Reviews

Sharmin Obaid's animated follow up to her Oscar winning documentaries is a well-made animated feature that pays homage to some epic Hollywood animated films, all the while remaining firmly grounded in Pakistani culture and ethos. The team behind '3 Bahadur' has been successful in crafting an end product that stands firmly on its own and indeed, stands tall. The story revolves around three kids who are bestowed with super powers that allow them to battle the evil that's holed up in the town's clock-tower. The symbology in the movie -- from the eccentric goon practicing Bharat-Natyam (a noted leader of a political mafia in actuality is known to sing in his speeches and has on occasions also danced), the well meaning 'chowkidaar', the only sane male (Imran Uncle) is hard to miss. The way the town passively submits to evil taking over also has very real parallels. The movie's central message is for the kids to, unlike their adult guardians, never passively submit to a wrong. This is a strong message and the team behind the movie has to be lauded. Sheraz Uppal's tracks are icing on the cake. And lastly, it was a delight to see a theater packed with kids, chaperoned by their parents and some adults. A sequel is on the order.

Going into the theater at a high-end multiplex, I had high expectations from the movie. Apart from having a 9.5 IMDb rating, the movie had garnered much critical acclaim, which given the high level of cynicism among Pakistani critics is a rare feat. I am happy to say that this movie sets the tone for Pakistani cinema that (hopefully) will follow it. While it attempts social commentary, this movie is not a polemic diatribe against the system like "Bol" or to a certain extent, "Khuda Ke Liye." It's goal is to entertain and the movie does just that.

The story revolves around a small-town team aspiring to make it big and a player who aspires to reach the level of the legend that's Shahid Afridi. They find their coach in a framed and banished former cricket hero played by Humayun Saeed. No prizes for guessing where the story heads from here -- there are the usual love interests, the villainous rival team, a broken-family subplot and so forth, but all of this is executed with panache and the acting and script writing is decent. However what really works in the film's favor is some solid supporting performances from Nadeem Baig, who shows what acting greats are made of, and from Hamza Ali, who infuses some verve into the proceedings. The music score ably supports the production. Special mention to the the song-and-dance sequence at the start, which is nothing short of sensational.

The script does have a predilection for resorting to character stereotypes (which are incorrect), however given that MHSA is a first time effort by majority of the production team, this can be forgiven. Syed Noor, Shoaib Mansoor and the rest of the Lollywood old-school gang should take a lesson or two from the movie and start infusing some energy and verve in their cinema, because the audience generally pays to be entertained and not lectured.

Rating: ***** (1 additional * for being the first and getting so many things right)

This film makes interesting viewing, primarily for its novelty value of a horror film coming out of Islamabad. The story, as you would have read in the numerous other reviews is about a group of teenagers who on their way to a rock concert lose their way and end up encountering zombies and being chased by a mace wielding freak. The gore factor in the film put me off, there's plenty of raw flesh and blood at display here, some of the shots would cringe any sane, humane individual. Apparently, the director takes great pride in this disgusting quality of the film. However, to instill fear in the audience requires much more than probing, poking and twisting of human flesh, intestines etc. And thats where the film doesn't work -- it grosses you out rather than actually scaring you.

However, the film does hold your attention in parts, and the acting by the ensemble overall is pretty good. The actor playing the Christian kid and Roshanie Ejaz deserve special mention. Rubiya Chaudry is clearly playing herself here and her comfort level shows on screen. Some of the photography is pretty decent too. However, there was no need for the theatrical vignettes into the family lives of the characters. Towards the end, you do root and feel for Roshanie's character and the credit for that goes entirely to the actor's performance and screen presence as the screen writing here is rank amateurish. Well, the makers probably didn't feel the need to have a taught script given most of Zibahkhana is a zombie-attack or an extended chase sequence.

On the whole, this isn't bad if you enjoy watching dead corpses, rotting remains of animals and take pleasure in the more disgusting aspects of this world. Next time, we hope that OAK would use a decent scriptwriter, many of which are to be found in the underutilized Pakistan showbiz scene. And yeah, we need to see more of Rubya and Roshanie.

Bad acting, some terrible dialogue, and it drags for close to THREE HOURS...this film should be an embarrassment to anyone and everyone involved with it. I mean, the plot, which is a ridiculous one involving reincarnation anyway, is diluted by too many sub-plots and useless characters that make the film delve to never seen before depths of awfulness. Bollywood directors really need to understand that a sane, reasonably educated and informed individual can NOT buy the crap comedy, done-to-death dialogues and mothers who behave ABNORMALLY! This is clearly a badly made film with bad actors, but the lead actor really takes the cake for I've never seen a person carry a single expression through an entire film! As for the ladies, they are worse. The music is terrible with most songs sounding like horrible spin offs of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan compositions.

This film is not even worth the celluloid it was shot on, forget about your price of admission!

First things first. I knew how this film would end prior to watching it, yet in noway was I prepared for the emotional punch it packs. I've never cried this bad after watching a film, and the credit goes to the film makers for making a film which draws that kind of reaction from the audience.

The story is simple enough -- The good son Faizan (Ahmed Butt) happens to be a bright kid and wants to live up to his father's dreams of making a grand career and improving the way of life for his family. Mum and dad wait eagerly for that day, until one fine day, all their dreams are shattered as Faizan is implicated in a crime while writing his exams (watch to find out how that happens!). Dad dies of shock, mom goes insane, while Faizan ends up in jail until he finds a friend cum benefactor cum mentor in the influential cellmate Zaigham (played by Saud). Zaigham gets Faizan out of lock-up, and Faizan has only one thing on his mind -- to get his revenge on those who destroyed his and his parent's dreams.

The story does have tons of plot holes, but the good acting, great background score and at times effective cinematography do help it in making it a pretty engaging experience. However, there was NO need for the cheap comedy sequences (fast forward material, basically) and some awful songs (Where do you see "pop stars" performing like that in Lahore, dammit???). The film suffers technically, some of the crane shots are jittery and the lighting is shoddy in certain shots too. The use of multiple cameras would have definitely helped too. But really, if you watch it till the climax sequence, you'll be in for a surprise. The climax - mainly due to some effective scriptwriting - is seriously an emotionally draining (no pun intended) experience, and puts the rest of the film into perspective if you have not been able to make sense of the previous proceedings. Like the other reviewer said, if you love your parents, you'll cry like mad.

On the whole, good job by Shehzad Rafiq. Rukhsati was effective enough, but badly executed. This is a marked improvement. Ahmed Butt has made a solid debut, I only wish he actually dubs his own dialogues in the next films he stars in. On the actress front, Meera and Zara both do a decent job portraying their respective characters. But this film belongs to Shafi Mohammed who makes a solid impact in his brief role -- he makes a great cinema debut. We need to see more of him in films definitely. And the film makers in Lahore need to take a few notes from this film. And you should definitely be well stocked with hankies and napkins before you watch Salakhain!

This movie was the sensational hit of 1998, marking the debut of 2 of the current leading actors of the Pakistan film industry - Moamer Rana and Gia Ali. Packed with great drama, a gripping story and exotic locations, it's popularity was truly deserved.

Gia Ali plays the role of a Mauritian girl with her ancestral roots in Pakistan. She goes on a visit to that country and is bowled over by the love and care she gets over there, eventually falling for a guy who helps her around in Pakistan. Against the wishes of her Indian mom, she decides to marry him and drama ensues.

Some nice cinematography and beautiful music make watching this movie all the more worthwhile. Highly recommended!

On a more somber note, this movie unfortunately was the last one Yasmin Ismail acted in - she was suffering from cancer through the course of the film. She did a fabulous job as Gia's mom.