I didnt actually know that this was a Yash Raj production, until I was in the theatre, watching the titles roll...
Within a few minutes, it became evident that one needn’t even see the titles to know that it is a Yash Raj film... Even as Rishi Kapoor and Kiron kher were deliveiring their first scene, the style of narration, the color, the over emotive style of the actors, were all a dead giveaway...
Coming to the movie, it starts off with a blind girl (kajol) and a tourist guide (aamir) falling in love, and takes unexpected twists into the second half. It would benefit a lot if you didnt know the entire story before watching this movie! You’ll enjoy the twists in the story better!
The first half was quite slow and cliched, with a number of repetitive scenes.
But the movie sort of redeemed itself when it goes into a terrorist angle, offering lots of scope for action and sentiment.
The performances are really good, especially from the lead pair.
The child artist in the second half was quite good, but the over usage of the Dravid reference was annoying.
The music doesn’t boast of anything to remember. The background score was repeated throughout to create melodrama and was quite well done.
The songs were very average numbers. Some of them acted as speedbreakers in the script!
On the whole, Fanaa would be an interesting watch if you like the Yash Raj productions style of narration - lots of melodrama, some overacting, a strong dose of sentiments (if nothing works, try sentiment, is the winning Bollywood slogan).
From a pure movie making standpoint, the screenplay has many elements to tie the viewer to the seat. The conflict elements are introduced at the right time, the emotions are targetted to tug at the right chords and the story has a three part structure - a beginning, development and climax that is straight out of the screenplay books!
In short, the screenplay follows the winning template set by Yash Raj films earlier!
I personally didn’t like the movie too much because I’m not a fan of the Veer Zaara, DTPH, etc style of films...
The first half was pathetic, and the second half manages to keep us guessing...
So overall the film is worth a watch if you dont have anything too much better to do (and you dont really really hate the Veer Zaara kind of films).
3 stars is all I can go!