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High Jack
Comedies featuring potheads are either dope-fuelled adventures (Go Goa Gone) or supply chain masala khichdis (Dum Maaro Dum). This one is on the cusp of migraine and vertigo and promises to mass murder brain cells.
May 2018
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Khajoor Pe Atke
Enough fodder for a black comedy? Perhaps, but this one goes a bit overboard, and the practical humour they hoped to conjure seems only too laboured.
May 2018
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Hope Aur Hum
There are films which alter one without hammering down the message they hope to convey. Then, there are those like Hope and Hum which aspire to take on too much and breeze through it all without managing to achieve anything at all.
May 2018
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Raazi
Unlike most films within the genre that focus chiefly on the ‘operation’, Raazi also delves into the debilitating position that secret agents who stumble in and out of the margins of history must sometimes assume.
May 2018
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May 2018
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Omerta
...barely digs below the surface and merely ticks the significant events in the British national’s life.
May 2018
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Daas Dev
The film’s plot seems unnecessarily layered and often forces one to recount the various permutations to keep up with where the story is possibly headed.
Apr 2018
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Nanu Ki Jaanu
At various stages of this film, one wonders what compelled the makers to go ahead with this supposed horror-comedy.
Apr 2018
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Beyond The Clouds
It may not be a deep, immersive, dislocating experience one usually has when introduced to unwavering spirits and personal narratives that his cinema has come to be known for. But it’s surely reminiscent of his previous work and sparkles up an appetite to revisit them.
Apr 2018
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Baaghi 2
We cannot tell for sure if Tiger Shroff or director Ahmed Khan grew up watching Rambo and fantasised about creating an indestructible force who would scavenge through the woods to shower bullets on anyone in his line of vision.
Mar 2018
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Baa Baaa Black Sheep
Apart from sky-rocketing ambitions and embarrassingly mediocre execution, what renders this one particularly insufferable is its sensibility, which tips its hat to 80s Hindi cinema.
Mar 2018
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Hichki
Essaying a disability onscreen challenges an actor’s potential and process and Rani conveys her character’s condition sensitively without overdramatising it.
Mar 2018
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Raid
It doesn’t entirely capture your imagination but doesn’t rob you of your better sense either.
Mar 2018
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Hate Story IV
This one has it all—murders, conspiracy, deceit and enough lace and leather to keep front-benchers glued to their seats. But by the time we reach the climax and motives and plans are revealed, the only niggling issue is why go through such a winding scheme, when badla could be avenged through a couple of bullets?
Mar 2018
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Dil Juunglee
Taapsee Pannu extends dignity to average writing and conveys her character’s evolution well. Saqib Saleem consistently manages the accent of an average Delhi munda but barely digs any deeper...
Mar 2018
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3 Storeys
...is a far cry from most mysteries and even while some of its turns and twists can be predicted, it manages to hold your interest and attention for a large part of the film. Something one can barely say of most films today.
Mar 2018
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Pari
Pari breaks away from typical Indian horrors even while it leans heavily on tested tropes...
Mar 2018
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Veerey Ki Wedding
...there are B-grade films that have more plot and purpose than Veerey Ki Wedding.
Mar 2018
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Hamne Gandhi Ko Maar Diya
The approach is almost academic, but it’s a class for slow learners as every message is tossed about, repeated and hammered down.
Mar 2018
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Welcome to New York
There are several points when one is forced to wonder the objective of making this film. Is this a front for an elaborately-constructed tax break? Is director Chakri Toleti actually a deceptive chartered accountant with breakthrough ideas? Does the said award function stand to gain or lose from this cinematic misadventure? Did Karan Johar have latent acting desires which couldn’t be accomplished in Bombay Velvet? We’ll never know.
Feb 2018
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Aiyaary
It’s difficult to imagine that the maker of films such as A Wednesday!, Special 26 and Baby, Pandey would resort to such a pretentious thriller.
Feb 2018
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Kuchh Bheege Alfaaz
The film’s story has barely much to offer but Onir carefully crafts emotionally-charged sequences that keep you interested and curious about the proceedings — even while the end is predictable.
Feb 2018
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Pad Man
...it barely alters the squeamish attitude many hold against the routine discomfort biologically assigned to all womankind. And this is where R Balki slips. It was a noble cause for sure, if only the makers would have soaked up some of the melodrama.
Feb 2018
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Kuldip Patwal
This is a whodunit in a way as you want to know who should be pinned for this tedious watch.
Feb 2018
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Padmaavat
Following the noise around this film, one can't help but scrutinise it for objectionable depiction. But even if Bhansali suspends reality in his immersive world, it's a strike from reality we'd like to hold on to.
Jan 2018
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My Birthday Song
While the objective of psychological thrillers may vary, a reliable yardstick would be its ability to leave one unsettled. My Birthday Song hopes to achieve this by leaving the audience dazed and confused. But incessant reliance on tropes and lack of focus, leaves one disinterested and bored — even before the big reveal.
Jan 2018
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Vodka Diaries
...at best, leaves one mildly confused and occasionally concerned about its erratic proceedings. It also weaves an elaborate ruse to rationalise the scattered plot.
Jan 2018
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1921
Relying on jaded tropes such as flickering lights, grisly halls, smoky corridors and chalk-faced spirits, there's little here that we've not seen in desi horror films in the last few decades.
Jan 2018
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Kaalakaandi
Delhi Belly writer Akshat Verma is brave to embark on this celluloid experiment which has a few well-imagined sequences. If only he would have invested more in storytelling and character development, this could have been a memorable watch.
Jan 2018
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Mukkabaaz
Anurag Kashyap fans may be a bit disappointed here. The filmmaker who doesn't hold his blows, seems constricted in telling this story. Not that there aren't enough bloody noses and hammered eyes, but the overall treatment seems to be tweaked for universal appeal.
Jan 2018