#Haider doesnt belong on the shelf with Maqbool and Omkaara. My recommendation - watch the first half to savour some of this filmmakers greatness, then walk away. Clearly, Vishal gave the second half to an intern, and/or was off his medication. Sloppy continuity is just one of the seven plagues that infest Haider. Notable is the scene where Tabu is talking to Haider after he has interrupted his uncles serenade. The front and back shots were distractingly off. That, and a disregard for time, distance and Physics as was seen in the bloody finale; The different shots,the distances between the players and their interactions, all do not add up to the final destruction that is seen. Old militants pulling out assault rifles to engage in a showdown for something that is not their fight? - too bizarre. As much as i admire dancing, and Shahid moves on air in the song Bismil, it doesnt belong in a film adaptation - the stagecraft and bulbul ne ye kiya aur wo kiya lyrics carry a misplaced nautanki flavour. The writing for the chutzpah feature is totally chutiyapa. The conception of roohdaar is lazy and unsatisfactory, as are the supposedly incestuous overtones in the mother-son relationship. I appreciate the awareness created about the Armys role and the people who have been disappeared, but this is not a documentary film and i cant let that aspect add to the films merit. Discrete pieces that are praiseworthy - Tabu Tabassum Hashmi is hauntingly brilliant, the music is great as an album, the locale shots breathtaking - especially the avenue of fall colours when Shahid Kapoor and Tabu have a heart-to-heart, and Shraddha Kapoors convincing portrayal. Ill pretend that Vishal Bharadwaj has not yet completed his Shakespeare trilogy. His third film is still just a twinkle in his eye. And he is at his desk, working on it.
Posted on: Mon, 13 Oct 2014 11:49:41 +0000