ROCKSTAR Reviews - ALL REVIEWS POST HERE - Page 47

Pata hai yahan se bahut door galat aur sahi ke paar, ek maidan hai.. main wahan milunga tujhe. The movie opens with this dialogue from Ranbir Kapoor. And in doing so, the talented Imtiaz Ali gives away the premise of the film at the outset. It tells you what is the film all about and what you can expect.

The concept is very clear: some relationships don't need a tagline. Some relationships are beyond words. Sometimes, the presence of someone in your life makes you complete. And if you're in love, nothing is wrong. Being in love and the feeling you get are beyond right and wrong.

Rockstar is the simple story of boy-meets-girl. They don't realise that they've fallen in love but life is beautiful only when they're together. They don't express their feeling till the very end, but the audience knows they're in love. Full marks to Ali, who successfully conveys every minute detail with his craft, writing and direction.

It must have been difficult for Ali to attempt this subject after making three full-on entertaining movies that were brimming with life – Socha Na Tha, Jab We Met and Love Aaj Kal. If his last three films were a journey for his leading artistes, who realise they were in love during that journey, Rockstar is a huge contrast. Rockstar is not the journey of two people in love but the journey of love itself.

You're hooked to the film from the very first frame, and your attention doesn't waver for a single moment. Better still, the movie draws you right in and you feel you're part of the journey of love that Ali has so beautifully brought to celluloid. Hats off to the master!

Though the film has been shot at picturesque locales, the narration is very earthy. And the good thing is that everyonewill be able to relate to the scenes. Rockstar could be anyone's story. Watching this film will leave you speechless as the journey of love has never been presented like this on-screen before.

About the story… There's RanbirKapoor, who's raised in middle-class Delhi. He idolises the charismatic Jim Morrison and dreams of becoming a rock star one day. Sadly, no one takes him seriously and even pokes fun at him. Enter Nargis Fakhri, a diva of the college they attend. Kapoor hopes she will break his heart, and the pain will spur him to become a rock star. The journey of love, which they neither feel nor understand and what follows formsthe crux of the film.

Though the story is simple, it's the scripting that makes the movie truly an experience. Some may feel that too much negativity in the lead actor will go against the film but Ali has deliberately avoided the tried and tested. So what if this is a debatable debate, every filmmaker has his own way of narrating a story. This is Ali's way and he succeeds in striking a chord.

Kapoor's character is layered and complicated, and presenting it convincingly was no mean feat for Ali. Kapoor's character is soft and he comes across as a fool. The transition in his character – the way he speaks, presents himself and his look – are mind-blowing!

The first half of the film is very entertaining and peppered with sweet and tender moments but the second half is quite the reverse. Kapoor's loneliness and his frustration on the road to self-destruction tug at your heart. The scene where he confesses to Fakhri that he's become famous but he's not happy and that he feels complete only with her gives you goosebumps. The emptiness in Kapoor's life despite achieving everything he ever dreamt of brings tears to your eyes.

There are many other scenes that touch your heart – whenever the two meet, they're attracted to each other but there's no lust; the first time Fakhri asks Kapoor to give her a hug; and Fakhri's outburst after the concert and thereafter when Kapoor visits her at home to bid her adieu. Then there's their meeting after two years and Kapoor's outburst when the media tries to malign Fakhri's reputation. The scene with Shammi Kapoor and Ranbir Kapoor is also very impressive. We must mention the massage scene with Piyush Mishra. It is hilarious!

Pre-climax, the film seems to lose its grip and you feel it has begun to drag. But the way Ali has handled those scenes makes them worth watching. Also some may not like the way the film ends. But the audience has loved this kind of climax before. If that happens with Rockstar, this film might re-write history.

Directorially, Imtiaz Ali has made a masterpiece. The writing is flawless and the way he has handled the subject and brought it to celluloid is stupendous. He has raised the bar with his treatment of this subject. In a word, Ali is a genius. Ali's treatment and Anil Mehta's cinematography are the two major pillars of this film. The dialogue has been fabulously written.

Musically speaking, AR Rahman has once again come up with winning tracks. Every song is beautifully written and tuned, and enhance the film.

Ranbir Kapoor delivers an award-winning performance. He's so real that you forget he's Ranbir Kapoor and is instead Jordan. Hats off to him for attempting a film like this so early in his career. Fakhri makes a confident debut and she's superb. Shammi Kapoor in a cameo is outstanding. Kumud Mishra is likeable. Piyush Mishra is first-rate. Shernaz Patel is fine.

Verdict: The film has taken a flying start practically everywhere, and with Ranbir Kapoor's popularity, AR Rahman's music and Imtiaz Ali's treatment, Rockstar will be a profitable venture for everyone. A must-watch for all movie-goers.

http://www.boxofficeindia.co.in/rockstar-5/

Rockstar Record Opening For Ranbir?

Rajeev Masand review

Music of the heart

Rockstar

Rating:

November 11, 2011

Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Nargis Fakhri, Kumud Mishra, Piyush Mishra, Shammi Kapoor, Aditi Rao Hydari

Director: Imtiaz Ali

Imtiaz Ali's Rockstar is a far-from-perfect film, but it has honesty and depth, which is mostly missing in Hindi movies today.

Ranbir Kapoor is Janardan Jakhar, a middle-class kid from Delhi's Pitampura, who sets himself up to get his heart broken when he's told he can't be a great musician until he's suffered great pain. Janardhan goes from a desperate struggler strumming his guitar at campus hangout spots, to an angsty star, now rechristened Jordan, who's prone to violent outbursts. Indeed it's love and pain itself that inspires this journey. His heart beats for the unattainable Heer (Nargis Fakhri), the gorgeous Kashmiri girl he befriended while in college, who is now married in Prague.

Despite several hiccups, especially in the film's post-intermission portions, Rockstar is an admirable effort if only for how unconventionally director Imtiaz Ali tells this tale of great passion. The romance at the core of this film is a complex one, and the film offers no easy answers. Watch how Heer comes alive each time she's in Jordan's presence, whereas when he's without her his longing prompts his best music out of him.

From the very moment in, it's evident Imtiaz understands his characters intimately and gives us lovely little moments to know them better. Like that scene in which Janardhan's sitting in a canteen and complaining that he's shattered over being shot down by the campus hottie. "If your heart was really broken, you wouldn't be sitting here eating samosas and arguing over chutney," his friend tells him, calling his bluff. In a later scene where a bhabhi protects him from his irate brothers, he screams at her for being too touchy-feely. There's sharp wit on display here, including a scene in which Jordan sits poker faced for the most part, while a music baron chats with him about a contract in the midst of getting a massage.

The film's chief lapses are its meandering script, and its less-than-impressive leading lady, both of which cost the film dearly. Nargis Fakhri is lovely to look at, but offers very little in terms of acting, reducing her character ultimately to a simpering-whimpering victim. Of the supporting cast, only Kumud Mishra makes a big impression as Jordan's mentor and manager Khatana, who watches helplessly as his friend sinks into a quicksand of despair.

Rockstar is never as surefooted as Imtiaz's breakout hit Jab We Met, but it's a braver, riskier film than any he's previously made. AR Rahman's score serves as the spine of this enterprise, emerging expectedly as one the film's biggest strengths. A word also for Anil Mehta's dramatic camerawork; not merely for the lush Kashmiri landscapes but also for the edgily-shot concert scenes.

But Rockstar belongs to Ranbir Kapoor over everyone else. It's a riveting performance – from Janardan's rough edges to Jordan's wildly unpredictable ways – and Ranbir roots it in the real. Watch how he seizes the stage in the Sadda haq number and virtually makes the track his own. For Ranbir alone, this film deserves a watch.

I'm going with three out of five for director Imtiaz Ali's Rockstar. In these times of instant gratification, here's a film that makes you think. Not a perfect film, but one that stays with you long after the lights have come back on.

(This review first aired on CNN-IBN)