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Guzaarish - Notepad
Guzaarish
quick review:
Guzaarish is an art museum. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is the perfectly chiseled curator and Hrithik Roshan an almost statue. And this once, it’s not his acting I’m complaining about, the script demands him to stay put. You are watching them etched in many exotic, exquisite paintings frame after frame. So, what if the very basis of the story is pointless and there are gaping holes which are difficult to digest.
Click here to see latest tweets by this movie's official account
This page has additional observations, other than the ones noted in the main review.
Plot Summary
Ethan (Hrithik Roshan) is a quadriplegic. As his health is deteriorating, his will to live is diminishing too. He wants to leave life happily. Only, for some vague reason, he wants to do it legally.
What Worked
- Loved the new UTV's new theme music and video
- The flirty sensuous, funny scene. How I wish they hadn't put it in the promos!
- The camera composition of the scene in which Devyani (Shernaz Patel) walks out of the mansion with Sophia (Aishwarya Rai) sitting in the kitchen. Beautiful!
- The composition of the shot in which Ethan is sitting on his wheel chair at the beach.
What did not
Note: This section simply lists the things that I did not like in this movie. This is not the overall impression about this movie. Please read the full review here
- How come no media at the hearing when it's held at the courtroom's new address.
- How can a nurse touch bed sores without cleaning her hands!? Ok, ok...asking for too much detail, I am.
- But, this is a valid problem. How come Ethan has that bed sore only for that one time, otherwise people are happily throwing him about and he doesn't as much as wince.
- "Love above all else!" is that all it takes for a renowned magician to give away his legacy? Why would Ethan teach Omar at all???
- The comedy in the scene between Devyani and Sophia makes you laugh but is out-of-place for their characters.
- Was Ethan holding a glass of wine with his disabled hands in the last scene?
Guzaarish - Movie Details
- Official Sites:
Website
![[Facebook page of Guzaarish]](/site_media/images/icons/facebook_small.png)
Facebook
![[Twitter account of Guzaarish]](/site_media/images/icons/twitter_small.png)
Twitter
- Banner: SLB films, UTV Motion Pictures
- Producer: Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Ronnie Screwwala
- Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
- Lead Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai, Aditya Roy Kapoor
- Supporting Cast: Shernaz Patel, Nafisa Ali, Vijay Crishna, Suhel Seth, Moni Kangana Dutta
- Screenplay: Bhavani Iyer, Sanjay Leela Bhansali
- Dialogues: Bhavani Iyer, Vibhu Puri
- Cinematography: Sudeep Chaterjee
- Editor: Hemal Kothari
- Background Score: Tubby, Parik
- Action Choreography: Sham Kaushal
- Choreography: Pony Varma, Ashley Lobo, Longinus Fernandes
- Music Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
- Lyrics: Turaz, Vibhu Puri
- Facebook Page: Link
- Inspired by: The Sea inside, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
- Running time: 130 minutes
- Reviewer: meetu
- Categories: Hindi Movies
- Genres: Musical, Romance, Social
Guzaarish - Trailer
Guzaarish - All reviews summary
External Reviews
49 reviewers have given Guzaarish an average rating of 3.3/5.0. 25 yays, 10 nays, 14 so-so. See all external reviews »Twitter Reviews
On twitter, 419 twitterers have given Guzaarish an average rating of 4.0/5.0. 323 yays, 66 nays, 30 so-so. See all tweets »
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Comments (35)
The movie is quite paradoxical, quite like 100 gram zindagi song. Both restrained and un-subtle.
Just for this review, I felt more pictures would have have helped reemphasize your point and helped the reader decide if he really wanted to watch the movie on screen.
I just saw this movie, first day third show, sanjay leela bansali has been my most favourite, his name is enough for me to see his movie.... and true to his name, he is a `WOW' creates magic and here too ha has done that, I will see this movie again n again n again n again till...i don't know. I haven't had yet enough of `hum di de chuke sanam, devdas or black' i have seen them so many times, I got all the dvds and see sanjay leela bansali through them, his work of genius. I wish I could meet him, see him at his sets working, spend time there with such a genius.
I think Hritik Roshan is doing a great job these days.But one thing I must say and that is , he is focusing his attention on roles which are more challenging and requires special efforts.
The concept of the Movie is superb and one should definitely watch the movie..it is better if you watch it in a movie hall.
Meetu, I don't agree with your take on the 'plot' (you call it silly!!) and the narrative adopted by Bhansali.
I don't know what were you expecting in the name of a plot - a Manmohan Desai/ Prakash Mehra/ Subhash Ghai-sque canvas of events?! Thank god, we have come far from those kinds of storylines and narrative frameworks!! I loved how Bhansali chooses to restrain the palette of events to a small time-capsule. That gives him both the opportunity and challenge to detail the movie better and keep it crisp, and to the point, without wandering away into sub-plots and personal histories of each of the characters. I particularly like the restraint adopted in introducing Ethan's past love interest, and Sophia's troubled marriage. If in the hands of any other director, each of these subplots had a huge potential to be stretched into competing storylines. Thank Bhansali for not doing so. It is by choice, I believe, that he does not allow us to think a lot beyond Ethan.
Anyway, what's 'silly' about the basic plot? Euthanasia? Arguments around euthanasia? What? I feel the film is a well-attempted discourse on Euthanasia; one that would be comprehensible to ‘aam junta’ because it is dealt with through a poignant story. Rarely have I seen films taking a discursive turn, and if they do, they have to bear the brunt of being classified as art-house/ parallel cinema. Thankfully Guzaarish manages to meander out, without being labeled as either.
I also disagree with your comments regarding the timing of introducing other less important characters, some 4 or 5 of them, u say. I think those are the kind of choices every storyteller has to make, and in Bhansali's case, these characters came out at a point when Ethan's struggle (personal as well as legal) has been totally established. So these characters don't compete with his fair-share of screen time, but instead help render Ethan's character with more colors – love and forgiveness. E.g. Mr. D'Souza's entry marks the validity of Sophia's divorce, which leads Ethan to propose. Also, indicating that he did secretly love her. Similarly, Senior Siddiqui’s entry provides a background to Omar Siddiqui and Ethan’s accident, besides reflecting that Ethan had, in spite of all that he had gone through, forgiven Senior Siddiqui. Two major shades that would have gone missing if not for these extra characters.
In short, what you call Bhansali’s mistakes, I call them his craft.
I thoroughly enjoyed the movie; even the pseudo-Gulzar-ish lyrics (100gm etal.) seemed to make sense once Bhansali gave a context to it (7.5 pounds vs. 100gm).
@shruti unfortunately, the official site doesn't have the particular scenes i'm talking about.
@G-10 The basic plot is "a person who is tired of his physical ailments and wants to end life is making an appeal to the court" My problem - "people who want to kill themselves, do it. They don't go about asking for permission."
The smaller issue - I didn't mind the no backstory, in fact as you have noted i have an issue with the number of characters introduced.
Guzaarish is an outstanding film. Hrithik is a pure genius and every award this year should go to him. Wish our filmakers start venturing more and more towards alternate cinema and break away from the medicority that is regularly churned out in Bollywood films. Loved Guzaarish and will watch it again and again.
This sounds like a grander version of 'Sukhant' A Marathi film... where Atul Kulkarni fights with the system (on behalf of his mom) for Mercy Killing...
I like your review style. Keep it up..
@Shiv so i am told. haven't seen 'sukhant'. Thanks, I do hope to keep it up.
@ Meetu: I think you are over-simplifying Euthanasia. If the movie was 'Suicide' or something like that, then what you suggest might work. But the very premise of Bhansali's movie is the legal battle that started with Ethan's Guzaarish (plea) to the court. How can you challenge that premise. Sorry, I fail to see the pointlessness of it.
About the other matter: the characters introduced towards the end were 2, not 4-5 as you say. Now, please don't count those 2 housemaids, they had been amply introduced much earlier. :)
It's impossible to stop personal biases from coming in the way, but to base a review entirely on a personal bias ("silly plot") is taking it a bit too far.
Hoping for evenly addressed content in the future. :)
@G-10 aah, the legal battle. that didn't quite work for me either. The last one's location was just way too distracting.
side-characters: 4-5 in the second half (not the end). 1 or even 2 in the second half would have been acceptable. but 4-5 in the second half with 2 in the last 15-20 minutes was a bit much for me.
evenly addressed content: the only consistent thing i can offer is my opinion, one movie at a time. i can tell you what worked for me, and what didnt. And like with any review, you decide if my justifications (not the opinions that are justified) work for you or not and decide accordingly. More on that here http://wogma.com/article/why-read-a-review/
@ meetu: ok for plot and additional characters.
but, don't you think an opinion needs to be evaluated, validated using some method...some yardstick...to elevate it to a status of a review?! if not then, all the likes of A.O.Scott should be just happy giving their opinions!
The bottom-line is that I love your website. But don't like to see your writings shrink from 'review' to a mere 'view'.
Cheers!
@G-10 that's a tough one, you know. I think this is my evaluated, validated view. There were things that bothered me and I mentioned those. I didn't trash the movie because of those things, because there were other things that compensated for it. Sure, there might be a movie that has just that one thing that bothers me so much that the rest of the film doesn't matter. And so on.
This is the third movie Iam Watching from the direction of Sanjay Leela Bansali. Very Neat.
Hats off to the entire crew. Each and every frames are painted. The Long shot of the Villa, the balcony, the pond inside the villa, climax set... list cont...
Locality of the plot GOA gives a huge support to make and watch the film in Hollywood feel.
Narration is awesome and its the strength of the film. Before the release critics were there like its a remake or copy of hollywood movie Prestige. But there is nothing compared to it, except the profession of the hero.
Scenes I like :
1. The teasing b/w hrithik and ash while she gave towel bath.
3. Rain drop disturbing hirthik sleep.
4. Court scene in home.
5. Climax dialogues.
6. Not to miss the Udi song.
Very well written review, you almost said everything that I felt was wrong with the film. Except for the grand sets, exotic designer costumes, Aish's chambor lip color there was no other substance in the film. The subject needed research, court room dramas need much more attention to details... quite a lot of disappointment actually in many fronts.
After my tryst with sawariya I decided to go in with zero expectations but absolutely louved it!!
here's what i thought
http://eatpraylovemovies.blogspot.com/2010/11/guzarish-2010.html
Strange Mathematics:
The movie rated on individual department scores above average or excellent, but the sum average of its total is marginally above "zero". Only as deep as our times of neo-liberalism and YOGA.
@Sanjukta thank you!
@Raj individual department scores = above avg or excellent: correct.
sum average of its total = marginally above zero: how?
I might like individual departments, but the film as a whole might still not work for me. That's the whole point of the rating schema.
Watched it yesterday, the court scenes were definitely stale. The emotional scenes were mostly good, but the movie felt undercooked. Here was a novel idea (at least for mainstream bollywood) but it was not developed further. The performances (apart from the doctor - I didn't like him at all) were good.
Nonetheless, it was a good watch. Could have been a lot better though.
Meetu, for once, I feel, you have not been your usual incisive self. In other words I felt very let down by the review (I saw the film after reading it).
Except for the 'visual opulence' and 'lyrical treatment'(whatever that means!) the film had nothing to take back home. Perhaps the 'Udi' number was another exception.
From Hrithik hamming away to the prosecutor turning into a full blown villain and the sidekick trying to be the poor man's Farhan Akhtar(or should it be the rich man's----after all this is a Bhansali film) the film never even aimed for any kind of subtlety. All the tender moments were hammered in till you could almost yell for some relief.
And the sub-plots, thrown in as afterthoughts and not even contributing to the mood of the film.
Another addition to Bhansali's 'style without substance' repertoire. Very disappointing.
@Samir sometimes i find myself in a no-win position with my readers. Right here, is a prime example. :D oh well. Like I said the movies visuals and some of the things Ethan didn't do made me like the film. I didn't love it, i didn't hate it, so the incisive feel is missing, i guess.
On the whole it’s a lot better the SAAWARIYA!! But might face tough competition from GOLMAAL 3. Now it boils down to the audience and their mood.
That's what this movie was about - Casting, performance, sets, dialogues, music, cinematography etc. all scored high if scored individually, BUT overall movie - as you rightly said, "does not work"... That's why strange mathematics of SLB movie..! He must be a genius! :-)
@minesh1963 "mood" that's the word!
@Raj aaah. i thought you were commenting on my mathematics :D
Can I say am glad at least a few reviewers have the guts to speak their mind? a lot of people mainly liked it because the basic premise is that of a quadriplegic. but SLB doesn't seem to have the calibre to do full justice to the plot.
1.unrealistic setting/character depiction...picture-perfect hrithik and ash, who acts as though being a caretaker is a fairy-tale setting. except for lawyer and hrithik, all characters are cardboard cut-outs.
2. blatant plagiarism and various contradictions (e.g. ethan is poor but lives opulently. earlier he wants to die bcos of quadri and later declares its bcos of his organ failure. umm, really? he even sings outside with no paraphernalia to support him). the movie was stifling to watch. ethan is shown mainly confined to bed, dark colors in movie, sombre music, no outdoors activity, etc. either SLB could show him as someone who's depressed or someone who's full of life and tackles it head-on.
3. excessively glorifying ethan and doing so by painting other characters as dark, including sofia's ex-husband, omar's father, prosecutor etc. sorry even ethan as RJ was unbelievable. sanju in munnabhai connected better with listeners.
I love unconventional movies, but this movie was terribly made with a weak script and poor direction.
@abhay agree with some and some i don't. For example, this is where i disagree -
Point 2. I know many people who are living in mansions but can barely afford it. they are doing it with donations, selling jewelry, artifacts, etc. Also, one can be full of like on the outside and depressed inside.
Little Slow movie.
But good one by sanjay leela sir.
Hrithik is awesome.
well, I would like to disagree. a person living on donations and having about 3-4 caretakers and plushly decorated interiors do not match. even the wheelchair used is of the expensive variety, not frequently available in india. someone living on donations would also not have extra money left over to spend on expensive knickknacks that can be seen in the detailing of the interiors...the same things which as a whole contribute to the beautiful painting feeling to you as a reviewer.
I have interacted with a lot of quadriplegics and paraplegics myself. the movie seemed very one-dimensional, sure at the time of disability, they undergo intense discouragement, but they move on with time. anyone chaining himself to a bed in the house for extended hours at a time with limited interactions for years, is prone to brooding silences and very susceptible to depression (disability or no disability). I do not see ethan even visiting his mom or venturing out of his house until she dies or for a isolated trip here or there. he may be an RJ but he doesn't have any friends except for the people who make it a point to visit him. but I don't see him reaching out to people on his own. a person who genuinely loves life would be seen outdoors much more often, more actively engaged in his pursuits and cinematically have more 'light' in his life. and based on the depiction of the movie, ethan was actually very depressed but did a good job of faking it. which is why, someone describing him as full of life comes across as very unbelievable and very close to lying in a sense. there are a lot of dimensions and much more depth that could have been explored here, instead the movie seemed to do a very superficial job. Look at movies like sparsh, and SLB's own movie khamoshi and you will understand what is it that am referring to here.
Dear Meetu,
I respect your reviews, and I am an avid reader of them, "every week" since WOGMA started. Please do not think otherwise. Obviously there may be some agreements and disagreements. Sorry if I have said mine to you. I religiously visit your website and read your reviews, even though I am not a frequent commenter. Best
@abhay all very arguable and a never-ending argument it will be
@raj chill, it's cool. as long as the discussion is healthy, opposing view hardly matter
U mentioned in ur movie details this film is inspired by 'The Sea Inside'. What do U mean inspired?? He made terrible Devdas and people nominated it to Oscar, he lifted Black from a 1960 hollywood flick, people gave rave reviews and he made cosmetic changes to 'The Sea Inside' and made Guzaarish, U say 'must watch'....Do U guys ever change?
i really liked this review ; i m sorry to say I dont agree with the concept that "Ethan asks the permission to die" ... well he might get it .
There was not any need to make a movie on this with so much melodrama.
Guys we do rant about how great is our Indian culture But am sorry to say Indians dont have a sympathetic attitude to disabled people and geriatric people.
I step out of my house and i need not go very far take the rail way station(MMTS) for example they have a reservation for the physically handicapped but not of them enter that compartment ... why to get there a person has to climb an innumerable no of steps.
Check our foot paths for example..
This movie is irrelavent in the Indian context ...Sorry guys thats who we r ...be REALISTIC for once
I Loved The Movie..I Laughed..I Cried...
As Far As The Sub Plots And Narration Is Concerned...It Is Hard To Digest Because It Is New To Indian Cinema...We Are Used To Seeing Overstretched And Melodramatic Scenes In Our Movies...."Guzaarish" Wasn't Made To Be A Blockbuster...It Is Like A Painting..Some May Not Like It And Discard It Completely...But To Some People With The Eyes Of The Buyer...This Painting Is Worth A Million Bucks...
It Is High Time Our Directors Stopped Spoon Feeding Us..And This Is What Bhansali Sir Has Done With "Guzaarish"...We Do Not Get To See Much Of The "2 4 Characters" Thrown In The Second Half Because The DIrector Feels That We Are Intelligent Enough To Understand...
As Far As Hrithik's Acting Is Concerned..I Felt It Was Top Notch...And It Clearly Seems That When The So Called 'Reviewer' Above Says That "his head dropped to one side like a mentally imbalanced person - while this got annoying"...She Is Clearly Not Able To Understand What The Character Demanded Of Hrithik...Just Keep Yourself In The Shoes Of A Paraplegic Who Hasn't Been Able To move For 14 Bloody Years...Do You Think That He Will Live his Day Keeping His Head Held High..huh...Please Please Please Think Before You Write A Review...Because People Read What You Write And Then They Make Their Decisions To Whether Watch Or Not To Watch The Movie Depending On What You have Written....
so finally I watched this movie but missed the end..and I must say I was happily surprised with it for the part that I watched.
My biggest problem with SLB's movies is that his sets are out of here..he making it non real but he is claiming that it is the current century!
anyway, if I ignore all that, and think of this as a play with exaggerated sets then the acting was pretty decent. The screenplay was not bad.. and once I again think that he should be in theater and not in movies!
@ligne now there's a thought! you describe it perfectly.
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