[DigitalOne]

Originally Posted by Eddy

The only thing I did not like was the interview. Should have been more dramatic. I felt a little underwhelmed. Should have had better screenplay.

TVF's "Aspirants" season 2 episode 4 (or 5, can't recall) has a well-written dramatic UPSC interview. The series is available on Amazon Prime.

https://youtu.be/LWPXkRNK8SM

[msdivy]

I watched 3 Hindi movies in the theatre in 2023 and all turned out to be crap - Pathaan, Jawan & Animal.

Since Animal is recent, here are a few thoughts. I do not mind if the story is morally not right. I look at movies for entertainment value and that depends on how well the directory tells the story he/she wants to tell.

Animal is the story of the unconditional son's love for his father. The director, in the past, has made brilliant romantic movies and I guess this is his 1st try at action. He has failed and he makes up for that with extra violence. Add to that is poor comedy. There is an element of suspense in the story but the director fails to capitalize on that plot.

The society where this movie is based doesn't have a police force or it seems so. Here on Netflix/Prime, I am watching an entire series consisting of 7 or 8 episodes of 1 hour each of a police procedural story to catch a killer who might have left 1 drop of blood at the crime scene. But in Animal, the son kills 100s of men with the hand, axe & different types of guns. No police. If there were police, they would have easily solved the mystery which son took an eternity.

Apart from the son, no character is developed. Maybe, developing the son's character took so much space that there was no time for others. Other characters, including the villain, are in fast-forward mode.

I felt the director was trying to make the movie like Korean violence movies. The screenplay is Korean style, even the title sounds Korean. But the plot hole gaps don't cut.

Lastly, the son considers himself the alpha male and tries to live up to that image, agitated, throughout the movie. But his dad & granddad are not alpha males and they have achieved what the son adores them for .

[ghodlur]

Kahan Kho Gaye Hum

Streaming: Netflix

A movie which can appeal more to the Gen Z who are more influenced by the social media content and what it does to their lives and aspirations. I simply could not connect to the movie due to generation gap of course. Ananya Pandey stood out with her acting and surprised me having seen her acting in some previous films. Siddhant Chaturvedi is an under rate actor, if given some good scripts I am sure he will shine out loud, we saw that in Gully Boy. The movie tried a Dil Chahta hai but couldn't reach that level. Recommend to see the movie one time.

PS: The song "I wanna see you dance" is in my favorite track list.

Rating: 3.5/5

[ABHI_1512]

Merry Christmas

It took a very special film to get back to the theater after so long. Shriram Raghavan has again come up with his trademark quirk and stamped his class. Vijay Setupati with his accented Hindi is an actor personified but Katrina Kaif has surpassed him in this one. This movie is easily one of the very best of Katrina Kaif and she has shown that given a chance to show her acting chops, she will not disappoint. Based on a French movie, the director has given his own treatment and which is intriguing and routine, both at the same time. A movie which lays the emphasis on the viewer’s intelligence and not taking them for granted is what makes a Shriram Raghavan film special and this movie is no different. Though the movie takes a while to build a crescendo, once it does, it goes the whole hog. Highly recommended.

Rating: 4/5

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by ABHI_1512

Merry Christmas

It took a very special film to get back to the theater after so long. Shriram Raghavan has again come up with his trademark quirk and stamped his class. Vijay Setupati with his accented Hindi is an actor personified but Katrina Kaif has surpassed him in this one. This movie is easily one of the very best of Katrina Kaif and she has shown that given a chance to show her acting chops, she will not disappoint. Based on a French movie, the director has given his own treatment and which is intriguing and routine, both at the same time. A movie which lays the emphasis on the viewer’s intelligence and not taking them for granted is what makes a Shriram Raghavan film special and this movie is no different. Though the movie takes a while to build a crescendo, once it does, it goes the whole hog. Highly recommended.

Rating: 4/5

Agree with the review and the rating. 3 of us went for the show today and loved every bit of it. The movie has limited screens and even limited shows with modest ticket prices but it deserves much better compared to the recent ‘hits’. It is running on a very small screen at a nearby PVR but is running full house.

PS: there are a couple of movies released recently and with the same premise. Yet this is enjoyable.

[fhdowntheline]

Originally Posted by fhdowntheline

True that- another one is waiting in the wings "Fighter". The teaser looks pretty average to me, and is already looking to ride the patriotic breeze, timed to release on 25th Jan 2024.
I actually liked Gunjan Saxena. It was a story about a person, not so much the the Air Force or the country. Too bad it did not get much of a mention. I hope the Fighter is more in that mould but I fear otherwise.

Just as I feared. The trailer looks really disappointing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6amIq_mP4xM

[download2live]

Originally Posted by fhdowntheline

Just as I feared. The trailer looks really disappointing.

They have a chance to make some good money here. The premise is well tested and proven money spinner. People who have not seen Topgun will love this one.

Enemy "Green" warplanes. I mean come on. Keep it a bit real? Planes are colored to make them difficult to spot in air.

Producers better pray that many of us have not seen Topgun.

[dailydriver]

Gulmohar
Disney Hotstar
* * *

Wikipedia calls this movie a postcard of memories.

Set in an old Delhi bungalow on the verge of being sold, Gulmohar is a feel good movie that makes place for everyone and everything. From filial bonds to tales of unrealised romances, from purity of blood to the sanctity of marriage, from the tribulations of an entrepreneur to the daily trials of an artist - this movie has it all.

But what is found in abundance here is goodness; far too much of it, if you ask me!

Sharmila Tagore and Amol Palekar have excelled in their roles. Simran plays her part to perfection and Manoj Bajpayee is at his usual best.

Though there are a few subtle scenes that might make some stretch their hands towards the remote, it is nevertheless a good, leisurely weekend watch.

[AnnaRocks]

FIGHTER


It is a decent salute to the Indian Air Force. The storyline is basic, but will keep you engaged. One might get a feel that you are watching another YRF SPY universe movie because of the cast and crew and then there is the obvious comparison with TOP GUN. Even the RayBan of Hrithik is the same one from TG I think. I got glimpses of some Michael Bay shots at the start. Some scenes are really good, especially the aerial fight sequences which feel real and some scream out Green Screen. An enjoyable movie for sure, but is it a memorable one? I doubt.
I wish it was shorter by 15-20 mins. Except the title credits one (Heer Aasmani), the rest of the songs make you yawn. VFX is mostly good and definitely better than what we were served in recent years in the SPY universe and other biggies. The over the top stuff is mostly limited to what is shown in the trailer. The enemy gives a tough fight unlike the usual 'We are so dumb Janaab' stuff.
Hrithik obviously shines amongst the cast, but I feel Anil Kapoor outshines . Definitely a good one time watch.

[StepUP!]

Fighter 3/5
One time watch may be for VFX and IAF tribute. But rest as a movie it failed to impress me.
Except Heer aasmani track, rest fail to impress and are added just for the Bollywood legacy. YRF direction is confused. In an attempt to make it "commercial" they add everything - drama, masala, emotions, classy as well as massy audience stuff, skin show, six packs, songs, patriotism etc. and lose essence of the plot.
What was the mission team was assembled for itself wasn't clear
Destroying fighter planes by head on collision, directly landing at the action site after ejecting from plane at different location, unplaced patriotism speech during a fight are so cliche.

Can't help but to compare it with Top Gun Maverick. Even it has stupid things like flying enemy's plane from their own base after crash landing there.
But other things were superb - like their mission, technical detailing why it's necessary to fly low, why old generation Fighter planes can do that, what's the catch when escaping the site, how G forces in these fast manevours make pilots to lose their conscious etc. which are missing in Fighter.

[ghodlur]

Animal

Streaming: Netflix

I am definitely late to the party as I watched the movie yesterday on Netflix, don't understand the logic of releasing a gore fest film on Republic day. The movie did not interest me a bit whether its Ranbir Kapoor's maniacal cum schoolboy cum chain smoker act, Rashmika's muttering, Anil Kapoor's dark circles or Bobby Deol's mute act. The only thing which made me watch the movie was the BGM at right moments and Upendra Limaye's comic timing. The supposedly comic dialogues of Ranbir Kapoor esp of his stiff inner wear was super cringy. The (supposedly) new national crush Tripti Dimri was not even attempting to act. For a 3hr movie, there was not at all a paisa vasool moment. Hats off to veterans like Shakti Kapeeo, Suresh Oberoi, Prem Chopra for their blink and miss presence.

Not to watched with children below 12 yrs in my opinion.

Rating: 2/5

[IamNikhil]

Watched Fighter along with the folks yesterday.

Masala and Bollywood-cliches aside, it's a decent watch.

In the midst of many movies featuring the Army and Navy, this is a tribute to the Indian Air Force.

From what I came to know from some industry insiders, YRF has planned a full slate of movies which will be based on the Indian Air Force.

Rating: 3/5

[jomyboy]

Sam Bahadur
Watched last night on Amazon Prime

Despite all the rave reviews, I would beg to differ to say it feels low budget and the story telling was very poor : One couldn't feel the tension and difficult situations that Manekshaw was in. If the valiant Manekshaw were alive, he would cringe and say "I'm not okay with this." On a side note, Vicky Kaushal's portrayal of Manekshaw with respect to overall body language and communication style is as good as it comes.

[fhdowntheline]

Originally Posted by jomyboy

Sam Bahadur
Watched last night on Amazon Prime

Despite all the rave reviews, I would beg to differ to say it feels low budget and the story telling was very poor : One couldn't feel the tension and difficult situations that Manekshaw was in. If the valiant Manekshaw were alive, he would cringe and say "I'm not okay with this." On a side note, Vicky Kaushal's portrayal of Manekshaw with respect to overall body language and communication style is as good as it comes.

The problem with the story/script that it just straddles along India's geopolitical history from Kashmir (1947) through 1971 (Bangladesh liberation war). Yes, the principal character would have to be fitted along that timeline, but they could have skipped a few aspects like the Mizoram insurgency and given some time to develop the character better. Although I would say they did try, but it was mostly about how the General was always the better of the situation. The only stray evidence where they showed that Sam Bahadur met his match is in that one interaction with the IAF chief (PC Lal I think) during the 1971 War where the IAF boss tell Sam to basically mind his business, aka land offensive and leave the air offensive to himself. And in that rare instance, there is no comeback from Sam. I wish there were more similar instances where the human in Sam Bahadur preceded the soldier. There was enough and more to demonstrate his prowess in his professional persona. But it was not a bad watch. And I think Fatima Sana Shaikh also did a fairly decent job of the really low key script she had. But it almost looked like her character was too much in awe of the General.

[Pequod]

Animal



If ever one needed proof of the Freudian psychosexual stages of development, there can’t be a better one than this movie! The director and writer are living proof of the anal expulsive / phallic retention stage in said theory, period.

Enough said.

And it goes on to make 700 crores at the box office. Sigh.

(Watched it on Netflix, I needed to know what the fuss was all about.)