Justice Is Served

Expectations were riding high for Subhash Kapoor’s Jolly LLB after his acclaimed Phas Gaye Re Obama. And with Arshad Warsi and Boman Irani in the lead roles, these expectations sky-rocketed. Although the film lingers around the same genre of satire, Jolly LLB is social commentary for the masses. And like most things that are for the masses, it too compromises on quality.

The film opens in Meerut, where an ambitious lawyer, Jolly, whose colleague is a lawyer-astrologer-president, enters a courtroom with laddoos to bribe a judge, who is texting ‘love you too jaanu’ whilst sitting in the high chair. However, Jolly wants to make it big in the legal circle and moves to Delhi. And in this new setting, the film loses interest in subtle black humour and becomes an average drama. In a sudden change of heart, Jolly files a Public Interest Litigation in a hit-and-run case against a rich boy, who is being defended by the evil and successful lawyer Rajpal. Thus begins a saga of predictability, where each party shows their hand, one at a time. But you already know what cards they are holding.

The stale dramatic elements bound by dialogues that sound believable only when Saurabh Shukla’s character repeats them mockingly, lead you to be disinterested in this average courtroom drama. Boman Irani, who sportingly steps into the shoes of the villain, is seen saying things like “bloody honest Indian” and “woh toh do kaudi ka wakeel hai”. Saurabh Shukla, who is the judge presiding over the case, grows from being a flatulent self-serving man to a figure that you see as the epitome of justice. And however superficial the flow, you cannot help but pick him as the real hero of the film. Also, although it was great to see Arshad Warsi in a lead role, you cannot surpass the feeling that he lacks the screen presence to hold a film by himself. As for Amrita Rao, it is better to say nothing.

Some scenes in the film are a reminder of the rudimentary satirical treatment that must have been on the mind of the maker. Advocates unable to spell affidavit and careless police officers nabbing the wrong man without cross-checking who has been summoned, are isolated moments that bring a smile to your face. But on the whole, the film gets too preachy by the time it ends. It mixes what could have been great satire, by showing what the moral high ground is; thus defeating the fundamental purpose of satire.

Overall, Kapoor’s film is a decent watch and leaves you believing in the concept of justice. However, having witnessed the reality more closely in recent months, it is hard not to be a little cynical. Jolly LLB could have been a lot more but it isn’t. It makes for a good weekend watch and an ill-informed 15 minute debate over justice.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5

Published in DNA After Hrs (Pune) on March 16, 2013

A Box of Sweets

Entertaining, heartwarming and joyful, yes; but Anurag Basu's Barfi! has loopholes that can trap a Yeti's foot. The plot is thin as ice and is held together only by the sweet moments that bring a smile to your faces from time to time. Barfi! is a great series of short events, but in those events, the bigger picture appears to have lost its purpose. 

The gaps in the narrative are unseen while you are experiencing the delight that the film is, but as soon as the initial charm fades, the shortcomings and predictability of the plot become visibly evident. Barfi! is a story of 3 individuals and their search for love and where that search takes them depending on the paths that they choose. Their destinies are intertwined such that they affect each other and eventually, they all end up finding what love means, one way or another.

The screenplay, written by Basu himself,  unfolds on screen like a spoonful of ice-cream melts on your palette. But, however excellent the execution, every brilliantly crafted moment in the film reminds you of something you have seen in a good movie before. And that may very well appear revolutionary for the naive audience, for a veteran or a cinema junkie, Barfi! is a deja vu. The deja vu not only spoils the originality of the film but also brings you out of the world that is in front of you and you begin thinking about the parallels from The Notebook, Amelie, City Lights and others to name a few.

The music is a treat to the ears but it is impossible to not reminisce the time you watched Jean Pierre Jeunet's Amelie. The score is slathered with influence of the soundtrack from the brilliant French film. The songs are performed brilliantly by all the artistes and Swanand Kirkire's lyrics couldn't be more apt. A special fist bump/high five/ chest bump to whose ever's idea it was to start the film with Picture Shuru. The background score in the movie tends to be over used to fill the silences left by a mute protagonist, which, quite frankly, would not really bother you. It is just the kind of gimmicks that are undertaken to appease the restless audience and to spoon feed them that turn a good film into an average film.

Ranbir Kapoor speaks just one word in the film but reaches out to the audience like he never did. His Chaplinesque performance is a delight to watch and is not only a noteworthy performance but an homage to Raj Kapoor's legacy. Priyanka's portrayal of an autistic girl is a little over the top but the consistency of body language and the way she has carried herself throughout the film is commendable. Arguably her best role so far. Ileana impresses on debut but there is nothing extraordinary about her acting (unlike her pretty face). The overall ensemble cast puts in a satisfactory performance and after a long time, Saurabh Shukla is seen in a role that exploits his talents.

Ravi Varman is the stand out individual with cinematography that belongs to the elite league in Indian cinema. Every frame is perfect and the consistency of treatement is what makes the rest of the units in the film look good in unison.

All in all, Barfi!, for the audience that we are as a nation, will be one of the best films made this year. It is a great experience but there's nothing you take home. You love it while you live it.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Light Hearted, Heavy Letdown

Saurabh Shukla, Rajat Kapoor, Ranvir Shorey, Neha Dhupia et al – once put in a sentence, you get a fair idea of what to expect from the film that follows. Bheja Fry, Mithya, Hulla, Dasvidaniya and more recently – Fatso; are all films that have a niche audience and hardly ever attract the so-called masses. Saurabh Shukla’s I M 24 too is just another example of a lighthearted comedy with a message.

It is a story of a 42-year-old struggling writer Shubhendu Roy (Rajat Kapoor), who is honest and righteous. He lives with his roommate and friend Gagan (Ranvir Shorey) who is a struggling actor and believes that end justifies all means. But life takes a turn for Shubhendu when one day, he comes across a pretty girl from Delhi while chatting online and guess what! He falls in love with her. But, his insecurity about being a middle-aged, bald nobody, pushes him to drift away from the path of righteousness and take Gagan’s advice. He claims to be a 24-year-old sporty guy with long hair, who is a writer by profession, and claims to have written Gadar, Dil Chahta Hai, Lagaan and Kal Ho Naa Ho. The twenty-something internet-savvy girl from New Delhi, wait for it, believes him. The first half ends on a dramatic point, where the girl says she will visit Mumbai and meet him.

But the build-up of the first half begins to gradually decay, as the film turns into a dampener. Shubhendu first attempts to convince the girl of his lie with the help of his friends and later confesses his farce to gain a moral high. What follows is a diabetically sweet climax where things fall into place for all the main characters, at least in terms of their romance.

The ensemble cast includes some renowned and established actors who play the supporting roles. Saurabh Shukla himself plays a bloated television producer and Lilette Dubey plays his chesty wife. Vijay Raaz plays a waiter/struggling actor whose story runs almost parallel to the main plot. The typical one liners that are the USP of such films, are few and far between. The scene where Vijay says, “Yahaan calender ke paise nahi hain aap date ki baat kar rahe ho,” (to Ranvir Shorey) makes you chuckle the most while watching this film. Ranvir Shorey and Rajat Kapoor have lived up to their roles, but Rajat always looks too classy for a poor man.

For all that a film about online dating and false identity could be, this film is vague and shallow. The preaching of “truth triumphs” almost makes you point a gun to your head, and the fact that the climax actually proves this hypothesis true, makes you pull the trigger. I Am 24 is lighthearted alright, but at times, it is light-headed too.

Rating: 1 out of 5

Published in DNA After Hrs (Pune) on September 1, 2012