Film Reviews : Loveshhuda, Neerja & Ishq Forever.

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ISHQ FOREVER

STORYLINE : Ishq Forever is about a free-spirited rebel Riya, played by Ruhi Singh, who is studying in South Africa. She loves her freedom but when her father becomes the Prime Minister back home, her life changes completely. Ruhi gets tight security, and that's when RAW agents Naina (Lisa Ray) and Amitabh (Jaaved Jaaferi) enter the picture. They follow the young girl wherever she goes and Ruhi starts feeling stifled. So on her birthday, she runs away from her party, as she wants to be free and away from all the security. Helping her escape is none other than the hero of the film Krishna Chaturvedi, whose character is called Aryan Shekhawat.

WHATS HOT : “Ishq Forever” is a pleasant romantic movie which is released in Valentine week so good feedback might be expected. The chemistry between Ruhi & Krishna is pretty good!

WHATS NOT : While Ms Singh is seen flaunting her curves throughout the film, she really needs to work on her acting. There are times when she acts over-the-top. Her dialogue delivery also isn't quite there.

The songs arent catchy enough! Lisa Ray and Jaaved Jaaferi do their best to play out their parts but there is nothing to boast about their acting.

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LOVESHHUDA

STORYLINE : Gaurav (Girish Kumar) is getting married in London with a London wali ladki. A perfect life…well almost! It’s hardly picture perfect as his fiance is a dominating lady. But he is getting married anyway because he is a ‘good boy’. His friends arrive and they set out for a bachelor’s party. Things get too trippy and tipsy and Gaurav ends up waking up next to a girl called Pooja (Navneet Kaur Dhillon) about whom he recollects nothing. Hangover? If only..! Don’t jump the gun yet. He makes Pooja leave immediately so that nobody suspects any ill doing but when she doesn’t get her clothes, Gaurav hands her the same shirt his mother-in-law gifted him for the engagement. Now he has to get it back or he is screwed. Gaurav says that word nearly four times and I think that best explains his and my plight. He manages to find Pooja just in time to get the shirt back but not without some gyaan on how to live life. She not only gives the memory of his last night back but some preaching on how faces can tell about regrets and no regrets. This turns into a symbolic gesture all through the film with camera scanning people’s faces for regret. I wish it had panned towards me too. Gaurav goes back to his engagement with a girl he detests. Four years later, he is a grumpy divorced man angry on everyone while Pooja is getting married. Repeat the same chronology of events in the second half with role reversal and the film is over.

WHATS HOT : Vaibhav Mishra, the director, starts the film well. Although very Hangover, the concept of the guy not remembering anything after getting sloshed looked fun. But he was in a hurry to give hero’s memories back and spoiled the fun. Locales are just fascinating. If London is dreamy, Simla is beautiful and Delhi is fun. Add some Mauritius madness, and you know where to plan your trip next. But…this is a film not a travel documentary. Sadly, I was busy planning my foreign trip! Both Girish and Navneet catch your eye instantly and act well too. Aaj phir peene ki tamnna hai really worked on me. It’s damn neat!

WHATS NOT : The story is so clichéd that within 15 minutes you know how it’s going to end. Story and screenplay are so convenient I don’t think the director took much time to draft it. What happens in the first half gets repeated in the second with places being swapped between Girish and Navneet.

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NEERJA

As everyone knows, Neerja is based on the brave airhostess who lost her life saving many others during the unforgettable Pan Am hijacking of 1986. When it comes to hijacking dramas, the first and the best film that comes to my mind is United 93, a terrifying drama set on the only flight that crashed on an empty paddock during the infamous 9/11 attacks.

RATING : 4/5

STORYLINE : Neerja Bhanot (Sonam Kapoor), Pan Am air hostess and part time model, had everything that she needed to be happy, a supportive family, including a doting mother (Shabana Azmi) and a caring boyfriend (Shekhar Ravjiani). She was also a huge Rajesh Khanna fan. However, she had been involved in an abusive marriage before that nearly destroyed her spirit. The film begins one day prior to that infamous hijacking. Neerja had just been promoted as the head purser of the ill-fated flight, and she was seen celebrating with her family at a society function. At the same, in Karachi, five terrorists were preparing themselves for their dastardly mission. The next day, when Neerja’s flight had a stopover at Karachi, the terrorists forcibly entered the airfield and hijacked the plane, with the intention of flying it to Cyprus. However, Neerja warned the pilots who follow protocols and abandon cockpit. With no one to fly the plane, the terrorists took the passengers for ransom and demanded the pilots back from the authorities. They show that they mean business when they began killing off passengers one by one. It is left to Neerja to calm the passengers and handle the situation without letting it spiral out of control. But you know how it all ends…

WHATS HOT : The entire hijacking situation is so brilliantly shot that you feel that you are a part of the life threatening drama. The tension you feel in the scenes are palpable, especially when the terrorists realise there is no hope for them and they become reckless. The docu style camera work heightens the sense of claustrophobia in you. The background score is tense and brilliantly done. But where Ram Madhvani actually scores is how he shot the final moments of Neerja’s sacrifice – intense yet emotionally wrought. If those scenes don’t bring tears from your eyes, your heart is definitely made of stone. Another thing that worked for the film is the casting. From the main leads to even the supporting ones, everyone has done Justice to their roles.

WHATS NOT : The film is not without its small flaws. The harbingers of Neerja’s fate in the initial portions could have been lessened, like the taxi driver wishing her a long life, her brother telling her she won’t die if she doesn’t covet the magazine or Neerja dancing to Rajesh Khanna’s Bye Bye song. Also, if a scene or two would have shown about how the Indian Government reacted to the situation, it would have been great.