I watched it Thursday night in Dubai. I am sorry to say that this has been one of the worst movies I have seen in the past two years. Hugely disappointing to say the least. Agreed the star cast, director and the music made us come with exalted expectations but the final product was so much lesser than mediocre that it is appalling. The first half feels like a 5 day test match with the proceedings uninteresting, the acting seems forced (minus Abhishek) and the songs and set ups seem too far fetched and strange. The love stories between the two couples seems to happen all of a sudden and though a full hour is dedicated to develop these stories, the end result is not gratifying and at the point of interval, the viewer would be at the point of tearing his/her hair out. The first half does not have the ability to hold the audience's concentration and that is a big let down. The second half begins with the same tempo and though it tries to speed up the proceedings, it runs out of steam at almost the same time. The only enjoyable part of the movie is the last 12 minutes, though normally that would be mediocre but for a movie of this quality, the last 12 minutes seems to have been God sent. Jhoom Barabar Jhoom has an ensemble star cast but the ones who steal the show are the two Bachchans. Rarely has an actor won applauds in such a minor appearance than Amitabh in his appearance. All grace personified, he does not have much to do in the movie than take the story forward but he does it in such a delightful manner that after the dismal showings of the movie, his antics bring a smile on to the viewer's face. Simply superb, his get up is fabulous, he is one reason one could think of watching this movie. Abhishek lives his part to the tee and exudes vibrancy and enthusiasm that is contagious. His chemistry with Preity is not as electrifying as with Rani or Ash but it is watchable. He is one person who seemed to have had the most amount of fun on the sets and the comfort he shows in enacting his scenes is clearly visible. Kudos to Abhishek for this performance though one should not think of it as an award worthy. Preity Zinta looks jaded and seems to have not slept in the last 20 years. She offers nothing new than her earlier movies and is a big letdown. Bobby Deol plays his part with gutso but his character is so badly etched out that he seems confused regarding his place in the movie. It is a waste of his time and talent to have worked in this movie. There are loopholes to his character that are clearly visible and one grimaces to think of the way the loose ends were tied up. Lara Dutta is absolutely stunning. She is beautiful and sultry and acts her part well. Her French get up is sexy and coupled with the accent, it is quite sensual. Her act in the second half was routine but she clearly over shone Preity in the dance routines and acting in the second half. The much talked about Bobby and Abhishek chemistry is non existent and they make a mockery of the famous Sholay scene. Overall a poor fare to say the least. In the Box Office, thanks to the star cast and music, almost all centers will have a whopping business in the first week but then word of mouth will slowly start affecting the business.
