83

​Mandar's movie review

"83".

Watched Hindi movie "83". 

This movie is directed by Kabir Khan. Produced by Kabir Khan and others. Written by Kabir Khan and others. Cinematography by Asim Mishra. Music by Preetam. It features Ranveer Singh, Jiva, Chirag Patil, Jatin Sarna, Harddy Sandhu, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Sakib Salim, Adinath Kothare, Ammy Virk, Nishant Dahiya, Pankaj Tripathi, Boman Irani, Nina Gupta, Deepika Padukone. Film runs for about 2 hour and 41 minutes and was released in Apr 2021. I watched it on 16th Sep 2022 on Netflix with Aditi and Dada .

It’s the story of Indian cricket teams feat of winning the 1983 World Cup. India had won one match in the previous two world cups. Nobody gave even an outside chance to India. They were derided. They were insulted. They were laughed at. Not only by foreigners but even our own countrymen. Even the team members didn’t think they can win World Cup. They didn’t think they have it in them. But one person differed. Captain Kapil Dev. He believed in himself and his team. He went there to win. He instilled the confidence in the team that they can win. He won. 

Ranveer Singh plays Kapil. He looks like Kapil and plays the role admirably. Jiva plays Shrikanth. Although he doesn’t look like him, he has picked his style impeccably. Chirag Patil plays his real life father, Sandeep Patil. Jatin Sarna plays Yashpal Sharma. He impresses with his acting. Harddy Sandhu plays Madanlal. Tahir Raj Bhasin plays Gavaskar. Sakib Salim plays Mohinder Amarnath. He plays calm and composed Jimmy very well. Adinath Kothare plays Dilip Vengsarkar. Ammy Virk plays Balwindersingh Sandhu. The emotional guy. Nishant Dahiya plays Roger Binny. Pankaj Tripathi plays Man Singh. Whatever role he plays he makes Justice to it. Boman Irani plays Farrukh Engineer. Nina Gupta plays Kapil’s mother. Real Mohinder and Kapil also make guest appearances, but not as themselves. 

When the players are introduced, you are disappointed because they are not look alikes. It takes time to get used to them. But as the movie progresses the characters grow on you. You start to like them and end up loving them. 

Director has made a focused movie. It covers just the World Cup. Pure and simple. He has avoided turning it into a biopic. So there are no flash backs. No childhood stories. No love interest back home. No villain. It’s only the story of World Cup. It starts with the team selection and ends with World Cup win. Director deserves credit for not letting the focus wander. 

When you make a movie on any game, the game that you show in the movie should look real. This is because the actors are not real players, so even if they act the person, it’s difficult to act the player. In this movie the action on ground is very realistic. Director has also mixed it with certain shots from real matches. 

What is the highlight of the movie? Is it the World Cup final? No. That’s the second best. The best part of the movie is the Zimbabwe match where Kapil scored 175 ( a World record that he didn’t know he broke) when India were at 17/5. That match runs the emotions of spectators high. It gives a great sense of achievement and fulfillment. World Cup final is also very effective but it’s second best. 

Those who followed Indian team then connect to the film immediately. It’s nostalgia. Those who haven’t also like it.

Since it was released during pandemic time, it made a loss at box office. 

1983 World Cup win was a watershed moment for Indian cricket. It gave Indians confidence that they have it in them, they can win. Indian cricket changed forever after this win. 

Positives: Realistic take. Acting. Nostalgia. 

Negatives: Umm….

Recommend watching. 

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Charlie’s angels

"Charlie’s angels".

Watched English movie "Charlie’s angels". 

This movie is directed by Elizabeth Banks. Story by Evan Spiliotopaulous, David Auburn. Produced by Elizabeth Banks and others. It stars Naomi Scott, Ella Balinsca, Kristen Stewart, Elizabeth Banks, Kate Jackson, Sam Calfin, Noah Centineo & Patrick Stewart. Cinematography by Bill Pope. Music by Brian Tyler.  Film runs for about 2 hours and was released in 2019. I watched it on Netflix on 11th Sep 2022. 

Brok industries has invented a product that can solve world energy problems. The chief scientist Elena has found a weakness that can allow it to be used as EMP weapon. She goes to her boss but is asked to shut up. A friendly Secretary directs her to Charlie Townsend agency. She meets Charlie’s angles and the roller coaster ride begins. 

In previous movie the angles were normal beautiful girls (Drew Barrymore, Lucy Lu and Cameron Diaz). Here the angles are beautiful but not in the same league. They are also a bit jazzy and sassy. Ella plays a black, ex MI6 agent. She looks good, needs some work on her teeth, fights well and impresses. Kirsten plays an annoying angle with rich background and colorful hair. She too looks beautiful, especially in the opening scene and fights well. Naomi plays the scientist who shows courage, can’t fight but is still fearless, she’s a computer wiz and also looks good. Elizabeth and Patrick play Bosley (Bosley is a post). Elizabeth is an established one and Patrick is retiring. 

The story is weak. But it’s not the USP of the movie anyway. The USP is the fight scenes and fighting ladies. Both are very good. Fight scenes are sleek and ladies fight very well. 

Towards the end of movie, it’s shown that a lady is now Charlie. Her face isn’t shown. So if there is a further installment of this movie we may get to know who it is. May be one of the original three angles?

Positives: Action. 

Negatives: Story. 

Watch if you like action or if you feel nostalgic. 

Brahmastra

​"Brahmastra".

Watched Hindi movie "Brahmastra". 

This movie is directed by Ayan Mukherji. Written by Ayan Mukherji. Produced by Karan Johar, Ranbeer Kapoor, Ayan Mukherji and others. Cinematography by V. Manikandan and others. Music by Simon Franglen. It features Ranbeer Kapoor, Alia Bhat, Amitabh Bachhan, Nagarjuna, Shahrukh Khan, Dimple, Mouni Roy, Saurabh Gurjar. Film runs for about 2 hour and 47 minutes and was released in 2022. I watched it on 17th Sep 2022 in movie theater with Mihika, Jayant, Sucheeta and Dada .

In ancient times, rishi-munis obtained various Astras. Brahmastra was the ultimate weapon. For generations there have been keepers of the Astras who keep them hidden and safe. Three of them have a piece each of Brahmastra. Junoon and her two lackeys are out to obtain all three pieces. They are determined. Shiva is a DJ. He falls for Isha. He starts getting visions of Junoon and her minions trying to obtain Brahmastra and killing a keeper in the process. 

Why is Shiva having these visions? Who is Junoon? Which keeper is killed? How is Shiva involved?

The movie starts with Ravan dahan followed by a grand set of pandal, a huge idol of Durga. This is where hero and heroin meet. there is a Punjabi song at Dashahra mahotsav. Director is confused if he wants to show Dasahera, Durga Puja or Diwali. He ends up showing all three together. 

From then on, it’s full of action and special effects. Credit should be given to the artist for excellent special effects. The superhero acts, high speed car chase, control of fire. Except the breakup of mountain in final scene, special effects are good. 

Ranbir plays Shiva. He has superpowers but doesn’t know it. When he realizes it, he is afraid of it. Then he starts controlling it. Although this is the central role, he falls short in acting department. He lacks the poise. He appears mostly confused about everything but sure about his love for Isha. Alia plays Isha. She has returned from England but doesn’t speak a single word of English. She is a modern girl but believes in magic and superpowers, without question or apprehension. She looks beautiful, very beautiful and acts well. Amitabh plays Guruji. A Guruji is expected to be the most powerful keeper, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. He is Amitabh, so no question about acting. Mount Roy plays badass villain Junoon. Dimple, Nagarjuna and Shahrukh have guest appearances. 

This is 1st movie of the series of three. Junoon’s boss Dev will be revealed in Part 2. Probably it will be his story. Logically 3rd part should  be the showdown between Dev and Shiva. 

There are several inconsistencies. Shiva, an orphan, lives in a rented space. He has a very modest house but it has a high end coffee machine. Hero (who must have travelled by road) reaches Varanasi earlier than Villains who have super powers. One of them has super powers of fast movement. Fire doesn’t affect the minions of villain because they are wearing a mani but later suddenly it starts affecting them. Everyone has super powers but finally it comes to hand to hand combat. The Brahmastra is very unimpressive. Just a disc. They could have used their imagination more effectively. 

Indian audience had to turn to Hollywood to watch superhero movies (Marvel, DC etc.). Here you get the homegrown version. A homegrown superhero. 

Positives: Special effects. 

Negatives:  Inconsistencies as mentioned above. 

Recommend watching if you like superhero movies. 

Anek (अनेक)

​"Anek (अनेक)"

Watched Hindi movie 'Anek (अनेक)'. 

This film is directed by Anubhav Sinha. Produced by Krishan Kumar, Gulshan Kumar and Anubhav Sinha. Written by Anubhav Sinha. Music by Anurag Saikia. Cinematography by Ewan Mulligan. The film stars Ayushmann Khurrana, Andrea Kevichüsa, Loitongbam, JD Chakravarty, Manoj Pahawa, Kumud Mishra, Hani Yadav, Abhinay Raj Singh. The film runs for almost 2 hours 25 minutes and was released in May 2022. I watched it on Netflix with Aditi on 27th Jun 2022. 

North East. Unrest. Tiger Sanga is fighting a separatist battle. To bring him to table, Indian intelligence agencies create a fictitious personality, Johnson. Ayushman is undercover intelligence officer posing as arms dealer. Aido is an aspiring boxer. She wants to play for India, win Gold, then talk to India about North-East. Now someone is posing as Johnson buying weapons. 

This movie is on Northeast problem. It shows  the heavy army presence and locals alienating from India is a vicious circle.  An intelligence officer who is expected to do his job, use all the resources and get out. But he gets involved in the human emotions. The buildup is good. But the movie slows down considerably after the half way mark. At one point, audience is confused as to what exactly director wants to convey. 

The actor who plays Nico is good. Andrea has a very expressive face. But she looks too young for Ayushmann. Ayushmann has macho look and acts well. Manoj Pahawa does well as usual. So does Kumud Mishra. 

Cinematography is good. The gun fights are good, except for the fact than most of the times bullets conveniently miss the targets. Night scenes are shot well. Beauty of Northeast is captured very well. 

Positives: Subject

Negatives: Slowness

Not a must watch. 

CBI 5: The brain

"CBI 5: The brain"

Watched Malayalam movie, dubbed in Hindi, "CBI 5: The brain". 

This movie is directed by K. Madhu. Produced by Swargachitra Appachan. Written by S. N. Swamy. Music by Jakes Bejoy. Cinematography by Akhil George. This movie features Malavika Menon, Jagathi Sreekumar, Asha Sharath, Saikumar, Renji Panicker, Sudev Nair & Mammootty. This movie was released in 2022 and runs for about 2 hour 44 min. I watched the movie on Netflix on 16th Jun 2022.

Kerala. A number of murders including a minister, his personal doctor, a journalist, a sand mafia boss and a police officer. CBI in action. Investigation headed by Mammootty. CBI is clueless. Most challenging case. 

Can Mammootty and his team crack the murders? Are the murders related? Who is behind this?

It’s a murder mystery, pure and simple. No fuss. The investigation starts and runs into trouble with dead ends, false leads and facts that defy logic. Mammootty wades through all this to reach to the mastermind. But can he get evidence?

Mammootty has an easy presence in the movie. He underplays the role, doesn’t act much. But looks natural. He has adopted style of walking with both hands behind for this movie. His age shows. Saikumar portrays a negative character but the character fizzles out half way in the movie. He acts well and is very expressive. Asha Sharath looks good and acts well. Renji acts well but looks stiff. May be that’s how he is. Soubin Shahir acts well but doesn’t fit the description of a computer genius. 

The direction is good. Despite being on a slower side owing to the investigation audience remains with the movie. Background score is used very effectively in this movie. There are some loose ends like why give medicine and show face, why carry program on USB, why use land line etc.  that director doesn’t bother about. Eliminating them would have made movie better. 

End of the movie, though, is a little too convenient. One error and the mystery is solved. Some more excitement would have helped. Least suspected theory works here too!

Positives: Overall effect. 

Negatives: Convenient end. 

Watch if you liked the review.