Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice

Lets face it, everybody wanted to see this happen on the big screen: “God vs Man”, “Day vs Night”, “Black vs Blue”, Batman fighting Superman, this is the stuff that makes up fantasies of nerds and superhero fan boys. We were sure to just walk in to the theatre and get an orgasmic pleasure watching our fantasy pan out and there was just no way this movie could have fared badly. No way. But Waaait, did it?

There must be a parallel universe somewhere in which Superman is for real. There must be another parallel universe where Batman vs Superman film absolutely rocked, but this universe, the one which we live in, isn’t home to either *Cries Silently*

The movie begins on a fantastic note. The slow mo, silhouetted scenes showing the all too familiar backstory of Batman was just beautifully shot. Ten more minutes into the film, you get a glimpse of how Batman fit into this universe where Man of Steel happened. Its all very good. The foundation for batman hating superman is laid perfectly in these initial stages. But then what transpires after all that is shocking.

The movie refuses to take off. And we are forced through a drag. While we enjoy the dark cinematic experience that Zack Snyder usually has to offer, the darker screenplay probably blinds us from enjoying this flick. This movie takes itself way too seriously and ends up being a bore. While the action sequences in the later half kind of save this from being a disaster, it still isn’t enough.

The reason why most of us crave for this stuff is because of the larger than life characters with super powers and kick ass stories. We don’t want a story that is too “realistic”, and that is what this movie tries to do miserably. It tries to imagine the real world and consequences that would have happened after the destruction witnessed in the Man of Steel Movie. It was more political than dramatic and it kind of sucked big time. Big big time fellas.

An argument could be made that we have been too addicted to the Marvel movies with their humor and fun quotient mixed into super hero flicks but in spite of this it is just plainly clear that this movie fails to entertain us. We could, for example, take Nolan’s Batman trilogy which was serious and dark, but yet those movies stand in a league of their own. They were entertaining, gripping and fun. So the problem with this film wasn’t more of its dark tone but rather the plot and screenplay writing itself. The other disappointing aspect of this film has to be the background score. It was underwhelming to a large extent.

But coming over to the appealing elements of this film, I have to say that Ben Affleck as Batman has taken it home. He plays the troubled soul, fighting and delivering his own brand of justice to perfection. The fight between Batman and Superman was amazing and you could probably go into the theater just for those face offs. The initial stages of the film has got a different dark classy vibe to it which was pretty good, and the climax was pretty decent too. The visual effects again, coming from Zack Snyder’s school stand apart from other films, as they 300iesque in their feel.

And for someone who hasn’t read comics, I thought Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor was a mixed bag. He was good at times, but felt over the top at a few places. In spite of my intial reservations, casting of Gal Gaddot as Wonder Woman seemed like a good choice too.

Though this movie tries to set up the larger DC Cinematic universe, it does so unconvincingly with a not-so-good film. On the whole I would say that Batman vs Superman was a very disappointing fare with a certain few good elements thrown in here and there. The plot and screenplay stand as culprits for this boring, non entertaining super hero film. Saying all this, I would still probably end up going to the Justice League film on the first show of the first day. May be this is a one off bad film from DC and they are going to better from the next ones.

Value for buck: 120/150 (It’s probably 150/150 just for that one sequence where Batman and Superman fight)
My Rating: 2.5/5 

Movie Review: Killing Veerappan

When I watch a phenomenal film after film from Hollywood that’s based on true events and personalities, I cringe at the thought of the kind of movies, Indian film industry usually makes. But that has been changing in the last year. There have been films like Manjhi, and upcoming films like Airlift and Neeraja that hold a lot of promise.

Killing Veerappan is one such kind of film that I back to my bones. There are so many stories in India that are waiting to be told and one such story is off the bucket list, thanks to Ram Gopal Varma.

Killing Veerappan is an intense, absorbing and chilling account of the successful operation to kill Veerapan. Ram Gopal Varma finally, inspite of trying hard to limit the movie to a mediocre film, seems to have by mistake, due to his immense natural talent for film making, made a cult classic.

For the first 15 or 20 odd minutes of the film, the cinematography and the shoddy camera work make it look like a badly made Crime Patrol Television sequence, but that phase is quickly passed off and RGV gets into his element.

The screenplay of the film is so riveting that RGV ties us to every scene with excitement and suspense.  The loud background score sometimes fits the bill perfectly and adds to the chills and cinematic experience, but sometimes, thankfully only a few times at the beginning of the film, falls flat and ridiculous.

The actor who portrayed Veerappan does an exceedingly good job as the lean, brutal, big moustache sporting bandit. But it is Shivraj Kumar who plays the role of top cop, the brain behind the operation that steals the show. He is portrayed almost as brutally as Veerappan himself. The movie covers not just a single operation but couple of other failed operations that preceded it. It also established the brutality of Veerappan quite early in the movie and sets the tone up.

The movie is fast paced, raw and absolute thrilling. It is a must watch! I think RGV has to be one of the finest film makers ever though he tries so hard to be not. But give the man a good story, concept, and this is what he can make. It is such a treat to watch RGV deliver.

Value for buck: 150/150 (Paisa Vasool entertainment)
Rating: 4/5

Wazir Movie Review (Spoiler Free)

From the trailers it is clear that Wazir is a content drive film written by Vindhu Vinodh Chopra and Abhijat Joshi. The latter had written screenplay and story for films like PK, 3 Idiots, Lage Raho Munnabhai which won the hearts of both critics and audience alike, and it wouldn’t have been wrong to place high expectations on this film, especially given the star cast and the tone of the trailer.

When the trailer was out, it impressed everybody and it looked like we were in for a proper thriller treat from Bollywood. But after watching the film, even though I liked the film, I have to concede that it doesn’t exactly make up to be an engaging thriller of a film but rather walks off being a decent revenge drama. The reason for which could be that the movie is laced up with too many threads and themes, and is itself confused of its core theme.

The movie starts off brightly and seems promising too with its Talaashisque tone. But the way the movie unwraps in the latter half isn’t as compelling as it could have been. It jumps from one thread or theme to another quite noticeably. It was almost like taking sharp turns at high speed, and you notice the lack of subtle transition that we are synonyms with Hollywood thrillers.

The movie goes along at a brisk pace and the first half is pitched perfectly but it is the second half that seems hurried. Things almost seem forced and one can’t help but wonder if the movie could have fared much better had there been a plainer, simpler screenplay with a lengthier run time which would have given time for that transition.

But saying that, the last 5 minutes of the movie might drown the entire feel of this movie for the audience. The spoon feeding that ensures at the end was totally unnecessary, and makes the audience feel dumb. I think these are little touches that make all the difference. End the film where you got to end it! I think those 5 minutes could be a very costly mistake for the movie as the audience who are waiting to leave the theater are forced to sit through and be explained of what they already knew. It changes the perception of the film.

But other than this, there are a lot of good elements in the film. The Farhan-Aditi thread is such an element which was very good. They, Amitabh and the rest of the case chip in with fine performances. 

The movie was emotional, well directed and entertaining enough. It has enough content to play with our heart strings. The characters are well established and you feel, root for them and that's a sure shot sign of a good film.

I love any film with good cinematography and this movie does have that dark texture that I absolutely enjoy. So as far as cinematography goes, this film ticks the box. One rather surprising aspect of the film has been its music. I heard all of the songs for the first time while watching the film and I was mighty impressed with at least a couple of songs- ‘Tere Bin’ and ‘Tu Mere Pass’. The former especially was beautifully shot.

The analogy of chess moves to the unraveling of the story is rather intriguing. The first half has the elements that make for a good movie where as the second half falls short of the billing but on the whole the movie makes up for a good one time watch! If you were keen on catching the film, then do, you wouldn’t be too disappointed.

On the whole, Wazir makes for a decent revenge drama if not an engaging thriller.

Value for buck: 120/150 (Worth a watch at the cinemas)
Rating: 3/5