Phir Hera Pheri
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Sunil Shetty, Paresh Rawal, Bipasha Basu and Rimii Sen
Direction: Neeraj Vora
Six years after Hera Pheri left us rolling in the aisles, comes that film's sequel Phir Hera Pheri starring Akshay Kumar, Sunil Shetty and Paresh Rawal — the same leads from the original.
The new picture's been directed by Neeraj Vora, who'd been credited with writing the dialogue for the original film. Now Phir Hera Pheri starts off where the last film ended.
The three friends are rich and leading a life of luxury after having won all that reward money in the previous film. But the greed hasn't gone. An anonymous phone call enticing them to invest in a chit-fund business kicks off a series of misadventures which includes a run-in with lisping gangsters, a drug deal gone wrong, an arms robbery, and finally a chaotic climax in a circus ring.
Much in the tradition of the first, the women have little to do but show up for the songs. Bipasha Basu and Rimii Sen play the love interests this time round.
Now in my opinion, comedy is a tricky genre. After all, humour is different things to different people. You might enjoy the fall-down-and-hurt-yourself kind of slapstick comedy, and I might enjoy those clever, well-written lines. And both are funny, both are entertaining.
Most importantly, both kinds of comedies need to coexist. But I notice that increasingly we're making only childish slapstick comedies with loud screaming and shouting. The other problem I have with most Bollywood comedies is that they require — and even advocate — that you leave your brains behind while watching them. Hell, why? Why must you always be expected to suspend your disbelief while watching a comedy? Why can't we have smart comedies?
Although, which was the last 'smart' Bollywood comedy you remember — Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron, Andaaz Apna Apna? After that, what? Well, the thing about Phir Hera Pheri is that there are moments that are really funny, and then there are long, long portions that seem unnecessarily contrived.
Why do filmmakers feel obliged to stretch their films to a three-hour duration? Haven't they learnt that there's nothing like too much of a good thing? I think you'll agree with me when I say that the reason we all so loved Hera Pheri was because at the time, we were just blown away by the performances and by the energy in that film.
To give credit where it's due, the three leads do manage to duplicate that abundant energy, that enthusiasm in Phir Hera Pheri. Paresh Rawal as the fumbling-bumbling Baburao is once again on his toes and pretty much holding the picture together. And Akshay Kumar really seems to have found his calling in comedy. But the flipside here is that I'm not sure I want to see Paresh Rawal do another comic role for a few years at least. Because as entertaining as he may be, he's repeating himself again and again and again.
So I'm guessing the questions you want answered are: Do I recommend Phir Hera Pheri? Is it a worthy sequel to the first film? Is it worth a watch? Should you spend some hundred and fifty bucks to watch it in the cinema? Well, there's just no easy way to answer this.
Phir Hera Pheri has its moments but it's nowhere as entertaining as the original film. If you loved Hera Pheri as much as I did, I'm guessing you'll go watch this one anyway and sure, please do that.
But do consider what I have to say — is this really the only kind of comedy you want to see on screen? Such mind-numbing entertainment? Think about it. My verdict meanwhile, director Neeraj Vora's Phir Hera Pheri is only an average comedy which raises a few laughs yes, but mostly it just depresses you about the sorry state of humour in Bollywood.
Rating: 2 / 5 (Average)
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Chup Chup Ke
Starring: Shahid Kapur and Kareena Kapoor
Direction: Priyadarshan
Now you can call it a refusal to let Neeraj Vora steal his glory or you can describe it as just plain ol' arrogance, but director Priyadarshan has decided to unleash his own new picture Chup Chup Ke in the same week as Phir Hera Pheri.
If you look closely you'll notice that Priyadarshan's depleted his stock of his own Malayalam originals, which he remade prolifically into Hindi films. As a result, he's taken to remaking other directors' films.
Chup Chup Ke, for instance is Priyadarshan's Hindi version of Meccartin Raffi's 1998 Malayalam hit Punjabi House. In Chup Chup Ke, Shahid Kapur plays a young man so snowed down by debt that he pretends to commit suicide as a means of escaping his creditors, and turns up in a small fishing village in Kolkata where he must play dumb and deaf for sympathy. Circumstances lead him into the home of an extended Gujarati family whose youngest daughter Kareena Kapoor is also mute. In no time at all, he wins the affection of the family, so much so that nobody bats an eyelid when they discover he's no deaf-mute.
In fact, Kareena's fallen hook, line and sinker for him, and a marriage between the two is arranged. But just moments before the saat pheras can take place, Shahid's real family turns up along with his childhood sweetheart Sushma Reddy who's been living the life of a widow ever since news of his death reached her ears.
Priyadarshan's biggest crime is that he thinks he might make everyone happy by adding a little bit of everything to the mix. So even though Chup Chup Ke is positioned as a comedy, there's everything from romance and melodrama to action in generous doses.
What's more, it's never an even mix. Priyadarshan fails in creating the perfect recipe. Far from being able to blend all ingredients in order to prepare a delicious stew, he rations them out episodically.
So if the first half of the film is all rib-tickling humour, then the second is loud family drama and high-strung emotion. Wait, there's more. You'd think that if a director chose to set his film in a particular milieu, to root it in a particular culture, he'd have his homework in place, right?
Not so with Priyadarshan whose story may be set in this Gujarati frat house, but who can't quite pull off either accent, costume or culture. You see, nobody accuses David Dhawan of inaccurate representation of his characters' background, because his stories, his characters have a pan-Indian feel and flavour.
But since Priyadarshan insists on binding his stories and his characters to such specific roots, there can be no excuses for oversights and under-preparation.
Reduced to a glorified extra who looks yummy but has practically nothing to do, Kareena seems ill at ease in a role that exploits none of her caliber.
Shahid makes a significant effort to raise a few laughs and even succeeds occasionally. But it's Rajpal Yadav who practically overshadows the rest of the cast, delivering a maniacally hilarious performance that is the only thing you're likely to take with you as you leave the hall. He's outstanding in every single frame that he occupies — it'll be a crime if he doesn't win an award for the energy he infuses into this lifeless, dull script.
Like in most of his recent films - Hulchul, Garam Masala and Malamaal Weekly, in this film too, Priyadarshan goes for the big dramatic climax. Only in Chup Chup Ke he opts for the mega melodramatic meltdown. It's too long and too convoluted and far too contrived.
As a result the film seems stretched like a never-ending chewing gum that you're really dying to spit out of your mouth. Priyadarshan's Chup Chup Ke, is dull and dreary and elevated marginally but only by Rajpal Yadav. He's the only saving grace in this travesty that's as memorable as a bad dream.
Rating: 1 / 5 (Poor)
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Mission Impossible 3
Starring: Tom Cruise, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Direction: JJ Abrams
You see, it's not the most complicated plot in the world — it's your simple good vs evil story. But it's the spectacle that they unleash on screen that really makes your jaw drop.
My favourite sequence — even more than the 70-feet drop from the Shanghai building — is the one in which Cruise climbs a wall into the Vatican. It's very clever, and also quite sensational.
Now the other reason I really enjoy the Mission Impossible films is because I like how each film bears the distinct stamp of its director.
The first film directed by Brian de Palma — easily the best of the three — was a sharp and really intelligent thriller.
The second, John Woo's film was more stylish than plot-driven, and now this third installment by television expert JJ Abrams is heavy on the action.
And believe me, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. Tom Cruise is a star and you know he's going to save the world, you feel safe watching an action film knowing it's all leaning on Cruise.
But the one who really spices things up in this film is Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman who plays the film's bad guy with such chilling believability that he makes this ride that much more fun.
Mission Impossible 3 is exactly the kind of popcorn pleasure you deserve on a Saturday night if — like me, you prefer the cinemas to the nightclubs.
Rating: 3 / 5 (Good)
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