Rocky Handsome

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/03/25/rocky-handsome/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - Please follow the above mentioned domain as this blog would be deprecated soon. Thanks :) ]

Director: Nishikant Kamat
Actors: John Abraham, Sharad Kelkar, Shruti Hassan

Rating: 2 / 5

Film starts with amazing cinematography and background score. It felt really gripping with good acting and direction towards the start. Unfortunately, soon everything was dumped and looked haphazard. It's a perfect start for a good script, but here the poor script killed everything. The story never shaped well and kept viewers in doldrums.

Nishikant Kamat way of direction is very interesting. I'm a fan of his earlier ventures and certainly this one was also directorially above average. A little help from the script would've raised the levels. Despite this being a dud, I'll not take anything away from Nishikant. It was a decent appreciable attempt.

The movie provides good memories in terms of acting by the little kid. Right from the start, her role was responsible for sticking the viewers on their seat. John Abraham also starts well but does nothing special through the course of the movie. Shruti surprisingly has no role at all.

Overall, an interesting initial build up that never grows.

Kapoor and Sons

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/03/19/kapoor-and-sons/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - Please follow the above mentioned domain as this blog would be deprecated soon. Thanks :) ]

Director: Shakun Batra
Actors: Rishi Kapoor, Siddharth Malhotra, Fawad Khan, Rajat Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Ratna Pathak Shah

Rating: 3 / 5

As soon as you see Dharma productions and these type of stars, there's a mindset created for the whole story line. Despite being on those same lines, this movie has its own charm in many ways. Right from the start, it creates an aura that's not new but lays its own significance. It has nice dialogue writing that flavors all types of moments in the film. It has usual family fights, still it provides a very light-hearted cinematography. Even after summing up all the points, 'Kapoor and Sons' is definitely forgettable. Nevertheless, it's a real good time pass. It has nothing special, but something is really special.

Shakun Batra really has something when it comes to direction. Similar to the feel that his films provide, you'll not know that what you've liked, but you really enjoy. His direction is like a fuel that can lighten any dull thing. Even a family jhagda was directed in a very interesting way. I hope he gets a good script someday and his talent is rated well.

Unsurprisingly, a certain star of the show was Rishi Kapoor. His complete indulgence in the character is just marvellous. A nearly perfect old man role stuffed with all ingredients in the right amount. All other actors have done a very good job. Each one has done full justice to their respective roles.

Overall, a movie that has nothing special, but something is really special.

Zubaan

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/03/16/zubaan/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - Please follow the above mentioned domain as this blog would be deprecated soon. Thanks :) ]

Director: Mozez Singh

Actors: Vicky Kaushal, Manish Chaudhary, Sarah Jane Dias

Rating: 2 / 5

This movie did all to gain the popularity from last year's heart-warming script and performances of Masaan. But the hurry-ness in showing a surge of emotions didn't allow the script to speak for itself. This can also be summarized in a way if we say that plot itself was weak. It's a decently made film, but some looseness in every direction catches the sheen away. It had many different plot lines and hence the story line itself was confused as in how and where to align all these blocks.

Vicky Kaushal's innocence rules again throughout. He acted his disability in a very natural way. Although it was not a great performance but certainly was a decent one. Sarah Jane Dias was a big let down. I had lots of expectations from her, especially after Angry Indian Goddesses. I had started thinking that she's underrated in this industry. She has to put some real efforts to gain any amount of popularity now. Manish Chaudhary as a businessman was wonderful. As always his visual appeal and body language was perfect.

Mozez Singh debut looked more a copy of a well-directed movie of this type. He didn't really do full justice to get all the pieces together. May be he needs a good mentor and some training if he has to produce a good directorial piece.

The background musical score is very dramatic which would've worked if the script seemed strong. But as with everything else, the looseness throttled the glaze here as well.

Overall, a weak plot and a loose execution that throttled the whole grace.

Jai Gangaajal

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/03/04/jai-gangajal/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - Please follow the above mentioned domain as this blog would be deprecated soon. Thanks :) ]

Director: Prakash Jha
Actors: Prakash Jha, Priyanka Chopra, Manav Kaul

Rating: 3 / 5

Film looks like a remake of Gangajal instead of a sequel. Although it's not a sequel technically, it absorbs a good amount of theme from the last version. Story is well scripted once again but not very gripping and exciting. I'd rather prefer to see Gangajal again. But it gains a good pace towards the end of first half and bleakly manages to create its own identity.

It has been underplayed by all the actors and that is the best part of the movie. Prakash Jha was amazing from the start and maintained a perfect body language throughout. Priyanka Chopra was certainly above average and delivered a decent performance. Manav Kaul as the prime villain is also a good watch.

This movie remains a Prakash Jha show where he does everything from writing, acting and directing. This brings down the direction levels a little bit but still the goodness of the movie lies in the repeat of a wonderful direction.

There's a good support of an enthralling background score.

Overall, a Prakash Jha show, where he manages an above average performance in all acting, writing and direction.

Tere bin Laden Dead or Alive

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/02/27/tere-bin-laden-dead-or-alive/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - Please follow the above mentioned domain as this blog would be deprecated soon. Thanks :) ]

Director: Abhishek Sharma
Actors: Piyush Mishra, Pradhuman Singh, Manish Paul

Rating: 1 / 5

As soon as the movie starts, all my senses wanted to enjoy because of the amazing memories of the first part. It was not too late to realize that the movie is going somewhere else. I'll blame everything on the script because movies like this really need a good script to work. Every dimension is dependent on it to work well. There was such a nice scope with all the things already in place, but it ended to be an insult to Tere Bin Laden reminiscence.

Piyush Mishra was the only actor who managed to perform well even after the script was so bad. Other actors were just not able to withstand the ill factors of its making.

Abhishek Sharma has really not learned anything more after his first successful stint. I feel it's overconfidence that has stopped him from growing. His mentality doesn't seem good enough to take him further in this industry.

Music here tried to degrade the movie as much as it can. It was a dreadful experience to tolerate it.

Overall, a huge insult to the amazing first part. It shouldn't be made like this.

Aligarh

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/02/27/aligarh/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - Please follow the above mentioned domain as this blog would be deprecated soon. Thanks :) ]

Director: Hansal Mehta
Actors: Rajkummar Rao, Manoj Bajpayee

Rating: 3 / 5

Aligarh picks a take on all known issues and problems in the society regarding homosexuality. The best part is the decency of the storyline in which it has been structured. It has been edited well and flows respectfully. It could've been a wonder if the gripping nature would've been maintained. But often it digresses from the plot and disconnects the viewer.

Wonderfully directed by Hansal Mehta, he takes his sweet time in detailing irrelevant things. Many times it makes sense but only if editing is proper. Nevertheless, the effort is fantastic in getting the whole plot together.

Rajkummar Rao is just not stopping to improve himself with every movie. He has the sense of maintaining the required body language all through. Manoj Bajpayee underplayed a lot too much but delivered a good performance.

Overall, a decent and a respectful take on homosexuality but could've been a wonder if gripping nature would've been maintained.

Neerja

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/02/20/neerja/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - Please follow the above mentioned domain as this blog would be deprecated soon. Thanks :) ]

Director: Ram Madhvani
Actors: Sonam Kapoor, Shabana Azmi

Rating: 3.5 / 5

It's very hard to formulate the story of a one time braveness. This is because facts of that person's life are unknown. Also there's no series of public events that can be showcased. Keeping all this in mind, this movie was written and directed in an absolute perfect way. All emotions and life flows are aesthetically crafted. By this I mean that you'll not even know that you're wearing an expensive attire that looks so simple but is amazingly comfortable and refreshing.
I know I've gone somewhere else. This movie has taken me to a mode, where I don't even want to review it but keep talking about it. The movie has such a good thoughtful start where the initial detailing is not boring at all. Editing is the certain usp where the efforts are worth an applaud.

Sonam Kapoor may be, was bearable for the first time. Right from the word go, she gives promising vibes. She has really put genuine and appreciative efforts all through.

Full marks to Madhvani. Whatever he had, he has used it in a best possible way to present a master piece as far as the unsung heroism is concerned. His detailing, hard work on every scene is simply marvelous. I hope he'll keep up his hard work and direct more movies with the same enthusiasm.

Background score is good but it touches you very well because of the chiseled screen creations.

Overall, a directorial master piece as far as the creation of unsung heroism is concerned.

Fitoor

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/02/13/fitoor/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - Please follow the above mentioned domain as this blog would be deprecated soon. Thanks :) ]

Director: Abhishek Kapoor
Actors: Aditya Roy Kapur, Katrina Kaif, Tabu

Rating: 2 / 5

As soon as I realized it's an Abhishek Kapoor's film, my hopes raised. But the movie was worse than its trailer. It is very slow but has a calm flow. The focus is harshly on love story only and nothing else. In fact there isn't anything else that's thought of. It's boringness often becomes killing. Second half tries to save it a little and hints some potential turner. However it boils down to the same uninteresting plate.

Abhishek Kapoor was a disappointment this time. I've stayed biased on him for so many years because of Rock On. His effortless performance is really disheartening. He was never able to bring the pieces together.

All the actors were below average and not worth mentioning. They were confused whether to act starry or be down to earth. There wasn't even a scene where the acting could be appreciated.

Amit Trivedi's soulful music was good sometimes but it lacked variety. May be he didn't get a variety in the storyline to perform inline.

Overall, a mere love story, that wasn't garnished by anything else.

Ghayal Once Again

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/02/05/ghayal-once-again/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - This blog would be depricated soon. Please follow the above mentioned domain. Thanks :) ]

Director: Sunny Deol
Actors: Sunny Deol, Om Puri, Soha Ali Khan

Rating : 1.5 / 5

There were all assumptions that this will be a Sunny Deol style action movie. Luckily it wasn't like that, but unluckily nothing better than that. It has a very slow and a complex start. Build up of the characters are extremely poor. Even when a good background score starts to develop the movie flow, its complexity breaks it all. It has a  simple heroic theme, but not made in an interesting way.

Sunny Deol plays very simple, almost throughout the movie. There are times when it looks like he'll blast, but that's masked every time. His screen presence still is very strong and effective. Infact he's the only reason that one can manage to sit through the movie. Another reason was Om Puri's awesome acting. His aura itself was pulling movie up, but his small role was the mistake done.

The biggest disappointment is Sunny Deol's direction. His direction skills are so bad that I'll not even suggest to improve. He should never direct. May be he has written a good story, but the direction spoilt everything.

Overall, a no commercial sunny deol irritations, simple decent story, but still doesn't work because of pathetic direction.

Saala Khadoos

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/01/29/saala-khadoos/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - This blog would be depricated soon. Please follow the above mentioned domain. Thanks :) ]

Director: Sudha Kongara
Actors: R Madhavan, Ritika Singh

Rating: 2.5 / 5

Recently we have seen so many sports' movies. Mostly they revolve around underdog champions. This movie has nothing new, but still gives a good angle to women's boxing. Has a good standard start where the coach develops the story, but the film keeps becoming slow. It picks up on various occasions, only to fall back again. Throughout, the viewers are left wanting for more. Nevertheless, it shows the true picture of sports in India, which is very disheartening. All of us know about the sports' politics, but this phenomena always daunts us.

Madhavan gels with his character immediately. He consistently scores, but there's not much help from others. Ritika Singh entered too much into her character, more than what was required. A little underplay would have really helped her.

Sudha Kongara tries well on her directorial debut, but there's a lot more effort she needs to put. She was impressive, despite there was no masala to support.

Overall, a complete Madhavan Saga that has nothing much, other than feel good sports glory.

Airlift

http://maggyreviews.com/2016/01/22/airlift/
[New Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - This blog would be depricated soon. Please follow the above mentioned domain. Thanks :) ]

Director: Raja Menon
Actors: Akshay Kumar, Nimrat Kaur

Rating: 3 / 5

Pictorially this movie felt like last year's film Baby, but it certainly is different in all senses. Less in cinematography, it has no heroic angles at all. One of the most simplistic and genuine movie in recent times. It focusses heavily on story and sticks to it throughout its running time. It has a great scenic creation of Kuwait Iraq war sight.

Akshay Kumar blends himself as a soul of this whole storyline. He has perfectly underplayed his character without any starry effects. The way movie wanted its leading actor to be, he has set himself entirely like that. Nimrat Kaur is a decent support and has played her role effectively.

Raja Menon frankly hasn't done anything to raise movie standards. The good part is that he made sure nothing is out of place. Doing nothing bad and supporting the storyline authentically is a good experiment that he has done.

Overall,  a genuine and a simple flick that focusses only on the storyline.

Wazir

[Launch of new Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - This blog would be depricated soon. Please follow the above mentioned domain. Thanks :) ]

Director: Bejoy Nambiar
Actors: Farhan Akhtar, Amitabh Bachchan, Aditi Rao Hydari

Rating: 3 / 5

Looking at the movie timeline and the thrilling theme that it portrays, it feels that it's crisply made. But often this short movie feels long. You will always want it to proceed further despite it being not irritating at any point. The plot is very interesting but not gripping. It's very little that the film justifies itself but the awesome ending says it all. All the thrill, story, cinematography steals the show because of the brilliant finish.

Farhan Akhtar not really enters completely into the role but still portrays a well focussed ACP. Amitabh Bachchan had a great acting success last year and is always a treat to watch. This time he's effective but nothing more than that. All other actors supported the cast well.

I'm a fan of Bejoy Nambiar's direction style. He successfully places his style in this one as well. He is brilliant in parts but also below average in many. Like his last ventures, again he goes above average but it's time for him to go beyond that.

Overall, an interesting plot that's not gripping, but the ending steals the show.

BEST OF BOLLYWOOD 2015 : MAGGY AWARDS

[Launch of new Maggy Reviews Domain : http://www.maggyreviews.com - This blog would be depricated from now on. Please follow the above domain. Thanks :) ]

TOP MOVIES:

First half of this year gave a scare as only few movies managed to hit the senses. But these few made their mark where a comedy Tanu Weds Manu Returns shocked everyone with its brilliance. Movies like Baby and Badlapur that showed great thriller value and managed to save that season. Although second half of the year didn’t produce a master class, but gave us a stream of well made movies consistently. Short budget movies like Masaan, Titli and Angry Indian Goddesses showered the essence of directorial and acting excellence. Salman came out of his usual avatar and actually acted in a well made IndoPak flick Bajrangi Bhaijaan. In a year of comic less movies, Pyaar ka Punchnama 2 succeeded in producing few good laughs. It’s worth mentioning master class non Hindi movies like Bahubali (Telugu) and Court (Marathi) that will not come in Bollywood cateogry but certainly shouldn’t be missed.

Here is the list of TOP 5 Movies this year:

1. Tanu Weds Manu Returns
2. Piku
3. Drishyam
4. Masaan
5. Badlapur / Baby

TOP MALE ACTING:
Unlike last year, this was the great year as far as male acting is concerned. We got many amazing acting surprises in few low budget movies. Amitabh Bachhan again defied age and delivered two wonderful performances in Piku and Shamitabh. Ranvir Shorey in Titli gave his best performance of life where as debutant Vicky Kaushal completely submerged himself in the character role in Masaan. Few honorable mentions that missed the top list would be Akshay Kumar (Baby), Kay Kay Menon (Rahasya), Deepak Dobriyal (Tanu Weds Manu Returns), Varun Dhawan (Badlapur), Ajay Devgan (Drishyam), Sanjay Mishra (Masaan) and Nawazudding Siddiqui (Bajrangi Bhaijaan & Manjhi)

Here is the list of TOP 5 Male Actors this year:

1. Ranvir Shorey (Titli)
2. Amitabh Bachhan (Piku)
3. Amitabh Bachhan (Shamitabh)
4. Vicky Kaushal (Masaan)
5. Ranveer Singh (Bajirao Mastani) / Irrfan Khan (Talvar/Piku)

TOP FEMALE ACTING:
Lately, talking about great female acting performances and Kangana Ranaut have become synonyms. Yet again, she mastered her character and showcased an incredible piece of work. Angry Indian Goddesses saved the year for female actors and gave us goddess like performances. Honorable mentions that missed the top list would be Tabu (Drishyam) and Shweta Tripathi (Masaan)

Here is the list of TOP 5 Female Actors this year:

1. Kangana Ranaut (Tanu Weds Manu Returns)
2. Sarah Jane Dias / Pavleen Gujral (Angry Indian Goddesses)
3. Kalki Koechlin (Margarita with a Straw)
4. Anushka Sharma (NH10)
5. Bhumi Pednekar (Dum Laga Ke Haisha)

TOP DIRECTION:
No beyond the limits direction scene this year. But we had a good share of decent directors this year.

Here is the list of TOP 5 Directors this year:

1. Nishikant Kamat (Drishyam)
2. Shoojit Sarkar (Piku)
3. Neeraj Pandey (Baby)
4. Imtiaz Ali (Tamasha)
5. Anand Rai (Tanu Weds Manu Returns) / Neeraj Ghaywan (Masaan)

TOP MUSIC COMPOSERS:

1. A R Rahman (Tamasha)
2. Amaal Malik / Ankit Tiwari / Meet Bros (Roy)
3. Sachin Jigar (Badlapur)
4. Amaal Malik (Ek Paheli Leela)
5. Amit Trivedi (Shaandaar)

—

Bajirao Mastani

Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Actors: Ranvir Singh, Priyanka Chopra, Deepika Padukone

Rating: 2 / 5

Sanjay Leela Bhansali is famous for his styling and amazing movie sets. Again he comes up with some amazing setup and wonderful cinematography. This time the styling had the elegance and it made sense. Unfortunately all these amazing things lasted only few minutes from the start. Although setup remained fantastic, the movie starts poking the head at the end of first half. Warrior Bajirao converts full time to Lover Bajirao, which is the major backdrop of the movie. There's no balance maintained between the two, which irritates throughout the second half. There is a good set of wonderful dialogues where Ranvir gets the majority share.

Ranvir Singh is the star of the show. From the word go he justifies his character and delivers an awesome performance. His potential, that was noticed from the starting, has roared this time. Priyanka Chopra beautifully portrays her innocent character. Deepika Padukone was just average, didn't really attract.

Direction looked amazing in the starting but loosening of the plot affected Bhansali's performance. I would suggest him to focus more on the story, something which he's not doing it for a long time now. His music is good and brings stability, but halts the ongoing story.

Overall, a terrific performance by Ranvir, great meaningful sets, but still a head pain.

Dilwale

Director: Rohit Shetty
Actors: Shahrukh Khan, Kajol, Varun Dhawan, Kriti Sanon

Rating: 1.5 / 5

As soon as the movie starts you'll encounter a typical Rohit Shetty movie setup. Same sound scheme, presentation and nature of the cinematography. Time and again you'll notice the regular old cars bashing. Name any Rohit Shetty film and I'll have the similarities. Keeping aside this, there was no story on display. Rather I'll say there was definitely some story, but a real bad one. It looks like a saas bahu TV saga without any good moments. You'll find yourself waiting for the interval. Soon after, the struggle to sit through the movie will start.

Shahrukh Khan doesn't continue to irritate in this flick. Bearable but nothing special as expected. I'll still stay biased with Kajol. She should've chosen a better movie. Varun Dhawan gave all the laughs which can be counted on fingers. Kriti Sanon remains an unstirred sugar, as there's no reason doubting her potential.

Rohit Shetty has delivered this one without any efforts. Seems like it's time to reap some money effortlessly.

Music was average but it had all the interfering timings in the world.

Overall, a tasteless poor story that was created to reap some easy money.