All The Best - Movie Review

What it's about: It's Diwali and it's time for some fun. And Rohit Shetty's All The Best brings you truckloads of it. Be prepared for the funniest entertainer of the season as producer Ajay Devgn takes you on a rollicking ride. Adapted from a play, ATB tells the story of Prem Chopra (Devgn) who is always dreaming up crazy ideas to make money, which land him and his friend Veer (Fardeen)u00a0 in trouble. Veer is living off his rich older brother Dharam (Dutt). To get extra cash, Veer has lied to Dharam that he's married to girlfriend Vidya (Godse). Trouble begins when Dharam lands up. Since Vidya isn't around, Prem's wife Jhanvi (Bipasha) pretends to be Veer's wife. The confusion gets more chaotic when Vidya arrives and she dons the role of Prem's girlfriend. The madness unfolds when more characters join the fray the mute don, a nouveau riche bloke named RGV, a distressed tempo driver, an over-zealous maid and a perplexed manager. Together, they whip up the perfect recipe for the biggest laugh fest of the year.

What's good: It's time director Rohit Shetty got the attention he deserves. He has proved time and again that when it comes to comedy, nobody comes close to him (the so-called hyped-up comedy 'experts' like David Dhawan and Priyadarshan included). His detailing of characters; his attentiveness in one-liners and his grand scaleu00a0 bring his films alive.u00a0 All The Best is unpretentious. It does what it promises to make you laugh. The scenes are genuinely funny the first scene between Prem and Dharam, where they both feel the other is a lech; the scene where Dharam talks to RGV about his bungalow; the sequence when Dharam catches Prem going into Jhanvi's bedroom or when Prem tells Veer that his brother wants to sleep with the maid.... there are just too many to list. The camaraderie between the three male actors is what really makes the film tick. No one is trying to hog the lines or steal the scenes here. In fact, producer Ajay has given the best role in the film to Sanjay Dutt, who is in full form perhaps his best portrayal post Lage Raho Munnabhai. Fardeen Khan has equal footage and he proves he's super when it comes to comedy. Bipasha too adds to the madness. And Ajay Devgn is simply outstanding be it in the funny moments or even the subdued ones. All the character actors Johnny Lever, Sanjay Mishra and Asrani contribute to this laugh fest. Rohit's classic tribute to evergreen comedy films like Chupke Chupke and Gol Maal is endearing.u00a0

What's not: Since it's based on a play, it takes a while for Rohit to trigger the fun. So the first 15-20 minutes of the film are slow. Once big brother Sanjay arrives on the scene, the film really gets going. The songs, though shot exceptionally well (especially the title number, Dil Kare and Kyon), hamper the film's flow a bit. Also, Bipasha's double role (in the climax) doesn't work Rohit should've cast another actress for that part. Ashwini Kalsekar as maid Mary tries to pull off a Johnny Lever from Khiladi but irritates at times.

What to do: Rush for the tickets now. And get ready for the hurt-the-belly and ache-the-jaws kind of laughs.

All The Best
U/A; comedy/action
Dir: Rohit Shetty
Cast: Ajay Devgn, Sanjay Dutt, Fardeen Khan, Bipasha Basu and Mughda Godse
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