Players

I'm a movie lover, I like all kinds of films, so this isn't a fussy review only complaining about bad things.

We all know what this film is about. So here I come to the main part:- I expected a lot better from this film, but yes it didn't stand up till the expectations BUT it stood up from what bad I expected from it.

Let me tell what I found in checkpoints:-

Difference in the remake - The plot is basically the same as the Italian Job but the character backgrounds, back-story and locations are different.

Theme - This movie has many twists. Most are good but unfortunately VERY predictable. Any other movie has them. Many of the scenes were unnecessary and twists were overdone which made them bends.

Cast & Acting - The main characters are Abhishek (Charlie), Sonam (Naina), Bipasha (Ria), Neil (Spider), Sikander (Bilal), Omi (Sunny) and Bobby (Ronnie).

Starting, Abhishek has maintained the SAME style from Dhoom series which is normally fine but here its unacceptable with his cop look. Sonam, sorry to say, but she performed worst here. Her dialogs and acting just wasn't fine, even her taunting in the film was better. Sikander, I don't know, not much of a big star. The good ones were Bipasha & Neil. Bipasha's some elegant acting was like a foil to Sonam's bratty attitude. Omi was okay, he provides the comic role. Neil I would say was good but directing little destroyed it. Now surprisingly Bobby was nice, but sadly he didn't get a decent role (you'll know why). There's also Johhny Lever in a small role, he's also comedy but somehow seems by time he doesn't get good punches..

Songs - In film very bad, on TV or internet, very good. Look on internet, you'll find some decent songs like "Jhoom Ta Hoon Main" & "Dil Ye Bekaraar". But in films they MOSTLY used the less better ones. Songs are a BIG thing to hit a film, I'm surprised why didn't the directors include them.

Directing - This is what didn't fit. The director duo who're great did very wrong things in the film. They DID add nice scenes but COULD NOT present them well. The using was wrong. Some copies, many improvisations, good idea, not great presentation.

My opinion - After seeing my not so favorable comments, I surprisingly say that Players was NOT a bad film. It was okey-dokey. It was long and the first half was boring, second half picked up better but twists broke it. Some unneeded melodrama makes its little shabby, but has pace IF you haven't seen the Italian Job.

Verdict - As said, okay type. LOT of editing needed, but not terrible. 6.25 out of 10.

P.S. - 1 very important thing I want to say that this film doesn't has that much thriller supposed, but contains nothing bad. If you have any intention to watch the film you can surely go for it on discount weekdays or something. Nowadays people don't see the film and only judge by the cast even BEFORE watching a film, like a book's cover, please DON'T. If UTTERLY HORRIBLE USELESS and almost BRAINLESS films like Ready can be a super hit JUST because of Salman, then India is unfair. This is AT LEAST better than Ready, depends on your taste.

Believe me, I watched it and I know its underrated. Films like Chandni Chowk to China & Love Story 2050 are also underrated. No, they don't deserve to be hits but what was bad in them? They tried something new and they were fine for watching on TV like this movie is. :|

'Players' is the official remake of the Hollywood classic 'Italian Job'. The director duo, Abbas-Mustan who are well known for churning out thrillers almost every year fail miserably this time in their attempt to recreate their magic.

The movie is quite stylish and the cinematography by Ravi Yadav is mind boggling. But the problem lies in the screenplay. Abbas-Mustan have tried to put too many twists and turns in the plot that at the end you feel tired and want to walk away. I wonder why Abbas-Mustan have tried to tamper with the original source with so many unwanted twists. Why didn't they just simply replicate the story of the original when they had the official license to do so? As far as the movie stays true to the original, it is watchable. Once the typical Bollywood formula of twists and songs and dances pop in the latter half, it simply sucks.

As for the performances, Abhishek Bachchan looks like he can't get over his 'Dhoom 2' and 'Game' hangover. His mannerisms and facial expressions are just the same as they had been in the aforementioned flicks. The only best performance definitely comes from Neil Nitin Mukesh. Not only does he look handsome, but his acting can give seasoned actors a run for their money. As Spider, Neil proves once again that he is in his best form after his debut 'Johnny Gaddar' and ' New York'. He proves yet again that good looking actors can act really well too. Bobby Deol is terribly wasted in this film. I wonder what made him choose such a minuscule and insignificant role. He wears a sad expression on his face throughout the movie. Thank god, he's only in it for half an hour. Bipasha Basu is always cast in a negative role in all Abbas-Mustan flicks that she has done so far. 'Players' is no exception. Still, she impresses with her acting with a new level of maturity and proves that she's really getting better with every film. Sonam Kapoor is horrible! That girl can't act to save her life. She sports a glamorous look for the first time but an actress she is not. The worst scene of Sonam in the movie was when she brags about being an ethical hacker. She seems so annoying and cannot emote with her eyes. Her emotions look fake and contrived. Sikander Kher looks bored and ready to walk away any time. Omi Vaidya irritates. Vinod Khanna is wasted. It was a delight to see Johnny Lever after such a long hiatus. He's the only one who provides relief with his comic timing in the horribly boring second half.

The length of the movie is also a minus point. The first half moves at a brisk pace once all the characters are developed. But it is the sluggishly paced second half that gets under your nerves.

Pritam's music is disappointing, unlike the previous Abbas-Mustan flicks where the music elevated the mood of the films. Dialogues are contrived and bad.

On the whole, 'Players' disappoints. Given that the film was hyped and was the first release of the year, this film might find a tough competition in the box office. I advice Abbas-Mustan to think of more 'Races' than 'Players'.

The positive thing is the makers have legally acquired the remake rights of "The Italian Job". Sadly the rest is all negative about "Players". For starters the magnanimous star-cast was grossly under-utilised as there is hardly any character depth. Next the screenplay has holes which are about the size of craters. Its evident that handling big canvas was more than what the director-duo could chew. And in order to tweak the plot to Indian sensibilities the 15-minutes of the original has been stretched out till the interval. Add to that the overdose of emotional and noble/ philanthropist sentiments thrown in at epic proportions give an impression that the lead characters are straight out of the mythological age. The serpentine twists of the "Race" seems to have found its way into the plot in an attempt to keep the interest of the audience alive. The lame humour hardly evokes any laughs. Songs hardly register an impact.

Jr. Bachchan seems to have reprising his character from "Game". Sonam Kapoor attempts on weighing out Katrina Kaif, but sadly she is miles to go before she can sleep. Bobby Deol's role can be termed as a blink-and-miss and certainly he will shout foul. Sikander Kher and Bipasha Basu were wasted. Niel Nitin Mukesh attempts "Johhny Gaddar" and is no match for Ed Norton (Irfan Khan or Kay Kay would have been an ideal choice). Vinod Khanna was disappointing, perhaps his character lacks the suave touch he truly deserves.

Verdict: Watch "The Italian Job" to relive the adrenaline moments.

Nothing much to say, but BOLLYWOOD strictly need to Learn to Imitate. Not even a single worth remake makes sense..

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This is about only those things which as a viewer I didn't like.. When the bad guys already got accepted as protagonists in Indian films, there was no need of showing the humane side of the players.. in fact the most inhumane player – Neil Nitin Mukesh impressed the most.

Yes it is true, not only recently but since 70' and 80' whenever our hero goes out for a theft, we love it. Kohinoor, Jewel Thief, Don2, Roop Ki Raani.. etc etc.. Accepted that hero always brings in some reason to steal but the trend is changing !! You can change too..

So there is the quick NOT-TO-DO check list for Abbas-Mustan's Players.

1. Remove good motives of Robbery i.e. Victor's dream project, Ronny's daughter.. make everything emotionless, professional. Though Sonam's reason to join for Victor's death was justified.

2. Take actors which can act. For star power, couple of them are OK. like rather than investing in Abhishek, Sonam, Bobby, Neil and Bipasha, pay more to 2 stars and 3 actors.. because among the 5 only Niel and Bipasha acted.

3. Bipasha's Engine work and Bobby's illusion on train windows were something too too much of science fiction to digest. Agreed that Indian audience is watching science fiction and gradually accepting such techno gigs but at the same time people have started applying logics also, the flags on the windows were clearly showing not spraying the solutions on the entire window.

4. Reduce songs and reduce the length of the movie. Sonam's gig on Bobby, Bipasha's dance for Russian general and Sonam-Abhishek drunken songs were too too too tiring and waste of time. Instead sonam and bipasha could have used smart lines to get their men. I like the talking people do the night clubs.

5. Instead of simply showing Sonam's tense face while hacking scenes, more theoretical information about how it is possible to find Spider would be better.

6. And last but not the least, you made the robbery seems pretty easy. People watch Mission Impossible franchise in India now. If not making the mission impossible, at least make it difficult.

Note: The objective of this blog is to pick only loop holes and not so great things about the movie and NOT TO review the entire movie. General ratings from different critics holds true about the movie.