Archive for the ‘TheMidayMasala's Review of:’ Category

My Name is Khan is a film about humanity, the human spirit and it speaks to the heart and soul of every individual who believes in the goodness of people.

The fact that Karan Johar was able to seamlessly weave the love story of Rizvan Khan and Mandira in a post 9/11 world with such realness, empathy and subtlety = EPIC!!!!!

5 Reasons you NEED to see MNIK (don’t forget that huge box of tissues!)

1. Shahrukh Khan. Whatever you think of SRK up til now, leave it behind. This SRK incomparable to any other SRK you’ve ever seen. He is no longer Rahul, that cutesy romantic leading man, he is Rizvan Khan the sweet, charismatic aam-person who suffers from Aspergers Syndrome, believes in good deeds and is too perfect in reel/real life. SRK will win every damn award ever this year and next. Promise.

2. Kajol. If you’ve been dying to see sparks, electricity and magnetism hypnotise you on screen then your prayers have been answered in this K-Jo film! Kajol is just amazing, in every scene, in every angle and in every way. Flawless beauty with a flawless performance. No more words to add here.

3. These 3 specific songs will stir your bones. (You can use half of that tissue box during the song sequences! We warned you!)

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4. Karan Johar. As a storyteller and best friend to SRK + K, expectations were high for this film. But ONLY ONLY KJo could’ve surpassed then x a bajill which he has clearly done. The love story, the heartbreak, the tragedy and the pain is conveyed so convincingly in each scene that you want to reach out and cheer/console Rizvan and Mandira at many points in the film. KJo for Best Director of the year/decade/century. Period.

5. The script. The narrative of the film was emotional and moving with the right amount of humor, romance and overarching theme of peace.  The script dealt with incidents in the post 9/11 without too much melodrama and exaggeration which made the scenes so easy to relate to. The best part of MNIK was the message of the film, the message of tolerance, love and peace. One of the most well-written and poignant scripts in the history of Indian cinema.

6/5 mirchies.

What we want to be and who we eventually become is often two different paths for many people. The lucky few follow their dreams and make their passion a profession-for the rest society, parents and family pressures dictate their eventual pursuits.

The story of 3 Idiots is the story of Rancho (Aamir Khan), Farhan (R. Madhavan) and Raju (Sharman Joshi) and their struggles from Day 1 of Engineering College and the subsequent four years which changed their lives.

5 Reason to say AAAALLL IZZZZ WEEELLLLL!

1. Aamir Khan. He takes it to another level. Forget Ghajini, Rang de Basanti or Lagaan, this is an AK that will blow your mind. You become so enamored in watching Rancho- a really gifted, smart, witty and adorable Engineering student that you completely forget that you are also watching one of the finest actor of our times. Not only is that hard to do butt so brilliant to see on screen!

2. Sharman Joshi. Wowowowoowowow. He was flawless, funny, charismatic, emotive and so amazing in this film. One of his bestest roles..ever.

3. R. Madhavan. We love Maddy, from all his films down South to his Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein days, there is just something electrifying and special and FINALLY he has a film where the director (Rajkumar Hirani) taps into that, draws him out and makes him shine like the sun.

4. The Script, cinematography and dialogue. It was all perfection. (Special mention HAS to go to Chatur (Omi) who killed it in the comedy scenes!)

5.

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Rocket Singh is a simple story of you and I. There is a Rocket Singh inside each of us- whether its our first day in a new work environment, our first client meeting, our first time meeting our boss, our first office party or the first time we make a naive innocent mistake.

The potential and capability inside each of us is sometimes wrongfully judged by an innocent mistake, results of an examination or even a minor failure. But despite all these incidents, the fact remains that much of the time, WE are the roadblock on our own path to success.

This realization dawns on Harpreet Singh Bedi and it is on the most poignant turning points of the film.

5 Reasons YOU need to Pocket this Rocket!

1. The script. Jaideep Sahni is an utter genius. It’s absolutely novel, brilliant and perfect. Even if you aren’t at the age where its time to step into the “real” world from college, you will be able to relate to the timidness of HP of a new job and the way he is overly eager to follow his bosses.

2.

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3. Ranbir Kapoor. He is just perfection! His acting, emotions, dialogue delivery and body language is pure effortless. After the first few scenes, you forget that this the next scion of the Kapoor clan and wonder what how Mr Singh will manage now.

4. D Santosh as Giri, the computer geek/techie. He is so brills!! His dialogues are so witty and delivered with such conviction that his performance was absolutely flawless. (Mukesh Bhatt as Chotelal Mishra and Gauhar Khan as Koena also deserve special mention as they round our the delightful cast of the film!)

5. Naveen Kaushik as Nitin Rathore, HP’s immediate boss and Manish Choudhary as the company’s smirky and cocky boss are SO amazing! They take the film to the next level and  are SUCH a delight to watch and laugh with.

5 mirchies out of 5 mirchies

Sometimes there are just some films with such simplicity and purity that they resonate long after the credits are rolling. Paa is one such film, from the opening scene where school children display their vision of India to the final scene of the climax, one can’t help reveling in the uplifting message of love, love and love in the film.

5 Reasons you MUST meet Auro:

1. Amitabh Bachchan. What can I really say here..he is the best of the best of the best of the best! He plays a 13 year-old inflicted with progeria so effectively that at one point my PIC (partner-in-crime) turned to me and said “Wow, how do they make his eyes look so old with all those little marks and that greyness? Oh my god I forgot its Amitabh Bachchan underneath all that makeup!”

2. Abhishek Bachchan. No doubt he is his father’s son and has inherited his acting repertoire genetically but Jr AB REALLY owns the film. He is subtle, charismatic and so flawless as the politician Amol Arte its lovely to watch him on screen.

3. Vidya Balan is such a delight as Maa. Flowing through her scenes in Sabyasachi sarees as she loves and spoils Auro, works as a Gynecologist and takes care of her mother, you come to realize that in the perfect role, VB shines like the sun!

4.

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5. Auro’s bff Pratik. He’s the studious one with the glasses who wants to be a dancer. The exchange between Pratik and Auro on the phone is so precious (and priceless)!

So what you waiting for?!?!

4 mirchies/5.

De Dana Dan is FULTU masala film.

It’s loud, outragerous, funny, silly, crazy and absolutely unbelievable.

And we LOVED it.

5 Reasons to Paisaaaaaaaa kharcho:

1. Akshay Kumar. He is so funny, amusing and hilarious in the film. In previous films, he tends to overract, but in DDD he kills it with his body language and emotions as a naukar to Archana Puran Singh and her kutha Mulchandji.

2. Johnny Lever. He is amazing! The best of the best of our filmy comedians. Special mentions are the scenes with his crazy strong liquid and towel combo!

3. Neha Dhupia. Her item number is so seksi especially with the pirate, gangster and army costumes. She is even hotter as the call-girl who just wants her paisa. She looks good and delivers.

4. 

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5. Asrani, Rajpal Yadav, Vikram Ghokale, Manoj Joshi and Archana Puran Singh are the HIGLIGHTS of the film. And the reason the film will leave you dying with laughter!!!

Dekho! Dekho!

In love, there are two important qualities – trust and sacrifice.

Without these two entities- love, a relationship and marriage will not survive. The love story of Avantika (Kareena Kapoor) and Ehsaan (Saif Ali Khan) is the story of kurbaani, vishwas and pyaar.

Kurbaan is a love story at its core with a strong message of faith, the Islamic identity and tolerance running parallel. The intriguing aspect is how director Rensil D’Silva was able to synthesize these  messages in his directorial debut so flawlessly. It’s hard to believe that this is D’Silva’s FIRST film. Ever!

So let’s get down to the reasons you should paisa karcho:

5 Reasons to watch Kurbaan:

1. Saif Ali Khan. He is so charismatic, intense and engaging on screen. His chemistry with KK is so electrifying and pure that its unbelievable. You won’t be able to help yourself as you empathize for him.

2. Kareena Kapoor. She is TRULY one of the industry’s finest. Whether she plays a girl falling deeper in love in the first half with bright blue eyeliner and colourful kurtas or the jaded, betrayed and broken wife with no makeup in the second half…your eyes are completely fixated on her. Brilliant. Effortlessly brilliant.

3. Vivek Oberoi. He is the surprise package. Period. He emotes with such depth that its hard to believe that he’s been missing from films because of an unfortunate incident. This will truly be the turning point for his career and a true milestone of his acting potential.

4. The music. The portrayal and the perfect composition of Shukran Allah, Rasiya and Ali Maula are to be watched for the underlying tone by which they move the film forward.

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5. The climax. It will have you on the end of the edge, grip you, confuse you, stun you and leave you with perplexing emotions.

SO.

GO. SEE. IT. NOW.

The fact of life is when someone is better/more talented/superior to us in our OWN area of expertise, we can never reconcile ourselves to accept it. It’s a rare case, when a friend A is happy for friend B easily acquired success, when friend A wants it more and struggles more than friend B.

The friend A in this flick is Ajay Devgn’s Arjun and friend B is Salman Khan’s Mannu.

Frankly, it’s nice to see a film attempt tell a different story about the goals/dreams we all seek and how they truly unfold given the overzealous pursuit of fame, wealth, power and success at any cost. Everyone will understand the jealousy that plagues Arjun because secretly we feel jelly incessantly!

Frankly, there are simply 5 clear reasons why YOU should see London Dreams:

1. Salman Khan. His cute antics, witty one-liners and just outright pind-wala mannerisms (not to forget his oh-so-cute nickname for Asin “Chennai Express”)

2. Ajay Devgn. The intensity by which he plays someone struggling between friendship and his goals is too superb. His clothes and accessories reflect his inner turmoil. The scene where he breakdowns foreshadwoing revenge  in front of  a clueless Mannu is just brilliant!

3. The scene in which Mannu takes a simple tune Arjun is composing and put its to a filmy tune, a ghazal tune and a hip-hop tune. Just purely electrifying!

4. Chemistry between Devgn & Khan. They are perfect as contrasts for each other. Some of the best scenes is when Arjun can’t handle Mannu’s adulations and talent.

5. The great theatrical sets and the concert scenes featuring the songs:

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On a minor note, look out for the two bandmates Aditya Roy Kapoor with his big curly hair and funny moments and dreamy conspirator of Arjun’s revenge Rannvijay Singh.

We NEED to give special mention to those two adorable additions in the film little Arjun and little Mannu. Rohin Bains played the knee-high Mannu with such great naughtiness and authenticy. He even looked the part! Even Little Arjun was cast perfectly!!

We give the film 3 mirchis out of 5!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We love the music, the casting was brilliant, styling was perfect and sets were extravagant!

Reasons’ enough to book tickets or catch it in cinema’s this weekend???

YES YES YES!!!

One word: Fexy.

V. V. Fexy!

One thing is for sure people, this isn’t passive cinema! So don’t expect to sit their through the first part, intermission and the second part and expect to turn off your brain for a light/masala type flick. Cause it ain’t happening.

You need to pay full attention for the following reasons:

1. To enjoy Shahid stammering and pronouncing ’s’ as ‘f’

2. To understand the storyline and the sheer genius of how everything connects!

3. To revel in the utter geniuses of Vishal Bhardwaj’s direction!!

4. To see some damn good ACTING. REAL REAL (twice for emphasis!) intense portrayal of characters!!

5. To enjoy Piggy Chops look (and act, of course!) like perfection.

6. To watch and hum along to every song!!

7. To be in awe of the climax.

So yes if you are a connoisseur of a real different genre of hindi film rather than the stale ol’ formulaic stuff, then YOU will LOVE IT!

Feriously, you will!

And because we want to spread the Kaminey love you can listen to the ENTIRE soundtrack while you decide on a movie timing!!! Hehe

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(psst click on the “various” when the audio player pops out to see the name of the song! And one more click the name of the artist!)

Despite what everyone said about “Saif’s acting could be better” or “It’s so unrealistic! People don’t have just clean happy breakups” or “Saif is NOT a Sardar!” blah blah blah.

THIS was one of the best films to really understand the progression of relationship of today’s generation!

From the meet-cute to the getting-to-know-each-other to the saying-I-Love-You-without-actually-saying-it to the eventual separation, we guarantee that every cinemagoer could relate to at least one aspect of Jai & Meera’s prem kahani!

The higlight of the film was  2 specific things; the flashback of Veer’s love story and Jai’s time in San Francisco. Not only was Saif Ali Khan so convincing as the young gabroo sardar Veer, he was able to emote with such electricity Jai’s enthusiasm and downward spiral at Golden Gate Inc.

BUT, let’s give the credit where it’s really due- director Imtiaz Ali for seamlessly melding the kal and aaj so beautifully.

So our verdict: WATCH IT.

And of course if you are still iffy about whether you should go see the film or not (which is crazy because you should!)…

LISTEN to the song below.

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