Dus

AV: **1/2
EV: **1/2

The movie starts with Dus Bahane Karke Le Gaye Dil but after that you really in search of some Bahana to get out of the movie hall. In the movie’s lingo I can say Dus Rocks, rocks in the sense you would like to bang your head with rocks while watching the movie. Ok Ok this is a little exaggerated but Dus seriously disappoints. The movie looks very good but sounds poorly. Screenplay and Director’s ambition to make a complete family masala let’s the movie down. The movie is slow paced, predictable and full with emotions especially at the places where they are not required.Sanjay Dutt is the head of the anti-terrorist cell. He has this information that something very big is going to happen on ‘Dus’ May. Abhishek , Zayed and Shilpa are a part of his team. Investigations lead them to Canada where they pair up with Suneil Shetty a Canadian Cop and Esha Deol a supposed Secret Agent who are to help them out in finding out Jammal the terrorist. Not a new story but it is filled with attitude and style.

Abhishek and his wicked grin is one of the things to watch out for other than the Title Track. Zayed is cool. Shilpa is quite better compared what we have seen of her in the past. Suneil’s character could have been avoided. Esha and Raima look pretty. I mean pretty ugly. Sanju baba who is known for his style and attitude and in movie, which is full of it, he has given a controlled calm performance, which I don’t understand why? Pankaj Kapur is truly mesmerizing. He dominates each and every scene in which he is present.

Mr. Director either you make an out an out action movie or make a family Rona-Dhona movie. But if you mix highflying action sequences with bhai-bhai and miya-biwi emotions, it’s going to bug the audience. Though the movie is very well shot and it has a very good sound track and also has pretty good performances but it could have been a lot better. For all who are planning to watch the movie don’t go with much expectations may be you will like it. But I didn’t.

Moral of the Movie: …… (Yawn) ……… No Comments.

-Aditya Parekh

Sarkar

Absolute power!

A Ram Gopal Varma direction. First time Big B under RGV’s camera. Bachan Father-Son Duo. Expectations are obviously high and results in house-full sunday morning show.
It can be said with conviction that the expectations are met, but alas they are not exceeded. No one is to blame, you wanted RGV’s take on underwold, mafia world, you wanted to see Big B and AB in an impression leaving act, you get it.

Sarkar or Subash Nagre (Amitabh) is against society-disturbing incidents/ anti-social elements. To punish them, to be just, to stop them he is willing to go against God, system, government, law. Unable to tolerate this, Rashid, a Dubai returned mafia trader wants to get rid of Sarkar. He is helped by, among others, Sarkar’s elder son Vishnu (Kay Kay). Younger son Shankar (Abhishek), US returned, is quite ignorant of the happenings until a time when he has to just show up and deliver. Abhishek has ample space to be centre stage and to perform during his evolution from being an observer to becoming a deliverer.

Rest, just follows.
The plots, twists give nothing new and unexpected, probably because we are too used to RGV flicks and The Godfather to which this one is a tribute by RGV. We could have been overwhelmed if Sarkar happened before Satya, but RGV himself had set such high standards with Satya that everything else looks just a leaf out of it. But that should not be mistaken for any doubt on the quality of Sarkar.

For Sarkar’s credit there is no excessive bloodshed, no shootouts, no loud crys. Just a chilling background score at times and short dialogues, heavy expressions. The body language boils down to facial expressions, for ,in some of the shots only faces are shown full screen. This is refreshing as nothing escapes out of the camera and eyes, facial nerves fill (for) the dialogue-less scenes. Also to be observed are the usage of extra-long silences between the short dialogues. Amitabh is Amitabh and his fans will get a nice experience and those who still doubt Abhishek’s talents, ability can check this one in which he displays intensity, screen presence, emotions & charm with ease.

-Ravikiran.R

Parineeta

Story is based on the novel by a famous novelist, Saratchandra Chattopadhyay. Movie from the table of Vidhu Vinod Chopra under the direction of Pradeep Sarkar will have mixed expectations. One, we have always appreciated Vidhu Vinod Chopra, second Pradeep Sarkar is a new name.

Intelligent promos increase your curiosity. The cast too includes a newcomer.
Rest assured, you will be atleast happy if not delighted !

We have already heard/seen the story. Neighbourhood friends’ affection towards each other grows as they grow and turns into love. The display of ingredients of love, like – suspicion, trust, devotion, possession in a very controlled manner makes it all believable. Status, ego, family issues come in the way of their union, and not much before a third angle enters the story. Some
misunderstandings and quick turn of the events lead to their separation. Rest, watch it on the screen.

What makes this ordinary looking story, special is all credit to good movie making, with a touch of art. Director Pradeep Sarkar, who once directed those cute videos of Euphoria, succeeds in creating a overall picture that is so artistic on one hand and so narrative on the other. The right balance is seen in almost every shot and nothing seems overdone. Except, perhaps for the climax scene which was not very convincing. Leave that and you have a flow that is hitchless, set that is simple and beautiful, costumes that are adorable, music that is good on ears (and sometime necessary for the poetic feel of the movie) and performances that are perfect.

Sanjay Dutt in a short role is refreshing. Rekha appears for a “item number”.

Vidya Balan a new face on celluloid, has won all praises, which she truly deserves. She had good amount of author backed shots and no harm at that. Saif, who was excellent with few comic roles, has again put a very impressive performance in a serious role. This will go down as one of his finest. He becomes the character in some of the scenes.

Parineeta is one of the finest movies. Thank God, box office is also happy.

Disclaimer: Anyone and everyone seems to/ tends to compare the movie with Devdas, because of obvious similarities. I am consciously not comparing.

-Ravikiran.R

A.V:****
E.V:****
It is an often said that people who we love the most also hurt us the
most. The person whom we hold dearest to our heart inflicts the
greatest pain on us. This is the basic premise of Parineeta (The
Married Woman), a story from the treasure trove of Bengali literature
written by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay.It is a touching tale of love
and devotion which has been portrayed on screen several times before.
Welcome to the Calcutta of the swinging 60s! The post independence era
which has a blend of socialist politics and pop music. Shekhar (Saif
Ali Khan) is a musician who comes from a noveau riche household. His
childhood companion is Lolita (Vidya Balan), an orphan who is multi
talented and spirited. As they grow up together the friendship deepens
and acquires a new meaning (Surprise!). However class differences
coupled with some obligations causes some misunderstandings between
them. At this juncture Girish (Sanjay Dutt) the businessman with a
heart of gold enters their lives. He acts as a guiding light and makes
them realize the value of having each other.
Even though the director has taken liberties with the original script
the basic storyline has been retained. The costumes and sets are
detailed and reflect the vintage era of Calcutta. Thankfully the
narrative is in Hindi and there are no attempts to force incorrect
Bengali pronunciation in order to appear authentic. Unlike Devdas even
the opulence of the zamindar household is much more subtle. A special
mention must be made of the music by Shantanu Moitra which is acts as
a sub plot. ‘Piya Bole’ is the pick of the lot and has strains of
Rabindra Sangeet . The ‘item song’ “Kaisi Paheli” is one of the
highlights of the movie.
This is surely a high water mark in Saif’s career. He is convincing as
the brooding lover whose jealousy borders on possessiveness. Vidya
Balan is the find of the year. She makes a good impression in a very
mature role considering this is her first movie. Lets hope she does
not get typecast as an ‘art film’ heroine. Sanju Baba is as usual
great and it is good to see him do different roles nowadays. Check out
his introduction scene. There are some good character performances by
the actor who plays Shekhar’s father and Raima Sen. Diya Mirza does
not have much screen time but looks stunning
The only grouse is that the ending could have been less dramatic.
Parineeta might not be a brilliant movie but it is an honest attempt
at making good cinema all the same.

-Suprateek Sinha