Chor nikalke bhaga (चोर निकलके भागा)

​"Chor nikalke bhaga (चोर निकलके भागा)"

Watched Hindi movie "Chor nikalke bhaga (चोर निकलके भागा)". 

Direction: Ajay Singh. Written: Siraj Ahmed, Amar Kaushik, Rajkumar Gupta. Produced by Dinesh Vijan, Amar Kaushik. Cinematography Gianni Giannelli. Music by Vishal Mishra. It features Yami Gautami, Sunny Kaushal, Sharad Kelkar, Indraneil Sengupta. The movie was released in Mar 2023 and runs for about 1 hour 50 minutes. I watched it on Netflix on 1st Apr 2023.

Yami is an air hostess. On route from Al-Barakat to India, she meets a handsome passenger (Sunny) who takes instant liking at her (who won’t?) and gradually they fall in love. She becomes pregnant, they are happy, he proposes. Bit bad guys come calling. Apparently one of Sunny’s employer has defrauded him and now Sunny has to pay back the loan. He can’t. So they want him to smuggle diamonds to India. The bad guys attack Sunny and in the resultant scuffle Yami loses her child. Smuggling the diamonds appears to be the only choice to secure their future.

How do they plan to smuggle the diamonds? Will their pan work or will it go sideways? Can Yami and Sunny marry and live happily ever after?

Yami looks delicious. She acts well. She’s a treat to watch. Sunny doesn’t have the macho looks but he does a decent job. Sharad is very good. He plays deputy chief of RAW. However his character is not written properly. He is deputy chief of RAW, but acts more like police officer. He is impressive till a point and then writer suddenly loses interest in the character and its side casted. 

The story is weak. The efforts that are taken to smuggle diamonds are stupendous. First of all why would one risk smuggling through aeroplane? All the Hindi movies show goods smuggled via sea. Second, how come no one deducts identity of the highjackers. Every passenger knows who sits next to him/her. Third why double cross the courier if you are going to hand over the diamonds to the destination any way? Fourth, How come a phone records something accidentally? Fifth, How does Yami know the Marshall? The story is elementary. There is a twist. This twist is the one that makes audience want to watch the movie apart from Gautami. Had it not been there, the film would have become ordinary. One feels that there was a lot of potential in this movie that remains unrealized. 

All in all its a good entertainment. You don’t regret the decision to watch but you also can’t help thinking ‘this could have been much better’.

Most of the story happens in plane, so apart from Dubai shoots cinematographer has limited scope. The plane is a set, not a real plane. This is evident to anyone who has travelled by air. The economy class in the movie is more spacious than business class. 

Al-Barakat is a fictional Arab country. Don’t know why was there a need of a fictional country. Shooting of Al-Barakat was done in Dubai. 

There is a strong hint of a sequel at the end. Will it come? Guess, we will have to wait. 

Positives: Yami. Twist. 

Negatives: Unrealized potential.  

Recommend as a one time watch. 

Murder mystery 2

​"Murder mystery 2".

Watched English movie "Murder mystery 2". 

This movie is directed by Jeremy Garelick. Written by James Vanderbilt . Produced by Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler and others.  Cinematography by Bojan Bazelli. Music by Rupert Gregson-Williams. It stars Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler, Mèlanie Laurent, Mark Strong, Kuhoo Verma, Adeel Akhtar, Enrique Arce, Jodie Turner-Smith, Zurin Villanueva, Carlos Ponce, Dany Boon, John Kani. Film runs for about 1 hours and 29 minute and was released on 31 Mar 2023. I watched it on Netflix on same day with Aditi. 

After the previous movie ‘Murder mystery’, Jennifer and Adam have started their own detective agency but they aren’t doing well. Lack of cases has put a strain in their finances and relationship. They get a call from Indian Maharaja inviting them for his destination wedding, all expenses paid. They go. The Maharaja is kidnapped and his bodyguard murdered. Worlds best hostage negotiator is brought in. 

Who kidnapped the Maharaja? Will Jennifer and Adam be pitched against the negotiator or will they work with him? Whodunit?

The story isn’t weak because there isn’t much of a story. The movie is a series of crazy things put together that you can watch and even somewhat enjoy provided you switch off your brain. 

All the characters are melodramatic, larger than life and exaggerated. Director has tried to make a farce cum slapstick comedy but ends up making a shallow nothing. The action scenes are good. The movie has assorted characters. Some from previous movie like the general who has now lost one arm, the Maharaja who doesn’t look like one, Jennifer and Adam. Some new like Maharaja’s little sister, the negotiator, the French bride, the African ex girlfriend etc. 

Since the story happens during an Indian wedding, Adam and Jennifer get to dance on a song in the movie. The Maharaja doesn’t give Indian vibes. 

Positives: Actions. 

Negatives: Story, direction. 

Give it a miss. 

The takeover

​"The takeover"

Watched Dutch movie dubbed in English "The takeover". 

This movie is directed by Annemarie van de Monde. Produced by Femke Bennink, Annemieke van Vliet. Written by Hans Erik Kraan, Tijs van Marle. Music by Merlijin Snitker. Cinematography by Willem Helwig. This movie features Holly Mae Brood, Frank Lammers, Susan Radder, Gèza Weisz, Walid Benmbarek, Noortje Herlaar, Lawrence Sheldon, Kok-Hwa Lei. This movie was released in 2022 and runs for about 1 hour 28 min. I watched the movie on Netflix on 26th Mar 2023.

Mel Bandison is a hacker. A white hatter. She and two of her online friends hack into and drain money from unscrupulous businessmen and distribute it to the poor. She also works for a company. One day she finds a data pipeline going out of her company’s server. She sends a Trojan horse through it and shuts down all the connected computers. This brings her to the attention of bad guys. Her doctored video, shooting a person, appears on the net and she becomes a fugitive. The only person who can help her is Buddy. Her ex-mentor who she betrayed to Interpol. 

Why did she betray Buddy? Will he help her? Who is after her? Why? Can she prove her innocence?

It’s a story of hacking. So most of the action is virtual, except the last bus ride. You have to let your imagination lose to imagine the cyber war. 

Holly plays the ethical hacker well. She looks one. Frank plays Buddy, the ex mentor. He is chubby, old, doesn’t look like a hacker. Gèza plays her date gone wrong. He and Holly come together in emergency. He does a decent job. Walid is impressive as inspector. 

It’s a thriller, a cyber thriller. So there is action, there are fast scenes. You don’t lose interest. All in all, since the movie is decent and duration is about only 1.5 hours, you enjoy it. 

I had never watched a Dutch movie. This was the first. 

Positives: Length. Pace. 

Negatives: Umm…

Recommend watching. 

Godzilla Vs Kong

​"Godzilla Vs Kong"

Watched English movie 'Godzilla Vs Kong'. 

This film is directed by Adam Wingard. Produced by Thomas Tull and others. Screenplay by Eric Pearson, Marc Borenstein. Music by Tom Holkenborg. Cinematography by Ben Seresin. The film stars Alexander Skarsgård, Millie Bobby Brown, Julien Dennison, Kaylie Hottel, Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Eliza Gonzalez, Damián Bichir, Kyle Chandler, Shun Oguri, Lance Reddick, Tasneem Rock. The film runs for almost 1 hours 53 minutes and was released in 2021. I watched it on Netflix with Aditi on 11th Jan 2023. 

Apex industries head quarter is attacked by Godzilla inexplicably. This is first sighting of a Titan in years. As per the hollow earth theory, there is an ecosystem inside earth where Godzilla lives. There’s unlimited energy source there. Only one, who can find way to that world is another Titan Kong. So, Kong is released from his biosphere and humans follow.

How will King know where to go? Who can communicate with Kong? When the two titans meet, they will fight till one surrenders. How to avoid the fight and find the hollow earth?

Alexander and Rebecca play scientist. Kaylee plays sweet little girl who can’t speak but can communicates with Kong. The chemistry between Rebecca and Kaylee is adorable. Brian plays a paranoid engineer. Millie Bobby plays a teenager who is trying to decide the Apex mystery with Brian. 

Hollow earth theory is proven wrong, but it works for the fiction. It’s a clash of Titans. Godzilla is much more powerful than Kong. So will Kong survive? There is a reason for Godzilla attacking Apex. What’s it?

For this kind of movie special effects must be really good. They are. It’s the USP. The story is a little weak. The battle between Godzilla & Kong should have been one sided with Godzilla’s laser energy. But it isn’t. 

There is a big final fight and it involves three Titans. Godzilla, Kong and Meca-Godzilla. Together they destroy entire city. No idea about the loss of lives. 

This movie earned 3 times its production cost. So it was a commercial success. 

Positives: Special effects. 

Negatives: Story,  

Watch if you like this kind of movies.

Luther: The fallen sun

​"Luther: The fallen sun"

Watched English movie "Luther: The fallen sun". 

This film is directed by Jamie Payne . Written by Neil Crosss. Produced by Idris Elba, Neil Cross and others. Music by Lorne Balfe. Cinematography Larry Smith. The film features Idris Elba, Andy Serkis, Cynthia Erivo, Dermott Crowley, Lauryn Ajufo. The film runs for about2 hour 9 minutes and was released in 2023. I watched it on Netflix on 12th Mar 2023.

Luther is a black police officer in England. He gets results, not necessarily always following rules. He is investigating a case of disappearance of a young man and promises his mother that he will bring him home. The perpetrator is in the public, listening to this conversation. He ensures that Luther is stripped off his position and is sent to jail. Luther, being Luther, doesn’t rest. He breaks out of jail to find the perpetrator. 

On one side there is a chase of Luther and perpetrator. On the other side there is a chase of Police and fugitive Luther. Luther’s now retired ex-boss does the balancing act. There is a personal angle to the cop who is investigating.

The movie is long for an English movie. Idris acts ok. His zeal for Justice at a heavy cost to him is admirable. Dermott plays his retried ex-boss. He does well. Cynthia plays the cop investigating the murders and trying to apprehend Luther.  Her character is a little unbalanced. Andy is awesome. Audience start hating him very soon. I believe there lies his success as actor. 

The horrible acts of the perpetrator are nothing short of revulsion. Such sick people exist. The last scenes are terrible. 

Positives: Luther’s zeal. 

Negatives: Sickening. 

Not a must watch. 

Your place or mine

​"Your place or mine".

Watched English version of movie "Your place or mine". 

This movie is directed by Aline Brosh McKenna. Written by Aline Brosh McKenna. Produced by Aline Brosh McKenna and others. It stars Reese Witherspoon, Ashton Kutcher, Jesse Williams, Tig Notaro, Zhe Chao, Steven Zahn, Wesley Kimmel. Cinematography by Florian Ballhaus. Music by Siddhartha Khosla. Film runs for  1 hour and 51 minutes and was released on 10 Feb 2023. I watched it on 12th Feb 2023 on Netflix with Aditi.

Debbie and Peter have a one night stand when they were very young and that’s the end of romance. But they become best friends and remain so for twenty years. Now Debbie, a single mom, has a son and Peter is still single. 

Debbie wants to go to New York to complete a program that will result in a pay rise. Peter volunteers to travel to LA to take care of Debbie’s son. Thus they stay in each other’s houses. They are best friends, they don’t keep anything from each other. But when they live in each other’s house for a week, they know hitherto unknown things about each other. 

Reese plays Debbie, the single mom, one who doesn’t take risks, always plays safe. Ashton plays Peter, a successful consultant, earns good. Doesn’t settle in any relationship. They both have a fear. Fear of losing each other. Why?

It’s a hilarious movie that traverses the predictable path, lands into a predictable territory and ends predictably!

Positives: Easy take. 

Negatives: Predictability.  

Watch if you are looking for light entertainment. 

Nobody

​"Nobody"

Watched English movie "Nobody". 

This film is directed by Ilya Naishuller. Written by Derek Kolstad. Produced by David Letich and others. Music by David Buckley. Cinematography Pawel Pogorzelsky. The film stars Bob Odenkirk, Connie Nielsen, Cristopher Lloyd, Aleksey Serebryakov, RZA, Henry Ironside, Humberly Gonzales, Megan Best, Gage Munro. The film runs for about 1 hours 32 minutes and was released on 2021. I watched it with Aditi on Netflix on 8th Feb 2023.

Hutch lives a pretty routine life. A boring job. A beautiful wife. Two kids. Father in old age home. It’s a good life. One day his life is turned upside down by a Russian mobster and his family is attacked. Now he has to go back to old ways. 

It’s an action movie. Lot of gun fights, lot of blood, lots of deaths. When his family is endangered he strikes back and strikes back hard. Towards end he gets help from unexpected quarters. 

Bob plays Hutch. He doesn’t have a physique of an action hero but he compensated that with his bearing and acting. Aleksey plays the dancing and singing villain. Christopher brings smiles with his transformation at the end. 

Positives: Action. 

Negatives: Story is weak. 

Watch it, forget it. 

The Prince and me

​"The Prince and me".

Watched English movie "The Prince and me". 

This movie is directed by Martha Coolidge. Produced by Mark Amin. Screenplay by Katherine Fugate, Jack Amiel, Michael Begler. Cinematography by Alex Nepomniaschy. Music by Jennie Muskett. It features Julia Stiles, Luke Mably, Ben Miller, James Fox, Miranda Richardson. Film runs for about 1 hour and 50 minutes and was released in 2004. I watched it on 6th Feb 2023 on Netflix.

Edvard is Crown Prince of Denmark. A playboy. Good for nothing spoilt brat. One day he has epiphany and decides to go to America and enrols in Wisconsin. Here he is partnered with Paige for lab. Paige is a focused girl, determined to become a doctor and make a career. They are opposites. Opposites attract. 

It’s a boy meets girl romantic movie. They meet. They fight. They hate each other. They try to adjust. They see good in the other. They fall in love. But will it last? Will it survive?

Julia Stiles & Luke Mably play the protagonists. They look good, do well.  Ben Miller plays prince’s assistant. He portrays the embarrassed and duty bound assistant well. James Fox and Miranda Richardson play King and Queen. Miranda looks aristocratic. 

A movie like this is gonna be predictable. This one is, but it’s too predictable. There are absolutely no twists and turns. Spectators expect some drama, but it doesn’t come. That way it becomes unexpected. 

Positives: Feel good. 

Negatives: Predictable.

Watch if you have spare time. Don’t make time for it. 

Drishyam 2 (दृश्यम २)

​"Drishyam 2 (दृश्यम २)".

Watched Hindi movie "Drishyam 2 (दृश्यम २)". 

This movie is directed by Abhishek Pathak. Written by Aamil Keeyan Khan and Abhishek Pathak. Story by Jeethu Joseph. Produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar and others. Cinematography by Sudheer K. Chaudhary. Music by Devi Sri Prasad. It features Ajay Devgan, Tabu, Akshay Khanna, Shriya Saran, Saurabh Shukla, Yogesh Soman, Ishita Dutta, Mrunal Jadhav, Rajat Kapur, Kamlesh Sawant, Neha Joshi, Siddharth Bodke. Film runs for about 2 hour and 20 minutes and was released in 2022. I watched it on 28th Jan 2023 on Amazon Prime with Aditi.

The story starts 7 years after previous story ends. Ajay has sold some of his land to a quarreling couple, built a movie theater and is living good life. His elder  daughter has epilepsy, a result of the events from previous movie. Rajat Kapur comes back to request bones of his son that Ajay can’t provide. Ajay is arrested. There is an eye witness of Ajay hiding the body. Bones are found from under police station. 

Who saw Ajay? Will Ajay confess? Will Tabu have her revenge? Will there be another twist?

Ajay reprises his role as Vijay Salgaokar.  He looks 7 year older. Shriya continues as his wife. Tabu and Rajat continue in their roles. This is one of the rare sequels that has come after a big gap but retains all the actors. Only the director was a forced change because of demise of Nishikank Kamath. Akshay is the new entrant. Bald Akshay looks menacing. 

The movie is slow in first hour. Scratch that. It’s super slow. Audience start doubting decision to watch. But it picks up speed when the body (bones) is found. The movie appears to have a lot of unnecessary scenes. Spectators think these scenes slow the movie down. But when the revelation happens, one understands why those scenes were in the movie. 

It would have been better if the story had a little bit of pace initially. That would have made the experience exhilarating. But due to slow speed, it becomes only a good movie. 

This film recovered more than six times its production cost. It was a big success. 

Positives: The mystery. 

Negatives: Pace. 

Recommend watching. 

Goodbye (गुडबाय)

​"Goodbye (गुडबाय)"

Watched Hindi movie "Goodbye (गुडबाय)". 

This film is directed by Vikas Bahl. Written by Vikas Bahl. Produced by Shobha Kapoor, Ekta Kapoor and others. The film stars Amitabh Bacchan, Nina Gupta, Rashmika Mandanna, Eli AvrRam, Shivin Narang, Arun Bali, Pavail Gulati, Ashish Vidyarthi, Sahil Mehta, Abhishek Khan. Cinematography by Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti. Music by Amit Trivedi. The film runs for about 2 hour 21 minutes and was released in Oct 2022. I watched it on Netflix on 3rd Dec 2022 with Aditi. 

Rashmika wins her first case. She parties. Hangover. Multiple missed calls from father. Mother dead. She travels back. So do her other siblings. Amitabh is angry at everyone. 

Rashmika is full of anger. She’s the rebel. She and Amitabh keep fighting. Her Hindi has South Indian accent. 

Director probably wanted to show that Nina is the thread that binds this family and with her death the family is in disarray and how they learn to live without her. But rather than that director attempts at black comedy using death. Pathetic. The movie is full of final rites. Rather than using the death and final rites as anchor and flashback to take the story ahead, he uses final rites as the main event. 

Audience don’t understand where the movie is going and probably even the director doesn’t. Audience can’t decipher what message director wants to give, what sort of story director wants to tell. The movie goes in rounds without going anywhere. 

It was so bad that we abandoned the movie. It’s rare for me to abandon any movie. Unsurprisingly, this movie turned out to be a dud on box office. 

Positives: Nothing. 

Negatives: Everything. 

Don’t watch even if someone pays you to do so.