@anuj. I agree that some of your facts are true but your hatred of certain stars especially Aamir and Ranbir is blinding you from the total truth. I won't comment on Ranbir since his career is only 6 years old but you must either be out of your mind or missed your medications to say that Aamir is a hamming non actor and not even close to that one expression star Salman. Salman is a superstar in his own place but he had a very long patch of flops. Remember the years where he had flops in a row - Veer, Mr & mrs khanna, London dreams. Yuvraaj, God tussi great ho etc etc. Basically, the decade 2000 has not seen any all time blockbuster until 2009 wanted. That was his turning point and since then, he is repeating himself. JAI HO will not be a blockbuster, mark my words. As for Hrithik, he just gives blockbusters 1 out of 5 times on average. Aamir is the only superstar who gives blockbusters on a consistent basis. Heck even his Tv show Satyamev Jayate was a hit.
Well, Anuj is right when he says that there is no single definition of a masala movie. It is a movie which has bits and pieces of everything (Romance, revenge,thrills, action etc) Masala Movies = Mass entertainers. Majority of the times, Masala movies can also be defined as movies that are often critically thrashed by the snobbish critics. Very very very few movies fall in the category which have excellent critical reviews as well as become Blockbusters. Movies like Sholay, QSQT, Ghayal, 3 Idiots and Dabangg.
"Even the keen, wait for the DVD!!" Reportedly, Krissh3 has earned Rs200 crores and no one cared for this critic's rating to wait for the DVD!! Keep in mind that no movie can earn 200 crores without repeat audience, there is simply no way. @TimELiebe, @Ramen etc. Please stop posting any more comments to maintain your dignity since the crores in the indian population have shown that the only single factor that they are interested in is entertainment and not your critic's fault finding and personal grudge reviews. @Meetu, Please go the Rediff site and see how many people just abhor Raja Sen.
@Rachit - Is that an alias for Meetu? How can anyone think of blocking a post. If you don't like the facts posted by a commentator, then I would advise you to buzz off. All of us are here trying to discuss the role of a responsible critic. Please go and see the blog by Roger Ebert on how critics should review movies.
@Anuj: Your last comment is absolutely spot on. Although critic Taran Adarsh goes a little over board sometimes, most of his reviews are viewed with the "Part of the Audience" glasses. Now, Please don't go about lambasting the guy as he also gave a good review of The Boss, Blue, Ra One etc. As I stated earlier, most of his reviews are on par with the general paying public but not everyone can be always right!! There is a famous critic Khalid Mohamed who gave 5 stars to only 2 or 3 movies but went on write movies such as Silsiilay, Tehzeeb, Tahreekh and Zubeida. None of these movies have been heard or watched by anyone I know. His only movie which was better accepted was Fiza due to the presence of Krrish - Hrithik Roshan (A commercial "Hamming" star comes to the help of a famous critic). It's only a matter of 2 days before we find the verdict on Krrish from the so-called part of the audience Meetu.
Meetu - I would request you to please change your tag line from: "A part of the Audience" to "A part of the 1% Audience". This tag will be very appropriate for your reviews since you seem to like movies which very rarely become hits. Your last good review for a Blockbuster was Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. You have a great dislike for Masala films even though a few like Chennai Express and Dabangg are Blockbuster hits.
The reason is pretty simple why Avatar is a bigger grosser than DK. As some critics raved about Avatar - "The holy grail of 3-D has finally arrived". Avatar started the trend of 3D movies and this was not an ordinary movie but a must-see Novelty Event. Moreover, as I mentioned earlier, the ticket prices of the 3D movies is higher, therefore it earned more than the DK. IMHO, I too think that DK is better than Avatar but I can enjoy the DK on my 60in. Flat screen TV but not as much with the Avatar. Titanic was a very emotional tear jerker with great VFX and music. It connected with the masses by tugging at their hearts. Even though I kind of agree with you on the opinions of these movies, I will not trash these epic event movies. The Titanic and Avatar have been liked by millions of people all across the world and earned more than $3 Billion (combined) and to say that they are garbage just contradicts yourself what you have said earlier about critics. If these movies are garbage, then your reviewing capability is no different than Meetu who don't understand pulse of the common person!!
"Give the so-called legends like Spielberg/Cameroon and Chris Columbus 10 million to make a film & i'm sure they'd make something worse than Toofan!" Anuj, this is not entirely true. While it is true that Hollywood thrives on VFX, this is more of a recent phenomenon. Have you seen Steven Spielberg's "The Duel" and CC's Home Alone and Mrs Doubtfire are not VFX movies but movies with good scripts. The cost of the VFX itself is very expensive is US but that goes with everything else too. A movie ticket costs US $12(~Rs 750) and a 3D ticket is about $16 (~Rs1000). The ticket prices itself are 50 to 100% higher. Hence it's a wrong comparison. And if the vfx can enhance your movie experience, then why not? You may know that even Hollywood movies with just VFX and no strong script will fail at the box office. Case in point - Pacific Rim, After Earth, John Carter, Cowboys & Aliens etc. Hence, a strong script is absolutely necessary for any movie regardless of the new age VFX used. Jurassic Park and Terminator had the first vfx of it's kind in Hollywood backed by a solid script. I recently watched "The Gravity" in 3D and if anyone has not yet watched it, I would highly recommend this movie. It is a totally engrossing film which has utilized the 3D effects to its full potential. A Definite Must see.
I don't post on this forum very often but I do read the reviews on this website (not for Meetu's reviews but mostly for the expert comments from readers such as Anuj and few others) Meetu is just a wannabe critic who does not know the pulse of the indian audience at all. I guess she has forgotten how the indian audience loves their masala and entertainment. A critically acclaimed movie such as Lunchbox is highly regarded by the likes of Meetu but they forget the fact that this movie is also "inspired" (copied) from many other movies (You got mail, Sirf tum etc) There are some movies that are truly trash and really deserve the critics trashing like PPNH, Besharam etc. But the fact is that some movies that are not that great are made very entertaining by their Superstar's screen presence, acting and their fans. Case in point is Chennai Express, a very clean, entertaining family film which I and my kids have watched 3 times. When will these critics watch and review a Bollywood movie through the eyes of the indian audience??
@anuj. I agree that some of your facts are true but your hatred of certain stars especially Aamir and Ranbir is blinding you from the total truth. I won't comment on Ranbir since his career is only 6 years old but you must either be out of your mind or missed your medications to say that Aamir is a hamming non actor and not even close to that one expression star Salman. Salman is a superstar in his own place but he had a very long patch of flops. Remember the years where he had flops in a row - Veer, Mr & mrs khanna, London dreams. Yuvraaj, God tussi great ho etc etc. Basically, the decade 2000 has not seen any all time blockbuster until 2009 wanted. That was his turning point and since then, he is repeating himself. JAI HO will not be a blockbuster, mark my words. As for Hrithik, he just gives blockbusters 1 out of 5 times on average. Aamir is the only superstar who gives blockbusters on a consistent basis. Heck even his Tv show Satyamev Jayate was a hit.
Well, Anuj is right when he says that there is no single definition of a masala movie. It is a movie which has bits and pieces of everything (Romance, revenge,thrills, action etc) Masala Movies = Mass entertainers. Majority of the times, Masala movies can also be defined as movies that are often critically thrashed by the snobbish critics. Very very very few movies fall in the category which have excellent critical reviews as well as become Blockbusters. Movies like Sholay, QSQT, Ghayal, 3 Idiots and Dabangg.
"Even the keen, wait for the DVD!!" Reportedly, Krissh3 has earned Rs200 crores and no one cared for this critic's rating to wait for the DVD!! Keep in mind that no movie can earn 200 crores without repeat audience, there is simply no way.
@TimELiebe, @Ramen etc. Please stop posting any more comments to maintain your dignity since the crores in the indian population have shown that the only single factor that they are interested in is entertainment and not your critic's fault finding and personal grudge reviews.
@Meetu, Please go the Rediff site and see how many people just abhor Raja Sen.
@Rachit - Is that an alias for Meetu? How can anyone think of blocking a post. If you don't like the facts posted by a commentator, then I would advise you to buzz off. All of us are here trying to discuss the role of a responsible critic. Please go and see the blog by Roger Ebert on how critics should review movies.
@Anuj - Do you have your own site where you review the movies. If not, are you planning to start one?
@Anuj: Your last comment is absolutely spot on. Although critic Taran Adarsh goes a little over board sometimes, most of his reviews are viewed with the "Part of the Audience" glasses. Now, Please don't go about lambasting the guy as he also gave a good review of The Boss, Blue, Ra One etc. As I stated earlier, most of his reviews are on par with the general paying public but not everyone can be always right!! There is a famous critic Khalid Mohamed who gave 5 stars to only 2 or 3 movies but went on write movies such as Silsiilay, Tehzeeb, Tahreekh and Zubeida. None of these movies have been heard or watched by anyone I know. His only movie which was better accepted was Fiza due to the presence of Krrish - Hrithik Roshan (A commercial "Hamming" star comes to the help of a famous critic).
It's only a matter of 2 days before we find the verdict on Krrish from the so-called part of the audience Meetu.
Meetu - I would request you to please change your tag line from:
"A part of the Audience" to "A part of the 1% Audience".
This tag will be very appropriate for your reviews since you seem to like movies which very rarely become hits. Your last good review for a Blockbuster was Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. You have a great dislike for Masala films even though a few like Chennai Express and Dabangg are Blockbuster hits.
The reason is pretty simple why Avatar is a bigger grosser than DK. As some critics raved about Avatar - "The holy grail of 3-D has finally arrived". Avatar started the trend of 3D movies and this was not an ordinary movie but a must-see Novelty Event. Moreover, as I mentioned earlier, the ticket prices of the 3D movies is higher, therefore it earned more than the DK. IMHO, I too think that DK is better than Avatar but I can enjoy the DK on my 60in. Flat screen TV but not as much with the Avatar. Titanic was a very emotional tear jerker with great VFX and music. It connected with the masses by tugging at their hearts. Even though I kind of agree with you on the opinions of these movies, I will not trash these epic event movies. The Titanic and Avatar have been liked by millions of people all across the world and earned more than $3 Billion (combined) and to say that they are garbage just contradicts yourself what you have said earlier about critics. If these movies are garbage, then your reviewing capability is no different than Meetu who don't understand pulse of the common person!!
"Give the so-called legends like Spielberg/Cameroon and Chris Columbus 10 million to make a film & i'm sure they'd make something worse than Toofan!"
Anuj, this is not entirely true. While it is true that Hollywood thrives on VFX, this is more of a recent phenomenon. Have you seen Steven Spielberg's "The Duel" and CC's Home Alone and Mrs Doubtfire are not VFX movies but movies with good scripts. The cost of the VFX itself is very expensive is US but that goes with everything else too. A movie ticket costs US $12(~Rs 750) and a 3D ticket is about $16 (~Rs1000). The ticket prices itself are 50 to 100% higher. Hence it's a wrong comparison.
And if the vfx can enhance your movie experience, then why not? You may know that even Hollywood movies with just VFX and no strong script will fail at the box office. Case in point - Pacific Rim, After Earth, John Carter, Cowboys & Aliens etc. Hence, a strong script is absolutely necessary for any movie regardless of the new age VFX used. Jurassic Park and Terminator had the first vfx of it's kind in Hollywood backed by a solid script.
I recently watched "The Gravity" in 3D and if anyone has not yet watched it, I would highly recommend this movie. It is a totally engrossing film which has utilized the 3D effects to its full potential. A Definite Must see.
I don't post on this forum very often but I do read the reviews on this website (not for Meetu's reviews but mostly for the expert comments from readers such as Anuj and few others) Meetu is just a wannabe critic who does not know the pulse of the indian audience at all. I guess she has forgotten how the indian audience loves their masala and entertainment. A critically acclaimed movie such as Lunchbox is highly regarded by the likes of Meetu but they forget the fact that this movie is also "inspired" (copied) from many other movies (You got mail, Sirf tum etc)
There are some movies that are truly trash and really deserve the critics trashing like PPNH, Besharam etc. But the fact is that some movies that are not that great are made very entertaining by their Superstar's screen presence, acting and their fans. Case in point is Chennai Express, a very clean, entertaining family film which I and my kids have watched 3 times.
When will these critics watch and review a Bollywood movie through the eyes of the indian audience??