Movie Reviews - my favorites

Maanjhi, the Mountain Man

“Shandaar, Zabardast, Zindabad”, this dialogue from the movie is ideal to describe the movie in three words. More than anything, this movie revolves around a soul touching love story of Dashrath and Faguniya. Shahjahan got Tajmahal built in memory of Mumtaz while Dasrath Manjhi built a passage all by himself through a rocky mountain for his wife with help of just a chisel and hammer.

Cutting through a mountain with a hammer and a chisel is like flawless catching of raindrops in one hand. A native of Gelhaur village near Gaya in Bihar, Dashrath Manjhi manages this almost impractical task against all odds, proving the age old adage “where there is a will, there is way”.

It takes nerve to make a biopic of a not so famous person who broke through the rocky mountain in around 22 years. The story is inspired by his life and how he went through all the odds to break through the mountain a small road that would reduce the distance to the nearest village from 26km to 2km. Because he couldn’t save his wife from dying for which he blamed the mountain and he promised to his dying wife that, he will break through a road in between that mountain.

Bihar in 60’s was mostly dominated by caste system and the lowest of lower class was Musahar in caste pyramid. They were being humiliated and disgraced for petty reasons.Horseshoes were nailed to their soles if they dare to rise above their station and try to wear even shoes. Women were carried off and raped as per the whims of the upper caste. No laws or rights ever existed for those people.

The soul touching chemistry between Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Radhika Apte, the transformation from loyal husband to obsessed old man and the well-executed climax scene stole the thunder.

In this transfixing plot, there are numerous situations that make you sit tight and take notice at the way the plot is moving. In the end, it isn’t half as amazing as Dashrath Manjhi was in actuality.

Maanjhi – the mountain man is worth watching thanks to the astounding performances by Nawazuddin Siddiqui, marvellous direction and astounding background score.

Oh Teri

Two jokers can't replace veterans like Ravi Vaswani and Naseeruddin Shah. Putting Salman's name in a movie, doesn't make it a masterpiece. Remaking a classic like Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron to a C-grade movie like O-Teri doesn't guarantee you a hit.

When you are remaking a cult classic like Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron, you must keep in mind who all you are remaking. The movie that made Aziz Mirza a household name can not make Atul Agnihotri one, if he doesn't stick to the basics of film making.

Honestly, O Teri is a complete disaster and a simply O Teri for cinegoers who went to see it. Nothing in the movie is worth watching and it s a complete time waste.

Iqbal

The best thing that has happened to India in September 2005 is Iqbal. Iqbal treads with an altogether touching story of a passionate boy whose one and only aim in life is to become a cricketer and has his place in team India. The film has been in news since the time Subash Ghai announced to produce it. But no one ever imagined the movie to be so brilliant.

Nagesh Kukunoor though has done a couple of films in the past, was more a one film wonder with his only successful film till date in Hyderabad blues. He has taken the smartest decision by taking Shreyas Talpade a rank newcomer in the lead role.

The story line was so good, the script was so powerful, it forced Subhash Ghai launch a new Production Company Mukta Searchlight Films that focuses on movies directed by small time but good directors. Iqbal is about ambition, aspiration and achievements of a young guy.

You have to admire the film whole-heartedly. The movie is a genuine hit. So what if it can't make money in the box-office. But what I feel is that the movie should be given a chance. Because the movie is much better than Lagaan in most of the aspects. It is worth every money spent on it. This movie has establishes one fact, a talented film-maker does not need a fat budget to impress his audience. A talented film-maker does not need big stars to make his film a hit.

Iqbal is about a village boy whose only ambition in life is to become a cricketer. His religion is cricket. He eats, drinks, sleeps cricket. His physical disability and lack of resources do not stop him from dreaming the same. His mother & sister always support him in all his fight. But his father is strictly against it. He believes the game is a total waste of time as cricket is full of betting. He finds a man who can help him out, Mohit a one time cricketer who became caught in the politics of the game & now a village drunkard. Mohit initially refuses to coach him as he believes the present day politics will not allow Iqbal to be a part of team India. But seeing his passion for the game he relents. What follows next is a shattering journey of bravery, pride & achievement, as both of them move towards a dream chase.

Iqbal worked because it has got something that any brilliant film demands - a great script, great performances by all actors, superb picturisation, nice production values.

Nagesh Kukunoor has come a long way after Huderabad Blues. Iqbal has arrived very quietly with a very powerful patron Subhash Ghai backing it. It has been publicized well. Not very big premiers, big previews. But still it was an effort justified.

This film has got only faith to its credit. No box office stars, no great music, no item numbers, no remixes, no scandals or controversies. For once, there has been no hypes associated with this film.

This movie is a lesson for all those in movie business, that you don't require obscene budgets, nor huge star casts to get noticed. Look at what big budget movies recently. A lot of movies were publicized with great fan fare. But what happened to them?

Today's audience is no fool. They have refused to be taken for granted anymore. What they want is their money's worth. To hell with all else. A good story, nicely told.

A story that touched your heart and possibly inspires you to progress in your life. A story like Iqbal's. Some may wonder how Kukunoor has taken a physically challenged boy who wants to play for Indian Cricket Team & succeeds in that. But so realistic is the performance of the lead stars, and so narrative & moving is the story line that it really doesn't matter that you will forget all else. All you will remember after coming out of the hall is the fight of Iqbal to get a place in Team India. That is the magic of this movie.

I believe team India should also wake up seeing this movie. This movie shows the dedication a boy has put up just to play for the team. The kind of dedication our present day cricketers have lost in recent times. Politics in choosing good players is there and is going to remain. Why else good cricketers still not getting chance to play whereas players with horrible forms keeps on getting chances again & again & again.

The movie has been a houseful in all big cities in the first week. But the coming days will prove the fate of this brilliant movie. Cheers for Subhash Ghai & Kukunoor. We need peoples like them. Because we need to believe in reality. This movie is more powerful than any movie that has been released in recent times.

3 Idiots

For the first time, a movie has changed the definition of a English word. Idiot doesn't mean offending any more to peoples. The movie is about doing what your heart asks you to do, not what you are supposed to do specially when it comes to your career. After Munnabhai series, the combination of Rajkumar Hirani and Vidhu Vinod Chopra gives another magic in this movie which has broken all records.

Aamir, Sharman Joshi and Madhavan has come up once again after Rang De Basanti and this time even better. Omi the débutante NRI has done wonderful justice to his character specially with his funny accent and the speech he has made in the college.

Aamir

Aamir is the harrowing story of a NRI doctor Aamir; who returns to India for better. He was happy, smiling to meet up with his family after years. Little did he expect the kind of ordeal he was going to face on landing in Mumbai.

After landing in Airport, while he was trying to take a taxi, two motor cycle borne youth threw a cell phone to him. From there starts the game of Muslim fundamentalists to use him as a media to plant bombs in a bus which they want to blow off. What happens ultimately is not what the extremist thought off. Aamir blows himself up rather than the bus. The extremists could not convince him that he is a Muslim and he should fight for the rights of Muslim. Rather his take was if you want to grow, work hard not get jealous of others who grow.

The movie marks the debut of actor Rajeev Khandelwal, with no heroines, songs in the movie and directed by Rajkumar Gupta, the movie is a masterpiece. A movie which is very different from the movies being made today and stands out.

Aashayein

Aashayein is a story of hope. A story of hope fuulfilled by Nagesh Kukunoor. The main character of the movie are John, Anaitha and Sonal. John a compulsive gambler is the boyfriend of Sonal. By a sudden twist of events he wins a jackpot worth 3 million rupees and decides to have a blast. Suddenly he realizes that he isn't going to live long and has only a few days to live. Till this part the movie is very traditional and several other makers have tried movie on similar theme.

He doesn't want to die specially when he sees the face of his girlfriend. So he runs away from his home and goes to a place in remote location in Pondichery where people go to spend the last part of their lives. The hospital has got people from several parts of lives all of whom have got one thing in common, everybody knows they would die one day and don't hesitate to discuss infront of each other. Girish Karnad a retired banker, Farida Jalal a high class prostitute, Govinda the gift of god, Anaitha a 17 year old arrogant but lively cancer patient all are a part of this hospital. They laugh, they party, they enjoy life like any other normal humans.

John decides to fulfil all inmates last wish and asks each of them to give in writing their last wish. One by one, all their last wish is fulfilled only except Padma who wishes to be made love by John.

John in a heart touching performance will touch stratight your soul. His sincere acting will never make you believe that he is acting. A must watch movie for all those peoples who wants to watch a good movie.

Alag

As the name suggests this is a different kind of movie. This movie is in a different league than all others. Perhaps that was the reason why the movie was a flop too. Interestingly whenever there is a movie that is different, it has failed to capture audiences.

The protagonist in the movie is also different. He is different from the rest of the world. He is different from normal human beings.

I had tried to watch the movie three times but every time I managed to watch only a part of the movie. Finally, it was only last night I saw the movie in some cable channel in Patna. A lot of scenes in the movie fascinated me.

Tejas is born to a family whose parents died suddenly. He has been rescued by the Police & been handed over to a Doctor(Jayant Kripalani). He is very sensitive to light. Slowly Tejas proves that he has got a very powerful brain and can do wonders with that. He cures the doctor's wife (Beena) from Coma. The doctor becomes fond of him but then a lot of other Doctors become curious to know the power behind what he does. They want to make him a part of their experiment. When this is refused by the Doctor (Jayant Kripalani), he is kidnapped by Dr. Dyer the Scientist. Dr. Dyer wants to manipulate his mind to his own advantage. Tejas frees himself & use his powers to kill Dr. Dyer.

A Walk in the Clouds

A Walk in the clouds is based on a Italian story. This is about two strangers who are drawn towards each other despite the problems that came their way. Paul Shutton (KEanu Reaves) returns home from war only to find his wife Betty (Debra) totally indifferent towards him. Upon her insistence he leaves the town to sell chocolates and make fortune out of it. On the way, he met Victoria (Aitana Sanchez) who is returning back to her family.

They become friends and Victoria tells him that she is pregnant from a man and hence scared to face her family as they are very conservative. Seeing her plight, Paul decides to enter her house as her husband and desert her the next morning that will spare her from a unmarried mother status and the wrath of her family. He enters their house and become the favorite of her grandpa though her father disliked him. When he tries to leave next morning, her grandpa asks him to wait till wine harvest. During this stay both became close to each other and understood their passion for each other.

The cinematography is the real hero of the movie. Each landscape has been picturized with a painter's view in mind. Musics are too nice so as the flow of the story.

A Wednesday

Story of a Common Man, this should the tag line of the movie.

As said, this is the story of the common man's worries. The worry he has that whether he can return home safely.

A man calls up the Mumbai police and tells them that he has planted 5 different bombs in different parts of the city and wants four terrorists in return. Initially Police Commissioner (Anupam Kher) thinks it to be a crank call but upon finding a bomb in one of the police station, he started taking the call seriously. He gets the best people on the job to locate the person. He even hires a young hacker to trap the calls and locate the person.

Finally when he fails from all angles, he tries to get the four militants released and send them to the location the man asked to send them. But expect the unexpected here. Three of the four militants were killed there as the fourth one was kept hostage by one of the police (Jimmy Shergil) to extract the bombs planted.

Then the plot revealed. The man (Common Man) called up the police to say that he is a common man and wanted to take the law to his own hands since the judiciary was doing little to punish the terrorists.

No side stories, no songs, no dance sequences, no heroines (only woman is Deepal Shaw, playing a TV Journo). Naseeruddin Shah is the person to watch for in the movie when in the climax he is showing is angst towards the system. He is incredible when he tells the story of situation of the common man.

A Wednesday is his one of the top five works till date. Anupam Kher as the Police Commissioner is outstanding. Jimmy Shergil and Aamir Bashir are great. Deepal Shaw is OK as a TV Journo. Gaurav Kapur as a movie hero is funny. Neeraj Pandey has not cared to go beyond and experimenting a new kind of movie.

Banaras

Jalwa, Chaalbaaz were two of my favorite movies from Punkaj Parashar. Though he has directed a few more films after that but these two movies from him were memorable ones. Most of his movies are different from each other in term of story, presentation, idea. This time he has attempted another different story about spirituality with love story. That's why the name of the movie is BANARAS - A Mystic Love Story. This is a movie that is well narrated and made from heart. But then the movie didn't cater to the masses as it was a film which won't be liked by all types of audiences.

If you want to enjoy this movie truly, then you need to watch this movie with a open mind and concentration. It's not like those regular movies with some stupid songs, comic scenes. This is a movie that is based on caste system that is still prevalent in most parts of our country. The movie conveys a very simple message. "Don't look out for answers for life's unsolved mysteries.

Try to find the answers within you." This is a movie for those kind of audiences who like to watch meaningful movies.

Swtembari (Urmila) the daughter of a rich Brahmin parents Raj Babbar and Dimple Kapadia studies at a local university in Banaras. Sohan (Ashmit Patel) is a low caste mystic teaches music at the same university. When the two fall in love, Banaras was in fire. Initially Sweta's parents disapprove of the match but then the truth of Sohan forces them to approve. On the day of the marriage Sohan is found murdered. Shwetambari visibly shaken decides to leave the city and decides to find out the answers as to why he was murdered. Seventeen years later she is back to the city as a world teacher in religion and philosophy. She has a choice to make - To meet her dying father or continue denying all worldly attachments.

Black

This is a movie which you can not categorize anywhere. It has a place of its own, which can tentatively be called Pain-Sublime. Rays of light pierce the black darkness of the protagonist's life and permeate into our lives to bathe us in a feeling of rapturous contentment rarely experienced in cinema before.

Black has created a new definition for Hindi Cinema. This movie proved once and for all that to make a nice movie you don't really need sex, comedy, & formulas. There is only one formula for a nice movie. A nice script, a passionate director, and some nice work from background team. This piece of art by Bhanshali is going to remain as one masterpiece for all times to come. This story is inspired from the life of Hellen Keller.

Black unfolds emotions that has never been felt in Hindi Cinema before. This movie takes out the pain that has never been experienced by anyone before too.

Debraj Sahay (Amitabh Bachchan) is the guide to Michelle McNally (Ayesha Kapoor) a deaf and blind child by birth. She doesn't understand anything. So Debraj has to start her life from scratch. Slowly Debraj guides her from black to a colorful world through his eyes. She discovers her identity. She starts feeling emotions. She is no more suffering from inferiority complex.

The movie starts to show the black & dark world of Michelle with Debraj. Then Debraj tries to strike a cord with Michelle. But it is not easy. Michelle is a difficult child who wouldn't listen to anything or anybody. But then difficult and possible are two different words. Debraj makes Michelle sees the light inside the darkness and in the process he goes blind. Now it is Michelle's turn to make him see the light. Those few moments in the movie are very heart touching.

Bela Sehgal as the editor has done an incredible job. Hats off to Bhanshali to gives life to his vision. Also a hearty congrats to all those technicians who have contributed to the movie in some way or other. The movie belongs to only two persons Amitabh and Rani. I believe this is Amitabh's best movie till date. No one else will be able to match his caliber in the recent times to come. Rani acts and looks as if she is born that way. Bhanshali has been known to create magic in his movies and he has proved that in Black.

There is a scene where Michelle asks Devraj to kiss her as she wants to fulfill her sexual yearning. There are numerous scenes which are simply unforgettable.