfulness to Taare Zameen par which was a message about child-centric creativity, the similar ideas are propounded in 3 Idiots.

3 Idiots is a mixture of realism and Bollywood Masala which targets a very important, yet subtle issue of our Indian society. Considering that fact that most of the population in India is young and further that most of them pursue sciences as their degree and compete with a gargantuan mass of peers to stand where they are right now, the story just aims to get some saneness in our society, which the old wise men argue and the younger ones forget. Think and learn things for the love of knowledge, rather than the desire of success. It highlights the essential flaw in our system, that the person studying in IIT's and IIM's is not because of his passion for technology/managing skills but because of his academic abilities.

A contemporary theme executed with contemporary brilliance and carefully dramatized masala to keep the audience entertained. If the medium budget films did well last year, mainly because of the realism in them, big budget like this has all the ingredients for a blockbuster. The plot focuses of inventive thinking, engineering design which, I , personally well relate to and share similar opinions. The plot is like any Masala movie, with a protagonist which desires a change in opinions and a climax which shatters the mindset of the pessimist, a love story, a friendship packed with chirps of comic relief. The strong theme just completes the movie and drives the message straight to the eye. Aamir deserves most of the credits for his acting while Vidhu Vinod Chopra and his team have done a commendable job with the sets, locales and editing and lighting. Hats Off ! 10/10

P.S. : before watching the movie, i was shocked to hear a German and a Ukranian going bonkers about the movie. such is the brilliance of contemporary bolly cinema.

Kaminey (2009)

dark adventurous movie to keep you edged on the seats

[8/10 · 14 August 2009]

We've seen so much of the RGV stuff about " Jai Maharashtra" and the style. plus, talk about 'judwa' movies .. There are things which might make you feel there's something familiar what Kaminey offers. NOT.

Well, attempting a dark comedy is difficult, especially about mafia (that too in the settings of maharashtra). The movie is a dark comedy, with an adventurous plot and an action setting. The movie almost achieves what it wants to. its brilliant in execution, with some freelance direction and good screenplay. the story revolves around parallel tracks of brothers wanting to live their own lives, but they're bound to collide. The storytelling warps in the movie where we witness a normal movie and then suddenly so much happens that you fee like rewinding back. The pace is varying and there is something to keep you edged on your seat. And the final scene comes similar to "lock, stock and 2 smoking barrels", in an Indian environment, really perfect, spotless direction.

The direction just in-phase with the contemporary age of experimental cinema. we see perfect lighting for the scenes and low shots in the movies. the songs are nice, too. the movie in whole is a great watch for people who have the taste of seeing action or adventure scripts. A nice movie, watch it.

Shahid's acting is good, limited in his roles but very methodical. priyanka tries a kareena of JWM (or the asin of Ghajini, for that matter) and plays it smoothly. However, editing the viewer with a lost feeling sometimes. There are certain potholes scattered throughout the movie, which could have either explained or avoided, at least. and yes, the movie seems a little predictable sometimes, but its maximum criticism it deserves. go on experimenting Bollywood ! o ya, n i really wonder why it got A certificate .. there is nothing A about it..

Persepolis (2007)

Commendable !

[9/10 · 17 July 2009]

I don't know what Persepolis means, but its just a great movie. Showing the Iranian war scene through a 9 year old, the movie is a breathtaking account of the changes in customs a country goes through in war. Very contemporary (With some similar style of Southpark series), the movie aims at associating everyone for the particular question- do you have a choice?

The direction and screenplay is brilliant, for a comic. The benefit of using just 2 colors in the movie is imminent. Just by showing shades of whites, the plot undergoes through the lighter moments of life and then follows the blacks with difficult phases of life. Its something which everyone has experienced in life, the unending struggle against life, the ups and downs of the tide which one rides on. The message is evident, Be yourself!

The movie aims to be emphasize the importance of being yourself and not yielding away in pressure. The protagonist, a forceful girl with no fear in heart against the world shows the Iranian society from her eyes. The modernist thinking clashes with the conservative 'religious' clergy, police and many more, only to realize that their motives are not exactly religious, but selfishly modern too.

Am impressed with the whole idea, the execution and the editing of the story. bravo! PS: English subtitles are the only way to watch it. Someone should dub in English and release in the western society.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)

disappointing...an average take on a brilliant story

[6/10 · 17 July 2009]

I expected Harry potter-the half blood prince to be the thriller, with all the history Voldemort's life and the dark world. Sadly, its just turned out to be an average take on the JK Rowling book, with Lavender Brown getting more frames than even Hermione.

Okay, they wanted to make the movie interesting for the audience, but the trade-off has been really frustrating for the harry potter fans. Most of the movie has been shot about romance in the air and teenage life of harry and his friends but the people expect a thriller from a HP movie. Not a casual take on teenage love with some magic involved.

The plot just unfolds in the last half an hour of the movie and the lead characters of the novel have not been given their due while the supporting ones (Lavender Brown etc) are just used for no reason at all. Poor screenplay, poor direction and some really breathtaking scenes reduced to a flash makes you wonder that is this the adventurous harry potter series like the other movies ? The scenes at Hogwarts are usually filled with 'snugging' teenagers and one wonders why weren't harry's seniors been shown 'snugging' in the corridors in the other harry potter movies and they just had to keep on emphasizing the fact that love was in the air ?

With just 1-2 spells in the whole movie, no wand-fight for the matter, the story just reduces to showing the main focus of the book, i.e. introduce about Horcruxes. The storyline is with lots of loopholes and direction is all the while poorer. Snape has not been given his due while the movie also lacks the male protagonist's optimism. Harry is shown to be afraid of Draco in the opening scenes at Hogwarts which makes you wonder if this is the boy who is the chosen one in the final blockbuster. A opportunity missed, i'll say the least. For those who've read the book, you can give it a miss. For those who haven't, probably you like the movie.

Gulaal (2009)

the maverick director is up-to it again !!

[10/10 · 13 March 2009]

just moments after seeing the movie, I am speechless about it. A pretty heavy, engrossing and brain-consuming movie, its definitely not for the casual cinema-goers. For the more adventurous or socially opinionated people, its worth a watch. personally, i'd watch it over again, being a brilliant take on manipulative politics. One may compare it with other movies based on politics, but the major difference in this is that it relates with the simple minded, down to earth common man and how certain events can bring a destructive change in his mentality.

Set in a topical theme of Rajasthani traditions, it sets an account of how a straightforward, common, hard working man faces challenges of the grim modern world. The theme is engrossingly fast, manipulative and gripping (provided you don't expect an action filled murder mystery). So much being said and shown in the movie in so less a time, makes your brain racing on the heels of the movie.

Apart from the story line, the other most credulous thing about the movie is its ensemble cast. the only famous star, Kay Kay shines with his aggressive attitude perfectly. The main protagonist makes a stark resemblance with the innocence of superman's parallel life as a worker newspaper company.

Another very important positive are the songs (not all but some of them). Using old classics like 'Yeh Duniya Agar Mil Bhi Jaaye To ..' and Indian Bhajan's/Patriotic numbers and mixing them to make them relevant to the movie is a brave attempt, which has surely paid off for Anurag Kashyap.

Though my only worry about the movie is that for which kind of audience is such a movie prepared ?

Luck by Chance (2009)

brilliant movie..

[10/10 · 31 January 2009]

a lovely movie, coherent script, brilliant creativity and direction. each and every frame (as they call in the movie) makes sense.

the story is optimistic and talks of how taking chances may get you what you desire. having a deep meaning and portraying it in a movie is difficult. however, Zoya does that perfectly. the moral of the story is "fortune favors the brave." something we've seen in lot of motivational, war and heroic movies. but the brilliance of this movie is that it targets the commonness and makes one relate to either of the protagonist characters. be it Farhan or Konkona, both have strong characters and a subtle difference. the supporting cast also shows idealism, hard work, fire and the unsettled mind wanting to achieve something.

In all, a brilliant movie with a strong message. and don't forget some eye candy, too. Isha looks flamboyantly amazing, portraying an important class of character. In all, i am sure every role defined in the movie fits either in one of us and our lives. bravo !! 10/10

CC2C (2009)

attempt of a brainless action-comedy flick

[5/10 · 15 January 2009]

Chandni Chowk to what ?? it seemed a copy of B grade brainless comedy-action movie where umbrellas make u go up in the air (antigravity), hats are the most deadliest weapons and god exists in potatoes ... senseless rite ?? thats the movie for you....

where a girl remembers details when she was 1 month old but has no ideas what she did when she was 4, where poison only affects villains and hero does x-men stunts just because the director wants him to.

its the most stupid flick i've seen in recent times, but should be the best seller B grade movie (starring Mithun, too .. i forgot.. he speaks 'bihari' dialect, with some Bengali words in between .... and wears Punjabi 'jooti' ..?? )

there are good points about the movie though. brilliantly directed action scenes (first time an Indian movie gets Kung-Fu stuff .. awesome action on great wall of china) Deepika Padukone looks amazingly hot and the locations chosen are a perfect foil for a great movie . and Chinese guys have acted well.... but again the misery is that Akshay disappoints, script is brainless and no person would like to watch action without any sensible logic behind it... Ranvir Shorey is held back in movie, being just a mere sidekick ...

Maharathi (2008)

a thriller having the finest actors bollywood's delivered.

[10/10 · 5 January 2009]

a brilliant movie ... taking a risk of making a thriller which the Indian masses can understand is a big one.. though the multiplex audience (like me) loved the movie .. there are no romantic subplots or any item songs .. but just sheer acting and brilliant screenplay. a shot when the camera zooms out of a keyhole is one of the most brilliant scenes i have seen in Hindi cinema ... the protagonist looks like a young 30'sh year old fella, being done by paresh rawal (suresh in the movie), by great method acting. the movie urges the audience to think, like a thriller and the plot is an unpredictable one, for an Hindi movie, where almost everything is so predictable from the start .. the bad points are that tara sharma and neha dhupia have their limitations to act, is visible.. apart from them, and a few minor glitches, the movie is a must watch for someone seeking alternate bollywood cinematic experience...