Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Jab Tak Hai Jaan (2012)


[a grand disappointment]

Jab Tak Hai Jaan (2012)
IMDB- 8.4
RJG Rating- 55

Akira,an upcoming reporter meets Samar ,a fearless soldier ,whose past she uncovers.

Starring- Shahrukh Khan ,Katrina Kaif ,Anushka Sharma
Director- Yash Chopra

In the first half we have SRK who plays a muscian/waiter ,a happy go lucky character.SRK is charming and plays the role very well.In the second half ,we get to see SRK in a more matured role ,a soldier in a bomb disposal squad.Once again he plays the role with utter ease.Katrina Kaif ,who plays Meera ,the daughter of a rich stockbroker.Katrina and SRK share a great chemistry and gets the first half going in a series of songs and romantic scenes.The real fire cracker of the movie was Anushka Sharma.Though both SRK and Katrina fail to deliver in the 3rd half of the movie (yes,3rd half,this movie is pretty long) ,Anushka maintains consistency and gives a solid performance throughout the duration of her role.SRK & Katrina's acting completely unravels in the proceedings of the 3rd half due to the bad screenplay.

The story for JTHJ was not only unnecessarily long but offers nothing new either.Although it tries to stay free of the usual cliches ,all the efforts crash land in the 3rd half.One of the drawbacks is, who Adithya Chopra (the writer) implies the villain of the movie is.Although im not revealing who it is ,its a baffling thought and a quite stupid idea.
The point where i lost all hope,was in the 3rd half where a twist changes the entire course of the movie.This is conveniently reversed half an hour later ,making you wonder why such a twist was even necessary.

Direction by Yash Chopra is average.I have seen him handle a far more complex story ,much more beautifully before.While he captures the beauty of all the exotic locations and brings romance back in grand fashion ,its no doubt that he messed up towards the end.He could have made JTHJ a fantastic romantic movie ,but by falling for the old hindi movie cliches ,he makes his last effort an average flick.The dialogues were not as great and sometimes it gets irritating.

The song overload in the first half was also a bit tiring.Ishq Shaava (Instrumental)+Ishq Shaava(song)+Heer+Saans, play in the gap of just 30min .But on the plus side ,none of the songs seem forced and are placed appropriately based on the story.The music video for all ,were fabulous.The music for JTHJ is above average.Rahman's music might not stand out ,but Gulzar's excellent lyrics make the songs very memorable.

Overall ,JTHJ is a failure ,because of its weak storyline and lack of thought process behind the film.Watch it once if you are a fan of either SRK-Yash-Anu-Kat.But dont expect anything great.

Acting - 3/5
Story- 2/5
Direction- 2.5/5
Romance- 3/5
Drama- 2.5/5

Skyfall (2012)


[one of the best spy movies ever]

Skyfall (2012)
IMDB- 8.1 (Top 250 #219)
RottenTomatoes- 91%
RJG Rating - 99

A mysterious person wrecks havoc across MI6 ,forcing Bond to return to service.

Starring- Daniel Craig ,Javier Bardem,Judi Dench
Director- Sam Mendes

Skyfall is the 3rd movie with Daniel Craig as James Bond.This is also the 23rd movie in the 50year old series James Bond.

Daniel once again nails it as Bond.He gives the character a very matured personality.With Skyfall ,Craig gives one of his best performances to date and proves that he is the best Bond.However the Bond girls fail to match upto the performances of Eva Green or Olga K from the previous 2 movies.Berenice gives a stunning role ,but it is a short role.Naomie too is pretty much sidelined throughout the movie and doesnt offer much.Judi Dench as 'M' gives a good performance.But the person who gives a tight competition to Daniel is Javier Bardem,as the villain Silva.Javier's performance will certainly go down as one of the James Bond series' best villains.What severely lacked in both Casino & Quantum was a strong villain and that is accomplished in Skyfall.Javier's entrance is almost at the halfway mark of the movie ,but once he enters ,he steals the show.Daniel isnt an actor who is easy to overshadow ,but Javier equals him.

The story is the best amongst the Daniel Craig-Bond movies.Unlike Quantum, it gives the story top priority and this gives Skyfall a very strong pillar to lean upon.But it stumbles in the end a bit ,but for the majority of the movie the story is first class.The way it digs deep into Bond's & M's past is neatly unfolded.

Sam Mendes gives Skyfall an intense makeover.He doesnt litter the movie with various action sequences ,like Quantum, but drives the movie with the performances of Daniel & Javier.The pacing of the movie is intense for the most part but it runs slow towards the end (Daniel reaching Skyfall).Mendes has said he drew inspiration from Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight for Skyfall and this can be clearly seen on screen.It helps Skyfall set the standard for future James Bond movies (a tough task to follow through).

The various action sequences are top notch ,the opening chase sequence will keep you at the edge of your seat!The cinematography is another plus point.The beauty of the various locations are caught on screen and will definitely catch your breath.The climax is a beautifully shot sequence too.

Another tradition of a James Bond movie is the theme song & the accompanying credits video.All i can say is - Wow!
I was completely floored by the song when i first heard it ,but seeing how it plays out in the movie was just amazing!The video is just fabulous and is again a series high for James Bond.

The movie was hyped before release ,saying its the Best Bond movie of all time,now after seeing Skyfall ,i completely disagree ,not only is it the best Bond movie ,its the best spy/agent movie of all time.Its a must watch!

Acting- 5/5
Story- 4.5/5
Direction- 5/5
Action- 5/5
Drama- 5/5
Thriller- 5/5
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