Cocktail

COCKTAIL as the name suggests is a perfect example of the chaotic formula usually followed in our Hindi Films. Chaotic, because they often make a mess out of a film which in reality could have been a great entertainer for all the young at heart. In fact it has now become a routine to see new big banner films with a great star-cast, starting off brilliantly in their first half and then crashing down miserably in the second as if the makers had lost their interest in its making.

Unfortunately COCKTAIL also falls in the same category of films which successfully manage to impress the viewer before the intermission but then suddenly become tough to handle in their second half since they have nothing new to offer in terms of content or storyline. Now in case of COCKTAIL, no doubt the viewer already knew that its going to be the same love triangle as visible in its promos but still the treatment looked fresh and interesting with some good songs. So the excitement level was there which really gets served well in its first 90 minutes.

But then what happens to the entire narration, writing, direction and acting in its later reels forces you to think that, "If the viewers can see this huge negative difference in the two halves of a movie then why the writers cannot see the same while writing it or why the director cannot see it while directing it or why the actors cannot see it while enacting it or why the consultants cannot report the same while watching the rushes of the movie while its being shot?"

Putting it differently, COCKTAIL is quite similar to the pouring of beer which excites you well with its energetic sound, bubbles and smell while its filling up the glass. But if you keep the same beer for a while then it just becomes useless losing all its charm, energy & taste representing the second half of the movie. Such is a contrast in its two halves that it further raises two questions that Whether there happened to be any problem in its making leading to this mess and Whether this was the exact movie, director wished to make in his mind or not?

Personally, I enjoyed watching both its performances and the treatment given to its predictable storyline before the intermission. But post that, the same narration turns so routine that it becomes really hard to even bear it for another hour or so. Also the writers remain pretty confused about how to portray their characters on the screen in moral terms. For instance, I kept thinking that How they really wanted to show Deepika's character as? Was she a drug addict, a freedom loving person believing in free sex (sleeping with everyone) or just believed in being available?….Who was she as a person really? In the similar manner, the script is also never interested in talking about the character of Randeep Hooda, in the role of a cunning husband.

In the music department, though the songs sound great as a soundtrack but they do hinder the pace of the movie adding to its extra length. Pritam also borrows two hit Punjabi tracks from Pakistan's Arif Lohar (Jugni -Coke Studio fame) and Punjab's Honey Singh-Gippy Grewal (Angrezi Beat), may be since he is now working with Honey in his future projects too (probably RACE 2). Background music by Salim Suleman is cool working well in its romantic scenes and Cinematography surely adds to the exciting look of the movie in great terms. But writing about the technical aspects of the film would remain incomplete here if I do not mention the styling or fashion part of the movie deserving full marks for its appealing outfits.

Performance wise COCKTAIL is unarguably a Ladies film from start to finish withDeepika taking a small lead from Diana due to her bindas portrayal and skin show. She looks sizzling hot, comes straight out of her shell and delivers the best performance of her career till date. Diana Penty as the calm girl supporting Deepika, makes a highly impressive debut which is sure going to be noticed by the Industry. She really looks beautiful & elegant in all the Indian outfits and brings a special kind of innocence to his character deserving praises. Dimple Kapadia is truly lovable as Saif's mother and one enjoys her scenes a lot in particular.

Talking about men, the film has a half hearted kind of performance by one of its producers, Saif Ali Khan. May be because he has done these kind of flirting roles many times before which have now lost the pull. Though Saif is not bad but he really is not there in his full spirits. Boman Irani shines in his few scenes and Randeep Hooda is treated like a forgotten character by the writers.

As a director, Homi Adajania who earlier gave us BEING CYRUS is in his full form in the first half of the film. But what actually happened in the second?....is a question which only he can answer the best. COCKTAIL does have traces of Woody Allen's VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA in its initial reels but then it quickly falls off from the height and gets into the same old routine Indian emotional plot of a love triangle and its sacrifice.

In short, the film can easily be compared to a COCKTAIL party in which you are first served with an imported Gin and then later on the bar- tenders start pouring some Desi Daru into your glasses openly. On a serious note, its really sad that they really ruined a potential sparkling film just like that.

It could have been a little more better. The movie starts off with an impressive first-half having its fun moments and builds a good interest among the spectators. The second-half looked story-less and a mere drag! It was a decent try to build an emotional scene but wasn't a very successful attempt. Good performance by the cast of the film. Saif Ali Khan gives a good funny side to this otherwise boring film with the same regular bollywood story! The screenplay and the sound department didn't really help to keep the spectators interested for the whole movie ! Few of the scenes had no sound effects , No background music for the emotional scenes. A good debut by Diana Penty who plays the role of Meera- The perfect Indian bride very well. Also no one could have played the role of Veronica better than Deepika Padukone. All in all the movie dint live up to the expectations and could have been a little better ! A definite once watch - 6/10 Cheers !

Post 'Dil Chahta Hai', Indian cinema developed a young urban audience which was receptive to hip films. Trendy music, trendy fashion, trendy plots and trendy urban setting. Hum Tum, Salaam Namaste, Wake Up Sid, Rockstar etc. were targeted towards the same segment and were accepted by the audience as well. These movies made Saif and Ranbir stars of the multiplex audience while Khans, Ajay Devgan and Akshay Kumar remained the superstars of masses.

Cocktail is another film for the same audience, with the same cast and believe it or not, actually almost the same story line as previous films. Does this Cocktail have all the right ingredients to quench the thirst of the modern cine-goer? The answer is No. And it's a big flat NO.

With some inspirations from 'Vicky Christina Barcelona', Cocktail is a love triangle on the lines of 'friends with benefits'. Guy chooses one girl over the other, jealousy sets in and in the end one of the two girls offers a sacrifice. Co-written by the seasoned Imtiaz Ali and debutant Sajid Ali, Cocktail's weak script is its biggest weakness. I would put more blame on Imtiaz for not doing justice to his own original thinking by literally borrowing scenes, treatment notes and dialogues from Love Aaj Kal. Never mind the climax or even the name of the heroine i.e. Meera. Imtiaz's first four writing ventures were as authentic as film writing can get. He did take a few creative liberties in Rockstar but in Cocktail he goes the route writers like Robin Bhatt or Shiraz Ahmad (Knock Out, Prince, Jaanasheen) would take. Convenience of co-incidental meetings of Indian strangers in London, supportive Indian snobbish girl offering her apartment to a total stranger, nobody having a British accent despite being brought up in London, Deepika's multiple mental transitions and mysterious new injuries Randeep Hooda carried in every scene and much more.

The director Homi Adajania in his second ventures misses more targets than he hits. In some sequences he is brilliant but those sequences are rare and are mostly performance driven by actors. In others, he struggles to communicate his point with authenticity. The film has a poor first half hour with over the top and deliberate cheesiness of Saif's character and senseless turns of events that you would expect from a Salman Khan's no-brainer. The middle part of the film is good, has strong comic segments and the story develops fast but as the climax approaches, things become way too predictable and mundane. The kind in which you start looking for loo breaks or tweeting.

The one thing which does not disappoint much in the film is the acting bit. In fact, performances are the savior of this otherwise sinking ship. Surprisingly, these are not lead by the main characters but Dimple Kapadia and Boman Irani's supporting roles. Dimple has delivered an ace while Boman is not far behind either.

Saif, besides the first half hour, does well too even though he was a bit over-dramatic for my liking. Excellent comic timing nonetheless and effortless dialogue delivery. Whether you want to see Saif Ali Khan as a 32 year old bachelor or not is a different story. Deepika Padukone has never been a great performer but a bearable one and the status remains intact. Her outrageousness as a party girl was convincing but her emotional banters was weak. Diana Penty gets a good debut. She looked comfortable in underplaying her part with a charming screen presence. She needs to work more on her dialogue delivery and dancing but she is definitely far ahead of the disastrous Nargis Fakhri. As a debut, its somewhere between Nargis Fakhri and Parineeti Chopra. Randeep Hooda has been wasted.

Anila Mehta deserves credit for his camera work and breathtaking visuals of South Africa. Bosco's choreography is also good to watch. Do wait for the end credits after the film is over as they show some hilarious bloopers and 'Second Hand Jawani', very well shot on steadicam.

I don't want to call it a 'BAD' film because that word I have used for films like 'Tees Maar Khan' and 'Blue'. Also, the thought of calling a film written by Imtiaz Ali 'Bad' is a bit disappointing. Let's say, it's not a great film. It has its moments but the moments are very occasional. You should watch it in the theater only if you are a die-hard Saif, Deepika and Bikini scenes fan. If not, wait for the TV airing.

Bollywood has had its share of love triangles. Does Cocktail have something fresh to offer or it's just an old drink in a new glass?

Meera (Diana Penty) is a traditional Indian girl in London who meets the London bred and oh so sexy Veronica (Deepika Padukone) by chance. They gain from each other's contrasting personality and friendship blooms. Gautam (Saif Ali Khan) the happy and getting lucky with women kind of a guy falls for Deepika and he gets friendly with her best friend Diana. As it so happens in real life, Saif develops feelings for his girlfriend's best friend Diana too. Cocktail is the story of friendship that will undergo a litmus test, of love, heartburn and heart breaks. Does friendship supersede love or love prevails over friendship? Was the best friend bond wafer thin? And can anyone 'rise' in love? I won't tell you. Watch the movie ;)

The movie has lots going for it. The introduction of Saif, Diana and Deepika is flawless. Their camaraderie is so enjoyable you get simmered in their funny and frolicking ways. What happens then is a realistic depiction of problems between friends about love and companionship. You are bound to identify with the highs and lows it takes you through. The second half is marginally stretched and could have been trimmer but that, would be nit picking.

Saif has played such roles earlier. As such this is not a fresh character for him but Gautam Kapoor is his best portrayal of what he does best – a cute, fun to be with and innocent character. He portrays it with finesse, in comedy scenes and the dramatic ones. Deepika sizzles as a sexy rich brat. She looks hot and is unstoppable as Veronica. Her depiction of a wild child caught in an emotional web is praise worthy. Diana's debut couldn't have been better. Perfectly casted, she is never out of character and manages to hold her own even with experienced actors like Saif and Deepika. The seniors, Boman Irani as Saif's mama and Dimple Kapadia as Saif's mother are very good too. Randeep Hooda even in a very short role is good.

A great cocktail needs the right mix. Imtiaz Ali's script not only delivers but packs a punch! Here's an example of what an excellent script can do. The intelligent dialogues guarantees laughs and keep the mix tangy. Pritam's 'Tum hi ho bandhu' is already a rage and 'Jugni' too is an outstanding song. Anil Mehta captures the beautiful locales well and Sreekar Prasad's editing is crisp. Anaita Adajania deserves a special mention for the apt costumes and making Deepika look her sexiest self.

Director, mixologist Homi Adajania should be credited for getting this mix spot on. He treats the excellent script and dialogues with élan, adds great music and extracts superlative performances from his actors. This Cocktail is a fresh take on love triangles set in the contemporary milieu and is so refreshing, you might even ask for a repeat. A great watch whether with friends, best friend, girlfriend, boyfriend, love interest or your ex! Grab your seat now!

Watch for: A thoroughly enjoyable contemporary and mature love story. Watch out for: Performances. Don't watch if: Nai yaar. Go watch.

Story: 9 | Screenplay: 9 | Performances: 8 | Songs and Music: 8 | Direction: 8 | Overall: 8/10

I wasn't surprised to realise the point made in the summary, for one reason: this is a film that easterners may not have the capacity to digest. I'll tell you why this is the case and what I thought of the film.

First of all, this is co-written by Imtiaz Ali, the director who presented us with films like Jab we Met ('07), Love Aaj Kal('09) and Rockstar ('11). It is perhaps his touch that takes this film beyond the reach of those who prefer the typical 'masala' stuff, examples of which have been given above. For me, it is once again a pleasure to experience all that Imtiaz's writing brings to a film, not least in the situations created, dialogue, and humour evoking parts. New ground has been broken above and beyond Zoya Akhtar's Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.

Secondly, this film has been directed by Homi Adajania. He's the director who had the guts to attempt something like the almost perfectly executed 'Being Cyrus' on debut. With is name on the film, you have to anticipate that it will present something in a different manner. Once again, he has done a solid job. Though the second half could have benefited from a few changes, this is once again a solid effort.

Above I have provided an explanation of why this film won't be the cup of tea of many in India, but instead to Asians living in the west and fans of off-beat cinema. Now let's focus on the positives and negatives.

Of course, as with any review, it is necessary to provide an account of the performances of the cast. Saif Ali Khan is extraordinarily natural in this role. No other actor in India could have fulfilled this part to a level anywhere near his. The film marks a solid start to Diana Penty's career in Hindi films, who is consistent throughout. Deepika Padukone has given her best performance to date. She has been set the task of fulfilling a very difficult role and she throws absolutely everything at it. Kudos. Boman Irani is very good (and funny!) throughout. Special mention to Dimple Kapadia who is effortlessly entertaining as the Desi mum. She is part of of one of the most hilarious scenes in the film, shot on a beach in Cape Town, South Africa. Randeep Hooda gets an opportunity to shine with his brief appearances but he has once again grabbed it with both hands.

The film has been shot in London, New Delhi and Cape Town. As such, the cinematography, is amazing. Credit to the D.O.P, Anil Mehta, who has captured the beautiful views of Cape Town and the chaotic and unpredictable nature of life in London very successfully.

The soundtrack is one of the best of the year, and is entirely appropriate given the film's title. It's a rich mix of different flavours that packs a punch. The chart buster 'tumhi ho bandhu' is beautifully picturised. The other tracks are pretty amazing too.

A negative is the second half as previously mentioned, leading to the climax, which could have benefited from a greater insight into emotions. I suppose you could also argue that the climax itself is not quite sufficient for all that's gone before.

Overall, this is one of the best films of 2012 so far, regardless of the flaws. The main plus points are the performances, a great soundtrack,amazing cinematography and refreshing dialogues. This is a film for you if you, like me, encourage further exploration of genres new to Indian cinema, but also want to enjoy a film at the same time. Go for it!

8/10.