Badlapur

‪#‎badlapur‬: It is undoubtedly one of the better movies (but DO NOT expect an Ek Haseena Thhi...it is not even in the same league!). Nawaz is good as usual (definitely not his best performance...but then his 'good' is better than most contemporary actors' 'best'!) in the author-backed role. However, the surprise element is Varun Dhawan! The guy can act! Kudos to the kid for even signing up for this one! To be on the same frame as Nawaz (Varun should definitely get a bravely award for dis one, if not anything else ) and not getting overshadowed by his brilliance is a feat in itself. But that said, he doesn't quite manage to get the age factor right...although he has a hint of grey in his beard his should have put in some more work on the walk and the mannerisms in general. And yes HE NEED TO WORK ON HIS DIALOGUE DELIVERY. He has something very comic about it...and his voice has absolutely no depth whatsoever (a frend had pointed out about his Hindi diction...but I am not even getting into that). Loved Radhika Apte (in a particular scene she make you uncomfortable with her uncomfortableness). Yami Gautam hardly has anything to do. Vinay Pathak is strictly ok in what I'd call a cameo.As for the movie in general...it is certainly one of the well-made (mellow) Noirs of recent times. It is dark, sinister and gory but the director never goes overboard (although sumtyms u actually want him to...maybe it is a bit too simple for my twisted mind!). The attention to details is impressive. The use of rain is cool, the right dose of black humour makes it all the more interesting and the (reverse) Batman reference is not lost! But, I somehow missed the element of mystery...at no point does the plot twist blow your mind! Also, I think the film should have ended with Nawaz instead of Huma's moral preaching. And do we REALLY need Varun to dance in every movie? yes, I agree he is good at it, but I am unable to find any logic behind picturising the Jee Karda song they way they have. It just spoils the mood. And of course Varun getting down at Badlapur for absolutely no rhyme of reason is really really kiddish (when it comes to symbolism, Bollywood really do not believe in keeping it subtle! ). 

NH10

‪#‎NH10‬: So after Roman Polanski, it's Quentin Tarantino! The references to Kill Bill are just too difficult to ignore (starting from the general blood and gore to da distinct yellow jacket, fringe and iron rod dat replaces da 'bride's sword), especially in the climax. Although it is far less complex and not half as brilliant as Tarantino's masterpiece, as a standalone film (and as per Bollywood standards), it is a pretty well-made one(Note: it is NOT a remake of Kill Bill). Also, i luvd da fact dat the background songs stay in da background and are not as overpowering as those in Badlapur(great songs though) And of course it will be a turning point for Anushka. She gives her best performance (although she was nvr really known for her acting!) till date. But jokes apart, she is good! So much so, dat in certain frames u can actually ignore her bee-stung lips! N why Deepti Naval? Ah because the role was tailor-made for Supriya Pathak n she wld hav been too predictable taken away the twist (n thus ruined it for da uncle sitting next to me, who declared that since Deepti Naval is a good lady, Anushka is now safe) Its kind of ironical that in their heydays Supriya Pathak kind of followed in Deepti Naval's footsteps and now its the other way round. But just as Supriya got eclipsed by Deepti then, Supriya's shadow looms large on this one. However, wat i didn't understand is why Anushka didn't drag da injured husband to da darker part of da tunnel? She sat him where it was most illuminated (da scene sumhow reminded me of da climax of Ek Haseena Thhi where urmila similarly left a helpless Saif in a similar tunnel/dungeon to get slowly eaten by rats) and it was jst a matter of tym dat da goons wld have spotted him n killed him.