Language: Hindi
Director: Vishal Bhardwaj
Writers: Vishal Bhardwaj (screenplay)
Release Date: 14 August 2009 (India)
Cast: Shahid Kapur, Priyanka Chopra, Amole Gupte
Producers: UTV
Music: Vishal Bhardwaj
Cinematography: Tassaduq Hussain
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Vishal Bharadwaj can take a bow.with expectations skyrocketing it was indeed wonderful of him to manage to pull it off creditably.The movie takes some time to hook you- but once you are hooked – it kind of lasts till the end.At the interval point the proceedings are interestingly poised.and what happens later on doesnt disappoint either.
.all in all a movie certainly worth watching.
A special word of acknowledgement for Tassaduq Hussain’s cinematography.As for the performances while both Shahid and Priyanka were good, I loved Amole Gupte- maybe this will make him consider acting more seriously
woowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww
Man, I’m not able to sleep after seeing that movie! I feel like falling on my knees and scream out! Vishal you are not a version of Tarrantino or Guy Richie! You are the MAN!!! Awefome, Amafing, fpectacular!!! You still do that magic shots with mirror reflections! You know the end point of music nerves! This is one film which would score in all of the topics like music, camera, background, script, direction….If you find the climax scene a tiny bit lengthy, probably you are correct, but there’s no other go than it! Shahid is amazing. People might notice Charlie more, but I guess he scored more as Guddu with those subtle expressions. Priyanka amazed me! But the real hero of the movie is “Dhan tana…” The music and the crisp dialogues. I have a lot to write! But lemme get out of this excitement. Once again Thank you Vishal! For a Classic – Path Breaking – Commercial Movie.
Sherith- request you to kindly rate the movie too.
i agree with you Anurag. wow is just the word for it.
kash !…yari dosti zindabad..aye?
Hello Sir,
I really love your style as a film maker. And how you also explored the animation movies genre!
But have you heard about’Machinima Movies’? One can make spectacular animation movies using www.Secondlife.com and other such virtual 3d worlds?
I made one ‘machinima movie’ myself and for almost zero budget and it won an international film award too!
Plz check out the movie!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEQr7JHaQe0
Keep up the good work!
Thanks,
- Pritam
char aana barah aana sab ranraliyaan!!!!!!!!!!!
Gand fad
chaddar fad
Great movie. Great performances.Shahid and Priyanka was awesome. Special mention for Amole Gupta. Great music. Climax was bit weak and the movie probably lacked humour in the middle.
maybe a stupid question: when the movie is schedules to be released on Aug-14 how come the reviews start flowing before the release? do movies release at 12 Midnight Aug-14? Even the first show would be at 10 AM on Aug-14; but reviews have come before that. is this from the premiere or special screening?
That shows how eager they are…
I agree about eagerness..:-) but to write a review they have to see the movie..where are they seeing it?
There were many paid previews shows on Thursday!
yep..sure there were..so?
Paid previews mean..you pay to watch the movie..right?
@OM I was replying to Swadeshee, didn’t appear at right place.
movie got released on thursday
To all those asking how reviews are flowing in- there were paid previews that happened last night ( thursday night ) and so people like me got to watch it.why would someone review a movie without watching it?
Super…India’s pulp fiction for sure! Saw it yesterday… background music and especially the dhan te nan song…should deserve special mention..
Just Super!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wash urself with New sort of experience in Bollywood
in two words: cocaine blast!
What an experience! An epic film with almost too-good-to-be-true performances by the cast. Even with a single viewing, I can surely say that this film is far more than just QT meets Guy Ritchie. So many layers, such detailed study of human pysche and Shahid Kapur, wow!!. I am out of words really.
Question of the day:
Did he or did he not take the two shiny things at the end?
)
(Question framed to avoid any spoilers
Cheers
Sukhjot
Rocking… best Hindi movie climax I have seen in a long time.
When there are so many +es then don’t know what to write first…Noticeable among so many positives is dialect…Gradually from Maqbul to Omkara and now Kaminey…Vishal used the suitable dialect to create mood for the film…while watching you take it as is and get involved…He with his team has taken film making to a new level…Thanx for such a good movie
Mazaaa agayaa..
Hindi Finema at itf beft.. awefomely fefky movie
WOW! AWEFOME!
BINDAaaaaaaaaaaFFF
Multithreading comes of age. After much attempts by other movies in the last 7-10 years, Kaminey hits the mark. But building on some bombastic scenes like Guddu’s breaking down at the gas station or my favorite – the conversation bordering psycho between Mikhail and Bhope (one of the top 10 best scenes written in the last 10 years in Hindi cinema in my view), somehow the dozens of fantastic characters just don’t get to grow sharp teeth or claws. you keep hoping. never happens. I would have loved to see Tashi’s character show why it is so feared… yet this one is a trip. A round of applause to Vishal and the writing team. Good job. Not great. But very very good.
Now if only Vishal can push that little harder, and break the mold of being a 70% genius with a 30% discount ticket in his pocket. He no longer needs to tone down or hold back the punches. Tarantino or Ritche don’t carry condoms in their wild night rampage. It’s high time Vishal throws them away too.
With Tarantino, it’s his real life personality that such care-free comes down in his films. I highly doubt Tarantino would be able to make as versatile movies as Vishal has. At least Tarantino’s portfolio does not show that.
“Tarantino or Ritche don’t carry condoms in their wild night rampage” – very well written..
But for me everything worked. From Tasi – the great to bhope bahu to mikhail to the cops.. almost everything.. only the childhood falshback sequence looked like a sore in the eye.. rest all was pppppperfect for me
Thats why I have loved Kaminey that much more. most of the points you have mentioned for it being very very good but not great.
I love the fact that Tashi just remained an enigma. No build up to why he is so feared, just enough. VB’s genius lies in not creating the next Dr. Dang a la Subash Ghai but the enigmatic Tashi.
That itself was so liberating for me. The (too much) build ups and the dramatic pay offs have plagued and handcuffed Indian writing for too long. VB paved the way.
He took Indian conventional and just turned it around 360…thats 100% genius for me. No doubts.
That misplaced condom when Guddu and Sweety were making out, that was thrown away by VB
i would honestly like to know why u think the bhope-mikhael conversation scene is one of the 10 best in 10 yrs, cos im not able to find anything grt abt it
Loved it!Too damn good to be missed.I didn wanna leave the theater seat after watchin this one.
This film screams command over craft. Electrifying filmmaking from a master filmmaker. Brilliant casting and even better performances from the whole ensemble, superbly written and paced. I wish i had seen it without an interval. While one of VB’s better works, still doesn’t threaten Maqbool in the no. 1 spot among the director’s repertoire.
Agree Vijay !
Maqbool still the best from VB. To be frank I didnt like Kaminey at all. So many characters and yes childhood flashback was real bad.
An average movie to me but still I guess so many people are raving about Kameiney.
Watched a very late night show and just couldn’t sleep all night. The images from Kaminey kept floating around in my mind. My first reaction while walking out of the hall was ” Fuck, it’s awefome”.
VB doesn’t let you take your eyes off the screen, and your mind off the story. He draws you into it slowly, and once you’re in there’s no way you’ll get off till the end. It’s written so well, there are certain lines which you don’t get the first time you hear them, but they come back later in the story, and hit you hard.
The characters are so well defined, I wish we could have seen more of them, esp the Bengali brothers. The close held camera in the action scenes, the sequence when Charlie and Mikhail can’t believe what they’ve stumbled upon, the fiderman dance, and of course the Bhope vs Tope scene. There’s so much more….but then this is a Guerrilla review…..
Damn good movie.I didn’t want to leave the theater after watching this movie. It’s a “Must Watch” I am watching it again. Thanks Vishal Sir for making such an Awefome movie. You have changed the perspective of Indian cinema.
Just watched KAMINEY! Vishal has mangaged poetry in violence and chaos… We have our pulp fiction! take a bow…
I must mention Shahid kapoor & priyanka were a revelation… the ensemble cast were all known powerful actors but the stars were the weakest link and boy have they performed!
Dhan Ta NAN!i am going back tomo again…
Here’s a man who’s redefining filmmaking in India…”a thril every minute” AWEFOME screenplay….g ggg g great performances……and fuperb cinematography….
hain aur bhi duniya(HINDI CINEMA) mein sukhanwar bahot achey
kehtey hain ke ghalib (VISHAL BHARDWAJ) ka hai andaaz-e-bayaan aur
…………………………………………………………
Vishal Bhardwaj, gives a clear message to contemporary hindi cinema that good and interesting films can be made even in completely commercial category also while keeping all the commercial interests in the mind.
VB shows that if applying intelligence then film can follow the boundaries defined by already created literature and earlier made films and yet film will look fresh and will stand on its own.
With each film VB tries to make a different type of film and every time he establishes a new mile stone, which is obviously far ahead than other directors working in hindi cinema at present.
If one super star is established through Kaminey, it will be Vishal Bhardwaj.
Though, Few things which don’t look true to Indian mileu, (especially when few things are set in the sector of organized crime existing in Mumbai) could/should have been corrected while writing story and script.
But these factors keep minor importance before the kind of energy maintained in the film which does not allow audience to think while watching the fast moving scenes.
Film may actually help newcomer actors to understand the phase where actors are asked to put behind their minds while engaged in acting
forget about whether this is a qt meets guy ritchie film coz qt would never meet his condom fucked son ritchie coz he has other better things to do.this film is a master product of a master director.it sure has elements of qt films but the dark and yet funny mirror image of crime is totally bharadwaj brand.from begining to end its a bharadwaj product.i am a qt fan but my advise never enter the theater expecting a tarantinosque flick.the music ,the acting ,the ambience,the execution was of world class cinema reminds me of italian classics especially the cinematogaphy.its something you cant resist .there were people surounding me who didnt like the movie but guess what they probably never liked his earlier films as well and i would never make the mistake of assuming they even know tarantino.i am not a film critic so wouldnt try to give a review coz i a movie/cinema maniac.this film may not work well with indian audiences ,they just wanted to waste some money for dhan ta na.this is not a movie this is cinema you will get my point if you know the difference betwenn the two.and plz do not compare it with vishals other projects coz this is a different genre altogether .if you want to watch a movie go for om shanti om ,if you want cinema gg-go for thif one
no complains from this movie…thx to the makers for this brilliant product…next weekend i am going to watch once more…
Okay, what do I comment now. Have written an entire review… so
Par iske baad ab vishal kahan jaayenge – he said his next was a romantic – his quest for ‘texture’ after mastering ’structure’ – knowing his penchant fro perfection, can’t wait for it.
I may be the only person I know who had doubts about this film before watching it. Vishal Bharadwaj is one of my favourite directors, but the casting of this film made me cringe.
And then, Bharadwaj shows once again that he is an actor’s director. Bringing out performances that one wouldn’t expect of the stars in his cast, casting exciting and watchable newcomers, and wrapping it up with his own visual style, I really enjoyed this film.
It took some time for me to get hooked…I like the second half especially….vishal’s brilliance in writing is shown in few scenes…shahid kapoor was surprisingly good….
A decent movie over hyped by PFC. I mean where else could you find people going crazy about tashi – “the great” – this tashi dude isn’t even noticeable in the movie..But then wait – even that is probably a ’stroke of brilliance’ ..ha ha
Others, ignore the hyper here. Watch this movie – it’s a good one. Watch this for shahid, priyaaka and amol gupte and nice cinematography. Don’t go expecting a master piece as it is being projected in PFC.
2009’s best movies in order of ranking
1)Kaminey and Gulaal
2)DevD
3)Luck By chance
Kaminey takes the cake. There is something about Vishal B that makes him very different yet he creates cinema you can relate to. Amazing stuff!
Fecking Awefome!
I m going with 5 stars for this magestic pulpness
Azadi mangta hain…. mein 3 and 1/2 dena chahta hoon.
Very well executed by Master. Priyanka and Mikhail guy are the picks of the lot.Will be remebered for it’s exceptional dhan te nan and some great scenes, but I don’t think it will get placed in the category of one of the greatest movie ever made.Charlie could have become a cult character….lekin afsos aisa nahi ho paaya.
Ek aur cheez mujhe sabhi character ek jaise hi lag rahe the Charlie, guddu aur sweety ko chodkar….I mean, Bhpoe, Mikhail, Tashi.. the other three important charachers of movie were quite alike…kaminey the saale.
Spoiler alert
What it is :-good entertainer with neat performances
What it is not:- not pathbreakring, gutsy, detailed or layered.
Good parts :
1Shahid
2Amol Gupte
3Music
4Production elements..looks like a well invested budget
5dialogues and genuinely humorous , innovative scenes..
6Priyanka Chopra..this is the first and hope not the last time I say this
Bad parts:too simple a screenplay, people speak instead of shooting..
1 I could have killed/seriously injured Shahid’s one/both characters several times before the others did so that he is dead/cannot react..
2 The flashback was unnecessary as it was not at all convincing, could have be well left untouched…
3 Not gutsy/gritty..deviates into unecessary social cause (Doodh mein shakkar)…converts ‘kamina’ charlie into good guy… Crime Never Pays cliche…
Very well said RAM. Kaminey fairs poorly at more than one points!!. A dissapointment !!
For me the best parts came from the secondary characters – Mikhail, Tashi, Bhope, Lele-Lobo worked big time for me. Even the other Bengali brothers with no more than 5 mins of screen time worked big time. That doesn’t mean that Charlie and Guddu didn’t worked for me.
Many a times, I have wondered during chaotic fight scenes – “Why doesn’t a character pretends to be a dead person. This will easily save him.”. And Vishal gave me a scene which I often used to imagine.
Flashback sequence didn’t work for me but then that was a minor glitch in the plot. Another aspect that I believed could have been handled better is – Bhau is told be a small fish and Tashi as the magarmach, but throughout the whole film bhau appeared mightier than the rest. Perhaps, it has to do with his role being modeled on Raj Thakeray who looks larger than any criminal of Mumbai. Or is Vishal’s way of saying that he is just a small Fish and there are many larger criminals out there..
Another complaint – Mikhail was killed a bit too early. He had done enough to want a presence in the crazy finale. But then his brothers were amazing in the finale too. The expressions on their face were true bong like. And how clever it was of VB to show the brothers of Mikhail with his body on Jeep. Most of the people had completely forgotten in the climax that Mikhail had brothers. So, it was a very clever way to remind the audience about it.
“Most of the people had completely forgotten in the climax that Mikhail had brothers. So, it was a very clever way to remind the audience about it.”
I tried my best but still couldn’t imagine how you would have come to this conclusion.
The conclusion was based on how most of my friends had reacted when they saw the Bengali brothers in the end. I didn’t say that you forgot about it. I just said that most of the people and this indirectly means most of the people, I know. Sorry for not being that specific
its going to be the benchmark for commercial cinemas that would come in the next decade. stylised formula movie. nothing unexpected happens but brilliant cinematography and VB, the man who knows the pulse of audiences more than any other known director. Sahid is great. Its fun film, although noway close to the cinematic excellence Omkara and Maqbool tried to achieve.
Very Very average…what was so path breaking about this movie? Yes it was entertaining, yes the acting was good…so what? so many movies have that in them…also, what was that about…audience have to be alert to understand a a few things..they are not spoon fed, etc…what was it? I was able to get every scene it was too blunt?
my dear om,
if u dont see it now u NEVA will!!!!
bakwaas pichchar hai…main to starting se pehle hi uth ke aa gaya…lol!
what should i see mr. Dpac? ;-)
like i said mr. om u wil neva see it! :-)
aankhein hone se dekhne se kuch nahin hota
pehchaanna mangta hai eheh
Kuch bhi huh!!poora dekha aur paraasha bhi..lekin shayad i need that red glasses that you are wearing to “see” Mr.India :-)
Just loved the movie, want to watch it again!
Just wait a few years & this movie will be considered influential in its own right!
Santosh, how many years!! if possible specify !! accept
Ya, please tell. Even I like my wine matured.
2 Stars for Vishal Bhardwaj, rest two for rest of the elements (including actors) of the film.
Vishal Bhardwaj was lucky because he got to direct THE PANKAJ KAPOOR in MAQBOOL and The Blue Umbrella during very early phase of his directorial efforts.
Lucky Shahid Kapoor must thank god to get an opportunity to work with THE VISHAL BHARDWAJ at this early phase of his career and that too in such an interesting role (actually two roles) in such an interesting film.
Has there been anything like this in Indian Cinema before?
Never felt so elated while leaving the cinema hall.
Missed the complete Kaminey Song though…
slightly over rated movie and people at pfc are not judging it unbiased either for the sake of encouragement of Vishal Bhardwaj as a non-conformist in Bollywood or their love of this movie.
My one line reaction – it could have been better in the second half, the climax needed to be much more intelligent, looked like something out of Priyan’s films, crazy end, expected more, acting was good, was not impressed by Amol Gupte – stock impressions, I still would not compare QT and GR to VB, he has his own space, just on the strength of half the film.
Theek hi thaak tha yaar…itna shor kyon hai bhai?
Way to go.. way more to go.. let’s go for the jugular..
fuck Tarantino, i mean let’s leave him alone.. good is good, celebration time..
The movie is a milestone in commercial Hindi cinema, if not a masterpiece. The jokers in censor board need to understand what disaster they are doing.
Dissapointing film.
Esp after all the hype by people on their Facebook status. Maybe I would have liked it a but more had people I respect had not raved so much about it.
So many great scenes. But they don’t hold up together.
It was a B-Movie. VB was trying to make his version but failed.
So much overacting by almost everyone.
KAMINEY is no JOHNNY GADDAR.
i once had a friend who made grand plans for the day his board results were to be declared. He and his gang of friends would arrive in Black suits at the school in a rented Mercedes playing loud dhinchak songs. All this was to be financed by a simple armed robbery.
Kaminey reminds me of him and so many others whom i have seen, followed, heard and read about, loved, hated, ignored, beaten up, got beaten up, idolized and demonized throughout my adolescent years in Mumbai.
Kaminey is sheer brilliance for this and much more.
By this film Vishal ji has proven that he has found the unmatchable to talent to market shit like Imitiaz Ali did with Love Aaj kal.
This was a film after many years which gave me a headache. I usually leave the film if it is too bad but unfortunately did not today.
What surprises me is the number of reviews of this film available on the net and in most of the leading news papers, which talk about this film is such exalted terms. The amount of lie that can be peddled by buying such compromised pseudo-intellectuals is amazing.
It is interesting how Kaminey markets itself as the “dark side” film and there is nothing but way over the top, almost annoying performances by some Chandan Sanyal, Amol Gupte and almost everyone except Priyanka Chopra. Thank god there was one person in this army of lunatic actors who did well.
I have never heard a more pretentious script and direction than this one. All this when i revere Vishalji as one of the best Indian filmmakers of our times. His Maqbool & Omkara are classic masterpieces. But this one is a shame. And the methods deployed to gain the opening weekend revenues are so shameless and false that the only competitor he has now is the george bush with his Iraq war propaganda. Interestingly there is a completely out of place dialogue against American Imperialism, when the film and the filmmaker pretends to be a thinking identity.
I wow to tell atleast 50 people to not watch this film. Personally i am not going to watch Vishal’s next film as my personal protest against the lies propagated by an otherwise very wise man and an admirable artist.
I can undertand ur headache
Kaminey was a giant dissapointment. But I wouldn’t blame Vishal B. It was the writing that moved this film away from Vishal’s focus.
writing. interesting point. but i guess a different treatment woudlve helped the writing maybe.
I was so dissappointed that I forgot to vote.
Met Expectations Coz the expectations were set very very high. Awsome movie experience..loved the subtitles too…so relevant!!!
Didn’t like it except in bits and pieces.
its hard to digest the fact that i havent liked kaminey, being a huge admirer of vishal bhardwaj. this is obviously not a bad movie but did not work for me.
Reasons:
1. the so called ‘intelligence’ of intelligent cinema that people r raving about dint work for me. in every scene, there was purposely no clarity, the audience was supposed to put some effort and understand wats going on. so i guess its for the ‘intelligent’ audience. My point is that it was totally unnecessary for this film. why would u want to strain my brain continuously by not being clear?? if done where and when required fine, but almost through out? i dont get it
2. Style took over everything. the handheld, close shots, dark stuff, everything implied smartly instead of straightly(sry for the engligh),well the style basically. it just spoilt the film for me. sarkar was one film that i really dint like cos of the same reason, overuse of style. sarkar dint even have substance, kaminey did have some but the style just dint allow the substance to rise up and come into the picture. I guess people who loved the film is cos of the style, but dint work for me. May be bcos i saw sankat city? sankat city, for me, is in the same lines as kaminey. eveyone is after a bag of money kind of stuff. kaminey had the brothers relationship thing but that part dint have depth, just superficially touched. shouldve avioded the flashback and all. hmm, i doubt the producer had some hand in a few things in the film. may be VB was not in total control?
there were some draggin scenes in thebeginning. there were so many characters in the film and the cast was almost new to me, i dont recognize anyone, so it was already prone to cause confusion. on top of that, ’smart’ scenes. i was getting lost. tried hard to be in the game of watching the movie.
anyways, thats that. i haveno idea why i dont like a VB film when everyone else does. it was generally the other way round with films like omkara or maqbool.
Mr. vishal bhardwaj, i dont know if u will read this.but if u do, i would love to know what u think abt my opinion. am i being stupid?
P.S: i respect him too much dare rate his films. so no rating
pretty much the same issues as I have with the film.
Honestly worded
Kalki- well said. I felt the same and commented below.
A guy ritchie plot trying to be tarantino
the cinematography in the climax scene is as good as they come…
The image of a lone cop standing on the rooftop, firing away amidst the rain, cocaine smoke, flashes of gunfire, and overcast sky – is an everlasting image …
Behata lahoon sagar se nahin milta! There is no destiny, no solution that comes or arises from Violence. Without being in the face this message has “also” been embedded. Love the movie, need to fee it again!
Movie of the year, and by far !
Yo brother !
This is one roller-coaster ride !!!
But Hey!!
Dont forget DEV.D .
Both of them are movies of the year!!!
My top films would rank:
1) Gulaal
2) Dev.D
3) Kaminey
if KAMBAKKHT ISHQ denoted the death of indian cinema, then KAMINEY definitely brings it back to life!!
full credit to the cast nd crew, specifically vishal bharadwaj, shahid kapoor, priyanka chopra..
the film takes indian cinema to great heights nd has set a landmark..
brilliant direction, perfect screenplay nd editing, stylish treatment, mind-blowing performances nd of course, fantastic music(DHAN TE NANNNN!!!!)
the movie will definitely take a CHOTA FORTKUT to rise to the top of the box-office charts!!! A MUFT WATCH!!! DONT DARE TO MIFF IT!!! ;)
Kaminey is fast paced movie with awesome music and excellent performances. Witty and Wacky in parts, Kaminey is a must watch.
Vishal Bhardwaj is the Man! Be it the background music or the songs or the dialogues, he excells in every department. There have been a lot of talk about Tarantino and Guy Ritchie influences. I think while a couple of scenes reminded me of Snatch, this is still is a seperate movie in it’s own way. This is a Vishal Bhardwaj movie all the way!
Was a bit dissapointed by the goody goody ending, but what the hell, it’s ok.
I was immersed in that world. . , i forgot the reality and enjoyed it…..
Story moves at breathtaking speed and demands full attention. Never flags for an instant and the humor is intact in never before seen nooks and corners.
Visually disappointing. Kaminey characters being in your face all the time does take its toll. Wish the director and cameraman had kept a little more distance between the audience and kamineys. Clever storytelling and smart dialogue masks inadequately fleshed out characters and their relationships. Editing is hotch potch.
Wish they had filmed the entire Kaminey song. Would have been a much needed breather and provided much needed soul to the movie. Vishal Bhardwaj’s earlier movies were poetry. This seemed to be more from an Anurag Kashyap school. But even Gulaal had more poetry.
coming to think of it, the film was not even close to its own THEME SONG. forget about living up to it.
why was the theme song written/composed in the first place? it has lot of depth and soul that the film doesnt have or even explore. im not ready to believe he failed in bringing the soul or depth, he cant, he’s the make of omkara and maqbool. i think the whole plan changed in the course of things for whatever reasons.?.
Kaminey, the word, has a very deep meaning. Kaminey is beyond bad, mean or any other synonym. Kaminey are the scum of the earth. I didn’t really see too much of kameenapanti in the movie. Guddu was almost a wimp. The theme song gave me a headache. It was soooooooo catchy but the picturisation was awful.
The way the movie progressed, i was looking forward to a darker ending, mostly with Charlie dying, and it almost ended that way. The lighter ending kind of overshadowed the build up and its like a full stop to the momentum of the story.
But I enjoyed the ride, really very much!
KAMINEY AND FILM MAKING IN INDIA!
MUSTWATCH as I say this, it is a HUGE build in Hindi Cinema, we are going to witness another 100 similar trials, off which at least 3-4 for for sure click big time…. FOR SURE A COMING OF AGE CINEMA… Its an absolute MUST WATCH… amongst all the mad movies that we have, divided between the family dramas, the split screen slow motion action movies (I dislike White Feather films as much as a lot of people dislike YRF in PFC) and the new age experiments… this one stands out … completely… one of a kind, brilliant movie…
AS much as I loved the movie, I agree with one of the posts in another column, the movie just falls a little short of being a cult (or maybe thats cuz I live in a different country while the movie is being full on in India) … the movie created a lot of thrill and edge of nerves purely by the trailers, however just falls short of it by a meagre inch… “CULT” nah…. none of the characters apart from Bhope Mikhail and a deb mukherjee side shot with a gun stays on ur head, the power of screenplay …. Guddu, could’ve been a cult but by the end of it he sadly remains a character in the movie … lobo tashi and everybody remain amusing characters but are left right there, some scenes were classic of course, The Bhope Tope scene achieves that classic feel of you know whats going to happen, and are thrilled still their insane childish play keeps u in smiles till the scene finishes and u r still left out with that confused feeling of the result yet smiling around, both of it sinking together… however thats something if had happened over a lot more scenes would have made this SUPERB!!!!! The deal is that this movie though made with the hollywood ishtyle, doesnt anything beyond it… it does not throw in a HUGE differnece to audience who have been seeing the few superb holly flicks… and for a lot of others who havent had the chance, this one will remain a hugely different genre…
Not the best judge to analyze things, here is how it is for me… The difference between say a Pulp Fiction, a Snatch, Lock Stock, Reservoir Dogs, Following, Fight Club, Inglorious basterds and Kaminey is that, these movies make sure that amusing characters are supported by effortlessness and a panache of background music and a casualness, which makes them linger in your mind which for still in bollywood remains in a trial period (of course hollywood took a long time to come to this stage as well), Sanjay Gupta overdoes the style with split screen and the slow motions (god damn i hate them, they were good in matrix and Crouching Tiger only cuz those were a away from normal course movie storylines… for everyday life hero we need the sunny deol or south indian film ishtyle action) or as VB did, leave them real low.. in case of Kaminey they grow on you, but that effortless push was missing… The characters and the screenplay in the holly flicks carry an amazing amount of effortlessnesss and coolness mixed that for most part you are amused to an xtent that your thoughts linger over them over and over… There are scenes that you want to go home and maybe want to do cuz they were “cool”, irrespective of what ever age….you are.. its certain way of screenplay that makes a character however ordinary to get into cult zone (I include salman khan and his “friends” cap, and friendship mei no sorry no thank you, or even SRK/senorita, cuz flirting was never so “cool” before that) … the last movie which left me such an impact of the cult was me trying to stand in front of a mirror and uttering “nobody tells me what to do” .. John Abraham No Smoking (not saying this cuz AK is huge in PFC, but more of why AK is huge in PFC)…
No Smoking remains the Biggest CULT movie in bollywood for me, and will be so for a very long time, because unlike Kaminey, which was living upto Tarantino and what a lot of us hav already seen, this one set something absolutely new… totally mind blowing, pulls your brains like pulling socks inside out, and turning it into a new side altogether…
Going back to Kaminey and why this is brilliant… here is my verdict (to myself, and just sharing it with you guys)… making movies in India is different than making them in US… cuz of the society and audience, for all the people who are in PFC asking people why they are not watching good movies…. Unfortunately of our society governence and education patterns and life style … India does not have too many heros to celebrate…. as on today, we do not have pathbreaking scientists, Innovative industrialists, sportsmen.. basically a path breakingly positive citizen who can come on top of our minds quickly… and thats why media celebrates NRIs winning Spell BEE and American Idol .. we celebrate indian entreprenuers leading global companies (Sadly they were left with a choice to lead thing elsewhere) … we are left out with Movie Stars and Cricketers as our biggest heros, who keep coming back with something to entertain us, and not a medal in 4 years … we idolise the film stars and cricketers not for their antics in the field but off those as well, Thats why SRK, AB, Sachin, Dravid are superstars cause they have a well balanced life, family et al, the ideal “SOCIETY ACHIVERS” than just being the bests in their field, we laud them, celebrate them………..thats’ why their films/scores are hits, thats why they never fall off audiences’ blue eyes despite miserable perfromances….
What Kaminey/Omkara/Dev D achived, which Gulaal/Black Friday could not was, they never got the audience celebrate their lives by looking at these guys…
Kaminey stands out because it took something unconventional, storyline and screenplay hugely different from that what was there in India all this while and presented a new plate altogether… similar to AK movies, but in so much more of a audience ready/thrilling format that it is being lapped up … and KUDOS to VB for that… anyday NO SMOKING remains my biggest Mind blasting movie ever… but thats cause I keep watching movies.. ask my dad and other people and they’d watch the other social dramas, with a lot more colors and brightness, and they ‘d root for Kaminey as well… it stands out cause it just completely drew a line that crosses, our Social Drama, the Action Movies, and the new age experiment, that you simply have to love it!!!!
Overall… my feelings only about the movie… hmm… going by the trailers and expectations, I expected a huge punch on my jaw reaction… i was so ready that I had kept my protruding out to get that smack on my face, instead i simply got a pleasant rub around it, which again is a huge task, the demanding audience that I am, and i’d love it for that as well….
The character of Charlie is as strong and as much provoking or even more, than any of the characters in either Snatch, or Lock,Stock or Pulp fiction.
Agree. Charlie had a soul. I empathized with Charlie. (If Vbad comes out with a directors cut, I doubt he’ll have the twins scene)
For me it’s 5/5
Kaminey i feel is one of the over rated movie of recent times, it is not path breaking i feel Omkara was much better than this.Shahid is okay, it is priyanka who steals the shows.
Agree. No actor impressed me in Kaminey as much as PC; perhaps I did not expect much out of her. But even if I did, I think I would’ve been very impressed.
With respected names such as Vishal Bhardwaj, Gulzar, Ronie Screwvala and UTV, it is obvious that the project gets associated with huge expectations and craze even before its release. And if it also has a great energetic track, capable of bringing out all the hidden madness in you (Dhan Tan Nan), then the movie is destined to see long queues of cinema lovers at the box office window. That’s really a good news for the Hindi Film Industry since after a long time, this kind of response is seen for a complete out of the box, dark and witty thriller coming from the thinking director, Vishal Bhardwaj.
So all geared up, we got seated excitingly in the theater, expecting a complete new chapter to unfold on the screen. And as the lights went off, we were served with a slow and uninteresting start having the expected dark feeling, which continued till the intermission. Truly speaking, the movie is not so gripping till the mid-point as compared to the previous works of Vishal. Though he succeeds in making a film on the similar lines of Quentin Tarantino & Guy Ritchie, but I found the entertainment factor quite missing in his current venture. Post interval, the movie has a better pace with some fast interconnected sequences featuring every single character in the screenplay. But the routine climax, with everyone killing each other leaves you with mixed feelings about this latest “Vishal Experience”.
The story moves around two brothers who are not at talking terms with each other but get unintentionally involved with different Gangsters. The identity mix up and a big deal of drugs involving the local police is the main plot of the movie. But the movie cannot be judged by its story plot alone, since it heavily relies on it’s out of the routine treatment and first of its kind of direction in Indian Cinema. The majority of Hindi Cinema viewers are not familiar with this kind of genre where you are not spoon fed each and every development in the plot. So, it should be clear, that “Kaminey” has not got the normal “Bollywood Entertainment” factor in it for a change. But will this change work favorably, is what I have my bets on.
No doubt the movie is conceived intelligently and directed differently by Vishal Bhardwaj. But apart from its technical brilliance, the sad part is that the film doesn’t have the HUMOR element at all as promised in its promotional campaign. The main USP of the movie, wherein Shahid speaks “F” instead of “S” in his dialogues, is used in a very subtle manner, whereas in the promos, this fun gimmick was used very aggressively. So the viewer keeps waiting for some funny dialogues or humorous sequences to be there but instead they have to laugh on the deliberate stammering act by the second Shahid (in double role).
The other major point to be considered is the unimpressive use of the Smash Hit song “Dhan Tan Nan” in the movie. The moment this song commences on the screen, you just don’t feel energetic or lively enough, as you may have felt watching “Sapno Mein Milti Hai” or “Omkara”. The reason may be that the song is shot without any specific dance steps and also doesn’t capture the free style freak out dance act by the characters clearly. The over use of extreme close-ups, strobe lighting effects and fast camera movements also took away the essence of an otherwise power-packed song.
In the acting department, Shahid Kapoor does well in his double role and stammering. He completely devotes himself to his director’s vision. However, I found the witty humor part missing in his character but still he comes up with one of the finest performances of his career. Priyanka Chopra tries her best in an underwritten role and manages to shine bright in all her scenes throughout the movie. The surprise act of Amol Gupte is quite pleasant since he delivers a fine controlled performance as The Bhai.
Musically, keeping the cult track “Dhan Tan Nan” aside, I found the soundtrack a bit less scoring then the earlier works of both Vishal Bhardwaj & Gulzar. Apart from the famous Sukhwinder number you don’t get that impressed by any other track while watching the movie. Camerawork is simply superb, giving the right kind of dark and grim feel to the project. But at times I missed a steady cam vision in the sequences.
In all, technically Vishal Bhardwaj comes up with a polished new age kind of crime thriller for the Indian viewers, which may generate mixed responses especially in the smaller centers. At one end, you like it for its unique & different approach adopted by the director. But on the other, you also feel less entertained as expected from its promotional campaign which projected the movie to be a roller coaster ride with great element of fun and humor. So in the end, we remain half way at the satisfaction chart with “Kaminey”.
Rating : 2.5 / 5
Before viewing Kaminey, I refrained from reading any reviews, so that i can have a “virgin” viewing experience. I did, however, notice the 4 star and 4.5 star ratings galore from the media, and the 8.x on imdb after 1000 or so entries. The overall ratings + Vishal Bharadwaj gave me the impression that this movie is a for sure masterpiece. As a VB fan, who loved all of his previous works, especially Maqbool, i couldnt wait to watch kaminey. Now that i have finally seen it, I am not exactly dissapointed—just still thirsty. If this were a Karan Johar film, a Aditya Chopra film, or (insert any run of the mill director here) film, I may have called it AMAZING and given it 5 stars. But my expectations from VB were just too high to give him 4 or 5 stars for this. I have a feeling he deliberately made this movie more mainstream and easy to digest for the average movie goer (aren’t they still complaining that it was too dark, complicated, etc? haha). I wont give up on VB though. Looking forward to his future films.
i have a feeling that david dhawan deliberately makes his movies more mainstream and easy to digest for the average movie goer. duh.
VB didnt do it in his previous films. The typical david dhawan audience would have walked out of omkara or maqbool in a matter of minutes. This movie was just too simple, too hollow. Perfect for that david dhawan audience. VB changed his track for this film. This is watered down VB. Thats what i meant. Duh.
Just watched the movie.. I can not believe this movie got 4/5 stars… even Omakra did not get 4/5 stars from most critics/viewers and it was way better than kaminey.
Kaminey is an average movie and nowhere close to VB’s previous works…and it would be a crime to say this is as good as tarantino movies… nowhere close… RGV and his satya still remains the only work in hindi cinema that actually can be compared to TARANTINO’s work…
2/5
Just watched the movie.. I can not believe this movie got 4/5 stars from most critics… even Omakra did not get 4/5 stars from most critics/viewers and it was way better than kaminey.
Kaminey is an average movie and nowhere close to VB’s previous works…and it would be a crime to say that kaminey is as good as tarantino movies… nowhere close… RGV and his satya still remains the only work in hindi cinema that actually can be compared to TARANTINO’s work…
2/5
I think kaniney is great piece of cinema…I really loved the background score by vishal bharadwaj and cinematograhy was just amazing!!.the only probelm was it’s climax!!..
watched kaminey and i m happy it has turned out to be a movie it was made out to be. Hype was justified. If i iked Omkara, I liked kaminey too. It is unfair to compare the 2. These 2 are very different movies. Both exemplary movies…
Kaminey is a very main stream … very bollywood type of movie…but one which needs your rapt attention from the word go…not one of those mindless movies ..
I thoroughly enjoyed watching it.
Good attempt. Worth watching
kaminey needed more crookedness :P
movie of the year…no two thoughts about it ….
this mv is an all time classic!….thanks vishal,amol,the writers n shahid!!…………..u r brilliant!
If picture ke baare mein bahut logon ne bola hai. . .Jitna bolo utna kam hai. . .All hail Vifhal Bhardwaj!!!
Charlie is gay? WTF
http://iplextra.indiatimes.com/article/00tpdmx1hb8iu?q=Bollywood
found this very interesting article in Economic and Political Weekly (www.epw.in) dated 19sep09:
“Social Dystopia or Entrepreneurial Fantasy: The Significance of Kaminey”
http://epw.in/epw/uploads/articles/13933.pdf
Refreshing!! the only word which describes this movie, fresh in every respect right from performances to cinematography to direction.
I didn’t give rating to his one. Best movie of the year so far for me next one is Delhi-6.
i saw this movie very late coz it went off the cinemas suddenly here…had to wait for the dvd…but d movie is damn impressive … hats off to vishal bharadwaj for bringin such stuff in bollywood…an absolutely fantastic cinema!!
i loved priyanka’s and shahid’s acting…………