Baabul

It's clear here that Ravi Chopra has tried to capitalize on success of Baghbaan. He has tried to collect a similar cast & similar slot but not the plot. The story is too long expressed in too short of a time. Movie has an OK storyline & good concept of Vidhwa Vivah (not sure how much it holds true in 21st century though, its far more different now) but the execution does not give enough time to emotions. The movie moves so fast that its difficult to enjoy the happiness & feel the pain of characters.

In first half of the movie it's like a budding love story (Chalte-Chalte), an existing love triangle (KKHH), father-son relationship (Viruddh/Waqt), a happy family story and lots of stuff. And suddenly in second part it becomes a sad story of reincarnation of love (Hum-Tum), re-marriage, traditions & what not. Movie has so much to express but the screenplay does not allow it to be shown efficiently on screen. Movie does has a few gud moments but hardly any time to really enjoy or feel them.

Amitabh & Rani have been gr8 as always Amitabh-Hema still look stunning. Even Salmaan & John have given nice performances. Not sure what Parmeet & Aman were doing in the movie though, they have got better work on small screen I guess. Overall performances are fine & movie looks okay too (cinematography). Songs & Music also seems fare.

In all the movie is fine & okay for one time watch. However with such a great cast & return of team Baghbaan (even the concept is nice), everyone expected a lot better. That's right...

General Comment: It wasn't terrific because the storyline was average,the acting was not brilliant except for Amitabh Bhachan who was superb,the songs were crap.

Storyline: Balraj Kapoor (Amitabh Bhachan) is looking for happiness for his daughter in law Millie (Rani Mukherjee) after his son,Avinash (Salman Khan) who is madly in love with his wife Millie. What Millie does not know is that her best friend Rajat (John Abraham) is in love with her but he wants Rani Mukherjee to be happy so he does not say anything to her when she is getting married to Avinash. But when Avinash dies Amitabh Bhachan tries to get Millie married to Rajat. But as you know in the Indian religion a widow is not allowed to get married after her husbands death so Balrajs older brother (Balwant) does not want Millie to get married again but later he realises what Millie must be going through so lets her get married to Rajat.

"Baabul" is an interesting movie...much like two entirely separate movies stuck together. The first portion is a very traditional Indian romance...with all the usual cliches, such as the singing montages, the normal meet cute and that she disliked him when they first met. While this was good...it was also incredibly familiar. However, the second portion, in its way, is anything but traditional...heck, it deliberately seeks to subvert traditions....and this is why I grew to eventually love this movie.

In the romantic portion, Avi (Salman Khan) is the beloved son of a rich man, Balraj (Amitabh Bachchan). Avi meets Mili (Rani Mukerji) and instantly is smitten with her. Not surprisingly, they eventually marry. During all this portion, there are hints to what is coming next (such as the aunt who is essentially kept a prisoner following her husband's death). Yes, Avi is killed in an accident and Mili is inconsolable. While she has a son to raise, she is barely functional. And, throughout this, Balraj's heart breaks. This is because although she is technically his daughter-in-law, he sees her like a daughter and would do anything to take away her pain. So, he formulates a plan...to find Rajat (John Abraham) and bring him back to court Mili and, hopefully, marry her and give her a reason to live.

While all this seems pretty reasonable for a non-Indian, there are Indian traditions that many follow that simply could not allow for Mili to remarry. For many, a widow is always a widow.....and her happiness should come from being a widow and staying at home and...well...existing. So how will Balraj deal with his family? His wife doesn't want Mili to marry, as she'll likely leave them...and take the grandchild with her. And, what about Balraj's older brother? He's extremely traditional and will not flex in the least. So what's next?

The final portion of the film deserves an 11 out of 10...it is that good. The giant climactic scene where Balraj is confronted by his family (when they object to Mili's remarriage) is simply brilliant and Bachchan is given a marvelous monolog...one that grips you by the heart and won't let go. Overall, a marvelous film...one you should see with a box of Kleenex nearby!

¤ Big B:: Starts off as a pampered Papa and later dons the cap of Rajaram Mohan Roy. As an actor he has gone beyond the stage of judgement. The penultimate moments are reserved for the lion to roar.

¤ Dream Girl:: Not quite as good as "Baghbaan" in terms of characterisation for the simple fact that this time the Bahu hogs the entire lime-light resulting in animosity in the "Kyonki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi" episode.

¤ Rani Mukherjee:: Personally I found the character was presented in OTT. Wonder why the character was presented with a complete "U" turn.

¤ Salman/ John:: In their own right, they were just a regular fare.

¤ Sarika:: Very short role but it was nice to see her in a Big B movie after Nastik.

The usual "Baghbaan" cast Aman Verma, Avtar Gill, Sharat Saxena were adequate.

Films from the baton of B R Chopra are noted for the social message that is interlaced in them. It had a fair success riding on their USP. The last outing "Baghbaan" created a milestone in its own right primarily because the social issue it addressed was staring right in the face of "India Shining" and the audience was able to instant connect with "Reverse Mortgage". In the next outing, taking "widow remarriage" as the key-issue with the same ingredients, does it manage to recreate the "Baghbaan" magic? Sadly not because its not quite a burning issue in contemporary times and it comes across as the character (Rani Mukherjee) sans practicality/ common sense to the extent of nearly classified as an emotional fool.

this movie had a great story line...the camera angle sucked...and i have to say the movie got boring whenever they spoke. i found my mind wandering while someone was saying something... for example Amhitabh Bachan talking to Rani about how she should find happiness and stuff out on the balcony at night after Salmaan Khan dies. boring! i had to painfully watch the movie again because i was too busy dozing off and lost some of the main parts. in a way the story is good..its just the acting. this is one of the worst movies i have ever seen. and i don't like this ten lines for a comment thing either! if u have anything more to add please do..i hope someone will read this and for future reference not make a movie so boring.i feel like a good storyline was just thrown out the window.