Review: Agneepath (2012)

Agneepath... The one bollywood movie which I was waiting for ever since the trailers started airing. Remake of the 70s classic of the same name, Karan Johar's Agneepath (as it can be rightly called for the overdose of emotional drama present in the movie) is a good enough reason to pass time on a lazy day but not when you go in expecting a lot of action and vengeance.

The story is simple, its about Vijay Dinanath Chauhan's revenge on Kaancha for the latter's murder of the former's father in front of the public in a small island off the coast of Bombay (that's what they called in the movie). The story starts off in the year 1977 and travels 15 years hence when I'm not sure if Levi Strauss had introduced its jeans collection in India (the one which Hrithik wears all over the movie) and I'm not sure if there were digital projectors which projected without slides and also I'm not sure if flex banners were even made!

Anyways, putting aside these logical erroers (which was difficult to digest), Hrithik comes up with a stunning performance. His role is full of heroism and such a movie deserves to be in his filmography no doubt. Agneepath was way better than his previous commercial outings like Fiza, Krrish and to an extent Mission Kashmir (but MK was a very good movie). One can watch Agneepath for a sole reason, read Hrithik a.k.a Vijju a.k.a Vijay Dinanath Chauhan.

Songs by the marathi duo Ajay-Atul were kickass and awesome when we heard just the audio but when it came to the big screen, the visuals did not match up to it. The songs were extending the stretch of an already dragging flick.

Cinematography by Ravi K. Chandran and Kiran Deohans needs a mention here because giving different angles to an out and out commercial flick is a difficult thing to do and they do an awesome job here by providing interesting and stunning camera angles.

Sanjay Dutt plays Kaancha, the baddie who looks like a real scary baddie but doesn't score in acting much. His dialogue delivery were below par and did not have the punch that one was expecting. He basically failed to live up to the hype.

Director Karan Malhotra has extracted a lot of acting from Priyanka Chopra, Rishi Kapoor and Om Puri which you would have never seen before. Never expected Rishi Kapoor to pull off good stunt sequences. The other actors give their best shots only that the punch was lacking in the places and hence the dialogues do not register quite well on the viewer's mind.

Karan Johar has to be mentioned while reviewing Agneepath because one could see all the emotional drama and the tears pouring out of the screen (maybe the screen itself was crying). His impact on the visuals can be seen quite clearly by any ordinary person.

Katrina Kaif's Chikni Chameli doesn't stay in the mind for long. The song's magic was also lost. Other melodies like O Saiyyan (which I thought would be steamy and was no less steamy by making me sweat because of irritation) and Abhi Mujhme Kahin were pleasant to hear but not too good to watch.

Agneepath's second half is engaging but again the essence is lost towards by songs and stretch of simple sequences. The action scenes are the highlight and so is the macho man performing them.

Watch Agneepath if you are a die-hard Hrithik fan (which I am) and even if you want to re-live the classic in the new format but not if you are expecting a revenge powered kickass movie (it is no where close to it).


Rating: 2.5/5

Agneepath: Hrithik all the way!

Review: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011)

Disclaimer: I haven’t read the book “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” by Steig Larsson so the following review of the movie will be purely covering the technical and the entertainment aspects.

David Fincher, the man who weaved classics like Fight Club, Se7en, The Social Network and the creative – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is back with something similar (read. almost a classic). The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo which is an adaptation of a novel of the same name, entertains and grips the viewer’s brain.

Every masterpiece needs good finishing and this has Trent Raznor’s music to support it. There are places where silence is the best background score and there are places where music is needed to feel the emotions, the music composer has got it right and his scores score.

The film has been nominated for the Academy Awards in the Best Cinematography criteria and no wonder why, Jeff Cronenweth has done a fantabulous job in capturing the best and worst of Sweden and other places.

The title role is played by Rooney Mara who characters the role of a computer hacker who shows us the features of a Macbook Pro and who uses SQL queries to get the required data. She is supposed to have photographic memory. I don’t know what David Fincher saw in her but she is definitely not the person that anyone would want to see cloth less. Nevertheless, the steamy scenes are crude (Spoiler!) and still nothing goes up.

Daniel Craig plays a journalist who is married and has a cute daughter but still has “fun” with the hacker.

The movie runs a bit over 2 and a half hours. Frankly, you don’t get bored but just as the magic of the brilliant premise captivates your thoughts, the storyline thins a bit and ends in a bizzare way. Maybe it is the book’s fault.

Christopher Plummer and Stellan Skarsgard come up with awesome performances as usual and show us why they are called legends.

I got a bit perplexed when I saw the timeline in my media player but then I was in for what was overall a very good cinema. Watch it and enjoy the suspense drama unfold.

Rating: 3/5

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo: Over stretched suspense

Review: Nanban (2012)



Playing with the plot of an original movie while attempting a remake often goes wrong. Shankar plays safe by making a scene-to-scene remake of perhaps one of the best movies of Bollywood last year - '3 Idiots'. He brings you Nanban, a feel good entertainer sure to bring smiles and adoration for the work of the cast and crew.


Grandeur - is one word to describe Shankar in what ever he does. Be it marketing his movie or creating a hype, making a name for himself or making the movie itself speak for itself - Shankar has the word 'legend' written all over him.


After you come out of the movie, if you are still wondering what is 'different' when compared to 3 Idiots, you haven't watched the movie properly. Doing all justice in terms of story screenplay to its original is Nanban and one cannot debate on this because when a remake is announced, it is going to be the same wine put in a bottle of the director's choice. Shankar has tweaked it so well that you don't need anything more to please you and you are satisfied with the output even if you know what is going to happen in the next scene.


Harris Jayaraj - the man known for looping his own tunes in many different ways in different songs comes up with a few catchy tunes and gosh, his background score in the movie was top class. I was surprised and asked my friend next to me - "Harris Jayaraj is the music director right?". Perhaps, the presence of Resul Pookutty in the sound department was an amazing thing to do because the most of the most intricate sounds in the environment can be heard. I watched the movie at Urvashi Cinemas, Bangalore which features the world's best sound system (Meyer Sound EXP) and screens Digital 4K Cinema and I was taken in for a cracker. Really enjoyed the movie watching experience.


Manoj Paramahamsa's camera captures the nature and the scene so well that you feel the third dimension without it actually being there.When the lead cast travels to Dhanushkodi to find Panchavan Parivendan (Vijay's character), you get awed by the visuals. He's captured India so well that you don't believe your own eyes.


The picturisation of the songs in the movie was a class apart. It was one area where 'Nanban' outshines the original. The songs have Shankar's mastercraft trademark stamped all over it. Except for the song 'Irukaana Illayaana..' which was totally out of place and unnecessary, other songs were a treat to watch. What was more unnecessary was bringing Farah Khan to choreograph that song. It had 'Shiela ki Jawaani''s drum ringing all the while. 


The one negative that I didn't like in the movie was the fact every character in the movie (tried) imitated their counterparts from 3 Idiots. It was apt for the story in some places but most of the time it shuns your mood. Right from Vijay to Sathyaraj, everyone's dialogue delivery and body movements were similar to their characters from the original. That was one thing that could have changed. When remaking a movie, a director should also give thought to the fact that people who watched the original are also going to watch the remake and this is one area where going wrong would spoil the show.
Another mistake I found apart from seeing the camera and the whiteboard through the lead actor's sunglasses' reflection in songs (which has been present in Shankar films ever since Sivaji) was that Pari's (Vijay) name is spelled 'Panchavan Parivendhan' in the hostel allocation list and 'Panchavan Parivendan' in the result list. Possibly a slight error for a newbie but not for an established director.
Otherwise, the movie carried its own slight flaws just like 3 Idiots where Silencer's position in the frame changes when he challenges the lead trio on September 5 on the real date and his position is totally different in the first scene when he narrates the flashback. The intensity of the dialogue delivery also differ.


Vijay has donned a role which he has never done before and even if he tries to imitate Aamir Khan in places, he shows the world that he is a professional actor who doesn't need commercial cinema to live a life. He is an epitome of the subtlest of the subtle acting brilliance. Maybe it is the Shankar effect, but whatever be it, it answers his critics and shows his credibility. If you had doubts whether he would do justice to Rancho, he does and does it in his own style.


Sathyaraj comes up with a spectacular performance in his own style. Ileana is a booty sorry beauty to watch but again a mood spoiler when she starts talking in tamil (except for when she gets drunk and becomes a Muniyamma). Jeeva and Srikanth fit their roles well and so does the supporting cast. The presence of Sherwanis in a Tamil wedding is explained and so is every minute detail.

If you have watched 3 Idiots, watch Nanban for the subtle and amusing changes and enjoy and if you haven't, Don't ever miss Nanban.

To sum it all, A brilliant mix of colours supported with stunning background score makes 'Nanban' worth the money you spend on getting the ticket stub and not only are you assured for a jolly ride you are in for a visually powered comedy and emotional drama as well. Three cheers to 'Nanban' Team.




Rating: 3.5/5


Nanban - Aaaaaaal is well!

Review: Sherlock Holmes - A Game of Shadows

The 'funny' and 'witty' Sherlock Holmes is back in by far the most entertaining screen adaptation of the cult classic. With 'zip-zap-zoom' director Guy Ritchie, you are assured every penny worth of the ticket stub.

Just walk into a screening of 'Sherlock Holmes - A Game of Shadows' and sit patiently as the director and the actors take you through at a slow and steady pace to what is called 'Sheer intelligence'.

There is drama, there is action and then you have Robert Downey Jr for the rest of it.

My friend living in Bombay called me up at 12 in the night to tell me - 'Varun, whatever happens; Do not miss this movie!'. And I went with great expectations only to be satiated by this masterpiece. I wouldn't want another sequel to this but this installment of Sherlock Holmes is far better than its prequel.

You see the mark of Guy Ritchie stamped in every frame of the movie.

Sherlock Holmes and his 'sidekick' Dr.Watson take on their arch-nemesis Dr.Stephen Moriarti in this game of shadows and why is it called a game of shadows... Well it is not so easy to answer.

Hans Zimmer has always been a talented composer and his tunes add the spices to this well baked masterpiece.

Watch it on screen to enjoy the intellectual brilliance in acting, movie-making and cinematography because this movie is not to be missed..


Rating: 3.5/5

Sherlock Holmes: Hats Off