I'm going to get disbarred because of this, I can just tell.
But the truth must be told. I'm watching Hera Pheri and I just don't get it. Neither did Abby. We turned it off at intermission. I'm going to finish it, mainly because there are some people who are going to demand to know my full and informed opinion, and I don't want to let them down. But...yeah, I don't get it. There were a few moments that made me laugh, like when Paresh knocked a roof down on himself, several pairs of Tabu's shoes,
from which Sunil wisely runs and to which Tabu shares my reaction,
and Akshay's arm-flap/limp-wrist dance in "Jab Bhi Koi Haseena"
(please note here that his suit is the same color of the mango margarita I consumed during the first half of this movie) - you'd think he would've dream-sequenced himself a better dance, because if you're going to arm-flap, you should do it like "Woh Ladki Hai Kahan," and even then it's a risk because no song will ever be as good as that, so maybe we should just retire that move completely. Maybe it's because I'm relying on subtitles that are not as frequent or as accurate as they might be (and aren't in the songs at all, so I can only imagine what's going on with the flapping and limp-wristing, which I am going to assume is not a heavy-handed gay joke, since Akshay is imagining himself Studly McStudlypants here, although there is that bit with him ogling sunbathers who turn out to be men - wackadoo alert!). On the other hand, my movie-fuelled Hidni is improving by the day.
It should also be mentioned that Abby had a bit of an Akshay Kumar epiphany, mainly that she was in mid-sentence about how she generally enjoys him, especially on stage with his martial arts props, when he came splashing through the ocean on a horse, and she lurched gears into "I luuuuuurve him." All you have to do is put a man on a horse and she is powerless. Does anyone know of any scenes of Saif on horseback?
Okay. The movie is going back into the DVD player. The critical mass of popular opinion compels me to finish, and it's not as bad as Kyon Ki, which, as the only Indian movie I've ever jettisoned, is my unrivalled yardstick for truly bad.
from which Sunil wisely runs and to which Tabu shares my reaction,
and Akshay's arm-flap/limp-wrist dance in "Jab Bhi Koi Haseena"
(please note here that his suit is the same color of the mango margarita I consumed during the first half of this movie) - you'd think he would've dream-sequenced himself a better dance, because if you're going to arm-flap, you should do it like "Woh Ladki Hai Kahan," and even then it's a risk because no song will ever be as good as that, so maybe we should just retire that move completely. Maybe it's because I'm relying on subtitles that are not as frequent or as accurate as they might be (and aren't in the songs at all, so I can only imagine what's going on with the flapping and limp-wristing, which I am going to assume is not a heavy-handed gay joke, since Akshay is imagining himself Studly McStudlypants here, although there is that bit with him ogling sunbathers who turn out to be men - wackadoo alert!). On the other hand, my movie-fuelled Hidni is improving by the day.
It should also be mentioned that Abby had a bit of an Akshay Kumar epiphany, mainly that she was in mid-sentence about how she generally enjoys him, especially on stage with his martial arts props, when he came splashing through the ocean on a horse, and she lurched gears into "I luuuuuurve him." All you have to do is put a man on a horse and she is powerless. Does anyone know of any scenes of Saif on horseback?
Okay. The movie is going back into the DVD player. The critical mass of popular opinion compels me to finish, and it's not as bad as Kyon Ki, which, as the only Indian movie I've ever jettisoned, is my unrivalled yardstick for truly bad.
Comments
I've been on a quest since early spring, when I got hooked on Bollywood, to see as many movies as I can before the fall tv season starts and my viewing time will be limited. So far, after 80 some movies, I've only truly jettisoned one movie, and that was yesterday when I tried to get through Jaani Dushman. I know, but I saw it at the library, and figured what the heck. I made it to 30 minutes.
I doubt if it is funny - for example, I could not get the humor in Raising Arizona first time I saw it. :-)
Aswin - wasn't Hera Pheri inspired by a recent Manivannan movie?
Akshay's best movie in my opinion is Khakhee. Hope you watched it.
gg
I love your blog. I've recently discovered the rich undercurrent of western viewers enthralled by bolly. Your descriptions and the images are the best.
I can certainly understand your lukewarm reaction to phir hera pheri. It relies as much on its dialog/accent/regionalist quirks-stereotypes as on the slapstick. There's no way a subtitle can convey the twang of the texan accent or the lazy pull of the southern accent in US English, so I'm not surprised you didn't get it that much. I suspect you'll also not get munna bhai 2 all that much for the exact same reason.
Now that you are extremely familiar (yellow belt or better) with bolly, its time for you to learn serious hindustani!!! Then I can recommend you some super gems that for you have been covered by the dust of language...
And yes, learning some Hindi is in the works. I have a "teach yourself" book and CD, but I think I'd do much better with an actual class or structured tutoring. I need to find someone locally, which shouldn't be too hard. I also need to get over being intimidated by the script, which right now is really scary to me, even though rationally I know I can do it. Anyway, you can recommend me things any time, and I'll just keep a file if I'm not ready for them!