Ludo Review: An interesting Game which should've gone on longer!

 2 years after the debacle of 'Jagga Jasoos', director Anurag Kashyap is back with his multi starer movie, 'Ludo'. The movie stars Rajkummar Rao, Abhishek Bachchan, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Roy Kapoor, Sanya Malhotra, Asha Negi, Pearl Maane, Fatima Sana Sheikh, Shalini Vatsa. It is scripted, directed, and photographed by Basu himself who collabs with his companion, Pritam for music!

                                                 

What's Good: Acting: This time RR walks away with the cake from Tripathiji's hand. He is terrific. Abhishek, Tripathiji, Aditya, Rohit, Pearl, Lata, and everyone else is absolutely PHENOMENAL. Fatima might be a hindrance however can be overlooked! Story: Basuji's writing is absolutely phenomenal. No one could have made an anthology so nicely and connected the dots so beautifully. Music: 'Hardum Humdum', 'Abaad Barbaad', 'Dil Julaha' are absolute gems and Pritam gives us one of the few albums worth remembering after Malang and Love Aaj Kal 2 this year! Technically:  The movie is pitch-perfect technically! Absolutely nails each and every aspect.

                                                  

                                   

What's Bad: Screenplay: Like most of the movies, the back and forth narrative does not work for me personally!         

                                     

Final Word: Ludo is a beautiful, colorful, funny Chaotic Mess and should not be missed by anybody! Bachchan shows us his capability as a fine actor and the fact that he deserves a great director who can justify his talent! The movies absolutely stunning and interesting like the game in real life! 4 stars! One cannot just miss it!

                               

Laxmii Review: The Bomb explodes with a crackling sound!

Even in lockdown, Akshay Kumar treats us to his horror-comedy flick 'Laxmii' directed by Raghav Lawrence. The movie is based on the Tamil flick 'Kanchana' which was also helmed by Lawrence. The movie also stars Ayesha Raza, Ashwini Kaleskar, Sharad Kelkar, Rajesh Sharma as the able supporting cast! The movie is an OTT release available on Disney+Hotstar.

                                                           

What's Good: Performances: Akshay Kumar gives the performance of his career. He portrays Laxmii with exemplary conviction and words fall short to praise this man. Sharad Kelkar, Ayesha Raza, Ashwini Kaleskar provide extreme support to Akshay's performance. Message: The message finds relevance in today's world and is necessary. Comic Relief: Ayesha Raza and Ashwini provide some much needed comic relief in this movie.

                            

                                                    

What's Bad: Screenplay: The screenplay of the movie in both 1st and 2nd half falters. The 'Ayushmann Khurana Genre' Trap: The movie falls into the Ayushmann Khurana Genre Trap pretty quickly as it enters its 2nd half. Editing: The movie could have been easily 15-20 minutes short had only if the editing would've been crispier. Message Route: While the movie stays true to its messaging, the path it undertakes is messy and confuses. 

                                                   

Final Words: 'Laxmii' by no means is a perfect movie. The movie has its share of flaws but the towering performance by Khiladi alone makes the movie an absolute 'One Time Watch'. I am going for 2.5 stars for the movie and an extra half for Khiladi and Kelkar making it 3 stars for the movie. Watch it for a towering performance by Akshay and whilst saying this 'It Is Absolutely Impossible to Imagine any other A-lister doing this role!' 

                                                    

STREAMING ON: DISNEY+HOTSTAR!