Good concept, poorly executed.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

Well, this is typical Madhur Bhandarkar stuff, which pretends to be of superior quality but in actual fact is just another junk. A predictable film which aims to explore the world of life in a jail through the story of a good guy wrongly accused and jailed for no fault of his own, and well it cannot get more boring thanks to the poorly written script, and the stereotypical characters. Bhandarkar likes to explore, and devote each new project to another field, but his research for this film is marred by his own, erroneous and highly immature interpretation of what he had probably studied. The proceedings just do not ring true, and not once do you get reminded of those old Hindi films which portray the judicial system as totally corrupt. Neil Nitin Mukesh is just not convincing enough. He was a nice new find back in Johnny Gaddaar and the only film in which he managed to leave a mark for me was Saat Khoon Maaf. Otherwise in this film he's left struggling with what seems to be a great lack of acting chops. He often looks wooden, awkward, even though he does have his moments which sadly are few and far between. Mugdha Godse is just there in the role of a girl who is frankly too good to be true. Manoj Bajpai is wasted as the self-righteous prisoner. Jail just doesn't word, better avoided.

a movie from Bollywood about jail life.jail 2009..its about a man gets framed by his friend & ends up in jail .the crime & its aftermath is shown here. how the life inside bars is hell if you have been there,.this movie is one time watch & shows the lead actor Neil in his best & other actors are also good.sex,crime,police etc etc etc.i didn't hear the soundtrack so don't know about it..anyway just watch it in a free time.its not that good movie.you can skip if you wantmy rating is 4/10.

Despite its grim setting, director Madhur Bhandarkar's Jail is his least cynical film in years. Neil Nitin Mukesh stars as Parag Dixit, an innocent man implicated for a crime he didn't commit. Much of the film is centered around Parag's frustration and helplessness as he struggles to stay sane and alive amidst hardened criminals. Like the director's earlier films, Corporate, Traffic Signal and Fashion, his latest too is a slice-of-life drama about the characters and the way of life within the world he's chosen to set the film in. This time though, Bhandarkar ditches his trademark exposé approach and settles for an emotionally-manipulative tone instead. The script of Jail packs in every cliché you expect to see - distraught family struggling to raise money to pay lawyer's fees, jailer venting about his thankless job and meager salary, even a hit-and-run accused who gets off easily because of his influential connections. But despite the clunky writing, it's a relief to see Bhandarkar empathasise with his characters rather than exploit them for cheap titillation like he's done in earlier films. In a very simplistic and roundabout fashion, Jail is about hope and making the right choice, but the film is too formulaic to make a hard-hitting statement. Of the cast, Neil Nitin Mukesh plunges sincerely into the central role, but is at best adequate as the anguished victim. Mughda Godse is unselfconscious as Parag's distressed girlfriend, but has very little to do in a stereotypical part. Arya Babbar plays it broad and is convincing as the top aide of an underworld fixer, but the same sadly can't be said for poor Manoj Bajpai who glowers and glares as Nawab, Parag's only ally in prison. Bajpai's solemn turn adds to the dreariness, making Jail too long and too slow in the end. Because it's well-intentioned and settles for a hopeful message, you stay with the film despite the fact that it's never quite compelling.It's got its heart in the right place, but sometimes that's not enough.

Some may call him pretentious, exploiting, sensationalist and heavily biased but that doesn't change that Bhandarkar dares to tackle themes that others would hesitate to think twice about. That said, 'Jail', sadly, offers nothing new. It's pretty much the familiar story of how a wrongfully accused man spends his years in prison. Bhandarkar could have pushed the boundary by portraying the horrors that take place within the three walls but he has opted for a safer formula this time. Moreover the background score makes the atmosphere melodramatic rather than adding anything positive. Neil Mukesh shows improvement as an actor. With a well-written role and maybe good direction, he might be a competent actor but there are a few sequences where his acting is formulaic. Manoj Bajpai is underused but he manages to outshine anyone who shares his screenspace. Arya Babbar is first rate. This actor shows great potential. Mughda Godse makes the best of her small role. The music is foot-tapping (but much of the songs aren't even needed). 'Jail' is average at best.