Audience Member
Since the movie is predominantly in Urdu, a language I don't speak, subtitles were a necessity, and fortunately the copy I downloaded had very good subtitles. It's a great concept; a Muslim and a Hindu, both disguised as members of the other's faith, go to Poland with the intention of blowing themselves up at an international religious (read Peace) festival so that the other faith gets blamed. A friendship develops, as does the rather ridiculous plotline, which is interspersed with wacky Bollywood dance sequences. A very fun movie, only spoiled by having to concentrate on the subtitles.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/26/23
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Audience Member
Gave up after a hour as the film was not particularly funny
Rated 1/5 Stars •
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
02/16/23
Full Review
mirza m
What thought crosses your mind when you hear about a film which portrays a comic take on terrorism starring the ever hilarious Riteish Deshmukh & produced by none other than Farhan Akhtar? Well of course hilarious results with a social statement underlining the film. But instead we get half baked film which seems too confused about which direction to take & how to use its talented cast in its favor. Some movies are made with the right intentions, this is one such film, the film had its heart in the right place. On paper the films story must have sounded amazing, extremely novel and different. But the execution is below average. Handling satire on current social, political and religious sentiments is never an easy job, at least not as easy as reviewing (bashing; in other word) other's films. With this film, noted film critic Karan Anshuman sneaks into the other side of the business now where he's all open to face the shots he's been taking at till now. And I stand in full salutation for him choosing a subject which is more than relevant in today's times. A comedic film on religion, a satire of such, ends up being boring at times. A film which was supposed to be about how humanity, & how peace is above any religion ends up giving a muddled message due to amateurish direction by a former critic Karan Anushman, at least critics now know its not easy to make film, as easy as it is to write. We desperately need to develop our abilities to laugh at some of the most serious issues in our lives. Satires act like catalysts in trial of that exercise. Sadly, the film promises a lot on that front but misses the target by large. Some serious smart writing, sincere efforts and unambiguous intention are all you need and not a buffoonery plot, chaotic climax and pretentious performances to save the day. Here Mr Critic disregards what he's been preaching all his life. The story follows two dim wits of polar opposite natures & religions Praveen Chaturvedi (Pulkit Samrat) and Hafiz Bin Ali (Riteish Deshmukh), residents of a fictional country know as Bangistan. A country divided by the war between two halves of the state which are called North and South Bangistan. In the North live all the Muslims and in the South side all the Hindus. When the head Hindu priest Shankaracharya (Shiv Subramanium) and the Muslim Imam Saab (Tom Alter) come together to make a peace accord they want to present in the peace conference in Poland, ruckus is created on both sides. Therefore then both sides unknowingly make a similar plan of sending Praveen, a Hindu devotee and the Muslim Hafiz as suicide bombers to Poland to stop the accord. Does this plan go through or not, is what makes up the rest of this comedic satire. Frankly the film does start well, while showering hints of satire in almost every scene, dialogue and frame but runs out of impressive ideas and additions soon after the successful take-off. The Islamic extremists are seen cursing America's policies against them sitting in an American fast food joint named FcDonalds. Well and good! The two chosen activists with switched religious identities and orientations for a fool-proof operation fights for each other's religious convictions is too quite exciting but soon, it gets stretched over its limits. Poking fun at popular international brands, ideologies, and stereotypes is what the film relies heavily on for humor from the beginning. That a fictitious country is torn between communal tension is a good base to make a satire. And there are a lot of of funny moments in the film. The whole spoof on McDonalds, Starbucks, call centers, making bombs etc are all innovative and funny .Many scenes raise laughs but there not enough for a comedy. But the film moves on to such unpleasant territory that is best described as moronic. The biggest problem with the film is that its comedy is all single- layered, meaning a joke is introduced and is taken forward until it transforms into farce (and travesty) and into hogwash and then finally spirals into an abyss of dark nothingness. Editing and direction are in gutters, and so is the pretentious screenplay. Basically, the whole film is Director Anshuman's imagination, and when one imagines things, success is always a presumed by-product. Unfortunately, nothing works in reality; not even those indigenously made explosives that they use in the film. The plot holes are in millions, plus during a fight scene towards the end, all limits are crossed and one realizes that these two hours will never come back. By the promos, one expects a hilarious laugh riot which sounded amazing, extremely novel and different. But what the film offers is a big let-down. The film runs with a snail's pace. The director is unclear whether he wants to deliver his message through humor and satire or moralizing lecturing. The problem with ??the film? is that it tries to be too many things at the same time. The film's promos promise a comedy however, the jokes soon start falling flat one after the other. Then the director suddenly decides to make a preachy film with a social message on religious harmony. It's ultimate undoing lies in its desperate lunge towards delivering a message in the climax (which was the saving grace). The music by Ram Sampath is good. The performances are quite a let down! Riteish Deshmukh is some relief and considerably 'at it' for the most parts. But its pretty obvious he has been miscast! He is an undoubtedly a good actor and deserves better script. Pulkit Samrat has been doing a good job so far, but here he goes over board in both satire & emotional scenes. Probably if both roles had been switched, it would had made more sense. Jacqueline Fernandez (credited as special appearance) is hardly there. Chandan Roy Sanyal is good. Aarya Babbar is funny at places. Veterans Kumud Mishra, Shiv Subramanium and Tom Alter don't disappoint, though are there only for few scenes. On the whole, 'Bangistan', fizzles as a film, with a good message at heart, the film could have gone places but instead ends up being unimaginative, unfunny, and ugly. One expects quality cinema from a guy who is a former film critic and who has a strong production backing, but after sitting through this film, I think other wise.
Rated 1.5/5 Stars •
Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Some movies are made with the right intentions,Bangistan is one such film, the film had its heart in the right place. On paper the films story must have sounded amazing, extremely novel and different. But the execution is below average, and films pace is extremely slow. A comedic film on religion, a satire of such, ends up boring at times. A film which was supposed to be about how humanity, peace is above any religion ends up giving a muddled message due to amateurish direction by a former crtic Karan Anushman, atleast critics now know its not easy to make film, as easy as it is to write.
The films story is about a fake state named Bangistan, its called that because of war between two halves of the state which are called North and South Bangistan. In the North live all the Muslims and in the South side all the Hindus. When the head Hindu and Muslim Priests of both sides come together to make a peace accord they want to present in the peace conference in Poland, ruckus is created on both sides. Therefore then both sides unknowingly make a similar plan of sending a hindu and muslim suicide bomber to Poland to stop the accord. Does this plan go through or not, is what makes up the rest of this comedic satire. If you want to know more rush to the theatres.
Acting wise Ritesh Desmukh and Pulkit Samrat do well in there roles, but the roles could have been written a little better,Others don't have much scope in the film.
Bangistan is not a completely faulty film, there are alot of of funny moments in the film. The whole spoof on mcdonalds, starbucks, call centres, making bombs etc are all innovative and funny .Many scenes raise laughs but there not enough for a comedy. One thing that stands out is the films locations, and production values, the screen always looks pleasing to look at, Poland seems beautiful.
Overall when I watched the films trailer a couple of months ago i had huge expectations, the film left me disappointed. But if you can take one thing away from the film it is humanity is above all. And the climax is actually well done, it might even make a tear or two flow down.
2.5/5* (.5 more for the climax) or 5/10
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
02/13/23
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