Race (2008)

Race was a mixed bag of surprises. Primararily I went to watch the movie because I really liked their promos. Race Saanson ki (the title track) also happened to be my current favorite. What is best about this movie is that the director ensures that you are glued to your seat from start to finish. There are enough twists and turns to keep you guessing for more. Of course the credit for keeping the audience engaged also goes to Saif who is fantastic as the ambitious go getter brother. Akshaye Khanna also deserves a special mention for being on par with Saif in the acting department! His comic timing is really good. The ladies Katrina and Bipasha have been given a beautiful wardrobe and carry it off extremely well. They do add value to the star cast. The only dampener that I felt was the comedy department could have been better.The dialogues between Anil Kapoor and Sameera were way too silly! Like trying really hard to make you laugh but absolutely run of the mill jokes..Sameera was looking silly trying to act like a dumb blonde..! The ACTION sequences deserve a special mention (clap clap)..as they are very stylized. The director seems to have really invested some time and money in this department. All in all a movie worth a watch as it is especially heart warming to see old time directors like Abbas Mustan try to keep up with the current times when it comes to packaging a movie in a stylized way.

Fmovies: Whether you are into thriller, action or comedy, Race has a good blend of all three genre. It started off like a bomb and then tells its story and is very entertaining from beginning to end also it had a great setting in Dubai & South Africa. The best thing about the movie is that has a very interesting beginning & ending and they are are the most important scenes because of the the first & and last impression.

The comedy is humorous with excellent dialogues and Johnny Lever's special appearance was so funny that I had a sore stomach and tearful eyes. The thriller had plenty of suspense and you just don't know who is bad, who is good? and who is framing who?. The twists & turns were unpredictable and turned out to be very different from what I was expecting.

Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Bipasha Basu & Anil Kapoor were the best and the all acted really well. Music is rocking and the best songs are Race Saanson Ki (which stands out with its memorable electric guitar intro), Zara Zara and Pehli Nazar Mein. The songs gets better the more times you listen to them and when they are viewed on the big screen.

Abbas-Mustan are known for creating good music in all of their films. They are one of my favourite directors; I loved their films ever since I seen Baazigar because no other director in Bollywood makes thrillers like them. Although they are inspired from Hollywood movies but their films are better than the original which are:

Race- Goodbye Lover (1998)

Naqaab- Dot the I (2003)

36 China Town- Chinatown (1974)

Aitraaz- Disclosure (1994)

Humraaz- A Perfect Murder (1998)

Ajnabee- Consenting Adults (1992)

Daraar- Sleeping with the Enemy(1991)

Baazigar- A Kiss Before Dying (1991)

Overall I really liked the film. It was stylish with a great atmosphere, & background score and keeps you entertained in every possible way. Race stands for (Riveting, Awesome, Cool, Excellent).

The latest thriller made by Bollywood thriller masters Abbas-Mustan's is an A-class entertainer and a must watch movie. Sexy women in short clothes, handsome hunks, beautiful locations, good stunts, lots of songs with catchy rhythm and loud music is a good definition of a masala flick.

Excellent movie with so much twists. It will keep u guessing and u will be shocked to see how many twist in a movie. It will keep u on edge till the end. I recommend this movie for thrill lovers. I personally enjoyed this movie. Great acting by all, i personally liked Akshay Khanna's acting and style of Saif and Comedy of Johnny Lever who was a Special Appearance in a movie. It has comedy,fun,thrill,action. This movie has good songs as well and one of Atif Aslam.

Race fmovies. When you’re talking of an Abbas-Mastan movie, you know what to expect. Big money, big game, plots, deceits, back-stabs twists and turns. It’s just that, this time, it gets so much more complicated and twisty that the duo’s previous hits like Baazigar, Khiladi will seem like a kid game. The saving grace however is Saif who has lately come of age after delivering great performances in Parineeta, Omkara, Hum Tum, etc.

Ranvir (Saif Ali Khan) and Rajiv Singh (Akshaye Khanna) are step brothers owning a lavish stud farm ‘Stallions’ local biggies at the turf club in Durban. The older Ranvir loves horses more than anything else while younger Rajiv is a drunk who is least bothered about the family business which is now totally under mortgage. Racing, money, fending off enemies and partying are a way of life for both, till an accident triggers change.

The older brother sacrifices his love (Bipasha) when the Rajiv one promises that he would give up drinking addiction if he married Sonia. But, Rajiv doesn’t change after marriage and things end up getting steamy between Sonia and Ranvir. While things look nice between brothers, one of them is busy plotting for the other’s death to pack off 100 million bucks from his insurance. Then, there is a murder and things get murky.

The rest of the movie merely survives on the director duo’s ability to set up things in one direction, then, twist it at the very next moment. Till the last few minutes, one is not too sure as to who the conspirator was and which actress is whose love interest. Adding to the mêlée is a fruit munching cop RD (Anil Kapoor) and his inept assistant (Sameera Reddy), both competing with each other in being as silly as things ever can be.

Of the performances, Saif is awesome and Akshay Khanna has done a neat job too. All three glamor dolls had no more to do in the movie except to look good. Another funny thing was that every other character there was mostly an Indian, the doctor, the registrar, the cops, their assistants, Saif’s competitor, whew; I never knew Indians were so omnipresent! The music is decent and Atif Aslam’s song is already a hit.

Race has many points when twists get too much, and you would it end soon and when things start seeming comical. But, nevertheless to their credit, the directors have delivered a stylish flick set in South Africa and Dubai with some good stunts. Alas, they don’t do much to save the movie. Still, if you are one of those who like movies sans logic and merely sit through and pass time, Race is not a bad idea if you get tickets cheap.

My rating 8 out of 10...

Right from the start, this movie will hold you down. Frankly speaking, this movie's story is not that great, and you might have seen it earlier, with two brother fighting over money. But what is different is the way and manner of presentation. We have so many love stories, but every time it's the manner of presentation that makes movies great! Same is true for Race. Arguably the best movie of 2008. So many twists and turns, this makes for the best popcorn flick of 2008! I suggest you to watch it before the end of the year and make is count in the top movies! Katrina Kaif's acting skills have definitely improved, Bipasha is fine, Akshay Khanna is good but Saif's acting is the top notch point of this movie. He should go for more action movies...

A Must Watch! Go for it!

By the title, I expected the movie to be some racing movie type having fast cars or the plot related to the horse racing but it's different. It's about the life Race. You never know what just happened and what's coming. It would seem too foolish if one started predicting the end. It's too exciting. I never thought this movie would have so much twists and turns.

The direction is just fine, not perfect but the plot is brilliant. Katrina and Bipasha acted well while Saif Ali Khan, Akshaya Khanna and Anil Kapoor make the movie fantastic. Several flaws can be easily detected but still, the movie runs too good that those flaws would be negligible. Background music and the songs are okay.

One need not use his head much because everything has been explained. The movie is much for watch and enjoy. It's a full entertainment package.