Jurassic World is a film directed by Colin Trevorrow. Initially, I had no interest in seeing this film. I thought basically its just dinosaurs running here and there. But I watched the first film again. I became a fan of it. I skipped the next 2 (basically because of its reviews). I watched this. And I was overjoyed.

Plot: When an Indominous Rex gets out of hand in the newly built Jurassic World, its upto the authorities to get a control on the species.

Story and direction: Now I went into this film knowing that it couldn't be in level with the first part. That was ultimate. But I was expecting a decent film. And yes, I got that. The VFX and camera work both are good. The dinosaurs looked a little 'faked' at times although the character designs for the dinosaurs were great. Hey, but that's just me. The film actually takes a little time to start, about 20 minutes. But after that, it was bang on. I liked the entry to Owen's character. He showed that there is a great promise to this franchise. The story was basically here and there. There were subplots that were kind of distracting me. The kids were kind of unnecessary. It felt as if they were recreating the first that also had two kids!!!! And using raptors as military weapons!!! That was atrocious. Here that was not even necessary. The climatic battle between the dinosaurs was a visual treat to the eyes.

Performances: Chris Pratt proved that he can do roles other than the Star Lord. Bryce Dallas was also great. Vincent D'Onofrio was good as the semi-villain (although the part was not needed). The kids were also fantastic in their roles. Irrfan Khan again proved that why I loved him. B D Wong was OK.

Favorite Scene: I guess it would be the scene after Chris Pratt's entry. The communication and bond that was shown between the dinos and humans was phenomenal. I hoped that this theme would have been further explored in the film.

Verdict: Jurassic World is actually a good film. It has some flaws but it is watchable. Definitely not better than the original. Can't actually wait for Fallen Kingdom to come.

I am giving it an 8/10.

Chillar party is a film written and directed by Nitesh Tiwari and Vikas Bahl.

So I saw this film knowing basically nothing about it. Yes, I knew it was something about kids. and also that it has been directed by Nitesh Tiwari (Dangal) and Vikas Behl (Queen). I wanted to see that how these two fantastic minds were got together for a film. It was at a time when UTV Spotboy used to bring fresh talent to direct films (BTW Vikas Bahl was one of the spearheads of UTV Spotboy division). Salman Khan too has received a producer credit for the film (obviously because of his love for kids).

Plot: Some close friends of the Chandan Nagar Society in Mumbai jump to help a friend who is in trouble.

Story and Direction: We have many a times seen people deciding to help others no matter what (This is mostly the case in Indian Love Stories). But when you put the story onto kids, it becomes an entirely different case. So in the very first scene we are introduced to the "Chillar party". The way the names of the members of this "party" are kept is very unique and funny. As the plot progresses, we see the introduction of characters Fatka and Bhidu. Which also impress us (not initially but subsequently). And then to some of the funny characters of the society. Which also are quite impressive. The main villain of the film also was good. The politician also looking for an issue to come to the limelight was quite real. The tone of the film starts from comedy to drama (which I had guessed when the movie started). But sometimes I also felt quite disconnected towards the film. That was mainly in the first half. For this I blame the writing. So a NATIONAL AWARD for this part, I guess it was not right.

Performances: The stars of the film are the kids. The way they conduct themselves in all of the scenes are impressive. A special mention to the character Jhangya. I was laughing in all the scenes he said his dialogue. I was quite happy that all the kids got a NATIONAL AWARD for this. The politician/villain of the film was also very good. And the rest of the supporting characters were all fitting the bill.

Music: Amit Trivedi scores the film songs and background score. Heis actually quite good in commercial music too. He should actually do this type of music quite often. After A R Rahman, if I like any musician it would be him. "Tai Tai Phis" and "Hum Ek thali ke" were some of my favorites of this film.

Favorite scene: I guess it would be the climax of the scene between the kids and Bhide. The way in which Bhide lashes out at the kids for going rogue to save someone and the way the kids take out their Value Education textbook and say one liners from each page of the book to justify their action was commendable.

Verdict: On the whole, Chillar Party was an enjoyable film. Although I felt a tiny bit disconnected during the first half, the film was still good, if not excellent.

So for me the film is a 8/10 film.

Indu Sarkar is a film directed by Madhur Bhandarkar. When I saw the trailer for the film, it didn't actually do anything to get me invested in this film entirely. I was least interested in watching this film. But when my Mom insisted on watching this, I actually gave in. I was quite surprised by how good the film is.

Plot: Chronicles the life of Indu Sarkar during the 1975 emergency era.

Story and direction: To be very frank, I don't know anything about the 1975 emergency. I will judge the film purely on a film-making perspective. Even the director himself has said, 70% of the film is fictional. The film starts off with who Indu is. That could have been shown in a better way. I blame it mostly on the editing. We get flashbacks and flash-forwards which didn't set the pace for the film. Then as we progress on with the film, we see some good things in this film. I could very easily connect with Indu and her dilemma. We could also see the way the government and the rebellion movement were working. It all actually looked quite real to me. If people will start thinking it's a film on women empowerment just because a woman is on the lead, you are very much wrong. The film has shown the brutality during that time in the most apt way possible. Also I had a problem with the way the film wrapped up. It looked very rushed. If people will not support films like these, then we still will get shitty films. I didn't understand the negativity around a film like this. This is a perfect example of creativity being put to a stop because some people have a problem with it. Also it was quite good of the film going song-less. Songs would have actually diluted the film heavily.

Acting: Kirti Kulhari has proved that she is a very fine actress. I was very much impressed with her performance. She also did the stammering with such ease. It didn't look forced. Tota Roy Chaudhary was also good as the confused husband. Anupam Kher was great in his small role. Neil Nitin Mukesh was OK.

Favorite Scene: I guess it would be the scene during the court room session where Indu just lashes out at the government for just taking away the freedom of people. That scene actually hit me very hard.

Verdict: This film is actually not that bad I expected it to be. Madhur Bhandarkar has done a great job. People must support such films otherwise the day is not far when Bollywood will drown.

I am going to go with an 8/10.

District 9 is a film co-written and directed by Neil Blomkamp base on his own short film Alive in Joburg. I saw this film just because I have an interest in the sci-fi genre. But mind you this is not your normal sci-fi film that has special effects and larger than life action. It is something different. That is why I loved the film.

Plot: Wikus van der Werwe is an Employee of the MNU. While serving an eviction notice to an alien colony (District 9), he accidentally exposes himself to some fluid to drastic consequences.

Story and direction: The film is shot in a semi-documentary style. Which is somewhat different for a sci-fi genre film. I liked that move. And you would be expecting a lot of guns blazing, violence, etc.. That is there. But it is quite secondary in the film. This film basically deals with loneliness (that the protagonist faces after a tragedy). Wikus's pain and anguish is very nicely written in the film. Also aliens are mostly shown as some supreme beings with a lot of super powers and stuff. But here they are shown as oppressed individuals. Which too is something different.

Acting: Sharlto Copley as Wikus actually killed it. We see 2 different sides of his character: one as the employee of MNU, who is indifferent towards the aliens and other as a saddened individual who is forced to ally with the aliens. David James as the sadistic Koobus Vanter is also a bad-ass villain. The rest of the supporting cast is also good.

VFX: This is the department where I felt the film lacked finesse. Sometimes the VFX was looking very superficial. Motion capture was already quite developed by this time. But yes the budget would not allow that.

Favorite scene: I guess it would be the scene where Wikus puts on the alien suit and kills the MNU soldiers. The suit reminded me of the climax of Aliens where Ripley finds some kind of armor and fights off the alien queen.

Verdict: I enjoyed the film a lot. It was kind of different than your normal sci-fi films. But yes as I said the VFX wasn't great.

I would give it a 9/10.

Hindi Medium is a film directed by Saket Chaudhary. Knowing what Saket has directed previously I had no hopes for the film. But as I saw the trailers for this film, I thought that this a was going to be a great film. And man, it was a great movie.

Plot: Raj and Mita struggle to get admission for their daughter into a good school.

Story and Direction: The story is very real and mostly simplistic. No gimmicks, high-fi songs, etc... It can be termed as a slice of life kind of film. The scenario of the high society, middle class and lower class is very clearly shown in this film. You can feel for the characters in each and every scene. The film never bores you. The length of the film is also perfect. The only fault with the film I can say is the cinematic liberties that it took. Some of the scenes felt that 'Is this possible??'. Other than that , I can't fault the film in any way.

Acting: Irrfan has again proved as to why he is what he is. His comic timing is impeccable. Saba Qamar was also good as the concerned mother. Deepak Dobriyal was great as the poor man. He also got many laughs in me. Amrita Singh was also good. Sanjay Suri and Neha Dhupia in cameos were also good.

Favorite Scene: It would obviously be the scene where Shyam Prasad hits the mosquito and shows it to Raj and Mita. That scene was hilarious. I couldn't stop laughing in that scene.

Music: Sachin-Jigar put together a very nice soundtrack. It doesn't actually add to the run-time of the film, that songs mostly do. I had no problem with the remixed Punjabi tracks since it didn't add to the run-time ('O Ho' was played during a dance number and 'Suit' is played in the end credits). 'Hoor' I would say was my favorite track of the film.

Verdict: This again goes to prove that you don't need a lavish budget and songs to make a good movie. A good story with the right cast and crew can also do that. This film is easily one of my favorites that have come out this year.

I am giving it a 9/10.

Phillauri is a film directed by Anshai Lal. I saw the first trailer of this film and was instantly attracted to this film. After seeing the film I can say that this is a good film. I was quite shocked that people in IMDb didn't quite like the film. But then, their views are theirs.

Story and direction: I had quite the reservations when I heard the director's name Anshai Lal since he is a protégé of Sajid Khan (Yes, the infamous director of the disastrous Humshakals). I thought that the film too will be below average. But no, it is far from that. The script was good. Incorporation of the pre-independence era with that of 2017 was done very nicely. The script has some faults in it too. The impressing of Roop Lal was cliché. After that, Shashi's brother's opposition and an immediate liking to Roop Lal was too superficial. There is a scene where Shashi gets pregnant. I mean that was unnecessary. The climax too was a bit melodramatic. The modern love story between Kanan and Anu was faultless.

Performances: Anushka was good in comic scenes. But in emotion, she failed at times. Diljit Dosanjh was great. I was fully flattered by his performance. Suraj Sharma looked like he overacted in some scenes, but he shines in some too. Mehreen Pirazada had actually nothing much to do. But she too was good.

VFX: The visual effects of Shashi's character was sort of OK. In some scenes where she was flying on ground level, you can know that she is on a platform fitted with wheels.

Music: As usual, I would say except for 'Sahibaan' and 'Dumb Dumb', no song was memorable. Just the producers felt that songs are necessary so they just put it for the sake of it.

Favorite scene: I guess it would be Shashi's introduction to Kanan. The way she tries to communicate with Kanan, try to get his attention was good.

Verdict: I had a good time watching Philauri. Watch it for Diljit Dosanjh. He is a great actor. There were some irritable moments, but you can give it a watch. It's even not that irritable like people say it is.

I would go with an 8/10

Normally I would start out my review by saying the film name and name of the director. But I am ashamed to associate Kabir Khan's name with this film even. I saw the trailer of the film and I knew that "OK. It may not be Bajrangi Bhaijaan but let's give it a chance". In short, I had not kept high expectations with this film. But I was utterly shattered after the film finished.

Plot: Laxman tries every possible thing to bring his brother Bharat back when he gone for war.

Story and Direction: Let's actually summarize as to what Kabir Khan has done till now: 1) Kabul Express - A film set in Afghanistan about 4 people. 2) New York - About 4 Muslim people in New York City. 3) Ek Tha Tiger - A love story between a RAW Agent and ISI Agent 4) Bajrangi Bhaijaan - A man's struggle to send a kid back to Pakistan 5) Phantom - A story about an ex army man to take revenge on those people responsible for 26/11.

A common factor noticed in all these films - Muslims. Kabir Khan has used this angle in many stories of his in one way or another. Not that I have a problem with this. I guess he has used this angle very nicely in his films. Kabir Khan must have thought "Enough with the Muslim thing. People will think that I have nothing else to show. Let me use the Chinese." This film was a mistake from the very beginning. This film is just nothing. I don't expect things like this from Kabir Khan (Yes, I am saying that this is worse than Phantom). The first 20-25 mins were good. I even teared up a bit. The very first scene where the village is shown on top of a mountain was hilarious. But after that it was just s***. The second half even sinks further. There were so many implausible things done in this half that made me think "What the hell Kabir. You are better than This". The entire Chinese people subplot was useless. It had no base. And the Climax. O My God, So much clichéd. I started to actually laugh there. And I am beginning to hate the word "yakeen" (meaning: Belief). The number of times this word was said was unimaginable. And the things done with this "yakeen". O My God, it sucks. Kabir tried to replicate several things from Bajrangi like the way Salman introduces himself and the way the end credits come. I guess he hadn't come out of the BB fever. I saw some people getting out of the hall even before the film finished. And that is never good. One thing though the photography was very good. And the locations too.

Performances: Salman Khan made the biggest mistake of his career signing this film. I always say that he is not a great actor but an excellent entertainer. This film showed his deficiency in the acting department. He cannot cry!!!! Sohail Khan sucked in every scene he appeared (especially in the climax). Om Puri's role made me realize that why he is of a great loss to the industry. Zeeshan Ayyubn was also a great addition. Matin Rey Tangu and Zhu Zhu were also good in their emotions. SRK made that 10 minute cameo something to watch for.

Music: Pritam again has done wonders with the music of this film. I can't fault even a song of this film. Radio and Naach Meri Jaan were easily my favorites. KK's song (Main Agar) at the end was the icing on the cake.

Favorite Scene: Easily it is the SRK cameo. The charisma of SRK never dies, even in a cameo.

Worst Scene: Very easy. The climax. So clichéd and so bad acting. O My God.

Verdict: The film is easily the worst of Kabir Khan (out of all his films) and Salman Khan (of recent times). The film as I said was a mistake from the very beginning (The source material itself has a 22% rating on Rotten Tomatoes). I being a big Salman Khan fan myself advise anyone not to go watch this film. It is full of s*** and absurdity. Even the music couldn't save this film.

I am going to go with a 4/10.

Beauty and the Beast is a film directed by Bill Condon. Normally when the film is announced as a remake of something, I tend to watch the original of that. But that was not the case here. I directly watched this film. And I can say that I had a very good time watching this film.

Plot: Belle becomes a prisoner to a monstrous looking prince bounded by a curse.

Story and Direction: I know this story of what I had read in my childhood. Some changes obviously were made to the story so that it sets apart with that of others. The production design and visual effects of the film had me in awe. They were so vast and colorful. I was immediately attracted to it. The attention to detail is very good in this film. Even the beast design and motion capture looked excellent. The songs were also fitted into the narrative very nicely. It didn't look like the song was unnecessary. But I would say though that this is actually not the best musical I have seen.

Performances: Emma Watson shined as Belle. She looked real in her performance. Dan Stevens did also a great work as the Beast/Prince. Kevin Kline was also good as Belle's father. Luke Evans was somewhat funny (in a good way) and menacing as Gaston. Josh Gad was good too as LeFou. The additional cast that did the voice work for the castle household items were good too.

Music: Alan Menken returned to compose songs and score for the film. I was mesmerized by the songs that were in the film. I would say 'Belle' and 'Beauty and the Beast' were my favorite.

Favorite scene: The scene where Belle and Beast dance with each other was the best for me. The choreography and emotion in that scene were par excellence.

Vercict: As I said before, this was not the best musical I have seen. I too haven't seen the original so I can't actually compare it with that. This film was actually very good on its own.

I am giving it an 8/10

Raja Babu is a film directed by David Dhawan which is actually a remake of a Tamil Film Raasukutti written, acted and directed by Bhagyaraj. This film actually came out at a time when the masala ventures were very famous. One hero, a heroine, a comic relief, some villains, a couple of songs, etc.. were some of the ingredients during this era. The story was given the least importance.

Plot: Raja is the son of a wealthy zamindar. When he goes head over heels for Madhu, he tries every way to woo her.

Story and direction: This is one of the most famous combos of David Dhawan and Govinda. I wanted to see this film just for entertainment value. Now if I see the first half of the film, I was quite entertained. It made me laugh the whole time. But it was during the second half that the film got very sour. We have a typical saas-bahu drama going on. I would have been very happy if the comedy flavor was kept. But alas it wasn't. The script takes a very drastic turn at the second half when things actually start to get serious. There is all crying and stuff. If I see a Govinda film I want to be entertained. There are much better films than this.

Acting: It is basically a Govinda film. His antics, style, etc.. all ingredients needed for a typical Bollywood film. Karishma Kapoor has a cute bubbly girl type of image in the film. Shakti Kapoor impressed me actually. His Nandu act was great. I guess he said this was the first film where he did comedy and got recognition. Prem Chopra and Gulshan Grover were in their usual self. Kader Khan and Aruna Irani were good too.

Songs: Now I don't know whether this was song was cut because of its airing on TV, but still I wanted to see the song 'Sarkailiyo Khatiya'. I was missing it. The rest of the songs are great. My favorite would be 'A Aa ee' Worst Scene: Now since I can't name any good scene in the film, let me name a bad one. It would be the climax. It looked like it was rushing to the climatic point of the film. Some stunts were way too atrocious.

Verdict: This is not Govinda's best. Not worst also. It comes in the OK category. As I said before I wish the comedy would be carried till the end, I would have given more.

So for this film I give a 6/10

Kaabil is a film directed by Sanjay Gupta. This film is considered redeeming for Hrithik Roshan after a disastrous Mohenjo Daro. I saw this film with the least of expectations. And yes, I got satisfied with the less expectations I got.

Plot: Rohan and Supriya's life takes a disastrous turn after an unexpected turn of events.

Story and direction: On a very simple note, the film is a revenge drama. When I see a revenge drama, I consider Badlapur and Ghajini to be one of the finest (atleast from Indian perspective). The first half of the film actually sucks. It was as if the writer wanted to rush to the revenge part of the film. The pace of the film was too fast for me during first half. The second half of the film where the revenge actually starts is great. The first half was so bad that I thought why the hell I was watching the film. It was the second half that made me believe the film was good but not executed properly. That is mainly the director's fault (Obviously it is not as crappy as Jazbaa). If the love story was kept in flashback mode, I would have liked it much better. Some scenes of the film even looked like 'How the hell is this possible ?' Acting: Hrithik is a star all the way in the film. His happiness, sadness, angriness, etc.. you can be with him all the time, he did such a wonderful work. Yami too was good in her role. Ronit Roy was great as the villain. The Marathi accent was perfectly executed by him. Rohit on the other hand was OK. Narendra Jha and Girish Kulkarni as cops were good. Suresh Menon showed less of comedy in this film, which I wasn't expecting. I wanted to see him do comedy.

Songs: This is where the film actually sucked a lot. The songs were too bad. I didn't like any of them. I always hate songs that are reboots. 'Saara zamanaa' was one of them.

Favorite scene: I guess it would be the entry of Ronit Roy in the film. The way he consoles Hrithik in the film after the tragedy, was great. As I said before, the Marathi accent was an added bonus from Ronit's side.

Verdict: I would say that Kaabil is just a one time watch. It's just OK. Nothing much special about it. Hrithik was above excellence in the film. I hope Hrithik makes some good choice of films in the future.

I give this film a 7/10.