nmlhats

I chose this entry at the Dallas Int'l Film Fest based on its intriguing description (ok, the "Dallas" connection clinched the deal). The film describes the history of popular western culture as depicted on television as a deliberate use of "soft power" in the cold war. While it was mildly entertaining and reasonably interesting, it was not what you would call compelling viewing or taut storytelling. The narrative did not flow well and there was a substantial amount of somewhat "off-topic" footage and content. We "follow" several children who grew up with the pirated Finnish TV signal, but their tales are disjointed. Some of the footage seems like it was from an era earlier than the time it was meant to depict. The basic tale is interesting from a historical standpoint, but the filmmaker is unsuccessful in translating to the screen what sounds like a great idea on paper. With judicious cuts and editing it would make a great one-hour PBS documentary, but it does not hold up as a feature-length film.

Hindi comedies tend to be rather broad, and when I read the description of this movie, I thought, "this sounds like a possibly entertaining romantic farce", and it might have had some potential in that department. Unfortunately, it's the B'wood version of a genre that is perhaps best left to the French. It has its moments, but is more or less ruined by silly sound effects and repetitious, over-the-top character tics. With 20 or 30 minutes of judicious cuts, the movie would have been at least as, if not maybe more, enjoyable than it is in its present form. The idea of partner swapping and mistaken partner identity is nothing new in the world of farce, but this example lacks a great script and is probably doomed from the start because of it. The music is forgettable. I am a fan of Ajay Devgan, but he is considerably better suited to more serious roles, in my opinion. He was superb in Omkara, for example, but his gift is really not for broad comedy; I don't understand why he keeps making movies like this...he is better than the material he has been choosing.

I don't want to go into extravagant detail as the other comments are fairly thorough.

I want to add to the pool of comments that if you happen to have had to care for a mentally ill, depressed, bipolar, etc, etc mother while you were a young child and adolescent, be forewarned. This is a beautiful and affecting film but hits waaaaaaay too close to home for anyone who had a life like mine, a milder version of the movie. I don't know how I sat through the whole thing. I lost it by the time it was over.

The description of the movie in the AFI Dallas Fest program made it sound like a civil rights struggle with a romantic triangle thrown in. That doesn't even begin to describe what this film is about.

Anyway, bring a lot of tissues.