Vishwaroopam Mini-Review

Vishwaroopam is a lesson for few filmmakers in Tamil Cinema who get the attention for their stunning visuals sans vision in their script. This is an alluring and intense experience, showing an unexplored world with close to detailing. Kamal's script is ably supported by believable casting and intelligent, humor-laced dialogs. The script has few compromises to appeal the commercial fanbase but there is no overdose to the most. The non-linear screenplay works brilliantly at places and at few, the editing could have been better. Another noteworthy mentioning is on elaborating few scenes in visual medium and not through lengthy dialogs - Maama going a swing, cut after Maama's *spoiler*, we see another kid playing swing. The second half lacks clarity and ending is abrupt, the debate is set to on, whether Kamal missed to address open segments, which could have made a preeminent difference in providing a soul to this movie. So a detailed dissection is possible only on viewing the Part II rather than jumping the gun to dismiss it as a weak movie.  

Aaranya Kaandam - Animal Kingdom

Sing to the tune – ‘It’s a small world. It’s a woman’s world after all…’ Pasupathy (Sampathy) has to rescue his wife Kasthuri from Singaperumal, Kodukkaapuli has to find his lost father, Kaalaiyan and Sappa (Ravi Krishna) too plans to take away his one-day love interest Subbu from the same old man. This sum up the Aaranyam Kandam in Ramayanam – Hero-like has to save heroine-like. So who is Ram, Raavan, Sita, Laksman here? No clear answers as each character changes its trait as the movie unfolds.

The three sappais in this movie have to prove they are not a one, but unfortunately they end as losers. Singamperumal (Sappai 2) couldn’t sexually satisfy his wife and there is a scene where he sees ‘Adults only’ movie poster desperately. Jameendar (Sappai 3) is forced to move out of his hometown, accompanied by his son Kodukkaapuli. Does this episode strike a bell with Ram and Lakshman exile part? One of the brilliant scenes in the movie is Sappai after having sex with Subbu, to be frightened by the calling bell, who later finds it to be water-can. And there Subbu says ‘Nee epdi polachanne ennala namba mudiyala da’ Cut to back and Jameendar is covered by blood, who opens his eyes to realise he is still alive (Epdi polachanne namba mudiyala da) and cut to forth, Puli says to his dad ‘Nee wasteu pa’ (Sappa). Exceptional correlation, I must admit.

Subbu toys with Sappai, gains his trust and trap him to her plan. Here, this scene the camera moves like a spider spinning circular trails around the radials to shut in its prey. You do not need more than this to speak about cinematography section -Enough is as good as a feast. Most of the male character names cover an animal’s name – Singamperumal (smiles like a lion) Gajendra (bear a resemblance to a wild elephant), Puli, Kaalaiyan etc. whereas the heroine hold an animal inside her, so she doesn’t need a name explicitly.

If the dark humor dialogs like ‘un pondaatiye kaapatha mudiyala, nee ellam epdi da en appava kaapathuva?’ , ‘yosanakabal’ , ‘prapoo, kuspoo’ are the biggest plus for this movie, some gravity defying stunts, Pasupathy single-handedly slaying five to 10 men with a palm-sized knife in slow-mo’s makes you smile, but for other reasons. BGM is good at places, noteworthy mentioning are the scenes where Puli baths his father, Sappa-Subbu scenes but why a romantic one for fight scenes?

As the saying, too many cooks spoil the stew, movie gives you load of moments to ravish, unfortunately the more you speak, and the more are the spoilers. My kind advice is stop reading reviews, because the twists and turns are to be enjoyed in visuals, not in words. This is truly a commercial cinema written over every frame.

Aaranya Kandam – SAPPAI(s) padam

Mr. Critic 5-Star: 4

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Nadunisi Naaygal - Gautham gets his Ted Bundy wrong this time

Nadunisi Naaygal proves Gautham movies are like assorted sweets you get from a B Grade sweet shop. Looks attractive, trying to conjure too many things into one packet, the end product is unhygienic and lacks taste.

Nadunisi Naaygal proves Gautham movies are like Sarvana Bhavan meals. Less content/quantity and more pricey, at the end you have an unsatisfactory feeling.

Nadunisi Naaygal proves Gautham movies are like Dairy Milk Temptations. Candy floss at first sight but candy-flaws on dissection.

By now, audiences are aware of pluses and minuses of this movie - Sameera, Veera, Cinematography, Sound etc.

Enough said, what could have worked for this movie?

• Gautham, its time you rethink your screen writing. Your movies have interesting scenes and moments, but your movie as a whole seems like you have 10-12 scenes running in your mind, and trying to put it together without a proper screenplay. Its like a designer who have attractive beads of different colors, crafting them onto a thread, lacking a proper idea of designing

• You have a Psycho and trying to tell the story from his POV. But his story is neither gripping nor hard hitting. Your Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu worked because the story moves in the investigator's eye and the audience were able to connect to it. Who want to fill into a psycho's shoes? Not all are sexually abused or raping/murdering girls :P So you got yourself out in hit-wicket fashion. It failed to hold our interest.

• Why in the world all psychos have a flashback in childhood stage. Cant the writers shift this to their adolescent stage? An Orgy/Pedophile father does sound new, but again the episodes have amateurish writing so you don't feel pity for the protagonist and the further unfoldings  when you unravel from a molested kid's mind.

• And the biggest drawback, Veera lacks the charm of a psychopath. You loved Ted Bundy, You admired Hannibal Lecter, but there is something missing in Veera. I can attribute this to poor characterization too..

Just because something is bold, daring, new attempt, out of box thinking, stylish there is no rule that it has to be appreciated. All the best Gautham for your next venture :)

Nadunisi Naaygal- Nightmare 

Mr. Critic 5-Star: *.5

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 - The Hunt Begins

The movie starts off with Rufus Scrimgeour, Minister of Magic declaring, “These are dark times, there's no denying” It seemingly fit into the mood of the film. The film is darker visually, figuratively and emotionally. The film is slow paced in the middle but the underlying fact is Yates, for the first time has constructed the characters. Well, I forgot to give my warning- If you haven’t read the book, expecting a visual extravaganza filled with unparalleled CG’s and looking for any flashback/references to the previous movies so that you can catch up the plot- Please skip this movie.

HP: Heavily Packed- Emotions

The film moves away from what kids are expecting. The three lead characters are in adolescent stage and Yates treats the viewers with admirable depiction of the protagonists growing up. Few may complain the film isn’t about discovering the Horcruxes, the unfinished and daunting task set to the trio by Professor Dumbledore, if they need to kill Voldemort and they find themselves lost with no clues how to progress, none to guide them. One can draw line from this to the emotional imbalance of the trio- they find themselves gloomy, lost that leads to enmity and how they rediscover back their friendship. Ron grows suspicious of Hermoine’s affection for Harry and finds himself distanced from them. On the other side with no Dumbledore to guide him at his mission, Harry is aggravated as all stones are left unturned. Hermoine, who is always good for the two is torn between them, to take up whose sides and struggles to come up with Ron’s absence. The days pass by with long silences. There is a beautifully shot scene, when Harry calls Hermoine and starts dancing together that give a picture of mental struggle Hermoine is going through without Ron and Harry’s search for levity in a desolate world.  This is the movie where Daniel, Rupert and Emma get the chance to act and Yates clearly pushes the visual effects to backseat. The viewers can experience the jealousy (Ron), frustration (Harry) and despair (Hermoine) of the characters. If not properly construed, the impatient viewers may find the middle of the film stretches tiresomely.  

HP: Hilariously Plain- Humor

This is the first movie to come out of Hogwarts and so the humor is dry in the absence of Quidditch, Professors and Draco’s group.  If you are put in a congested room, a whiff of fresh air provides you a needed relief. I guess this might be the reason Ron’s one-liners clicked in an otherwise ominous movie. One of the decoys wearing a brassiere, A lady kissing Ron who transformed as her husband, Ron’s expression at Xenophilius Lovegood’s house for the Deathly Hallows tale evoke few chuckles and how can one forget Weasley’s Saint-like holy liner ? 

HP: Hastily Placed- Characters 

It’s nice to see the favorite supporting characters back on screen, but few give a rushed feeling. It’s accepted given the time constraint and limitations for a movie but I couldn’t avoid feeling sorry for missing Kreacher’s tale on RAB, Longbottom giving an ‘I am too there, count me in’ appearance. The ever cruel Bellatrix and lovable Dobby deliver a prominent performance. The final scene of Dobby is moving and tugs your heart string. There is not much scope for Severus Snape and Voldemort (terrifying in his restricted screen time at the introduction) so I anticipate they have an important role in the second part as the novel offers so. The editing is crisp though few scenes start/end abruptly like the follow-up scenes after escaping from Bill-Fleur wedding and the ending looked like suddenly interrupted (I was wondering whether the projector isn’t working). They could have made it look better.

HP: Heap Praise- Technical/Visual aspects

The detractors can say with the advancement in technology, CG’s get better and better for every film. There is no denying of the fact that the movie is technically and visually superior but it just blends with the screenplay. They don’t feel like shoved into the pace for sake being and its beautiful to look at. 8 different Harrys in a perfect 360* shot is astounding and the animated sequence of ‘The tale of Three Brothers’ is jaw-dropping and mesmerizing to watch. Even the action scenes are choreographed intensely, in particular, the trio infiltrating the Ministry of Magic and escaping subsequently.  Not to forget, credits to the cameraman for canning exquisite landscapes, forests and course a lot darker.  

HP: Handed Perfect- Closing Thoughts

The movie cannot be claimed as one of the best of all time, but it is the best series so far until the release of next part. The movie has its cons but the reviewer’s prejudice is compromised a little for being a Potter fanatic. It’s daring to move away from cheesy clichés and trying to give the movie a mature look.  This could be the best adaptation of novel which was missing in the last three movies.

Well, well, well, look what we have here. It's Harry Potter. He's all bright, and shiny, and new again

Mr. Critic 5-Star: ***.5

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PS: I know a little late for a review but made sure to write on second viewing.

50 First Dates: Henry and his Chemistry

The hardest task for any young man is to win a woman's heart. Women love surprises and they expect men to love her bigger than the previous day. (That's why they call Love, a virus that multiplies rapidly) So the biggest challenge for any guy is to get his dream girl fall in love with him new every day. And that’s what the protagonist takes up in this movie, 50 First Dates. The ladylove is not an ordinary girl; she has a short-term memory loss. Her brain remembers the day she had an accident, by means, she can’t retain new memories. So our hero has to meet and woo her day after day; if he hit her today, she will forget him tomorrow. He teams up with heroine's dad and doffs brother, who sacrifices everything to keep her unaware of condition and be cheerful. Did he succeed in making her fall for him and did she remember who he is forms the rest of the story.

Adam Sandler slips comfortably in philandering Playboy Veterinarian role, Henry and provides a subtle performance. Drew Barrymore, as an amnesiac Lucy is charming and drives away all the sullenness with her smile. From the very first scene where Henry sees Lucy in a restaurant, till the end where Lucy looks into Sandler's eyes in his yacht, they share a terrific on-screen chemistry that lights the entire movie. The romance and sentiments between them are genuine offering plenty of feel-good moments.  The film doesn't end in a tragic note and though Lucy never remembers him, Henry ignores her imperfections and in his eyes, she is perfect. The film doesn’t switch gears to melodrama towards climax and Lucy getting cured all of a sudden, it would have sucked big-time. Watch the movie to know Lucy's state at the end. I describe it in adjectives- Simple and poetic.

The film is not a perfect either. It has its flaws like the first 15 minutes filled with crude humor. Hero’s friend, assistant and Lucy's brother characterizations are ridiculous. But if you think the director is going to build on the starting absurd premise, that’s where we go wrong. The sudden transition of Sandler's character from a one night stand womanizer to a devoted boyfriend is far from convincing. Even his friend jokes, "She is your kind of girl. You can hit her at night, the next morning she forgets you." But the following scenes where Henry works out his strategy though he can have sex with any woman he wanted and I mention once again, Henry-Lucy chemistry are more than enough to forgive any lack of logic.

It is neither a classic, nor an Oscar material. But it is cute, fun-filled and pleasant.

50 First Dates- Satisfying Date

Mr. Critic 5-Star: ***

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Wake Up Sid- Adorable Kid

The major success of a movie is one can relate to it a way or the other and I was instantaneously connected to Wake Up Sid at first watch. The life style of Gen Y, trying to learn life once you are out of your home, falling in love with an elderly woman ( I have a knack of it- Most of my crushes are Ek Bada Aged Love Story), night life of Mumbai ( I had been there once) are portrayed brilliantly in the movie.

The story offers nothing new but the treatment is refreshing. A spoiled rich-lad who is aimless even after his college thanks to his 'I-have-my Rich-Dad-to-spend-everything' attitude. His parent want him to do something constructive but the kid take life as it comes. Enter Aisha in Bombay to start a new life, who is ditto opposite of his; ambitious, want to be independent, matured. As the saying 'Opposite attract', Sid is drawn towards Aisha and soon they become good friends. After flunking his exams and abandoning his friends, Sid is asked either to obey or get-out by his frustrated Dad. Sid chooses the latter and goes to Aisha's house who welcomes him with warmth. Did his stay at Aisha's house teach Sid what his life? Did he fall for her? forms the rest of the film and I don’t want to reveal further as it will kill the joy.

Thumbs Up Sid:

Casting: Ranbir Kapoor and Konkana Sen are pitch perfect. Ranbir slips into the role casually with no over-acting. Konkana is the real show-stealer thanks to her natural acting and no-nonsense attitude. She is gorgeous in the movie and I can’t stop drooling at her. (Have to visit Bengal for the girls :P) Kudos to her Costume Designer. Anupham Kher and Supriya as dotting parents are good.

Cinematography: I felt I was in Bombay while watching this movie (I'm in Pune not too far off, may be one of the reason :P) The scenes- Sid-Aisha's first meeting captures the mesmeric night-life of Bombay and the climax where Sid-Aisha meet in rainy Bombay is again, a poem.

Music: Background Music is so soothing and gels into the movie's flow. the song, Iktara is the most memorable part of the movie. So romantic and I would love to listen to on a rainy day, in the balcony (Incidentally when I was watching this film it was raining here :D)

Moments: The film had its moments. Few scenes were so touching like the neighbor asking Sid to take her photos along with her boy and Sid realized about his mom. The other one is Supriya trying to learn English so that she can bond with Sid like his friends was heart-warming. Special mention to the scene where Ranbir meets his dad with the offer letter, turning matured at that moment.

Thumbs Down Sid:

Second Half: if the first half is poignant, Director falters in second half with too many predictable scenes. Parents don’t even care to know the whereabouts of their only son was irking.

Climax: Again a cheesy, predictable climax with more of a melodrama like KJ's movies. (KJ- Karan Johar for those who don’t know)

Closing Thoughts:

At kinder-garden, when someone asks how your daddy will be, the straight down answer will be comparing him with Super-Man or Super-Heroes. Once, we step into teens, super hero metamorphoses to ATM (Any-Time-Money), egoistic dictator. But we all realize the good in it as time passes by. There is a Sid inside all of us.

Wake Up Sid- Transformation from a boy to a man

Mr. Critic 5-Star: ***.5

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Inception- Exception-al

In one of the scenes, Cobb says, "What's the most resilient parasite? An Idea. A single idea from the human mind can build cities. An idea can transform the world and rewrite all the rules. Which is why I have to steal it." And he is right. Nolan's idea has built a world and has rewritten the storytelling. I'm captivated by his world. I have to steal his brain. If Avatar has pushed the boundaries of technical brilliance, Inception is the benchmark for screenwriting. But this one stands out from Avatar, for the technology and screenplay have rarely blended together and that serves as a testimony for Nolan's mastermind. If you feel like I'm a fanatic, gushing, sorry I can't help it.


**SPOILERS AHEAD**

Cobb (Caprio) is paid to get into the dreams of business tycoons, extract and steal their ideas. But his deceased wife, Mal's memory keep haunting him every time he enters into one's dream. Cobb still feel that he is responsible for his wife's death (forcibly exited out of US for this) and Saito (Ken Watanabe), a business magnet whom Cobb encountered previously, offers him a deal- instead of stealing the ideas, plant an one. If Cobb succeeds, Saito with his influence will help Cobb return back to United States and reunite with his kids. So Cobb chooses an architect, Ariadne (Ellen Page), a forger, Eames (Tom Hardy) along his friend Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) set off on their mission, to plant the idea into Robert Fischer Jr.(Cillian Murphy) mind, Saito's rival. Did they succeed? But to describe every plot and layers of storytelling in detail would take away the magic of this film.

The film's heart lies in the second half and you have to constantly pay attention to remember all the sub-plots and layers happening inside the dream. The film is about layers and that’s what makes it great. It is a film that requires multiple viewing to truly understand the ambiguous subjects.

The casting is perfect. Caprio scores in the emotional scenes with his wife and Ellen ably supports him. Cinematography, Art Direction, Special Effects, Back Ground Music can be compiled to a single word- Extra-ordinary. You feel you are into the world and travel along with Cobb and his co. Editing- the way the scenes are cut, layers are executed exemplarily in a non-linear narration, keeps us glued.


Wine gets better with time and Nolan is getting better and better in every film. If Academy awards snub Nolan from Best Director, Best Original Screenplay next year, they deserve a middle finger.


Inception: Enter into Nolan's dream that has No EXIT doors. You are imprisoned forever.

PS: I will come up with a compilation of doubts my friends asked after watching this film.

Mr. Critic 5-Star: *****

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My Sassy Girl- Cant take my eyes off you

Love- There is both joy and pain in it, because that's exactly how the life is. There are so many different ways of expressing your love without saying 'I love you’. What if a film carries this with no pointless nail on sex, kiss and yet it turns out to be one of the most 'romantic' cinematic experience? My Sassy Girl (in Korean Yeopgijeogin Geunyeo) is the perfect mix of comedy, drama, romance and some of the best storytelling I've ever seen. This movie is so beautiful; has the most well defined characters you'll ever see on films that are true to how they really are. The situations are so interesting and absorbing that you tend to forget that you are being influenced by all the over-romanticizing.

I saw this movie with absolutely zero expectations; was almost asleep and watched it at a friend's place to pass the time. The uncut version of the film lasts 137 minutes (2 hours and 17 minutes), quite long for a romantic comedy. But it was so craftily written that one would not notice time ticking by. At no point in the movie does annoy, and that's a hard task indeed. There are little hints (Which at first may seem meaningless) thrown in the story which will come back to play a major part in the film later on. You can come back to it again and again and you'll always notice something new and this made me to watch it again and again.

The story begins when Kyun Woo, an immature but eccentric 25 year-old college student who doesn't have a clear direction in life meets the bizarre, drunken girl on a train platform late at night. Hilarity guarantees in the following scenes, how she becomes his girl friend, who has the faces of caring, psychopath and weird, seizing chances to slap him and humiliate him. The film has three parts- first half, second half and Overtime. The first half showcases the bizarre attitude of the girl to which the boy succumbs and does everything for her, setting up pure comedy and witty, hilarious sequences. The second half of the film explains the girl's bizarre attitude and unfolds all the drama behind the girl's comedic behavior in the first half. A very cleverly written script turns the laughing audience into a crying one in a short span of time. The odd sequences in first half are linked as the second half unfolds with pure melodrama. But the 'overtime' part brilliantly concludes all the comedy and drama that spread-out in the preceding two parts. The heart-warming ending (which I will not reveal, for I recommend that people watch it) left me laughing in tears.

The entire movie focuses on just two people, 'Kyun Woo' (Cha Tae Hyun) and Jeon Ji Hyun (Her name isn't even mentioned during the entire film, so we call her ‘The Girl’). The stars did a very good job of keeping up 'very' good chemistry. The guy who plays Kyun Woo has the most wonderful facial expressions. Since we see everything from Kyun-Woo’s point of view, his emotions varies from shambling, shy, pitiable and adorable for scenes when required. The girl just cracks me up with incredible expressions. Her enigmatic charm and acting (she laughs, threatens Kyun-Woo and cries in same scene) makes the film very appealing. Some of her expressions are just priceless; sometimes she needn’t say anything, her expressions speak for what we ought to know.

The exciting moments in the film were a surprise action scene, a blind date that bowls you in splits at the end, squash ball that always hits hero’s face, hero giving 10 rules to date to her new boyfriend. The cinematography of the film was outstanding, for it captured every scene perfectly, also showcasing the good-looking milieu of Korea. The soundtrack very much added to the emotion of the film's most significant sequences. I like the piano piece very much when Kyun Woo gives her a rose as she plays. Though the movie moves at a smooth pace, Jae-young Kwak's screenplay and direction, added with smart dialogues are incredible, keeps us occupied.

I'm sure some would avoid this film simply because it's Korean - but that's where you'd make a mistake. This one was certainly worth watching. Absolutely entertaining but maintaining a touching side to it. You'll laugh, you'll cry, no matter who you are. I guarantee it. Please avoid the poisoned lift of this film under same title in Hollywood (2008) and Bollywood version of Ugly Aur Pagli starring Mallika Sherawat.

Mr. Critic 5-Star: ****

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3 Idiots- Aal Izz Well

Mr. Critic had never reviewed a film in a day or two from its release; all he had done is to take a film that date months or years. But for the first time he had come up with something for Aamir Khan’s that has created a buzz in industry- 3 IDIOTS. I don’t have the faintest idea of how 5-point someone is and after knowing the film is loosely based on this novel, I didn’t show any interest to grab the book from stores as WYRIWYDG (What You Read Is What You Don’t Get) because of the displeasure that Harry Potter series had left in me. This marks Aamir’s return to big screen after the Mgea Maga Blockbuster GHAJINI (the film that didn’t deserve so much of hype), Rajkumar Hirani’s product after critically acclaimed Lage Raho Munna Bhai. It couldn’t get bigger, right? So does this film live up to its expectations? Or is it another Ghajini kinda stuff?


Life is not about getting marks but chasing your dreams. Two friends Farhan (Madhavan) and Raju (Sharman) sets off a journey to find their lost friend Rancho (Aamir) As the journey kicks off, we are shown their college memories, how Rancho stimulated them and brought a change in their lives through a series of flashbacks. The film brings out hard hitting reality of your educational system; rot learning has become a part of students’ life. The characters are real and each one of us can relate to in some part of your life. The screenplay is gripping that you don’t need to look into your watch repeatedly.



3 Idiots is not Aamir’s one man show. It belongs to everyone. Each and every character slips into their role. Aamir is showing flexibility for his every film. A revolutionary youngster, loving teacher, a killer on the run now dons a comic college goer. Though he looks too old to be called as a college-goer at some places, he makes us to dump it into abyss with his rib-tickling performance. Aamir is full of energy. Madhavan as the guy who's chasing his dad's dreams rather than his own is great. Sharman is another surprise who does his role with ease. But the show-stealer is Boman Irani, who was outstanding in his autocratic Principal. His mannerisms and dialogue delivery are exceptional that I could relate him with our Principal. Kareena has nothing much to do but she does her job neatly for given space.



The photography deserves a special mention for transporting us to Ladakh and Shimla. The aerial shots are a pleasant treat for our eyes. The first half is fast-packed and hilarious and at the interval there is a twist that leaves you stunned and keeps you hooked to the movie. The film lags its pace in the latter half of the second half with some of the scenes were dragged. Mona Singh Delivery Scene was not at all funny. Songs, on hearing were ordinary but they were good on screen. (But few are annoying and unwanted) The climax is a surprise package and credits to the director for sketching it.



Hirani and Joshi’s screenplay is engaging and enlightening. Overall the movie does give you a fantastic feeling, make you forget all your problems, laugh-out-loud and get-little-emotions for three hours. It is neither a daringly different film-making nor an award winning stuff. It has feel-good factor and a perfect holiday present.


3 Idiots- 3 Cheers to Hirani

Mr. Critic 5-Star: ***1/2

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Kambakkht Ishq: Worth Missing

As Mr.Critic was hiding at his backyard, keeping in mind the consequences of Raksha Bandhan, too much of Junk food degraded his health. So I decided to watch few DVD’s that were resting in my PC table. Folks, the omens are not good; Rakhi, Fever and Kambakkht Ishq (KI). ARC and Swathi were wondering Mr. Critic is too generous in reviewing for a while. Good for them if they read this review and Bad, if they watch this film despite my review.



Well, this movie does not deserve any comment. But I had to warn people if they read this before going to watch this movie. I watched the Kollywood version of KI - Pammal K. Sambandam and considered it awful. But bad as it was, the Tamil version was miles ahead of this Hindi rubbish. The Tamil version at least had voluptuous babe SIMRAN. If the Tamil version was a torture, it Hindi version is an open heart surgery without anesthesia; like how the hero undergoes abdomen surgery without anesthesia in this film. Whose idea was it Director Sir? The film has A class production value and pity the producer even the script is ‘A’ class. Very cheap comedy throughout the movie and the only thing I found worth was Kareena Kapoor's body which director has focused very much. Alas, her zero size gives a skimpy look; she isn’t sexy. Bipasha would have made my money worth.



The zero story is both our protagonists, XY is a stuntman (Viraj) and XX is a model cum surgeon-in-the-making (Simrita), have a low opinion of the other sex. In Bollywood terms, it means they are going to do lots of idiotic things before they finally realize that they love each other. At regular intervals, the heroine yells “DOG” to the hero, who promptly responds as “BITCH” You should have reserved those words for us to shout at you for taking this film. Akshay is regarded as new King of BOX OFFICE; SINGH IS KING in churning out GARBAGE FILMS. Akshay had genuinely tried to change tracks from nonsensical comedies to more meaningful roles in serious cinema and his first step towards it was his Nagesh Kukunoor film, Tasveer 8x10. I liked the film (sans the climax, that ought to be the crux of any thriller, but here it was the other side) but the dismal record at BOX OFFICE for this film, made him to change his tracks and get to BASICS. But KI, from the opening frame to the last is a depressingly disgusting movie that bores you and total waste of time and money, most certainly not worth watching. Pity you Kareena; I thought you were wonderful after watching Jab We Met and Chameli but you proved me wrong. No points, hailing you as a superstar, we all know how her acting has deteriorated over the years.




The comedy tracks involving Boman Irani, Kiron Kher are aweful. If you have high tolerance for silliness, this is fun. Why the hell, Sylvester Stallone & Denise Richards were roped in? The other so-called "actors" in KI doesn’t seem to have the faintest idea of what they are doing. Music by Anu Malik is a merciless assault on ear-drums. Om Mangalam song-dance has some of the prettiest girls that I’ve seen in recent memory with an ugliest choreography. Rest is appalling and better they are not mentioned.




Even a blind dog finds a bone now and then but there are no bones to be found in KI. May be, in theaters we could find that of audiences who died watching this vile trash. This is yet another movie that should never have seen the light of the day. Producer Ji, in these hard economic times, please, again don’t waste your money in taking films.



BOTTOM LINE: Run away or release your breath.

Mr. Critic 5-Star: *

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Definitely, Maybe: Mysteriously Romantic

Every romantic comedy has the 'meet cute' where boy first connects with girl; Definitely, Maybe has the 'meet cute,' but it also has all the things that can come after -- the uncomfortable moments, the comforts of sadness, the ugly partings, the hard-won reconciliations. In the real world, after all, people split-up, sleep around and fall in love too soon, too late or too often. But this is more than a romantic comedy as the director succeeds in integrating the charms of 90’s with the screenplay. It has a razor-sharp political satire with Bill Clinton’s fortunes serving Ryan as a barometer and incorporates the evolution of Mobile phones, Internet. The big thing, which made me associate with this film, was it's from the guy’s point of view. This film journeys into the unfamiliar territory of men and their emotions. Any guy doesn’t want women to know that they have a side like that but the script mostly doesn't shy away from the tough stuff. It doesn't paint the hero as some perfect, hapless man undone by random chance; he makes mistakes, and he pays for them, and he tries to set things right.



It begins with the divorcing dad Will Hayes (Ryan Reynolds), cajoled by his young daughter Maya (Abigail Breslin) into telling her the story of how he met and fell in love with her mother. He tells her a bed-time, slightly edited, PG-13 version of the story of his life which is more than the story of how he met her mother; it’s also the story of his life. Like any parent Will wants to tell his daughter the truth without subjecting her to unnecessary cynicism and so he shields names and details that she can't figure out which of the three women (Emily, Summer or April) came to be her mother.



I was capitulated to the idea of mysterious romantic comedy where we don't quite know who the mother is. As Hayes explains the winding road of what happened with subtle humor, I’m caught up with it as the plot thickens, it also took little twists which were good as well and there's also a bit of guessing for the audience too, like the little girl, keen to know who among the three will be her mother. I loved the interplay between Ryan and his on-screen daughter. Her charming chemistry with Ryan, in between “awe cute” moments, is what drives the movie. The script isn't belly-laugh funny but it has its moments. Ryan Reynolds is a solid enough lead, with enough comic talent to keep things ticking over. He is normally light and pleasant enough on the screen; his charming smile brings out inner feelings.



The film’s female cast members- Elizabeth Banks as Emily, the polite, perennial college sweetheart; Rachel Weisz as Summer, Emily’s friend, the stimulating, slightly dangerous intellectual who's into much older men and Isla Fisher (April), the photocopy girl who bickers and banters with him at the New York campaign headquarters of Bill Clinton are pitch perfect. Each women persona is unique and they bring out something different into Will. The people change and they have their worst moments, but our mind doesn’t trade the B word at them. I loved Fisher’s character more as she grows from someone who is completely devoid of any direction or purpose into a real woman, complete with self-esteem was a nice touch. Kevin Kline as Hampton was an absolute delight for Weisz’s older lover character, a booze hound man of letters.




But the little girl scores bigger than all the characters as she brought a lot to this movie, without her this would not have been a good movie. She was fabulous and was normal, just a kid, not going overboard in thoughts that we look in Indian films. Few of her one-liners like "everybody knows the girlfriend at the beginning of the story gets dumped" evoke laughter and "Wait, stop, What if I don't like my mom?" brings heartrending feel. A lot of credit goes to Writer/Director Adam Brooks for perfect casting and smart script, surprising viewers with a mix of good humor and melodrama. The end of the movie is too good but I won't go into that here. See the movie and I think you'll enjoy it.




The film is not free from flaws as I was interested to know the reasons for Ryan’s divorce, if that information had come in the form of few lines. It is not a perfect film or having a stand at Oscars, but you want a complete, clean entertainer, keeps you enjoyable for two hours, see this movie. Those who had been in and out of some significant relationships, this will hit close to home, in a positive way. Mail me if u need the torrent!!

Mr. Critic 5-Star: ****

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