Baahubali – The Beginning is a film co-written and directed by S S Rajamouli. As I remember watching the trailer about 3 years ago, I could go on praising the grandeur of the film. And I watched the film back then and couldn’t stop praising it. Watching it again after a long time, made me feel nostalgic.

Plot: Shivudu’s life changes after he meets Avanthika

Story and direction: I still don’t think that there is nothing that is quite great with the story. It is a mishmash of Ramayana and Mahabharata. Anyone watching it will know what I am talking about. But the way S S Rajamouli has taken what we know and incorporated into the world of Mahismati is incredible. The story also doesn’t provide you all the information at once. It keeps the mystery so that the audience stay intrigued and interested. You can see the hard work that has gone into the making of this magnum-opus. I can go on praising the Mahismati kingdom. The characters are also varied and interesting. You can care for each character that is in the film. The stunt sequences are also great and look very much real (quite rare in South Indian cinema). But everything has faults and so does this one. I felt the romantic track was added just to bring the audience to the theatres. It just added to the runtime and nothing substantial was there in that. Also the VFX was OK. In some scenes, you can just guess that green/blue screen was used. Also the editing is not crisp. Characters happen to just pop up at some places. Some scenes also never made sense.

Performances: Prabhas stole the show. His dual roles as Babhubali and Shivudu were impressive. Rana Daggubati was great too. The stern and angered looks were nicely carried by him. Sathyaraj was impressive as Katappa. Nassar looked cruel as Bijjalaeva. Ramya Krishnan was beyond praise as Sivagami. Tamannah Bhatia was eye-candy for me. Anushka Shetty was also good in the role provided.

Music: Very rarely I do love South Indian music. M M Keeravani delivers some great songs and an impressive background score. Although I liked each and every song of the film, ‘Dheevera’ was the one that impressed me the most.

Favorite Scene: The scene just before the interval where Shivudu helps in the installation of the golden statue of Bhallaladeva. When one person happens to see Shivudu and says ‘Baahubali’ and everyone just repeat the same, the energy they get helps in the installation of the statue. The sheer grandness and respect for Baahubali the people have inspired me a lot.

Verdict: Even with its faults and some stupidity, Baahubali is an enjoyable experience. I was never bored even for a milli-second.
I am going with an 8/10.

Golmaal Again is a film directed by Rohit Shetty. The trailers for this film didn’t excite me as I knew that it was going to be the same thing repeated all over again. And that is what I exactly got.

Plot: Gopal and his friends go to Jamnadas orphanage when its owner dies and discover something that changes their lives.

Story and direction: Knowing what Rohit Shetty has done in the past, I didn’t keep my expectations high. The film starts off quite nicely. But as it progresses, I felt that it is the same thing all over again. When will filmmakers understand that the audience is evolving? I know that there is a section of audiences who love such films. But there is a limit. Comedy means to go slapstick for some people, which this film is all about. When the interval showed that there is some scope of improvement, again we go right back to square one. The film could have been so much better, but they wanted to go the conventional route. The film is 150 minutes long which could have been over in like 2 hours. The VFX were not up to the mark. But there was some good in this film. The cinematography and production design were not compromised. It looked very gigantic and huge. Also looked colourful, this is not a pain to the eye. We can doubt Rohit’s directorial abilities but when it comes to action I can salute him. The way he directs those scenes are great.

Performances: I still don’t understand what does Ajay Devgn get doing these kind of films. Arshad Warsi, Shreyas Talpade and Kunal Khemu basically do nothing here. Tusshar Kapoor is doing what he does best. Tabu is totally wasted. Parineeti Chopra has nothing to do except standing as a statue in most of the scenes. Prakash Raj was very bad. Johnny Lever wasn’t also used considering the potential he has. Same can be said for Sanjay Mishra.

Music: I don’t think that there was even a shred of some sensible music in this film. Even 5 music directors couldn’t come up with one single great track.

Verdict: The basic idea for this film to be made was to cash in on Ajay-Rohit team popularity. I still think nothing can beat the first Golmaal. But still, I can say that this is a one-time watch.

I am going with a 5/10.

Bareilly ki Barfi is a film directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari. The trailer of this film had an instant connection with me. I had been dying to see this film. And finally when I saw it I can say that this film was what I had expected of it.

Plot: Bitti’s life is changed when she reads a novel named ‘Bareilly ki Barfi’.

Story and direction: Loving the director’s previous venture ‘Nil Battey Sannata’, I was quite optimistic of this film. Firstly, I loved Javed Akhtar’s narration. He gives life to this film with his voice. Then the setting of the film. This is the India that every person knows. You have a supportive father and a nagging mother. When we see a girl being something different, we tend to draw conclusions. This film has correctly portrayed the mentality and thinking of the Indian people. The boys, Chirag and Pritam, are both very different from each other. While Chirag is the heartbroken and cool, Pritam is the meek and shy person. All the characters of the film are like they live around you in your neighbourhood. The comedy, although in bits and pieces, doesn’t bore you and keeps a smile on your face. You can see the writers and director’s vision for the film, which never fades or never there is a dilution of that vision. But however, there were certain things that pinched me in the film. After one hour of the film passed, I felt that it kind of stopped for some 25-30 minutes. Nothing was happening in the film.

Performances: Ayushmann Kkhurana once again does it. He proves that if he chooses the right script, he can do wonders. Kriti Sanon for the first time I felt acted. She gave her 100% that clearly reflected on screen. Rajkummar Rao was the little cherry on that icing of the cake. The shift of character that he has from the soft meek person to the rowdy and daring person is phenomenal. Pankaj Tripathi and Seema Pahwa impressed too.

Music: Normally, a film with 5 music directors doesn’t fare that well in terms of music. But every song in this film is good in its own way. I didn’t consider any song bad. Ashwiny Tiwari knows how to incorporate the correct music for the correct mood in the film. ‘Nazm Nazm’ by Arko was my favorite track of the film.

Favorite Scene: It would be the scene where Chirag tells Pritam to put into practice what Chirag taught him. Then he parks his bike on the middle of the road, takes a pan from the shop and tells the other people honking to just chill and not trouble him. The shift in Pritam’s character was so awesome that I could take this scene out from my mind.

Verdict: This film goes on to show that with the right content, cast and crew, a film can work wonders. I hope Ashwiny Tiwari brings us more films like these.

I am going with an 8.5/10.

I, Tonya is a film directed by Craig Gillespie. I hadn’t known about this film until, I heard about the Golden Globe nominations. This film also got some rave reviews, which increased my curiosity for the film. So I finally decided to give it a watch without watching any trailers. And I can say that I wasn’t disappointed.

Plot: The life and times of Tonya Harding, a professional ice skater and the 1994 controversy that led to her subsequent downfall.

Story and direction: This film is not your conventional biopic. The makers decided a different way to go about it, which works quite a lot in the film. It employs the fourth wall breaking and mockumentary technique, which fascinated me a lot. The characters also are varied and interesting. We have Tonya who from her childhood itself was hardened to become strong and stand for herself. Then is LaVona, Tonya’s mother, who is very hard on her and wants to make her daughter stand on her own and fight for herself. We also have Jeff, Tonya’s husband, who has various shades for his character. And finally, Shawn, Jeff’s friend, who is that dumb person everyone has in their life. The skating shots also looked very real. It never felt that a stunt double was doing the skating and it was edited so beautifully to make it look like one shot. The selection of music is great too. I felt like dancing in each of the soft rock numbers that played on screen. But this film has some issues that bug me. For instance, towards the last act the film felt quite rushed. And also some characters were just kind of not given that screen space which should have been done.

Performances: Margot Robbie did it again. She never failed to impress. From sad to happy she yet again proves how fine an actress she is. Sebastian Stan was also great. I didn’t expect this kind of a performance out of him. Allison Janney just killed it. The way she adapted to LaVona Harding was awesome. She just mesmerized me. Bobby Cannavale was restricted to only the interview parts of the film, but still it’s always fun to watch him.

Favorite Scene: The scene where LaVona warns Tonya about Jeff right after Tonya’s wedding. We see a mother’s worry and a daughter just not caring about what the mother thinks of her choice. This is the kind of scene that takes place between every mother and daughter even now, which touched me a lot.

Verdict: Although there are a few hiccups, I, Tonya doesn’t have a single dull moment. I liked the not-so conventional take on a biopic. Do watch this film for some awesome performances and the great soundtrack.

I am going with an 8/10.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 is a film written and directed by James Gunn. This film is again a part of the very famous MCU franchise. I hadn't seen the trailers, so I didn't actually know what to expect out of the film. I liked the first one a lot. And I ended up liking this one too.

Plot: The Guardians run away from the Sovereign after they steal something from them. Meanwhile, Peter gets to know something about his heritage.

Story and direction: This film (and the previous part too) basically reminds you of those 1980's buddy cop action films where people just are banded together for one common cause and they also share a love-hate relation with each other. I like many of those kind of films. Because of which I have a special connection with this film too. Within the first few minutes, I was liking the film. The jokes were quite good (This part has some adult jokes too). Then by the time I got towards the climax and the main crux of the story I began to think "Was actually the Sovereign necessary??" I thought that it wasn't necessary. It felt very forced. Also, there was a small part where fast and furious was mentioned (please remember the "family" part that Drax says). If more focus would have been given on some characters like Rocket or Gamorra, I would have loved the film. Also even though I liked the jokes, I felt that the jokes were a bit on the too much side. The emotional quotient was quite missing. That is what made this film less likable than the first part. But the VFX and sets were quite massive and great. Also some of the stunts were awesome. Also this is I guess the first film in the MCU, where we had some 4 post credit scenes. Keep Up the good job, MCU.

Acting: Chris Pratt was again rocking as the Star Lord. I couldn't replace him with any other actor. Zoe Saldana was also bad-ass as Gamorra. Dave Bautista showed another side of his character Drax (the comic side), which although was in quite excess but was enjoyable. Micheal Rooker was also great as Yondu (will quite miss him in the future parts). Pom Klementieff was a great addition to the cast as Mantis. Sylvester Stallone was not necessary for the film. I still didn't understand why he signed for the film. Kurt Russell was great as Ego.

Favorite Scene: I guess it would be the very same as the first part. Yondu using his fin to control the arrow. This time the scene ran for quite a long time. And we see Yondu, Rocket and Groot walking down the road. I mean that scene had a different level of awesomeness in it.

Verdict: Although not as great as the first installment, this film is still good. It was vibrant and enjoyable for me. Can't wait for their crossover with The Avengers and in GOG 3.

I am going to go with an 8/10

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword is a film directed by Guy Ritchie. This was (is) intended to be the first part of the 6 part franchise. I was shocked to see the rotten tomatoes rating of this film. So low!!!! I thought that how a Guy Ritchie film can go this low!! But I have finally saw the film and I can with a great sense of relief say that this film is good.

Plot: Arthur raised in Londinium realizes his heritage and decides to fight back.

Story and direction: I remember studying King Arthur in school. I enjoyed the takes as I heard them. So I was finally excited when a film-maker like Guy Ritchie is directing this classic. In history, every film except the 1981 film Excalibur was panned by the critics. But I was confident for this film. My expression after this film was "Go to hell. Critics." The film is good. I could connect with every character in the film. The film also follows the normal Guy Ritchie route where comedy is inserted in parts. I like that in his films. Also some scenes are told in flash-forward type (which was a very fresh take). The sets and VFX too are spectacular. Now with the faults. Now in a King Arthur film I expect to see Merlin. Merlin was there for only one scene in the film and we don't see his face. I mean, come on!!! I was very disappointed in that thing. Another thing was the action and the film's heavy reliance on CGI. That made me disappointed. Even in the climax we see Arthur fighting his uncle in the form of a demon. I was shouting out for some real fighting.

Acting: Charlie Hunnam was great as Arthur. His body and his acting all were shouting as to why he was the right choice. Astrid Bergès-Frisbey was OK as the Mage. Djimon Hounsou was great as Bedivere. Aidan Gillain was also good as Bill. Jude Law was the ultimate evil as Vortigen.

Favorite Scene: The scene where Arthur reaches the top of the Darklands and we see as to actually what happened the night Arthur's parents were killed. The pain on Arthur's face is clearly visible in this scene.

Verdict: I had a great time watching this film. Yes, the film has faults but it is an enjoyable watch. I can safely say that this is not Guy Ritchie's worst. I hope they make more Arthur films (and they are successful too!!!) I am going with an 8/10.

Life is a film directed by Daniel Espinosa. Now when I saw the trailer for this film, I was quite excited for the film, as I like these kind of films. And at the end I was very satisfied with the kind of film that was finally made.

Plot: A team of 6 astronauts inspect a soil sample from Mars to dangerous consequences.

Story and Direction: Now what made me attract to this film is basically the writers: Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick. The team gave us the phenomenal Deadpool that came out last year. The writing for this film is good. There are sequences that actually give some depth to these characters. I can feel with all these characters every second. Especially Sho's character. He was my favorite. We see the kind of difficulty that he is facing as a father not being there for his child when he is born. Then the crew giving him support. But where the writing falls short is the familiar kind of story. This story was shown before in the very famous Alien that is some 40 years old. And some scenes actually seemed so technical that I couldn't get the film in some aspects. Also the unnecessary introductory sequence and the sequence where school kids communicate with the astronauts. But on a positive note,the VFX and production design were marvelous. That is quite rare for an R rated film. Also the design for Calvin as he grew in each stage was also excellent. It was something different than the aliens we have seen in films before.

Acting: Jake Gyllenhaal was excellent again. I like every role that he takes up. Rebecca Ferguson was also good. She is quite underrated but with this role she proved that she too has range. Ryan Reynolds was good too in his short role. Hiroyuki Sanada was excellent. His scenes made me get attracted to him. Ariyon Bakare was also great. And finally, Olga Dihovichnaya was also good.

Favorite Scene: It would be the scene where in Sho's kid was born. The way he guides his wife through the tablet and his crew simultaneously giving him support was phenomenal.

Verdict: The film is good, if not great. There are some faults with this film but that doesn't always mean it is a bad film.

I am going with an 8/10.

Alien: Covenant is a film directed by Ridley Scott. When the trailers of this film came out, I thought that this was going to be a very good film. I liked Prometheus too. And I love the first 2 films of the Alien franchise. But still I didn't get my hopes high as I knew that this film was never going to be as good as Alien. But I would say that I wasn't disappointed that much after seeing this film.

Plot: USS Covenant decide to go to another planet after detecting some kind of transmission from there.

Story and direction: The beginning of the film set the tone of the film in a very apt way. And then immediately after the scene we see the title of the film come in a very similar way that the 1979 original film gave us the title. I liked that. And then I see the design of the USS Covenant. Oh man, that was a beauty. The design was par excellence. And also hats off, to the production design team, VFX team and camera team. The planet gave a sense of loneliness and the horror that was about to come. The camera work was also excellent. we get very dark shades of the background which I think is correct. And finally the VFX. The animatronics and effects of the Neo and Xenomorphs were mesmerizing. You could actually feel the neo/xenomorphs are around you. When the xenomorphs would tear anyone up, I literally would have chills. The main fault with the film is the story itself. It is very inconsistent and predictable. I mean a song as a signal. Come on. Ridley Scott is better than that. And the reason to go to the planet just because it is near and people don't have to sleep for another 7 years. That is just ridiculous. The most lamest reason I have ever heard. I mean you are given a job; shouldn't anyone superior be consulted for that thing. And David coming into the picture and his story of Prometheus. I knew that was fake and David is the villain. And the ending twist. As such that wasn't a twist because you could actually see from far away what was the scene. And then there are as usual: THE UNEXPLAINED. Why David developed such hatred? Why did he kill the engineers? What actually happened to Elizabeth? From where the xenomorphs actually came? How many films do we have to have just to answer the questions? This film felt as if it was just ripping off the original Alien and tweaked a bit and presented to us. At least Prometheus felt new.

Acting: I loved Micheal Fassbender as both Walter and David. He portrayed both the contrasting characters to the T. Katherine Waterson looked like a cry baby in the entire film. It would be a sin to compare her to Sigourney Weaver. Billy Crudup was good as Oram. Danny McBride was actually more likable than Waterson. He actually had some depth in his character. James Franco and Guy Pearce were also good in the cameo.

Favorite Scene: Actually there are 2. The very first scene, the conversation between David and Weyland. That as I said set the tone for the film. And second being the scene between David and Walter. I mean the scene where he teaches the flute, was class. Micheal Fassbender in that scene actually proved what a great actor he is.

Verict: This film is actually an OK film. Prometheus was better than this. I wasn't entirely disappointed with the film. But I wanted some answers which were not provided by the film. I get that you are trying to get some kind of curiosity but as it is rightly said "Too much of everything is not good". That saying is applicable with this film.

I am going to go with 7.5/10.

The Lego Batman Movie is a film directed by Chris McKay. I had seen the trailers of the film and was quite excited about the film. I loved The Logo Movie and Batman's character in it too. And man, I was overjoyed with the final movie.

Plot: Batman has a hard time admitting to care for people because of which Joker decides to teach him a lesson.

Story and direction: The story has a very sarcastic tone to it. Which I loved. All the references made to films (of Batman and some Marvel one's too) was great and hilarious. I had laughed my guts out in this film. Joker was there for a longer time too (FYI Joker was just in a special appearance in Suicide Squad!!!!) The use of other DC characters were great too. The only issue I had with the film was it being nothing unique. I mean not being different than the Lego Movie. The climax was not good to be honest. But That's me.

Favorite Scene: I guess it would be where Batman becomes emotional seeing his family photo and Alfred jokes that he feels the same way all the years (referncing all Batman films that have appeared in the past). That was very funny.

Verdict: I had a good time watching this film. This film had a very different (comic) take on Batman which made it watchable. I am hoping from some other good movies from the Lego franchise.

I am going with a 9/10.

Baby Driver is a film written and directed by Edgar Wright. When I saw the initial trailer of the film itself, I was sure that this film was going to be a blast. And yes, I was quite overjoyed with the film. I haven't seen much of Edgar's work (I have only seen Shaun of the Dead). But I can definitely say that this is one of the best action films I have seen in quite some time.

Plot: baby is a getaway driver for a group of robbers led by Doc. Meeting Debora, he decides to leave this job. Can he?? Story and direction: For me, script and direction go hand in hand. If either one of these are faulty the film tends to fail. But in the case of this film, the both of these were just correct. Edgar Wright deserves full credit for this. After the film finished, I was like "WOW". I just couldn't stop clapping my hands. This film shows that with the right people on board for a film, you can work wonders. I mean this theme has been worked around for quite long wherein a guy with bad people always wants to get out. But when he decides to, he just realizes that it's just not easy. But the way Edgar handles this theme is just marvelous. And the car chases.... I can basically go on about them. They were just impeccable. Many people have complained about the romance slowing the pace. But, I think that was quite necessary to delve deep into the characters of Baby and Debora. But when the pace picks for the final hour, I mean I seriously had goosebumps. Each and every minute you worry about the lead pair. And finally, I would like to comment on the thing that was the soul of the film: THE MUSIC. I am not quite a keen listener to Engish songs. But man, I liked the choice of songs that were picked up for this film. Excellent work Steven Price (who also scored Suicide songs- which too had a nice pick of songs)!!!! Also, a small mention to choreographer Ryan Heffington who syncs in the action with the music seamlessly.

Acting: Ansel Elgort was the star of the film. My god, what a diversity!!!! I loved him in the Fault of Our Stars and here is still proving that he is a great actor. Lily James was just like your next door girl. She was sweet, cute, bubbly, etc... Kevin Spacey was also good as Doc. Jamie Foxx was also great as the twisted Bats. Jon Hamm was also one of the highlights. During the last half hour or so, I quite liked his performance.

Favorite Scene: The scene where Doc says Baby to scan the United States Post Office for cameras, exits, employees, etc... We basically can see the reluctance on Baby's face regarding the work given. And the kid, just blurting out all the info to Baby was just an icing on the cake. And the scene there after, where Baby just gives the info to Doc and the kid reminds him that he forgot something. This scene also showed that Baby was fed up of the kind of work he was doing.

Verdict: I had a blast with this film. Watch this film especially for Ansel Elgort, he is a definite star in the making. if you are a music lover too, I guess this film won't disappoint. If you are an action lover too, I recommend this film.