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Gully Boy
Critic reviews and ratings
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...is a rapturous cinematic triumph. Zoya Akhtar’s masterly crafted piece with layers is written with depth.
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It’s ambitious but accessible, mainstream yet not machine-made. The mix is overpowering — the sound of the movies, the voice of the streets.
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Dreams and reality fuse seamlessly in Gully Boy, Zoya Akhtar’s most heartfelt and accomplished movie yet. Akhtar’s fourth feature is headlined by an outstanding Ranveer Singh, packed with well-picked actors and neatly-etched characters, and filmed with infectious passion.
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...Akhtar grabs our hand and walks us through a world that few of us know, even though it exists in Mumbai and other parts of India.
And now we are blessed to have witnessed that world, breathed its smells and most importantly heard its sounds.
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This is a new kind of 'Angry Young Man' movie, in effect - seamlessly merging sub-culture with pop mainstream.
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Watch the film for it's music, as well as some superlative acting by the entire cast.
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This is filmmaker Zoya Akhtar's most-assured and accomplished work.
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...the beauty of Gully Boy is that even if you are entirely unfamiliar with this world, like I was, the film will still stir your soul.
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Asli hip-hop and assured film-making, Hindustan could not have asked for more.
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The problem with the film though is it’s length, which stretches to two-and-a-half hours, but the emotional deftness and clap-worth dialogues add the right amount of gusto and keep you totally engaged. This is a film that deserves an encore.
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...is the first great Hindi film of 2019 and a rousing celebration of spunk. The writing is enthralling, the texture fantastic, and this world is a revelation.
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You are not once distracted from the run-down underdog story, the almost voyeuristic gaze at the poor, and even the touch-and-go attitude towards a range of serious issues like wealth and gender inequality, domestic violence, drug abuse and parental pressure. That’s the power of its dialogue, lyrics, production design, performances, and of course its music.
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For a film that is about protest music, the music of anger and rebellion, Gully Boy is surprisingly quiet and extremely funny. Its understatedness and sense of humour are among the multiple reasons why it is also one of the best films to emerge from the Hindi cinemascape in recent times.
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I loved this film from inside my bones.
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...is a fun and moving entertainer that will surely resonate with the youth and multiplex-frequenting urban audiences.
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The biggest challenge for director Zoya Akhtar was to ensure her eponymous slum rapper’s journey doesn’t exaggerate his sufferings and stereotype his marginalised existence for impact. On that front, she scores and even nails the emotional peaks and crushing lows.
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...it’s a classic, empathetic underdog story with a crowd pleasing, feel good finale about turning your imperfect reality into a long-cherished and impossible fantasy.
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If Gully Boy earns its props by the time it’s done, this is testament to its immersion in, and respect for, the world it springs from.
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...is not perfect, but definitely it's own thing with some good moments. And when they're good, they're really good.
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...suffers from a slow pace. The film takes its own sweet time to establish the story. And when it does, there is too little to bask in the glory of. The film ends on an abrupt note. It catapults its underdog to the big stage but doesn't let the viewer soak it in. After investing 2 hours and 35 minutes in the film, you feel a little cheated.
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...this is a film to enjoy. In today’s India, to bring a Murad and Safeena, their Muslim-ness a matter-of-fact statement, into centre-stage, to give traction to those who live on the wrong side of the tracks, is an act of bravery. ‘Inka time aa gaya’. Rap along.
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In an era of which Bollywood is increasingly passing off pulpy apologies for demagoguery for cinema, Gully Boy could have been a fitting riposte. It just doesn't go far enough to pose discomfiting questions in keeping with the art of the street rapper. But all said and done, Gully Boy can be whole-heartedly commended for its craft, fascinating characters and Ranveer Singh.
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If you’re looking for a good time, Gully Boy is everything you can ask for. It’s just that I wanted it to be more. I wanted it to be the film its lyrics deserved.
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...is a refreshingly different film on a subject not normally trodden by mainstream cinema.
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