Post 'Dil Chahta Hai', Indian cinema developed a young urban audience which was receptive to hip films. Trendy music, trendy fashion, trendy plots and trendy urban setting. Hum Tum, Salaam Namaste, Wake Up Sid, Rockstar etc. were targeted towards the same segment and were accepted by the audience as well. These movies made Saif and Ranbir stars of the multiplex audience while Khans, Ajay Devgan and Akshay Kumar remained the superstars of masses.
Cocktail is another film for the same audience, with the same cast and believe it or not, actually almost the same story line as previous films. Does this Cocktail have all the right ingredients to quench the thirst of the modern cine-goer? The answer is No. And it's a big flat NO.
With some inspirations from 'Vicky Christina Barcelona', Cocktail is a love triangle on the lines of 'friends with benefits'. Guy chooses one girl over the other, jealousy sets in and in the end one of the two girls offers a sacrifice. Co-written by the seasoned Imtiaz Ali and debutant Sajid Ali, Cocktail's weak script is its biggest weakness. I would put more blame on Imtiaz for not doing justice to his own original thinking by literally borrowing scenes, treatment notes and dialogues from Love Aaj Kal. Never mind the climax or even the name of the heroine i.e. Meera. Imtiaz's first four writing ventures were as authentic as film writing can get. He did take a few creative liberties in Rockstar but in Cocktail he goes the route writers like Robin Bhatt or Shiraz Ahmad (Knock Out, Prince, Jaanasheen) would take. Convenience of co-incidental meetings of Indian strangers in London, supportive Indian snobbish girl offering her apartment to a total stranger, nobody having a British accent despite being brought up in London, Deepika's multiple mental transitions and mysterious new injuries Randeep Hooda carried in every scene and much more.
The director Homi Adajania in his second ventures misses more targets than he hits. In some sequences he is brilliant but those sequences are rare and are mostly performance driven by actors. In others, he struggles to communicate his point with authenticity. The film has a poor first half hour with over the top and deliberate cheesiness of Saif's character and senseless turns of events that you would expect from a Salman Khan's no-brainer. The middle part of the film is good, has strong comic segments and the story develops fast but as the climax approaches, things become way too predictable and mundane. The kind in which you start looking for loo breaks or tweeting.
The one thing which does not disappoint much in the film is the acting bit. In fact, performances are the savior of this otherwise sinking ship. Surprisingly, these are not lead by the main characters but Dimple Kapadia and Boman Irani's supporting roles. Dimple has delivered an ace while Boman is not far behind either.
Saif, besides the first half hour, does well too even though he was a bit over-dramatic for my liking. Excellent comic timing nonetheless and effortless dialogue delivery. Whether you want to see Saif Ali Khan as a 32 year old bachelor or not is a different story. Deepika Padukone has never been a great performer but a bearable one and the status remains intact. Her outrageousness as a party girl was convincing but her emotional banters was weak. Diana Penty gets a good debut. She looked comfortable in underplaying her part with a charming screen presence. She needs to work more on her dialogue delivery and dancing but she is definitely far ahead of the disastrous Nargis Fakhri. As a debut, its somewhere between Nargis Fakhri and Parineeti Chopra. Randeep Hooda has been wasted.
Anila Mehta deserves credit for his camera work and breathtaking visuals of South Africa. Bosco's choreography is also good to watch. Do wait for the end credits after the film is over as they show some hilarious bloopers and 'Second Hand Jawani', very well shot on steadicam.
I don't want to call it a 'BAD' film because that word I have used for films like 'Tees Maar Khan' and 'Blue'. Also, the thought of calling a film written by Imtiaz Ali 'Bad' is a bit disappointing. Let's say, it's not a great film. It has its moments but the moments are very occasional. You should watch it in the theater only if you are a die-hard Saif, Deepika and Bikini scenes fan. If not, wait for the TV airing.
