Don 2 Movie Preview

Excel Entertainment and Reliance Entertainment jointly present DON 2, sequel to DON - THE CHASE BEGINS, an upcoming action thriller which is all set to release on 23rd December 2011.

Produced by Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar and Shahrukh Khan and directed by Farhan Akhtar, the film stars Shahrukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra in the lead roles and Boman Irani, Om Puri, Lara Dutta and Kunal Kapoor in supporting roles. The film will be releasing in 2D and 3D formats and will also be available in Tamil and Telugu languages.

The music of the film is composed by the trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.

Synopsis: 

In 2006 with the ever looming dangers of the underworld in Malaysia, Don broke the morale of his associates by infiltrating the gang with an alias and taking advantage of the enmity of Singhania & Vardhaan. He rose to become the undisputed King of the underworld with his shrewd mind and merciless tactics.

The police in their pursuit of Don unknowingly hired the very man they were trying to hunt. Don used this to his advantage and let the police and his former associates battle each other while he escaped much to the bewilderment of everyone leaving no traces of evidence of his whereabouts.

Having conquered the Asian underworld, Don (Khan) now has his sights set on European domination. In his way are the bosses of the existing European underworld and all law enforcement agencies.

The action shifts from Kuala Lumpur to Berlin as Don must avoid assassination or arrest, whichever comes first, in order for his plan to succeed.

Movie review of Miley Naa Miley Hum

Any other more deserving struggler in his place might have been given a boot strong enough to leave a longlasting mark on the bum, butChirag Paswan, the son of an influential politician, gets his first Bollywood launchpad served on a silver salver. And one would have no qualms in accepting him as a possible actor, let alone a star, had the lad even thimbleful of talent, a fluky moment of charisma, or a frame-worth of screen presence. But no! Chirag is more wooden than a plank, more uptight than a mannequin and has no ladykiller looks either. So watching this newbie sleepwalk through two-plus long hours of this regressive cinema called Miley Naa Miley Hum is like a slumberous loll on a sleepy afternoon. 

The story seems to have been filched straight from the dusty archives of the cinema of the ’80s. Chirag (see! the script’s literally written for him) is torn between his separated parents, played by Kabir Bedi and Poonam Dhillon. Both love him but want him to marry the girl of their choice. So while Papa settles for a Punjabi friend’s daughter (Neeru Bajwa), Mom dear zeroes down on an NRI (Sagarika Ghatge). A few unguarded moments and a song each with the two girls has Chirag running for cover. To ward off the pressure from his overbearing parents, he lies to them that he has a girlfriend, and she is none other than a model named Anishka. Enter Kangana Ranaut. 

To turn his lie to truth, Chirag makes a luring offer to a snooty Anishka to pretend as his girlfriend for 20 days. And on the side, he pursues his passion for tennis (where the blazes does this come from!!), somewhat sagged by the constant tiff between his feuding parents. The drama eventually boils down to the day when Chirag plays his crucial match and voila! his parents unite to lend him moral support just when the match is all but slipped from his grasp. 

Writer-director Tanveer Khan tries to splice together a love story with family drama and squeezes it all in the template of a sports movie in the climax. But it all turns out to be a bit of a hodgepodge because none of the said tracks have depth, subtlety or smarts. Chirag’s acting potential has already been spoken of, but what’s disappointing is that Kangana Ranaut is reduced to a screechy and vain glamdoll. The other two ladies, Neeru Bajwa and Sagarika Ghatge have pretty little to do. Only Kabir Bedi and Poonam Dhillon come up with performances meriting a nod. 

The music and cinematography is strictly passable. Tanveer Khan’s direction is amateurish and the product placements too in-your-face. The tennis match scenes are so shoddily choreographed as to inspire even a Nadal for premature retirement. 

Movie Review 'Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster'

Some movies have a great script; some have great performances by the actors, and some have both. Luckily, Saheb Biwi Aur Gangsterfalls in the third category! The movie is a dream combo of a nearly perfect script and some neat performances by the cast. Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster, though, cannot be called a remake of the old classic Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, it can definitely be considered inspired from it. After all, the three characters have been adapted from the movie. Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster is a film about Aditya Pratap Singh (played by Jimmy Shergill), the Nawab Saheb of a province in UP, who is struggling to maintain the status quo set by his royal ancestors. His Biwi (Mahi Gill) is an aggravated lady who craves for some attention, love, and not to forget, sex! Coming to the Gangster, Babloo (Randeep Hooda) is a criminal planted as a driver in Saheb’s house, by a rival political party. The movie is a combination of love, lust, politics and the hunger for power. The ruler of the rival party, Gainda Singh (Vipin Sharma), wants to win the province under Saheb’s authority, since it has been with the royal family for years. He plants Babloo as a replacement to the old driver, who met with an accident, as planned by the rival party. Babloo, the secret informer, keeps a check on Saheb and discloses all the moves made by him to Gainda Singh. However, he falls in love with Saheb’s Biwi! And, the Biwi, too, sleeps with him and satisfies her physical needs and wants. The real excitement, however, begins when Babloo confesses to Saheb about his being planted as an informer! What follows are a series of twists and turns, which, though, once in a while feel illogical, still keep you on the edge of your seats. Jimmy Shergill is amazing as the Nawab a.k.a. Saheb. One feels for him since he is an actor with some remarkable potential. He showed it in A Wednesdayand has shown it again in Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster. Randeep Hooda, too, impresses us with his act as Babloo, the guitar playing gangster. Speaking about the third lead, Mahie Gill outperforms herself! If you loved in her Dev D, you’ll fancy her even more after watching her play the role of the displeased Biwi! Director Tigmanshu Dhulia has shown he is skilled when it comes to direction. Though Haasil still remains my favourite work of his, Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster makes a special place in my heart! The music of the film is just about okay, with Jugni being the only saviour. A great script, memorable performances and some superb direction was well backed by the coarsened lingo used in the film. The desipan in the dialogues was welcomed with whistles by the audiences. Though, there were numerous dialogues that were worth applause, the one I can currently recall is where Saheb says he is going to the city and asks if his wife wants anything. The Biwi replies: “Ho sake toh hamari raatein le aayiega” We loved the film and would recommend it to you. Go for it, guys! Final verdict - 3.5 out of 5

'Force' Movie Review

 Force, a remake of the Tamil blockbuster Kaakha Kaakha.
First things first. John Abraham is beefcake as good as it gets. The girth of his biceps, the count of his abs, his painstakingly sculpted torso, and his Stallonean bod can easily make aam mortals like you and me look like those dwarfs from Gulliver’s Travels. And we have seen in some recent blockbusters that when the leading man is flexing his muscles and going shirtless to display his pectorals -- prominent enough to hang that very shirt on -- the script just goes by the board. Director Nishikant Kamat, thankfully, doesn’t commit that cinematic sin. Though he highlights John’s hot bod repeatedly to qualify certain scenes of Force as sheer brawn porn, Kamat doesn’t compromise on the script that, strictly speaking, ranges from good to middling.

What’s good is how Kamat structures the action sequences, particularly the one in which several drug busts are clubbed together in a single sequence ending with a pyrotechnic boom! What’s middling is how Kamat loses the plot in the second half and foists on us a blood-and-gore fest, with forced violence, shootouts and encounters. And what’s unforgivable is how the director squanders the opportunity of giving the Indian cinema a villain that could give the heroes a run for their money. Vidyut Jamwal, the movie’s villain, makes a terrific entrance in which his acrobatic stunts, leaps and maneuvers leave you gasping for breath and asking for more. You take that entrance as a teaser for grittier stuff to come. But come it doesn’t. Rather Kamat turns the electric Jamwal into a seething, vengeful foe, given more to pulling triggers than strutting his gymnastics. Pity…real pity!

The story is darned simple and straight. Yashvardhan (John Abraham) is a narcotics control bureau cop singularly devoted to weeding out the drug menace from society. So much so, he keeps himself free of the fetters of personal relationships that, he thinks, might make him weak and vulnerable. But then he meets Maya (Genelia D’Souza), and despite trying not to, ends up falling in love with her. As he earns love, he also earns enmity -- of Vishnu (Vidyut Jamwal), a drug smuggler who is hellbent on taking revenge for the encounter of his elder brother (Mukesh Rishi) by Yashvardhan and his team.

A lot of blood is spilled and lots of people close to Yashvardhan are bumped off in what turns out to be a battle of brawns rather than brains between our cop hero and his formidable foe. And it’s this peccadillo that punctures the steam out of Force. What an edge-of-the-seat experience the movie might have been, if Kamat had made his villain smarter rather than just a vengeful, impatient, feral baddie abducting the ladies and gunning down unarmed adversaries. More than the deed, it’s the slick and smart execution that makes for real thrills. Such thrills are hard to come by in the second half of Force.

The film is further hamstrung by a hamming John Abraham, trying hard to act like a man in control but turning pale in front of a decidedly cute and captivating Genelia D’Souza. Vidyut Jamwal is the find of Force. He’s got the looks, the physique, the voice, and, unlike the puffed-up hero, he shows a few flashes of good acting as well. Kamlesh Sawant (playing a happy-go-lucky cop) chips in some humour while Mohnish Bahl and Sandhya Mridul come up with creditable performances.

The music is nothing to hum home about. But the action and stunts surely save the day for Force. The scenes when John lifts a bike, or when Vidyut Jamwal bashes up half a dozen guys in Mombasa partly redeem the ticket price. But, all in all, the movie remains a strictly one-time watch and -- pardon the obvious pun -- hardly a force to reckon with.

Rating: 2.5 stars out of 5

AARAKSHAN MOVIE REVIEW

A Prakash Jha film is talked about for more reasons than one. It provides food for thought. It sets you thinking. Be it DAMUL, MRITYUDAND, GANGAAJAL, APAHARAN or RAAJNEETI, there was enough fodder in each of those films. Besides, each of those films left an indelible impression on the minds of the viewer. So, quite naturally, the expectations from his new release AARAKSHAN are enormous. This one also tackles a rather serious social issue -- caste-based reservation. However, AARAKSHAN not only talks about reservation, but also about the commercialization of educational institutions.

Not many storytellers have repeatedly succeeded in creating pragmatic films on societal matters, but Jha holds the distinction of doing so in film after film. Be it DAMUL [on bonded labor], MRITYUDAND [on gender inequity], GANGAAJAL [also about the contentious blinding episode at Bhagalpur], APAHARAN [on the abduction situation in Bihar] or RAAJNEETI [on the political state of affairs], Jha's cinema has always illustrated harsh realism in a transfixing and riveting manner.


We believe in equal rights for all and yet, we continue to be a caste-based society. Through AARAKSHAN, Jha portrays the agony that the youth goes through. The film-maker wants the spectator to comprehend matters around one of the most controversial policies of caste-based reservations in government jobs and educational institutions, a hitherto untouched theme for Hindi cinema.

Like Jha's earlier attempts, AARAKSHAN is, without doubt, a high-voltage socio-political drama. But, most importantly, it takes on issues head-on, without mincing words. However, the storyteller ensures that the film, at no point, gets preachy or drifts into the sermonizing mode. Like Jha's films, AARAKSHAN has a story to tell and several super dramatic moments. Sure, it takes time to comprehend what's going on initially, due to the fact that the film has multiple characters and too much seems to be happening from the start itself, but things fall in place as the story moves forward and the tension starts escalating. While the first hour leaves a hammer-strong impact and is captivating in most parts, it's the second hour that comes across as a mixed bag. More on that later!

AARAKSHAN tells the story of Prabhakar Anand [Amitabh Bachchan], the idealistic principal of a college that he has single-handedly turned into the state's best. It is the story of his loyal disciple, Deepak Kumar [Saif Ali Khan], who will do anything for his Sir. Of Deepak's love for Prabhakar's daughter Poorbi [Deepika Padukone], of his friendship with Sushant [Prateik].

Centered on one of the most controversial issues of recent years, the story suddenly becomes a rollercoaster ride of high drama, conflict and rebellion, which tests their love and friendship for one another and their loyalty to Prabhakar Anand.

Gender bias and caste-based politics are two paramount problems plaguing our society and it's not easy to depict these two issues with accuracy on screen. I am no one to comment whether AARAKSHAN would be able to throw up any enduring solution to the problem, but I am sure that the film would seize your mind and make you deliberate on the issues facing the nation. And that, to me, is akin to accomplishing what Jha must've set out when he green-lit AARAKSHAN. One also relates to the subject instantly because it mirrors the thoughts of a common man, since every family is genuinely concerned about the education and job their child will get.

At the cost of repeating myself, I'd like to say that the dramatic moments in AARAKSHAN make it a riveting experience. The conflict between Amitabh and Manoj Bajpayee in particular and the turn of events during the post-interval portions leave a solid impression, but the narrative tends to get lengthy and a tad uninteresting and repetitive towards the second hour specifically. The conflict between Amitabh and Manoj is well presented and moves to the next level in the second hour, but the sequences thereafter, when Amitabh, Deepika, Saif and even Prateik start conducting classes and educating the students, dilute the impact generated by the first hour. Also, the culmination to the story, when a full-blown confrontation between the government officials and commoners takes place, though well executed, could've been more impactful. In short, the excessive length of the film, more specifically towards the second hour, acts as a deterrent.

An issue-based film rarely has scope for music [Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy] and AARAKSHAN is no different. Nonetheless, Jha weaves the songs smartly in the narrative, which doesn't really hamper the flow of the story. Like every Jha movie, AARAKSHAN is embellished with hard-hitting dialogue and Anjum Rajabali comes up with lines that are sure to be talked-about while thrashing out the merits of the film. Sachin Krishn's cinematography is top class.

The Principal's role is tailor-made for Amitabh Bachchan. Though the actor has portrayed an unsympathetic Principal of an educational institution in MOHABBATEIN earlier, his role is different this time around. In MOHABBATEIN, a delicate episode toughened his character. In AARAKSHAN, his persona begins to suffer when Manoj Bajpayee and the coterie begin to show aggression and debase him. He doesn't strike back initially, but retaliates later, when he starts teaching all over again. The actor gives a completely new dimension to this character.

It requires great courage to cast Saif Ali Khan in the role, but he comes across as very persuasive. In fact, the film offers him several difficult sequences, which the actor carries off with flourish. His diction, while delivering shudh Hindi, is perfect. This role must have been a challenge for Deepika Padukone as well and she surprises you with a confident portrayal. In fact, she has an equally challenging part to play in the story and it must be said that she handles her scenes, even when she's pitted against experienced actors, with complete understanding.

Manoj Bajpayee was remarkable in RAAJNEETI; he played a devious and manipulative politician with gusto. In AARAKSHAN, his character is negative as well; he treats education as a business. And Manoj is incredible this time as well. Prateik is impassive in a few scenes. Also, he needs to loosen up a bit.

Tanvi Azmi is first-rate. Mukesh Tiwari is, as always, top notch. Yashpal Sharma is exceptional. Darshan Jariwala is very good. Saurabh Shukla is wonderful. Chetan Pandit is adequate. Vinay Apte is perfect. Anita Kanwar and S.M. Zaheer are alright. Hema Malini appears towards the end of the film.

On the whole, AARAKSHAN communicates an engaging story with very relatable characters. It's a movie that is truly inspiring and thought-provoking, but at the same time, its running time [almost 2.45 hours] is a deterrent. The film is mired in controversies ever since Prakash Jha announced the project, but the controversies will only enhance the curiosity-value for this film. AARAKSHAN not only works as a film, but also as a tool to drive home a forceful message. It's a daring, heroic, commanding and an engaging film that shouldn't be missed!