Highway

*ing : Alia Bhatt, Randeep Hooda, Durgesh Kumar
Director : Imtiaz Ali

Tagline : In bondage, She found freedom

Second movie with my girlfriend and wat a disappointment it was. Too indulgent, too boring altho I liked the theme of finding freedom in bondage. Bt things happen just too soon and many times they are just not beliveable. Its also a different movie from what we usually get in bollywood, bt not necessarily a good one.
Rating :
**

Hassee to Fassee

*ing : Sidharth Malhotra, Parineeti Chopra, Adah Sharma
Director : Vinil Matthew


Tagline : Love goes cucking frazy

This is a special movie for me as it’s the first movie I saw in theatre with my girlfriend. Too many nice moments. Thankfully film also dint disappoint.
Ok, so about movie.
Rom-com flicks are one of genre which has not been experimented in Bollywood much lately. Except for decent Gore Teri Pyar Mein last year, Hasee toh Phasee is refreshing change for Indian audiences who have witnessed an overdose of masala films in 2013.

Nikhil (Sidharth Malhotra) is getting to married to Karishma( Adah Sharma). Enters the trouble maker Meeta ( Parineeti Chopra) , sister of Karishma, who was caste away from the family for 7 years. In order to keep his marriage procedures smooth, Nikhil must keep away Meeta away from the family but actually falls in love her.

Bollywood movies have always been woven around self-realization of whom you actually love ( believe me it happens only during the wedding ceremony) and Hasee Toh Phasee leaves no stone un-turned with typical bollywood potboiler. Few hilarious moments will tickle your funny-bone and that is enough to keep the ship sailing. Hats off to Parineeti Chopra for giving a fabulous performance. She is funny, emotes expressively and does a great job overall. Sidharth Malhotra still has a long way to go in terms of acting though he was better than Student of the year. Adah Sharma was looking gorgeous and was good in a small role.
The film is a regular bollywood movie yet, there is a something different about it. Its fresh and zany.
Rating :
*** & ½

Ship of Thesieus

*ing : Aida Elkashef, Sohum Shah, Neeraj Kabi
Director : Anand Gandhi


Tagline : How do you know where you end and where your environment begins?

"Whether the ship would remain the same if it were entirely replaced, piece by piece. What would happen if their original planks were gathered up after they were replaced, and used to build a second ship. Which ship, if either, is the Ship of Theseus'."

Ship of Theseus starts by stating the Theseus' paradox and then moves on, leaving the viewers struggling to find the answer of this paradox. SOT is based upon three stories which raises questions on Existence, Identity, Humanity and Karma.

The first story is about a girl named Aaliya Kamal (Aida El-Kashef) who took photography after she lost her eyesight to a cornea infection and when she is asked "Do you feel limited?", she replies "Uhh.. No. Why is it so amazing not to have limits and doubts?". This is the part where each and every frame of the film looks stunning and exceptionally beautiful. There is no story in this part but it's about the perception of beauty, how black and white can be the most colorful combination and how a person loses her comfort when she gets her vision back. Aida plays with her eyes and did a great job with her part. Watch out for her body movements when she hears distinct voices during her photo sessions. Pankaj Kumar (director of photography) does an excellent job and his part gives real definition to the movie's aesthetic value. The sequence where Aaliya starts seeing her photographs when she gets her vision back is another highlight of the movie. Ah!!! Those photographs were just mind blowing.

The second story shows an ailing monk, Maitreya (Neeraj Kabi) who is suffering from Liver Cirrhosis and is fighting against pharmaceutical companies which performs cruelty against animals for the sake of experiments. It's the part where questions are raised about Karma, Religions and Beliefs. The moment where Chakrava (Vinay Shukla) asks the monk, when he is restricting himself to take medications to support his protest, "What about the violence you are committing on yourself by not taking medication?. And how is your choice not different from a suicide bomber who is so convinced about the fundamentalism of his political and religious thoughts?" and so many points that he makes e.g., "what if the caterpillar's karma was to get crushed" sequence and the fungus-making- an-ant-a-zombie-to-reap-benefits-out-of-it-concept defines this part and we, the viewers get puzzled with each and every words what this character says. It apparently questions the monk's beliefs and his karma. This is a part where to some extent dullness appears just before the interval but goes to another level when it ends in the second half.Neeraj Kabi is exceptionally well in his role of a monk. Hats off to him for the workout he did for this role.

The final part takes the whole movie to another level by asking questions on humanity and why the poor always gets crushed by the rich peoples. It's a story of a stockbroker who is the recipient of a kidney, which he later discovers that it was stolen from a labor who has been part of a racket which was led by highly esteemed doctors. It changes his life's perspective and then he goes to help that poor and make things better for him. This part is totally gripping and will be highly likable by many peoples. An exceptional performance by Sohum Shah makes this part even better.

Ship Of Theseus didn't waste any time on character development. It starts from the middle of the characters' life and doesn't tell you about their ending. But it tells you the way their perception gets changed about their life.

At the start I was thinking about the title. But when the film ended I thought that this is the most appropriate title which a movie could ever have. Anand Gandhi provides us a movie of the decade and is certainly going to give Indian Cinema a new definition. He is a talent to watch out for.

It's not run of the mill kind of movie but if you are a movie fanatic then it's totally your cup of tea.
Rating :
****

Jai Ho

*ing : Salman Khan
Director : Sohail Khan

Tagline : People's man

Shitty Salman Khan shitty movie. Left in interval. *Puke*
Rating :
0 star

Flavors

*ing : Reef Karim, Anjan Srivastav, Bharati Achrekar , Anjan Srivastav , Rishma Malik
Director : Krishna D.K., Raj Nidimoru


Tagline : Life like it is. Almost.


One of the better movies in the American-Indian genre.I mean its a whole lot better than the soporific and clichéd American Desi varieties where the entire film revolves around "getting in touch with ethnic roots" and "India is great" syndrome.The characters seem to be thoroughly fleshed out and identification with the issues they face comes easily( although I have never visited the USA).Great performances by Pooja,Reef,Mohit, Gauang, Gaurav...relatively unheard of names but quite believable performances.Bharati and Anjann are as ever ,superb..they looked more like the mature and aging Wagles . As an Indian living in India, I enjoyed it..the Americans would expect I guess a lot of background, far removed as they are from Indian realities and the Indian psyche. With no particular story line that has a beginning and end, this is just a movie that lightens the mood and leaves you amused all through.
Rating :
*** & ½

BA Pass

*ing : Shadab Kamal, Shilpa Shukla, Dibyendu Bhattacharya
Director : Ajay Bahl

Tagline : Seduction. Corruption. Deception.


The film starts off with brilliantly, and creates an intriguing atmosphere, but ends unsatisfactorily. It's a coming-of-age tale of innocence lost and conscience compromised. What starts off as playful seduction, spirals into a chain of prostitution, lies and betrayal. Even with an interesting story and well-shot scenes, the screenplay and the lead's (Shadab Kamal) acting failed to properly show the sense of urgency and desperation. Though the film's approach towards themes like poverty struggles, empty marriages, sexual urges and escort systems is commendable, it fails to explore them properly and deeply. Second half, specially last half hour is absoulte rubbish and the climax is pathtic too. Watch it for some well shot sex scene if at all
Rating :
**

Madras Cafe

*ing : John Abraham, Nargis Fakhri, Rashi Khanna
Director : Shoojit Sircar


Tagline : Intercept the truth

It's never easy to make and release a historic fictional movie in India where the majority of the audience spends money to watch dim-witted and romantic movies. The director and the actors have to be very competent and proficient to portray some historical events.Many Indians today are oblivious to the events and the reasons that ended up in the assassination of our former Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi but Madras Cafe has successfully thrown some light on this tragedy that is seldom heard of.

Major Vikram Singh, played by John Abraham is appointed by the RAW to handle the covert operations of the Indian Military at Jaffna and resolve the ongoing crisis created by the LTF resulting in genocide of the innocent people. The story is built upon the political tension that kept the Indian Ministry involved intensely to establish peace in Jaffna during the civil war. What we see in Madras Cafe is totally gripping- when Vikram Singh and Jaya, a foreign journalist exchange some significant and confidential information about the LTF and the leak in the Indian intelligence agency that actually results in a total transformation in the set of international events.

John Abraham has acted exceptionally well in the character- who tries his best to embark upon the precarious struggle going on in Sri Lanka. The movie moves very swiftly and the audience is engrossed for the entire duration of the movie. The cinematography is noteworthy and it is a well-scripted political suspense. For a story we already know, Madras Cafe is one of those that excels at creating a thriller, in a breath-taking manner.

Madras Cafe definitely elevates John both as an actor and a director to a higher level. Shoojit Sircar hits the right strides and blends facts and fiction terrifically. The writers had done their research well. Debutante Rashi Khanna makes an impact in a brief but significant appearance as the army man's wife.

Madras Cafe is a must watch for all those who want to know about the history behind the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, the LTTE etc. In two hours. It's effective and grim unlike the ludicrous drama and item numbers that incite cheers in the theater. It's definitely a brave move on the part of the director to come with such a movie and Madras Cafe is certainly a trend setter.

Rating :
*** & 1/2

Krrish 3

*ing : Hrithik Roshan, Priyanka Chopra, Kangana Ranaut, Vivek Oberoi
Director : Rakesh Roshan


Tagline :


KRRISH 3 : ITS MAKING:

How to make a recipe(movie) called KRRISH 3:

Ingredients:

- Screen Play, script writers, VFX supervisors and VFX companies of the companies that worked for the following movies:

- X-MEN Series (Magneto + Charles Xavier + Storm + toad + mystique + other mutants) - No need to mention anything about it.

- The Dark Knight Trilogy - Wide shots that feature Krrish on top of construction cranes and buildings; seems to be inspired by the dark landscapes of Gotham city in Batman.

- Spider Man 1,2 & 3 - Krrish spanning across buildings

- Spider Man 3, The Avengers and Man of Steel - Krrish under the building stopping the building from falling on the people below

- The Amazing Spider man - First person view of krrish leaping of a building and the antidote exploding in the night sky.

- Transformers 3 - Building topples and grinds on another building.

- Man of Steel (you could also consider its sequel Batman vs Superman for added flavor(humor)) - Climax fight between Krrish and Kaal.

- I am a Legend & World War Z - Fighting against deadly virus.

- Inception - The Swiss mountaintop housing Kaal's laboratory

- Class 1 - 3;Science text books.

- VFX (any quality).

- Sentiment.

- Expressions (Over-Expressions also works better).

- and at last humanity.

Procedure:

1. Take a pan of large quantity and put it on the stove.

2. Heat the pan for some time.

3. Chop the script from X-Men series and Spider Man series evenly and boil them in the I am a Legend's script till they turn into Indian flavors.

4. Cut large slices from The Dark Knight trilogy, Transformers 3 and Man of Steel. Grind them properly such that they mix well together.

5. Heat the grinded paste in a large oven by putting the necessary sentiment and humanity. Keep it stored for a long period of time.

6. Once the gravy made from X-Men and Spider Man series is ready, add some expressions to it to keep it fresh.

7. Take the stored grinded paste and add it to the gravy along with the Science text books taken earlier. Mix the contents well.

8. Store it in the refrigerator for some time and then heat it again.

9. Add the necessary VFX as per taste and cost. Decorate it beautifully.

There you are now with the Krrish 3 recipe ready to eat.

SERVE HOT. (Note: Not recommended for humans with IQ above 50. If eaten, the consequences may be disastrous. The chef has no involvement in any consequences that may follow.)

Rating :
*

Dhoom 3

*ing : Aamir Khan, Abhishek Bacchhan, Uday Chopra, Katrina Kaif
Director : Vijay Krishna Acharya

Tagline :

First things first, the movie is heavily copied from 'PRESTIGE’. You may like it only till the time the secret isn't revealed, and once it is out, you feel cheated
Second, Remember "Tropic Thunder" ? The movie opens with a number of fake movie trailers mocking mainstream films , themes, franchises and even the baritone voice of the presenter.

Dhoom-3 could easily have been one of those fake movies. After all Amir Khan wore a striking resemblance to "Simple Jack" .

Ladies and Gentlemen , this movie is a first rate spoof . The only problem is (and this has the problem with many bollywood movies)that it was intended to be a spoof. This fact, makes it all the more ridiculous and tragically funny.

Abhishek Bachan and Uday Chopra(who , surprisingly did create two or three funny moments ) reprise their roles as the "Supercops" from India , adept at chasing down master criminals . With their worn out jeans and flashy , unfashionable clothes , they can be mistaken for buffoons from a 90's flick . But wait. No, I am wrong, since that position is ably occupied by Amir Khan.

What with silly hats and ridiculously imbecile facial expressions , Amir Khan fits in really well in this nonsensical amalgamation of bad story, poor screenplay and pathetic acting.

I shall not waste your time by trying to pin point the exact instances (and there were many, believe me) when logic was molested in this movie. Still , to provide a holistic view of the unintelligent debacle , one only needs to watch a 30 second clipping from the movie in which Mr.Khan runs down the facade of a building with a "Bunty turns serious" kind of an expression.This scene sums up the film.

The story follows the righteous crusade launched by a victim of the Banking Industry , against the Bank . While, one may have appreciated the ingenuity in choosing a corporate body as the villain , one cannot fathom the logic behind the methods adopted by the protagonist to destroy the "Monster" .

Silly , boring chase scenes eat up 2/3rd of the reel and the remaining 1/3rd is devoted to utterly childish sentimentality and acting.

The director succeeds in debunking the myths of the SWAT teams efficiency and makes the said team an object of ridicule , when during one scene the SWAT team is rescued by the Indian dude-cop duo .

Abhishek retains the "Constipated Angry Old Man" expression throughout and Amir Khan tries hard to hide the "I know I am looking ridiculous " look.

I won't call the movie a disaster ,since a disaster too has its saving grace. Dhoom-3 has none.


Rating :
*

Gori tere Pyaar Main

*ing : Imran Khan, Kareena Kapoor
Director : Punit Malhotra

Tagline : Only love can Bridge the gap

Rom-com flicks are one of genre which has not been experimented in Bollywood much lately. Gori Teri Pyaar Mein was refreshing change for me among sleuth of masala films in recent times.
Imran Khan plays a good-for-nothing architect working in his dad's firm who has no respect for any relationships. Kareena Kapoor plays is a social crusader who wants to help the needy. They fell in love only to break-up. However, Sriram travels to a remote village to build a bridge for the local people to win back his love at any cost.

From the director of "I Hate Love Story", Puneet Malhotra does a fine job in trying out something different. Though the love story is predictable, it is the treatment of subject that makes it set apart. The first half is hilarious, fun and has moments to remember. Second half begins with a bang but the climax makes it a spoilsport. How I wish it could be handled with maturity and overall it would have been a good rom-com to watch. Music by Vishal-Shekhar is a let down.
Overall, I liked the film and found it to be surprisingly fair entertainment.

Rating :
***

Bombay Talkies

*ing : Rani Mukharjee, Nawazuddin Siddaqeui, Randeep Hooda, Katrina Kaif, Amitabh Bacchhan
Director : Karan Johar, Dibakar Banarjee, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap


Tagline :

First off - This movie is not as commercial as it was made out to be. With directors like Karan Johar, Dibakar Banarjee, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap. Out of four, I think Karan is the most mainstream director.


Coming to the four films,
#1 Karan Johar - Trash. Most of the reviews I read seemed to like Karan Johar's film, but I really didn't see the point. The film had little to do with Indian Cinema. People seem impressed with the fact that it's bold. It was bold, but forcefully so. As if Johar was trying very hard to be mature. The result was that the film seemed unrealistic and over the top with sexual references and jokes. And it had some rubbish moments. Ostensibily, Karan tried to show Gays in proper light bt he did more harm than good. Ridiculous.

#2 Dibakar Bannerjee - My Favorite. A failed actor (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) who gets roped in to a movie shoot. Beautifully done, and Siddiqui was brilliant as always. You feel emotionally attached to the character. My eyes welled up. I am willing to watch this one over and over again.

#3 Zoya Akhtar - Cute. A little boy who wants to be Sheila from 'Sheila ki Jawaani'. Nicely portrayed. The direction seemed novice though. Also, ended tad abruptly.

#4 Anurag Kashyap - Oh! the irony. This one depended more on the storyline than on the screenplay like the others. I had high expectations from Kashyap and he did not fail me. It's a brilliant story and you will find yourself rooting for the character as he tries hard to meet Amitabh Bachchan.

Overall, this is my opinion,

The Best - Dibakar Bannerjee Also good - Anurag Kashyap OK: Zoya Akhtar . Bad: Karan Johar.

Rating :
** & ½

R.. Rajkumar

*ing : Shahid Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha, Sonu Sood
Director : Prabhu Dheva

Tagline : Silent ho ja, Nahi to mai violent ho jaunga


Circa 2009, Salman Khan was going through a bad phase when Prabhu Devaa resurrected his career with his directorial debut Wanted which was a remake of Telugu film Pokiri, The film was a hit and resurrected the south remake action genre in bollywood, after GHAJINI(2008). Prabhu Devaa got lucky again in 2012 with Rowdy Rathore which brought Akki back to action and also he started doing south remakes. But now off recent this genre has been done to death and it's getting irritating, The action scenes too are becoming more cartoonish with heroes jumping around and doing somersaults. Such action was restricted to Tamil/Telugu/Kannada films but now even Hindi films are copying them. One thing that is striking in R Rajkumar is that it's the first time perhaps a younger 30+ hero has donned the lead role, unlike 40+ heroes and 50+ unfit heroes(Sanjay Dutt,Sunny Deol). R Rajkumar has a plot that is so thin and non existent, that it's boring. Mostly South remakes don't have a proper plot, even Wanted and Rowdy Rathore didn't have a great plot per se, but R Rajkumar is so banal, so stupid it gets to the nerves. Shahid trying to patao Sonakshi is done so cheesily like films of South and gets to the nerves; There is nothing new, novel or exciting about the film. To Digest that Shahid can bash up goons double his size even with his makeover is too much. There is nothing appealing of the film and many times seems like it's a telugu film with Indian actors.

Rating :
**

Mikey Virus

*ing : Manish Paul, Dean Alexandrou, Elli Avram, Varun Bandola
Director : Saurabh Varma

Tagline : Meet the weirdest hacker of Dilli...

There has been sleuth of movies based on delhi. In recent times, Vicky Donor and Fukery comes to mind.
When the trailer of Mickey Virus was unleashed on the internet, everybody started comparing the movie with critically acclaimed Vicky Donor(probably both the films were Delhi based and title sounded same). However, if Vicky Donor was heaven then Mickey is a ride through hell, sort of.

Delhi Cops are on the verge of cracking a case which involves high intensity of hacking for which they seek help of young-clad, computer geek Mickey. As they start solving the case, series of events unleashes new mystery involving lots of twist and turns.

First time director Saurabh Verma chooses the script which promises to deliver an intellectual-comic thriller but believe me neither there is any story nor any direction. The plot is confusing as is the screenplay. First half is monotonous and perfunctory. Chemistry between Manish Paul and Ellie Avaram is half baked. Things turns bit interesting after the murder but loses the steam with a blink of eye. Manish Paul shows some potential as Mickey Virus but needs to improve on his expression. Ellie looks gorgeous but has long way to go in terms of acting. Varun Badola steals the thunder and is the only silver lining in the film.

Overall, all the hype-hoolah surrounding film is drowned by a wafer thin plot. Neither comical nor thriller
Rating :
**

Satyagrah

*ing : Amitabh Bacchhan, Ajay Devgan, Kareena Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Amrita Rao
Director : Prakash Jha

Tagline : The revolution has begun

Prakash Jha used to be such a fine filmmaker once upon a time. He gave some really good films which were commercial hits too. Gangajal, Apaharan, Mrityudand etc. I personally enjoyed rajneeti too. But I don’t know what has happened to him since. Some really atrocious movies like arakshan, chakravyu and now Satyagrah. The film holds for most of the first half but second half it completely goes haywire and the climax is ROFL type.
Amitabh Bacchhan has been a great actor and his given defining performances of bollywood but I don’t remember a single good performance of his since 80s. and he hams soo badly in the movie. You have to see that climax scene to believe how bad he can be.
The film makes fun of a great movement in modern India and does no justice at all.
Glad film was flop and that not many people saw it.
Rating
* & ½

Ram-Leela

*ing : Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone
Director : Sanjay Leela Bhansali

Tagline : Goliyon ki RasLeela, Ram-Leela

Ram-Leela is a movie which I loved and hated equal in parts.
The easiest criticism for the film would be that there is too much style and grandeur which takes away from the story.
Unfortunately that’s what is true.
Some scenes hv immense passion and grabs ur attention bt most of the film is thwarted by decoration of frame.

it strongly feels that the props are becoming main character ! bhansali shud make subtle film.
it probably can work bt i dont think man knows anything else bt to make everything big. ranveer was good in some portions bt poor in many. deepika was revelation. sat thru the film only for her. the chemistry between both was dazzling. couple has to be in love to play the part the way they did.
Overall, Disappointed.
Rating :
** & ½

Once upon a time in Mumbai Dobara

*ing : Akshay Kumar, Imran Khan, Sonakshi Sinha
Director : Milan Lutharia

Tagline :

OMG.. did I say it again. “Another bad bollywood movie cashing on its hit first part”. ! ya, I said it again.
First thing, I hv zero expectations from any Akhsay kumar. He is a bad actor and his movie choices are worse.
The director wanted to cash on his hit first movie which I frankly enjoyed. Bt the casting here is soo bad it ruins any chance of having a good time. Akshay kumar as a gangster and Imran Khan(yes, Imran Khan as gangster) as his aid, both are unintentionally hilarious.
Sonakshi Sinha plays a wanna be actor. Bad thing she really cant act.
Don’t watch it.
Not for anyone
Rating :

* & 1/2

Grand Masti

*ing Vivek Oberoi, Riteish Deshmukh, Aftab Shivdasani
Director : Indra Kumar

Tagline :

Another bad bollywood movie cashing on its hit first part. Grand masti is a sex comedy which is fine. Bt it’s a bad offensive and just not funny.
And that, film did above 100 crores. Man I cant believe wat has happened to taste of Indian audience. Don’t watch it.
Rating :
*

Besharam

*ing : Ranbir Kapoor, Pallavi Sharda, Rishi Kapoor, Neetu Singh
Director : Abhinav Kashyap

Tagline : Na Samman Ka Moh, Na Apman ka Bhay

It beats me how a smart man Ranbir Kapoor can choose a product which is so bad from every angle. From the story to production design to music to lyrics to actress. Nothing, nothing makes sense.
I was actually repulsed and gutted seeing first 20 mins of the movie. And what was the whole point of casting ranbir’s real life parents in such caricaturist insulting roles. And wonder why they agreed to do it.
Bad bad bad bad movie. Stay miles away.
Rating :
*

Phata Poster Nikhla Hero

*ing : Shahid Kapoor, Ileana, Padmini Kolhapure
Director : Rajkumar Santoshi


Tagline :

Shahid Kapoor is a decent actor but quite overrated star. I think much of his fame came cause he was dating kareena kapoor. He has done couple of good movies but that’s about it.
Its been long long that he gave a hit movie. Last I think was Kaminey. And since then he has been trying desperately hard to get a good box office performance.
Alas, Phata Poster Nikhla Hero is surely not the one. A full on bollywood commercial film all the masala and item numbers and herogiri cant also get decent run at the box office.
Shahid tries hard and couple of scenes are funny. Bt that’s all.
He will hv to wait even more the elusive hit.

Rating :
**

Midnight's Children

*ing : Rajat Kapoor, Vansh Bhardwaj, Anupam Kher, Shabana Azmi
Director : Deepa Mehta

Tagline : A child and country were born at midnight once upon a time

I haven't read the book. I have heard a lot about it and always wanted to read it. The book won Booker of Booker. That’s quite some achievement.

Deepa Mehta's is back after Elements Trilogy Earth, Fire and Water. The topics were bold then. Now the topic is diverse - mostly because with a fountain of genres, Midnight's Children talks about many things... from love to superstitions, from the Partition to the Emergency, from magic to realism... narrated so wonderfully, it enthuses. The last 20 minutes are little boring & staid but the first 100 minutes makes up for a good show.

Performances are brilliant with every single person working beautifully & totally carving a splendid character out of Rusdhie's imagination. Ronit Roy, Bhabha, Goswami, Darsheel Zafary & Rahul Bose are terrific. Certain sequences/ideologies troubled me but since it is all fiction encapsulated in a narrative, I quite enjoyed it. Depiction of sensitive topics is great which is not unusual in a Deepa Mehta film. A lot could be written about it and the best way to know all about it is to watch it.

The tale from the 1940s to the 1970s, with certain twists & turns, beautiful ideas, relationships, empathy, violence, real topics, age- transitions, fights, superstitions, sex, infidelity tiny tidbits and the magic... is enduring.

Telling the story of Saleem, born on the stroke of Midnight on August 15th 1947 i.e when India finally became an independent nation, whose life is altered from the minute he is born, as he is given to the wrong parents, rich parents, and thus afforded a life of luxury that he was not destined to have. On top of that, he has magical powers (that aren't that great to be honest), and finds that every child born at Midnight on August 15th also has magic powers, it's like the Power Rangers: India. What thus follows is a story narrated by Rushdie himself, as Saleem's life links and progresses with the historical and political turmoil taking part in India throughout the century, ( Partitions, Civil Wars, States of Emergency), and Saleem, much like India at the time, struggles and battles to find out his own identity.

The film does well in scaling down the content of the novel, it's more of a drama with bits of comedy, than a grand epic or fantasy, and parts do feel rushed as the viewer is transported from year to year without any sense of anything really linking together, despite the valiant attempts of Rushdie narrating the whole story. However, it is still a film that does manage to vividly depict a fascinating period in history with lots of very visual scenes that leave a lasting impression, and more importantly, it links it all together with individual plights, to add that emotional intensity. So overall I'd still recommend it.
Rating :
*** & 1/2