Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara—Reviewed!

Mili?

So I saw Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (ZNMD) today. If you're expecting me to go on about the value of life and how you must live each day as your last, I'm sorry, that's just not happening. Not right now, at least. I mean I do give spiels about life and how you must cherish it from time to time, but this movie didn't really make me go "OMG I GOTTA DO SOMETHING WITH MY LIFE!!!1!!!!1111"

After viewing the trailors and listening to the music from the movie, I knew that this movie will garner either of the two reactions from me—absolute hate or absolute love. Absolute hate because I am not really a big Hrithik Roshan fan. Ever since Dhoom 2, I've cringed each time he has opened his mouth to speak, specially in English, with that horrid accent (hey, he even pronounces his name Row-shun and not Raw-shun! Oh well...). In fact, I don't think I have even seen a Hrithik Roshan movie post Dhoom 2.

Absolute love because, well, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy made me fall in love with the music of this movie. Each track is quite hummable, especially Khwabon ke Parinday and Señorita. Also, the cinematography and the colour scheme of the movie (Quite The Hangover-ish, by the way) looked like a very promising premise. I still went to the movie with a clear and open mind, and decided to judge the movie only once it ended.

I won't spoil the movie for you guys, but the only thing I got out of the viewing experience was the fact that I want, nay, need, to go to Spain. What a supercalifragilisticexpialidocious place! I have been wanting to go there ever since I witnessed my beautiful La Furia Roja defeat The Netherlanders in the FIFA World Cup 2010, and ZNMD just gave me a bonus incentive of sorts. I have even prepared a 'Spain ka Dabba', where part of my salary will go towards saving up for a trip there! Kudos to you, Carlos Catalan, for that fabulous cinematography. The beautiful locales of Spain were made even more breathtaking, thanks to your camerawork. My favourite was how the La Tomatina festival at Buñol was shot. Beautiful.

The editing was great too, specially during the high-adrenaline scenes. Anand Subaya, I swear my heart was in my mouth during the sky diving scene in Seville. Wow, really. And the bull run at Pamplona. Phew. Neato Burrito!

Now, to the acting. Abhay Deol, what is up with that gay demeanour of yours? Not that I have a problem with homosexuals, but were you playing one in the movie? What happened? Apart from that, I like you. Really. I thought you were quite believable. Farhan Akhtar... that voice. Urgh. Like a frog mating with a cheese-grater. The cherry on top of this rancid cake is getting him to read out those poems on a regular interval through the movie. Good idea Zoya Akhtar. Not.

Hrithik left me pleasantly surprised. As mentioned above, not really a fan, but he got through the movie without annoying me once. No accent, not trying too hard, quite sweet, really. Katrina Kaif is beautiful, Kalki Koechlin needs braces, but yeah, overall, good stuff.

I believe the purpose of this movie relates to the title - Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. For me, the purpose was defeated. I got more 'I need to do something with my life' out of The Bucket List (the 2008 comedy-drama starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman) than I did with ZNMD.

So if you ask me how I liked the movie, I'd just go "Meh."

Go ahead, ask me!

Side note: Did you know that Katrina Kaif's introduction scene was shot on a nude beach? She wasn't naked, of course (did I just hear a de-boner?), but I wonder how shooting went that day.

Side Side note: At the theater, during the interval: Mom - "Bobby Deol ki acting kitni achchi hai." (referring to Abhay Deol). Me - "Haan, lekin mujhe Javed Akhtar ki acting achchi nahi lagi."