Jannat

Mukesh Bhatt combination always gave us movies show casing the darker side of life. All their movie names have a negative touch usually (Eg., Footpath, Murder, Gangster, Kalyug, Zeher, The Killer, Awarapan..). Considering these, the movie name 'Jannat' is a welcome change, though even this movie handles a similar subject. Mukesh Bhatt declared that Imran Hashmi will reach the top league of actors with this movie. But the movie gives a different experience. There is only entry into the world of crimes and no exit. This theme we have seen in movies several times. The nature of crimes will vary but the movie theme always will remain the same. This movie too has nothing new to offer except that the crime involved is cricket match fixing. But that is hardly enough for a good watch.

Film: Jannat
Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Sonal Chauhan, Jawed Sheikh, Samir Kochar, Vishal Malhotra
Plusses: Well penned, well directed venture with excellent music [Pritam] and skilled performances,
Minusses: Initial portions could've been more convincing,
Verdict: First weekend business has come as a surprise to many. Has grossed very good collections.

*****

Tashan

Tashan is a perfect blend of comedy, action & twist. If you don’t employ your brains, then may be, you will enjoy it. The movie scores high on Tashan (style), glamour and non-stop action.All that is missing is a good script. The movie stars off slow, but after the half there is some things you can sit thru. The action scene in some cases are unrealistic. As per the star cast, Akshay Kumar is the movie, without him, there is no Tashan (2008). Saif's character is a complete waste and Kareena Kapoor looks great but that may be all that she brings to the movie. As for Anil Kumar, he is great as usual.

Film: Tashan
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Anil Kapoor
Plusses: Akshay-Kareena and an entertaining first hour,
Minusses: Uninspiring script and Vishal-Shekhar's music,
Verdict: Flop

*****

Race

The Baazigars are back. Once again, the Burmawala brothers (Abbas-Mustan) dig deep into the darker side of the human psyche and come up with another thrilling study of wickedness.The script is perfectly executed by the director duo and the film has a brilliant beginning but the twists in the climax could have been handled better. As far the acting goes Saif has a done a fair job so has done the leading ladies, Anil’s comic timing was superb, but the man who steals the show is definitely Akshay. His acting is breathtaking. The songs are well placed expect for two. The locales are beautifully shot with mind-blowing cinematography. To sum up, ‘Race’ can be a good watch.

Film: Race
Cast: Anil Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Sameera Reddy, Katrina Kaif, Bipasha Basu more...
Plusses:
Minusses:
Verdict: Hit

*****

Mr. White & Mr. Black

It's the right time to release movies, what with the holiday season on. Sadly, producers, writers and directors are not being able to cash in on this golden phase? with decent releases. If Tashan was a disaster the release of Mr. White & Mr. Black has your brains in a muddle. This no-brainer should have been named, No Grey Matter, instead of Mr. White & Mr. Black. The scenes are badly sewn together; there is no continuity in the plot. With Mr. White & Mr. Black you realize that director Deepak Shivdasani's intentions may be sincere, to make a full-on entertainer, but the film fails to transport you to ha-ha-land. It takes off with gusto, but the vehicle runs out of gas suddenly, leaving you stranded midway.An overall waste of time for both actors and audience.

Film: Mr. White & Mr. Black
Cast: Sunil Shetty - Gopi, Arshad Warsi - Kishen, Rashmi Nigam - Anuradha, Anishka Khosla - Tanya, Mahima Mehta - Divya,
Plusses:
Minusses:
Verdict: Flop

*****

U Me Aur Hum

Love does not end after the first moments of romance have been savored. But to live a life of love with your spouse, every moment after marriage has to be savored. That’s where the true test of love lies and that’s what Ajay Devgan delivers in his directorial debut, U ME AUR HUM. A superb effort from the actor.One of the prime reasons why U ME AUR HUM works, and works big time, is because it's aimed at the heart. Anyone who's into relationships, anyone who believes in love, anyone who thinks from the heart, anyone who has watched his/her partner grapple a grave disease, will identify with a film like U ME AUR HUM. To cut a long story short, U ME AUR HUM marks the birth of a powerhouse of talent. Watch U ME AUR HUM for various reasons, but most importantly, watch it for a new director who respects your 2.30 hours and the hard-earned bucks that you invest on watching his movie.

Film: U Me Aur Hum
Cast: Ajay Devgan, Kajol, Sumeet Raghavan, Divya Dutta, Karan Khanna, Isha Sharwani
Plusses: Well enacted, well penned and well directed venture
Minusses: Gets too serious in the second hour
Verdict: Average

*****

Bhootnath

It's heartening to see the advent of the Hollywood trend of summer movies in Indian cinema. With Bhootnath, Bollywood too recognises the need to cater to the fast growing tween and teen population with specially crafted family drama meant to spice up the vacation. Here, it's quite a riot of fun that a sixty-plus ghost and a seven-something kid manage to kick up with their escapades in a spooky haveli on the outskirts of Goa.'Bhoothnath' is basically a story that we used to listen in our childhood days from our grannies and the winning point for Vivek in this film is that he has made it a point to stick to the basic soul of not only his story but to his narration style as well. There are no major special effects; no background score gimmicks and no major masks or getups. Coming from a director who boldly confesses to believing in angels at the movie’s outset, ‘Bhoothnath’ is a film that will particularly appeal to children.

Film: Bhootnath
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan [sp. app.], Juhi Chawla, Aman Siddiqui, Satish Shah, Rajpal Yadav, Priyanshu Chatterjee
Plusses: A well-made film with some excellent light and emotional moments
Minusses: Vishal-Shekhar's music
Verdict: Average

*****