Speed - Review
SPEED is an edge of the seat thriller and unravels at a feverish pace. The only problem is, there’re a few rough edges [a few questions unanswered, predictable climax], but the pros easily outnumber the cons here.
In a nutshell, SPEED is an engrossing fare, with moments that stay with you.
What do you do when you get a phone call from a stranger begging you to save her life? What would you do if your only ray of hope is your phone?
Zayed Khan comes to London to convince his girlfriend Tanushree Dutta to give him another chance to prove his love for her. Meanwhile, Sanjay Suri, an undercover agent, receives a CD from Aftab Shivdasani and Sophie Chaudhary, which contains the recording of his kidnapped wife, Urmila Matondkar, and is asked to follow the instructions.
He’s completely confused about what’s happening. Soon he realizes that he is being used as a weapon to assassinate the P.M. of India on the London tour. As he is still not agreeing to plans, Aftab finally decides to kidnap his kid.
Aashish Chowdhary, the super-cop of London, is in charge of security of the visiting Prime Minister. But as his girlfriend has her birthday the very same day, Aashish is caught between his personal life and duty. He obviously chooses the later. Will Aftab and Sophie succeed in their sinister plans?
Although SPEED borrows from CELLULAR, it must be mentioned that the Indian moviegoer has witnessed strikingly similar themes in the past. Yet, in all fairness, Vikram and his team of writers have Indianized the plot well. For, the film is absorbing in most parts, except for some glitches in the second hour.
The Aashish – Amrita track, for instance, should’ve been better developed. Also, the film gets slightly predictable towards the finale, although, frankly, you don’t really mind it since the culmination couldn’t be different.
Director Vikram Bhatt is in form this time. Thrillers have always been his forte and his handling of the subject material is commendable this time. It’s stylish and most importantly, it succeeds in keeping your interest alive. Pritam’s music is okay, although, given the genre, the makers have wisely restricted the songs in the narrative. Pravin Bhatt’s cinematography is topnotch. The locales of London are eye-filling and give the film the required sheen. Action sequences [Abbas Ali Moghul] are well executed.
Sanjay Suri is a fine actor, but the spark is missing this time. Aftab too isn’t fiery enough and his look is a complete put-off. Tanushree Dutta needs to go easy on her makeup. Otherwise, she’s passable. Sophie Chaudhary makes her presence felt. Amrita Arora looks glamorous.
On the whole, SPEED is an interesting thriller that has the advantage of being a solo release. At the box-office, this reasonably priced fare should attract its share of viewers in its initial run.
Cash - Review
Sinha has mastered the craft and garnishes CASH well, but as you begin to savor the taste, you realize that the recipe isn't perfect. Perhaps, writers Yash-Vinay had the right intentions of making a chor-sipahi kahani, but the writing is just not convincing.
Where does the problem lie? Not with Anubhav Sinha, for the director is, without doubt, one of the most stylish narrators in Bollywood. The choice of subject is also right, but the writing lacks the meat to mesmerize the viewer. Clearly, the screenplay is the villain here!
To sum up, you expect a sangam of style and substance in CASH, but what you eventually get is style, style and only style!
CASH is a thriller set in Cape Town, South Africa.
The group also faces a threat from underworld don [Suniel Shetty], who is after the same diamonds and also the Head of Security [Shamita Shetty]. How these three groups manage to thwart each other forms the rest of the story.
CASH bears an uncanny resemblance to some films. The concept of a guy hiring professionals to execute a plan brings back memories of SHOLAY. There's an uncanny resemblance with DHOOM 2 as far as the stylish stunts are concerned. Also, a number of individuals wanting to lay their hands on the priceless diamonds take you to SHALIMAR.
It's not blasphemous to be inspired by any film, past or present, but what the writers ought to know by now is that there has to be a riveting story at the end of the day. What you take back as a viewer is only style. The writing is unenergetic in the first hour, but the second hour, you've to admit, is far more absorbing. The marked currency notes and also the chase by the cops [Ritesh, Esha, with Zayed atop the speeding car] are pulse-pounding.
Director Anubhav Sinha does make a 'good looking film', but the writing curtails it from being called an engrossing saga. If Sinha deserves brownie points for making a visually enticing movie, all you want to remind him is that the viewer wants to listen to an absorbing story at the end of the day. As the captain of the ship, he should've ensured that Yash-Vinay gave him a smart screenplay that compliments his skills.
Ajay Devgan is not in form this time around. He looks unenergetic… something is missing! Suniel Shetty gets to play a role he has visited a few times in the past. Zayed Khan is strictly okay. The real scene stealer is Ritesh Deshmukh. Very confident and easy-going, he's sure to walk away with ceetees and taalis.
Shamita Shetty stands out. Esha suffers due to sketchy characterization. Also, her make-up makes her face look hard. Dia is far more appealing and enacts her part well. Ayesha Takia adds to the star-value.
On the whole, CASH has style, but rests on a thin plot and that is its biggest flaw. At the box-office, the film might attract the audience in its initial weekend, but a weak script will throw a spanner.
Speed - Preview
What would you do if your only ray of hope is your phone?
Would you sacrifice your love to save somebody's child?
Speed answers these questions in a dramatic way. It's a great mix of mystery, action and comedy, on the beautiful backdrop of London.
Zayed Khan comes to London to convince his girlfriend Tanushree Dutta to give him another chance to prove his love for her. Meanwhile, Sanjay Suri, an undercover MI5 agent, receives a CD from Aftab Shivdasani and his lady, Sophie Chaudhary, which contains the recording of his kidnapped wife, Urmila Matondkar, and is asked to follow the instructions. He asks his colleague Amrita Arora to crack the code and moves off. He's completely confused about what's happening. Soon he realizes that he is being used as a weapon to assassinate the PM of India on his London tour. As he is still not agreeing to plans, Aftab finally decides to kidnap his kid.
Sanjay's kidnapped wife, Urmila, starts trying to escape. Her only ray of hope is the telephone call she's accidentally made to Zayed Khan He's in touch with her throughout the movie on his cell phone. Continuously talking with her and giving her moral support. As Zayed decides to help Urmila, his love of life, Tanushree gets annoyed and threatens to break up again. A happy-go-lucky brat Zayed, who never takes anything seriously, risks his own life to save an unknown family just because of a call.
Aashish Chaudhary – the super-cop of London is in charge of security of the visiting Prime Minister. But as his girlfriend has her birthday the very same day, Ashish is caught between his personal life and duty. He obviously chooses the later.
Speed deals with many different characters and their lives on a parallel ground. It's a story of how lives of unknown people get intermingled during this crisis.
Will Aftab and Sophie succeed in their sinister plans?
Will Zayed be able to save Urmila and get back his love Tanushree?
Will Urmila and her kid live another day just with the help of Zayed's phone?
Will Ashish be able to protect the life of the Prime Minister?
Speed is a visual extravaganza with a touch of humour, action and suspense.