APRIL 2016 - Movie Of The Month

During April 2016, it was the film Laal Rang that emerged as the best film from of the month, out-winning the likes of Ki And Ka, Fan and Baaghi. 

LAAL RANG directed by Syed Ahmad Afzal and starring in the lead roles are Randeep Hooda, Piaa Bajpai, Jaihind Kumar and Akshay Oberoi. This film portrays blood donating greed of making quick easy money but even that would lead to heavy consequences within the illegal activity and friendship chemistry as money overpowers everything. The film is packed with powerful dialogues that helps to bring out a praiseworthy performance by the cast. The script is written with realism and that helps make this film seem as if it is a real life event, nothing in the film was over the top or extravagant. Performance wise, Randeep Hooda nails it by being the lead star in paving way for the story to unravel in an intense scenario. This film for me is a well-crafted dark film that needed bigger commercial coverage because this was a film from the start to the end that keeps you tangled within all the drama, you just don’t want it to end. 

KI AND KA directed by R. Balki, starring Arjun Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor in the lead roles in this romantic comedy drama where the stereotype of the male and female gender is given a swap. What I liked about this film the most was to see something different and not often very common in Bollywood cinema. The ideologies of a male and female couple relationship takes a turn adding entertainment as well as complications with feuds. Storyline is the seller for this whilst the director could have utilized further relationship development. As for the performances, both were good on screen and fit well together, Arjun Kapoor playing a housewife whilst Kareena Kapoor plays the working class woman. The film was attractive, it shows things in a gender swap perspective and that was an eye opener to a certain extent, for that this film is a worthy watch. 

BAAGHI directed by Sabbir Khan starring Tiger Shroff and Shraddha Kapoor in the lead roles in this action thrilling film. Tiger Shroff has this persona of an action fighter and that is exactly what this film cashes in on. Fitting film for Tiger to showcase his fighting ability and he really does packs in a punch in this one. Shraddha Kapoor adds the love angle to it whilst also bringing her fighting skills to go side to side with Tiger through the battle that awaits them and their love relationship. All the action was gripping and solid and somewhat realistically presented by those fighting but what was a letdown was that it kind of seemed as a video game. The story was evident and a good concept but so much emphasise was placed on the action which of course was not a letdown. It was hard hitting and bone crunching with some gruesome visuals. 

FAN directed by Maneesh Sharma with Shahrukh Khan playing a double role in this thrilling encounter. A very good idea but lacked practicality and a solid script. Shahrukh Khan who no doubt is a huge star but what has been depicted in the film seems unreal. No big Bollywood star would be chasing somebody in the public and busy area, firstly wont risk his body and secondly he would usually be surrounded by security. Script wise I liked the concept of showing what a fan means to the stars and what a star means to a fan. But it could and should have been written in a better film as it almost become a film that leaves huge significance of showing Shahrukh Khan as the special one and making him look the superior. As for the performance both characters of Shahrukh Khan were pleasant, Shahrukh Khan playing himself as the star was exactly what we see in the media world but Shahrukh Khan as a fan was the bright spark in this film and simply outshines the real Shahrukh Khan character.

KI AND KA - Movie Review

KI AND KA is directed by R. Balki and it stars Kareena Kapoor and Arjun Kapoor in the lead roles whilst a cameo appearance by the couple Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan. The movie is set to challenge gender stereotypes as both these actors surface a career and lifestyle which is opposite to how it is usually seen in society today.

What the film tries to convey is a message attached to the sexes, the normality duty of men and women. This movie goes against these stereotypes and attempts to create a whole new meaning to such perceptions by reversing the roles. Does it portray gender equality strongly enough? Yes this film does exploit this strong topic really well and even shows the consequences of such role reversal and how it affects one another. But it merely just touches upon these rather than exploiting it much further in the story to a dramatic climax.

First half the story is a bit slow to proceed, but once it does pick up it becomes exciting in wanting to know what is to transpire and whether these gender roles being reversed, work out for the family or not. Second half portrays the consequences both members face and slowly it begins to pave a bearing on their marriage. It tends to be more packed with emotions and drama whilst the beginning seems to be a bit more of a walk in the park. 

POSITIVES

• A good message has been shared and I feel the director and storywriters have done justice to this topic that is widely questioned in the society by all.
• There are comical moments in the film making it an easy watch, Ki & Ka showcase a wide range of reactions that help develop their married life and balancing it with the story concept. They film not only implicates too much in-depth detail on the subject matter, but it also pays importance on how both genders still can do their own duties as to what each gender is stereotyped as. The argument between the actor’s inputs towards stereotypes and the director has done well in showing these. In particular the one-liners and certain dialogues are impressive and adjust well into such view.
• The actors were a joy to watch, Kareena almost seems as a serious kind whilst Arjun Kapoor is presented as slightly confused but calm figure. Both of these actors leave a good impression on screen.

NEGATIVES

• The story had a promising concept that surely could have been screened much well than what it was. It had potential which it failed to live up to. The lack of innovation with the script became a drag for the characters that have not been developed much in the film. The film could have been expressed much further.
• It also takes a while to narrate, leaving unnecessary shots of things that leave no impact in the film by any means. No relation to what occurs further. If these shots were swapped for more scenes that state or has some implication for the story, then it could have given the actors more freedom to have a character development.
• The viewing experience is less satisfying due to the excessive use of close up shots. It becomes a disturbance and is used quiet often. Then there are other scenes where the camera work is shaky, camera shots are used to create more meaning, but it was overly applied in this film leaving more distractions.
• Some scenes were left hanging in the balance, not adding enough closure in having an attachment to the upcoming scene next. This is down to the weak script leaving lack of importance to major scenes that are to be a talking point towards the climax. The director has failed to narrate the story with more purpose and that is the biggest disappointment with this film.

CAST

The characters are good in their roles. Kareena, the working class and Arjun, the housewife making things happen for the family and future.

• ARJUN KAPOOR - Arjun despite being the housewife, has that masculine side to him, being a housewife is an art in his perspective and idolizes his mother for doing such fine job, hence the inspirational and motive behind Arjun being the housewife. He emotionally manages to add drama and his role manages to seek sympathy in majority of the film. As for his on screen acting, he is given enough screen time to lay down a marker and he does this deeply by showing enough ability in keeping the story to flow. 
• KAREENA KAPOOR - Kareena Kapoor brings a hard working class individual mentality but not home based. As the story becomes more melodramatic, she loosens up and ends up having emotions. She impressed with her presence on screen and tries to remain in character for majority of the film. What I also liked about Kareena Kapoor, was that she makes her dream a priority and showed the type of action that is required in living that dream. The way she acted, dressed and stood by her decisions, slowly her emotions started to change to add the feminine side that a female is usually associated with, for example becoming extremely worried for her other half. 

RATING

Overall we rate Ki and Ka 3/5 purely due to a weak screenplay and not much plot development whether it is a backstory or present moment. The best thing about it is that majority of the acting seems relaxed and believable as if it is happening in a real household. But what fails is the way the story has not inputted justice to a very important and much anticipated concept. The writing side and execution directionally has failed this story. There were moments that impressed but not enough was screened to allow elaboration during the movie. This is a one-time watch; do watch it for a fun and free time as well as a solid performance by the cast. But such concept lacked the emphasis of more intense drama and this turned out to be lighthearted film over a dramatic gender positioning.