Well at least it didn’t for me. Going in what can be regarded as late in the week to watch this much-awaited flick, one comes out pretty unsatisfied with what is offered
The movie’s got spirit, I’ll give it that. Some of the music will actually have you rocking and swaying for a while but it doesn’t last for long. The songs are as usual, one too many and it becomes tiring after awhile. Most of the music is good (wouldn’t expect anything less from AR Rahman) but not particularly hummable. The track Saada Haq has the true rockstar feel to it though and will probably stay with you long after the movie is over
Rockstar addresses some issues in a typical Imtiaz Ali’sh no-nonsense, straight talk manner. Jordan (character played by Ranbir) is a terrific character that has been well handled for the most part. However, the love story in the movie doesn’t seem to fit in well and a lot of aspects seem unconvincing or rather, confusing. In fact, one of the major issues is that it almost seems as if the director had two separate scripts in mind - one that dealt with the spirit of the artist and the journey of his life, the other being a true blue love story and he ended up trying to meld the two. One wonders if this would have been a better flick without the love story thrown in altogether, or at least presented in a different manner. As it stands though, the love story is supposed to be at the heart of all that happens and you’ll just have to convince yourself about that
If you watch Rockstar, watch it for Ranbir Kapoor. Rockstar gives him the perfect canvas and he makes the movie his own. If he was impressive in Rajneeti, Ranbir acquires a whole new level with Rockstar and executes a complex character to perfection. Jordan’s anguish, confusion, frustration and anger all come across perfectly well and Ranbir looks the part all through. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the female lead, Nargis Fakhri and that becomes a problem in such a movie. The female lead has an important role to play but it becomes too much for Nargis to pull off. Her dialogue delivery is not up there and while she looks pretty all throughout, she isn’t able to do justice to scenes that need her to emote and express herself.
The biggest issue of them all is the runtime. Clocking at 2 hours 50 minutes you reach a stage where you almost grimace seeing Ranbir in a concert, because you believe that this will lead to music, a song, some melody where again time is lost but the plot doesn’t move forward. Editing seems to be a key concern here
One of the highlights is the appearance of the Late Shammi Kapoor and one is reminded of the loss of a true legend. There are some scenes of directorial brilliance especially when Imtiaz lets us peek into Jordan’s true state of mind and shows the invisible bond between the two leads but the movie lacks the tight packaging that say, a Jab we Met had. At the end of the show, while we rejoice at Ranbir’s fabulous performance and the equally spirited music, one doesn’t feel that they’ve been given quite their due – the wait for a good movie continues…
