Kuttey

Ever watch long drawn slow motion footage and wish it would go a bit faster and get to the meaningful bit but it never does? Kuttey. Aasmaan Bhardwaj, in his debut, takes the baton from his father and tries to make a film in that Guy Ritchie and Tarantino space with intermingling heist attempts and long drawn conversations. The choice of style of direction is the "keep the camera in front of the actors and let them have a go at it" approach which works wonders if the writing is taut, dialogue is engaging, and the edit is tight. Kuttey fails on all three counts, causing a cascading effect that makes the actors look bad. Stalwarts working so hard on their performances and being let down by the writing and direction is difficult to watch. A lot of the acting looks like it was meant for stage. Editing style and the way events unfold is very similar to Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels but you see it all coming from a mile away. The only positive to come out of this film is the title track wonderfully composed by Vishal Bhardwaj, sung by Rekha Bhardwaj and based on the Faiz Ahmad Faiz's Kutte. The rest of the music is good as well. Except the reused Dhan Te Nan track. The pneumonic plays throughout the film and was a bit disappointing because you don't expect recycling from "art" filmmakers. It's one thing to use the track for promotions and to evoke nostalgia but then to play it repeatedly in the film was a bit excessive. Overall a very disappointing film given the long list of exceptional actors, producers, musicians and technicians attached to the project.

These days, directors think that if they can have their actors say curse words, they feel like they are making "The Departed" or something similar and feel cool about it. The only thing good about Kuttey is it's length, thank God director decided not to bore us beyond 01:49 as I was waiting for it to end so desperately. Other thing is, do yourself a favor and don't take your children with you as not only they will get bored but also they would pick up curse words as it has around 200 gaalis (yes I counted).

Expressionless acting by the lead actor (whatever his name is) and pretty average work by the remaining crew. Not worth your 250 rupees I would say so spend carefully. Let my sacrifice save something for you and watch for it on OTT which will be fairly soon I think.

By definition "noir" genre in cinema refers to a movie with action at night mainly in dimly lit areas, plotting in shady night clubs with desperate and grey characters dealing with a corrupt system Most such movies have an intricate plot with more focus on cinematography, editing, sound and less focus on the narrative. Such movies have loud background music and pulsating/ rock music. The characters generally have a fatal fascination for daring action and eliminating adversies in a cruel manner. Keeping all this in mind this movie qualifies as noir cinema but not without its aberrations and shortcomings.

There is an ensemble of desperados, rather three groups consisting of both cops and criminals ( guys and dolls) who are after a van full of money unmindful of each other's mission. At one stage they face each other with cocked guns ready to fire on each other. The narrative is jerky and inconsistent but the pace is fast. Its all about greed for money, betrayal, back stabbing , blood, bullets, shady hotels and shadier deals.( As per the title the characters behave like dogs but surprisingly dogs are loyal and faithful which these characters are definitely not.) The plot line is divided into chapters like sab ka malik ek, Aati kya Canada ?, moong ki dal etc which does make things interesting. There is a" frog and scorpion" story told by one character indicating that a scorpion will bite whatever the circumstances because of its slimy character. An oblique reference to the desperate characters of the movie.

Director Aasmaan Bharadwaj in his debut assignment has done what his dad does best and maybe outdone him in parts . The signature tune of " Kaminey" keeps repeating throughout. There is some excellent cinematography and music to match the mood of the movie. An ensemble of top actors have pitched in to give fine performances. Finally the movie is too dark for average audiences and may prove off putting. Noir cinema is not for everyone.

Trailer is more entertaining than the film. The excellent - Phir Dhan Te Nan - song is only in the background. Aasmaan was provided with an amazing cast and crew - thanks to Daddy. He tried to do a Tarantino with it and failed. I guess, he did not learn from his father. Arjun as usual disappoints. All the veterans try their best - but are given paper thin characters and absurd dialogues. If Kaminey was a Picasso, Kuttey is a crayon drawing by a 3 year old.

One single sequence - Moong Ki Daal - in the 109 minutes long movie is amusing. If given another chance, my advice to Aasman would be to watch his dad's movies again before saying - Action.

This is a prime example of how bad direction can screw up even good storyline and screenplay. The ensemble cast played their roles properly, though the dark lighting makes it difficult to see the facial expressions of some of the actors. This movie has hired lot of good actors but failed to harness their full potential. I would say that the direction of the movie and its presentation could have been better. Introducing the cast in a hurry and then tracing back their motivation and story is not a good strategy. It almost feels like there are so many jump cuts which could have been easily avoided if a more linear storytelling format had been adopted. Overall, this is a one time watch. Kudos to the editor for keeping it short.