Luck By Chance

Is it just me or is Luck By Chance just a trifle overrated ?

Pick up any review about it and its plaudits and praise all the way - no brickbats in sight!

Yet it did not touch me at all - everytime I walk out of the cinema hall, something or the other about the movie usually buzzes around in my head. In most cases the movie is bad and I am thinking about where the director goofed up and how the scriptwriter was stupid. And once in a while when the movie is good, I am thinking about the more memorable sequences. But after a long time, nothing - empty, blank !!

However just because I didnt connect with the movie doesnt mean its a hopeless movie. Its a story about two two strugglers trying to make it big in Bollywood - Farhan Akhtar is Vikram Jaisingh, who is fresh from Delhi and Konkona Sensharma is Sona, who has been hanging around fringes for three years now. And surrounding them are a gamut of characters - producer, director, actresses, their moms, film journalists etc. One thing I appreciate about the story is that Zoya Akhtar has shown both sides of luck - how it can be both important and inconsequential. On the whole, the movie is quite competent and there are no major failings that I can place my finger on .... just that it didnt work for me.

I will try to think out aloud and list what I liked and what I didnt like about the movie - and you can decide for yourself. And did I mention there is a whole host of celebrities making special appearances in the movie ? I wont give out the names, but trust me, you will be surprised. They do add a bit of realism to the story - and make themselves look a little more human.

Positives for the movie include Isha Shervani - she is quite the revelation in the movie ! She hasnt been seen much after Kisna, way back in 2005, but she looks damn cute and attractive in Luck By Chance - she almost drips with freshness !!! She is so convincing is a star-kid that its difficult to believe she is not one in real life. The other thing that Luck By Chance got spot on was the characterization - Zoya Akhtar has to be commended for fleshing out ALL the characters in the movie - even the ones with just 2-3 scenes in the movie are rendered as believable - real - people (unlike Aditya Chopra's painful attempt in RNBDJ)

And among these, the best by far is Rishi Kapoor as the producer Romi Rolly. Javed Akhtar claimed that he had subconsciously modeled Romy Rolly's character on the different producers he has worked with - and it works !! Rishi Kapoor's performance is superb and you totally connect with the character.

Wondering if everything is so good then whats wrong with the movie ? Among the things that dont work, music is one - except for the Baawre and Sapno Se Bhare Naina song, rest of the tunes feel boring. Farhan Akhtar's average looks stand out a bit harshly in the movie - unlike Rock On where his non-hero looks made the character believable, here he just cant cut it as a standout newcomer! Same goes for Konkona - she just doesnt have a pretty face - and it stands out starkly in the dream love song. Apart from this, the movie moves quite slowly for the most part - and I wish they had cleared up the friend angle in the end. Is he jealous about Vikram's success, or does he like Sona, or is he just gay ?

But mostly, it doesnt work for me is because whatever happens in the movie is bit too understated - its hard to put it in words. I guess I expected a more lively movie - and while this is not gritty filmmaking, its a little sober for my taste.
I have to qualify that this is my personal take on the movie - most of my friends disagree with of and insist its a much better movie than the rating I am giving. But then after all, its my blog - I can say whatever I want :D

I would be extremely interested in hearing what you have to say about Luck By Chance - leave some comments if you agree or disagree.



I thought I would put in some words about Fun Cinemas as well - I watched it in Fun Republic, Andheri. We had a 25 min intermission in the movie - we were regaled with 4 full length Ghajini songs (audio only) before a barrage of video commercials. One or two commercials in a movie is the regular practice and is tolerable (even the supremely irritating HDFC Insurance ads). But at Fun Cinemas, it feels more like watching tv movie on Friday night - there is atleast 15 commercials shown after the 10 min intermission (note after, not between). And the same happened when we had watched 'The President is Coming' too. If I have to watch all these commercials, I might as well watch tv at home for free. Why should I pay Rs. 280 and then watch all this crap ? So take my advice and skip Fun Cinemas if you have a choice - if not, you have been forewarned