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99 Film Review

There are films where you dont feel like entering the theatre post-interval. Not even with the caramel flavoured popcorn and coke. And this week’s release 99, directed by Krishna D K & Raj Nidimoru, is one such film. But in this case, the reverse is true. Its all about the second half.

After sitting through the boring first half, where actually nothing happens, its difficult to enter the theatre again for the 2nd half. (NOTHING means absolutely nothing ) Its all about set up in the first half.  Setting up the characters, their traits, locations and the back stories.  Its almost a never-ending loop. The same events again and again.

If you manage to sit through the 1st half, please make sure that you enter the theatre for the second half. Because the story moves in this half.

The year is 19-99. Two guys ( Kunal Khemu & Cyrus Broacha) with bad luck, who always get stuck at the crucial point before hitting the century, get into the messy business of cricket, betting and mobile rings. Its a con job with loads of fun, atleast for them.

And thats why the year ( 19-99) is significant. The year when mobile rings and betting scandals made the headlines. There is a great story idea there but the execution is so bad that everything seems dry and half-baked. Kunal and Cyrus, who end up working for the local don ( Mahesh Manjrekar) because of their bad luck, lands up in Delhi for some paisa vasooli. But its not what it seems, things go wrong, they meet the wrong guys and desperately look out for ways to get it all right. Enters Boman Irani and Vinod Khanna, the cricket maniac and the betting king!

Kunal-Khemu’s interaction with  Soha Ali(as hotel executive) is so amateurish that you will cringe at their every interaction. Its the same story with Boman Irani and his wife, who are trying to sort out their marriage issues, it again goes in circles, scene after scene, they talk the same shit.

Mahesh Manjrekar as the local don, Cyrus Broacha as Khemu’s partner in crime, and Amit Mistry as Kuber steal the show. 

Watch it, because there is nothing else in the theatres. And dont worry even if you enter post-interval. Infact, you should pay half the ticket price and enter post-interval only. And yah, the delhi destiny song is the best thing about the film.

Rating – 2/5.

 Btw, Rediff’s film critic Raja Sen makes his filmy debut with this one. He is credited with the dialogues alongwith two other writers. We wonder what happened to Raja’s great cinematic insights on film writing. And here is Raja Sen trying his best to sell 99. And Here is how he came onboard. Sencity is sin city now!