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Yuvraaj - (Drama): **
Chintakayala Ravi - (Drama): **
Drona - (Action): * 1/2
Kidnap - (Thriller): * 1/2
READY (Comedy): Telugu Movie ***
Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi : An Aditya Chopra Film
The film is a very earthy romantic film about Shah Rukh Khan who is married to Anushka Sharma and there is a huge age difference between them and they are not what one would call a perfect couple. They are merely stretching their marriage with no real romance in between them. They are two very different people. There's reality dance show called Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi - which is the main backdrop of the movie. The show is on the lines of popular television show, Nach Baliye.
In the words of SRK this is a movie that will make you think that its important to judge a person on the basis of Simplicity and qualities rather than looks.
He says that till now Girls used to dream about Raj from DDLJ, but this soft Romantic flick will make them think differently. Its all about loving a person for qualities and virtues rather than trying to find some superstar in him.
The music of the film composed by Salim-Sulaiman is already gaining Popularity and reminds you of the melodies associated with Yash Raj Movies.
With Aditya Chopra making his comeback after Mohabbatein the Expectations are huge and Industry and Box Office are expecting this one to repeat DDLJ s Legacy.
Leading lady Anushka Sharma is a well known model and is making her debut opposite SRK. Rumours are that Deepika and few others may be seen in the movie.
The first promo of the Movie will be released with Dostana on 14th November.
Looks like YRF has all the ingredients of a successful movie.
Bollywood is certainly gearing up for a line of BIG Releases this Festive Season. With some of the most awaited Releases in the Pipeline, this Diwali, Box Office and Industry are expecting huge Profits. Stars like Shah Rukh Khan and Amir Khan are all ready to set screen on Fire again. Amirs 45-crore film Gazini and Karan Johars Dostana are slated for Release during this time. And close on the heels is Yash Chopras Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi with which Aditya Chopra makes a comeback after Mohabbatein.
With all this huge moolah surrounding big releases and huge amount of money at stake the Audience is certain to benefit.
2 Oct 08 (Released): Drona, Kidnap
24 Oct 08 : Golmaal Returns,Roadside Romeo,Fashion
29 Oct 08 : Chandni Chowk to China
14 Nov 08 : Dostana
21 Nov 08 : Paathshala
12 Dec 08 : Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, Yuvraj
Yuvraaj - (Drama): **
Director : Subhash Ghai
Music : AR Rahman
Cast : Salmaan Khan, Anil Kapooor, Katrina Kaif,Boman Irani
Yuvaraaj is an attempt by the Showman Subhash Ghai to reinforce the Family Values which have somehow got lost in todays world. Its an attempt to bring back the Cultural Values which is quite rare to see today.
Well the film could have been better if more stress would have been given to the Story and Screenplay.
The movie fails to impress in the initial stages when you feel there is nothing more than Katrina Kaif to watch out for. She looks stunning and again proves that she holds more promise as an actress than many of the current actors.
The movie gains momentum once Anil Kapoor pitches in. The family values strike chord with the audience but the thing is Audience is expecting something different. With films like Hum Saath Saath Hain and Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham which have already explored the age old family values this one fails to impress.
Salmaan is good in Emotional Scenes but he agin fails to deliver the kind of performance one expects in the character he plays.
Its quite difficuilt to understand why Subhash Ghai targets the NRI Audience when the fact is they are also looking for some gripping storyline and solid direction.
The movie is good in parts but those are real few.
Movie Soryline:
Deven Yuvvraaj (Salman Khan, sleepwalking) is a chorus singer with the Prague Orchestra, where Anushka (Katrina Kaif) is the star Cellist. They are in love, but her father Dr Banton (Boman Irani in Groucho Marx get-up), a doctor who lives in a house that looks like a museum, won't hear of them getting married. Instead, he wants his daughter to marry the evilly-grinning son of a pair of stupefied looking "millionaires from South Africa."
Then Deven's billionaire father dies, and he hopes his share of the fortune will change Banton's mind, but the lawyer (Mithun Chakraborty) reveals that neither Deven nor his playboy-gambler brother Danny (Zayed Khan) have got anything, the billions have gone to their autistic half brother Gyanesh (Anil Kapoor). There is a regular menagerie of uncles, aunts, cousins, servants, children, (a particularly eerie bald kid) and a slinky noodle-strapped vamp, all supposedly in London, but in a haveli, all living off the Yuvvraaj fortunes, when nobody seems to be actually working to earn it.
Deven and Danny gang up to entice Gyanesh and get their hands on some of the money – "just my share" as Deven keeps whining—but Anushka discovers his autism and his musical "genius" – the billionaire father never even took him to a doctor?
In the end, they understand the value of family bonding and, well, that's it. For this, one has to suffer almost three hours of unintended comedy and the sun coming out of the clouds only when the beauteous Katrina is on screen.
Performances :
Anil Kapoor gives a good performance and plays his character quite honestly. Even he cant manage to Pull a movie like this.
Audience is forced to think that why the only "Actor" in the film is given this character.
Salmaan Khan it seems was asked to give up his accent and play a character somewhat like hil older versions of family dramas.
He is good in parts but again fails to leave his charm.
Katrina is someone to look out for. Her innocence and charm instantly appeal to you and you expect more of her.
Rest of the starcast including Zayed Khan fail to impress.
In the end Yuvraaj turns out to be another debacle from the Showman. With movies like Dostana and Fashion already doing good business this will find it difficuilt to even run for a week.
All the actors act like they were in a different film—from old Madras melodrama (Anil Kapoor) to Parsi theatre farce (Boman Irani), and there was no directorial control. The lyrics (Gulzar) are bizarre and the music… well not Rahman's 'Taal' quality.
Chintakayala Ravi - (Drama): **
Cast: Venkatesh, Anushka, Mamta Mohandas, Venu, Lakshmi, Chandramohan, Nikita, Ali, Brahmanandam, Sunil, Venumadhav
Music: Vishal - Sekhar
Banner: Lakshmi Narasinha Productions
Produced by: Nallamalupu Srinivas (Bujji)
This one looks like a Mixture of various Hindi Flicks. Chintakayala Ravi is a Light movie with an attempt to Entertain the audience. But this one again lacks in Content. Some good performances and comic scenes do make the movie watchable.
Seshamamba (Lakshmi) is in belief that his son Chintakayala Ravi (Venkatesh) is working as software engineer in USA and she boasts it in her village but actually Ravi is works in a local bar there. His mother arranges a match for him with a rich village belle Lavanya (Mamata Mohandas) who okays the alliance as Ravi is software engineer. Meanwhile, Lavanya asks her New York buddy Sunita (Anushka) to find out the conduct of Chintakayala Ravi. Sunita and Ravi accidentally meet once and she gets bad impression on him for his mischievous acts. She also finds that he is actually bartender and informs her friend that causes rift between Ravi and Lavanya’s families. The rest of the movie is triangle drama between Ravi, Lavanya and Sunita.
Venkatesh’s performance, and comedy makes the film watchable. Adding mother sentiment to the predictable storyline made the movie more interesting, otherwise, it could have been very dull. Kona Venkat’s dialogues also are major asset.
Sunil is wasted. Shayaji Shinde does not even know what his character is. Chandramohan has no clue what he is doing in the movie. Venkatesh gives good performance and shows his panache in comedy and sentiment scenes. After Venky, it is senior actress Lakshmi whose work is better. Anushka has a better role this time compared to her earlier vamp roles. She disappoints in a role that asks her to perform a little. Regarding Mamata Mohandoss - the less said the better. NTR's guest appearance is falls completely flat - with him being reduced to almost an extra in the song. Venu has exactly two lines to speak in this movie and a two second rest on a hospital bed. He excels in that role!
The Movie does not have anything new to offer. Maybe the Venkatesh factor might just help the movie sail through.
Go with less Expectation and you might just end up with a good experience.
READY (Comedy): Telugu Movie ***
Cast: Ram, Genelia, Brahmanandam, Sunil, Jayaprakash Reddy, Supreet, Shafi, Bharat, Kota, Nassar, Chandra Mohan, Tanikella Bharani, Srinivasa Reddy, Ravi Varma, Sudha, Vidya, Surekha, Apoorva, Tamanna (SA) & Navadeep (SA)
Banner: Sri Sravanthi Movies
Music: Devi Sri Prasad
Ready is a movie about a Student who falls in love with an NRI girl who comes to visit her uncles in Rayalseema.
So you must be thinking whats new in this one. Since such stories have been a part of few Romantic Movies from past.
Well its the Perfomances and the Screenplay that keeps you hooked to this drama. The treatment is fresh and the Story is well Directed.
First half of the film is mediocre. The second half is good with hilarious comedy by Brahmanandam.
On the flipside, a better editing of first half and some of the fights would do something good to the film. This film is stuffed with ample commercial elements,
mainly the vibrant comedy.
Songs and background score by Devi Sri Prasad is good. The bonhomie song towards climax is a good on the screen.
The money spent on the film could not reflect on its visuals, showing mediocre output in patches in certain scenes. Fights by Peter Hynes are well choreographed, but the script of the film does not really demand such buildup.
Editing of the film is passable and the first half needs some trimming. Production values by Sravanthi banner are very good.
On the Performance side Brahmanandam as McDowell Murthy steals the show yet again with his hilarious comedy in the second half. Ram looks fine in his Role.
Sunil did the role of a 'theda candidate'. His bharatanatyam (spoof of Sagara Sangamam) and the way he slaps himself is good (typical Seenu Vytla brand). The third impressive characterization comes from the kid who acts as JP's grandson. Jayaprakash Reddy and Kota are good. Nassar and Sudha in parental roles are adequate. The way Surekha scolding her son to vent frustration on JP is humorous. Tamanna and Navadeep did guest appearances.
Genelia is an asset to the film and the dubbing of Savita Reddy goes well with her.
Ready has potential chances to bring a hat-trick for Seenu Vytla after Dhee and Dubai Seenu. On a whole its a light hearted movie with a fresh treatment and some moments to cheer. This film is worth a watch for the comedy.
Drona * 1/2
Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Priyanka Chopra, Kay Kay Menon, Jaya Bachchan
Direction: Goldie Behl
To be able to enjoy a film like Drona you have to be willing to suspend disbelief and your common sense too. If you succeed in doing that, you might agree it's a sincere attempt to translate onto Indian screens a kind of modern mythology.
Director Goldie Behl doesn't look too far for inspiration – Drona borrows its basic plot structure from the Harry Potter story, and then proceeds to generously steal scenes from The Lord of the Rings, Indiana Jones and even the Star Wars movies.
Tormented all through his childhood by his foster family, Adi (that's Abhishek Bachchan) grows up to be a glum young man who seldom smiles. When an evil 'asura' in the guise of mad magician Riz Raizada (played by a way over-the-top Kay Kay Menon) goes mental on him for no apparent reason, an agile young woman in strange headgear (played earnestly by Priyanka Chopra) shows up out of nowhere to protect Adi by performing some really cool chop-socky on his attackers.
She reveals to him that he's actually a 'drona' – a member of a long dynasty of men entrusted the responsibility of safe-guarding a coveted mythological secret – the elixir of life, which Riz Raizada wants to get a hold of so he can take over the world.
Adi travels across to his real home – a palace in the middle of an unnamed desert town – to be united with his birth mother (played by Jaya Bachchan) who immediately breaks into the lullabies she's been rehearsing all these years. When Riz follows him there and puts a spell on his mummy, Adi decides to accept the role he was destined to play.
I have a few complaints against the film, and main among them is the fact that our protagonist isn't a particularly likeable character. To root for the hero you have to be fond of him, you have to want him to succeed. But it's difficult to feel affection or pity for Adi because Abhishek Bachchan plays him as a grump who's always grimacing.
You'd expect to see some emotion from him when he discovers his real identity; you'd think he'd be excited when he learns he has these hidden powers; surely he'd feel cheerful at overcoming his lifelong fears – well no, what you still get is the scowl. Abhishek Bachchan delivers a one-note performance; rarely letting go of his pained expression, almost as if he was worried he'd slip out of character if he showed us a warmer side.
The film's other big weakness, in my opinion, is that the script's real backbone – the mythological relevance and back-story – is conveyed in such a boring, affected manner that it simply comes off sounding like mumbo-jumbo.
Take scenes likes the ones in which Priyanka Chopra's character and her cronies reveal to Adi who they really are and why they've suddenly turned up; or the ridiculous scene in which Riz Raizada creates his own clone and then destroys it just as easily but not before rattling off a long speech which makes no sense whatsoever; or even those scenes in which Adi's birth mother explains to him his role as a 'drona' and how he must protect the secret – these scenes could have been written more interestingly instead of being filmed as labored monologues by the actors.
Then there's the romantic track between Abhishek and Priyanka's characters which is so forced, it practically jumps at you out of nowhere.
On the upside, there's a spectacular action scene involving the rescue of a horse from a train carriage. Everything from the cable-aided stunts performed by Abhishek and Priyanka, to the special-effects-generated horse-leaps to and from the top of the train carriage is stunning.
An underwater sequence involving Abhishek Bachchan is dramatically filmed, and it's in scenes like this – where the effects blend in seamlessly without drawing any special attention – that the CGI really works.
Kidnap * 1/2
Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Imran Khan, Minisha Lamba
Direction: Sanjay Gandhvi
If not for Minissha Lamba's ample bosom, there'd really be nothing worth watching in director Sanjay Gadhvi's Kidnap, a tired ole' thriller about bad boy Imran Khan who kidnaps Minissha, and puts her richie-rich dad Sanjay Dutt through a series of twisted challenges as revenge for an old grouse.
As far as thrillers go, Kidnap is a pretty lame one, considering not once during the film's two-hours-plus running time do you feel your pulse racing. The challenges Imran puts Sanjay Dutt through are silly and juvenile, and they lack that edge-of-the-seat tension that is so essential in a film like this to keep the pace brisk. Ashamed as I am to admit it, here's one time I wished they had whacked a few good ideas from a smart Hollywood film. Instead, Gadhvi and his writer seem to have chosen to whack the plot of an obscure Pierce Brosnan-starrer "Shattered" from which they've derived the premise of Kidnap.
The least you expect from a thriller are a few fantastic sequences that will make your jaw drop for their sheer inventiveness. In Kidnap, there's precisely one good scene -- it's that breathless chase sequence between Imran and Sanjay which is the film's finest stroke.
Much of the film's problem lies in its sloppy narrative which is repeatedly punctured by unnecessary songs and unintentionally hilarious dialogue that digresses from the film's thriller theme. Too much time is spent establishing and then repairing Sanjay Dutt's estranged relationship with his ex-wife, played by Vidya Malavade. Vidya's character, in fact, is the weakest link in Kidnap, serving no real purpose in the plot, instead slowing down the narrative every time she shows up on screen. It doesn't help that the poor lady can't act to save her life, she can't even deliver a simple line of dialogue comfortably.
The worst disease a thriller can suffer from is predictability, and Kidnap falls bang into that trap. You know exactly what's going to happen when Imran takes Minissha out to the beach when she begs to be allowed to bathe -- although you probably can't predict the erotic dance she breaks into once there. You know exactly what's going to happen when Minissha has an opportunity to escape when Imran's injured himself. And you know exactly how the climatic challenge Imran puts Sanjay up to will turn out.
You see what I mean, there's virtually nothing good about this film. Which brings me back to Minissha's cleavage. If clothes were invented to cover one's body then Minissha's costumes in Kidnap reveal more than they hide. Her entire wardrobe in this film looks like it was stitched out of the bits and pieces of cloth you find lying around in a tailor's room, the bits that didn't get used when he was stitching a real dress. Not that there's anything wrong in showing a little skin, but the problem here is that you're convinced Gadhvi went the whole hog because he knew the film had nothing but Minissha's curves to keep the audience glued to their seats.
Of the two male protagonists, Sanjay Dutt looks completely disinterested in what he's doing; and Imran Khan appears earnest acting out his scenes but seems to be taking his character and the film a little too seriously. The final, most deadly flaw in Kidnap is the bizarre back-story about why Imran wants revenge from Sanjay. It's not only an unconvincing motivation but it's also a fundamentally wrong plot point especially when you consider Sanjay's 'crime' against Imran seems perfectly justified given the circumstances.