Good idea lost in the noise

Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

Finally saw the movie in a jam packed house.....jam packed even at such a late date....... its a DAMN GOOD MOVIE I saw it because so many people around me were praising it ,and could not resist the pressure to see it from them.Its a movie in which action has been mixed with some doses of emotion ,a combination that has delivered past success in Bollywood.Ajay Devgan certainly well suited for the role of Haji Mastan ( called Sultan Mirza in the movie ),the good-hearted smuggler ( the word DON is reserved for Dawood ),who loves Bombay like his sweetheart.........but still has the space in his heart to accommodate his real life sweetheart ,to the extent of marrying her when he learns that she has a heart problem ,something that he is reluctant to do earlier.Emraan Haashmi plays his role of the invincible dawood confidently ,and certainly looks like him in many scenes ,especially when he puts on goggles......and when he smokes....... .Like many people ,I too don't like him ,but his air of supreme confidence and crooked looks and acting see him through.The relationship between Kangana and Devgan is beautifully built and Kangana looks good as the actress turned gangsters moll.Prachi Desai looks lovely .Randeep Hooda is well positioned as the lean and handsome cop who has the unenviable job to choose the lesser of the two evils........and as teller of the tale he regrets to tell.......as he has made the wrong choice........The music and songs are not just truly hummable ,but also sentimental ,and perfect for the situations.The ' innocent 'era of the seventies is well created ,with bell bottommed trousers ,and old hundred rupee notes shown .........also seventies hairstyles........and above all ,when the goons were relatively reasonable people who did not interfere in each others territories...........and smuggling meant gold , not drugs........and Pakistan was as foreign to Muslims as to Hindus.I particularly liked the way Emraan Hashmi's betrayal of Mumbai is juxtaposed with Devgan's love for it ,and Devgans attempt to keep its streets safe for its citizens.At the end of it all ,I really wished that a man as gallant ,and above all ,as large-hearted as Sultan Mirza had been really alive to save my city......

Its an out an out stylish electrifying crime thriller which reminds me of the good old 70's cinema. A movie full of magical background score, powerhouse acting by Devgan and Imran and above all super cool dialogs (listen to them carefully, they are the real winners). The movie portrays rise of smuggler Sultan Mirza (Ajay Devegan) in the Mumbai crime scenario. Sultan is a stylish smuggler who made money by trafficking the contra-bands and used his might to help out the downtrodden. Sultan loves Mumbai and wants it to be clean and for that objective he cuts a deal with other operating crime lords and distributes the areas of Mumbai among themselves so as to bring the inter gang rivalry to an end. Because of his larger than life image, many youngsters start to idolize him and among them is one small time thief, Shoaib (Imran Hashmi).Shoaib is a son of a policeman and does not have much of a future yet wants to reach to the top and live a luxurious life and for that he is ready to anything. Soon he crosses path with Sultan and starts working with him. Soon Shoaib rises in ranks due to his daredevil attitude and a shrewd mind and wins the trust of Sultan. He soon becomes the close confederate of Sultan. Where Sultan had some principles for life, Shoiab has none and thus when Sultan leaves his temporarily leaves his Empire, he entrusts Shoiab with the responsibility.However, because of power and money hungriness of Shoaib and Sultan's never compromising attitude towards certain principles, both head for a showdown.Though loosely based on the lives of legendary smuggler Hazi Mastan and his protégé Daud Ibrahim, this flick takes creative liberty to tell the story with many imaginary sub plots yet the director is able to maintain the realistic feel to the movie. However, the end is bit clichéd but then "who is complaining"!! A worth a watch for the style, panache, background score, decent performances by Huda and Kangna and once again, for its dialogs. So till the next time, "Duaon me yaad rakhna"

Ajay Devgan rocks in this movie. a must watch movie. Excellent. You seldom get period dramas in Bollywood which are not about historical characters. This year that way has been very lucky that way. Couple of months ago we had Badmaash Company and now we have Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai. Of course both are completely different from each other, the first being set in the fast 90s and the latter being set in colorful 70s. And director Milan Luthria makes enough efforts to make OUATIM look very authentic and worth a watch for its settings.Settings apart the film has its pluses with some superb performances and great dialogs. However the problem with the film is the not so new storyline and the very slow screenplay. Though the characters are well established and well rounded the writer takes the entire first half to do that without much movement in the story. And then as you expect fireworks in the second half it fizzles out too fast.OUATIM is the story of two gangsters. While one was ethical the other was reckless. It has inspirations of the characters of infamous smuggler Haji Mastan and now infamous don Dawood Ibrahim. The film is about Sultan (Ajay Devgn) who labored through his childhood and became a smuggler as he grew up completely ruling the sea routes. He however always preferred keeping the city clean and never smuggles which was against his conscience. Shoaib (Emraan Hashmi) is inspired by Sultan's life as a child and wants to it as big. He is a son of a police officer but has no inclination towards the law. As he grows up he makes his way to Sultan's gang and proves himself good enough to go up the ladder fast. However his reckless ambitions soon outgrew Sultan and he decided to take over the city on his own.The story is built on the line – 'behind the myth is the city's greatest betrayal story'. The screenplay does not give much importance to the betrayal. The slow pace of the first half could be a put off. Also funnily Sultan and his girlfriend Rehana never seem to age as they continue to look the same even as Shoaib grows from a child to rustic young crook.The film has its pluses. Luthria has taken care of everything – right from trains to cars to sunglasses to shoes to buildings! Everything takes us back to the 70s. Luthria handles the dramatic moments well and great use has been made of dialoguebaazi. All actors have come up with some memorable performances. Ajay Devgn's overpowering presence is matched by Emraan's charm. Kangna Ranaut and Prachi Desai do their bits well though they don't bear many consequences on the story itself. Randeep Hooda is effective as the police office.Overall, 'Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai' is an entertainer. It does not need any effort to be understood of liked. It is the mere magic of characters created that makes this film worth watching.

Ajay Devgan play well the characters who are perpetually plotting,chain smoking and incessantly drinking who have an eye for beautiful women. Here he looks like he just came from dhobi-Ghat with starched white shirts-and more white shirts-gift from Rehana (Kangana Raut). Kangana who looks good as a vintage actress gives Sultan Mirza a watch (you wear it on your wrist-it will will work with your veins) I have no idea what this means but when you are looking at a petit and beautiful actress it harldy matters. As far as music-two numbers ("Pee Loo" and "Tum Jaa Aaye")from Music Direcor,Pritam, are good. The other good acting is by Randeep Hooda and Pricha Desai. There is something seriously lacking in this Mob-Pic, namely the dialog and the direction. Emran Character (Shoaib) is week and acting not upto mark. The movie is a fair-watch.