Bodyguard Release Date : 31,Aug 2011

Producer    Atul Agnihotri, Alvira Agnihotri
 Director    Siddique
 Music    Himesh Reshammiya, Pritam Chakraborty
 Writer    Siddique
 Lyrics    Shabbir Ahmed, Neelesh Misra
 Release Date    31-Aug-2011
There are three movies struggling to emerge from Salman Khan's Popeye-like biceps. A cheeky, live-my-life movie where a bodyguard who travels by local train gets to share space with a princess who lives in a palace in the fictional Jaisinghpur. A sexy, physical romance where Khan's pectorals are in conversation with Kareena Kapoor's aesthetically curved belly, bared in a sari that stays up through sheer will power. And a social drama which pits a feudal sarkar-raj mindset with a modern urge to choose love.
Unfortunately all three sub plots are crushed under the mighty weight of the Khan star machine. It is relentless. Khan invents dance steps which will no doubt be immediately cloned in wedding parties across India, flexing his biceps and twisting his calves. He finds everyday elements to beat his opponents, from tree trunks to shovels, and doesn't think twice about using the latter as a back-scratching device. He also makes jokes in rhyme (I'm not a fool/You think I'm in nursery school?). When a local train is going in the wrong direction, he simply flies through the air using cables to get to his destination.
Anyone who has watched Khan's recent movies will recognise the signs -- a killer dialogue which will be remembered till the next blockbuster is manufactured, a signature ring tone, and a pre-fight ritual-in this case, it is taking off his watch. The familiarity is somewhat comforting. The fort where the climactic action scene is staged, with Aditya Pancholi as a worthy opponent, has appeared in Wanted. The shirt flying off and revealing Khan's taut torso is achieved with a jet of water and not wind as in Dabbangg, though the effect is the same. And Khan, as bodyguard Lovely Singh, is as enterprising with his fights as Ready's Prem.
The viewer is not enthralled but bhaijaan has done the best that his comic strip straitjacket could allow him. It helps that Kareena Kapoor doesn't break into giggles when he plays the tentative lover.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/bodyguard-movie-review-salman-khan-kareena-kapoor/1/149622.html?cp

Bol Release Date : 31,Aug 2011

Producer    Shoaib Mansoor
 Director    Shoaib Mansoor
 Release Date    31-Aug-2011

After tackling the global issue of terrorism in the most impartial, compelling and comprehensive manner in his last masterpiece Khuda Kay Liye , director Shoaib Mansoor shifts focus to discussing domestic concerns of our neighbouring countrymen, their community and, by large, the humankind in Bol .
The entire story unveils in the flashback mode as Zainab (Humaima Malick) narrates her life history to the media, minutes before being sentenced to death. Born in a conservative Muslim family, Zainab is the eldest amongst half a dozen daughters of Hakim saab (Manzar Zehbai). The father's quest for a male successor in his family is thwarted when a son is born but with effeminate traits. As the son Saifee (Amr Kashmiri) grows up amidst sisters, the father almost disregards his presence in the family.

Chitkabrey - Shades of Grey Release Date : 26,Aug 2011

Producer    Suneet Arora
 Director    Suneet Arora
 Music    Akshay Bafila
 Lyrics    Rajesh Kumar, Niket Pandey, Mahesh Kumar, Supratim Sen
 Release Date    26-Aug-2011

Seven couples reunite 15 years after they left college. After making merry at a farmhouse, they plan to go back to their respective homes, only to find themselves trapped by an unknown man who keeps them hostage till they reveal their darkest secrets. As it turns out, this man (Ravi Kissen) was once their college-mate and is now basically taking revenge for all the ragging and misconduct that scarred him for life.

Interesting concept? Certainly yes. Fresh, certainly not because a film with a similar sounding setting, if not the core subject, was seen a couple of years ago in the form of 'Karma Holi and Confessions' (Sushmita Sen, Randeep Hooda). Oh yes, that too was a terrible film but then at least it looked better. On the other hand 'Chitkabrey...' clearly belongs to below-poverty-line zone with everything ranging from sets, cinematography, art design and music being simply terrible.

Now all of that could still have been digested had the story telling being effective. Sadly that's not the case either as the film meanders from being now-what-was-that-moment' to soft porn to being severely disjointed to being utterly purposeless and then eventually largely unfulfilling. In fact so poor is an overall shot taking and the camera movement in the film that it seems like watching a disowned TV serial from the Doordarshan of the 80s.

There are occasional moments of a gripping affair in the making and though scenes featuring a woman making out with another man right in front of her husband or the scene featuring two men making out in a shower or the one where a college student is made to indulge in indecent gestures seem indulgent and exploitative, you ignore that in hope of seeing something interesting as the characters try to find some redemption for themselves.

However the story goes absolutely downhill in the second half with a never ending saga of confessions not just seeming forced but also confusing. Who is sleeping with whose wife, giving birth to whose child, cheating in whose business and manipulating whom becomes not just overtly monotonous but also convenient enough so as to lead to some forced shock value. However instead of that happening, as a viewer you only become restless and end up taking a snooze or too as the never ending boredom continues to prolong itself for those two long wasted hours.

While not even one of the female actors can come up with a single convincing moment of acting in the film, men are not too far behind with only Sanjay Swaraj and Rajesh Shringapure at least seemingly trying to do well. As for Ravi Kissen, he seems to have found himself in a Big Boss zone where he ends up being the voice in command instead of an inmate. However he over acts, and how, which is a surprise because one expects better from him.

Ever heard of a bold film that is touted as a dramatic thriller but instead puts you to sleep? Well, 'Chitkabrey - Shades of Grey' is one such film. Boring to the core, pointless and laden with all around poor acting skills and jerky narration, 'Chitkabrey - Shades of Grey' has to be one of the top five inconsequential films that have been churned out of Bollywood this year.

Not A Love Story Release Date : 19,Aug 2011

Producer    Sunil Bohra, Shailesh R Singh
 Director    Ram Gopal Varma
 Music    Sandeep Chowta
 Writer    Rohit Banawlikar
 Lyrics    Vayu, Shabbir Ahmed
 Release Date    19-Aug-2011


Movie Review: Based on the headline-grabbing case of Kannada actor Maria Susairaj, her boyfriend Jerome Matthew and the murdered television executive Neeraj Grover, Not A Love Story is a startling film. Startling, because it captures the nasty, brutal side of seemingly normal and nice people who sometimes, see nothing amiss in the most heinous of crimes. The casualness with which Anusha and Robin try to cover the tracks of their crime, dispose off the body of the victim, make love even while he lies dead and bloodied in the next room fills you with chill and dread. 

And that's where Ram Gopal Varma manages to score a point. Artistically, this may not be his best film. But in terms of capturing the dark recesses of the human psyche, Varma scripts a chilling experience. Not once are the perpetrators engulfed with a sense of guilt or remorse, nor do they even remotely fear retribution. All they want to do is carry on with the business of life as if nothing has happened.
Of course, the film ends abruptly and leaves you with a sense of incompleteness, but while it lasts, it holds your interest. Both Mahie Gill and Deepak Dobriyal imbue their roles with a touch of realism and remain recognisable, ordinary small towners. Varma's camera angles are zany like always and his background music creates a language of its own.

Gory, yes but Not A Love Story is an interesting study of the darker and more devious spots of friendly neighbourhood types. 

Sahi Dhandhe Galat Bande Release Date : 19,Aug 2011

Producer    Preeti Jhangiani
 Director    Parvin Dabas
 Music    Suhas, Siddharth, Dhruv Dhalla, Master Mahavir Chopra
 Writer    Parvin Dabas
 Lyrics    Kumaar, Seema Saini, Late Lakmichand
 Release Date    19-Aug-2011

Can a small film with a good intention, be automatically dubbed as a good film? Obviously not. Unfortunately, Parvin Dabas's directorial debut falls under a great intention but a so-so film category. An interesting title and a sensitive actor's debut direction ups the expectations for this movie. However, it isn't as exciting as it could have been.

Rajbir (Dabas), Doctor (Ruhil), Ambani (Nair) and Sexy (Bharadwaj) are petty criminals working for the local don, Fauji (Saxena). The villagers are protesting their land being taken by industrialist Agarwal (Kher), who has full support from the Chief Minister (Juneja). Rajbir and his gang have a change of heart and they decide to help the villagers even when they have been instructed by Fauji to use their criminal tactics to stop them from protesting. An interesting plot, where Rajbir hoodwinks the Fauji leading him to think that he is against the villagers, while constantly lending his support to them.

The film begins slowly but picks up pace, and manages to raise a few chuckles, too. What works for the film is that it has a simple narrative that gets you involved in the cause and is extremely realistic in the way the four tough goons turned do-gooders go about doing their business. The CM's son's kidnapping and the chase scene when he escapes are very well executed. The film is wittily laced with that typical north Indian humour at places.

But having said that, the movie could have been a far better one. Loopholes galore and a bit self indulgent, the movie seems directionless at times. Also, the climax was highly predictable.

Dabas is good as someone who wants to help his mother and the other villagers but is caught in his bad image. His friends, played by Nair, Ruhil, Bharadwaj are competent but better characterisation would have helped.
However, a good effort. And of course, a great intention.

Aarakshan Release Date : 12,Aug 2011

Producer    Prakash Jha, Firoz Nadiadwala
 Director    Prakash Jha
 Music    Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani, Loy Mendonca
 Lyrics    Prasoon Joshi
 Release Date    12-Aug-2011

Filmmaker Prakash Jha is a breed apart. Beginning as a premier proponent of India's parallel cinema movement in the 1970s-1980s, he never chose to lose his moorings. Instead, he opted to increase the contours of his canvas by opting for a kind of cinema that combined art with mainstream, meaning with masala. Hence the importance of films like Gangajal, Apharan, Rajneeti, where you will manage to focus on some of India's burning issues, without getting bored to death. 


Aarakshan follows the same rules of the games, where the filmmaker attempts to take an incisive look at India's policy of reservation and its impact on the Indian education system. Atleast that's the issue he begins with and focuses on in the first half of the film. The tensions that the Supreme Court's verdict on the Mandal Commission's recommendations elicit find a resonance in the day to day functioning of Bhopal's premier private college as pro and anti-reservationists threaten to shatter the campus calm. Principal Bachchan tries hard to impose discipline within the stormy precincts but soon, the turmoil sears both his personal and professional life. His favourite student and ward, Saif Ali Khan, who has managed to fight the odds despite his underprivileged background, accuses him of being a casteist and turns his back on him, while upper caste student -- another favourite -- Prateik Babbar, accuses him of being a pro-reservationists and holds him responsible for messing with the career of meritorious students. But more dangerous are the moves of the managing committee which begins to see a potential enemy in him and replaces him with the corrupt, insincere, vice-principal, Manoj Bajpayee, who chooses to concentrate more on his umpteen coaching centres than on the affairs and the concerns of the college and its students.

So far, so good. As long as the film concentrates on the key concern, it is full of high drama, with powerful encounters between the prime players. The confrontations between Amitabh Bachchan and Saif Ali Khan are absolutely explosive and riveting stuff, with Saif pitching in one of his finest performances after Omkara. But poor guy! Little does he realise what happens to him in the second half. He is suddenly and arbitrarily removed from the screen as the movie completely loses track from the main issue and peters off into a completely different story. One that tries to follow the usual hero versus villain formula where a larger-than-life Bachchan battles a mean and machiavellian Manoj Bajpayee. The issue of Aarakshan is totally forgotten as the film becomes a diatribe against private coaching institutes, with Professor Bachchan providing an inspiring alternative by giving free tutorials in a tabela (cow shed). Needless to say, all his admirers soon join the tabela revolution, including Saif who is reduced to a mere by-stander in the entire show.

Sad. Because as a film on the issue of reservation, Aarakshan was rocking till the first half. But as an omnibus on the travails of India's education system, it flounders into no-man's land. Watch it for the intermittent high drama and the gritty performances, scattered as they are.

Tip Off: Serious cinema meant for serious cinema buffs who like issue-based films. 

Phhir Release Date : 12,Aug 2011

Producer    Surendra Sharma, Amita Bishnoi, Bhagwanti Gabrani
 Director    Girish Dhamija
 Music    Toshi Sabri, Sharib Sabri, Raghav Sachar
 Lyrics    Sagar, Kumaar, Aditya Dhar
 Release Date    12-Aug-2011

How does one express PHHIR in a line? Well, I'd say, whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. These lines actually sum up the plotline of PHHIR, a suspense thriller focusing on reincarnation. That's not all, for director Girish Dhamija affixes yet another track in the film which bears a striking resemblance to EYES OF LAURA MARS. Yet, with all the trappings that make a riveting thriller, PHHIR runs out of breath before it reaches the winning post.

Problem kya hain? Dhamija, who had made an engrossing thriller in YAKEEN earlier, has an interesting plot on hand this time as well and I must add, he's shot the film very well too. In fact, you get sucked into the world of the principal characters at the outset and Dhamija succeeds in making you curious and inquisitive with each passing incident. But Dhamija blows up everything towards the finale -- when the suspense unfolds. I mean, it turns out to be one of those typical movie endings, a tried-and-tested shortcut that evaporates all the hard work that the director had invested in building up the suspense so beautifully.

Kabir [Rajneesh Duggal], a doctor, marries Sia [Roshni Chopra]. A budding career and a seemingly happy marriage -- what more could a man ask for? One day, Sia disappears without a word. Disha [Adah Sharma] helps Kabir with clues that take him closer to unravel the mystery of his missing wife. What does Disha see? What has caused Sia to go amiss?

The first thing that catches your attention is the visuals of this film [cinematography: Pravin Bhatt]. The stunning locales of New Castle are the perfect setting for the film; they enhance the eerie quotient. Initially, Dhamija succeeds in creating the right atmosphere. The movie has speed, emotions and drama, but the writing loses its grip as it moves towards the finale. Notwithstanding the uneven end, which enters into the predictable zone, I wish to add that Dhamija builds the suspense well and has handled a number of sequences with expertise. There's not much scope for music in the film and the soundtrack is strictly okay.

Rajneesh Duggal is far more self-assured than his debut film 1920. He's handled his part reasonably well. Adah Sharma essays the interesting role of a clairvoyant with fervor. In fact, her portions are the best in the movie. Roshni Chopra doesn't get scope. Parag Tyagi is perfect. Mohan Agashe is striking.

On the whole, PHHIR has some exciting moments, but a weak finale lets it down completely.