Mary Kom

I have read a lot of criticism of this film lately. Many critics commented that the film lacked a proper melodrama and screenplay could have been bettered. Well, I also felt the film lacked certain punches in the screenplay; but overall, the film is a very sincere effort to present the life story of a sports person. I simply found three very strong reasons to admire this film.

The first reason is the story. Very few Hindi films have done justice with the real life characters. And this one fully handles the story of a north Indian girl who defies her father by choosing boxing. Bollywood recently lacked good stories in its films and "Mary Kom" just sincerely fills the void. The second reason is its clarity in presentation. The film nowhere compromises for the formulaic sequences and remains truthful to its backdrop. Very few directors dare to make a complete sports movie which this does. And the last and the most strong reason is the performances. Though Priyanka doesn't look like a North Indian girl she steals the show by appearing ferocious boxer and a loving mother. Perhaps this is her second best film I've watched after "Fashion." Similarly, Sunil Thapa and Darshaan Kumar in very unpolished roles also do deliver good performances.

Well, don't go with a great hype for this film. It's simply a good and a naturalistic film in a dearth of good movies. Trust me, you won't leave your seats with a scorn.

Rating: 3 stars out of 4

What's Good: Priyanka Chopra's career best performance. What's Bad: Dramatic climax.

Bollywood always follow a trend of success.Since past few years the most successful genre is Bio-pics like Chak De India, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag and now Mary Kom.This year only countable good movies have entertained us and most of them are women-oriented like Queen, Mardaani, Mary Kom.It seems like these women-oriented flicks are coming out at right time, as i have witnessed during the screening after the last punch the ladies gave standing ovation to Mary Kom.Mary Kom is about how a poor girl from Manipur made her way to top against all odds.Her struggle, her passion, her madness, her love towards Boxing made her 5 times world champion.Mary Kom might not be the best movie as it contains many flaws but still it stands strong just because of Priyanka Chopra's superb performance.She has held entire movie on her shoulder, she has given more than 100% for this bio-pic.

Performances wise its only and only Priyanka Chopra. She is totally into the character and this is by far her career best performance.Supporting cast like Darshan Kumar, Sunil Thapa,etc are nice. Omang Kumar's direction is decent but it could have been better looking to the hold of the script. Music goes with the flow, cinematography is top-notch.

Overall its a feel pride movie. Can surely recommend one-time watch.

No, this isn't 'Million Dollar Baby" and No, this isn't "Bhaag Milkha Bhaag" too. But it literally reveals you the real Mary Kom: A Boxer, A Fighter, A Wife, A Mother and A Gentle soul. It works because it has got heart at the right place and it's the moments which makes it a 'feel- good' cinematic offering. Despite following the same (read,overdone) structure which many sports theme based films worldwide have used and even some of the crucial parts which have literally been extended, just for the heck of generating extra emotional factor, the film at some extent, succeeds in showing the Struggle, the Nepotism, the Red-Tape and the hope in an entertaining manner which makes it a worth your buck. Based on the Boxing legend MC Mary Kom, the film, within it's compact cinematic constraint scores because of it's supporting characters, especially Suraj Thapa, Rajni Basumatary, Shishir Sharma, Darrshan Kumar Singh and Lin Laishram who brilliantly add support to the protagonist, the hard-hitting dialogues penned by Karan Singh Rathore and Ramedra Vashishth with an excellent Manipuri touch by Bijou Thaangjam, the comes a canvas-like cinematography by Keiko Nakahara, editing by Rajesh G. Pandey and Sanjay Leela Bhansali is somewhere quite classy, the production design work by Vanita Omung Kumar and then the BG Score by Rohit Kulkarni. Full marks to Priyanka Chopra, who showcases the best of her energy, stamina and excellence on screen, carrying the film brilliantly on her shoulders. Overall, despite having being strayed in between in showcasing the best of Magnificent Mary, director Omung Kumar at some extent, succeeds in showcasing the legend and her times, which makes it a must watch not only for entertainment, but for some new energy, some 'feel-good' factor and even the need of having more focus on our other Champions.

This movie is a huge disappointment. Billed up to be one of the most heart wrenching tales of winning against all odds, the result was a very highly dramatized offering. A good parameter to judge biopics is how much the viewer feels inspired after watching it and this film fails miserably on that account. Right from the start, the supposed hardships of Mary Kom do not ring true at all, thereby making it extremely hard to root for the protagonist.Though in the second half, this is somewhat salvaged by portraying the problems of a mother of two making a comeback to the coaching arena. Add to that the dramatization of many elements, making the whole movie feel very unnatural. The boxing scenes themselves are very bland and we rarely feel the tension that usually accompanies matches in good sport-movies.

Expectedly, Priyanka Chopra carries the movie and gives a good sincere performance. If only the role had been a bit more of substance, she could have taken it to greater heights. All the supporting characters, particularly the husband, though relatively unknown play their parts well.

First time director Omung Kumar should have worked a lot in making a tighter script. The dialogues are also very uninspiring. The effort of making a biopic on a woman sports person is appreciable but the result is not.

P.S: The product placements of various brands in the movie is really annoying.

Many times when you watch a movie especially a biopic which has an inspiring story you may overlook the flaws and technicalities, such was my experience with "Mary Kom".

Debutant Director Omung Kumar brings life the story of Boxing Champion "Mary Kom". The story & screenplay of Saiwyn Qadras charts the journey of a daughter of a simple farmer Mangte Chungneijang from Manipur to becoming the 5 times World Champion MC Mary Kom or Magnificent Mary as she is called.

Saiwyn's screenplay is shaky in the beginning but concludes on a high note. The first half looks more like a collage of incidents in Mary Kom's life put on celluloid with no cohesiveness in the narration and everything is shown in a hurry which does not have any emotional connect, but in the second half the movie takes a 360 degree turn in the narration and shows us Mary Kom's comeback after becoming a mother. The second half the narration shows a lot of depth and emotions which are depicted well concluding the movie to a high octane dramatic end. Though a lot of people will find the climax a bit dramatic but the bottom-line is at the end it strikes the right cord and you come out being proud of Mary Kom and her achievements. The other flaw in the script is that it does not delve deep in the other character's storyline.

The dialogues by Ramendra Vashishtha and Karan Singh Rathore is good but quite inconsistent in the getting the language and the dialect right. Though the dialogues has a few Manipuri words being used but sometimes the dialect and language of the principal cast look a bit out of place especially Mary Kom's character.

Omung Kumar's direction is sincere and honest and it comes through in the narration especially in the second half. The one flaw in Omung's direction is his hurried narration; he should have paid more heed to the characterization of other principal characters other than Mary Kom's. Though being Omung's first film as a director and choosing a biopic as a subject really needs a lot of conviction, and he shows the spark as a director.

Performance wise it is definitely Priyanka Chopra all the way. She is sincere in her portrayal as a boxer Mary Kom, her whole transformation from a glam doll to a boxer physically right from the body language to the way she talks is to be seen to believe. Frankly I had my reservations about Priyanka portraying the role but she has really surprised me with her portrayal. Another stand out performance is of Darshan Kumaar who plays Onler Kom, Mary's husband the real pillar of strength in the boxer's life. Darshan 's underplaying the portrayal gives the needed depth required, an actor to watch out for. Sunil Thapa as Mary's coach does a good job.

I have to mention the makeup artist Subhash Shinde who really did a marvelous job of Priyanka's transformation to Mary Kom, minute details like skin pigmentation etc has been taken care of. The production design by Omung's wife Vanita Omung Kumar is realistic and convincing. Stunts by Parvez Shaikh and boxing choreography by Robert Miller bring the required authenticity and thrills in the boxing sequences.

Although it is not a "Million Dollar Baby", but it is definitely an applauding attempt which is worth a watch.....