User reviews

I watched this as an Aishwarya fan. I think it's her 4th movie, so it's interesting for me to see her when she was "younger"--although that's only a few years ago! She looked really skinny--too skinny! In a couple of the songs, she does not even dance--what was the director thinking? That we don't want to see Aishwarya?? This was probably the worst Indian film I have seen in terms of the subtitles. First, they were in white letters, so they were hard to read. Second, they were often very stilted English--quite often humorous without intending to be. Third, sometimes they repeated the subtitles, sometimes they put on a long subtitle for .1 of a second. Fourth, sometimes they were just nonsense--A great example is when they go to the "Grapp Family Lodge" towards the end of the movie. Of course it's really the "Trapp Family Lodge" in New Hampshire, and yes, it's the lodge owned by the Trapp Family who were the subject of "The Sound of Music." I have a feeling all that was lost on the director--it would have been a great opportunity to have a song set in the hills above Salzburg, where Julie Andrews sang. It would have added a nice touch of humor. But no. Oh well, a great opportunity lost. Why not get a native Engish speaker to proofread the subtitles? Leaving the stereotypes aside, which the other reviewers have mentioned, I was more upset at the heavy-handed "lessons" in the movie. Yes, I have seen this in other Indian movies too, but not as many and not as awkwardly done. There was the "Pakistanis are really good Indians too" lesson, the "family is more important than money" lesson, the "women are more than tokens in the marriage market" lesson, the "forgive those as you wish to be forgiven" lesson, etc. etc.--every five minutes, and no subtlety at all. A movie can have a message, but when you have 35 different messages...well, it doesn't work. By the way, how about a lesson on illegal immigrants working on a tourist visa? To Indians sitting in India thinking they can just get off the plane on a tourist visa and start driving a cab or work at Dunkin' Donuts, forget it. You can't.

Reality checks: New Jersey boardwalk as an exotic, fun location? Please. Are there no hotels/rooms in New York? --why did Akshay and Aishwarya have no choice but to move in with the taxi drivers? Is India that disorganized that a millionaire would find it impossible to find the wife he left behind? And of course all the coincidences would make Dickens blush.

So, as a movie, pretty bad. As a showcase for a young (26?) Aishwarya, OK.

After reading some reviews, I decided to give this one a shot. Complete waste of time and some of the scenes were typical bollywood crap. Akshaye Khanna and Aishwarya are great actors. I've seen them in Taal, and they were so great. But this movie just had no story built in. Only thing watchable was Jaspal Bhatti and Kader Khan. Aishwarya did her part well and so did Akshaye Khanna. But there was no story. Too many stereotypes. Travelling for 18 hours in a suit and tie?? Give me a break. Some things were really immature. Please don't even bother with this movie. I don't always trust IMDb ratings, and some of the movies that have had low ratings here did turn out to be good. But this one was an utter drag. See beautiful movies like Yahaan, Taal, Raincoat. Sorry, Rishi - other than the Raj Kapoor's old music from SANGAM, there was nothing memorable in this. 5/10

This movie follows the previously tested theme - western society is "badly influencing" our traditional Indian culture.

The story picks up pace once Akshaye goes to USA,but fails to live to one's expectations in the last couple of reels.

Fantastic cinematography of New York & Perth, Australia. For once Ash Rai attempts to "act". NRI (Suman Raganathan) is a stunner!! Rajesh Khanna in his comeback role is heavily "made-up". Paresh Rawal is surprisingly "different". The music is a let-down, accept for the title track.

All in all, thanks to Rishi & RK banner for attempting a family entertainer.

I watched this movie because of Aishwarya Rai, noticed this movie on my local TV channel and I just notice that Mrs. Bachchan was so beautiful in her earlier days, unlike today I guess. Turned out this movie is the film making debut of Rishi Kapoor and the only movie he ever directed until now. What can I say about this movie is I like it so much, the adventure of both character Pooja & Rohan in a foreign land is so exciting, how they experienced their daily life, fun encounter with various Indian, Pakistani & so American people, its so funny and enjoyable to watch. I love how they developed the Pooja's feeling toward Rohan, its so cute to see how Mrs. Bachchan's acting in her 20s day. This movie is just good, with a lot of Hindustani cliché that we always know. If you love 90s Hindi romance, you might like this. Enjoy!

a timepass movie.. sometimes can get pretty unbearable.. but one manages to get by the movie. the camaraderie aspect between Akshaye and Jaspal Bhatti and gang is real good... the movie tends to get unrealistic which is disappointing.

Why do filmmakers like Subhash Ghai show Indians as good people and NY people as bad people? Was a big question in my mind now even Rishi Kapoor feels the same in AALC which is very bad

I mean please the superficial way of showing America puts people off and in today's overseas audiences dominating times this isn't good

The first half moves in different lanes and the love triangle is done to death

and the second half gets better a bit Akshaye's realization is well handled and then the film ends well but the sudden change of the other son is too much

They are many problems in the film like the first half which moves in different lanes and not proper treatment is given to most of it

Rishi Kapoor directs some dramatic scenes well but he needs to improve his storytelling, overall a decent debut by one of the finest actors as a director Music is okay

Akshaye Khanna shines in his role, He was always a good actor but signed bad films those days Barring his receding hairstyle he leaves a huge impact as an actor Aishwarya is plastic as ever Rajesh Khanna is okay Kader Khan and Jaspal Bhati are good Satish Kaushik is funny Paresh Rawal is good

The movie as a whole was the standard fare with the story-line being as predictable as most India movies. I feel Akshaye Khanna's talent is being wasted by doing these kind of movies. He needs more intense role to prove to the audience that he can act and he not just there for his looks. Take for example the role in BORDER. That really was a demanding role as compared to the other run-of the-mill movies he is doing presently. I wish him all the best for the future.

Aa Ab Laut Chale is one of the most under appreciated films of the 1990's. The film really deserved to do much better business than it did, something I would attribute to some very poor marketing and release timing. Anyhow the film itself is quite entertaining and although as most Bollywood films it is bereft with cliches and an oft presented story line, it still succeeds in keeping the viewer interested and entertained. Rishi Kapoor in his directorial debut has done quite a competent job and I give him credit for not letting the film from becoming overly melodramatic as most such films from Bollywood. Almost all in the cast do a pretty competent job, although no one really stands out as brilliant. The music is quite good grows on you the more you listen to it. Rajesh Khanna in a non publicized 'sort of comeback' role, performs well but is hampered by a limited role. All in all it is one of the really better films of 1999.

Agreed this did not put up a very nice picture of indians.. but if closely observed through kader khan, jaspal bhatti and others the nicer side is also portrayed. I live in U.S. and have worked in an Indian colony just as shown and i can say that one can relate to the goings on immediately. Although the romantic track was underdeveloped. The emotional content as well as the comedy track was pretty good. Whenever i see this it leaves me with a lump in my throat and a feeling of going back to India immediately. Performances wise Rajesh Khanna is good.. Akshaye and Aish are okay... But the real fun is provided by Paresh Rawal, Kader Khan, Jaspal Bhatti and Satish Kaushik. Good Music with 4-5 tracks really good and a couple of passable ones with interesting undetectable choreography. And a must watch for Indians in U.S. working or closely connected with the Indian markets and streets there.. They will surely love it and once they see it they will know why.. On the whole wrongly received movie otherwise a very decent attempt by Rishi Kapoor..

This was actually a suprisingly good film. Not astoundingly original, but compared to the usual formulaic trash that succeeds in north india this had a few new ideas. The main plus points are the visuals - aishwarya is stunning and the shooting localities are breathtaking. Songs aren't bad either - brilliantly picturized, especially 'Meri dil tera deewana'.

Rishi Kapoor's directorial debut brings for the first time on RK films banner Super Star Rajesh Khanna. This movie was released after a five year exile by Rajesh Khanna. He appears in the movie as a character actor who shoulders the second half and climax of the movie. The movie has Vinod Khanna's son as the lead hero who is playing Rajesh Khanna's son who like his father Rajesh ( Balraj) runs away from his motherland to make money. He makes emotional blunders, cannot mix with the culture abroad, gets cultural shock and then mends his ways. He then meets his estranged father. The father and son then return to their home land. A good clean movie by Rishi Kapoor which should have done better if the editing could have been made crisp and some songs deleted to put in some action sequence which would have catered to the masses. Over all a good movie, good music, good location, good acting and over all a performance which cannot go unnoticed Rajesh Khanna, who plays his role as if he had never gone away. Let us hope we see him more often.

Its not Excellent however its a Good Movie, Different from a typical Bollywood Movie, A Good Family Entertainer, and also things to be learn, but for people who want ACTION sequences when not required, some HOT, SPICY scenes just for the heck of it, this movie will be a disappointment. Location and the cast were awesome, and the sets made in R.K. studio which were the NY Apartments were really a great job. The part which i liked was When Rohan is forced to reside with Indian cab drivers who take him in as a member of their family. The plot thickens when Rohan meets Pooja, a stunning Indian girl who is in the same predicament as he is and Loveleen, a spoiled rich kid with money to throw at Rohan's direction. The Story seemed to be losing Track sometimes however not so disappointing. Just to wrap up A GOOD MOVIE, WITH A MORAL.

Very good movie, watch to learn the importance of family and country.

I really wonder how it has been rated 5.5. This is 10/10 movie however minimum rating according to some shouldn't be lesser than 7/6.5 even by the critics.

A movie shouldn't be rated considering current trends but it should be rated considering the ERA when it was released.

Movie has strong content, powerhouse Cast. It's a complete powerhouse for typical Bollywood Lovers. Great movie from Soup to Dessert.

I have personally watched this movie almost 40-45 times in the course of 15 years.

Akshaye came up with Aishwarya to gift us this wonderful romantic movie. Hope such artists make more movies.

This is one of those Hindi movies which I see it whenever there is an opportunity. It's not a masterpiece like guru dutt's classics, but still good for me to watch. Marked by atmost average narratives, it depicts the tale of a person who experiences various ups and downs in life, finally finds his lost father since decades. An alluring story of a family which undergoes various troubles and finally all reuniting together. An optimistic, emotional and a romantic film in the end.

The story at heart is about a father-son relationship. The father leaves his family for earning a lot of money, marries again has another family. The son grows up, undergoes various struggles of unemployment, finds love in USA, experiences friendship, betrayal, realizes the cultural importance of one's life, finally finds his lost father that gives him the ultimate shock. Through a series of cross clashes the family is reunited as the climax. The acting, songs, cinematography are all average, but the uplifting point in the film is that of its contents. It truly but in a comic way, depicts the cultural differences between India and the West, also the characters are honestly shown in an unmodified way. That's praiseworthy.

Summing up it is far better than most of the commercial - hollow themed movies of today. This type of good movies have disappeared nowadays and it really need to be resurrected. Though a bit noisy and misses the serene narration but still is heavy regarding messages of human relationships, having an universal appeal too. 8/10 is for this criteria which saves the whole movie. A 75/100

Recommended.

Full of entertainment value consist in this movie. I loved all the songs of the movie what an energy and what the sound quality and sound track. Aishwarya Rai was looking so much so much so much beautiful this is coming Aishwarya is few of the first movie Akshaye Khanna acting was also very good he's a very brilliant actor and very underrated actor people know the talent of his acting just watch Humraj and other movies to justify it story was very good it is overall enjoyable movie anyone can enjoy. Nadeem Shravan music always very good. I don't understand why RK films did not produced any other film after 1999 they should produce more movies as you know Hina Prem Granth and many more Ram Teri Ganga Maili.

If you live In America or any other country then india you will relate to this movie special if you live in America everything is true the struggle and trying to get legal in this country everything is true