Cars 2 Review

Strictly for young drivers

Cast:

Owen Wilson                Lightning McQueen

Larry the Cable Guy      Mater

Michael Caine               Finn McMissile

Emily Mortimer             Holley Shiftwell

Eddie Izzard                  Sir Miles Axlerod

John Turturro                Francesco Bernoulli

Thomas Kretschmann   Professor Z

Bonnie Hunt                  Sally

Story:

After accepting a challenge by Italian race car Francesco Bernoulli on behalf of McQueen, Mater along with McQueen and his crew head to participate in the World Grand Prix. The event is organized by Sir Miles Axlerod to promote alternate fuel. In an international espionage is a spy Finn McMissile trying to find out the conspiracy by a group of cars called Lemons headed by Professor Z. Lemons are old and flop car brands that were long forgotten. They don’t want Axlerod’s alternate fuel to be a success. McQueen loses the first race of World Grand Prix to Francesco in Tokyo owing to a blunder by Mater. A case of mistaken identity lands Mater on the chase with spies Finn McMissile and HollyShiftwell to Italy and London. The climax exposes the conspiracy and the car behind it. Also it answers whether Mater reunites with McQueen as friends after the race debacle in Tokyo.

Review:

Well a lot of things change in Cars 2, first being the shift of focus from McQueen to Mater.  The film tries to push itself out of the children category with over personification of cars such as eating wasabi, drinking fuel at bars, faced paced action sequences like in James Bond film. But at the same time the message the film gives out like staying true to one’s self and standing by friends pushes the film back to being a kiddie flick. The film is entertaining, but comes across as confused as its audience is not well defined. The film manages to evoke laughter at some places.  The script is not praise-worthy but manages to do the job.

Of the cast Michel Caine as Finn McMissile and Larry the Cable Guy as Mater hit the right note. The argumentative portions of McQueen and Francesco voiced by Owen Wilson and John Turturro respectively are fun. 

Watch it for high paced action scenes and detailed animation of cities like Tokyo, Italy, London and snazzy cars.

Bhindi Baazaar Inc Review

Worth Investing         

  

Cast:

Kay Kay Menon           Shroff
Prashant Narayanan      Fateh
Piyush Mishra               Pandey
Pawan Malhotra            Mamu
Shilpa Shukla                Kanjri
Deepti Naval                 Bano
Gautam Sharma            Tez

Shweta Verma              Simran
Vedita Pratap Singh     Shabana
Jackie Shroff                John  

Story:

The film revolves around two gangs led by Mamu and Pandey respectively. The gangs epitomize a syndicate and have its own hierarchy structure. However the story is about a pawn’s journey to becoming a Vizier. The film starts off with a game of chess between Tez and Shroff.

Fateh and Tez are two pickpockets who lead the workforce of Mamu’s syndicate. Pandey an arch rival of Mamu has his own gang and area to rule. The lines have been clearly divided, and no gang is allowed in the other’s territory. The trouble begins when Mamu does not take up a task which involves spreading of a flu virus, so that the pharma company who has a stock of antidote cash in on the situation. This opportunity is taken by Pandey, who manages to manipulate Fateh into deceiving Mamu and getting him killed. Tez knew about this, but is silent. Kanjri loves Fateh, but is aware of his involvement with Shabana, Mamu’s sister-in-law who was also instrumental in getting Mamu killed.  Thus begins a series of betrayal by almost each and everyone in the struggle for power, love and money. Nobody is innocent, no one is trustworthy.  Watch the movie unfold with every move played on the chessboard between Tez and Shroff.        

Review:

Bhindi Baazaar Inc gives us a micro level view on the working of local mafia. The concept is not new to a regular film goer as it has been well exploited in films like Satya, Company and the recent Once Upon a Time in Mumbai. What the film offers is fresh and stylized approach to the narrative in the form of a game of chess. The screenplay and the dialogue penned by Ghalib Asad Bhopali maintain an edge that is expected from a film of this genre. Ankush Bhatt’s direction impresses.

Although the film does not have star presence, it’s packed with seasoned powerhouse actors like Pawan Malhotra, Piyush Mishra, Prashant Narayanan and Deepti Naval, all of whom excel in depicting their rewspective roles. Kay Kay Menon delights in an extended cameo. Shilpa Shukla doesn’t get much scope. Debutant Gautam Sharma may not be a star material but performs ably. Vedita Pratap Singh raises the temperature as a seductress, and performs the role of a moll so aptly it reminds you of the vamps of the by-gone era.

Overall Bhindi Baazaar Inc. is a venture worth investing your time and money.

Bheja Fry 2 Review

Half Cooked!

Cast:

Vinay Pathak         Bharat Bhushan

Minnisha Lamba    Ranjini

Amole Gupte         Raghu Burman

Kay Kay Menon    Ajit Talwar

Suresh Menon        M.T. Shekharan

Rahul Vora            Kapoor

Story:

Bharat Bhushan, the worldly wise tax inspector is yet to fulfill his long cherished dream of becoming a singer. To further his ambition he enters a game show hoping to win the grand cash prize with which he can make his own music album. Destiny seems to favour Bharat Bhushan and he ends up not only winning the cash prize, but also a free stay on a cruise ship. Ajit Talwar is a sadistic media tycoon glorified by the media who has an apetite for every pretty young thing that catches his eye. He gets onboard the cruise ship to flee from the Income Tax Department. A colleague and friend of Bharat Bhushan, tax inspector M.T.Shekharan follows Ajit Talwar on the cruise in disguise. On the cruise, Bharat Bhushan develops attraction towards Ranjini, an executive producer he met on the game show.

A case of mistaken identity and plan gone haywire leave Ajit Talwar and Bharat Bhushan stranded on an island. Talwar needs to get off the island as he has a meeting with investors. But with Bharat Bhushan for a company, the duo end up as hostages by a reclusive photographer Raghu Burman. From here on the movie leads to climax where some of the following question are answered -

Does Ajit Talwar manage to get off the island intime for his meeting with investors?

Does Bharat Bhushan manage to realise his dream?

Is M.T.Shekharan successful in nabbing Ajit Talwar for his financial scam?

Review:

The film when compared to first part leaves you disappointed. Though unlike the first, Bheja Fry 2 is an entirely new concept devoid of any inspiration. The biggest drawbacks of the film are the story and the screenplay. The dialogues in the film manage to evoke laughter only in few places. The film looks like a forcefully made sequel. The screenplay looks like a compilation of gags without any connection. The film goes downhill one scene at a time form the introduction of the character Raghu Burman.

The film works solely on the performance of Vinay Pathak as he reprises the role of Bharat Bhushan. Kay Kay is efficient when playing the sly businessman, but is inconsistent in parts. Minnisha Lamba fails to connect, courtesy the script. Suresh Menon is a delight and the second best thing that Bheja Fry 2 has to offer. Amole Gupte has been wasted, courtesy lack of characterization.

On the whole, if you do plan to watch the film, go in without any expectations. It might surprise you. Else get your Bheja Fried at your own risk.

Shaitan Review

Disturbingly Beautiful

Cast:

Rajeev Khandelwal      Arvind Mathur

Kalki Koechlin               Amy/Amrita Jaishankar

Gulshan Devaiya          KC/Karan Chaudhary

Shiv Pandit                    Dash/Dushyant Sahu

Neil Bhoopalam            Zubin Shroff

Kirti Kulhari                    Tanya Sharma

Story:

Amy has recently shifted to Mumbai. Her relationship is estranged with her father as well as her step-mother with a backstory of disturbed childhood attached. At a social function she meets KC, a rich spoilt brat who invites her to a Holi celebration after a session of smoking pot. It is at the Holi bash where Amy meets Dash - a drug peddler who works at a coffee shop, Zubin - a geek who enjoys playing games so much he often masturbates watching the characters and Tanya a bulimic who is forced to work as a model by her sister. The friendship evolves with drugs, parties and reckless driving around the city. During one such reckless drive they kill two people in an accident. This is where their inner shaitan (demon) starts taking control over their mind and they end up getting deeper into world of crime and violence. Inspector Arvind Mathur is a suspended cop because of his brutally honest behavior fears his personal as well as professional life crumbling. He is unofficially assigned to solve the case involving the infamous five.

Review:

Shaitan doesn’t come across as a work of debut director. The film has been beautifully structured with a daring screenplay, dialogues laced with wicked humour, excellent camerawork and crisp editing along with a whacky soundtrack as an accompaniment.  There are moments in the film that just thrills you to the core. Watch out for Rajat Barmecha’s cameo appearance.

 All the actors who have done a fab job portraying their characters. But the unsung hero of the film is the lyrical association of camera, edit and background score. The trio elevates almost each scene to a crescendo which is successful in giving audience a virtual high. One such scene is a chase sequence with a hip rendition of the classic Khoya Khoya Chand.

All the thing remaining the same, Shaitan is a brilliant masterpiece by debutant director Bejoy Nambiar, but one can still feel imprints of Anurag Kashyap all over it. Watch it for an experience that is as disturbing as it is beautiful.

Ratings-

4/5

Ready Review

Paisa Vasool Entertainment!

Cast:

Salman Khan , Asin, Paresh Rawal, Sharat Saxena, Akhilendra Mishra, Mahesh Manjrekar, Manoj Joshi, Manoj Pahwa and others.

Story –

Prem (Salman Khan) is a spoilt brat with a wholesome family of Chacha’s and Chachi’s. Sanjana (Asin) is on the run from her Mamas (Sharat Saxena & Akhilendra Mishra), both of whom want Sanjana to get married to their respective brother-in-laws so that they can get her property. Circumstances and a case of mistaken identity lands Sanjana in Prem’s family. Love blossoms between the two of them. But soon the real truth about Sanjana is discovered by Prem and his family. Prem takes it upon himself to teach Sanjana’s mamas a lesson and bring them together so that he can marry her.  Thus begins an entertainment ride that discards all the logic and rationale.

Review –

The first half of the film is slow and drags a bit similar to a rollercoaster moving to the top on a steep slope. The rollercoaster ride begins in the second half that builds up all the way to the climax laced with gimmicks and gags giving audience a paisa vasool entertainment. The film has its drawbacks in terms of a Plot, Script, and Continuity, but all of it is covered by the fact that the film has Salman Khan in the lead. The film appeals to masses and is delivers it with aplomb.

The film is a remake of Tamil hit by the same name. Director Anees Bazmee packs in everything a masala film needs to have – Romance, Comedy, Family Drama, Action, Chartbuster Songs and Salman Khan.

Without a doubt the film belongs to Salman Khan who knows what his audience demands from him and is more than happy to oblige them. Watch out for the camaraderie between Salman Khan and Paresh Rawal. Asin and rest of the cast lend the required support to the film.

Look no further, if you need to bust that stress in less than three hours.

Ratings –

3.5/5