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Shah RukhShah Rukh wanted RA.One to be Bollywood's reply to Hollywood superhero films. In one of his pre-release interviews, Shah Rukh talks about how we are good at doing romance, action, comedy but somehow we fall short when it comes to doing a slick superhero film compared to the Supermans and the Batmans of Hollywood. RA.One was his attempt at a production that would bridge this gap.

If we are to go by Rajeev Masand's review, Shah Rukh seems to have achieved his objective:

Once again, it's Shah Rukh Khan's sheer presence and energy, coupled with the narrative's don't-stop-to-think pace that makes 'Ra.One' watchable despite its flaws. This is an event movie, a spectacle, not really a film. It's 2 hours 35 minutes of special effects, action sequences and superficial romantic and emotional entanglements. You can see the ambition and imagination that the makers have poured into this movie…

Khalid Mohamed's review on the next page>>

raone3Khalid Mohamed calls RA.One a thrill ride and seems to agree

Sayali BhagatA tell-all email that cast Big B as a villain has petered down to two players: a starlet and a princeling
It started out with an email sent by two-month-old Crème talent agency to various media houses, a virtual scarlet letter that went viral within hours. And not for nothing: the press release stated that former Miss India, Sayali Bhagat, was quitting Bollywood to pursue a modelling career in Milan. But this international move wasn't the only reason for her supposed flight from tinsel town. There were other reasons too: because Amitabh Bachchan allegedly grabbed her buttocks when she bent down to touch his feet at an event, tainting the servile namaste that the Hindi film industry is so keen on; because actor-director Sajid Khan was allegedly buck naked when he invited her for an audition for a role in Housefull; because Aarya Babbar allegedly took the trouble to click his genitals and packaged them as a neat MMS sent to her inbox.

This was the string of allegations on Monday

SRK: The complete entertainerShah Rukh has been on a promotional spree leading up to the release of his superhero flick. For the past few days SRK is everywhere, doing what the audience love to see him do- giving the Big B a massage on 'Kaun Banega Crorepati', talking about how reel and real life blurs at times with Barkha Dutt on NDTV, telling his biggest fan, Farukh about his childhood on UTV STARS' 'Live My Life'.

Love him? Hate him? But you just can't ignore him. The thing about SRK is that he is total 'paisa vasool'. He might turn up late for every promotional event but he is sure to entertain once he arrives, saying the right thing, giving the right sound byte and ever ready to break into a dance or do the 'Chammak Challo' number wherever possible.

I am not sure how seriously Shah Rukh takes himself as an actor but he sure does take himself seriously as an entertainer. While a lot of Bollywood actors might refuse to do commercials and dance at weddings, SRK has no problem breaking into a spontaneous jig on

'Dum Maaro Dum' has managed to create a lot of pre-release buzz. First it was the remake of the cult song — 'Dum Maaro Dum'; later the people of Goa were upset with the filmmakers for allegedly portraying them negatively, thankfully that has been put to rest before the film's release this Friday. The essential question however is whether the film will live up to the hype? And more specifically- will this film finally break Abhishek's jinx?

While at a recent press conference Abhishek appeared quite defensive, the Indian Express article says, "Moot the topic of his string of flops and a negative article in a certain national magazine and the actor retorts, "it does have a huge effect" it kills the confidence, it's embarrassing and degrading, but it makes me strike back too. Also, every five years some magazine or the other writes off a star, before me, they did the same to Hrithik Roshan, and we prove them wrong all the time."

Well, if he's preparing to strike back, it will be a welcome

TintinOne of the criticisms that came the film's way was that Steven Spielberg hadn't read Tintin properly when he considered adapting it to the big screen. That like most Americans he wasn't very conversant with the hero's European legacy. Fact is that Spielberg had initially responded to Tintin purely on a visual impulse; when studying French in high school he held a French language edition of the comic book series in one hand and a dictionary in the other. The other rue was that an American director making Tintin would do injustice to the character's European legacy, "the prism of post-war Europe" as an article in The Economist put it across.

A special preview of The Adventures of Tintin by Steven Spielberg proved that both these laments might have been a bit premature. For starters, even if the character of Tintin is quintessentially European, European filmmaking itself has neither the financial nor technical prowess to create the sort of gobsmacking spectacle that Spielberg's Tintin

A still from 'Rascals'RascalsCast: Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgn, Kangna Ranaut, Arjun Rampal, Chunky Pandey, Satish Kaushik

Directed by David Dhawan

Rating: *

Brand David Dhawan has always urged moviegoers to leave their brains at home. It's easy to pick a hole at this suggestion, who packs to go watch a movie, anyway? But assuming this was possible, can the remaining organs collectively make his movies an enjoyable experience? This is clearly an open debate for another forum. For now, 'Rascals' is yet another from the Dhawan stable that sticks to the staple ingredients that make his films what they're known for: silly gags, women in minimal clothing and rhyming one-liners which are usually insults. Having said that, don't expect anything more or less than just that from this one.

The film features conmen Chetan Chauhan (Sanjay Dutt) and Bhagat Bhosle (Ajay Devgn) who both spend some time conning others and then each other before landing up in Bangkok. Here, between trying to one-up each other, idiotically duping

A still from Love Breakups Zindagi

Directed by Sahil Sangha

Rating: **

There are some movies that don't surprise, particularly delight or even entertain but still leave you with little to complain. 'Love Breakup Zindagi' (LBZ) may seem like an excuse for a title by a lazy writer but it is just that kind of a movie. Unobjectionable yet not very appetizing. A bit like the relationship explored in the film. No adultery but no fizz either.

The film's lead pair is comfortably bored in their respective relationships. Delhi boy, Jai (Zayed Khan) plays tormented boyfriend to a girl who is a female dictator, and an extremely picky and fussy one at that. Yet his only complaint, "She's attractive, successful etc. But meri ghanti nahin baji!" This is Delhi-speak for, "I'm committed but I am still looking." Mumbai girl, Naina (Dia) on the other hand, has the most predictable boyfriend: career driven, successful and preoccupied enough to have

A still from ChargesheetChargesheet is a delicious, demented ride with a slutty line-up of starlets and ageing supremos such as Jackie Shroff and Naseeruddin Shah in very earnest performances

That it was screening at Fame Adlabs, Bombay's first multiplex that is now as gratifyingly derelict as a single theatre, adds to the avant-garde-ness of Chargesheet, Dev Anand's latest directorial venture. And equally delightful is the fact that Warner Brothers has released this marvel: you do see a gilded photograph of warehouses with a post-production ripple as a 'WB' languidly fades into vision. It is no rare feat for a man who clocked two fat ladies last week, complete with a cozy press gathering at the retro Sun-n-Sand hotel in Juhu. The man is 88, but the film is made with the pre-pubescent glee of an 8-year-old; its gaze is obsessed with the breasts of its actresses and the film goes that extra mile to showcase them from all angles.

A still from ChargesheetThe plot goes like this: Naseeruddin Shah plays a don who is so intoxicated by the