What can I say about New York?
It is definitely one of the most beautiful films to have released on the subject of terrorism and delivers a really thought-provoking message.
Let's begin with the small things such as the stunning cinematography. This movie's cinematography came with a superiority, each scene was shot at just the right angle to capture the mood of the moment. Whether it was a simple shot such as John searching Neil's bedroom or John hanging from 40-story glass building - each shot was spectacular. The music complimented the film very well and is not a bad hear outside of the movie either. I even like the background music, especially the electric guitar pieces. And some of the things done in the movie like the waterboarding torture, the college annual race, and John Abraham's grappling down a 40-story sky scraper were also worthy of applause.
Now to the acting: Whether it was Neil Nitin Mukesh, John Abraham, Katrina Kaif, Irfaan Khan, or that Muslim guy Katrina is trying to help out --> everyone gave their level best in this film delivering such strong and convincing performances. I think good acting also comes with good character sketching and thus I give Kabir Khan credit as well in the acting department. Each aspect of each character was very closely looked at and dealt with carefully. Whether it was the "Fresh off the boat" character of Neil, the Indo-American characters of John and Katrina, or the nuances of a long-ago immigrant like Irfaan --> the dialogue as well as dialogue delivery of each of these characters gave that outstanding performance I am mentioning here. Take Irfaan's character, Agent Roshan for example: He's been in the country for 15 years working with Americans. He knows the American way to talk english and he talks the American english as well: but he still hasn't lost the "accent" that he probably had even 15 years ago. Or Katrina --> how she spots out Neil Nitin Mukesh in the crowd for the first time in the typical way an Indo-American would (see the film - its too long to tell).
Moving on to the story, dialogue, script, and overall movie. I could've also said, "moving on too Kabir Khan." What a brilliant story with so many excellent, yet very realistic twists and turns making the entire movie gripping from the very beginning. I already mentioned how the dialogues were so perfect for each character. The crisp story-telling shines: each scene has a purpose and each scene is intense or fast-paced, but nevertheless very engrossing. Plus, I like the various and different situations Kabir Khan shows: for example, the scene with the mugger, the scene with the cocaine dealer, the scene where Neil shoots a guy, the investigation scenes w/ Neil & Irfaan, the chase scene (where FBI chases down the muslim guy), the annual college race scene, the torture scenes, the scene with John hanging on the side of a glass skyscraper, and there are so many more!!!
Overall, you can't ask more of a movie. Its entertaining, engrossing, gripping, thought-provoking, sab kuch hai yaar!