Badrinath Ki Dulhania seems to go about it rather lazily – taking the simplest “next steps” without a introspective and/or an exploratory eye at, what real life dowry cases or cases where a woman is held down, look like.

A world I would certainly visit again. Maybe with a pen in hand, even if imaginary, scratching off parts from the reel that would have made the movie crisper. Maybe coming back home imagining an alternate end for the film.

The film alternates between the murky blue, deep sea and the cringy, clanky, claustrophobic insides of a submarine without any respite. This makes the film stand out from the usual Hindi films and helps it stay true to what it wants to be – an uncomfortable, edgy watch. If only, the consistency in tone had stuck through the other departments of the film – especially the writing.

The State vs. Jolly LLB 2 is worth the time you spend watching it. Whether or not it is worth the energy spent in going to the theater and back, and the extra multiplex bucks will depend on your affection for Akshay Kumar, satire, courtroom drama and so on.

To begin with OK Jaanu has very little to hold your interest. What with a name that seems to be an excuse for the couple to call each other by the purportedly cute nickname, “Jaanu”? As the movie moves along, you realise the filmmakers aren’t really interested in getting you interested. They are just smitten by their own coolness of having brought up “live-in” relationships to Indian cinema. eyeroll

So, if you get peeved off by that kind of love-doveyness, this one isn’t for you. If you find it cute…naah, even then it’s not for you.

It is a shame then that a film that had all the right things to say; that had capable actors to say them the right way; that had characters who could have kept your thoughts from going astray doesn’t do it all too well. It is a film different from the norm which by itself wins some points, but not quite enough.

There are a few, little surprises of this kind in the film. Also, it feels so good to see so many North-Eastern actors (even if some of them are non-actors) in a mainstream film. If only, Rock On 2 had better music and a little more effort in the parts of the puzzle that bring the film together.

The film is sprinkled with actual conversations, something I find lacking in Hindi romantic films. The dialogue is snappy and you could miss out a witticism here and a good line there if you don’t pay keen attention.

Shivaay comes across as a film that wants to be more than a regular action film. It doesn’t quite achieve anything there. On the other hand, it loses out on being an out and out crowd-pleasing action film too.

The visualization takes care of calling undue attention to itself. And the music. Sure, the movie would have been an absolute dud if it were not for the music. And even so, the songs felt out of place every single time, including the title song. However, I can listen to the songs on loop all day, for a few days.

But, what good is a service to the eyes and ears without any attempt to engage the mind or the heart? This story-telling needed a better story.