wogma rating: Switch channels if it's on cable (?)
They call it a musical drama. Is it too much to ask for at least one hummable tune or a watchable song? I am sane enough not to ask for average performances or a sensible script.
Read moreThis movie is about the rivalry between two music composers based in New York. The key word here is 'two'. Who wins when you have Himesh Reshammiya Vs. Himesh Reshammiya? Don't know about that. But, I surely know who loses. Us!
Mind you, we are supposed to believe that one of them is actually a genius. All this while there is absolutely nothing for you to distinguish one composition from the other. I was thoroughly amused when Reggie (Upen Patel) taunts AJ (Bobby Deol) for having silly lyrics to his tunes. Actually, he was just stating facts. But I burst out laughing when he starts singing his own lyrics. They were equally bland! All obviously written by none other than Sameer. Now, we have started rhyming across songs - 'jhoom jhoom' to 'boom boom'.
The least you can do when you set out to make a musical is provide entertainment via visually appealing songs. Better use of colors would have added infinitely to the experience. How about having decent choreographers or casting better dancers? Of all the people, Bobby Deol?!? Maybe that is why the camera man was getting all enthusiastic, so that we would not be able to focus on the aerobics in the disguise of dancing.
Speaking of the camera - the close-ups were way too many. Okay, granted, the only reason for Kangna Ranaut and Celina Jaitley to be in the movie was for the curves they are endowed with, and the catwalk they have picked up in the name of body language. But, if you are going to show their face in close-ups, I mean, if that's what you really want to do, can we at least have the complete face with chin and all. On a side note, Kangna's eye make-up was the worst I have seen in a long time. And Celina refuses to give a whole-hearted smile lest it spoil her make-up.
I am totally convinced now that Upen, Kangna and Celina come from the school of under-acting where, you know, they teach you the all-in-one expression and punish you if you move your eyelid more than a quarter of a centimeter (except for blinking). And Bobby Deol comes from the school of over-acting, where acting is all about yelling and imposing melodrama on the audience. Oooh! Does that mean we have perfect performances as an average then? Never mind...
The script has the lousiest characterizations, which alas, we cannot blame because the characters are lousy! Egoistic psychopath Vs. Overconfident nincompoop. Anyways, you empathize with none and cheer when both of them find their way to the hospital for some reason or the other. The shoddy screenplay doesn't help at all. Some scenes look like they were thought of first and squeezed into the movie because they seemed cool, e.g., the fire scene.
Honestly, the basic premise of the story - competitors trying to outsmart each - other - could have been a compelling watch. Especially, if they had dwelled upon the psyche of the self-acclaimed genius who is actually mediocre. But, the basic premise is left at that. It finds support in none of the other aspects of film-making. We, thus, are left with a product which has no head or tail - and you could be accused of high expectations if you wanted anything like reason or logic. Borrowing a line from the movie, "What you don't know, does not exist". How I wish that I did not know about this movie and that in turn would make it not exist...
- meeta, a part of the audience
Thumbs up, by Taran Adarsh, IndiaFM : ...Himesh Reshammiya's music is ear-pleasing and the choreography, eye-catching... full review
Thumbs up, by Hanumant Bhansali, Radio Sargam : ...Suneel captures Bobby and Upen fantastically and the audience loves it when both come against each other... full review
So-So, by Nikhil Kumar, Apun Ka Choice : ...Himesh Reshammiya’s music is the backbone of this film... full review
So-So, by Abhijit Mhamunkar, indya.com : ...Anurag Kashyap's dialogues carry a punch at some places... full review
So-So, by Vipin Vijayan, Rediff : ...Darshan's directional venture is well-complimented by Himesh Reshammiya's music.... full review
Thumbs down, by Baradwaj Rangan, Blogical Conclusion, The New Sunday Express : ...Darshan is one of those directors whose work you have to be very careful about panning – for, you never know, he’ll come out with something worse the next time around... full review
Thumbs down, by Fatema H Kagalwala, Business of Cinema : ...The remaining problems of the film arise from flawed characterizations... full review
Thumbs down, by Deepa Gahlot, Cybernoon: ...Because the whole milieu and the plot seems so artificial, and Darshan’s style of direction so old-fashioned, the film is unwatchable... full review
Thumbs down, by Martin D'souza, Glamsham.com : ...musical fiasco that has neither ‘sur’ nor ‘taal’!!!... full review
Thumbs down, by Rajeev Masand, IBN Live : ...Both Bobby and Upen's costumes look like they've been sourced from a bargain basement sale at Pimps-For-Less... full review
Thumbs down, by Vaibhav Wankhede, M TV : ...if this was supposed to be a musical, what went wrong with the music? One word - Himesh.... full review
Thumbs down, by Amit R Agarwal, merinews : ...Is Himesh Reshammiya already suffering a burn-out syndrome?... full review
Thumbs down, by Subhash K Jha, SantaBanta.com : ...You watch this laugh triangle with a deep sense of embarrassment and regret... full review
Thumbs down, by Pankaj Shukla, SmasHits.com : ...The biggest disappointment lies in its screenplay (Rajesh Pandey) and haphazardly narrated scripting (Suneel Darshan) that denies audiences a deserving entertainer... full review
Thumbs down, by Naomi Datta, Times Now : ...Calling Shaka Laka Boom Boom a bad film is being generous... full review
Thumbs down, by Nikhat Kazmi, Times of India : ...t's a miserable performance from all the lead players, including the new Bhatt girl, Kangana Ranaut... full review
Twitter reviews for this movie are not available.
So-So, by Consumer Goods
This page has additional observations, other than the ones noted in the main review.
A well-established singer, AJ (Bobby Deol) gets insecure because of the talent he sees in Reggie (Upen Patel). He wishes to keep his place on the top in the music industry and goes to extreme measures to do so.
Goodness...this is going to be long...
Comments (5)
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Thanks, Amit.
Sorry, but I have not received any e-mail from you. Could you send it again?
its really a very very very nice movie.
cycos what a stupid song shaka laka laka laka laka laka laka laka laka laka laka laka laka
boom boom
Celina is nangi poongi
Kangana is bitch
bobby is cool
upen is hot
i give not even 1 star rating to this shit movie
hate it!!!!!!!!!!!
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