Raman Raghav 2.0 - Take a Bow Anurag ! 🙌

🎭Genre : Crime / Thriller

Runtime : 2 hr 17 mins

📜Plot :- Set in present day Mumbai, hence the 2.0, the story follows the life of a serial killer Ramanna who is INSPIRED by an infamous serial killer from the 1960s, Raman Raghav. His strange obsession with Raghavan, a young cop keeps growing as he closely follows him without his knowledge and often creates situations where both of them come face to face.

He is back ! Anurag Kashyap is back people.

This has to be one of the best thriller films this year.

The film starts off with a 'musically high' introduction of a young IPS officer Raghavan (Vicky Kaushal) and a 'deadly' introduction of Ramanna aka Sindhi Dalwaai aka Raman (Nawazuddin Siddiqui). And trust me, it keeps you entertained till the very last minute.
(Although i wish some scenes weren't shown in Slow-mo. Buh that's okay. 😉)

🔯 The movie is a distressing portrait of society's attitudes and responses to violence and the people conducting them.
Speaking of which, there is a scene wherein A man tells a woman hiding in a locked bedroom: “I can do anything to you and get away with it.” And that line is not spoken by the serial killer Ramanna, but by the cop (Raghav) hunting him.
Also, there is one scene wherein the same cop assaults his mistress cum girlfriend in the presence of two policemen, who ironically, are assigned to safeguard her from people like him. But instead, they seamlessly watch her being roughed up. Because the person is the one in power.
*Sic*
This plays an emphasis on the line that, being one of the “good guys” doesn’t make you a good guy.

Talking about the notorious serial killer Ramanna (Nawaz), this guy, much like Heath Ledger’s Joker, doesn’t bother justifying his actions, he just enjoys them.
Through his character, you also get one of the best observations of our society, “Sabko kisi na kisi ko maarna hota hai. Koi dange ki aad mein apni bhadas nikalta hai to koi wardi ki aad mein, to koi Syria jaa ke. Mai logo ko maarta hun kyunki mujhe maarna hai. Mujhe isi mein mazaa aata hai.” Bang on ! 👌🏻

I would also like to add, that this is not, a biopic of the notorious Mumbai serial killer Raman Raghav, but closely inspired by it.

In true Anurag Kashyap style, there is no violence onscreen. You don’t see anyone killing or getting killed. We know that blood is routinely drawn and skulls are routinely cracked in this film, yet at no point do we actually see it happening, unlike Rocky Handsome. You see it all in your head and that’s what scares you the most - your own capacity to imagine evil. 🙉

Murder for the sake of murder. Murder sometimes committed in the moment. Murder committed to make way for another murder. Raman Raghav 2.0 is not, therefore, about pointlessness, but about the mindlessness in so much of the bloodshed around us.

Performances :-
💨 The film clearly and solely belongs to the 'character chameleon' of Bollywood aka Nawazuddin Siddiqui and his antics. He leaves no room for doubt and does a convincing job. Be it his 'swift oscillations' between his moods, delivering the sinister content in his words in a relaxed manner, or him mercilessly slaying his victims, Nawaz carries the film on his shoulders and excels in every department. His flawless delivery of one liners are, as always, a delight to watch and listen. In short, he slays throughout. 😎

💨 Vicky Kaushal, on the other hand, as Raghavan aka Raghavendra aka Raghav is gruesome but convincing as the cop who is a drug addict, treats women like trash, has too much of gray in his palette. While one cannot place Vicky Kaushal in the same bracket as that of Nawazuddin Siddiqui in the acting department, he does manage to do a convincing job, if not a superlative one.

💨 While the film essentially belongs to Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Vicky Kaushal (in that order), the other characters only help in taking the film forward.

💨 The chemistry between both the lead actors is like Tom & Jerry. Well, we all know that Jerry is the notorious one, and Tom hates him to the core. But there have been instances wherein they both join hands because their mutual interest lies in it. In the same way, Ramanna and Raghavan becomes RamanRaghav for the sake of their mutual interest.

💨 It is because of Vasan Bala and Kashyap's excellent writing and the wonderful cast that there are others who are memorable too.

💨 Amruta Subhash ( The Marathi actress of Killa fame ) as Ramanna's sister is in top form.

💨 Sobhita Dhulipala as Raghavendra's girlfriend Simmy Naidu and Anuschka Sawhney as Ankita, a sexy guest at a party, merit a mention. 👀

🎶 Music :- While the music of this film is nothing to boast about but its perfectly woven into thw narrative. It is the film's background music by Ram Sampath, that more than makes up for the film's music. The film's background music acts as a catalyst between the film's script and the characters.

🌁 Cinematography :- The film's cinematography by Jay Oza is spot on and apt. The usage of guerrilla filmmaking techniques, helps the film look more realistic.

🔍 Editing :- The editing by Aarti Bajaj is seamless, but seems dragging after the interval.

⚠ Warning : This movie isn't for people having a tendency to be easily shocked by matters relating to sex or nudity.

All in all, Raman Raghav 2.0 is a gripping character study about the demon lurking in the human heart. 👿

Ratings :- 🔪🔪🔪🔪

✍♠ PRIZMI TRIPATHI ♠

Now You See Me 2 - Miss the "magic" of the first, but still entertaining. 🃏

The sequel to the 2013, Now You See Me.

🎭 Genre : Adventure / Action / Comedy /Illusion

👉 Runtime : 2 hrs 10 mins

📜 Plot - The story picks up from where its prequel left off. The Horsemen -
Danny (Eisenberg),
McKinney ( Harrelson)
Jack (Franco) are in hiding because they are still fugitives in the eyes of the FBI. Henry Reeves (Isla Fischer) has left the Horsemen and sassy Lula May (Caplan) is brought in by Dylan (Ruffalo) to fill her shoes. They set off for a new mission given to them by the EYE but things go haywire and eventually these hunter's get hunted.

Honestly speaking, I am a fan of the original Now You See Me. I found it exhilarating, exciting, fun, entertaining with great visuals and an A-class cast.
It was a breathlessly exciting heist movie with flashy visuals and a great cast.

And the hype was too much for the sequel.

And who could blame them? This film is complete mess. It runs, almost 30 minutes too long. It is sawed in half by a screenplay so boring, the kind in which several characters exist only to spout expositional dialogue. It makes even Jesse Eisenberg, an actor who is incapable of delivering a bad performance, boring.

A highlight of the first movie was its excitingly well-done heist sequences. Similar scenes this time around are so shabbily-written, even the most novice audience members will likely find dozens of movie-breaking plot holes. No joke: The single most important heist of the movie hinges exclusively on the hope that the bad guys don’t doubt Woody Harrelson when he coughs and says he’s allergic to ‘hermetic seals.’

One more major setback of this film is the revelation of the tricks. It just showed you exceptionally good tricks and then explained via tedious expository dialogues and flashbacks that it wasn't what you thought it was. Like hello ? We don't wanna know how you did it. Let there be something untold.

But let's not be too harsh on these poor souls. The movie isn't bad. There are some extraordinary scenes coupled with perfect framework and CGI. The best of which involves the main characters passing a card back and forth in a laboratory, and enough smart-alecky banter between skilled actors that the time passes painlessly enough. The camerawork is amazingly well is certain scenes.
Also, the humour quotient is high with this one.

Performances :
Every character is remarkable.

💨 Jesse Eisenberg, with his charm and dialogue delivery, nails the role as always.

💨 The Oh-So-Hot Card master and acrobatic badass Jack Wilder (Dave Franco)—who faked his own death in the last movie and is back in this one ; he's on the poster too, guys, so don't gripe at me about spoilers. 😂

💨 Merrit (Harrelson) has a twin brother played by him of course, they are poles apart and he doesn't disappoint. Harrelson has become one of those spot-on character actors with leading man charisma that you're always happy to see, even when the material is weak. You know he'll commit to the material, with such subtlety that it never feels as if he's condescending. The delight he takes in playing opposite himself here nearly compensates for the forgettable material that director Jon M. Chu and screenwriter Ed Solomon have saddled him with.

💨 Talking about the new additions,
Lizzy Caplan and Daniel Radcliffe bring with them a genuine energy that is visibly missing from most, if not all the returning actors. And surprisingly, Daniel makes a good antagonist.

💨 Dylan (Mark Ruffalo) can lead us to buy some of the stupidest acts, he is so convincing in his acting. 😉

💨 Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine are fine too.

All said and done, NYSM-2 is lighthearted, original entertainment, filled with charismatic actors playing hip, attractive characters, that wont let you doze off. What the film lacked is material, to say the least.

And if you would ask me about recommending it to you guys...

"What the hell, why not?" 😘
It. is. entertaining. ☺

Just leave your logic aside, and enjoy this roller coaster ride with awesome performances that will take you back and forth in time. ❤😎
"You will get what's coming to you. In ways you can't expect." 😉

Ratings - 🃏🃏 🃏 (2.7)

            ✍♠ PRIZMI TRIPATHI ♠

Udta Punjab - A Shot worth taking ! 🚬

🎭 Genre - Crime / Drama

☄Runtime - 2 hr 28 mins

To begin with, don't watch Udta Punjab because it was embroiled in controversies, but because its a story not many would have dared to tell.

📜 Plot - This movie is a close replica of the cult-classic 'Requiem for a Dream'.
And the plot has pretty much been revealed in the trailers and all the news channels following the controversies that has been built around it.

Teri maa di !
Teri behn di !
Behncho !
The F word!
😱😝
This is nothing more than what a visitor to many parts of northern India will hear on the streets in casual conversations.

It is hard to understand why the Censor Board would get so agitated about invectives that are used more often than the definite article in real life.

There is a personal note that I would like to add. I am grateful that the filmmakers fought for this film. This had to be served undistilled, and untouched by people who don't see or choose not to see the gravity of the situation. *eye roll* 😒

Abhishek Chaubey's Udta Punjab screams out a fact that the state's ruling Politicians have been trying desperately to keep under wraps for years now. Maybe that might have irked them and thus led to the protest against this movie.

Punjab is a growing state that witnesses substance abuse. And it's a matter of common sense that it would be impossible for so many addictive substances to be so easily available to so many in the population, without the cooperation of the police and the political clan.

Well, in the opening scene, a packet of heroin gets thrown like a discus from across the border and we are plunged into a pulsating, frenetic world of rock 'n' roll and drugs, of snorting chitta (white) powder, injecting a cocktail of liquids into the veins.There were many scenes that broke my heart a lil.The viciousness and brutality that was heaped on Alia by this family of drug dealers. How some policemen don't care about drug smuggling untill and unless the person on the receiving end is from his family. The lives lost to addiction cut an immensely sorry figure, more so the desperate families when things reach home.
There is one scene wherein Tommy addresses his fans: “I composed a song on drugs and you turned it into your philosophy. You are even bigger losers than I am.” That scene gave me the chill. Udta Punjab is all about swallowing such bitter pills.

🎼 Music - The film's music matches the mood and the topic. It is Dark. Especially the lyrics of 'Chitta Ve', they make the hair on your hand stand.

☄Cinematography and Screenplay is fine.
But yes, a reduction of 30 mins in the run-time would have aided in turning this movie, into a cult-classic.

Performances :

💨 Shahid's performance is beyond words. He failed to pulled up a performance at par with Haider primarily because that movie was perfectly in all aspects. But anyways, he is a bomb and we got no complaints about his acting skills. He as the Rockstar Tommy aka THE GABRU, is all sound and fury and sheer madness  and he takes you straight on the trip and gets you high.

💨 Alia as the bihari migrant girl, awas surprisingly refreshing. She was utterly real, raw and vulnerable and gave an Highway-esque performance. She was not very smooth with her Bihari accent but essayed the role very well.

💨 Kareena Kapoor Khan as a doctor, is fine as a figure of hope in her calm, untainted self, waging a war against substance abuse all on her own.

💨 Diljit was good. I am quite impressed by how precisely he essayed the role of a corrupt turned honest cop, after his own brother falls for the drugs.

💨 The kid who played Diljit's younger brother Bali, acted very well.

💨 U also get a dekko of Shahid's younger brother Ishaan. Not enough to comment on his acting skills. Just saying.*wink* 🙊

The film might feel a trifle too loud and feverish for comfort at the start but you settle into its wildness and delirium in a matter of time.

Also, the romantic track between Kareena-Diljit and Shahid-Alia seems slapped on and irrelevant.

The film's authenticity is not just in the issue but in the expletive-loaded lingo and dialogues as well. Also, half of the dialogues are in Punjabi.

But ultimately for me Udta Punjab is not about the story, the four main characters, their acting or the music even. It’s about relentless exposure to a gut-wrenching reality. It’s about the many innocent being born to drugs everyday. By the end of the movie, i could hear their harsh cries in my ears. Haunting than any other horror movie. Sigh !

All said and done, UDTA PUNJAB is bold, has perfectly highlighted social issue, and seasoned by power-packed performances.
Its not the typical bollywood pot-boiler, but
It hits the right chord for people like me,
those who look for something out of the box, dark and with a 'kick' of realism.

UDTA PUNJAB is a Shot worth taking ! 😎

Ratings - 🚬🚬🚬🚬

♠ PRIZMI TRIPATHI ♠

Conjuring 2 - A worthy sequel. 👻😻

🎭 Genre - Horror

Runtime - 2 hr 17 mins

Went in with high expectations, and this thing, didn't disappoint me. ❤

📜Plot - The film opens with the Warrens investigating the famous Amityville case, during the course of which Lorraine first encounters the hellish presence that will haunt her for the next few years. Fearing for his life, she begs her husband to suspend any future paranormal investigations, to which he reluctantly agrees. Until, that is, a priest arrives to give them their next mission: Travel to London and confirm the truthfulness of reports of a demonically charged haunting. Also, known as the Enfield Poltergeist.

First thing's first, Is Conjuring 2 scary?
Like, jump out of your seat, watch through the space between your fingers covering your face scary? The answer to that is YES. 😻

After the incredible Fast and Furious 7, it would have been all too easy for James Wan to stay away from horror, to show that there was more to him than an ability to create scary monsters and super creeps.
(See : Saw, Insidious and Conjuring.)
But the man doesn’t see horror movies as a ghetto from which to escape. Its like homecoming. 😃

Under James Wan's direction, even the most clichéd haunted-house tropes (and this movie is bursting with them) are genuinely creepy, and although the movie isn't overly dependent on them, the ones it does use... Well, they work. 😏
Conjuring 2 taps into the universal childhood fear of the dark, and some of its simplest moments—like a little girl hiding under the covers with a flashlight, bolts on the door, toys moving on their own, are its most effective, paired by skillfully executed sound design and Don Burgess' gloomy cinematography. 👌🏻😸

What's really enjoyable about this movie, is its nostalgic recreation of 70s England. Such beauty ! 😍

There are some moments, that make you go "Aww". 🤗

That being said, there are also some truly funny moments, like a shot of the Hodgson family running from their haunted house. After a particularly intense bout of a psychokinetic activity that riffs on some smartasses' favorite retort,
"Why don't they just move?"
(And, for the record, they don't move because it's public housing, and the local council, which is naturally quite skeptical of the whole "ghost" thingy being a hoax, has to approve the relocation.) So relax, bro. 😒😝

Also, there is an overuse of CGI in certain places, which i personally found distracting. 😟

SOME moments definitely caused me to feel incredibly anxious, and I frequently felt the need to push against the seat to get as far away from the screen as possible. 🤐

Very few modern horror filmmakers can time a scary scene as effectively as Wan, and he delivers here, his constantly roving camera finding all kinds of nooks and crannies in which evil can lurk. 🤓

The standout moment, though, comes when Wan bolts his camera to the floor and lets a conversation between Wilson’s Ed and the demon, which calls itself Bill Wilkins, play out in a single shot. 👏🏻❣

As the events unfold, the movie gets a lil dull and drab, maybe because of the runtime. 😪

Talking of the performances,

💨Wilson and Fermiga are excellent together.
I am glad this time Wilson has been given a role equivalent to his partner.
Their relationship is the movie’s emotional anchor, and proves that horror films can be sweet, surprising, and even charming.
Even the ones with demonic nuns. *wink*

💨 Madison Wolfe as Janet,  the possesed 11 year old, gives an excellent and solid performance.

💨 Frances O'Connor nails it as the distressed single mother of four.

💨 Simon McBurney as Maurice Grosse, is sweet and justifies the character well.

💨 Bonnie Aarons whom we see again as the demonic nun, is super scary, even in her paintings. 😂

😍 All in all, i wouldn't say this is better than the first one, buh yeah it was at par with it. 😍
A worthy follow up to Conjuring. ❤
You gotta go see this one ! 🍿🍔

Rating - 💀💀💀💀

Scarometer - 60% 👻

✍ ♠ PRIZMI TRIPATHI ♠

Housefull 3 - Akshay Is The Heart Of This Passably Funny Movie. 😌

Genre - Comedy/Romance.

Run time - 2 h 25 min minutes.

📜 Plot - A father doesn't want his daughters to get married. Buh they fall in love. Now, the three men enter the mansion of their ladylove's pretending to b disabled to gain the father's sympathy and try to convince him that they're a good fit for his daughters.
Also, things take a turn when a DON enters their lives.

The Third Installment in the Housefull Series, is helmed by Writer-Director Duo Sajid-Farhad, instead of Housefull Veteran Sajid Khan. And to be honest, this one is actually funny in parts, despite some ridiculous jokes. All i can ask you all is to lock away the logic and enjoy this mad ride !

The beginning is very lukewarm. Honestly, I wasn't laughing initially. But, right after the lads enter their ladyloves home as the disabled souls, the narrative picks up.
Director duo Mr. Sajid-Farhad's enhance the comedy by their shot taking and narration style.

💨 Story and Dialogues - Clumsy is the word. Although they have labelled this movie as a slapstick comedy, some jokes, especially the ones involving the actress's translating English puns into Hindi, are unfunny to the core. The writing could've been better. Of course, I didn't expect 'Housefull 3' to be a comedic gem, but we have heard & read some of the many such jokes on whatsapp long ago. Even the Dialogues, ranges from hilarious to plain silly.
But, the humor works in favor of Akshay Kumar's character, who suffers from dual-personalities. There is even a nice twist towards the interval point, which definitely, works. The movie raises its comic bar after the interval and it will definately kick your funny bone every now and then. The second-hour, though over populated, is still packed with enough jokes & gags, which do the trick. The Climax, particularly, is hilarious ! 👍😂

💨 Cinematography is nearly perfect with all the vibrant colors and locations.

💨 Editing could've been a lil sharper. Buh, its still passable.

💨 Music - 'Pyar ki ma ki' is okayish. The rest, are plain annoying.

💨 Art & Costume Design are actually goood !

💨 Performance -
➡ Akshay Akshay Akshay ! Akshay's split personality act is the best where he's Sundi and Sandy. His body language is too good. His genius comic timing and expression aren't new anymore, but he portrays the dual-personality driven character, with unbelievable ease. He is undoubtedly, the film's best joke!

➡ Riteish Deshmukh is also superb with his expressions.

➡ Abhishek has his moments and he reminds us of his superb performances in Bol Bachchan and Happy New Year.

Also the chemistry with the boys is awesome and it shows on screen. It's Akshay, Riteish and Abhishek who literally saved this movie from being a crap like Humshakals.

➡ Jacqueline is fine. While Lisa and Nargis feel slapped on. Poor. Basically, all the actresses are only to meet up the movie's glamour quotient.

➡ Boman Irani is first-rate, his Gujarati dialect is perfect.

➡ Jackie Shroff is impressive. He carries his look and personality in interesting way.

➡ Chunkey Pandey as Akhri Pasta, is enjoyable.

🔯 On the whole, 'Housefull 3' isn't a laugh-riot like 'Housefull 2', but its funny in parts nonetheless. Go! Grab a Popcorn, and enjoy this fine family entertainer. 🔯😌☝

Ratings - ❤❤ 1/2

           ✍♠ PRIZMI TRIPATHI ♠✍