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Vara Mullapudi has come up with a good suspense thriller. The film is quite racy and the gripping screenplay adds further interest in the film and makes it a good watch.

The story is about the conflict between two protagonists, Allari Naresh and Rajiv Kanakala. Kanakala is a young doctor who lives with his father Kota Sreenivasa Rao. Kota is an alcoholic and he creates nuisance every day and this puts Rajiv in an embarrassing position. But he loves his father a lot.

One day, his father is admitted in a hospital following an accident and he dies shortly thereafter. Rajiv learns that his father has not died of injuries but due to wrong medication.

Who did it and why. Enter Allari Naresh, a young married guy, who is also a cold-blooded murderer. The psychopathic Naresh tells Rajiv that it is he who has killed his father as per the agreement made in the train. Naresh now wants Rajiv to keep his side of promise and kill Naresh’s wife Preethi Jingiani.

What is the agreement and why Naresh forces Rajiv to kill his wife? What is it that forces Rajiv Kanakala to agree to kill Preethi Jingiani? These are the suspense elements and must be watched on the screen.

Performance:

Rajiv Kanakala and Allari Naresh literally compete with each other fiercely to come up with a better performance than the other. Rajiv Kanakala comes into his won with his film and does a neat job. He dominates the screen for a major part of the first half.

Allari Naresh has done an excellent job as a young and calculating cold-blooded psychopath who can go to any extent to achieve his objective. Kota excels in his brief role particularly in the scene where he is on a hospital bed after the accident.

Preethi Jingiani is okay. Ali as a sub-inspector promises to do something big. But his role is suddenly chopped when the CI sends him away on one-year leave. The rest of the star cast also does a neat job.

Music is fine and Chandrashekar Yeleti’s gripping screenplay is a big asset. Vara Mullapudi has done a deft job with his direction. The film is sure to establish Vara Mullapudi as a promising director.

The film runs in a very interesting fashion and the fast half is very racy. It is as if we are hardly half an hour into the film but it is already intermission. Such is the effect of good screenplay.

The film drags just a bit in the second half and a song obstructs the pace of the film. But the film never bores you at any point of time, even for a second.

End Credits:

Starring:Rajiv Kanakala, Allari Naresh, Kota, Preeti Jingiani, Ali and others

Director: Vara Mullapudi

Music: Rajiv Kurakula

Release date: 08/02/2008

Labels: Kota Srinivasa Rao, naresh, review, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 5:52 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Pourudu has a story that could have been quite engaging, but the pace is slow and the impact is low in key scenes. The music is easy on ears, but the comic scenes do not amuse.

Plot Ajay has topped in his civils, and is waiting for his interview call. His father, meanwhile, is Panduranga, the right-hand man of Zakir Bhai, an influential figure locally. Panduranga believes that he and his Bhai do what the law cannot do, owing to long procedures while Ajay maintains that they are all goons. Ajay gets involved in some fights trying to save his father being bashed up by Bhai's rival Kasi's son, Suri. Hussain is a sincere police inspector keen on arresting all the wrongdoers in town, and jails father-son. Ajay's future is in jeopardy, but there's more to it than that meets the eye.

Story, Screenplay and Direction The story actually has potential, but the narration is quite slow. Some scenes are unnecessarily dragged. It doesn't have to be loud, but the grip is obviously missing in the second half. Bland's the word, even with some well-executed action sequences. The editing is okay, but the dubbing is not up to the mark.

The humor element is provided by Ali, and it fails to amuse as it's overdone. The first half concentrates on the father-son conflict and the love story. The second half has the 'Pourudu' coming alive. There's a fair amount of violence in the second half, and a little bit of outsmarting. As mentioned earlier, the impact is quite low.

The pluses: the story, the two well-defined character i.e., Panduranga and his son Ajay, the music.

The minuses: the pace, the wavering direction in the second half and the predictable nature of the climax.

Performances Sumanth shines in a few scenes, but the rest of the movie he looks bored; the pace of the movie has something to do with it. Suman is okay, but Sumanth-Suman scenes are touching. Kajal looks sweet, and justifies her brief role, as it is essentially a father-son story. Nasser suits the role of Zakir Bhai, as does Kota with a fake sharp canine as Kasi. Amit as Kasi's son is convincing, while Subbaraju as Inspector Hussain does a good job. Ali and Brahmanandam are wasted in half-baked comic tracks.

Music and Dance The music is nice, while the picturization is not bad. It could have been better though, especially the choreography.

Last Word The theme and the story are interesting enough, but the narration lacks grip in the second half. It's not a bad watch, but slightly boring due to a slow pace.

End Credits

Cast: Sumanth, Kajal, Suman, Nasser, Subbaraju, Brahmanandam, Ali, Raghubabu, Dharmavarapu, Pragati, Srinivasa Reddy, Amit and Others.
Action: Selva.
Art: Ravindar.
Choreography: Prem Rakshit.
Cinematography: Sudhakar Yakkanti.
Dialogues: Marudhuri Raja.
Editing: Marthand K. Venkatesh.
Lyrics: Bhaskarabhatla, Ramjogayya Sastry & Peddada Murthy.
Music: Mani Sharma.
Story, Screenplay & Direction: Raaj Aadithya.
Producer: D. Supriya.
Presenter: Annapurna Studios.
Banner: SS Creations.
Release Date: 13th January, 2007.

Labels: kajal, review, sumanth, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 4:34 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Krishna's not bad. It's not the best movie out there either. There are a lot of movies lined up for release, and some other new ones running this season. It doesn't come under the horrible lot, but it's not a memorable journey.

Plot Krishna falls in love with Sandhya, who is staying with her cousin Bobby (Brahmanandam) in Vijayawada. He and his brother's family shift to Bobby's house, then follow her all the way back to her home in Hyderabad. Her brother, though he takes a liking to Krishna, asks him to get out of his sister's life. If he is with her, he is in grave danger of from Jakka, a local goon and his men.

Story, Screenplay and Direction VV Vinayak has an affinity to SUVs. We see a lot of them in the second half following a tranquil first half with quiet humor and the love story taking center stage. The climax has touches of Aadi in it, but in Raviteja style.

The plus points of the movie are: Brahmanandam has a clearly defined character that has situational comedy, which he excels at. Raviteja can carry the movie on his shoulders, with an aura all his own and a role that is bound to suit him.

The minuses are: a story that's not quite new and bad music.

The narration and the editing, including that of the flashback is okay. The picturization of the bland music is not bad. Brahmanandam, Raviteja and Chandramohan's characters work for the movie. Action sequences, especially the one in the midst of bangles, is well done. A little illogical too, of course, during the climax. VV doesn't disappoint, and has given a movie that is at least watchable.

Trisha and RavitejaPerformances Raviteja is his usual bubbling-with-energy, impish self. The script, along with the dialogues are meant for Raviteja to mouth, as he carries off such a role with élan. Brahmanandam is an asset for the movie. Trisha is passable, not having much to do. Sayaji Shinde is tolerable, as is the villain Jakka, played by Mukul Dev. Chandramohan and Sudha as Krishna's family are good. Suneel and Venumadhav are amusing. MS Narayana, Jaya Prakash Reddy and Chitram Sreenu are good.

Music and Dance Mediocre to the core. Actually, less than mediocre.

Last Word The movie is not bad, but we've seen it all before. It comes under the bracket of Time-pass fare. An easy watch albeit once, it's a forgettable flick.

End Credits

Cast: Raviteja, Trisha, Brahmanandam, Mukul Dev, Chandramohan, Sudha, Sayaji Shinde, Sana, Suneel, Chitram Sreenu, Venumadhav, Jaya Prakash Reddy, Tanikella Bharani, Kota Srinivasa Rao and Others.
Action: Ram-Laxman.
Art: AS Prakash.
Cinematography: Chota K. Naidu.
Editing: Goutham Raju.
Lyrics: Chandrabose.
Music: Chakri.
Story & Dialogues: Siva Akula.
Screenplay & Direction: VV Vinayak.
Producer: B. Kasiviswanatham.
Presenter: Danayya DVV.
Banner: Lakshmi Narasimha Visuals.
Release Date: 12th January, 2007.

Labels: ravi teja, review, tollywood, trisha, vvvinayak

Posted by Raj at 3:02 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Take plots or sub-plots from Bharateeyudu, Aparichitudu and Shivaji (all three Shankar movies in fact) and mix-and-match with inferior production values and bad makeup. Then sprinkle a heavy dose of vulgar and double-meaning dialogues courtesy the two ladies, Nisha Kothari and Anushka. What's the result? One and Only.

Plot Satyam (Veeravenkata Satyanarayana Swamy) a.k.a. Tsunami is a beloved person for several villagers, having touched and changed many a life. His grandmother is 'Baby' whose husband dedicated his life to gain independence, taken later as a prisoner of war and missing henceforth. Meanwhile, corrupt doctors, lawyers and journalists are allegedly killed, but their bodies are missing. The suspicions are on Swamy who is arrested, but an old man calling himself Okka Magadu claims to have committed those acts. The point is, OM looks like the older version of Swamy whose sworn enemy is Namboodriyar, a politician whose son elopes with a middle-class girl under Swamy's protection. The search for OM intensifies and the confusion thickens.

Story, Screenplay and Direction As mentioned before, the story is mishmash of earlier successes, but with production values not up to the mark. The first 30 minutes with Nisha Kothari is like watching a C-grade movie with a big star in it for unknown reasons. Then you have the last 30 minutes which should have been a high-impact, high-voltage sequence, but is completely bungled up.

The scene before Anushka enters i.e., the confrontation with Namboodriyar is a scene meant solely for getting a message across-that he will eventually enter politics. Not surprising. The movie picks up a little for a brief period of time, only to finish off with a regular fight sequence and then fall flat after the break with a half-hearted pre-independence era flashback. The speech at the climax and the subsequent fight sequence using Chinese (supposed to be martial art experts) is a lift from Aparichitudu, but a low-key lift.


The makeup on Simran as an old woman is terrible, while NBK manages to get away with an old man get up. All this distinctly reminds you of Bharateeyudu, and even the part where the irresponsible press is punished reminds you vaguely of a sequence in Bharateeyudu where he kills in front of the camera. There is a lot of inconsistency in the narration and the characters are not clearly defined apart from 'Baby'.

There's hype and hoopla that a star with such mass appeal can generate, but one can do so many other things than waste him with absolutely vulgar sequences. K. Raghavendra Rao and Rajamouli's school of thought seems to have a taker in YVS, but the entertainment quotient in the former's movies also keep the pace up instead of relying on cheap gimmicks with women throughout.

Performances Balakrishna looks fresher and the stiffness of his earlier two movies is completely absent. In a few scenes, he is engaging while some scenes are so badly scripted, that it all looks plain silly. It's a weak script, and there ends the matter. As an old man, his performance is just okay, but definitely better than Simran's over-the-top cantankerous old woman act.

Simran, who is actually a good artiste, is wasted in what seems to be a challenging role on paper, but ends up being utterly ridiculous. Nisha Kothari, the less said the better. Same goes for Anushka, because both are used only to wear skimpy outfits and mouth (and worse, act out) third class stuff. Ashutosh Rana acts and the dubbing is like that of Raghuvaran, while surprisingly even the old NBK's laugh is similar to that of Rajnikant in Shivaji.

Song and Dance The title song is good. It's good to see Balakrishna energetic and also minus the little stiffness that was just setting in. The duet with Simran is okay, while the ones with the other two female leads are just what the doctor ordered for the front benchers. And the rest of them too.

Last Word Shankar's movies are huge hits, or at least well-known and mimicked all the time. You just can't go take ideas from his movies that are relatively recent and think you can get away with it. YVS made watchable movies before, but he disappoints thoroughly in handling the star. Why do directors forget the script and bank entirely on the star now-a-days? The star, some purposeful and well-meaning dialogues in trademark style, a little skin show plus two fights and three songs that stand out does not make a good movie. YVS disappoints terribly in this seen before inferior quality yarn and a star has been totally wasted in an incompetent script.

End credits:
starring: NBK, Simran, Anushka, Nisha Kothari, Ashutosh Rana, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Krishna Bhagawan, Raghubabu and Others.
Action: Vijay.
Art: Anand Sai.
Cinematography: Madhu A. Naidu.
Dialogues: Chintapalli Ramana.
Editing: Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao.
Lyrics: Chandrabose.
Music: Mani Sharma.
Story, Screenplay & Direction: YVS Chowdary.
Producer: Yelamanchili Yuktha.
Presenter: Yelamanchili Geetha.
Executive Producer: Kommineni Venkateswara Rao.
Banner: Bommarillu Vari.
Release Date: 11th January, 2007.

Labels: anushka, balakrishna, okka magadu, review, simran, tollywood, y v s chowdary

Posted by Raj at 2:11 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

A guy living the life of an orphan. But with a background, a flashback, a history, whatever. Then comes outsmarting the villain. That's Vijayadasami. Now if you think you've heard this story before, then you must have. It is the case of old wine, new (?) bottle. The first half falls flat on its face, but the second half picks up pace. The movie has all the elements of a Masala potboiler, but lacks freshness. And the heavy Tamil influence is evident in the movie, which is a remake of the Tamil movie Sivakasi starring Vijay and Asin.

Plot Sivakasi lives alone, bashes up random goondas and runs a welding shop. He and Devi fall in love, but Devi's family wants a guy with a family for her. He reveals to them that he is in fact from a seemly background, and sets out to his ancestral home. As a child, a mischief that his elder brother did cost someone their life-and he had to take the blame for that. Banished from his household, he sets foot in his village 15 years later to a drastically different situation.

Story, Screenplay and Direction The first half and the 'romance' between Sivakasi and Devi is ridiculous. Moral of first half: If a guy tells a girl that she needs to cover herself up with a Langa Voni, then she will fall in love with him. If he is rude to her, and she comes to his house with a bridal attire to 'give' herself to him, he will fall for her. Points noted.

Now after this inane angle comes the brief flashback. This too doesn't comply perfectly with logical arguments, but then we wait for the second half. A long line of recent flicks have the second half on similar lines: from Gudumba Shankar, Aata (which is secretly a remake of Gudumba Shankar) and several others.

The second half has some entertaining parts to it. Some of the instances are there for the sake of the movie's progress and negate reason. The female lead's part is badly written and ignored for the most part. Saikumar is a villain, who generates some laughs whenever he is outsmarted.

Performances Kalyanram is a promising talent, no doubt. With 'Athanokkade', he arrived. And after that, the only improvement is in his dancing, but he's still a little stiff. Good energy, good looks-needs good roles. Saikumar makes a good villain. He dominates in the second half. Vedika is pretty, dances well and does a good job in the little screen time she gets. Jayasudha and Suman suit their roles as does Mounika as their daughter. Lakshmipathi as the MLA's stooge is good. Rajan P. Dev as Saikumar's father-in-law is typical.

Song and Dance The background score vibrates with energy, but is a little too loud. The first song 'Raara Raara' and the last song 'Are Kalyana' are peppy. Simran's special song [Cine Tara] is good.

Last Word Many movies have come out in this format. On its own, the movie lacks any special appeal. The first half is bad. The second half has some entertaining parts. Overall, old wine in a rather rusty old bottle.

End credits
starring: Kalyanram, Vedika, Saikumar, Jayasudha, Suman, Paruchuri Gopalakrishna, Srinivasa Reddy, Rajan P. Dev, Brahmanandam, Suman Shetty and Others.
Action: Stun Shiva.
Art: Nagendra.
Cinematography: C. Ramprasad.
Dialogues: Paruchuri Brothers.
Editing: Nandamuri Hari.
Music: Srikanth Deva.
Story: Perarasu.
Screenplay & Director: V. Samudra.
Producer: Edara Rangarao.
Banner: Sai Sarvajit Movies.
Release Date: 21st September, 2007.

Labels: kalyanram, review, saikumar, tollywood, vedika, vijayadasami

Posted by Raj at 6:47 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Starring : Ram Charan Teja, Neha Sharma
Music : Manisharma
Director : Puri jagannadh

Songs

Right click and save target as

Yamaho Yama --- Tippu

Love U Raa --- Deepu, Rita

Yenduko --- Karunya

Champaka Champaka --- Ranjith, Geetha Madhuri

Kanniti --- Mallikarjun

Maro Maro --- Rahul Nambiar, Suchitra

Ivvale --- Kay Kay, Sunitha

Innala --- Usha

Labels: chiruta, music, ramcharanteja, review, telugulatestsongs, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 11:45 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Raja (Jr Ntr) and his side kick (Ali) are petty thieves who rob for their living. Mamtha Mohan Das is a broker who gives them money for interest to perform their robberies. During one of the robbery mishaps, Raja scolds Yamadharmaraja (Mohan Babu) from Earth which is heard by Yama himself. Yama wants to take revenge and gets Raja killed in a kidnap dealing. Raja meets Priyamani during a robbery and falls in love with her before his death. Raja reaches Yamalokam after his death and comes to know about Yama’s tricks. What mischief Raja does there and how he comes back to Bhoolokam to save Priyamani from the clutches of villans and also how he wins her love forms the remaining part of the story.

Jr Ntr as an young and smart thief has proved his talent once more with this movie. He gave a new on-screen look by slimming down around 30 kgs and he looks simply superb. He gave a new definition to dance with his steps and style. Whoever may be the choreographer, it is because of Jr Ntr’s grace and ease, the steps are good. Ntr showed that he can do not only action movies but he can also do full length comedy flicks.

Mohan Babu is an added asset for the movie. His performance dominated even Ntr at few situations in the movie. His strong performance as a negative character highlighted the hero’s role and performance. He is the perfect choice for this role.

Priyamani is cute as the rich servant maid and Mamtha Mohan Das is good as the money broker. Though this movie is Mamtha’s first movie in telugu, she did a very good job both in acting as well as dubbing. Her performance as Yamadharmaraja is real good and impressive.

Ali, Brahmanandam, M.S.Narayana and other actors were adequate and good for their roles.

Art work by Anand Sai is far beyond excellence. Yamalokam set is deadly and shows the real talent of art director. Even the locations and indoor settings for the songs are also good. Panner Selvam’s first action sequence is the highlight of the movie. It showed Ntr’s vigour and speed after slimming down. Special effects by EFX Labs are a visual treat to the audience.

Dynamic director Rajamouli has put forward a movie which is completely different from his previous movies. It is a fantasy movie combined with comedy. The movie has the trademark symbol of Rajamouli in every aspect. He showed the other side of Ntr with this comedy flick. He proved that he is one of the most talented and rare directors of Tollywood.t will be surely a hat-rick success for both Ntr and Rajamouli.

High Lights : Nandamuri Taraka Ramarao Graphic role in 7th reel, Soundarya in Graphic role in swargam for short span, Yamalok Set which has surpassed the expectation of the audiences by many folds. The quality can be compared to any Hollywood film.

Special Apperances: Veda, Navneet Kour, Preethi Jingyani, Madhu Shalini,Parvathi Melton as Dancers in Narakam and Rambha in Item song(Nachore..Nachore..)

End Credits

Starring : NTR, Mohanbabu, Kushboo, Mamta Mohandas, Priyamani, Brahmanandam, Naresh, MS Narayana, Narendra Jha, Rajeev Kanakala, Ali, Raghubabu and Others.
Art : Anand Sai
Choreography : Prem Rakshit
Cinematography : KK Senthil Kumar
Dialogues : M. Ratnam
Music : MM Keeravani
Story : V. Vijayendra Prasad
Director : Rajamouli
Producer(s) : Cheri & Urmila
Banner : Viswamitra Creations

Released on : 15th August, 2007

Labels: junior NTR, review, tollywood, yamadonga

Posted by Raj at 11:29 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

'Chak De India', is a sports based film which has all the elements that make it extremely watchable. The premise of the film, a plot revolving around the Indian women's hockey team, had received a lot of flak and cynical comments from within the industry as well as the press. But, the commendable efforts of Aditya Chopra ( Producer), Shimit Amin (Director), Jaideep Sahni (Story, screenplay,dialogues and lyrics) and Shahrukh Khan have put an end to all the cynicism around 'Chak De India'. The film revolves around Kabir Khan (Shahrukh Khan) a star Indian hockey captain who misses a crucial penalty in a World Cup Hockey final match against arch rivals Pakistan, due to which India lose the game. Allegations of match fixing are charged against him and he is publicly humiliated , ostracised from society and relegated to oblivion.

Seven years later when the Indian Hockey association cannot find a coach for their world cup bound women's hockey team, Kabir Khan ( Shahrukh Khan) volunteers for the job, amidst much sniggering from the Indian Hockey association officials (portrayed very effectively by Anjan Srivastav). How Kabir Khan makes the sixteen girls chosen to represent India at the World Cup Tournament into a formidable Cup winning team is what, 'Chak De India' is all about.

All praise to Aditya Chopra to have the vision to back such an unusual plot, only a big production house such as Yash Raj Films could have given it the kind of support it needed. Shimit Amin has made the film with great honesty and it shows in every frame. His shot takings and the performances of the women hockey players are praise worthy. He has not strayed away from the plot at any time, to further the commercial value of the film, inspite of having a big star like Shahrukh.

Jaideep Sahni once again proves (after “Khosla ka Ghosla”) that he is truly a path breaking writer with a fresh and innovative approach to story-telling. Shahrukh Khan delivers a great performance he brings to his character the exact amount of restrain and energy required, with this film he proves that he has mastered his craft as an actor. All the other departments be it cinematography, editing, costume design, production design, music lend admirable support to make 'Chak De India' a credible and believable film.

The introduction sequence of the players to the coach and the fight sequence at McDonalds are both brilliantly conceived and executed. A word of praise to the casting director for the perfect casting of the women hockey players, each and everyone of them look the part and have acted freely and with the right amount of earnesty needed. 'Chak De India' offers great value for money and has great entertaining moments........ a must-see film.

End Credits

Starring : Shahrukh Khan...... Kabir Khan
Vidya Malvade...... Vidya Sharma
Anjan Srivastava
Javed Khan
Vibha Chibbar
Nakul Vaid
Sagarika Ghatge...... Preeti Sabarwal
Chitrashi Rawat...... Komal Chautala
Shilpa Shukla...... Bindia Naik
Tanya Abrol...... Balbir Kaur
Anaitha Nair...... Aliya Bose
Shubhi Mehta...... Gunjan Lakhani
Nisha Nair...... Soimoi Kerketa
Sandia Furtado...... Nethra Reddy
Arya Menon...... Gul Iqbal
Masochon V. Zimik...... Molly Zimik
Kimi Laldawla...... Mary Ralte
Producer : Aditya Chopra
Director : Shimit Amin
Music : Salim Merchant, Sulaiman Merchant
Cinematography : Sudeep Chatterjee
Story / Writer : Jaideep Sahni

Released on : August 10, 2007

Labels: bollywood, chak de, review, sharukh khan

Posted by Raj at 7:20 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Gandhi My father tells the story of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (Darshan Jariwala) and Kasturba Gandhi’s (Shefali Chhaya) relationship with their eldest son Harilal Karamchand Gandhi (Akshaye Khanna). Veteran Feroz Abbas Khan has directed the film which is based on his play ‘Mahatma vs Harilal’.

In the shadows of the Father of the nation lived his own son Harilal Gandhi, straying in the streets of India like a beggar. Harilal Gandhi is a looser, who fails to live upto the Gandhi surname. A rebellion converting to Islam, converting back to Hinduism as a remorse for his past conduct and finally drinking himself to death 5 months after the death of his great father. Mahatma Gandhi succeded in saving the nation from the British, but failed miserably in saving his son.

Sounds amazing and very interesting, doesnt it? How i wish the execution could do justice. Unfortunately, Gandhi My Father disappoints. The first half of the movie lacks the moments required to carry a historical. The pace in the first hour is sluggish. The narration picks up in the second half with a few brilliantly executed scenes. The railway station scene wherein Harilal gifts his mother a Orange and while the whole crowd that has gathered is cheering the Mahatma his son is cheering his mother, Kasturba Gandhi. Amazingly executed and Akshaye Khanna is in full form in the all important scene.

Technically the movie is strong and director Feroz Abbas Khan deserves credit. Cinematography by David Macdonald is splendid. The pre independence era and the overall look and feel has been captured on celluloid in detail. The background music is first rate.

Akshaye Khanna is brilliant. He has lived the role of Harilal Gandhi. Although not a very meaty role, he is bound to win a lot of accolades for this performance. Darshan Jariwala too has delivered a knockout performance. To state that he is Brilliant as Mahatma Gandhi would be a understatement. Shefali Chhaya excels, yet again. Bhoomika Chawla is good.

To sum things up, Gandhi My Father is a average movie with powerful performances by the lead actors. The movie has its moments but just not enough to carry a historical. Somehow, somewhere there is something lacking. In short Gandhi my father failed to live upto my expectations.

End Credit

Starring : Darshan Jariwala, Akshaye Khanna, Shefali Shah, Bhumika Chawla
Director : Feroz Abbas Khan
Producer: Anil Kapoor
Music: Piyush Kanojia
Cinematography: David McDonald
Editor: Sreekar Prasad
Screenplay: Feroz Abbas Khan

Labels: akshay khanna, bollywood, gandhi, review

Posted by Raj at 2:00 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Cash revolves around the heist of a set of diamonds and the fight between the good, the bad and the cops in possessing the diamonds. In stunts - in locales - in style, Cash resembles DUS.

Angad (Suniel Shetty) an underworld Don is after a set of diamonds that comes way back from history. Aditi (Dia Mirza) his girlfriend takes help from her good friend Doc (Ajay Devgan) to execute Angad’s plan. Doc an ace con artist employes Lucky (Ritesh Deshmukh), Danny / DJ (Zayed Khan) and Pooja (Esha Deol) in accomplishing this task. Shania (Shamita Shetty) is the head of the security in guarding the diamonds. She is unaware of the fact that her boyfriend Karan is Doc from whom she has to guard the diamonds. How these groups impede with each other and get hold of the diamonds forms the rest of the story.

The first half is with its sluggish pace drags along and almost half of it is spent in introducing the characters. The film catches pace as it nears the climax. The use of animation could have been avoided at few instances.

Ajay Devgan looks life less throughout the movie. He sure does look stylish but his acting looks kinda unnatural and forced. Zayed Khan and Ritesh Deshmukh look cool and excel in the acting department with spirited performance. Suniel Shetty’s performance is good but his role in the movie could have been better. Shamita Shetty couldn’t beat her sister Shilpa Shetty in stunts (from her movie DUS) . Esha Deol wears a blank look. She needs to work on her style as well as acting. Dia Mirza looks ravishing.

On the whole, Cash has style - action - stunts in abundance but unfortunately no substance to keep you hooked.



End Credits

Starring : Ajay Devgan, Suniel Shetty, Zayed Khan, Ritesh Deskmukh, Shamita Shetty, Esha Deol and Dia Mirza.
Director : Anubhav Sinha
Music : Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani
Lyricists: Vishal Dadlani, Panchhi Jalonvi
Cinematography: Ravi Walia
Editor: Amarjeet Singh
Story : Yash-Vinay

Labels: action, ajay, bollywood, cash, review

Posted by Raj at 1:40 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Shankar Dada (Chiranjeevi) is a local dada. Shankar loses his heart to Jahnavi (Karishma Kotak), a radio jockey, after listening to her sweet voice in an FM channel. Once, he gets an opportunity to meet her through a contest on Gandhi and his teachings.

With the help of some professors, Shankar manages to win the contest and meets her. Jahnavi invites him to Second Innings House where there are some old men to give a lecture on Gandhigiri. With no options left, Shankar goes to library and reads about Gandhi.

As he continues to study about Gandhi, Shankar gets hallucination of watching Bapu. It helps him in the other way in giving good messages to the society.

Shankar starts frequenting to Second Innings House to meet Jahnavi. Rajalingam (Sayaji Shinde) eyes that house, for the marriage of his daughter. Learning that Shankar's girlfriend Jahnavi is staying with those old men, Rajalingam plans a trip for Shankar along with Jahnavi and the old men and gets the building vacated by ATM.

Shankar tells Rajalingam to return that building and he starts using Gandhigiri instead of Dadagiri. But Rajalingam did not relent. In order to teach him a lesson, Shankar and the old men start staging Satyagraha. At one point, Shankar reveals to Jahnavi that he was not a professor and only a local dada. So Jahnavi hates him and leaves the place.


In the climax, when Rajalingam's daughter's marriage was about to be cancelled, Shankar enters the scene and tries to convince the bridegroom's father (Saratbabu). Though he refuses to accept the alliance, his son (Pawan Kalyan) tells his father that he would surely marry the girl, as he became a fan of Shankar through the FM programme. The film ends on a happy note with the union of Shankar and Jahnavi.

Chiranjeevi once again proved that he is an expert in comedy timing and did the role with fantastic ease.

Debutant heroine Karishma Katak is the main drawback of the film.

Srikanth had got yet another chance to work with Chiranjeevi and he had a lengthy role along with Chiranjeevi. The scene where Chiru says sorry to Srikanth is excellent. Pawan Kalyan, Sada, Raviteja, Allu Arjun, Prabhudeva, Devisri Prasad gave a guest appearance in the movie.

The production values of Gemini Film Circuit are adequate.

First half of the film offers entertainment. Second half has heavy moments with emotional appeal.


End Credits

Starring : Chiranjeevi, Karishma Kotak, Srikanth, Sayaji Shinde, Sada, Rohit, Brahmanandam, MS Narayana, Venu Madhav, Dharmavarapu Subramanyam, Melkote, Kantha Rao, Sunil, Yana Gupta
Special Appearence : Pawan Kalyan, Raviteja, Alluarjun, Prabudeva, Nagendrababu.
Camera : Chota K Naidu
Dialogues : Paruchuri brothers
Music : Devi Sri Prasad
Story : Raju Hirani
Screenplay - direction : Prabhudeva
Producer: Gemini Film Circuit

Released on : 27 July 2007

Labels: chiru, comedy, pawan, review, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 2:56 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix contains 20 min 18 secs 3D Imax version at the end of the movie.
The 3D Imax version of the movie came out extraordinarly and rest of the movie is Ok.

Here starts the film, benefiting from a potent script by Michael Goldenberg, with a near-documentary realism when Harry and his cousin Dudley are attacked by Dementors in a park near the suburban home where Harry lives when he's not at Hogwarts.
There's a fresh sense here of life lived not imagined. Trouble ensues when Harry is threatened with expulsion by the Ministry of Magic since he used magic outside of school to defeat the enemy. The threat hides a deeper plot against Harry and his mentor, Professor Dumbledore (Michael Gambon). Harry's claims that the Dark Prince, Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) has returned is seen as a ploy to overthrow the Ministry. It's then that Harry meets his toughest adversary yet, a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Don't be fooled that she turns out to be the diminutive, mousy Dolores Umbridge. As written by Rowling and played by the magnificent Imelda Staunton, Dolores is the personification of bureaucracy as evil. With her rules, prejudices and steely smile, Dolores is a kind of Dick Cheney in skirts. Staunton is a devastating blend of mirth and menace. Not for a second will you take your eyes off of her.

No wonder Harry and his friends build an army to fight her. One of the joys of this film is watching Daniel Radcliffe, 17, grow so impressively into the role of Harry. He digs deep into the character and into Harry's nightmares. It's a sensational performance, touching all the bases from tender (Harry's kiss with Cho Chang, played by the lovely Katie Leung) to fearful (the dreams of death that wake him up in a cold sweat). This is the film where the actors we've watched through five films seem to blossom and mature before our eyes. Among Harry's core group, Emma Watson paints a striking portrait of emerging womanhood as Hermoine Granger. And blimey if Rupert Grint doesn't storm the barricades of boyishness to find something emergent, touching and vital in Ron Weasley.

All the actors excel, notably Gary Oldman as Sirius Black and Alan Rickman as Severus Snape, but it's the tale itself that hurtles the movie along. That momentum carries you over the film's few rough patches.


End Credits

Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Harry Melling, Emma Watson, Jason Boyd, Rupert Grint, Richard Macklin, Kathryn Hunter, Miles Jupp, Fiona Shaw, Richard Griffiths
Director: David Yates
Writers: Michael Goldenberg (screenplay),J.K. Rowling (novel)
Music: Nicholas Hooper

Released on: 13th July 2007


Sound Track

Labels: harry, Hollywood, phoenix, potter, review, soundtrack

Posted by Raj at 9:17 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

The film Toss with Upendra, Raja, Priyamani and Kaman Jethmalni fails to live up to expectations.

The story is about Neelakanata (Upendra) and his sister Nayani (Priyamani) who lost their parents in childhood. They are the children of a sincere police conistable who serves a honest police officer Shivaji Rao (Vinodhkumar) father of parusuram(Raja) but his colleague Naik (Suman) is jealous because he did not get a police medal. He hatches a plot to defame his friend and fellow police officer.

Parsuram is a self-employed youth with a difference. He does justice to the wrongdoers by charging SET (Self Employment Tax).He comes in contact with Naik who gives him the task of unearthing 10 crore from Neelakanta. The money was actually robbed from a bank by sulthan and Neelakanta snatches it from him.

Parasuram befriends Nayana and Neelakanta. When Neelkanata learns the Parasuram is the one he is looking for since the last 20 years he wants to take revenge. Nayan is also ready to sacrifice her love for the sake of his brother's revenge. But like in all films, the film, after a couple of turns and twists ends on a predictable note - with Parasuram marrying Nayana.



Neelkanata is killed trying to save his sister from a bullet. Parasuram also takes revenge on his father's killer and also exposes Naik.

The comedy is routine. Songs are good but the film has an overdose of violence. Kamana Jethmalanai's role is somewhat unconvincing. Raja, Upendra and Priyamanai are ok. Though some dialogues are good, they don't stand out because the entire film is verbose. Fights are executed in a shabby style. The excessive cg work mars the effect of the viewing pleasure.


End Credits

Starring: Upendra, Raja, Priyamani, Kamna Jetmalani, Suman, Vinod Kumar, Krishna Bhagawan, Ali, Jeeva & Venu Madhav
Dialogues: Sampat Nandi
Music: Mani Sharma
Story - screenplay - editing - dialogues: Priyadarshini Ram
Producer: Dev Amar

Released on: 14th July 2007

Labels: review, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 9:00 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

The film is the story about a happy family consisting of Kota who plays a TV reporter, his wife, two sons ACP Bose (Jagapathi Babu) and his wife Kalyanai and Chandu (Gopichand) and a granddaughter.

Bose is an honest cop who is trying to wipe out crime. He learns about the activities of Settlement Shankar (Yashpal Sharma). But he can't do anything as the villain is very clever and does not leave any evidence behind after committing the crime.

Chandu(Gopichand) falls in love with the heroine Anushka who is his classmate. The villain forces the chairman of a private bank to lend him 100 crores and when pressurized bumps him off. The hero's friend Shafi double-crosses him and that leads to the death of Bose. With this the hero sets off on his Lakshyam – that is to take revenge on DGP Devaraj and the villain settlement Shankar.

Gopichand has shown tremendous variety in his histrionics. He is extremely casual and gave an effortless performance in romantic episodes with Anushka. He is intense in emotional scenes and his performance in the death scene of his brother is exemplary. He mastered the art of making fights believable. His dancing ability improved in this film and there is fluidity in his dance movements.

Jagapathi Babu as a honest cop is quite convincing. Anushka is beautiful and carries the film with her glamour.

The music by Mani Sarma is enjoyable and a couple of songs are good.

The comedy is passable. Yashpal Sharma gives an average performance. Ashsih Vidyarthi in his brief role impresses. Brahmanandam, Raghu Babu, Venu Madhav etc. provide some relief with their comedy.

The film has too many fights scenes and violence which are now typical in a Gopichand film.

First half is entertaining with perfect blend of entertainment and emotion. The tempo goes down a bit in second half because of formulaic narration and predictability in the story. First half is entertaining and second half is heavy with action drama.

End Credits

Starring: Gopichand, Anushka, Jagapatibabu, Kalyani, Yashpal Sharma, Devaraj, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Brahmanandam, Venumadhav, Dharmavarapu Subrahmanyam, Ali, Asish Vidyarthi, Ahuti Prasad, Raghubabu, Chalapati Rao, Ravibabu.
Music : Manisharma
Lyrics : Chandrabose, Ramajogayya Sastry
Dialogues : M. Ratnam
Cinematography : Sekhar V Joseph
Editing : Gauthamraju
Action : Kanal Kannan, Vijay and Ram-Lakshman
Choreography : Raju Sundaram, Amma Rajasekhar and Suchitra Chandrabose
Co-screenplay : Gopi Mohan
Presents : Baby Bhavya
Producer : Nallamalupu Srinivas (Bujji)
Story, screenplay and direction : Srinvas
Banner: Lakshmi Narasimha Productions

Released on: July 05, 2007

Labels: action, family, review, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 12:52 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

The storyline of the film is borrowed from Hollywood flick '50 First Dates'.

The subject of the film is a difficult one but new director Srihari Nanu takes on the challenge and does a neat job.

The hero Krishna (Sivaji) is an artist – sand sculptor to be precise. He spends all his time waiting for the big opportunity. Babu Mohan is ready to give him a big break in Goa if the hero agrees to marry his daughter. The reluctant hero has no choice but to agree to the condition. But after he reaches Goa he falls in love with Sathyabhama(Bhoomika). The hero introduces himself but when he meets her again the next day, she fails to recognize him. The hero learns through the hotel manager that she was a normal girl but due to an accident she has lost her memory and is suffering from amnesia.

Krishna now takes upon him the task of curing her of her ailment. He prepares a CD about her past life and shows it to her every day. Sathyabhama slowly regains her memory and after the hiccups caused by Nimisha and his own father Chandra Mohan, the hero finally gets to marry his love.

The heroine Bhoomika is good and once again gives a good performance. Sivaji is at his jovial best. He also has put in a lot of effort. The film will definitely give him a good name as an artist of caliber.

It disappoints the people who already watched '50 First Dates'. But it may offer some variety for those people who have not watched '50 First Dates' yet.


End Credits

Starring : Sivaji, Bhoomika, Chitram Srinu, Babloo, Krishna, Chandramohan, Brahmanandam, Ravibabu, MS Narayana, Sunil, Dr Siva Prasad, Babu Mohan
Music : Chakri
Lyrics : Bhaskarabhatla
Camera : Joshi
Editing: Nagireddy
Dialogues : Nivas-Ravi
Presents: Soma Vijayprakash and DV Entertainments
Producers: Bekkem Venugopal and Mamidisetty Srinivas
Story, screenplay and direction : Srihari Nanu
Banner: Lucky Media

Released On: July 06, 2007

Labels: review, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 12:35 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Starring : Dr. Megastar Chiranjeevi, Karishma Kotak, Srikanth, Pavan Kalyan
Music : Devi Sri Prasad
Director : Prabhu Deva

Songs
Right click and save target as

Good Morning --- Shankar Mahadevan, Deva

Chanda Mama --- Mano, "Megastar" Chiranjeevi, Srikanth

Jegadekaveeduridiki --- Adnan Sami, Gopika Purnima

Bhoogolamanthata --- Mamatha Mohandas, Naveen

Aakalesthey --- Sagar, Devi Sri Prasad

O Bapu Nuvve Ravali --- Devi Sri Prasad

Good Morning(Devi Mix)

Labels: chiru, music, review, telugulatestsongs, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 8:53 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

In this sequel to the Bruce Almight movie, Steve Carell reprises his role as Evan Baxter.

With really little build up, Evan Almighty jumps right into the mix of things. Right off the bat we find out that the news anchor Evan Baxter has continued his career into one of political aspirations. Right after he got elected to the US Congress under a slogan painting him the politician that's out to change the world, God (played by Morgan Freeman) comissions Evan Baxter to build an ark right in the midst of one of the worst droughts in the history of the region.

In a somehow predictable move the area townspeople antagonize Evan Baxter as he starts constructing the ark. Evan Baxter's reputation is further soiled because his political career is being looked more as a joke when he starts to wear sack cloth on a regular basis, and all kinds of animals are following him everywhere in pairs. Evan Baxter's boss is Congressman Long, who once supported him, Congressman Long becomes the antagonist as everybody turn against Evan Baxter.

Evan Baxter is predictable on every turn, and has somehow enough humour to satisfy. The animals to their part to provide a really fair share of fecal humour. Morgan Freeman offers us a lot of wisdom in the role of God. Steve Carell does a surprisingly good job delivering very humorous dialogue, which in his own style is guaranteed to be adlibbed in great part. The sheer amounts of animals in this movie are overwhelming. Overall the storyline and humour fell really really cliche. Evan Baxter was a mild succes, but just does not offer anything special except few good laughs.

If you are a parent with children, than you will get your money worth out of this. For everyone else, though, it is probably a worthwhile rental.


End Credits
Starring : Steve Carell, Morgan Freeman, Lauren Graham, Johnny Simmons, Graham Phillips, Jimmy Bennett
Director : Tom Shadyac

Labels: comedy, fantasy, Hollywood, review

Posted by Raj at 12:00 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

The role of no-frills New York police detective John McClane still fits him like a glove and he looks as fit as a guy half his age.

It's another techno-thriller with Die Hard slapped across the title. The bad guy this time, Thomas Gabriel, is a former government employee determined to shatter the U.S. defense system because the feds wouldn't listen to him after 9/11. It's a fire sale, everything goes if it's run by computer. A big cheer here for Hong Kong action hottie Maggie Q as the villain's right hand and erotic obsession.

Anyway, back to the plot. It's up to McClane to transport a young New Jersey hacker, Matt Farrell (Justin Long from the Mac commercials), to Washington, D.C., since the FBI believes he may have helped the bad guys, even inadvertently. You'll be happy to know that director Len Wiseman (Underworld) doesn't let the fate of America get too much in the way of the surprisingly entertaining byplay between Willis and Long. The hacker is appalled that McClane's taste in music stopped at Creedence.

Unlike the first two Die Hard flicks, set respectively in an L.A. highrise and a D.C. airport, the fourth chapter repeats the same mistake as the third by painting on a broader canvas and dissipating the claustrophobic tension. But there's no denying that the stunts are terrific fun. "You killed that helicopter with your car," enthuses the hacker to McClane. That he does. Seeing isn't believing. Who needs realism in a summer popcorn movie? Live Free or Die Hard gets the action job done and you better believe that Bruce is still the man.




End Credits
Starring : Bruce Willis, Timothy Olyphant, Justin Long, Maggie Q, Cliff Curtis
Director : Len Wiseman

Labels: action, bruce wills, Hollywood, review

Posted by Raj at 11:41 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Hats off to S V Krishna Reddy! When the industry is running short of unique story ideas and colorful thrash passes muster as good movies to run for hundred days only on star value, Krishna Reddy has taken just actors (not stars) and pulled off a surprise. He is known for writing/directing good family oriented and comedy movies for sixteen years. This time he comes up with a brilliant entertainer - Bahumati. The movie has no violence (if we can overlook just one scene), no gimmicks, and no high decibel dialog deliveries ? just plain entertainment.

From the word go Bahumati packs jokes. And the audience keeps laughing even when the story turns serious in the second half. Most of the scenes of the movie are sensibly directed, with barely a scene or two needing improvement. But it's easier said than done, so full marks to the director. And the plot that builds up slowly is fairly gripping. The director keeps the grip over the audience till the end of the movie.

If it's the jokes of Krishna Bhagwan in the first half, it's the dance and comedy of Sunil in the second half that keeps the viewers glued to their seats, eyes fixed on the screen. Sunil gets a dance scene to show his talents in Bahumati again after 'Andala Ramudu'. Krishna Bhagwan gets plenty of opportunity to enthrall the audience with his unique brand of comedy. Sangeeta is superb in a negative role. Venu leaves no room for complaint. Most importantly the story is believable.

The story of Bahumati is about an honest cop Venkataramana (Venu). Venkataramana is an orphan with strong values in life. He doesn't take bribe, doesn't keep grudges, and keeps his word ? a rare police officer one may say. His wife Bhanumati (Sangeeta) is dead against this type of attitude. She sites examples of other police officers who are making a lot of money by accepting bribe. Even his assistant and friend (Krishna Bhagwan) is against Venkatramana's policies. But the honest cop doesn't change his ways. He is at peace with himself and aims to build a charitable trust for orphans.

Venky's problem doesn't end there. His wife is a cantankerous woman who keeps shouting at him for flimsy reasons and treats him like dirt. The reason Venky tolerates her is: he has high tolerance threshold and keeps forgiving her.

One day Bahumati serves inedible breakfast to Venky. He goes hungry to work. But he doesn't forget to buy a lottery ticket that his wife has asked for. Then he goes to a hotel, where Shabna Khan is working as a waitress, to have breakfast. Venky likes the ambience of the hotel and the cheerful attitude of the waitress. He eats dishes recommended by her. But when it comes to paying the bills he simply has no money in the purse as his wife has removed every penny except hundred rupees that he had spent on the lottery ticket. He doesn't even have his wrist watch on to deposit instead of cash. The only thing he has is the lottery ticket. So he offers to pay later double the amount of the bill or half of the lottery prize in case he wins.

And a few days later he wins the lottery prize ? a whooping 100 millions!

Then the real story starts. Thanks to master yarn spinner Krishna Reddy, the story gets interesting with each passing scene.

Be it the assistant of the rich Bhanumati or the friend of the waitress Shabna Khan, every character in Bahumati is clearly conceived and given shape. Even the music is good. The court room scenes in the second half are meticulously created and directed leading close to the climax. And in the end it feels as if the movie that's of normal length has ended too fast.



End Credits
Starring : Venu, Sangeeta, Shabna Khan, Krishna Bhagwan, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Brahmanadam, Sunil, MS Narayana, Ali, Dharmvarapu
Director : S V Krishna Reddy
Producer : Venkat
Music : S V Krishna Reddy

Labels: comedy, family, review, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 1:58 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Aap Ka Surroor begins with a dead body, found in a remote area, of Television journalist, Nadia Merchant. HR (Himesh Reshammiya) is on a concert tour. Soon after the concert, he is arrested for the murder of Nadia Merchant. The movie now goes into flashback mode.

HR, a extremely popular singer, performer and composer, is in Germany for a concert. He meets a event manager Khurana (Darshan Jariwala) and his partner cum lawyer Ruby (Mallika Sherawat). He also meets Rhea (Hansika Motwani) his event planner. But strangely he falls in love with Rhea instantly. Both fall deeply in love. Rhea’s father (Sachin Khedekar) after the initial hesitation, agrees for their marriage.

But unfortunately, as with most love stories, things take a tragic turn and HR is arrested. On the other hand, Rhea’s marriage is fixed and she is supposed to get married within a day to someone else. HR has one single day to find the muderer and live happily with Rhea forever.

The music is good although 2 songs can be easily be chopped off from the movie. The cinematography is brilliant.

Himesh Reshammiya is wooden in a few sequences and he must work on his dialogue delivery. He does show a few sparks of brilliance though. Overall a decent debut. Hansika Motwani, the kiddo in Hrithik Roshan’s Koi Mil Gaya, delivers a good performance. She is good in the emotional scenes. Mallika Sherawat is plain average. She falters in the all important scene, when her role turns from negative to positive.

To sum things up, Aap Ka Surroor is a disappointing movie. Himesh is hardly seen without the cap.


End Credits
Starring : Himesh Reshammiya (HR), Hansika Motwani (Rhea), Mallika Sherawat (Ruby), Darshan Jariwala, Sachin Khedekar
Director: Prashant Chadha

Labels: bollywood, review

Posted by Raj at 1:17 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

For the first time Emraan does something that he can be proud of - intense acting.

This is a typical masala film from Hindi cinema but it is the treatment of the story that leaves you spellbound. The story of 'Aawarapan' may not offer you something very extraordinary but Mohit Suri does make it a treat to watch. The canvas that he has chosen to depict a story of mistrust, betrayal and search for love, leaves you on a very different level. Mohit Suri is indeed making his presence felt very fast. He has established himself as a director to watch out for.

'Aawarapan' is a story of human emotions that have always been an integral part of all Indian stories. And a story where an employee of a powerful boss develops sympathy for his muse has always been very vulnerable. Emraan Hashmi plays Shivam, who is a lonely person. He has pain in his heart but will in his guts. He is working for his boss Malik (Ashutosh Rana) and his boss is everything for him. Malik has a muse Reema (Mrinalini Sharma) but he is not sure if she really loves him. So, he asks Shivam to keep an eye on her and if she betrays him, then Shivam has to give her a final call.

The smooth drama erupts into a volcano as soon as Malik leaves. Shivam witnesses some hard hitting facts on his back. He cannot believe that Reema had the guts to take a life threatening decision. She had been hiding her boyfriend for so many days from the vulture like eyes of Malik. And, now she wants to elope with her boyfriend. Shivam is in a fix. He has seen love leaving him in the past and now he has to face the biggest challenge of his life. Either he betrays his boss and help the young lovers or he can challenge the destiny and be loyal to his duty. Life is such an 'Aawarapan'.

The movie belongs to Mohit Suri from the very first frame. He is clear what he has got to tell to his viewers in 12 reels. It turns volatile but with ease. In minutes, the film becomes part of the viewer's psyche. And, it is because Mohit Suri gets his artist enact all the scenes very aesthetically. 'Aawarapa' doesn't offer a blooming bouquet of flowers, but it comes as a beautiful cactus that everyone will love to keep in his or her drawing room. It's dark, intense and has lots of undercurrent.

Among actors, Emraan Hashmi scores the maximum . His every move and every cut is very well designed. Right from his first act of violence till his volatile end, he oozes energy on screen. Shriya in a brief role brings in freshness and charm. She is like a fresh breeze of Mumbai Monsoon and if anything is left by the female lead, Mrinalini grabs the space with her guts and matches with the demand of the story.

Music wise, 'Aawarapan' scores at every beat. Raaj Chakravarti captures some very good scenes and emotions on camera.


End Credits
Starring : Emraan Hasmi, Shriya, Mrinalini Sharma, Ashutosh Rana
Director : Mohit Suri
Producer : Mahesh Bhat

Labels: bollywood, emraan, review, shreya

Posted by Raj at 11:30 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

The Train is a copy of Hollywood flick Derailed the script is not very innovative and even the screenplay is a clean copy of the English film but nonetheless the twists and turns in the thriller portions are average and manage to hold one's interest for a while. The storyline, script and screenplay including the characters have not been fine tuned. The film revolves around an extra-marital affair which then turns into a thriller with blackmail, rape and a murder mystery following. The film opening with a premiere at Iifa in Yorkshire may however be a good idea for promoting the film. The performance by Emraan Hashmi is average and hence the film turns out to be just average.

Vishal (Emraan) is married to Anjali (Sayali) and they are settled in Bangkok. He is a middle class guy who works in Bangkok and the couple even has a five year old daughter, Nikki. Vishal is trying to save up money for the treatment of his sick daughter. Apart from the pressure of working hard, boredom too sets in within their marriage and Vishal is drawing away from his wife. At the same time Vishal meets Roma (Geeta) on the train while he is on his way to work. There is an instant attraction between Vishal and Roma. Vishal learns that Roma too is married but she is lonely and unhappy. Vishal loves his wife but the attraction is drawing him towards Roma and he finally decides to give into temptation.

However now that Roma and Vishal have decided to have an affair, a new course of events take place. Suddenly there is another person who knows about their clandestine affair and is blackmailing Vishal for money. And the affair only seems to turn into a further nightmare when rape and murder become a part of the plot. Who is the blackmailer and who is the murderer? Will Vishal's marriage fall apart completely? What about Roma's marriage?

In spite of several glitches like a poor script and screenplay with various loopholes the film comes across as average due to the execution.

End Credits
Director : Raksha and Hasnain
Producer : Narendra Bajaj
Music : Mithoon
Starring : Emraan Hashmi, Geeta Basra, Sayali Baghat

Labels: bollywood, emraan, review, thriller

Posted by Raj at 1:05 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

CHEENI KUM is a cool film laced with good humour. I would call it a mature romance between two very mature adults who know very well what they are getting into and why. It’s not a situation where boy and girl want to run and marry. In fact, Amitabh has a tough time in getting Paresh Rawal (his to-be-father-in-law) to agree, who incidentally is six years younger to him! Now who would want a son-in-law that old! That’s what makes this film delightful.
Amitabh as Buddhadev Gupta, is eccentric in the way he deals with his restaurant staff, his mother played by Zohra Sehgal and Tabu, his love interest. Only later you grow to love his character which actually is laced with lots of love. This aspect is pried open by his one and only ‘sexy’, an eight-year-old neighbour who is dying of leukemia. The scenes between the two have flashes of BLACK. The maturity of the eight-year-old and the counseling sessions they have is something that is believable. And when he gets the news of her passing away just after Paresh Rawal agrees to let his daughter marry him, Amitabh is in his elements. Both emotions of elation and extreme sadness are captured well by the director and executed superbly by the graceful Bachchan. Zohra Sehgal who is witness to her son’s moment of truth, too, is captured brilliantly by the camera. Illayaraja's music is a plus.

A clean entertainer which can be watched by the entire family


End Credits

Director : R Balakrishnan
Music : Illaiyaraja
Lyrics : Sameer
Starring : Amitabh Bachchan, Tabu, Paresh Rawal, Zohra Sehgal

Labels: bollywood, review

Posted by Raj at 11:52 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

the Fantastic Four are a laugh a minute. Sure they squabble, but only the way any loving family does, and they spend much of their latest film, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer fussing over that well-established institution of comedy, a wedding. Reed Richards (Ioan Gruffudd) uses his limb-stretching plasticity to perform super moves on the dance floor. Sue Storm (Jessica Alba) resolves a zit "crisis" through a localised application of her powers of invisibilty. Johnny Storm (Chris Evans) accidentally sets a dartboard on fire in jolly old England. As stone man the Thing, Ben Grimm (Michael Chiklis) is the group's fast-quipping heart and soul. Even mad, bad Dr Victor von Doom (Julian McMahon) mocks, preens and sneers like a pantomime villain.

The plot is simple, but at a compact hour and a half, never less than busy. The wedding of the century, between Sue and Reed, keeps getting interrupted by global emergencies, but this time round, beauty and the brain are determined to tie the knot like any normal couple - and maybe even to retire from world saving altogether and raise their own mutant brood. Trouble comes in the form of the Silver Surfer, a powerful spacewave-riding alien who always brings chaos and destruction in the wake of his cosmic board - and when he gate-crashes the pair's would-be happy day, it becomes clear that once again their nuptials must wait while they and their two colleagues avert another apocalypse (this time involving a giant sentient cloud named Galactus for whom entire planets are mere snackfood). Problem is, US General Hager (Andre Braugher) insists that the Four work in collaboration with their old foe Dr Doom, who will of course turn out to be far more malevolent than the sleek-skinned dude from outer space. Surf's up.

Overall "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" is not at all fantastic


End Credits
Director : Tim Story
Cast : Ioan Gruffudd,Jessica Alba,Chris Evans, Michael Chiklis, Julian McMahon, Doug Jones.

Labels: Hollywood, review

Posted by Raj at 1:53 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

This time around, Al Pacino plays ornery casino host and the target of this Ocean grudge job. The film is, as always, a plethora of handsome stars quick with pretty or pithy lines, lots of smug smiles and clever sidebars. And all of it is entertaining. The cleverly woven plan is even a mite bit less convoluted than Ocean’s Eleven or Ocean’s Twelve.

The problem, in my opinion, was that the characters were too thinly spread, and I still can't figure out why. The movie was two hours long, and somehow I didn't get enough of any of the them - I love Don Cheadle, and I only saw him for about 10 minutes. And, they didn't give you the complicated plan like they did the first time - Rusty and Danny explained it in five minutes in Thirteen. The focus was on the carrying out of the heist rather than the planning, and the fun is to see what they're going to do in detail, and then when they've got millions at the end you know they were successful. All in all, though, it's still fun, and I'll watch for 120 minutes of Brad Pitt and George Clooney anyday.



End Credits
Director : Steven Soderbergh
Cast : George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Eddie Jemison, Shaobo Qin, Carl Reiner, Elliot Gould, Al Pacino, Ellen Barkin.
Screenplay : Brian Koppelman and David Levien.
Producer : Jerry Weintraub at Warner Bros/Village Roadshow/Section8.

Labels: Hollywood, review

Posted by Raj at 11:34 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

The movie has everything that the trailers had promised. The fun, the lover, the terror and the boss.

Let’s put it this way, you get the first two in the first half and the last two in the second half. There is ample fun for everyone who is looking for some. Vivek and Rajni combine to provide some very hilarious moments.

Vivek must come in for special mention for his performance, especially the scene where he very candidly points out about every spring chicken of the industry trying to become the Superstar overnight, aping his mannerism (watch the movie for the real fun). Shriya comes and goes in the songs where one must say she looks gorgeous, but there is a very thin line between glamour and vulgarity and here the lines seem to have blurred. The high points of the first half however must be the songs. Balleilakka simply rocks; theaters are going to reverberate with fans, every time this song unfolds on screen. Nayanthara fits the song to perfection – looking very beautiful. The STYLE song, in praise of the Superstar’s inimitable element of style has been shot in a way that is completely novel to Telugu cinema. The choreographers – Brindha and Prabhu Deva respectively have done a great job. The plot of the movie thickens as we get closer to the interval and it is only in the second half that Rajni really unleashes on screen; it’s action time.

The second half is all about Rajni and the villains, Suman being the lead antagonist. He has managed to look every inch the ‘wolf in a sheepskin’ kind of character. Dressed in white and white, sporting a wide smile, this might just become the new stereotype look of the Tamil villain for some time to come. Villains cannot get more handsome. The script moves at an express rate here, with twists and turns galore. Not at one point does the tempo of the movie drop.

Shankar has taken all the cares to make the script as unpredictable as possible and that has worked, as the biggest twist of the movie fell like a thunderbolt on the audience; you don’t see such things normally in a Rajni movie. The climax (of course you know who had the last laugh) is easily the best and the most exciting part of the movie.

Though defying superhuman powers, the fights choreographed by Peter Heinz (we are intentionally calling the fights choreographed, you have to see the movie to understand) and the extremely lavish sets created by Thotta Tharani stand out. Camera work of K.V.Anand is first rate through out, Antony’s editing is crisp.

A.R.Rahman’s songs are being lapped up by the audience with background score adding substance to the narration. Shankar, the architect of the product should be applauded for raising the bench mark of a Rajini movie. Future directors might find it even more challenging to script the Superstar in the future.

It’s an absolute celebration of one man who can make millions feel good about life just by walking in elegance, by stroking his hair, or just by being there on screen. It is a celebration of the unmatched STYLE of our SUPERSTAR; come join the festival and revel.


End Credits
Cast: Rajini Kanth, Shriya, Vivek, Suman, Raguvaran, Manivannan, Vadivukarasi
Direction: Shankar
Music: A.R.Rahman
Production: AVM Productions

Labels: rajini, review, shivaji, shreya, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 2:19 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

The first half of the film sails smoothly though there is not much of a story. Second half slows down. Seenu Vytla mixed entertainment with action elements. The climax should have been more convincing. The plus points of the film are Ravi Teja and comedy episodes. On the flip side the script should have been more compact. On a while it’s a time pass film if you are looking for Ravi Teja kind of comedy.


End Credits
Cast: Ravi Teja, Nayana Tara, JD Chakravathi, Dil Neha, Sayaji Shinde, Sushant, Sunil, Raghubabu, Brahmanandam, Bhanuchandar, Venu Madhav, Krishna Bhagawan
Music: Mani Sharma
Cinematography: Bharani K Dharan
Story - screenplay - direction: Seenu Vytla
Producer: Danayya
Release Date: 7 June 2007

Labels: nayana tara, ravi teja, review, tollywood

Posted by Raj at 2:26 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Labels: Bean, Hollywood, review, Rowan Atkinson

Posted by Raj at 1:22 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post