Review - 99: a good knock even if not a century

*Dhak-a-chik-rap-a-chik-dhak-a-chik-dhak*

Absolutely had to let you know how excited I am about Hindi movies being back in the theaters!!! And another...

*Dhak-a-chik-rap-a-chik-dhak-a-chik-dhak*

...because it was a pretty good restart. Nothing beats a few good hearty laughs. And this was pleasantly surprising too, considering the promos made it look like a slapstick affair. To start with, the color palette used sets it apart from the otherwise unnaturally bright comedies. Then the background music is very well done too and not loud at all. And these things were good enough to make-up for Kunal Khemu's non-voiceover voice and the lousy chase scene. I was almost sure these things would change for the worse after the titles, but the titles themselves were pretty creative and adorable. And the story line started getting interesting too.

It ain't all rosy, though. The romantic bits drag a fair deal and a few lines intended to be funny fall flat. But most of the silly bits are giggle-worthy and some of the lines are actually witty or insightful or both. It helps that Cyrus Broacha is kept in tight rein - we are not subjected to his toilet-sexual-humor and he is not allowed to get loud. Kunal Khemu also doesn't annoy as much and goes through his functions without deserving either claps or slaps. This is an obvious cakewalk for Boman Irani. I absolutely enjoyed Amit Mistry's comic timing. Oh yeah, there's Soha Ali Khan too, the functional eye-candy.

With all these positives and negatives delicately balanced, the final tilt towards the positive is most certainly the climax. Everything is neatly tied up in a quick wrap-up, and yet it doesn't feel like it came too soon. Also it maintains the tone of the film and there aren't any character transformations which make you go "yeah, right!"

Interestingly, the characters don't have any qualms cheating and are unabashedly aspiring for the big buck. They are all similar in their traits and goals, and they are all pretty much flat. Except for a lesson or two learnt most of them start and end at pretty much the same place. Yet it doesn't get boring because each one is a different shade of grey.

I am thrilled with the way the fresh inflow of films has begun. A nice, light-weight, witty entertainer.