User reviews

I must tell you right up front, I am certainly NOT an authority on Bollywood films and have only seen a handful. However, if you've never seen one, DON'T start with this one! I have greatly enjoyed the ones I've seen up until this one, but I just couldn't stand this one. I also must tell you up front that I could not finish this film--it was that annoying. So why was it so annoying?

1. There is a character named 'Rambha' in the film. He is even more annoying than Jar-Jar Binks--which I never would have believed would have been possible. He is so #@^!# annoying!! He spoke in a falsetto voice and I think was meant to be comic relief. Instead, he just grated on my nerves and wanted him to die...slowly! His voice, his mannerisms and his obnoxiousness--he just didn't seem to shut up and dominated every scene he was in--and he needed to die!

2. The heroes had the amazing ability to dodge AK-47 bullets with ease. I kid you not--there was a scene where several unarmed guys took on a small army of guys with these assault rifles!! And, again and again, they avoided taking a single bullet AND beat up the ruffians!!! This made Stallone's actions in "Rambo II" look mundane!!

3. The film was so gosh-darn loud, in your face and intense--it practically made my brain bleed!! It was as if the film were made by people under the influence of meth!! Crazy camera angles, INTENSE music and action, action, action...this movie is clearly designed for someone who can't take a movie with plot and wants nearly 100% action.

4. The two main characters and their actions and motivations made zero sense...none whatsoever!

Perhaps if you are the most ardent action and Bollywood fan you can stand this film, but as for me I can see why it's on IMDb's infamous Bottom 100 list. Wow...this film is bad AND intensely bad!!

What on earth has become of our dear Ramu? Is this the same man who made Sarkar, Satya, and Comapny? I refuse to believe so. If AAG was Ramu's most ambitious project, he has clearly jumped off the high cliff he has ascended by giving the industry some of the greatest works of all times. This movie is made to fall like a brick. I was cringing to leave the theater, but I was forced to sit because I wouldn't have been able to take my car out of the parking lot before others also left. Else, nothing would have made me sit beyond interval.

This movie is nowhere close to Sholay. It doesn't even come near it within a mile. I believe Ramu surely loves The Godfather more than Sholay, since Sarkar was a classic piece of work. I read Ramu's interview a couple of days back, in which the interviewer said that Ramu doesn't sleep for more than 4 hours a day, that too not at a stretch. I completely agree with this now, as his lack of sleep has probably taken its toll on the movie.

There is no power in the performance. Amitabh Bachchan doesn't even look scary. He looked more terrifying in the few posters and wallpapers I saw earlier. Ramu's favorite Nisha Kothari did a fantastic job in Sarkar because she didn't have many dialogs (in fact none if I remember clearly). She opened her mouth in this movie, and has found a place in history. The new guy playing Jai's role seems to have that brash look, but didn't manage Jai's role at all. I cant go on... Im sorry... my pain is too big for me to manage right now.

I promised myself throughout the movie that I will watch the original Sholay once more just to see that it is still there.

Bottom Line: Horrible movie. The media and critics are going to cook Ramu's goose. And just to remind all readers once more, I am one of the biggest Ramu fans, and even I cant spare him for this act.

If you have seen the Sholay of 1975, Don't watch this movie. If you have NOT seen the Sholay of 1975, Go WATCH IT. But do not watch this movie. This movie has all the ingredients that could possibly have gone wrong with making a remake of Sholay.

Amitabh 'Babban' Bachchan plays the role of a psycho villain to the best (Probably the only 40 mins of the reel that shouldn't be burnt). If you remove the rest of the movie and just watch amitabh play around with his character, it would still be worth a watch. But as Insp. Narsimha, Mohanlal doesn't do justice to his talent. Ajay Devgan(Heero) is extremely mundane and the only reason i think, they cast Prashant Raj in the role of Raj is because he has a striking resemblance to Amitabh of his young days. Sushmita Sen carries herself well, with grace and make-up. But the award for the "WORST performance and any role till date" must go to Nisha Kothari. She manages to degrade her acting to such levels that even high-school drama would would outshine her performance.

If you have a mortal enemy, take him to this movie. :)

Something somewhere must have terribly gone wrong right at the time when the director was perceiving this plot. The movie, that was supposed to be the remake of one of the most loved movies in cinema, fails to deliver in every aspect of movie making. The best of the artists could also not pick up the tuning, that simply goes on to show that the movie in itself was a grave mistake.

The editing is poor. Direction is crap. Acting is out of this world(omg)! The characters who are supposed to look scary force people to laugh on the stupidity of their dialogues and costumes.

I wouldn't watch the movie even if someone paid me the cost of the tickets or even gave me a free burger with it.

i saw the film and i got screwed, because the film was foolish and boring. i thought ram gopal varma will justify his work but unfortunately he failed and the whole film got spoiled and they spoiled "sholay". the cast and crew was bad. the whole theater slept while watching the movie some people ran away in the middle. amithab bachan's acting is poor, i thought this movie will be greatest hit of the year but this film will be the greatest flop of the year,sure. nobody did justice to their work, including Ajay devagan. this film don't deserve any audiences. i bet that this film will flop.

"FINALLY THIS MOVIE SUCKS"

What's happening to RGV? He seems to repeat himself in every movie. Has he run out of creative ideas? If he has, time to take a back seat. Went to see the movie with great anticipation - of course not once did I imagine it would be anywhere near the original. I knew it wouldn't, the promos said it all. But even then I thought it would be a great RGV treat, after all isn't he the same guy who directed Sathya and Company? Or is he? I have my doubts after watching Aag. I am not going to talk about the plot or the story, as most of it is taken from the original, if you are really dying to go and see this one, you could play a fun game with friends: identify the scenes from the original one and give ratings of your own! So Veeru becomes Heero (how corny is that?), guess Heeru wouldn't sound that great. Ajay Devgan is quite a disaster as Heero, the comedy is strained and the slurred talk that really was effective in Company sounds fake. The chemistry between Heero and Gunghroo (Nisha Kothari) doesn't exists at all. In fact the more charming Nisha tries to be the more irritating she becomes. This reaches a peak by the end. Raj is in fact not bad as compared to the others, he is a guy to watch in the future. I was really disappointed with Amitabh Bachchan as Babban, he looks like a caricature of Gabbar Singh. There is a scene where he is drinking something from a bowl all covered in a shawl, instead of inspiring fear he looks like a beggar with his bowl. The only performance that really stood out was Mohan Lal as Inspector Narasimha. I am afraid I don't have the patience to write more.

Ram Gopal Verma has proved himself as a very innovative and competent director. He had done a remake/reworking of Godfather with Sarkar, and succeeded tremendously. Ditto for Lolita which he made as Nishaabd.

Sholay is been the movie he repeatedly says has inspired him the most. Unfortunately, he has managed to make a disappointing and ultimately boring remake.

The acting ranged from decent to very good, with Amitabh Bachchan being suitably menacing as the villain Babban.

The songs were awful and forgettable. The Mehbooba Mehbooba song came off as a second rate music video.

The worst part was the pacing, and the dialogues - which were forgettable.

Watching the movie in a theatre, I found myself waiting for the intermission, and then for the ending. Some viewers were wise not to wait, and were seen leaving throughout the duration of the film. Ultimately, one of the worst movies made by Ram Gopal Verma.

If the scale went negative I would be happier. Seeing Sushmita Sen was nice, and Nisha Kothari has a bright future but the producer and the director ruined any and all enjoyment in this story. The choice of angles, choice of lighting and well everything distracted from trying to remember what is the story. Oh, if the songs and dances haven't caused you to rip your ears off your head, first. The film could have been made twice at 1.25 hours, and been pretty good, kinda like "Seven Samurai" but the director and writer didn't go that direction, even if the "townsfolk" finally find their backbone and want to help. This movie fails on so many levels: editing, writing, photography angles, style, lighting, script - name any aspect of this film - it was BAD - probably the food from the caterer was bad too. I have never in 6 years of watching Indian (Bollywood) movies seen something this badly made.

OVERALL PERFORMANCE :- At last the long waiting AAG hits the screens. Unfortunately, it couldn't set progressive fire in the audience. The first best thing to talk about the movie is The idea of remaking the mighty SHOLAY. And Varma made a nice choice of changing the total backdrop of the movie. If he repeated the same Ramghad backdrop, people will again say there is nothing new in this. Different background is appreciative but the way he presented it is not worthy. Right from the start of his career with SIVA in Telugu, he had been using the same lighting and kind of background. I seriously dunno this guy Varma considers about lighting or not or may be he has no other lighting technique other than like gordon willis GODFATHER. It's all DUTCH DUTCH DUTCH DUTCH. Why would some body use so many Dutch angles and extreme closeup shots!!!!!!! The shot division is lame. Characters couldn't carry an emotion, performances are not to their mark, Storytelling is worse, Background is really really terrible.

Babban:- Amitabhz been over prioritized to his job. VARMA produced great villains like Bikumatre, Bhavtakur Das, Mallik Bhai but this time he failed in carving the all time best characters of Hindi Cinema. There's no comparison of Gabbar with Babban. Babban is a more psycho rather than a villain, still he has a soft corner for his brother ( It's a gift in this movie). Amitabhz performance is not to his mark. His appearance itself is pathetic. The scar on his nose, symbolizes forgotten villains of black and white cinema. What ever they worked on Babban is not successful. Babban is no comparison with Gabbar.

Narsimha:- The first best thing about this character is not to put audience in suspense about his hands. If varma did that , it would be like teaching ABCD to a Bachelor degree holder. Itz good he opened the secret early. But the flashback is pathetic. Varma couldn't use a great actor like mohanlal to his mark.

Durga:- The only character with betterment. This character has been improved with satisfactory changes and was used according to the story.

Heroo, Raj, Ghunguroo:- No body bothers or at least considers these character. The utter failure of movie starts when director could not work on the close friendship between our heroz. These characters carry nothing to this movie.

RAMGOPALVARMA:- His quality is degrading, diminishing. AAG totally can be treated as a C grade movie. Sholay is a fire of revenge, problem of a town, meaning for true friendship and highly appreciated nuisance and fun by Dharmendra. AAG never carried an emotion with its characters. Storytelling is too weak that it could not make audience feel sympathy for the characters. Don't compare AAG with sholay, still u will not like it.

If you dare watch this movie. You will be burnt alive in RAMGOPAL VARMA KI AAG

This is by far the worst movie I have ever seen in the cinema!! Could not wait for it to end. To make matters worse it is given a 12A certificate so you do not see anyone getting shot, just bodies slumping to the ground, even Babban getting killed was cut out!!! Too many scenes were cut to bring in the younger viewers as I think the makers knew it would flop disastrously!! Amitabhs acting was great but that 'Basanti' wannabe and the other idiot who plays Devgans mate can't even act. Devgan was wasted!!

I would not watch this for free again and I advise all others who read this to do just the same YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!

To paraphrase Anupam Kher after the much anticipated film "Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja" bombed big time "When a movie becomes hit, anything and everything about it is appreciative..... however when a movie sinks, you will see it laden with flaws". Sholay both old and new is the best example.

There have been numerous attempts where classics have been touched (Devdas & Don) and emerged victorious primarily because extra precaution was exercised. Even interpretations like Maqbool & Omkaara (and Bergman's Romeo & Juilet) were acknowledged and applauded. Wonder why RGV couldn't see it coming... Vinaash Kaale Vipreet Buddhi!

A lot of has typing skills have been put to test so I won't go much that route. Every frame shouted "FOUL!" and yes, the only magical moments were when Big B appeared in the frame. He gave more than 100% but one swallow doesn't make a summer. Also it brings up a million dollar question: can Big B don the antagonist hat at all?

In the process of construction of scenes, the emotional content has gone missing. For instance, why worry if Thakur shaves or not. In the first viewing these nuances doesn't matter. Only in repeat viewing, the human mind begins to play devil's advocate.

To paraphrase Big B's lines from Silsila "Main Aur Meri Tanhai Aksar Yeh Baatein Karte Hain, Tum Hoti Toh Aisa Hota, Tum Hoti Toh Waisa Hota, Tum Is Baat Par Hansti, Us Baat Par Hairan Hoti....."

The interpretation of Aag is on similar lines... "Yeh Hota Toh Kaisa Hota... Woh Hota Toh Kaisa Hota!!" IMO - Aag was a result brain-storming exercise with RGV playing chess on both sides.

RGV's Aag is one of the advanced movies for it's released time coz it's made in a retro + B movies style. RGV deliberately gave that style to the movie. Unfortunately, the Indians are not ready for retro + B genre. He made this in that style because already lot of movies have been branded as remakes of sholey such as china gate(though it's a remake of seven samurai which again was an inspiration for sholey), mela....

What do you think RGV who gave us films like Stays, COmpany, and Bhooth is such an idiot to make a B movie without his knowing? The answer is he made it deliberately with style i.e., RGV's stamp.

Even the global audiences are not ready for this kinda movies coz the recent grindhouse was a flop though it could be enjoyed.

So, what i want to say is that do not say sholey cannot be remade as the fact remains that it could be remade but it cannot be as big a hit as sholey was.

Here, I hats off to RGV for giving us a fine piece of film making. As for the performances, i thing, every actor is superb in his own respect. Yes, Amitabh has given stellar performance but Mohan lal has given no less than a powerhouse performance. In fact, Mohan has given Amit run for his money.

One more thing, Nish is so funny in the movie esp'lly with her Tapori accent and she has improved her acting skills. Come on guys, what do you expect from Aag, a classic. See the title which itself suggests its contents inside.

Aur haan, this is not a biased review, just in case you think so. Honestly, I am a hardcore fan of RGV's, but still this is a genuine and careful review. ANd, I am not angry on anyone while writing is up.

Keep making movies, RGV!

ill give it an 8 out of 7 because of guts...RGV has the guts to make a remake of a 1975 classic bollywood film...Whatever you do, do NOT compare this film with the original..While the story is the same, the setting and everything is completely different.Either way RGV knows what he is doing...The first part of the film was great, but the second part could have used some improvement in the when it comes to execution...I have always said that RGV is one of the best film makers in India alongside Mahesh Bhatt, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, and Vishal Bharadwaj....From Shiva(1989), satya and company, to kaun, bhoot and sarker, RGV definitely knows what he is doing...There are many scenes in this film that stand out...Amitabhs intro (Babbans) was brilliantly executed...The acting could have also used some improvement...Amitabh and mohanlal were amazing but the rest of the cast was just OK...Ajay devgan was a miscast in my opinion..Instead Aamir Khan or even bobby deol would have been better. So basically, a decent flick (violent though), but it gets a 7 because of RGV's habit of taking a risk

Truly shows that hype is not everything. Shows by and by what a crappy actor abhishek is and is only getting movies because of his dad and his wife. Amitabh as always is solid. Ajay Devgan as always is shitty and useless and the new guy is a joke. The leading lady is such a waste of an actor. Such pathetic movie from such a revered director and from such a big industry. With movies as such I have decreased the amount of bollywood movies I watch.

RGV has been making very crappy movies for a while now. Time to get different actors. Hrithek anyone? Bollywood needs Madhuri and Kajol back. Every other leading lady is a half-naked wanna be. Pffffft.

RGK's Aag has a fatal flaw. It lacks emotional power in almost all the scenes and remains distant and detached.I was disappointed by Mohanlal.It is not the actors fault.Instead of the Arms being cut off,here it is his fingers being cut off.This was silly as it almost feels like cutting your nails.The murder of the whole family also lacked any emotions.RGK was interested only in his fetishistic camera angles.The final confrontation between Mohanlal and Bachhan was also a huge disappointment. In the original Sholay this was the jewel in the crown and you could ignore all the heroics of Amit and Dharmendra.In fact it was this bit of the story that was very original in the real Sholay.All the other dramatic moments were influenced by seven samurai and Once upon a time in the west.

Overall, the actors performed adequately, but there was no chemistry between them. (Susmita Sen wins the award for best cardboard performance,and unlike other commentators I found Nisha Kothari to be tolerable and occasionally amusing).Audience is unlikely to get involved in any of the characters as they did with the original Sholay.RGK has tried not to copy Sholay and has to be congratulated in placing the story in a new context.Perhaps he tried to give a new twist to all the classic scenes so that he would not be accused of plagiarism.Apart from the single scene where Ajay Devgan teaches Nisha Kothari to shoot, I could not see any direct copy from sholay.All the rest are changed slightly, but significantly.I liked the idea of gunfight in Deevali night and on Holi.RGK tried to be original than a mere copy of Sholay-sort of a modern commentary.But in all these attempts he failed to bring drama and passion to the film and made it a lifeless and soulless experience.

RGV made a mistake by making this movie. And that mistake cost him his career. How can a director who made Rangeela, Satya, Shool, Kaun, and other classics make a flop like this?

I think people need to judge this movie a little differently from any other movie. We should judge it remembering that its a remake.

What makes a good remake? I think a movie that gives you the flavor of the original with a new twist, would certify as a good remake attempt. That would make it a truly inspired movie as opposed to a copy of the original.

An inspired movie as I said has the 'flavor' of the original but not necessarily the same content. Take for instance the song 'Mehbooba', it is not a Remix of the original! That takes some creativity. To generate the mood of the original song but create a different one. If you want to see a real (good) remix of 'Mehbooba', watch the Himesh Reshamiya movie.

Another word to describe the remake quality of Aag is: Subtlety. For example, take the character of Jay. You get the feeling of of the original Jay but can't put your finger on the similarity right away. A more direct copy approach would have been to hire a true look-alike (Abhishek?).

The other thing that RGV has done quite well is to present the story in a different context yet retain its believability. I think presenting the story in the context of the Mumbai underworld set in the modern times was a significant challenge in itself in which RGV again succeeds with flying colors.

Overall look at it as RGV's tribute to the masterpiece and he certainly deserves respect for his attempt.

So if you haven't seen it I would strongly recommend it and you might agree that it stands out as a good example of a truly inspired movie.

This is bad bad bad!!! The man who gave us Satya and Company gives us 'Ram Gopal Verma Ki Aag'. RGV falls victim to pride and the results aren't pretty to look at. There is no creativity on display in this venture. The fight scenes are incoherent and totally lacking in thrills or excitement. Amitabh Bachchan tries hard but fails to replicate Amjad Khan's legendary intensity. Ajay Devgun looks lost. Nisha Kothari's short movie career is probably over. Only Mohanlal escapes with his dignity intact. The film is overlong to boot making it painful to sit through. Definitely NOT worth watching.

Overall 1/10

If you don't compare RGV Sholay to the the Sholay then you might like the movie it has its ups and downs.

First half of the movie was quite interesting, the characters are well played by Ajay Devgan and Prashant Raj which was an OK surprice and specially Nisha Kothari who surprised me by her good acting, and she looked too good.

Now to the main character in the movie Babban, Amitabh sure did live up to the Bad evil character, when you walk out of the cinema you will still remember him.

Will the movie be remembered...I think not, its a one time movie and thats it. The second half of the movie was too slow paced and many places the emotion scenes were soul-less and boring.

The Mehbooba song was made really good, and Urmila sure did look hot.

RGV a good suggestion to you, don't make anymore remakes specially not the classics, I don't think your name as an Director will be criticized much cause You are not a great director.You made some good gangster movies but many flop Horror movies. You are and will always be an average Director.