‘Talaash’ was a much awaited film considering the names associated with its making... Aamir Khan, Farhan Akhtar and Zoya Akhtar. All these people are known to give a lot of time and emphasis on stories and scripts and not to compromise on creativity. The films they have made in the last 10 odd years have had logical, credible and ‘off the beaten path’ narratives, crisp dialogues, good production values and intelligent marketing strategies. Their films have had many experiments which succeeded simply because they offered something never before seen in Indian cinema e.g. Taare Zameen Par, 3 Idiots, Rang De Basanti, Rock On, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, etc.
One is therefore disappointed to see the movie like ‘Talaash’ coming out of the Khan and Akhtar stables. A weak storyline is the biggest drawback of the movie. It seems the story writer developed a massive and irreversible writer's block half way through and someone else 'finished' the story. Pun intended! An unconvincing story works if the movie is either entertaining or gripping. Unfortunately, Talaash is neither. The film heightens expectations in the first 125 minutes and then allows them to nosedive in the last 14 minutes or so. What appears to be an extremely promising suspense thriller suddenly takes a sharp turn for the worse and becomes an ordinary, oft-repeated and hackneyed plot based on the supernatural!
The subject of the supernatural has recently made a strong comeback in Bollywood and the Bhatt camp has made quite a few films on it. The lead actors in such movies are secondary as the story and effects are prominent. I am not suggesting that no one else should venture into this genre of films, but one usually associates Aamir Khan and Farhan Akhtar with movies based on sensible, original and logical stories. And that's the biggest reason of the surprise, followed by the extreme disappointment! Except a strong and credible story, 'Talaash' has everything else...good performances by lead actors, superb cinematography, haunting music, good production values and above all, intelligent marketing strategies! The pre-release hype and marketing ensured that the film is a commercial success. Of late, most of the top grossing films have been utter trash, confirming that these days its easier to make a commercially successful film than a good quality and entertaining one!
Die-hard Aamir Khan fans are most likely to overlook a ‘very minor’ glitch like a poor and unconvincing story. They are just happy to see him on screen once in a year or two, and in a role and avatar much different from his last one. Ditto for Kareena fans.
And I agree with the ‘UA’ censor certificate given to the film... It is definitely UA - 'Unlike Aamir'!
One is therefore disappointed to see the movie like ‘Talaash’ coming out of the Khan and Akhtar stables. A weak storyline is the biggest drawback of the movie. It seems the story writer developed a massive and irreversible writer's block half way through and someone else 'finished' the story. Pun intended! An unconvincing story works if the movie is either entertaining or gripping. Unfortunately, Talaash is neither. The film heightens expectations in the first 125 minutes and then allows them to nosedive in the last 14 minutes or so. What appears to be an extremely promising suspense thriller suddenly takes a sharp turn for the worse and becomes an ordinary, oft-repeated and hackneyed plot based on the supernatural!
The subject of the supernatural has recently made a strong comeback in Bollywood and the Bhatt camp has made quite a few films on it. The lead actors in such movies are secondary as the story and effects are prominent. I am not suggesting that no one else should venture into this genre of films, but one usually associates Aamir Khan and Farhan Akhtar with movies based on sensible, original and logical stories. And that's the biggest reason of the surprise, followed by the extreme disappointment! Except a strong and credible story, 'Talaash' has everything else...good performances by lead actors, superb cinematography, haunting music, good production values and above all, intelligent marketing strategies! The pre-release hype and marketing ensured that the film is a commercial success. Of late, most of the top grossing films have been utter trash, confirming that these days its easier to make a commercially successful film than a good quality and entertaining one!
Die-hard Aamir Khan fans are most likely to overlook a ‘very minor’ glitch like a poor and unconvincing story. They are just happy to see him on screen once in a year or two, and in a role and avatar much different from his last one. Ditto for Kareena fans.
And I agree with the ‘UA’ censor certificate given to the film... It is definitely UA - 'Unlike Aamir'!
Talaash - A Film in search for Kahaani ya Laash
ReplyDeleteGood one Charu!
DeleteHi Sanjay, completely agree with your analysis. Could have been a great movie but felt cheated at the end. It did appear as if the story teller lost interest and just wanted to wind up.
ReplyDeleteFully agreed! Thanks for your comment...
DeleteHi All,I agree with all of you.The very fact is that with names like Aamir Khan, Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap & Rani Mukherji are associated with a movie , I believe the audience expects much more in those 120 minutes or more.
ReplyDeleteThis movie fell far below expectations because of a weak script.Alok I would further like to add that all these people stated above must be having 2 ways each to end the movie , which must have got the story writer confused further...
Ram: Aamir Khan said in a press conference that "Talaash is not a universal film. There is a supernatural element in this film and it was a risky film to make. Around 80 to 90 per cent of the audience liked the film." Now I would say that's a confession that the movie perhaps did not turn out the way he had expected...
DeleteHad viewed 'Talash' in 2nd week of Dec 2012, however reacting now..
ReplyDeleteIt seems to be an extension of TV serials Sony TV's C.I.D. with similar hamming seen therein.
Also one remembers the investigation approaches were missing as usual done by Police's crime investigation team. Off course this understanding is based on 'Crime Petrol' serial from Sony TV.
Overall the movie is not great, disappoints, on anticipating that Aamir involves in creating Classic movies.
Thanks Prasanna! The movie is definitely not up to the mark. The fact that Aamir decided to promote the film through the TV serial CID and also played a role in the promo episode amply indicated his pre-release apprehension about the film's prospects. If the film was good, we would never have seen Aamir in Sony TV's CID.
ReplyDelete