Badla is Trying Too Much!

March 15, 2019 0 Comments

Critics Review and Badla

When I first saw the trailer, I felt it's going to be a good suspense thriller.

After reading and watching the critics review, I could not wait to watch this film. After all, I love a good suspense thriller.

Alas, Badla is an old coke in a new bottle. I would not say wine for the obvious reason.  



After sharing a stupendous lawyer-client relation in the movie- Pink. It was quite given that this time they might be teaming up together but against each other. I mean how would you justify a title called "Badla" when the trailer suggests that a lawyer with 100% win record is defending a woman accused of killing her lover.

The film starts on a good note. With Amitabh Bachchan trying to assure his client to entrust him with minutest details. You can sense a lot of sharp, across the table, constructive interrogation. And you like the lawyer's straight-jacketed approach. You like the "on your face" confrontation which leads you directly to the film without playing unnecessary to the gallery.

If only, it could sustain that momentum. 

Taapsee Pannu AKA Naina Sethi is unconvincingly a successful businesswoman who is cheating on her husband with a photographer. She looks pretty but seems to be trying too hard as everyone else excluding Amrita Singh. Amrita Singh is a natural charmer and her role of Rani is super expressive and emotive even in the scenes when she doesn't even speak a word. 

Sujoy Ghosh tried to create tension and grip. Alas, it didn't last as much as it did in Kahaani. Kahaani was a tight script. Kahaani 2 was insipid. This movie is another dud. It is like you pay a premium amount to watch Sujoy Ghosh's next film after Kahaani, and you get Kahaani 2. 

All the amazing background score, cinematography and all makes no sense if the storyline is weak. 

I really want to ask director Sujoy Ghosh if he had not heard of CDRs [a permanent in crime Patrol every night] that he had to stretch the story this far from the prosthesis to the synthetic session. And that too when you have the entire inspiration or the original open in front of you to refer. 

The movie is totally based on the Spanish Movie- An invisible Guest [You can find it on Netflix] I am yet to see this film but am pretty sure it would be a better film. 


Do not get fooled by the exotic Glasgow cinematography and the very Hollywood like feel. The trailer looks great but the movie is equally disappointing. 

You may better watch Ting Tey strips to entertain. This one is pseudo suspense. Someone like me after 2 scenes understood the story. There was no suspense. Except for some strong performances by Amitabh Bachchand and Amrita Singh, the film has very less to offer.

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Luka Chuppi Movie Review


I paid Rs 500 plus to watch this movie, seating at the front most row, on a Saturday night. Yes, I  really loved the trailer and notwitstanding the critics review I thought if its running full houses must be a good film. 

Was this film worth the price? Well, you have to figure out from my review below.




It is my first film in Ahmedabad, and I went to the biggest mall around- Alpha One. But the seats were so clumsy that they should be removed or people sitting in the first row should be awarded food, drinks, and a pillow, so they can make use of the open space in front of them, kyunki the screen look so distorted from that angle.

It took me a while to adjust and I barely missed anything. 

Do not get carried away with my "pillow statement". The film was not that bad. In fact, it made us keep awake, waiting for the story to takeoff or entertain. Alas, the entire 1st half was wasted in that expectations. And rest of the thrill was killed by the ever useless commercial ads in between. If multiplex owners complain of piracy, they need to be mindful of not playing all those stupid ads during the break. 

Let's back to the review

The Story
Keeping abreast with the ongoing trend of stories in small town genre, the film is based at Mathura and Gwalior. The story is of two consenting lovers who get into a live-in relationship to decide whether they are compatible enough to marry. Who are these characters and whats' their personality is not explained in the film? It's like they just emerge from thin air, start working to bring the plot, execute and go back to their boxes as the pawns. There is little done to build their characters. 

The couple in order to experience the real rigamarole moves into an all furnished house with pickles and quilts, all in mint fresh conditions. Except for one discussion on dividing the duties, any other trace of household life is not seen. The sexual conducts were more hinted than life as usual but well that's how we see the live-in relationship. Don't we?

The film progresses once they decide to get married and move into the guy's parental house.



The Film

The starting is very insipid as if lead actors are trying to hard to fit a bill or unfit it. The first half is dull except for this one scene before the interval.


Comedy looks highly forced into. The gags are not funny even if they are very vyakti vishes or specific to that setting. Unfortunately, it doesn’t humor you, even when I decided to keep my brain outside the PVR box office.

Performances

That goes with stars as well. Karthik Aryan looks trying too hard sans his legendary monologue. His Guddu Shukla sweeps from UP to Bihar to MP but lands nowhere, Kriti Sanon had a better share but guess she did her Bitti better than the Rashmi. She does look pretty in the majority of the frames sans that heavily set hair which may begin to irritate sometime.

Aparshakti is the quintessential "different" friend of the hero, this time a Muslim. He has a very small role but he sails well. His casting is akin to Pankaj Tiwari who is also brought in to salvage the film, adding some humor but in spite of best efforts, sinks.

Pankaj Tripathi is a fab actor who is badly wasted in this film. Wish the director/makers tried to add more layers to add on his character rather than those garish pants and shirts.

Speaking of costumes, I could sense a lot of fashion styling and forced diction. Except for the character actors, the stars couldn’t fare it well.


Songs


Songs were plenty and went well with the story. Though I couldn’t register the songs in the first half, and baring one song do not have recall value of any other song. That one song was Laung Illachi which was again wasted at the wrong place.

Apart from this song, there were many other remixes in this movie, emphasizing the overall lackadaisical approach. 


The film had an interesting storyline but it lacked storytelling. I felt the screenplay should start from Guddu-Rashmi Romance and then building towards Najeem Khan's story and whole of the "live-in" relationship in India Brouhaha. But when the film intends to waste some good opportunities. there is little you can do. One was to trivialize the issue of "live-in" relationship.

The film is based on the premise of local people going against live in relation. But somehow setting that up failed or was not much impact full. For me, a good start enforces good sales in snacks but that too went missing here. As I just wanted to see the 2nd half and rush to the home.

It is not that the film was not funny. There were fewer funny moments. say 2 in the first half. One I mentioned above and the second time when I felt humoured was when a happy Guddu applies face pack before setting for his live-in relationship and a Bollywood Bidai geet playing in the background. Ideally it should have stopped at kitchen but they chose to stretch n dilute it.

Another funny moment was the in-room pheras were the shaadi is halted as the data plan gets over and the house has no wi-fi to offer.


What I Liked

There were a few different things that the makers tried and worked well. They were-

1) The struggle of a live-in couple trying to get married

2) The Middle brother angle wherein Vikas feels traumatized when his younger brother gets married while he is still undesirably single and had to suffer cause his younger brother gets married before him. However, looking at him you see no reason him being single since I was asked to keep brains out, hence.

3) The angst of the elder sister in law who wants her to devar to get married so she gets a helping hand for household chores.



Numerounity Verdicts

I had greater expectations from a movie from the makers of Stree, starring Kartik Aryan and other impeccable actors. I loved the trailer of the film more than the film. Well, this was my unbiased opinion after wtaching this film. Maybe I will like this movie better if watched again. Question is will I watch this film again?

You decide.

Numerounity


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