Haider (2014)

My rating:- 8 on 10

=>What's Good:-

1. Brilliant Cinematography

2. Brilliant performances by all the star cast

3. Special credits to Irfan Khan, Tabu, Shahid Kapoor and Kay Kay

4. Songs went well with the situations...special credit to Bismil song.

5. The movie has its on charm taking you into a different world

6. The dark Kashmir of 90's

=>What's Bad:-

1.Very few scenes where your mind may be diverted or you may feel bored....but can be ignored easily as hardly one or two scenes for couple of minutes each.

=>Final Words:- "A very well directed movie with brilliant performances by all the star cast.....its a different genre movie,not for the masses....if any one is looking for a masala or typical Bollywood movie its no fun for them to watch.....as this one is slow which builds on the go and has its own charm and class".

Fmovies: The movie Haider, as most of you would be aware of is an adaptation of Shakespeaes' Hamlet. It does help if you have read the original work ,but believe me there is nothing in the movie which you cannot understand if you have not read it.In fact if you have not read it till now,its better because the story would be anew to you.

Set in Kashmir it takes the essence of problems faced in Kashmir valley due to insurgency and counterinsurgency measures though it doesn't focus on the problem alone. In a broad sense this movie is about search of a father by a son and subsequent events which leads him nearer towards revenge.

First of all the movie is not everybody's cup of tea. You've to be very patient throughout to get the real pleasure out of it. The film is slow paced so as to draw you into it, just like an old wine. And, like an old wine you are supposed to sip it and not drink it in a hurry.

The ensemble actor list is itself worth mentioning from Shahid ,Shradhha,Kulbhushan Kharbanda to the talented KK Menon,Tabu and of course the ever reliable Irfan Khan. Their performance is indeed flawless in the movie.The relationships are well portrayed ,the agony and trauma well expressed and the hate ,betrayal ,action scenes well-choreographed and scripted(especially the action sequence in the last scene). The only fault I could find in the acting department is that because of the presence of so many good actors (though the movie has good runtime still) much is left to be desired especially from Irrfan Khan whose performance is too succinct for an actor of his caliber.

As said earlier, the movie is slow paced but the script doesn't fail the plot often. There is hardly anytime where you find yourself napping in the movie. Songs are good especially Arjit Singhs voice again creates magic with 'khul kabhi'.Cinematography, background score(which sometimes sound like Bourne trilogy) are also good. Accent training for the actors could have been better as anyone who has visited Kashmir for even a short duration would find only the two Salmaans accent to be genuine. But then it is a minor fault in a movie a cut above rest.

If you are patient and could immerse yourself in the plot ,then the movie holds a lot of promise for you. But wont recommend to those who could not find tickets for another movie or those who want to have party time without application of brain.It is certainly not the best work you will ever see, but certainly a cut above rest, deserving a watch.

Macbeth, Othello, and now Hamlet. Vishal Bharadwaj does it once again, by re-imagining Shakespeare in a very gritty Indian milieu. This time it is the Kashmir of 1995 in throes of militancy.

The instruments Vishal Bharadwaj used for Maqbool and Omkara, are far sharper this time around. The songs are very rustic, and completely of the type to be found in street plays (not even a symbolic nod to Bollywood or a titillation to the audiences with a Bidi). The sense of suspense even sharper (even with a story with a basis as well known as Hamlet). The characters continue to be just as eccentric as in Omkara. And death once again continues to be not an infrequent visitor just like with Omkara. Yet the context is more sombre. And the whole scenario of militancy IMO dealt with quite responsibly with (what I would imagine to be) a good sense of reality.

Not everything is wonderful. On the acting front, Tabu is impressive but understated. Shahid Kapur does well by his standards, but every so often I used to wonder how much better Pankaj Kapur would've done in some of the scenes. Shraddha Kapoor manages the role of pretty innocence well enough, but will probably cringe when she watches her own histrionics. Kay Kay Menon, and Irfan Khan of course are a pleasure to watch, but this is not their best film. While the songs aim to dramatise, I found them underwhelming and unnecessarily melodramatic in this context, Also the film is just a tad too long and could've been shortened by 15-20 minutes.

Be prepared to see a Kashmir which does not look the swiss alps but still deserves to be considered amongst the most beautiful places on earth. This kashmir is a little raw. And forms the milieu for two concurrent threads, one the intra family drama which is the very essence of Hamlet, and the general environment of militancy and counter insurgency. Moreover the plot moves at a fairly measured pace and manages to retain the interest and fascination. It might surprise you (after my earlier paragraph), but these are the reasons why I would classify the movie to be a must watch.

Yeah, go watch this, this is not to be missed, any complaints you might've notwithstanding.

Haider fmovies. Haider is the latest offering from the renowned Indian filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj. Co-written by Basharat Peer and Bhardwaj himself, Haider is the third and final chapter in Bhardwaj's Shakespeare trilogy. Having already made successful adaptations of Macbeth (Maqbool, 2003) and Othello (Omkara, 2006), Bhardwaj was left with the choice of adapting either King Lear or Hamlet to complete his trilogy. He opted for the latter because of the presence of a strong sexual undercurrent in the source material—a motif that harks back to the first two films of the trilogy. The uncanny choice of Kashmir of the 1990s—a treacherous avenue of unparalleled beauty and unfathomable danger where people just disappear, never to return again—as the movie's backdrop proves to be a stroke of pure genius as it helps Bhardwaj in orchestrating an enchanting mise-en-scène that elevates an otherwise sprawling orgy of histrionics to the realms of realism.

By the mid-1990s, Kashmir had taken the form of a like a spewing volcano, a ticking time bomb ready to go kablooey at any given moment. The terrorist insurgency in the Kashmir valley had started to pose a serious threat to India's sovereignty and the army had to be given a carte blanche so as to guard the country against any possible threat from both within and as well as outside the country. The people of Kashmir started seeing the growing military activity in the region as a violation of their basic rights. The separatist leaders saw this as a golden opportunity to galvanize the masses against the state and started adding fuel to fire as the valley got encompassed in a miasma of mistrust. Although, the situation has improved significantly over the last decade, a lot of work still needs to be done before the conflict can be fully resolved. Bhardwaj's film also leaves a strong message not only for people of Kashmir but for all humanity that nothing can be gained through revenge and in the absence of trust.

Adapting a work of Shakespeare is no kid's play. Even the most experienced campaigners can falter if their ambition gets the better of them. The key to adapting any major work of literature is to be wary of one's limitations. Haider is far from being called a perfect adaptation of Hamlet. But, Bhardwaj, to his credit, gets the job done. There are moments of sheer brilliance but there is also a lot of drivel which could have easily been chopped off. Haider has all the makings of an epic but it faces some serious pacing issues towards the second half. Also, the narrative appears to be sketchy at some places. But, that's the price that one must be willing to pay for one's ambition.

One of the main themes of Hamlet is chaos. This chaos is most evident in the play's central character who, in many ways, is a personification of confusion and duality. His highly complex, fascinating albeit bizarre nature makes him a singular character in all literature, endowed with contradictory traits that fade the lines that separate virtue and vice, heroism and villainy, and sanity and madness. In Haider, Vishal Bharadwaj and Shahid Kapoor try their best to grapple with the endless contradictions that define Hamlet's multidimensional character. Oedipus complex is another major theme that runs through Hamlet. The term Oedipus complex denotes the subconscious emotions and ideas that focus upon a child's desire to have sexual relations with the parent of the opposite sex. In Haider the syndrome is both latent and nuanced in comparison to the play.

Shahid kapoor has hit the bull's eye this time with haider. The ease with which he unveils the character of Hamlet on screen needs an OUT- standing ovation. He has exploited all his talent in the movie and has left no stone unturned. The other eye catching character is the protagonist's mother and I guess no one could have dine it better than Tabu. She has been a brilliant actress and again proves her mettle here. Kay Kay menon and Irrfan Khan are as always superb. Shraddha kapoor is sweet but does not have much to do. Overall, to go or not to go is not a question at all. It's a must watch and undoubtedly the best movie of year 2014 till now.

Less cinematic & more theatrical!

This movie seriously has too much! And too much of everything..

The psychic-eccentric character of Haider in so many ways resembles Prithvi Bana (Gulaal) and has deeper connotation to the character's get-up & dialogs, some which can stay with us for long and make us get deeper into it every time we check it again!

The '3 old men firing snipers' is the best western scene I've seen in Indian Cinema. Sergio Leone feel!

The 'Bismil' sequence: Wow! What an achievement in theatrics in cinema! The best theatrical sequence since 'Jaane bhi do Yaaro' I would say! Much more than a song; it is a sequence that gets things out of control and sets the pace of the movie in the second half...

'Aao Na Grave-digging' sequence is yet another beauty & I spurted out laughing crazily for some minutes! 'O Brother! Where Art Thou' feel!

'Haider Stand-up Performance' is bloody good & gets metamorphic!

Emotional turmoil handled in a spectacular way. The confrontation that the characters 'Haider', 'Arshia' & 'Ghazala' face is shown in an epic wayÂ… The confrontation ignited by the dominant society for so-called larger good (hahaÂ…)

And what if this confrontation is prevalent everywhere in the society around you and there's a very thin line between being a 'friend of the society' or an 'enemy of the society'? Things get out of proportion and messy and sad and brutal and bloodyÂ…

A brutal take on the Kashmir dilemma. I haven't experienced it in a better way...

Super metaphorical mimicry on 'AFSPA' & 'Chutspa'

Music that would just perfectly blend & leave deep impression!

Power-packed performances make this movie an epitome of talent showcaseÂ… I guess we get such output when the director doesn't compromise at all and expects nothing less than perfection in each aspect, in each senseÂ… And he eats, sleeps, drinks, thinks, trips just this movie for a very long time in lifeÂ… But however he does it, VB delivers something par excellenceÂ… Has to be a super ambitious work!

Mile stones in Hindi Cinema: 1. Gulaal & Haider 2. Maqbool 3. Gangs of Wasseypur and so on and so forth

Right at the top for now! Wow!