- Raid 2 - Review
wogma rating: Add to that never-watched 'To Watch' list (?) quick review: Repeat performance of Raid. Raid 2 = 2x the drama and associated pain. 2x the slack writing. About 1x the fun of watching corrupt politicians get their due—fair and square, without involving police brutality.(Streaming Partner: Netflix) Review Despite all the tiring and unnecessary drama, the first half creates intrigue. A cold face-off between two smart people—you kno…
- 22 days ago 1 May 25, 6:18pm -
- Phule - Review
wogma rating: Watch but no rush (?) quick review: What an inspiring story. What an uninspiring, episodic, loud, and dramatic treatment. And yet, better watch this one because it's unlikely to be made again. And there's never harm in knowing the oppression we are capable of as humans and the fight we can give if we set our minds to it. Review It's a shame that, well over a century later, even making a film on the fight against caste oppression has…
- 28 days ago 25 Apr 25, 6:56pm -
- Kesari Chapter 2 - Review
wogma rating: Watch but no rush (?) quick review: It's gut-wrenching. It's hair-raising. Goosebumps rose. But that's the story. The movie unabashedly dramatises it, shining the spotlight on the star instead of the character, luring more with form than content. Review "Indians don't know how hard a lawyer fought for justice on behalf of those who died in the Jalianwala Bagh massacre." That's a reasonably fair claim. And it is a shame, too, conside…
- 35 days ago 18 Apr 25, 6:29pm -
- Sikandar - Review
wogma rating: Don't bother (?) quick review: What is worse? A film that wants you to leave your brain at home while watching it? Or one that is under the impression that it follows logic and has a heart, but is in reality a mess of a film? Sikandar might pass muster for both failing to engage or entertain. Review The first few minutes of Sikandar fool you into believing that you might actually get something more than the low bar you have set for…
- 54 days ago 30 Mar 25, 5:20pm -
- Pintu Ki Pappi - Review
wogma rating: Don't bother (?) quick review: A collection of one bad scene jerkily stitched to another, adding up to a mess of a film. An intriguing plot—kiss-as-a-service—but you can't help being wary because of the potential to be sleazy. Indeed, it is borderline creepy and goes full throttle into boring you. Review What if your superpower was that your cheek-kiss gets the kissee married to another person in the next week? What if you made…
- 62 days ago 22 Mar 25, 12:26pm -
- Superboys Of Malegaon - Review
wogma rating: Add to 'must watch' list (?) quick review: So much heart. Such a lovely tribute to the passion for cinema, both as makers and as audience. Sure, it slacks for a good 20 minutes post-interval, but we can cut it some slack if we have tears of cinema and tears for cinema, right?(Likely streaming partner: Amazon Prime) Review For the entire first half, I was absorbed by the streets of Malegaon and the story of the boys who wanted to te…
- 83 days ago 28 Feb 25, 8:52pm -
- Crazxy - Review
wogma rating: Add to 'must watch' list (?) quick review: It’s crisp. It’s intense. It’s experimental. It’s relevant. Its grey characters get you involved in the story without ever being on screen because the only person you see properly on screen is Sohum Shah. If only it didn’t resort to being gimmicky every once in a while. Review A man wakes up not looking forward to the day ahead, only to watch it worsen by the hour. The cornered ma…
- 84 days ago 28 Feb 25, 6:53pm -
- Chhaava - Review
wogma rating: Watch but no rush (?) quick review: The “glamourise violence/war” genre gets yet another feather on its hat. A glorious-looking, long feather; a well-performed one with solid dialogue; yet the overt romanticisation of brutality is like the feather has been plucked out mercilessly. Clearly, the focus is on the action, not the story or the character. Review It should be a genre by itself by now, right? “Violence-focus.” At lea…
- 98 days ago 14 Feb 25, 2:37pm -
- Loveyapa - Review
wogma rating: Watch but no rush (?) quick review: A stimulating “What if…?” that makes you wonder, “What if you were in that situation?” The film, though, comes across better than it is because of its freshness, performances, and a heart in the right place. Else, it is loud, tacky, and has an uneven pace. (Streaming Partner: Zee) Review “What if your phone was exchanged with your significant other for a day?” Some wouldn’t worry,…
- 7 Feb 25, 5:42pm -
- Deva - Review
wogma rating: Add to 'must watch' list (?) quick review: A slick whodunnit with a finger pointed to almost every character, but subtly. The final twist isn’t easy to guess though many sub-plots are predictable. The lingering pace is enjoyable but could’ve been a tad crisper for a better impact.(Streaming partner: Zee) Review Even as the film opens with the regular fare of glamourising police brutality, there is a smartness to Deva’s execut…
- 31 Jan 25, 6:42pm -
- Sky Force - Review
wogma rating: Watch but no rush (?) quick review: A 15–20-minute intense, amazing short story force-stretched to 2 hours with songs, melodrama, repetition and aggrandization of recklessness.(Streaming Partner: Jio) Review Come to think of it, is there anything new about a self-motivated and/or reckless soldier frustrated by the system, who frustrates it in return? He goes against orders and does what he thinks is the best for the country. And…
- 24 Jan 25, 6:23pm -
- Baby John - Review
wogma rating: Watch if you have nothing better to do (?) quick review: The social cause is an excuse to pad violence around. And a thick padding it is. Anything new? No; including the unnecessary segues, inane sub-plots, comic relief attempts, ill-placed songs, loud background score, overdone slo-mos, and so on. (Streaming partner: Amazon Prime) Review The only thing that I am likely to remember about the film is the obnoxious child. And an inco…
- 26 Dec 24, 7:22pm -
- I Want To Talk (English, Hindi) - Review
wogma rating: Add to that never-watched 'To Watch' list (?) quick review: Top-class performers trying their best to infuse life into dull lines given to weirdly-defined characters. Streaming Partner: Amazon Prime Review You know the film is going to have an October touch to it. You are looking forward to that with a dash of Piku on the side. And surely enough I Want To Talk starts out snappily. In fact, the first few minutes feel overbearing wit…
- 22 Nov 24, 5:57pm -
- Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 - Review
wogma rating: Watch if you have nothing better to do (?) quick review: Better than one had braced oneself for. Even so, the horror is too silly to be taken seriously, and the good-natured humour for most parts too unengaging to spend 2.5+ hours on. Review Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 actually has a reasonably coherent plot with far less time spent on totally out-of-context segues that we associate Anees Bazmee slapstick with. But then, that is only when com…
- 5 Nov 24, 6:29pm -
- Singham Again - Review
wogma rating: Don't bother (?) quick review: Gut-churning jingoism, which even the inclined could watch at minimum 4x speed. Not due to the story but because it feels like 90% of the film is in slo-mo. So, can make it 16x because the story is an insecure parallel of the Ramayana. Review See, no one is expecting subtlety here. Or even originality. So, when a “Grand” Ramayana show is presented as a ppt deck with a Wikipedia-page-like narrative,…
- 4 Nov 24, 5:15pm -
- Stree 2 - Review
wogma rating: Watch if you have nothing better to do (?) quick review: “WHY SO LOUD?” Would’ve asked the question if I got a feeling that there’d be a well thought out reason for the decision or any film-making decision at all. That’s how haphazard it all is. (Streaming Partner: Amazon Prime) Review “Continue the story” or “Pass the story”, you might have heard of this game. You can see how it plays out as a movie if you end up…
- 16 Aug 24, 2:15pm -
- Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba - Review
wogma rating: Watch but no rush (?) quick review: Pulpy entertainment for the time it lasts. There’s not much beyond that. But, doesn’t look like the makers were shooting for more.(Available on Netflix) Review Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba is certainly much more engaging and even enjoyable than the first episode. It carries pulpy humour in the foreground and the background. The characters might be one-toned and their situation repetitive, but t…
- 14 Aug 24, 5:35pm -
- Sarfira - Review
wogma rating: Add to that never-watched 'To Watch' list (?) quick review: A story with so much heart told with such little spark. Instead, the telling is LOUD, s…l…o…w…and basically uninteresting. Review “Who are the rich to tell us what we should want!” A truer sentiment, there cannot be, right? And least expected, it was for me to hear that in a film. B-u-t, for a film that claims to be speaking for the masses, it’s sad that Sarfi…
- 12 Jul 24, 4:59pm -
- Kalki 2898 AD - Review
wogma rating: Watch if you have nothing better to do (?) quick review: 2898AD…when asking, ‘Why?’ seems to be the most illogical thing to do. Though, we as an audience are seasoned for that, right? But, 175/180 minutes of boredom! How are we to handle that? Review If you can believe that Tom Cruise defies death by jumping off high cliffs and tall buildings, what’s your problem with accepting Shah Rukh Khan doing it? If you can engage with…
- 27 Jun 24, 9:02pm -
- Ishq Vishk Rebound - Review
wogma rating: Watch if you have nothing better to do (?) quick review: The freshness wilts rather quickly as young adults go about sorting their lives and minds out. Their match-ups, break-ups, and patch-ups neither engage nor entertain. Review A love triangle has to be really really well-made for it to work well after 100 years of movies being made. A romantic film doesn’t have to answer “Why are they in love with each other?” But if the q…
- 21 Jun 24, 5:25pm -
