Haider and More

Saw Haider and liked it, but there are a few improvements that would have made it a classic for me. Mostly, it's the pace. It is slow in the first half, which as a marketing man, I find difficult to take. The story is quite static in half one. It takes too long to just establish the fact that Haider (Shahid Kapoor) was sent away to study, his father taken away by cops, and that Shraddha loves him. The cinematography keeps it going, with lovely shots of Kashmir.

The screenplay and editing needed to be crisp, for a story like this one. The complexity of the relationships and the dilemmas of all the characters does come through, but at the cost of early disinterest in the happenings. If it was an adventure like Sholay, the action would keep you glued, but here, it should have been edited far better. Sequences with Shraddha's brother, the army interrogation, and a few others were just superfluous, and added unnecessary drag.

Most Hindi films suffer from this malady, though. The locales, the acting and the action in the second half are really good. Usually, the first half is more satisfying in Hindi films- here, it's the opposite. I liked Irrfan the best, though his role is short. I was reminded of the Himalayan shootouts in Rajesh Khanna's potboiler "Roti" at the end.

Moral of the story? Your dilemmas can kill others. Watch out!

Also re-watched a few comedies over the last few days, all different from each other. Mel Brooks' History of the World Part 1, Carry On in The Jungle, and Naked Gun 2 and a 1/2. All great fun, but done very differently. 

2 comments:

Diamond Head said...

New marketing idea - charge premium for watching only the second half of fillum

Rajendra said...

will work with serious film goers- if there are any left.

Conquering Gwalior

 Forts are meant to be conquered, and this one changed hands many times, from Qutbuddin Aibak to the Mughals, British and Marathas. Gwalior,...

These Were Liked a Lot