Movie Review: Golmaal 3: Overcooked, raw, nonsense - some great laughs though...



Not thrice as fun, not bad either...

The Golmaal Series has always worked for its skit-like sequences, the storyline is a mere prop for the proceedings. Director Rohit Shetty has the undeniable thing for pulling out genuine moments of laughter and Hindi film spoof pieces.

The third film of the series doesn't disappoint.

It starts with a bang with a war of words between the eight (more than ample) main characters, but paling in terms of coherent story-telling, needless plot threads, tepid, unconnected fight and action sequences (finger-bending crap), length, and the tired, repeated, mercilessly extended Johnny Lever act.

Nonsensical, asinine, cluttered, bumpy are some of the words that describe the movie, would recommend it for the genuine moments of laughter it raises in the first half, and some in the second half. The cast and the dialogue delivery adds punch to the scenario.

Arshad Warsi is a live cracker, he seems to have enjoyed this the most; Ajay Devgan is good - a gem of a actor wasted with limited scope; Tushar Kapoor dumb act is still endearing; Kunal Khemu makes for freshness, making most of the opportunity; Shreyas Talpade, the amazing talent that he is, is again not given his due.

Mithun Chakraborty is the show-stealer, effortlessly gliding into his badly sketched role with charm and understated lines. Ratna Pathak Shah is wasted, while Kareena Kapoor's tomboy act is a gap-filler than a solid cameo it could have been. There, that is just the main cast.

Considering the sheer talent and promise Rohit Shetty continues to display, and despite the original, not-so-run-of-the-mill stuff, the film is a disappointment for the classic movie experience it could have been. So good, yet so, so, so many 'bads'. Still, worth a watch, cut the stunt mania and add more flesh to story, we say.

Real Fun

Mithunda reprising one of the over-the-top roles of his 80's potboilers and getting to deliver one the film's best spoof lines...translated - "Thee, whose houses are made of glass, change your clothes in the basement."                                   

DVD picks: CITY OF GOD

Based on true events, you can almost smell the sweat, the groove, the heat and the rebellious madness of youth that the characters exude even as Rocket, one of the many denizens of the notorious slum in Brazil - the City of God, finally finds what he wants to do. It is his story and the story of other people who crowd the world of crime, robbery, drug-peddling and the dream of escaping the slum.

Even the subtitles can't extinguish the arresting tale of human beings so desperate to live, whatever the implications. You will be lucky to catch it at some film festival. Meanwhile, catch it on DVD.

Movie Review: ZULU (1964)

It really happened...

1879, Africa

An Anglo-Zulu war is brimming. After the massacre of more than 1,500 British soldiers at the Battle of Isandlwana by 20,000 Zulu warriors, a 4000-strong Zulu group heads to annihilate Rorke's Drift, a small English Army station comprising of 140-odd soldiers. The breathless drama that ensues in the movie adaptation of this battle makes for a lively Sunday evening at home.

Film Review: Chak De India: Of Indian Women, Regionalism, Grit & Teamwork

Chak De India (2007)
Director: Shimit Amin
Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Vidya Malvade, Shilpa Shukla and other gifted actors 

Even though the cliches of a sports-based film are all there - locker room pep talk, underdog to champion, the treatment by the director gives it a fresh look. The dormitory, the sports campus, the players - look real. They are not stars and they actually play hockey. No stunt doubles here.

The hockey matches are executed brilliantly, great camera work and the sound of the whirring hockey ball, the spectators displayed - without any prejudices. Best watched on a 70mm screen for a wonderful feel of the game.

Shah Rukh Khan is understated and at the same time expressive, none of his stylish dialogues so unfairly imitated on TV comedy shows. We believe him to be the coach, unlike the Karan Johar films where he seems only a replica of himself - Shah Rukh Khan.

Many movies have suffered due to star presence. The story and screenplay are given a pass, for if there is a star it is going to be a hit anyway, why try anything new? Why take risks? It was the case with Shankar's Rajnikanth starrer Sivaji (2007) and Sanjay Gadhvi's Dhoom sequel. Here Shimit has taken the risk with a different story to tell.

The message is clear - cut the jingoism, the big talk - focus and work hard on your dream, vested interests have no place in a team game. By the end credits, the film made me think - What can I do for my country?

Way to go Shimit Amin, has come a long way from the grittyness of Ab Tak Chappan (2004). The most striking feature in the initial minutes are the cultural prejudices of India that are brought out and how we look at women: People from north-eastern states look like the Chinese, there are wild people in Jharkhand, a Tamilian, Malayalee or a Hyderabadi, one is always called a 'madrasi'. Insensitivity and the habit of mocking everything under the sun are highlighted here.