An Exercise In Nonsense

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

So, I just re-watched this movie after a gap of a decade, which lead to seeing it in a different way. And it's even better than I remember. The casting is on point, the acting is on point and everything is just perfect, from the locations, to the plot. A young man gets his final blow in life when his ex marries someone else. It is revealed that after his father passed away, his mother ran away with someone else, and he discovers his parents never loved each other. Even though he was rich, he was still a human. Then comes a bubbly Punjabi girl, Geet into question. I used to dislike Kareena because I felt she was too 'lewd' in her earlier roles, but she won me over with this movie. I knew this movie was an instant hit as soon as I saw the chemistry between the leads.There's never a boring moment in the movie, and the songs are pretty addictive too. Overall, its a very sweet movie, and we see how Anshuman takes Geet's love and sacrifice for granted. One could argue that Anshuman never asked her to do all that, but I feel that he never really valued her until she took a stand for herself and barraged him with abuses - which is again a classic scene. Even if she never met Aditya, she'd either waste her life away in the girls hostel or regret her marriage with Anshuman, who'd turn out to be an abusive jerk.Aditya's maturity is highlighted when he tells Anshuman how much Geet sacrificed for him. It does take a mature person to empathize, and see what others go through. In my opinion, Bollywood won't be able to produce a movie of this level ever, and the chemistry between the leads is just golden. That's why it gets a 10/10 from me.

Since I started watching Bollywood/Kollywood films, I've discovered that I don't like nearly all of them. Sometimes it's the actors (I can't stand Rani Muhkerjee) or the plots that veer from frantic fun to drama in the second half (Om Shanti Om) and I've sadly returned quite a few to Netflix after hoping they'd work for me as reviews. This time, I determined I'd just watch this one and not get my hopes up at all. And happily, that seemed to be just the ticket as I ended up enjoying it a lot. Kareena Kapoor is perfect as breezy Geet who can talk a mile a minute and usually has a cheery smile on her face. Her motto in life is live it to the fullest and only regret what you haven't tried. She works on the Law of Attraction and thinks that what you want to happen to you will happen to you if you want it badly enough. She's also spontaneous and fun and gets Aditya to join in even when he initially might balk such as when she decides this is the perfect time to jump off a dock into a shallow river. After all, you never know if such a chance will come again. Geet is a character you the viewer just have to relax and go with. Shahid Kapoor makes Aditya a likable and sympathetic guy. I never once sat back and thought "Oh, cry me a river, poor little rich boy." He does get irritated at Geet at times but quickly realizes she's opened up a whole new side of his personality and made him a better person. During the first half of the film, it's like watching a parched plant soak up water and come to life again. It's also obvious that he's starting to care for her and only leaves her (at about the halfway mark) because he wants her to be happy with the man she's said she wants to marry. The film depends on some misunderstandings to keep the plot going as Geet hasn't told her family about the first man she wants to marry for fear they won't approve and the family must believe there is a relationship between the Geet and Aditya during the final third of the film in order to keep throwing those two together until they finally acknowledge the fact that they're perfect for each other. However, since similar things are so common in romance novels, this didn't bother me too much. The film is fairly fast paced and intensely colorful in that wonderful way of Indian films. There aren't that many musical numbers but I found myself liking the ones that are there. They're fun to watch, the lyrics are good and the beats had me bouncing along and trying a few dance steps much to the amusement of my kitties. Some Bollywood film dances are starting to look more like pole tryouts at the local strip club but with the (slight) exception of the final number, that's avoided here. "Jab We Met" has the flavor of Hollywood screwball comedies – watch for the wild taxi ride Aditya takes Geet on in order to try and get her back to her train – rounded out with a touch of "she makes him a better man" depth. The 155 minute length seems to zip by and for much of it, I had an almost permanent smile on my face. Looks like I still need some help refining what I like in Bollywood/Kollywood films but this one is a winner for me.~Emily

Honestly, this movie is great and one of my all time favorite Bollywood movies. It is simple and sweet and the performances delivered both by Shahid and Kareena Kapoor were terrific. Their chemistry is so real and beautiful. Jab We Met is a movie that can be re-watched and enjoyed every single time. I'm sure it will be a classic Indian film for a long time. The movie strikes the right balance between comedy, romance, and a bit of drama to make for an enjoyable watch. Also, Aditya Kashyap's (Shahid Kapoor) transformation from depressed, moody businessman to a cheerful and free man is really well done and believable. Overall, I would recommend to anyone.

Surprise SurpriseI saw the promos and felt this is another run of the mill type of Kareena film but i was wrongThe film is a nice film though similar to A WALK IN THE CLOUDS(remade earlier as KUNWARA and DHAAI AKSHAR PREM KE) The film is well handled by Imtiaz Ali in whose faith i saw the filmThe Shahid-Kareena interactions would be boring had it not been handled well by himThe entire journey is well handledthough you get to see certain convenient situations and clichés and flaws but such films are from the heart and not the brainThe turning point is well handled and the entire Shahid trying to get Kareena back is well handledBut the sudden change of Anshuman's character plus the entire last 20 minutes do spoil the show by simply dragging the film Even Anshuman becomes a jerk suddenlyImtiaz Ali does a great job after SNT Music is great, my favorite is TUM SE HI Camera-work is greatShahid is a surprise, often the actor just played normal youthful films and has the tendency to overact or copy SRK but here he shows a diff side He acts subtle, effective,mature The first scene is proof of his growth Kareena too is fantastic, often known for overacting though she did a great job in some films here she shows a different side to her and she is flawless Tarun hams and irritates Pawan Malhotra gets out of his terrorist image and does a great job Dara Singh irritates