Posts Tagged ‘Sylvester Stallone’
JYOTHI PRABHAKAR Times News Network (BOMBAY TIMES; December 10, 2009)
MSN.CO.IN
Nobody can beat Shah Rukh Khan when it comes to taking pot shots at himself. The Bollywood star was at his wittiest when he shared his aspiration of becoming a porn star.
The actor was in Delhi to launch management guru Arindam Chaudhuri’s new book ‘Discover the Diamond in You’ when he revealed his desire.
“I always wanted to be porn star. I am going to work with all the positivity and clarity to be a porn star,” Shah Rukh said much to the amusement of the packed audience.
And where did this inspiration arise from? “I have always been a huge fan of Sylvester Stallone who was a porn star before becoming Hollywood superstar,” the actor said.
Shah Rukh, famous for his outrageously funny remarks did tickle the funny bone of the audience who was in for a laugh riot while listening to the actor.
And it was the icing on the cake when the actor said, “I will take my flag and put it up in America after becoming the biggest porn star of the world.”
The whole joke started when Chaudhuri, while reading excerpts from his book gave example of Stallone’s determination and his journey from a porn star to becoming one of the Hollywood’s icons.
He also referred how Akio Morita, founder of Sony, Japanese electronics giant, started the company with a dream to have his country’s flag flutter high on the soils of US. “You see that is what happens with students like me who take all the wrong things from best of the examples given to them,” Shah Rukh jested.
Source: PTI
What has happened to the quality of our films? Till 2007, we used to get the best of the entertainers and comic capers. But the downfall began in 2008 when suddenly we started getting nonsensical flicks of the comedy genre which were not even properly executed. The ‘tradition’ continues in 2009 and after Chandni Chowk To China and Paying Guests, here comes another such flick-Kambakkht Ishq. One of my most awaited movies of the year, the film badly fails due to no-story and faulty script. A golden chance lost, indeed! More about it later!
The story of the movie: Viraj (Akshay Kumar) is a stuntman in Hollywood who feels that women are good only for two things. Simrita (Kareena Kapoor), a model, hates men and doesn’t believe in love. Both meet and start hating each other a lot from the first meeting itself. Unfortunately for them, they come across several points and the dislike for each other grows even more. At this point of time, Viraj meets with an accident and is taken to hospital. A dramatic twist of fate takes place at this juncture and both have to come closer. To find out why does this happen and what happens next, watch the film.
As one can see, Kambakkht Ishq doesn’t have much to offer. For most parts of the film, the protagonists are fighting with each other. Even the fight could have been an interesting watch. But alas…the four screenwriters including the director couldn’t add something interesting and humorous in many scenes. Take for instance, the Italy sequence. The scene hardly makes for an entertaining watch and even the song ‘Lakh Lakh’ fails to impress.
However, Kambakkht Ishq begins well. In fact, the first scene gives an indication that the film is gonna rock. However, soon after the excellent entry of Kareena Kapoor in the church scene, the film falls. However, there are some individualistic scenes which are fantastic and stand out. Akshay getting operated and Akshay hearing the mantra everywhere were fabulous and utterly hilarious! O! If the entire film would have been so funny!
The climax should be the highpoint of any film. However, in the case of Kambakkht Ishq, the climax was plain mediocre.
Performance wise, each actor gives his best and comes up with nice performances. Akshay Kumar was as usual natural and gives a fab performance. He was at his best in the above mentioned two hilarious scenes. However, its highpoint that Akshay become choosy with his scripts and doesn’t sign any nonsensical film. He’s a great actor and a wonderful person and people want to see him in good entertainers and not in films like Kambakkht Ishq and Singh Is Kinng! Akshay, come back!
Kareena Kapoor looked charming and was terrific throughout the film. She packs in the perfect attitude and snobbishness that was needed for the role and comes out with flying colours. Watch out for her terrific expressions in the underwater sequence. The film may or may not be liked by everyone, but Kareena would surely charm one and all!
Aftab Shivdasani and Amrita Arora play their respective roles perfectly. Jaaved Jaaferi was funny only in his initial scene. Boman Irani brings the house down even though he was there only for one scene. Kirron Kher was as usual excellent.
Now for the Hollywood stars. All three of them-Brandon Routh, Denise Richards and Sylvester Stallone play their part with élan. However, it is Stallone who leaves a tremendous mark. Others do a good job.
Anu Malik’s music was great and it seems he’s all ready to make a ‘comeback’! Three songs stand out-RDB’s Mangalam, Bebo and Kyun. Salim-Sulaiman’s background score was top notch. The introductory song ‘Welcome To Hollywood’ was also composed by them.
Vikas Shivraman’s cinematography was flawless. Art Direction by Acropolis was grand and beautiful. In fact, it’s the wonderful production design that makes the film delightful to some extent. The locales were eye-catchy.
Kiran Kotrial, Anvita Dutt Guptan, Ishita Malhotra and Sabbir Khan-these are the screenwriters and in other words, the culprits who are responsible for the film’s debacle! Guptan and Kotrial are not new to writing and it’s shocking that they did such a shoody job. In fact, Kiran Kotrial had wonderfully scripted Fear Factor and directed Oye! It’s Friday. Very unfortunate!
Finally, Sabbir Khan, the first-time director disappoints. There were lots of hopes from the newbie but unfortunately, he fails to deliver what was expected. He had a wonderful star cast, a producer who was ready to spend infinite amount and most importantly, a Hollywood backdrop. Also, the action scenes were badly executed. For instance, the scene where Akki meets with an accident was so badly treated. Sabbir misses the bus-better luck next time!
Some of the best scenes of the movie:
1. The first scene
2. The scene inside the church
3. Viraj meeting with an accident
4. Viraj’s operation and the intermission point (funny!)
5. Viraj hearing the mantra (hilarious!)
6. The underwater sequence
On the whole, Kambakkht Ishq is a big letdown. The film has only some few individualistic scenes which really entertain but overall, the film falls flat! Go for it if you are an Akshay Kumar/Kareena-fan. It would be interesting to see the fate of the film at the Box-Office!
My rating-** out of 5!
The review first appeared on MouthShut.com: http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Kambakkht_Ishq-170589-1.html
Fenil’s Bollywood Talk # 55
Posted on: July 2, 2009
NEW YORK SHINES AND HOW!!
The weekend gone by was quite delightful! Who knew Friday’s release New York would do such a fantabulous job at the BO? I was of the opinion that the film may not take a huge opening considering the theme of the film and that it would attract people only from the 2nd day onwards. But the film managed to embark on a 65%+ opening on Friday which is a great feat! What made my smile wide was the almost 100% occupancy throughout the country on Sunday! In fact, I went for an early morning show of New York on Sunday in a multiplex and its tickets were sold out by Saturday afternoon! Where do you get to see anything like this nowadays?!
New York is a feather in the caps of all its lead actors, its director (Kabir Khan) and most importantly, for its producers, Yash Raj Films (YRF)! The production house was criticized and made fun of after it delivered string of flops like Laaga Chunari Mein Daag, Aaja Nachle, Tashan, Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic etc. But the success of SRK-starrer Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and now New York has restored back its prestige.
However, it is important that the Chopras now doesnt let this respect slip off like before. They’ll have to be more careful in choosing the scripts. Also, they should promote their films aggressively which they often don’t do. And because of this, many of their films had failed (Classic example is Roadside Romeo). However, they did well publicize New York, chiefly because they started the promotion just 21 days before the film’s release. And one can see the result of their aggressive promotion. Maybe they can learn a lot from this.
With two back to back hits, it’s time to see whether they’ll manage to make a Hattrick! Their next film, Dil Bole Hadippa, has Shahid Kapoor and Rani Mukherjee and the latter will be seen in Sardar look for almost half of the film! The promo of the film has aroused extreme reactions-some were immensely impressed while the rest found it pathetic! If you haven’t seen it yet, do watch it here and let me know your views on it!
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KAMBAKKHT ISHQ KA KYA HOGA?
One of the biggest and most anticipated films of 2009, Kambakkht Ishq (KI) is all set to hit the screens tomorrow. Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and directed by first-timer Sabbir Khan, it stars Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor, Amrita Arora, Aftab Shivdasani, Boman Irani and Kirron Kher. Hollywood actors Sylvester Stallone, Denise Richards and Brandon Routh have done a special appearance in the film. The film had aroused tremendous curiosity due to its cast and the presence of Hollywood stars. Everyone is expecting it took a thunderous opening. However, there’s a possibility it may not happen since hardly any show of KI are fully sold out yet. Even the numerous paid previews that are going to happen tonight have not got the expected response. Mostly these paid previews are around 50-60% full while very few of them are house full. Compare this to the frenzy created during Ghajini’s release. The tickets of paid previews and first day were sold out within 5-6 hours of the commencement of advance booking. Something similar was expected for KI too.
What’s more, Bombay Times published an article on the front page on Tuesday that the response to the KI’s advance booking has been phenomenal and that there were serpentine queues at theatres! Another lie published was a trade analyst was angry because he couldn’t get tickets for KI-all the shows of the weekend at PVR-Juhu, Mumbai were sold out! I just checked the online booking of PVR-Juhu 20 minutes back and tickets of all shows of KI are available!
It’s sad that a reputed newspaper and producer are coming with such lies to fool the public. But they forgot that there are people like me who can’t be so easily fooled!
This post first appeared on MouthShut.com: http://www.mouthshut.com/diary/dbbbnrtun/Fenils-Bollywood-Talk55
TIMES NEWS NETWORK (BOMBAY TIMES; June 30, 2009)
Ordinarily, the advance booking for Sajid Nadiadwala’s Kambakkht Ishq would have opened today. But the filmmaker, who believes that an outand-out entertainer made with conviction will always generate euphoria amongst viewers, had the booking office windows thrown open on Sunday itself. The result? Serpentine queues at multiplexes. It was as if the film by Eros International had taken Bollywood back to the 70s and 80s, when fanatical film buffs would excitedly crowd around the ticket window waiting for the counter to open.
A trade analyst called up Nadiadwala within an hour on Sunday of the booking opening, to complain that he couldn’t get tickets… all shows for the entire weekend were sold out at the PVR cinema, Juhu. “That,” chuckled a delighted Nadiadwala whose brand of cinema has mastered the art of catering to popular palates, “was expected.” Perhaps it was, because the hype surrounding this film since the day it was launched has been unprecedented in Bollywood.
Consider what audiences have to look forward to: Akshay Kumar and Kareena Kapoor on screen, both sizzling hot entertainers, and this time kissing as well; Akshay’s stunts and Kareena’s oomph; the God-like presence and action of Hollywood legend Sylvester Stallone; the roles of Brandon ‘Superman’ Routh and former Bond girl Denise Richards (whom also Akshay gets to kiss, lucky man!), the chartbusting music…
Added to this hype was the sixweek long wait caused by the producers versus multiplexes strike. And you have audiences thirsting for a real entertainer after this drought-like situation. Nadiadwala, whose earlier releases include hits like Jeet, Judwaa, Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega, Mujhse Shaadi Karogi and Heyy Babyy, has always gone beyond past achievements. “The audience expects this. After all, they too are growing with time and technology. I feel only if we respect our audience’s expectations to be entertained convincingly, can we connect with them completely in the cinema halls.”
And so, Kambakkht Ishq opens on 2,030 screens worldwide this Friday, July 3. That is almost 20 per cent more than the screens that played Ghajini. Trade pundits calculate that even at an average of Rs 5 lakh per cinema collections, the film has the potential to gross more than Rs 100 crores worldwide in its very first week. That’s a kambakkht hit!
All eyes on ‘Kambakkht Ishq’
Posted on: June 23, 2009
By Taran Adarsh, June 23, 2009 – 08:47 IST
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| K A M B A K K H T I S H Q |
“I never thought KAMBAKKHT ISHQ would turn out to be a massive film. Of course, with Akshay and Kareena in the cast, it was meant to be a big-budget film, but the film grew in size and stature the moment we finished scripting and began casting,” KAMBAKKHT ISHQ producer Sajid Nadiadwala admits.
There’s no denying that everyone’s keenly watching KAMBAKKHT ISHQ for various reasons. One of the prime reasons being, the film is expected to bail out the industry from its current crisis-ridden situation. The expectations, hence, are humungous.
KAMBAKKHT ISHQ is helmed by first-time director Sabbir Khan, who has been an apprentice to Mahesh Bhatt and also David Dhawan [during the making of MUJHSE SHAADI KAROGI]. Incidentally, Sajid’s last three films have been helmed by debutantes — JAAN-E-MANN [Shirish Kunder], HEYY BABYY [Sajid Khan] and now, KAMBAKKHT ISHQ. “They [newcomers] add so much freshness to a film. They come up with innovative ideas and their approach to work is unadulterated,” Sajid explains.
KAMBAKKHT ISHQ stars three Hollywood celebrities — Sylvester Stallone, Brandon Routh and Denise Richards. “Actually, their names cropped up while scripting the movie. Little did we realise then that they would eventually star in the film,” the prolific producer admits. Was it tough getting them on board? “A lot of pre-production work and detailing went into it. It took us several months of planning to get them on board,” he states.
While KAMBAKKHT ISHQ is slated for release next week, Sajid is getting ready to launch three more projects, with Sajid Khan [HOUSEFULL], Siddharth Anand [Ranbir-Priyanka starrer isn’t titled yet] and Imtiaz Ali
Bollywood Hungama.com
By Joginder Tuteja, June 15, 2009 – 10:20 IST
EXPECTATIONS
Akshay Kumar. Kareena Kapoor. Sylvester Stallone. Anu Malik. Sajid Nadiadwala. Bollywood meets Hollywood. And we are talking about expectations here? It’s as simple as that – Kambakkht Ishq is the biggest ever film to be released so far in 2009 and no wonder expectations are sky high. With such huge names involved, multi crore budgets, promos doing an instant trick and the full-on unabashed commercial masala appeal that this film directed by debutant Sabbir Khan carries, Kambakkht Ishq has a lot riding on it.
| BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COM |
MUSIC
As is the case with majority of Akshay Kumar movies, Kambakkht Ishq too has a special song by a guest composer and this is evidenced in the form of ‘Om Mangalam‘ which is composed and performed by RDB with the ‘shlok’ portion being created by Anu Malik himself. A number which is already en route to be a chartbuster in less than a week of promotion, ‘Om Mangalam‘ is a title song in itself as it has words Kambakkht Ishq being repeated throughout it’s four and a half minutes duration.
Never before has a chant being presented in such an innovative avtar but RDB make it possible with ‘Om Mangalam‘ which is the next anthem song in the offering, courtesy it’s catchy rhythm, fast paced Western arrangements, good vocals and above all, excellent picturisation and choreography. Coming again in a ‘reprised version’, ‘Om Mangalam‘ continues to make an impression due to its foot-tapping appeal. Expect this version to be hot favourite with DJs in days to come!
From this point on it is Anu Malik and lyricist Anvita Dutt Guptan all the way. Neeraj Shridhar, who has been the voice of Akshay Kumar for many a chartbusters, modulates his vocals for ‘Lakh Lakh‘. A ‘Khud Ko Kya Samajhti Hai’ [Khiladi] situation revisited with Akshay Kumar being the common factor, this time on it is the ‘bhangra’ flavour that finds it’s way into the narrative. Coming soon after ‘Om Mangalam‘, this number is not really the best follow up number that one would have expected in Kambakkht IshqHowever, yet again, picturisation should do the trick and perhaps make ‘Lakh Lakh‘ (that also appears in a remix version) a visually appealing number since the film has been shot on a lavish scale.
However, there is immediate redemption in the form of ‘Bebo‘ (yes, that’s actually the title of the song). The number has a vintage Anu Malik feel to it, what with Alisha Chinai joining the fun. It is exciting to see Anu and Alisha coming together for ‘Bebo‘ which promises a seductive-n-naughty outing. What also makes ‘Bebo‘ special is the fact that from arrangements to the song styling to Alisha’s voice to an overall attitude, it brings back the memories of many a musical chartbusters that Anu Malik had delivered in the 90s. This one is bound to make a mark even visually and should become popular amongst the lounge crowds. Also, as an alternative, there is a ‘club mix’ version that should make for a good hearing during a round of drinks!
The moment name K.K. comes on the credits, more often than not one can be sure that there would be a good song in the offering. This time around, it’s the turn of (bona fide) title song ‘Kambakkht Ishq‘ to make its presence felt in the album. K.K. sings the track in high spirits while reminding of R.D. Burman who used to enjoy such outings. Sunidhi Chauhan joins K.K. for this extremely catchy number which may not be high on lyrical quotient but has in it to enable a young-n-energetic fun-filled outing. A party number, ‘Kambakkht Ishq‘ is later heard in a much mandated ‘remix version’.
Much needed ‘thehrav’ comes in the form of ‘Kyun‘ which again has vintage Anu Malik written all over it. A mushy romantic number that could well have been a Javed Akhtar written number, ‘Kyun‘ sees Anu Malik getting inspired by R.D. Burman (as evidenced in arrangements that remind of the 70s). Meanwhile Shaan and Shreya Ghoshal take it upon themselves to ensure that together, they come up with yet another duet that deserves to stand out amidst all the fun, ‘masti’ and ‘hungama’ that has been an integral part of the album so far. Shreya Ghoshal is later heard in a solo version of the same song while making sure that audiences get a lot more beyond the surface in case of Kambakkht Ishq.
Aaum and Sulaiman Merchant are the guest composers for the English track ‘Welcome To Hollywood‘ which could well be the theme track of Kambakkht Ishq considering the fact that the film has been shot in a major way in Hollywood. Karsh Kale and Anushka Manchanda come together for this ‘full-on-attitude’ track which makes an impact in spite of singers not really going ballistics behind the mike. Written by director Sabbir Khan himself, this is one theme track which deserves to be placed at multiple junctures in the film’s narrative.
OVERALL
Kambakkht Ishq delivers what it promised at the very onset. A ‘masala’ outing was very much in the offering and that is ensured by means of ‘Om Mangalam‘ and title song ‘Kambakkht Ishq‘. Meanwhile, there is also some nice little surprise in place in the form of ‘Kyun‘ and ‘Bebo‘ that make the album a satisfying affair.
OUR PICK(S)
Om Mangalam, Bebo, Kyun
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The battle of the plexes is over, the battle of the sexes has begun with the Akshay and Kareena film ready for release
MARK MANUEL Times News Network (BOMBAY TIMES; June 8, 2009)
Sajid is ecstatic, naturally; he has worked hard on this film, packed it with all the masala that Indian audiences are starved for, and the producer is convinced that he has a hit on his hands. The entertainment business could not have got off to a more rocking start after the dry spell caused by the multiplexes strike. Akshay and Kareena, who happily cancelled other engagements on Friday to celebrate the film’s imminent launch with Sajid, director Sabbir Khan and music director Anu Malik, had their cake and ate it too.
Said Akshay, with a big smile, “This is truly my first international film. I’ve done stunts with Superman, got an award from Rambo, and romanced our very own Supergirl! Finally, you have a big family entertainer coming to a multiplex near you.” Sharing his excitement, Kareena added, “This is a film that’s very special to me, it’s a full-on family entertainer… there’s every genre of entertainment, from romance, comedy and action to emotion, glamour and Hollywood.”
It is true, for Sajid has taken Bollywood for the first time into the Kodak Theatre, Universal Studios and Water World of Hollywood with Kambakkt Ishq. “The Hollywood backdrop is required in the script and not just thrown in,” said Sajid who’s got Hollywood biggies like Sylvester Stallone, Denise Richards and Brandon Routh to act in his film. “I couldn’t pull off Arnold Schwarzenegger,” he regretted. “I met him, but he holds a public post now and can’t act.”
No matter, even without the Terminator star, Sajid’s film is packed with heart-stopping action sequences created by top Hollywood stunt director Spiro Razatos. It’s been shot on locations used for films like Fast and The Furious. And, in one stunt, Akshay uses the same superbike that Tom Cruise rode in Mission Impossible. Fasten your seat belts, July 3 is close. “It doesn’t get bigger and better than this,” promised Kareena. While Akshay added, tongue firmly in cheek, “The battle of the plexes has ended… the battle of the sexes has just begun!”
Also releasing on:
JULY 10-SANKAT CITY; MORNING WALK; DEKH BHAI DEKH
JULY 17-KISSAN; BAHCELOR PARTY
NOTE:
SANKAT CITY INITALLY SCHEDULED TO RELEASE ON JUNE 26 BUT NOW RELEASING ON JULY 10
AGYAAT INITALLY TO RELEASE ON JULY 24 BUT NOW IT WILL HIT THE SCREENS ON AUGUST 7
KAMINEY RELEASING ON AUGUST 14
Fenil and Bollywood 