Cocktail

This film lacks freshness, and it's a huge step down for director Adajania, who made a promising debut with Being Cyrus. I wonder what can explain the shift from a slick film noir to this romantic love triangle. Now don't get me wrong, the film is enjoyable, it's young, and its story, though nothing original and actually very derivative, flows quite well. Saif Ali Khan is miscast in a role he's done plenty before. He's obviously good being the natural actor that he is, but it's nothing special. Debutant Diana Penty is also pretty cute and effective. Dimple Kapadia makes a short appearance here as Saif's loud mother in a role that was often played by Kirron Kher at that time. She is obviously excellent. But the one who puts her heart and soul into this enjoyable but stale story is Deepika Padukone, who gives the film its dramatic energy and does enough to make for a good watch with a moving performance. She is the main asset of this watchable but ordinary fare.

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

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 !

The good point of this movie is it not very filmy. The acting done by all the 3 main characters are above average, and story is also good. I read in a review someone was asking for background musical score. Then watch Balaji TV serials. Even the Oscar winner movie "No country for old men" did not have any background score. If you want real life like picture then you have to FEEL it. And if you want just family gathering entertainment then watch Balaji serials or SAB TV. If Boman Irani have got any more footage and scenes in the movie this movie could have failed terribly and may become a Houseful kind of movie. So right editing and right stories. Dimple Kapadi acting was very good, as usual.

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.