Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani – The colourful package which fizzles out.

 Yeh jawani Hai Deewani is essentially story of four friends who in their youth go through life changing emotions when they are trekking through Manali.

Bunny, played by Ranbir Kapoor is a happy go guy who wants to roam around the world to experience the thrills of life. He starts it by going on a trekking trip to Manali along with Avi (Adithya Roy Kapur) and feisty Aditi( Kalki Kochlin) joining them in the last moment is Naina, played by Deepika, is a homely girl and also a book worm but eager to experience different things in life,  so decides to join the trip to Manali.

As expected Naina falls in love our daring hero. But as the trip ends they go on their separate ways in life to fulfill their dreams. How they get together forms the rest of the story?

Ayan Mukerji who gave us a coming of age movie in ‘Wake up Sid’, falters very badly in all his departments i.e, story, screenplay and direction. The story is so flimsy that you will start wondering why Naina fell in love Bunny in the first place. Screenplay is so clichéd that our heroine forgets to board the halted train then starts running so as to create a DDLJ moment. Our director drags it in the second half to an extent that the one heartfelt sequence of our hero confessing his love to our heroine seems boring.

Cinematography by Manikandan is standout feature along with editing and production values, which is expected from Karan Johar production.

Songs, already a chartbuster, provide some relief as they are well shot. Madhuri Dixit appears in a item song, even though the song is awkwardly timed, shows what is missing from today’s heroines. She brings grace to the songs and the dance moves.

Ranbir & Deepika among the cast are the only saving grace of the movie, but even their chemistry is not enough to save the movie from the slow screenplay. Aditya Roy Kapur is only seen in the movie either running behind girls, losing money or holding a glass. If he took one step forward in his career with his performance in Aashiqui 2, he takes two steps back with this one. Kalki’s only contribution in the movie, apart from yelling in the first half, is in getting everyone back together for her marriage.

What promised to be a summer blockbuster with colourful enthusiastic trailer and hummable songs turns out to damp squib.

I am going with 2.5 out of 5 for this colourful package which fizzles out without making any impact on the audience. Waste of such a wonderful title.

Go Goa Gone – Get ready for Zombie Ride

The movie starts with two friends ( Luv & Hardhik) arguing over who is nearer to the remote to switch off the channel playing the telugu megastar Chiranjeevi movie. When the power cut occurs, their other friend (Bunny) trips over a table and falls. With the lights back on his face is smeared with what appears to be pizza pieces, which scares the other two. They then start figuring what are the creatures which appear with a face just like him.

If you are as clueless as them or ready to forget the fact that that you know a bit, about zombies, this movie takes you on a roller coaster ride with a zombie as your partner.

The story moves on with Luv falling out with his girlfriend, Hardhik losing his job and bunny getting a chance to to go to Goa for his presentation. The other two hit on a plan to accompany him to Goa by making him drive his car all the way. Over in Goa Luv meets his facebook friend Luna and gets invited to a rave party organized by a desi russian mafia leader Boris in a secluded island. Hardhik ever enthusiastic to get wasted manages to convince to Bunny to sponsor the event. That’s where the fun begins with the rising of the zombies.

How did the zombies appear? How did the friends survive against them? Forms the rest of the story.

The movie being the first of its kind in Indian cinema could be called a huge step in globalization (as described in the movie for the appearance of zombies in India) of the storylines in our industry. The story faults heavily in explaining the rising and the demise of the zombies. But as I said if you ready to forget the science behind it, you will be treated to a eyeful of gore, thrills and earful of hindi gali.

The actors do justice to their roles with Kunal Khemu, Vir Das walking away with all the plaudits using their charisma. Puja Gupta is decent, so is Anand Tiwari as bunny.  And Saif (did I mention him? Its too late anyway, so watch him and get surprised) just adds star value to the movie. Directors RJ & DK, who made critical success like 99 & Shor In the city, loosen the grip over their making a bit. But the sheer freshness of the storyline in India makes up for all the cons.

Don’t expect it be Zombieland standard, but go with friends and have fun to make a good start to the weekend. I am going with 2.5 out of 5 for this first Indian Zombie entertainer. 

IRON MAN 3 – It is just the man this time.

Remember the awesome feeling you get after watching your favorite superhero movie? Recall it and don’t expect to experience it at the end of this IRON MAN installment.

The movie with so much expected out of it, falls flat with the opening dialogue of the movie. Tony Stark talks about hearing something from his old man, and tells us to forget it. That pretty much sets the tone of the movie. Confusing between whether you have come to watch your favourite alter ego, his suit and in recent times the best super hero between Batman and Wolverine, or a guy who is too confused about who he is?.

Coming to the story part of it. America again and in larger scheme of things the entire world is threatened by a terrorist, who goes by the name of Mandarin. After series of attacks, especially in America, he strikes close to Stark’s heart, who is suffering anxiety issues after the New York aftermath (Avengers story). Tony Stark being Tony Stark challenges him (the funny way of threatening your enemy, watch out for it). With the nice mix of another antagonist, Mandarin sets out to destroy the Iron Man and take control of the world. The attack leads the way for Tony Stark to rediscover himself. Is he what he is because of the suit? Or is it other way around?

If you are expecting Bruce Wayne kind of revival from The Dark Knight Returns, you are bound to be disappointed. That’s because the story never really takes off. It keeps going through the motions, where our hero is inspired by a single line told to him by a kid which changes his approach to saving the world. The approach he takes? Walk into the villain’s den with some cool science toys (not gadgets). It’s a too small turning point for such a big movie franchise.

Robert Downey Jr. does what he is good at, using his charm but sleep walks through the movie. But the poor screenplay and script makes it feel as though this is his worst in recent times. Gwyenth Paltrow gets more screen time than the previous movies and makes her presence felt. Ben Kingsley and Don Cheadle’s potential are wasted. Guy Pearce as a scientist who is insulted by Stark is just another villain. Rebecca Hall is ok In her role as an yet another scientist.

The background score and screenplay are pretty bland and fail to inspire. Makers failed to learn from the mistakes of Iron Man 2. Jon Favreau (who continues in this movie as just as Happy Hogan, not as the director) would have given us a better product than the current helmer Shane Black. The action sequences are nothing new from any other action movies or the earlier installments and having so many suits around defeats the purpose of a superhero status. 

You rooting for your superhero/Robert Downey Jr and waiting for them to inspire you the way they did in the first installment is the only thing that makes make you sit through the movie.

Hoping that there are no more further installments to tarnish the legend of IRON MAN, I am going with 1.5 out of 5. Watch it if you are hard core IRON MAN fan to fulfill that longing feeling of seeing more of him. 

Ek Thi Dayaan - Get ready to be spooked

EK THI DAYAAN is a movie that was well expected to be unconventional. Does it turn out to be unconventional? Here’s my take.

The witchcraft and wizardry is an age old superstition, Vishal Bharadwaj brings it to the contemporary world by telling the story of a magician, whose tryst with destiny begins when he gets addicted to a book, he brought unbeknownst to his father, which surprises him by guiding him to the gates of hell (as described in the movie).

The film starts well with the Bobo (that’s our protagonist, funny name in such a story), played by Emraan Hashmi, showing off his magician skills to a room full of people in awe of his tricks. In the middle of his famous rope act he gets distracted by a haunting voice, which sets the pulse racing because of the girl participating in the act being suspended in the air. Bobo regains his composure albeit at the urging of his girlfriend Tamara (Huma Quershi), but the incident forces him to revisit his past. His past being tied up to his childhood home which he visits again, reveals further more regarding

hauntings of his childhood where we get know that magic was Bobo’s childhood passion and introduces us to his widowed father, sister and Diana (Konkana Sen Sharma). The introduction of Diana into the family changes the happy family to the one which faces a tragedy. Out here in the present world Bobo starts experiencing all signs of his past with introduction of Lisa Dutt (Kalki Koechlin). What was the tragedy that he experienced in his childhood, the one he fears about now, who is the dayaan (witch) and how is dayaan related to the tragedy forms the crux of the remaining story.

Emraan Hashmi gives the role his sincere best to pull one of the best performances of his so far career. How many times have I thought and people say this about him? Numerous times in the past few years, he just keeps improving from one movie to his next. He might have been a candidate to the performer of the year with slight changes to his mannerism in the scenes where he performs on-stage magic. Huma Quershi performs decent enough as the adoring, care-taking girlfriend. Kalki Koechlin, brings in the required freshness to the grim screenplay till then. Konkana Sen Sharma does what she does best by delivering her performance with such an ease, she makes it seem as though the role was tailor made for her. If only the casting of the psychiatrist had been done with an extra care the cast would’ve been impeccable.

Debutant Kannan Iyer does more than decant job as a director, but this film passes off a  Vishal Bharadwaj movie, so Iyer remains an hidden name. Vishal Bharadwaj after the honest effort of Matru Ki Bijili ka Mondola, gives another good earnest effort with this story. But falters with the climax, which is so underwhelming that it destroys the intensity built till then. Screenplay is good in parts, better switching between emotional, comic and horror (yes, that’s the first time I have mentioned the word till now) would have made it exceptional. He more than makes up to his stumble in screenplay by delivering one of the albums of the year, where all the songs remain with you when you leave the hall, especially Yaraam, and a haunting background score which is the soul of the effects, in horror movies.

There are enough spooky moments in the movie to make you jump off your seats, in this sense the movie comes in horror genre. Story wise, a whipping at demons, witches and science related to it.

To answer my own question. Does it turn out to be unconventional? Yes. Is it because of the story? No. It's because of the Emraan Hashmi-Vishal Bharadwaj combination.

All in all, a decent movie which is worth for the bucks you spend on this. If you are forgiving regarding the ending, get ready to be spooked by one of the best horror and unconventional movies in Hindi cinema in recent times. So 3 out of 5 for this one.

Feel free to give me your thoughts regarding my review.