Maximum has stray moments of power but the film feels like a Ram Gopal Varma rehash; mercifully though there are no cameras zooming into teacups like there were in Varma’s recently released Department, which was also about power-hungry, corrupt encounter specialists.

What I enjoyed most was the recreation of Mumbai in 1960 — empty streets, an Art Deco movie theatre, women in breathlessly tight blouses and bouffant hairdos.

But the film’s main ingredient — love — is too synthetic to soar.

Writer-director Dibakar Banerjee and co-writer Urmi Juvekar tell this brutal story with minimal drama. There is nothing high-pitched here, except Kalki’s one-note performance.Shanghai warms up slowly, so you need to have patience — especially in the first half. But the pleasure of the film is in the details. Shanghai doesn’t provide the comfort of answers or happy endings. But it forces us to ask urgent questions. It is the best Hindi film I’ve seen this year. I strongly urge you to make time for it.

The film is one more in the line of movies — many of which are remakes from the south — that value masala above all else. But Dabangg and even Wanted, the latter of which was also directed by Prabhu Deva, were far more cohesive and compelling. Rowdy Rathore is pure noise. Only the brave should venture in.

Wrinkle-Free is one of those films that mix charm and tedium in equal doses. Debutant director and writer Sandeep Mohan creates a clutch of quirky, permanently perplexed characters who are all struggling.

Varma has described Department as “Quentin Tarantino meets Prabhudeva.” I honestly couldn’t find flashes of either. To me, it felt more like pedestrian Ram Gopal Varma. We are still waiting for him to return to form.

I wonder if the Indian film ritual of intermission also functions as a creative road-block. Because so many fine films derail exactly there; I call it the curse of the second half. Ishaqzaade is one of these.Faisal sets up the story with great precision. Kapoor and Chopra are terrific as the explosive twosome. The music, composed by Amit Trivedi, works well.Which is why it’s so disappointing to see it unravel. Still, Ishaqzaade does provide half a good time. How many films can you say that for?

Logic isn’t a priority here. Deshmukh is creating an old-school Bollywood film with high drama, punchy dialogue, thunderous background music and villains who glare and maim with aplomb. Some sequences are nicely done, including a chase sequence in a dargah. Emraan Hashmi and Randeep Hooda are also extremely watchable. But there are no surprises here and by the second half, Jannat 2 starts to feel like an endurance test with your head being bludgeoned by the violence and incessant Hindi swear words.

Gangs of Wasseypur is by turns absorbing and frustrating. Watching it feels like gorging on too much good food, leaving you feeling more exhausted than satiated. But there is enough in the sound and fury to enjoy.

The film does become a little far-fetched as Gattu, an illiterate, continues to fool his teachers and spins an unbelievable yarn for his classmates. But Khosa gives it a fable-like texture so that you don’t mind too much when reality takes a backseat.Gattu is small in scale, but this is a film with heart.