Mumbai Matinee

One could reject this movie outright as rubbish or just sit back and enjoy one of the few Indian movies to have ever volunteered to be subtle yet absurd enough to entertain. It's all about the predicament of Debu Chatterjee, a bengali "bhadrolok" (gentleman), who has lived by the rules of decency. Having kept all women at a respectable distance all along, he finds himself in his thirties and still a virgin. Not able to tolerate such a barren existence anymore he decides to take help, with hilarious consequences.

All his exertions don't help him loose his virginity. Instead, he unwittingly becomes a porn star, becomes a repeated sex offender in police records and finds something of a strict ,moral and fatherly police officer admonishing him for being a stain on society and threatening to tell "all" to his parents.

Despite the comical absurdity maintained throughout the movie, it does make a point about how taboo an issue sex is. Marriage for the modern youth is much later than what it used to be a hundred years ago. Yet the social taboos related to premarital sex remain. A 'decent' man under such circumstances can do little but slowly sink onto sexual frustration or indulge in a what he considers immoral.

How to ruin a premise that had potential. The film starts off promisingly about an ordinary 30 plus guy who, frustrated of being a virgin, has finally had enough. It's the kind of problem that's too embarrassing to talk about so, out of desperation he seeks help from a 'witchdoctor' who promises a solution. However, things only go from bad to worse. The concept promises a hilarious sex comedy and it starts that way, with a few momentary annoyances, like Debu's neighbour and boss (who are irritating). However, in the second half, the script really goes haywire, losing focus and deviating from the initial premise into another halfbaked story, devoid of any humour and filled with clichés. Rahul Bose does a decent job. I was expecting to see more of Parizaad Zorabian and Anusha Dandekar, thinking that they have full-fledged roles. However, Dandekar is limited to being an item girl (she does sizzle though) and Zorabian perhaps has only about a total of less than ten minutes screen time. Saurabh Shukla and Asrani are funny and Vijay Raaz is the usual. On the technical side it's nothing impressive either. In the end, 'Mumbai Matinée' disappoints.

This movie is a complete waste of time. Rahul Bose gives a good performance. I don't know if this is an accurate description of life in Mumbai, but I highly doubt that virginity is looked so down upon there as it is here in the states. I thought it was actually valued in India. I hate when Indians try to act like Americans. Don't pretend to be another culture; be proud and express yourselves. Anyways, this movie has, like, no script. The scenes just drag on and on. There are long pauses between dialogues and words just to take up celluloid and my time. The only highlight of the film is Perizaad, who shows up towards the end.

If you choose the combination of romance and sex to make a comedy, it sounds like a decent idea. And also if you add some well-developed supporting characters, that makes it more interesting. You give the film an urban setting and write the dialogue in Hinglish, and that makes it trendier.

BUT YOU GOTTA HAVE A SCRIPT. You got to have a screenplay that draws you into the story, the characters; so that you laugh at the right jokes and smile at the right moments. So that you care about the characters and have a sense of empathy for them; then regardless of the familiarity of the plot, you can enjoy a film.

I couldn't understand what made actors like Rahul Bose and Perizaad Zorabian choose such a project. In spite of the distasteful screenplay, they still give very competent performances. And this Zorabian lady just radiates on the screen. She has amazing screen presence and you sense that respect for the intellect in her performance. Bose as usual displays impeccable timing and subtle nuances in his performances. Oh, how you wish they had come together in a better film. Saurabh Shukla, Asrani and Vijay Raaz are all decent.

The director Anant Balani passed away recently, before the release of the film. Another film Jogger's Park (also featuring Perizaad) credits him as the director posthmously. I haven't seen Jogger's Park yet. Hopefully that film will be a more befitting swansong. 5/10.

The way this movie starts off doesn't inspire much confidence and at times, it can look and get pretty boring. However, as events go on, the plot gets more and more interesting. Rahul Bose as the sex starved loser in life, acts brilliantly and seems natural. There isn't really anything spectacular, anything outstandingly new or fresh in this movie but a an effective cast of characters make life for our hero, an absolute hell. However, once all of this has happened, the movie has already gone on for too long and when the situation hits rock bottom for Bose, he gets suddenly rescued. That is the only part of the movie which is a bit far fetched. There are plenty of witty remarks and incidents too.