Drive (2011)

An expert driver takes up the case of his neighbor - a young married woman Irene with a young child Benicio. Her husband just returns from jail and he lands up in trouble. The driver offers his services for a heist to get him out of trouble but it goes terribly wrong.

A series of people get killed and the driver settles things one by one and ensures that Irene and Benicio are safe. He drives away in the end after finishing the job that he set out to do.

Hits

• Ryan Gosling is mean and silent throughout. He smiles and talks only in a measured way. When he shows his aggression, it doubles the impact
• The other characters like the wife, the cute kid, the husband, the driver's garage boss, the mob etc. all have their minor parts. 
• Some scenes like the first kiss between the driver and his neighbor inside the lift followed by the bloody murder are pretty unexpected and abstract. 

Comments

• Carey Mulligan is so pretty and charming. Her smiles work wonders
• The killings in the movie are quite gory and bloody. 
• The soundtrack has some feel good songs. 
• The driver doesn't have a name. 

Who'll like this

For serious film buffs who prefer some understated action and not over the top stuff. Won't run much in India if it releases. 

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

In San Francisco, Will Rodman is a scientist who is looking to find a gene therapy for Alzheimer's disease, at the Gen-Sys lab. All the research is done on apes. Bright Eyes is one such ape which gets injected with the drug ALZ-112 (which is a modified virus) but, gets killed unfortunately while protecting her baby. Will takes the baby chimp home and names it Caesar. Will also tries this drug on his ill dad but, not with long lasting results.

The drug is passed on to Caesar through his mother and he is hyper intelligent and much more capable than humans. He doesn't like to be treated as a mere pet. Beyond a point, he is not tolerated by the neighborhood and he is sent to a Primate Sanctuary where there are several other apes. They are cruelly treated.

Meanwhile, testing on a new drug ALZ-113 is under way at Gen-Sys, headed by Will. The chimp handler Franklin is killed by this virus which is fatal for humans but is very potent on chimps.

After a point, Caesar takes control there due to his obvious superiority and he also manages to get the new drug passed on to the other apes as well. Now, the apes go on a rampage led by Caesar. They go to the Gen-Sys lab and destroy everything. Finally, they move to the Redwoods State Park beyond the Golden Gate bridge and make it their home. They destroy whatever force that comes against them and also make sure that the greedy proprietor of Gen-Sys, Jacobs is killed.

The movie ends with the premise of a sequel as ALZ-113 spreads all over the world reducing human population and making the world truly a haven for apes.

Hits

• Amazing performance capture again, for the apes. Andy Serkis does the honors for Caesar. 
• The visual effects particularly in the final Golden Gate sequence when the apes go on a rampage, is very ambitious though it is very evident in few places. When Caesar flies from one place to the other and in the trees at Redwood as a young baby, it makes one emotional. 
• The music of Patrick Doyle is Hans Zimmer like. It adds to the edge-of-the-seat and thrilling action. 
• Movies on genetic drugs and viruses are always appealing. 

Comments

• The actual actors don't have much work. The handsome James Franco and the petite Freida Pinto make a very good pair. John Lithgow as Will's father is the only human with some scope for acting and he does very well. 

VERDICT

Typical blockbuster Hollywood action where apes are in a much higher league compared to humans. 

District 9 (2009)

An alien master ship lands over Johannesburg and stays put for over 2 decades. The aliens that descend down are settled in a place called District 9. Multi National United (MNU) wants to capture all the alien weapons that can be operated only by aliens. They torture these aliens and are into an illegal genetic research where they want a cross breed between humans and aliens that would enable them to use the alien weapons.

MNU uses one of their hyper employees, Wikus Van De Merwe as a pawn for this research. They lure him by authorizing him to lead the operation of evicting the aliens to a new settlement. Wikus becomes increasingly 'alien' due to his exposure to the aliens.

The aliens want to go back to their land in their master ship. Now, Wikus is pursued by the MNU and also the Nigerian gang who are also after the weapons and the alien power. Initially Wikus just wants to get back his human form but later he becomes selfless and helps the aliens. Did the aliens flee Johannesburg and what happened to Wikus is the climax.

Hits

• The action on screen is extremely engaging and intense.
• The language spoken by the aliens and their perky, quirky sound effects are really innovative. 
• Sharlto Copley as Wikus redefines pain on screen. We travel along with him on his increasingly agonizing journey. Great show
• Though the aliens are quite disgusting, the effort and the detailing in showing all their minute actions is highly laudable.  

Comments

• The way humans are just torn to shreds by the alien weapons is quite disturbing yet entertaining. 
• The way Wikus metamorphoses to the alien form is quite detailed and disturbing again. 
• The movie has a docu feel when all the specialists and journalists narrate and cover the alien story. 

VERDICT

My personal favorite among alien movies. 

Infernal Affairs (2002)

Yan is a police cadet school graduate who is sent to work undercover with Sam, a wanted gangster. Inspector Lau is a mole in the force who works for Sam. Yan reports only to SP Wong with all the details about Sam's dealings and operations.

It is a race between the 2 moles to expose each other. SP Wong dies unfortunately, Sam is also eliminated by the opportunistic Lau. Now, Yan and Lau face-off with each other.

All Yan wants is his identity back and to jail Lau. But, things sadly don't work out for him and it is Lau who continues his living existence in hell, filled with guilt for his lack of loyalty and honor.

Hits

• It is a crisper version of "The Departed" and it is a great honor to be the superior original to a classic that was derived from this movie. 
• The BG score is really pulsating and matches the tempo of the racy screenplay. 
• The 2 lead heroes, Andy Lau and Tony Leung, are charismatic. Anthony Wong as SP Wong has a very heavy role and the scenes following his death are beautifully picturized. 
• The screenplay is full of tension and it never wavers from the central plot. 

Comments

• The 2 ladies in the movie see the movie to its conclusion. They play their little parts

VERDICT

An original to "The Departed" in every way. Riveting stuff. 

Ladies vs Ricky Bahl (2011)

Ricky Bahl is a conman who dupes ladies for a living and he earns big cash using his methods. The ladies fall easy prey to him and he has conned more than 30 ladies. 3 of them - Dimple, Raina and Saira decide to get back at him and recover the cash that they lost to him (totally 90 lakhs). Dimple is duped in the name of love, Raina - a painting and Saira - family grief.

These 3 girls employ a salesgirl named Ishita to trap Ricky who is now in Goa. Ishita and Ricky fall in love during the girls' reverse-con process. Ricky succeeds yet again but, this time the girls finally manage to straighten out his ways. Ricky returns their cash and gets Ishita on the promise of a clean life.

Hits

• Ranveer Singh looks solid star material with his realistic acting, amazing muscular frame, flowing hair style, height and style. His costumes in this movie are really debonair and dashing. The new heartthrob of the young crowd. 
• Anushka Sharma scorches the screen with her 2 piece bikini act in the pool. She is indeed one gutsy girl to expose her assets in all their glory. 
• More than the songs, Salim-Sulaiman impress with their booming bass BG score particularly in the party scene where the lead pair kiss for the first time. 
• The first half flies away in quick time. 

Comments

• The bubbly, talkative Punjabi girl stereotype is repeated yet again though Parineeti Chopra is very cutesy and curvy. The other 2 girls are OK.
• The 2nd half feels draggy compared to the racy first half. But, it is never boring. 
• No catchy song as such. 
• The colorful production values of Yash Raj Films are there here too. 

VERDICT

Decent time-pass. Worth a watch for the hunky hero, the fun and Anushka's super hot 2 piece bikini act

Osthe (2011)

The remake of Dabangg. STR reprises the role of Salman Khan. Osthe Velan is a charismatic police inspector who loots the money coming from corrupt politicians. He pisses off one such aspiring politician 'Boxing' Daniel. Daniel is out to get Osthe, come hell or high water. Osthe has his team of funny side-kick cops who love their 'ins'

Osthe has a vulnerable younger step brother Balan, who is used as a pawn by the bad guys. Osthe also has a troubled relationship with his step father. His mother is his only solace and she also is killed by the bad guys. Osthe meets his match in Neduvaali and he woos her and marries her. Her father is a drunkard.

Finally, Osthe mends ways with his family and blows away the villains singlehandedly. STR even shows his newly acquired abs in the final fight with Daniel

Hits

• STR has his own way and his Nellai accent is quite authentic. The man oozes style in his coolers and tight and colorful clothes. In the climax, his body is surprisingly quite awesome. 
• Richa's intro scene is such a free show. The lady is so curvy and has well endowed assets. She is a dream girl. But, other than the songs, she doesn't have much to do. Pure eye candy
• Santhanam and co.'s antics are funny and are laugh worthy. Several light moments. 
• Thaman's songs are super hits and they have been picturized very colorfully. The sets, the energy and costumes in all the songs are impressive
• Jithan Ramesh has a decent role after ages. He is surprisingly the younger brother to STR. His dialog delivery is much better. 

Comments

• Kalasala is nowhere near Munni, though both the songs are equally impressive in the audio. 
• VTV Ganesh has his first average outing.
• Sonu Sood just hams. Nothing special. So many villains just get overwhelmed by Osthe in no time.
• Revathi and Nassar have nothing much to do. 
• There is no pace in the movie. It moves leisurely and is quite long. 

VERDICT

Just an average outing that might appeal to STR fans in particular. 

Vishnuvardhana (2011)

Vishnu is the son of a local laundry vendor but, he wants to make it big. He is a big fan of superstar Vishnuvardhan. On an occasion, he loots the cell phone of a big Bangalore don named Adisesha. He uses that phone, answers all the incoming calls and gets some easy extortion money.

He also poses as a doctor to get his dream girl Bharathi. Later he also has to deal with Adisesha's good-natured, sexy wife who wants her evil and immoral husband dead.

Adisesha uses a corrupt policeman (and partner in crime) to nab the guy who has his phone. Adi also gets a job to kill the guy who is posing as a doctor to woo Bharathi. Vishnu meanwhile enters Adi's own circle and literally plays around with him. Adi comes to know in the end that it is Vishnu who is the man in question in both scenarios. Finally, the hero succeeds as expected and banishes Adi and the corrupt policeman.

Hits

• Sudeep's comic sense is very likable and his dialog delivery style is similar to superstar Rajinikanth's. The guy is tall, elegant and definite star material
• Bhavana and Priyamani are pure eye candies with the latter having some scope for performance in the 2nd half. Sonu Sood makes his debut in Kannada and he looks mean
• The comedians appeal majorly to the local crowd. 
• The songs are all foot-tapping with the opening number the pick of the lot. 
• Every time Vishnuvardhan's name or image is on screen, the crowd literally goes wild in celebration
• Quite an intelligent and entertaining screenplay. 

Misses

• The scene where the hero saves the baby and the pregnant mother is funny. 

VERDICT

A sure-shot hit with tremendous title value and an interesting premise.