Raees

Gear up for a throwback to the great Salim-Javed blockbusters of the Seventies, where the hero grows up mid-action,breaks the tension and action sequences compel you to whistle. Carrying that legacy forward, is Raees. Shah Rukh Khan plays the titular character of a spectacled goon who hates being called "battery"; he starts from harmless Ponzi schemes but graduates to pre- planned rackets and becomes the top bootlegger of his town. Shah Rukh Khan has never looked better; he's full of fury and for once, isn't spreading his arms, but breaking others'. The film lies entirely on his shoulders and he carries the weight most of the times. When he doesn't, the ever-so-reliable Nawazuddin Siddiqui steps in with his crackling performance. In the trademark Nawaz style, he delivers some comic relief. Mahirah is restricted to songs and a few emotional scenes, but doesn't really add much. If her purpose was to soften the baddie, it's lost on the viewer.Action Scenes Are Like Every Other Bollywood Movie. The first half is well- paced; it draws you in and makes you root for the SRK, But the second half plunges into a weird Robin Hood zone where the antihero's morals are suddenly defibrillated and he becomes a messiah. The movie takes a rough path there on, and the long runtime makes the ride bumpier. The movie can feel a bit long, but if you're going for a great Shah Rukh performance and some good old popcorn- entertainment,And It Gives A Good Message To Viewers. it might just 'raees' to the occasion.

Every Sharukh Khan release is an event in itself, RAAES is no different. Most of the characters the Khan had been portraying in the recent past have been disappointing to his fans…even the much admired Jahingar Khan of Hello Zindagi was not of much satisfaction due to the limited screen time. And now Raees is something his fans had been waiting and praying that it would tip the balance of fortune towards their much loved star

And yes….from the word go, we know a masterpiece is unfolding on the screen. Though the story is not new..a rise and fall of a righteous don has been done to death in Bollywood from times immemorial, but what sets Raees apart is Sharukh Khan, his performance and the amazing screenplay.

Jaideep Majumdar (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) reminiscences his tryst with bootlegger Raees (Sharukh Khan) way back in the 90's. Raees story unfolds right from his childhood where he is touchy about his short sight (has to wear glasses) and people calling him "battery" due to this impairment. His Ammi (Sheeba Chaddha) is his greatest influence and her words "business is bigger than religion as long as it does not harm anyone" remains in his mind and starts working for a local don (Atul Kulkarni).

Raees once when he is old enough decides to start his own business and miffs the don and joins hands with a Mumbai don Moosa who funds Raees's bootlegging business.

Raees falls in love and gets married to Aasiya (Mahira Khan) and soon becomes a father. His rise disturbs the local don who tries killing Raees and fails and ends up getting killed by him.

Jaideep Majumdar, a honest police officer is hot on the trail of Raees and uses every method at his disposal to bring Raees down, but he is unsuccessful as Raees has the support of both the ruling and the opposition party.

But soon, Raees's ego makes him a commit one fatal error which turns things in favor of Majumdar…..

Sharukh is back to doing what he does best, hogging the screen time and also giving one of his career's best performances, his ire when called Battery, or when he is weeping away to glory in his wife's arms after a major setback or his astounding performance in the climax undoubtedly proves the crown is still his.

Mahira Khan performs well in what little screen time she has, as the only person who gets away after making fun of Raees's short sight. Wish she had more screen time.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui is wow as Jaideep Majumdar, the scenes involving him intimidating his superiors, or the several faceoffs with Raees showcase his talent.

Sunny Leone brings the house down with the peppy item LAILA and her tumka's are well synchronized to the beats

K U Mohanan's Cinematography captures rustic Gujrat at its best, the filters highlighting the era in which the film is based

Deepa Bhatia's editing ensures the movie does not drag and uses the scissors the right way in making the film crispy and entertaining.

Rahul Dholakia's direction is top notch and it is not a mean task handling two live wires Sharukh and Nawazuddin together, but he has managed to extract the best possible scenes involving both of them. He has also managed to recreate the 70-90's era with just the right touches

Watch it if you are a hardcore Sharukh khan and also if you have a major crush on Sunny Leone and also if you have been missing the wonderful action sequences of the 80's.

I saw this film with my family in a theater. Used to watch a tv serial with my wife starring Mahira n had been a fan of her since. It is about a poor kid who works for some shady guys, later progresses n starts working for a bigger syndicate. One fine day the grown up boy wants to start his own business n splits from the syndicate. Nothing new, except for some good one liners, good performance by Nawaaz as the cop hell bent on taking down all the bootleggers. SRK is better doing these kinda roles n not running around the trees with his open arms. One very bad sequence of parkour. SRK running on rooftops is silly coz it wasn't executed well. It looked too fake n very lousy. Watch District b13, Yamakasi, Tracers, Casino Royale's chase sequence, Chris Brown's parkour sequence from Takers. The shot gun scenes were well shot. I am a fan of action sequences with shot guns. I still enjoy Steve McQueen's The Getaway shot gun sequence.

Shah Rukh Khan as Raees rocks as usual. He lives as a don throughout the movie. The anger in his face, the romance that he showcases, the sentiment he experiences and the fights he undergoes shows he hasn't aged at all. The style he carries as a don will bring whistles in the theaters for sure.

His dialogue delivery is perfect as ever. He impresses in every frame. One of the best roles Shah Rukh has done in his career. His lead pair Mahira Khan as Aasiya has little screen presence. But she has utilized it well. Be it the sentiment scenes or the romantic part she is a perfect addition. A little more of her screen presence wouldn't have spoiled the movie.

As Shah Rukh, Nawazuddin Siddiqui does have a powerful role. He walks with pride as the ACP Majmudar. His acting was perfect and does what was needed for the role. I won't say it's his best ever, but he delivers what was needed.

Rahul Dholakia's direction was excellent. He has handled both the character to the perfection. Whereas directing Shah Rukh or Nawazuddin, he has added the right blend. The recreation of the 90's time frame was the top notch. The battery scenes are good add, Mahira is the only one spared for calling Shah Rukh the battery.

Cinematography by K.U.Mohana and the music by Ram Sampath are added colour. Sunny Leone sizzles as Laila.

Though the screenplay is good the story is way old one. There are few side-lines like messed up action sequences and a dragging second half. Director should have concentrated in trimming the second half.

It's a must watch if you are a die-hard Shah Rukh fan, but as a common movie goer few might find it boring in the second half.

Finally the day arrived after 3 years if wait, the day arrived. RAEES . Miyan Bhai SRK stole the thunder with his power packed performance. He has nailed it this  time. Raees SRK has shown and proved " Form is temporary, Class is permanent " Shah Rukh Khan and Nawazuddin 's bravura performances, Action sequences, Well researched script, Music, Screenplay , Editing, and Climax.

The first half is well placed; Majmudar's one liners and the music is fabulous and the Laila Main Laila sequence ups the ante. The second grips the audience in their seats and the smoke scene is the show stealer. The dialogues are just bang on.WOW ! The part where SRK says "dhanda Karta hun, dharm ka dhanda nai karta" is the best one.

It's tough to maintain a character's ferocity and vulnerability in equal measures, but this is what SRK does best.

Full of tightly-choreographed action sequences and a brilliantly written script,

On the whole , Raees is a full on Masala Entertainer packed by power full performances and adrenaline charged action sequences. Made for Classes and masses alike. Action , Acting, Romance, Violence, Music and Masaledar dialogues all add up to the genre. A classic masala flick, Best movie of it's genre. A must watch movie. So my rating 10/10 Stars.