RE: Cash - 2007 (03. August) - 2

Cash Review - Rediff

Cash can't do the Tango

They say money talks.

Cash evidently believes in brevity. A Little Less Conversation, as the King sang. Except in this film, the next line is cruelly paraphrased to: A Little Bore Action.

We're perfectly fine with senseless action movies. I put my feet up and completely grooved to Anubhav Sinha's last effort, Dus. Sure, it's a loopy ride, but we aren't looking for logic if the rollercoaster's fast enough. It's a genre Bollywood largely overlooks, and if it doesn't make sense, who cares? Neither does Die Hard.

So this review isn't a tirade against plot holes or item numbers -- we're more than used to overlooking both. We're not even going to assess the bloopers. It's just that this time the action -- which frequently flipflops into amateurish animation -- leaves you distinctively sleepy. The stunts are strictly okay, at best. And that just isn't done.

In essence, there are three diamonds, and six people -- capering around fancy sounding international airports -- out to get them. Fair enough. So let's have a fun and fast little heist shooter, shall we? Um, not quite.

The film moves sluggishly, pausing and slowing down to introduce its motley crew of insignificant crooks, with names like Uncle and Doctor. Each character is mentioned, zoomed into, and turned into a rough cartoon -- which looks better than the original, for sure, with bizarrely recoloured hair. So Riteish Deshmukh suddenly goes bright blonde. This happens a half dozen times as the plotless film continues to unravel.

We wait, schooled by many a heist film (or ripoff), for the set-up to end. Basically, we should meet the gang, know the heist, and have a little bit of backstory, all before the end of Act I. In Cash, the introductions bewilderingly go on and on past the interval, after which a climax is haphazardly slapped onto the film. Oops.

The debris from this disastrous film -- not to be confused with a disaster film -- will most affect the actors. Ajay Omkara [Images] Devgan turns into modern-day Shekhar Suman, all bicepped and unbuttoned and awfully wooden -- sigh, what price an actor pays for jumping from a helicopter. Diya Mirza's [Images] completely wasted, as is Riteish, who'll feel the maximum impact from this turkey. Finding a foothold as an interesting actor, this overwritten dialogue sees him falter, bad.

A still from CashConversely, Esha Deol [Images], Zayed Khan [Images] and Suniel Shetty, of course, are lucky to be cast in anything. And Shamita Shetty [Images] actually does well in the film, keeping a straight face and showing off her abs without looking ridiculous.

And a big grouse: the prettiest member of the crew is conspicuously absent from the opening credits; and the most talented actors in the film -- a maitre'd, an airplane passenger -- are kept away from the promos. Reprioritise, dude.

Is the film a rip-off? It's hard to imagine, considering there really isn't the remotest stab at a cohesive story. And while that was the case with Dhoom: 2, the wow-factor was slick enough. Here we stifle a yawn.

There is the occasional smart moment -- radio controlled airplanes, a man with a 'blurry' face -- but the scenes are stretched out, made overlong. In an attempt to milk a scene's potential, the film constantly overstays its welcome.

Cash could have been a ride -- if only they paid half as much attention to the script as they did to the title song.

Quelle: http://www.rediff.com/movies/2007/aug/03cash.htm

Cash Review - IBN

Anubhav Sinha's Cash leaves a very unpleasant rash

Direction: Anubhav Sinha

Cast: Sunil Shetty, Dia Mirza, Ajay Devgan, Ritesh Deshmukh, Zayed Khan, Esha Deol, Shamita Shetty

Okay, I've got a question for you - what happens when a bad film does well? The answer to that is, more bad films get made. This week's new release Cash is a perfect example of the point I'm trying to make.

If director Anubhav Sinha's last film, the very idiotic Dus hadn't turned out to be a hit, he wouldn't have been inspired to make another film on similar lines.

Now Cash is a heist film, but it's made with zero intelligence and no skill whatsoever on the part of every single person who's worked on it, barring perhaps the action director who's designed some cool stunts.

The film itself is like one of those mindless video games in which all characters walk and talk like robots, delivering lines that are so corny, even schoolchildren could come up with better.

There's a convoluted plot involving the search for a missing diamond, and a gang of crooks flown into South Africa to steal the damn diamond.

Sunil Shetty and Dia Mirza hire Ajay Devgan to pull off the heist, who in turn hires Ritesh Deshmukh and Zayed Khan to help him. Somewhere in the middle of this muddle, there's a very under-dressed Esha Deol who helps the boys, and on the right side of the law there's Shamita Shetty trying to nab the thieves.

Don't even ask me to comment on the screenplay of this film, it's got so many holes it would resemble a fishing net. The director's focus is clearly on the look of the film, giving it a slick, racy feel, even merging live action scenes with Japanese animation or manga.

But you know, none of that adds much to the overall viewing pleasure because very little of it makes any sense in the context of the script. The actors perform so mechanically and look so disinterested, I'm convinced they weren't paid to do this film.

It's films like this that give Hindi cinema a bad name. A film like Cash is the perfect example of exactly what's wrong with Hindi movies. It's a shame someone agreed to finance a film like this, and it's a shame that actors agreed to work in this film. But most of all it's a shame we have to watch this film.

I'll go with one out of five and a thumbs down for director Anubhav Sinha's Cash, the one star strictly for the film's superior technical values. It's a mind-numbing experience that you don't deserve to subject yourself to. This Cash left me with a very unpleasant rash.

Rating: 1 / 5 (Poor)

Quelle: http://www.ibnlive.com/news/anubhav-sinh...sh/46180-8.html

Also wenn man so die ganzen Reviews liest, fragt man sich doch ernsthaft, ist der Film wirklich so schlecht? Naja, ich werde ihn mir am Dienstag ansehen und dann werde ich mal mein Reviews zu Cash schreiben. :lol:

Cas Review - Mumbaimirror

Indecipherable trash!

FILM : CASH
DIRECTOR: Anubhav Sinha
ACTORS: Ajay Devgan, Zayed Khan, Ritesh Deshmukh

Since this film's songs began to appear on television a few weeks ago, I meant to check for my personal knowledge the lyricist's name. The hit-track reads, "Crazy with desire, You're my mind-blowing Mahia." There's another (the better one) that goes, "Cash meri aankhon mein, Cash meri baahon mein…" The credited writer is Vishal of Vishal-Shekhar fame, evidently much better with his music than with the pen.

Esha Deol in Cash
But as you enter the theatre, you realize that piece of writing is infinitely superior still for a film that is entirely unwritten. It's merely been shot. It's set in nowhere, and is truly about nothing.

At an early scene, the heroine (Shamita Shetty), an Indian High Commission cop in Capetown (or whatever it is that she plays), solemnly looks at her hero (Devgan, a top crook), and suggests her admission of love, "I love you more than possible." "Any less would not do," the hero shoots back. The leading lady thinks of an adequately poetic retort for a second, a confounded expression on her face, and timidly whispers, "Mind-blowing." She rushes away. You know from here on, the cushion on your multiplex seat will remain your only friend through the show.

Many minutes after, you find the airline passenger who's been narrating this film's story to a girl sitting next to a fairly tacky first-class seat. At one point when she interrupts, he says he cannot decipher his audience, and whether he should offer them a side-track or the main-track. This is possibly the screenwriter's voice. It would have helped to have at least a pretense of one "track".

The over-all concern here is centred on certain precious diamonds that's been passed on for generations across the seas, and five Indians who appear interested in it now. This heist where lone wolves send an entire city and its cops into a tizzy in a second is a top-secret operation. Such a top-secret plot that it's kept from us even by the end of the film.

As if the assemblage of world cinema's greatest actors on one poster wasn't an assault enough (Shamita Shetty, Sunil Shetty, Zayed Khan, the three top-rated talents in particular), you fidget on the seat-cushion to realise they're not even supposed to do or say much, if they're not on a bike, a sledge, or hanging from a helicopter. Between an unexplained car-chase, aerial race and gun-shot sequence almost every alternating minute, a B-grade wannabe film-tripper Kill Bill animation strip appears from the edit machine to introduce the actors the nth time, or repeat a given sequence.

It's a feat in fact, worthy of books of record, that so many man-hours, besides hard money could be expended for such little. The making of it should be the piece to watch out for.

There's good trash. There's bad trash. In between, a rare indecipherable pit, such as this one called Cash. Enough, it seems has been laundered on it. I'm sure you have better uses for your own entertainment bucks.

Quelle: http://www.mumbaimirror.com/net/mmpaper....1732750b2cf57be

Cash : Movie Review - Apunkachoice

You see! Stylish cinematography, slick editing and classy stunts cannot make a film. And that is all Anubhav Sinha’s Cash has got.

You don’t need to be a genius to know that a good, gripping story is the backbone of a film. An engrossing script supported by good performances by actors can do wonders to a movie. But alas! Anubhav Sinha has not realized this despite his years in Bollywood.

Sinha takes a couple of zany characters, a bunch of thieves and thugs, and he throws in a common motive for them – a set of priceless diamonds. He twists and turns his camera from every conceivable angle. He throws in an ample dash of stunts (supported by sloppy animation). Doing so, Sinha comes up with a film that is visually appealing, not a notch more than that.

In a nutshell, ‘Cash’ is all style and no substance.

The film tells the story of an ace conman Karan or Doc ( Ajay Devgan ) who hires a bunch of robbers to carry out a perfect heist of priceless diamonds in South Africa.

Each of these thieves has his or her specialty.

Danny ( Zayed Khan ) loves to battle the waves. He is a surfer. Lucky ( Ritesh Deshmukh ) is a skateboarder, and Pooja ( Esha Deol ) is the get-away girl. None can catch her once she is behind the steering wheel of a car.

On the other hand, there is a vengeful underworld don ( Sunil Shetty ) who is hell-bent on getting his hands on the diamonds. And there is gorgeous Aditi ( Dia Mirza ), a girl who believes in love, trust and loyalty.

And then there are also those who have been given the responsibility of the security of the diamonds. Shania ( Shamita Shetty ) is the feisty Head of Security.

What follows is a heist. But things go horribly wrong after that. There is double cross and treachery. Things boil to such a point that the winner will take the diamonds but the loser may have to lose his or her life.

Admitted that ‘Cash’ has its fair share of stunts and action (directed by Anthony Stone). But with the exception of a few scenes the movie hardly sets your adrenalin rushing. On top of it is the ridiculous animation of the characters. Each character is sort of given a designer makeover in the cartoon version.

Only performances by actors could have saved the film, but there, too, ‘Cash’ falters. Ajay Devgan is wooden. He just doesn’t put his heart into the performance. Sunil Shetty, as before, remains expressionless (despite putting in his heart). Zayed Khan and Ritesh Deshmukh are strictly okay.

Interestingly, it is the leading ladies who score better (so much for male chauvinism). Shamita Shetty is impressive and Dia Mirza is eye candy. Esha Deol is neither of the two.

At the end of the day, ‘Cash’ turns out to be a senseless action thriller. It is like a rollercoaster heading nowhere. Music by Vishal-Shekhar may hold some interest, but a lack of engaging script (Yash-Vinay) cannot be overlooked.

Better think twice before squandering your cash on this flick.

Rating: **

Quelle: http://www.apunkachoice.com/scoop/bollywood/20070803-4.html

Cash Review - IndiaFM

Okay, Anubhav Sinha unleashes his heist saga today -- CASH. Come to think of it, CASH is very similar to DUS. A plethora of stars, stunning locales/visuals, an energetic musical score and stylized action. CASH goes a step further -- it has animation too!

Sinha has mastered the craft and garnishes CASH well, but as you begin to savor the taste, you realize that the recipe isn't perfect. Perhaps, writers Yash-Vinay had the right intentions of making a chor-sipahi kahani, but the writing is just not convincing.

Where does the problem lie? Not with Anubhav Sinha, for the director is, without doubt, one of the most stylish narrators in Bollywood. The choice of subject is also right, but the writing lacks the meat to mesmerize the viewer. Clearly, the screenplay is the villain here!

Write your own movie review of Cash
To sum up, you expect a sangam of style and substance in CASH, but what you eventually get is style, style and only style!

CASH is a thriller set in Cape Town, South Africa.

The film revolves around an ace con artist [Ajay Devgan], who hires a set of topnotch robbers [Esha Deol, Zayed Khan, Dia Mirza and Ritesh Deshmukh] to steal a set of priceless diamonds in South Africa.

The group also faces a threat from underworld don [Suniel Shetty], who is after the same diamonds and also the Head of Security [Shamita Shetty]. How these three groups manage to thwart each other forms the rest of the story.

CASH bears an uncanny resemblance to some films. The concept of a guy hiring professionals to execute a plan brings back memories of SHOLAY. There's an uncanny resemblance with DHOOM 2 as far as the stylish stunts are concerned. Also, a number of individuals wanting to lay their hands on the priceless diamonds take you to SHALIMAR.

It's not blasphemous to be inspired by any film, past or present, but what the writers ought to know by now is that there has to be a riveting story at the end of the day. What you take back as a viewer is only style. The writing is unenergetic in the first hour, but the second hour, you've to admit, is far more absorbing. The marked currency notes and also the chase by the cops [Ritesh, Esha, with Zayed atop the speeding car] are pulse-pounding.

Director Anubhav Sinha does make a 'good looking film', but the writing curtails it from being called an engrossing saga. If Sinha deserves brownie points for making a visually enticing movie, all you want to remind him is that the viewer wants to listen to an absorbing story at the end of the day. As the captain of the ship, he should've ensured that Yash-Vinay gave him a smart screenplay that compliments his skills.

Anthony Stone's stunts are topnotch. A never-seen-before experience on the Hindi screen. Vishal-Shekhar's music is trendy and the visuals and choreography supporting the tracks make you exclaim 'Wow'. Ravi Walia's cinematography is mesmeric. The film bears a striking look all through. Dialogues are well-worded at times.

Ajay Devgan is not in form this time around. He looks unenergetic… something is missing! Suniel Shetty gets to play a role he has visited a few times in the past. Zayed Khan is strictly okay. The real scene stealer is Ritesh Deshmukh. Very confident and easy-going, he's sure to walk away with ceetees and taalis.

Shamita Shetty stands out. Esha suffers due to sketchy characterization. Also, her make-up makes her face look hard. Dia is far more appealing and enacts her part well. Ayesha Takia adds to the star-value.

On the whole, CASH has style, but rests on a thin plot and that is its biggest flaw. At the box-office, the film might attract the audience in its initial weekend, but a weak script will throw a spanner.

Quelle: http://indiafm.com/movies/review/12800/index.html