GHANCHAKKAR REVIEWS - Page 8

Originally posted by: Neetu_Unleashed

tumhari nazar lag gayi (kidding though)

Film Review | Ghanchakkar

Nandini Ramnath

First Published: Fri, Jun 28 2013. 12 39 PM IST

A still from the film 'Ghanchakkar'

Rating: 3/5 stars (Three Stars)

Star cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan, Namit Das and Rajesh Sharma.

Director: Rajkumar Gupta

What's Good: A nail-biting thrilling comedy and the stellar performances of the film's cast.

What's Bad: The pace that occasionally hits the speed breaker.

Loo break: None.

Watch or Not?: Rajkumar Gupta's Ghanchakkar is valiant effort to alter the comic dimensions of Bollywood. Refraining from rugged humor, the film is packed judiciously with laughs and wit, along with stellar performances from a straight faced Emraan Hashmi and an overtly outlandish Vidya Balan.

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A notorious trio rob a bank and decide that they will meet three months later and distribute the moolah. When the other two call after three months for their sum, the protagonist has forgotten them as well as the location of the money as a result of retrograde amnesia!

Has he really forgotten where's the money or is this a plot to dupe them?

Ghanchakkar Review: Script Analysis

Rajkumar Gupta who has previously made films like No One Killed Jessica and Aamir is known for his clever thinking. To simply question what makes a thriller flawless? It is when the audiences don't suffer from a single dull moment. Unfortunately Ghanchakkar cannot boast of that. The script despite a refreshing angle lacks the thunderous value of thrillers. Yet, the most pivotal plus is that the story's treatment that is rare. The lows here are the pace and how the writer drawing from a few interesting characters cannot maintain the momentum of his story.

In the second half, the film gets repetitive and with the number of false alarms increasing, a brooding sense of tediousness will slip. However, the beauty of the story is in its abruptness and impulsive indecisiveness. It is commendable that Gupta's vision allows humor to bloom minus buffoonery. I appreciate how the humor doesn't run out. Characters like the local train passenger, who is threatened, doesn't seem unnecessary, making it more laughable. However, I wasn't completely satisfied with the film's story that is largely twisty but begins to shift towards convoluted in the end. I am a little dubious about whether the climax managed to save the film's grace at all, but the overall package worked well for me!

Ghanchakkar Review: Star Performances

Emraan Hashmi, as the lazy husband who loves his TV more than his biwi is perfect. He gets every mood and emotion of his character right! From his helpless frustration at his inability to deduce information to his guarded tendency of doubting everyone, Hashmi is impeccable and nuanced. My personal favorite from the film is when he plans his new bigger and better television with childlike glee!

With the most 'unfashionable' clothes, a blatantly loud Vidya Balan is first rate in her work. Her confidence oozes through the slides. Effortlessly, the talented actress brings with simplicity the myriad layers of Neetu's character. Her blazing volume everytime she says 'hain?!' will crack you up and her perfect Punjabi diction solidifies her demeanor. As the bahu who mocks her saas everytime she calls or as the wife who throws away her husband's food into the dustbin simply because he had the audacity to point out the less salt in the dish brings out her boisterous side. But, with equal perfection Balan delivers a brilliant scene where she beats up the goons for attacking her husband. In a less heavy role this time, she gives an impossible-to-miss performance!

The supporting actors Namit Das and Rajesh Sharma have compliment brilliantly as a duo. Bringing in the correct tinge of notoriety, they manage to keep you laughing while they bash up our hero! With a good sense of comic timing, the film works off mainly from their substantial performances!

Ghanchakkar Review: Direction, Music & Technical Aspects

This film isn't for you if you like Bollywood thrillers that keep dropping hints and finally bead it up to formulate a drastically dramatic culmination! Rajkumar Gupta leaves it for the audiences to figure out where the story is heading. If you manage to give the repetitive elements a miss, the film unfolds into a twisty comic thriller. The bank robbery scene where they use masks of Utpal Dutt, Amitabh Bachchan and Dharamendra is sheer genius. The screenplay could have been more rigorous and nailbiting, still it is the quirky story that is positive. Amit Trivedi's wacky background score and the title track Ghanchakkar Babu is befitting. Luckily, the good editing helps in keeping the film lucid and ends before the film's negatives surface up.

Ghanchakkar Review: The Last Word

Rajkumar Gupta's Ghanchakkar indeed is far from perfect. But it is both compelling and challenging. Boldly making a unique film that refuses to garnish out ready made thriller, expect this one to jolt your gray matter. The film's performances are decadent, especially that of Vidya Balan and Emraan Hashmi who are top notch. I am going with a 3 on 5 for Ghanchakkar. It could have been a better film but it still impresses as a stirring and engaging comic-suspense thriller.

GHANCHAKKAR day 1 in Gulf: $100000 plus, very good. Better than THE DIRTY PICTURE and KAHAANI.