Srijana Mitra Das
Times Of India
Most Divergent Takes
- Satyagraha (2013)9.0 vs TRM 5.2+3.8
- Housefull 2 (2012)8.0 vs TRM 4.9+3.1
- A Flying Jatt (2016)7.0 vs TRM 4.4+2.6
- O Teri (2014)5.0 vs TRM 2.5+2.5
- Mohenjo Daro (2016)7.0 vs TRM 4.6+2.4
A Flying Jatt
2016 · Times Of India · Aug 2016
On the upside, for children, A Flying Jatt provides clean entertainment - with its innocence, it evokes more Haathi Mere Saathi and less cool-cat Krrish. The film takes off only because of its simplicity - a flying jatt who's afraid of heights, a rarity in dark times of Udta Punjabs.
Mohenjo Daro
2016 · Times Of India · Aug 2016
Mohenjo Daro should've had many more grand moments. As it is, it's less Ben Hur and more Amrapali - sans the sex appeal of Vyjanthimala's bustiers. However, its scale and imagination make it an interesting watch - as does the intriguing notion of Hrithik as India's first pratham sevak. That's epic enough.
Dishoom
2016 · Times Of India · Jul 2016
As an entertainer, Dishoom delivers. If you're good with laughter, not logic, Dishoom is actually two much fun.
Sultan
2016 · Times Of India · Jul 2016
The trouble is its length. At nearly three hours of runtime, Sultan gets heavy and repetitive...Go watch Sultan - it's got moments of "ghana" good fun.
Sarbjit
2016 · Times Of India · May 2016
Sarbjit breaks your heart - but in contrast to India-Pak fantasies like 'Gadar', it bears no blame. It makes you cherish your loved ones - and appreciate others too. Sarbjit makes a point. Humans come and go. Humanity survives.
Fan
2016 · Times Of India · Apr 2016
The action's glorious but stretches while the naivete of Gaurav's parents (Deepika and Yogendra), unaware of their only child's feelings, seems slightly unbelievable. Yet, ending with a Baazigar-esque twist, Fan makes you feel Darr all over again. Watch it - you'll know why you're SRK's Fan.
Kapoor & Sons
2016 · Times Of India · Mar 2016
...the direction, frequently evoking Monsoon Wedding, keeps things family-focused, with a moving camera and characters in meltdown. Wicked, witty and wise, Kapoor & Sons does Karan Johar proud. Because it's about loving your family - sharp edges and all.
Jai Gangaajal
2016 · Times Of India · Mar 2016
Jai Gangaajal packs a punch with its panorama (a Badaun-like landscape where girls are hung from trees), dilemma and performances - particularly the one by 'Madam Sir', who wields a lathi you will love.
Carol
2016 · Times Of India · Feb 2016
Based on Patricia Highsmith's The Price of Salt, Oscar-nominated Carol is a triumph of its lead actors. Cate Blanchett sweeps through the film in a flurry of lipstick and furs. Stylised to her finger-tips, Blanchett makes everything Carol does, down to eating the olive from a Martini, an act of sensual fashion.
Fitoor
2016 · Times Of India · Feb 2016
You get style - including six-pack Noor painting shirtless (explains why artists score more - can you imagine writers taking their tops off to work?) - but little depth. To play with a great quote, oh what a tangled web we weave, when we learn to retrieve - in this case, retrieving a classic indeed caused a tangle, albeit one of Pashmina dhaagas.
Airlift
2016 · Times Of India · Jan 2016
Airlift works because it conveys a time when armies will attack civilians - you're struck by how IS was born from the Iraqi army's core - and raises Bollywood's generic bar. Plus, it movingly celebrates the most beautiful flag in the world.
Wazir
2016 · Times Of India · Jan 2016
Consistent hard focus over sentimental soft-focus would have let these shatranj ke khiladi blow up that chess board. As it is, they complete their game - but don't check-mate smartly enough.
Bajirao Mastani
2015 · Times Of India · Dec 2015
Bajirao-Mastani resembles Jodhaa-Akbar with teeth that bite, Mughal-e-Azam with shades of philosophical grey. It rediscovers roots to Maratha pride - and bravely confronts one of India's most crucial questions now. Quickly 'chala' to the biggest screen you can find.
Silver Linings Playbook
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2015
Straight up, Silver Linings Playbook (SLP) is a lovely movie with a heart of caramel - and an occasionally brilliant mind. The story's endearingly intelligent - "I apologise on behalf of Ernest Hemmingway!" yells Pat breaking a window, outraged by a novel's sad ending - perfumed by quirky, unconventional romance, celebrating a love for life that hurts and heals together. There are tiny quibbles - it could've had a tangent less - but at the end, you're left with pure silver lining and no cloud.
Spectre
2015 · Times Of India · Nov 2015
...a few moans aside, Spectre's action still shakes and stirs, leaving you loving its oak and leather, champagne - and dynamite.
Prem Ratan Dhan Payo
2015 · Times Of India · Nov 2015
Straight away, Prem Ratan Dhan Payo is Salman Khan's triumph. Salman simply blows the top off the theatres with a double role that makes you laugh, gasp, sigh - and cry.
Talvar
2015 · Times Of India · Oct 2015
Talvar's compared to Rashomon but while that wandered through forests of fantasy, Talvar boldly tackles reality. It offers totally different takes on two murders. But it is unambiguous about a third - fairness, slashed to pieces by incompetence and callous crassness. In wiping away stains from the sword of justice, Talvar shines.
Katti Batti
2015 · Times Of India · Sep 2015
Somewhere between glossy ad, glassy music video, sitcom and masala movie, Katti Batti leaves you pouting. This could've had the lusty, gutsy power of a full-blown French kiss - it ends up a pleasant but passing peck on the cheek.
All Is Well
2015 · Times Of India · Aug 2015
All Is Well lacks the cutting-edge sharpness or glittering depth of Umesh Shukla's OMG. With its old-world feel, it's not a cool cocktail but a teashop bun, dunked in sentimental tea. It could've been way better - but there's some sweetness too in this simple treat.
Brothers
2015 · Times Of India · Aug 2015
Brothers, despite mouthing, 'Har sport mein thora drama toh hota hai', only skims that dramatic surface. It could've dived in deeper.
Mr. Holmes
2015 · Times Of India · Jul 2015
At the end of his career, his powers fading, Holmes faces his greatest challenge. Having always dismissed emotions while underlining "Logic is rare", Holmes now needs love to crack his last case. Why? Elementary, really.
Bajrangi Bhaijaan
2015 · Times Of India · Jul 2015
Bajrangi Bhaijaan emphasizes how, amidst visas and wars, there are also angels about who don't see doors. They see homes, lives and children - and sometimes, children see angels too. It makes a beautiful, mubarak point - one that's very dabangg too.
Dil Dhadakne Do
2015 · Times Of India · Jun 2015
Dil Dhadakne Do goes behind the glossy grins of Indian family life, presenting screaming, sobbing dysfunction, heart-ripping extramarital affairs, bitter gender discrimination and heavy parental control. Yet, it has a light hand, not preachy but breezy while sensitively making modern points.
Tanu Weds Manu: Returns
2015 · Times Of India · May 2015
Tanu Weds Manu Returns with double fun - and philosophy. It's hard to love happily. Yet, so easy. Aanand L. Rai merits applause for his masterful direction of Himanshu Sharma's rich, riotous story. Evoking a new-age Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Rai keeps things tight, light, yet layered - and handles two leading ladies, one of whom deserves an extra half-star.
Bombay Velvet
2015 · Times Of India · May 2015
The plot also wobbles between love story, crime saga, urban legend and corruption drama. Between lovers' fights, gun-battles and newspaper wars, you're thinking The. Godfather, Casablanca, Chicago - but you want to feel Bombay Velvet more. Its cinematography and performances, particularly Ranbir's edgy 'big shot', merit an extra half-star. But while Bombay Velvet is stylish, this fabric could have been smoother.
Piku
2015 · Times Of India · May 2015
With passion, there's precision too, the editing fish-bone sharp, detailing, down to Bhaskor's monkey cap, perfect. Some moments evoke Ang Lee's terrific 'Eat Drink Man Woman'. Others evoke your and my life. Together, Piku makes you shake with laughter. It also makes your heart cry.
Gabbar is Back
2015 · Times Of India · May 2015
With gritty reality, Gabbar has glamour too - Shruti charms with her soft, pretty appeal while a cameo by Kareena adds sheen but doesn't divert. The second half's blood pressure doesn't fully match the first (Patil's insistent 'I am a brand!' gets repetitive while CBI officer Pahwa looks clueless without Sadhuram's 'axellent' work) - but the climax pushes up the adrenaline again.
Margarita, with a Straw
2015 · Times Of India · Apr 2015
The script somewhat over-diligently ticks every possible 'challenge' box, mixed marriages to a Pakistani-Bangladeshi visually affected lesbian. But that small quibble aside, MWAS is deeply moving, a philosophical film which makes you wonder if the body is a palace or prison - and evokes mothers to lovers who've cherished your soul. Try this Margarita - it's different.
Dharam Sankat Mein
2015 · Times Of India · Apr 2015
The story tries to accommodate a whole host of issues, fake babas to real crimes, and fails. The Neelananda track is overplayed while the music is underdone. Given its realistic detailing, this could have been a livewire of wry wit - but it ends up a feather-duster of fuzzy philosophy instead. Caught between wise-cracking veterans and wise-sounding vachans, large sequences look low on energy and stereotypes, from lusty swami to kajal-eyed imam, stretch to yawning point.
Detective Byomkesh Bakshy
2015 · Times Of India · Apr 2015
...a fun watch presenting another mystery - how Sushant looks good, despite a uni-brow? Go solve.
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
2015 · Times Of India · Mar 2015
This is a fun story with as many layers as a Jaipuri pagdi. The acting is such fun - the film features much of the cream from the high tea of British drama - that you appreciate characters, even if you didn't check into the first Hotel.
NH10
2015 · Times Of India · Mar 2015
NH10 is a relentless thriller you wish you could see with your eyes closed - because truly, as its song goes, chill gaye naina.
Shamitabh
2015 · Times Of India · Feb 2015
...amidst the high-wattage attention around the Dhanush-Amitabh pairing, less is paid to Akshara, whose performance, although sincere, sometimes looks a tad banal. As does the film occasionally, a pity because Shamitabh's striking story could leave you speechless.
Baby
2015 · Times Of India · Jan 2015
Balancing characters, conspiracies and cities, director Neeraj Pandey admirably keeps Baby rich, yet tight, researched, non-sentimental and steely-eyed. Neeraj's craft has grown - he's taken trademark touches from films like Special 26 and A Wednesday, setting them here on a grand scale, with a breath-taking climax. The cinematography - desert dunes in nothing but shaded moonlight - is elegant while dialogues are robust.
Dolly Ki Doli
2015 · Times Of India · Jan 2015
Watch this one for fun on the run. As long as you're not light-laugh-lactose intolerant.
The Theory of Everything
2015 · Times Of India · Jan 2015
For those expecting a science lesson though, this film provides only fleeting moments of diet-physics. Instead, the focus is on Hawking's emotional discoveries, his "simple, elegant equation to explain everything" - love, hope and human endeavour, balancing the sadness of 'If only' with the courage of 'What if...?' This movie reportedly made Stephen Hawking cry. Watch it. You'll see why.
PK
2014 · Times Of India · Dec 2014
Its amusing insights and bold message make PK hit home. Appreciate its truths - which aren't so alien after all.
Sulemani Keeda
2014 · Times Of India · Dec 2014
Dulal's wry take - "Dialogues acche the. Film theek thi" - works here too. This keeda could've had a much sharper bite.
Happy Ending
2014 · Times Of India · Nov 2014
Happy Ending's a fun film with a melodious, modern take on individuals and pyaar. It's an NRI movie that side-steps dilemmas and pain. And it's probably the first Hindi film where the heroine cheekily tells the hero, "Show your boobs!", performed with polished elan. Wrapping Hollywood ribbons on a Bollywood heart, this is a nice ending - and a good start.
Rang Rasiya
2014 · Times Of India · Nov 2014
Rang Rasiya is a colourful triumph, director Ketan Mehta meriting applause for his portrait of painter Raja Ravi Varma, skillfully blending a biopic, a period film, a love story and a social critique, within a tight frame.
Haider
2014 · Times Of India · Oct 2014
Sometimes, Haider wanders - elaborate background music frames some scenes too richly while the second half could've been tighter. But these are tiny ripples on this filmi lake. For the most, Haider is superb, witty, violent, tragic - magic. To see or not to see is no dilemma here. Don't miss Haider - he's got chutzpah like none other.
Khoobsurat
2014 · Times Of India · Sep 2014
...this delightfully roguish romance tickles everything fun-loving inside you. That's what makes it so khoobsurat.
Finding Fanny
2014 · Times Of India · Sep 2014
Finding Fanny is funny, dark, yet bright, a shimmering ride through a Goa far from the tight-rooted Trikal, the touristy Dil Chahta Hai. Its drama keeps surprising - but also meanders, including around an overacting Russian and an unnecessarily macabre cat. It evokes an Almodovar-Anderson-Marquez-in-Goa feel, but occasionally, its cleverness grows obvious while little details - catch the changing colours of Ferdie's petrol can - are overlooked.
Raja Natwarlal
2014 · Times Of India · Aug 2014
The story packs in paisa, pyaar, confidence, over-confidence, chummas, chases, corrupt cops, cricket associations, surprises and some rather nice songs - but keeps its weight under control. Despite flaws - like how a don like Vardha doesn't know the face of a man he's seeking, who's now persuading him to buy a non-existent team - Raja Natwarlal wins you over by the sassy swagger of its tricks, its hit-men and 'HDMC Bank', its tongue lodged firmly in its cheek. Go watch - this one is, ahem, definitely worth a kiss.
Kick
2014 · Times Of India · Jul 2014
Straight on, Kick is Bollywood biryani, a masala movie spiced with the superstardom of Salman Khan, garnished by charming Jacqueline, smouldered over the wry talent of Randeep Hooda. Kick is not for lovers of fine filmi foie gras, but for those who want a hearty Eid banquet to enjoy.
The Grand Budapest Hotel
2014 · Times Of India · Jul 2014
Wes Anderson is Hollywood's Lewis Carroll - and The Grand Budapest Hotel is his Wonderland. Set in the imaginary Eastern European republic of Zubrowska, in the delicately hysterical years between two World Wars, the Grand Budapest Hotel is a lacy handkerchief of nostalgia, a naughty piece of silky lingerie - and a dagger soaked in blood.
Bobby Jasoos
2014 · Times Of India · Jul 2014
...quibbles aside, Bobby Jasoos is a clever and joyful film. Should you watch it? Elementary, my dear friend.
Humshakals
2014 · Times Of India · Jun 2014
The result's like a minty chewing gum that's been stretched too long. Shedding 30 minutes and some jaded gags would make Humshakals consistent fun - now, you laugh but also frequently go, ho-hum.
Fugly
2014 · Times Of India · Jun 2014
The result is like a soggy Delhi chaat where potentially spicy ingredients make a sorry mess. As F*ugly would phrase it, quite a f*waste.
CityLights
2014 · Times Of India · May 2014
So, Citylights is based on Sean Ellis' acclaimed Metro Manila, but it also unlocks the doors to other movies in your mind. This is both a strength and drawback for this remarkable film.
Heropanti
2014 · Times Of India · May 2014
Heropanti is enjoyable. The climax pumps up the action, featuring shirtless Tiger, crouching Rajjo. The tale has a twist as graceful as Tiger's flips and you do agree when Tiger suggests, 'Mere naal tu whistle baja.'
Main Tera Hero
2014 · Apr 2014
Those seeking movies with meaning, note - Main Tera Hero is a pav bhaji picture, quick, spicy, hot. It has the depth of a comic strip but it also has its neon-shaded fun. For those who want a light laugh, here's your boy.
O Teri
2014 · Mar 2014
The overburdened story unravels under a palpable nervousness to please all. Therefore, too frequent songs, too many gaalis from Kilol, too many subplots (from gamlas to gay sex) and too many poor jokes spoil the show. Overall, the direction of O Teri simply loses the satirical plot, leaving you sighing, jaane bhi do yaaron.
Gulaab Gang
2014 · Times Of India · Mar 2014
There are too many tangents, navels and nose-rings, diverting focus from Rajjo, the story's driving force. Instead of knowing how and why she becomes the tigress of Madhavpur, we're given mellifluous songs, intercut with soon-repetitive scenes of exploitation. Considering the subject's intense power and the charisma of these stars, the movie's hesitation with how to proceed stands out.
Highway
2014 · Times Of India · Feb 2014
Highway is not an easy ride. But it offers fresh breezes and new sights. At times, Highway feels like an unending Bharat darshan, a long look at suffering souls through several deserts and eucalyptus trees. But some meandering is its only flaw. Watch it for its cathartic creativity, for colours akin to Iranian palettes, for sound design where melting qawwalis, chirruping crickets and a screeching train make layers of noise - for that shot where Veera rests her head on a pillow of water.
Gunday
2014 · Times Of India · Feb 2014
Gunday's heart is in the right place but the plot gets overwhelmed by its own voluptuousness, its slick torsos and slow-motion slaps, its extended Durga Puja which leaves it lost between Calcutta's cabarets and Dhanbad's dark mines.
12 Years a Slave
2014 · Times Of India · Feb 2014
Straight away, 12 Years A Slave is not a film for the faint-hearted. It is one of the most haunting, daunting movies made. But despite its unrelenting, tense brutality, you're unable to tear your eyes away. This is what makes 12 Years A Slave a work of disturbing genius.
Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
2014 · Times Of India · Jan 2014
This fast-moving film extends beyond one icon. Alongside Mandela, it follows the anti-apartheid movement itself, from peaceful boycotts to blowing offices up, terrible civil war and a return to peace. It captures the tremendous romance of Africa, its gold-pink vistas as beautiful as blush, its rhythms, vibes and colourful tribes. And it presents fabulous performances.
American Hustle
2014 · Times Of India · Jan 2014
...amuses with irony, music and wit. It tantalizes with danger but doesn't get violent. Its sexiness - there's grinding in washrooms, on tables and laps - is electric and fun. Intelligent and good-looking, American Hustle could've lost 20 minutes to deliver an even sharper kick.
The Wolf of Wall Street
2014 · Times Of India · Jan 2014
...one of the most amusing and appalling films around. Martin Scorsese paints a compelling portrait of Wall Street, that metaphor for American ability and greed, sending your head spinning with its ferocity. Leonardo DiCaprio stands foreground, delivering fresh-faced-with-wicked-eyes with the kick of a cocktail.
Dhoom 3
2013 · Dec 2013
Dhoom 3's story with a twist wrapped around it, like the ribbon around a Christmas gift. Merrily unwrap - flying out of the Great Indian Circus, Dhoom 3 is great fun.
Bullett Raja
2013 · Times Of India · Nov 2013
...is zany and funny, an Uttar Pradesh take on Sholay's Jai and Veeru, 'twice-born' in Lucknow as Raja Mishra (Khan) and Rudra Pratap (Shergill). BR is a racy ride, cynical, yet sweet, dark, yet bright. Go watch - you'll enjoy those bangs in the dark.
Dabba (The Lunchbox)
2013 · Times Of India · Sep 2013
Its finesse qualifies this charmer as India's potential entry to the Oscars, The Lunchbox an unusual banquet, raising a bitter-sweet toast to life.
Satyagraha
2013 · Times Of India · Aug 2013
Showing true Satyagraha has no short-cuts, it also shows solutions glimmering ahead, as ephemeral, yet powerful as a rainbow cleansing the dust.
Madras Cafe
2013 · Times Of India · Aug 2013
Straight up, Madras Cafe couldn't be more different to director Shoojit Sircar's Vicky Donor. Political, tense, finally explosive, Madras Cafe is no picnic in the neighborhood park.
D-Day
2013 · Jul 2013
Straight up, D-Day is explosive at three levels. The plot crackles. The acting sears. And the music flares with passion. Catch it - this 'D' company denotes both debate and desh-prem.
Yamla Pagla Deewana 2
2013 · Jun 2013
Minus 30 minutes, YPD 2 could have been much funnier - and much shorter.But despite two pretty heroines, three Deols and an assortment of nutty buddies, YPD 2 frequently stumbles into blunder-land.
The Great Gatsby
2013 · Times Of India · May 2013
...Gatsby is greedily gorgeous and occasionally sags, luxuriating in a 3D-theatric too many. Still, it showcases Fitzgerald's drama with flair - a society dancing on a knife's edge, where everyone drank and romanced too much, but you also heard an odd, wistful sigh - maar daala.
Bombay Talkies
2013 · Times Of India · May 2013
So, BT's a good experiment, celebrating movies, mindsets and Mumbai's moods - but it isn't the coolest film doing so. Woh picture abhi baaqi hai, mere dost.
Chashme Baddoor
2013 · Times Of India · Apr 2013
You will not like this movie if you don't like corny, occasionally bawdy jokes.
Jolly LLB
2013 · Times Of India · Apr 2013
Jolly LLB works because of its bigger point - decency is for all and worth fighting for. Using bittersweet satire and plot twirls, the film shows corruption even used against the corrupt. Despite that weaker first half, this truly becomes a Jolly good show.
Dabangg 2
2012 · Times Of India · Mar 2013
If you don't like Salman Khan, Dabanng 2 won't pack a punch for you.
Ab Hoga Dharna Unlimited
1964 · Times Of India · Mar 2013
AHDU is an interesting experiment. It has rather modest production values but some great lines. It retains the traditional love-story (to its detriment) but goes out on a limb satirizing the political.
Zindagi Tere Naam
2012 · Times Of India · Mar 2013
Prolonged twists include someone getting Alzheimer's, thereby requiring the love-story be told - repeatedly. At this point, the guy sitting next to me went, "Uffff." That said it.
Inkaar
2013 · Times Of India · Mar 2013
Polished-looking, its edges - the tension of feeling harassed at work, office politics, ego flashes - hold rather well. But its centre collapses in a soft mess.
Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola
2013 · Times Of India · Mar 2013
This movie could have been so much more. Like champagne gone flat, the film's left lying about for too late, its plot meandering everywhere.
Chittagong
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2012
This is a serious film - but far from somber, a tongue-tied Nirmal blushingly telling Priti, "Mujhe tumhare pyaar karne ki - matlab, larne ki shiddat bahut pasand hai," the brigade's youthful high spirits including stripping British guards and making them do utthak-baithak, and finally, the real 'Jhunku' or Subodh Roy talking about his life's most amazing experience. Like a Chittagong orchid, the movie takes time to blossom - but when it does, it's beautiful. And pleases a certain master.
Rush
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2012
First, the good news - Rush has an interesting plot and great detailing, the latter unusual in Bollywood. Such detailing - irregularly placed photos in Samar (Hashmi) and girlfriend Ahana's (Ghatge) home, favourite coffee mugs from which media tycoon-types sip their whisky, a T-shirt cheekily promising 'Endless Vacation' landing a billionaire in jail - add heft to this tale.
Aalaap
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2012
On the upside, Aalaap makes an effort to depict people caught in troubled times. Sometimes - in a shot showing Yadav weeping without words, the blue walls of his humble home bathed in golden gloomy light, in an exchange between Bharti and Anna, in depicting a callous, clueless regime - it does that well. A lot of the time, it falters. But its sincerity helps as does its music. Debutante rock group Agnee's composed more than a passable score, particularly the number 'Paaparapa' which hums away in your mind well after you've left the hall. Good job, Agnee - welcome to Bollywood. For the others, there's still some way out of the woods.
Tezz
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2012
Despite slick action and stunning scenes - bullets ramming underwater into a sunlit stream, a violet flower-bush before a cop-car - Tezz loses speed often. Here's possibly why - director Priyadarshan's oeuvre is putting characters in desperate situations and watching them respond. It works beautifully in comedies - but Tezz needs relentless pushing, not frequent stops pondering over the unfairness of citizenship. You can't run fast carrying heavy baggage - that's why Tezz huffs and puffs a little too much.
Fatso!
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2012
Fatso's a whimsical film with a rhythm somewhere between jazz and an old Bollywood song. you imagine Fatso's second half will rev up.Alas. Here's where Fatso flops down heavily. Any sense of magic, of life rescued from death, love saved from vanishing, even the funny ironies of a slim guy stuck in a fat form, is totally missing. The 'friends group' is unconvincingThe film seems overwhelmed by its own smart styling - little details like a dress drying on a clothesline, a girl rubbing hand-cream onto her palms, are clever. But there's too much style, not enough substance.
Hate Story
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2012
There are memorable shots - Dam staring with agonised eyes at Sid's office while having car-sex with a stranger outside, a moment of acute tension when she meets Raj's wife in court. One more encounter follows - but let's leave something to the imagination. Appreciate, if you will, the thriller, not the diet-erotica - that's rather an anti-climax.
Bumboo
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2012
You know that thing called 'thay-ter' - where people go on stage, speak really loudly, open their eyes wide and laugh uproariously to make their point? Well, 'thay-ter' can be good - but transported to cinema, it can stretch a bit thin. And feature some awkward moments - of which Bumboo has a few. Except for the 'thay-ter' - that wide-eyed overacting with incessant PJs, gay no-jokes, even some vomiting. Peppy background music lifts the bar frequently while cracks on screwdrivers and biwi-chors help. But Bumboo gets shafted by its lapses into lavatory humour - and too much thay-ter for cinema.
Housefull 2
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2012
Housefull-2 is a bag of laughs with eye-candy - Akshay in linens, Jacqueline in minis - and some crackling performances.The film belongs to Akshay Kumar who carries off a sharp suit and 'jhaari-mein-chalein' jokes with glossy aplomb. And to Sajid Khan who, despite a smorgasbord of stars, ensures one prevails - the mad storyline. The music (Sajid-Wajid) could have been punchier while some scenes sag. But with cracks like, "Aasman se gire, Khajuraho mein atke," as Akshay parachutes down on his mum-in-law, you can't complain - unless you were looking for Einstein, of course.
Chaar Din Ki Chandni
2012 · Times Of India · Nov 2012
Like a shaadi ka band, CDKC's tone is mostly raucous - and good fun. Its script crosses swords with British writer P G Wodehouse's zany plots (castle full of imposters, suspicious uncles, a mosquito-bitten Johnny Lever) while paying hurried homage to masala-mixed Bollywood, leaving little time to worry about subtlety or depth.