AE DIL HAI MUSHKIL Movie Review
AE DIL HAI MUSHKIL directed by Karan Johar, starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Fawad Khan with special cameos by Shahrukh Khan and Alia Bhatt. Ayan (Ranbir Kapoor) has a passion of being a singer after dealing with heartbreak, Alizeh (Anushka Sharma) has a past she has not moved on from, an ex. Ali (Fawad Khan) is the ex who wants her back whilst Saba (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan) an independent divorced poet wants to continue with her life single and not want to fall in love. A story of these characters linking with each other one way or the other but all have the same problem, love. But love plays a game with them all as it may not end the way they would individually want it to. Crossing paths with another, will love finally stick or will more altercations occur in leaving one with another heartbreak? Ae Dil Hai Mushkil takes you on a twist and turn with some realistic and sophisticated interactions between characters.
POSITIVES
Ae Dil Hai Mushkil touches upon love, romance, break up and pain guilt. It was showcased with finesse allowing good character developments, ensuring a strong performance by the cast to appear on screen. The screenplay may not have been the ideal outcome and despite the film seeming stretched, the story was engaging enough to allow a well-crafted film to come together whether it is through the visuals of characters more than the dialogues itself.
The filmi references from previous Bollywood movies were a delight to hear and see them being inputted in to the scenarios occurring in the moment. The chemistry of Ayan and Alizeh being film fanatics surfaced quite good in their relationship and that is what was making these references more entertaining.
Karan Johar’s methods of storytelling through this film were praisable, he inputted a good form within his filmmaking, giving it a polished and fancy feel to the film incorporating good scenery and visuals to admire. But not all significance is given to the background scenery, huge amounts of emphasises has been targeted to the characters and their expressions and that was a standout.
The background scoring is another bonus to this emotionally dipped film, it gives another reason to value the drama. The backdrop sounds are fitting and just bring a sense of sadness at all times.
NEGATIVES
The film was shady with flaws at times, the director has tried to interlink other stories to circle around this one couple whose relationship as friends is pulling them back to reuniting again and again. But the script is not strong enough to dictate so much for the audience to intake at the end. With such twist in the climax, easily it was becoming too rushed with the outcome giving the viewing experience to almost become disrupted.
Despite enjoying the filmi references from previous films, it would have been good to have something new to cherish and make that dialogue just as iconic. I felt that film did not leave memorable dialogues that were not noteworthy and something as an audience, would be able to recall instantly. Visually the film as fancy but the dialogues were not the best, just average along with the script that had potential but too much was inputted and tried to be adjusted for viewing.
The biggest let down in the script was the first part of the film where the chemistry between Ayan and Alizeh is just too cool and free minded yet when the triangle starts in the relationship, it is Ayan who is affected the most leaving him to swallow the hurt. I did not feel on screen that enough chemistry was built up for Ayan’s character to get so demolished the way it did mentally and emotionally. With so much character development occurring, the development was missing in the chemistry to a certain extent.
CAST
RANBIR KAPOOR – The guy does no wrong, he has this aura of putting so much emotions through his expressions and he nails it in this film. He showed a variety of expressions that made him a standout from the rest. He compliments well with all the stars on screen, his interactions with Anushka, with Aishwarya Rai, both scenarios bringing a different side out of Ranbir and that was a pleasure to watch. He is able to tackle the screen with his performance and for me made him the best from the rest.
ANUSHKA SHARMA – The loudness in the film that is a delight to watch, she is uplifting and a bright presence on screen. She throughout tries to keep at the same wave length, even in the climax with the breaking news, she maintains the persona she had from the start, maybe just a tad bit slowed down due to the circumstances but she manages to showcase her naturalist side on screen and sticking to her acting, not becoming over the top.
AISHWARYA RAI BACHCHAN – A strong independent divorced character, she was doing well in keeping Ranbir grounded even though she chased a bit of escapism through Ranbir. Looking stunning and glamorous, she is able to take control of the scene and help carry the film along with Ranbir through another story that has emerged.
FAWAD KHAN – A DJ who did not get much character elaboration and only got the screen space to showcase his acting capabilities openly when he meets Ranbir Kapoor to talk about what has happened in the past. Here Fawad was able to stamp his claim with a striking presence and produce a minimal acting exposure as he had too little to do, not enough to be remembered as a standout.
RATING
Overall I would rate Ae Dil Hai Muskhil 3/5 as the film had so much potential, several nice moments but some that you would question and with all the buzz around it, I felt I wanted more from it. Firstly, the story was interesting, it was intense and it had so much sentiment in it which was good as the characters did justice to it but it needed to be scripted more better with flair and not leaving something so dramatic with so little screen time. It does not go down too well like that. I loved the performances, the characters did their roles in a strong and pleasant manner so credit is heavily set out to them. Directional aspects the film was shot well and cinematography was brilliant as it is complimented well with the background score that was incredible. I was let down with the way things initially felt too slow paced and then another twist coming in towards the climax, that was too rushed. It just felt as if scenes were pin pointed in to add more drama than what already was evident. I would say this is a good cinema watch, but with all the hype around it, but the film gives you a character who is drifting in and out of suffering emotionally, the film takes you on his ride of dealing with it. Just wished the film had better execution through the narrative.
By Jasmeet Panesar
