Before its release New York was thought to have strong resemblance with last years remarkable Pakistani film KHUDA KE LIYE where an innocent person is picked up as a suspect for the WTC incident. Many of us might have guessed that the main plot of New York is 9/11 massacre, but it is not.
There’s a small description about the atrocities which the non-Americans had to undergo after 9/11, at the end of the review, which might help us to know exactly what happened in US post 9/11.
Taking into consideration that Yash Raj banner has given many disasters in the last two years (except Chakde & Rabne) resulted the father-son duo to rethink about the skills of the directors they hire to direct films for their(Yash Raj) production house which lost almost 100 crores an year before.
Kabir Khan who has won a National award for a documentary film debuted as a director in 2006’s Kabul Express(starring John & Arshad) under Yash Raj Films which did average business at the box office. Kabul Express too was having a good subject but was lacking in entertainment. In his second attempt Kabir Khan has rectified his first mistake by trying to make a typical bollywood movie which consists of loads of entertainment integrated into quite a sensitive subject of terrorism.
Kabir Khan says that he was in the US two days before 9/11 and saw first-hand the chaos that followed after and was so disturbed that he planned to make a movie on that incident.
New York is about three friends impacted by the fallout of 9/11: it was not just the twin towers which were destroyed but a whole way of life died too. Americans began looking at people not of their nationality and religion with hatred and deep suspicion: if they are brown and worshipped Allah, they were terrorists.
The opening sequence
Omar (Neil Nitin Mukesh) is picked up by the FBI and detained for arms found in his owned taxi. Basically it’s a well planned set up by FBI officer Roshan (Irrfan Khan) and his boss to get Omar agree upon to work as an undercover agent for them and infiltrate into the life of happily married couple - Sameer Sheikh (John Abraham) and Maya (Katrina Kaif).
Why
Roshan suspects Sameer of running a sleeper terrorism cell and wants to nab him red handed. Omar is left with no option but to comply with Roshan’s orders but he agrees on one condition that the FBI won’t kill Sameer if he agrees to surrender.
Next
The audiences are sent into a flash back : Sam, Omar and Maya are thick buddies at New York State University. They hang out on campus, in pubs, but never seem to go to class: just shows that even New Gen directors are reluctant to show heroes getting education.
More
In the best Bollywood tradition, this is a triangle: Omar silently loves Maya but when she expresses her love for Sameer, Omar goes away from them. When Omar returns after seven years he finds that Samir and Maya are a married couple with a small kid Danielle.
This motion picture is completely different experience which the Bollywood audience is not used to. You are completely hooked from the first scene of the film when Neil is arrested by FBI and the interrogation that follows by Irrfan of Neil’s. The first half is extremely well narrated and keeps you constantly guessing as to what will happen next. The interval point is a shocker and you look forward to an exciting second half. But then the pace of the second half somehow doesn’t match up that of the first half and there are some predictable things in store.
The side-track of a frustrated Muslim driver Nawazuddin committing suicide contributes a lot to feel the exact mood of the movie.
The scene where John is surrounded by the FBI on the terrace of their headquarters and asked to surrender is superb. His face portrays a range of emotions which say, I'd rather die than go through that torture again.'' In one fleeting moment, Kabir transfers Samir's emotions on to you.
New York scores high in the acting department with each single actor delivering his/her best.
John Abraham often termed as an expressionless actor has delivered his career’s finest performance. Especially the torture scenes shown immediately post the interval sends a shiver down your spine. Neil looks rehearsed in some scenes but doesn’t disappoint. He was appreciated in Johnny Gaddar – this film will definitely be a turning point – a milestone in his acting career.
Irrfan Khan delivers a solid performance again. He never misses any punch in his lines and is as expressive as ever – makes him really an actor of international acclaim. He possesses the magical Midas touch - can play any kind of role with ease and perfection. His memorable dialogue, “Sometimes a person may be wrong, sometimes a nation may be wrong, but still terrorism of any kind cannot be justified.”
But the surprise package of New York is Katrina Kaif, she has finally got the meatiest role of her career and she has taken full advantage of it. This is her best performance till date - a brilliant effort to portray the hard hitting character of Maya. The screenplay of New York is a bigger star, without a doubt. Given the fact that NEW YORK isn't one of those routine masala fares, Kabir has injected songs only when required. Cinematography is striking. The physical and mental abuse on innocent Muslims, imprisoned merely on suspicion and their consequences are effectively portrayed.
But mind well, New York isn’t a movie without loopholes. The issue of global terrorism somewhere goes for a toss with the film turning into a human emotion drama. As the victim is released fromprison and his atrocities are still fresh in your mind, the intensity of his trauma is diluted with a love song stuffed in. The couple further goes on to make love and start a family. More mush comes into picture as Omar confesses his campus feelings to the married Maya.
As the last frame closes, you just wish the film had a little more realism, the characters had a little more depth and the treatment had a bit more sensitivity.
Kabir Khan’s subject feels a little old (there’s been a ton of 9/11 related stuff in the last eight years, including Naseerudin Shah’s debut 2006 feature ‘Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota’ ), but it is stillrelevant. The screenplay at some points turns fluffy—yes, we know its Yashraj, and yes, we know that the lovely Kat needs to sing songs along with her hunky co- stars, but it takes away from the necessary seriousness a thriller like this requires. And is it still really mandatory to show the hero-heroine of hindi cinema to have a love affair – come on Yash Raj – its high time now – we are ready to accept the main lead even if they are shown as friends.
There’s also a remarkable lack of tension even when people are being shot, and bombs are being placed, which should have been shot with a sitting- on-the-edge-of-the-seat kind of thrill.
But we as the Indian audiences are generous enough to ignore the drawbacks of a well made film like New York coz we have witnessed n number of bad films this year. In addition, New York is the first big film after the prolonged battle amongst the producers and the multiplex owners leading to a discontinuation of releases for almost two months.
So guyz, don’t think much, go for it, expect it to be good not the best, you won’t be disappointed at all.
RATING : 3.5 / 5
Reviewed by Ashish Gharde
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Running Time: 2 hours 25 minutes
Starcast : John Abraham, Katrina Kaif, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Irrfan Khan
Director : Kabir Khan
Producer : Aditya Chopra
Music : Pritam Chakraborty
Screenplay & Dialogues : Sandeep Srivastava
Director of Photography : Asim Mishra
Background Music : Julius Packiam
Lyrics : Pankaj Awasthi
Costumes : Rocky S
Cinemax: Eternity Mall 10:00am 12:00 3:00 6:00 7:30 9:00 10:30pm
PanchSheel 12:15 3:15 6:15 9:15pm
Smruti Cinema 12:15 3:15 6:15 9:15pm
Inox: Tuli Mall 10:00am 12:30 1:30 3:30 4:30 6:30 7:30 9:30 10:30pm
Big Cinemas: Sangam 12:15 3:15 6:15 9:15pm
Inox: Poonam Mall 11:45am 2:45 8:45pm
Here's a perfect illustration of the problem that was inherent in the Bush Administration's insistence on being able to hold terror suspects indefinitely:
Mohamed Farag Bashmilah, Huffington Post. Posted February 20, 2009
# From October 2003 until May 2005, I was illegally detained by the U.S. government and held in CIA-run ''black sites'' with no contact with the outside world. On May 5, 2005, without explanation, myAmerican captors removed me from my cell and cuffed, hooded, and bundled me onto a plane that delivered me to Sana'a, Yemen. I was transferred into the custody of my own government, which held me -- apparently at the request of the United States -- until March 27, 2006, when I was finally released, never once having faced any terrorism-related charges. Since my release, the U.S. government has never explained why I was detained and has blocked all attempts to find out more about my detention.
On January 22, 2009 the White House announced that President Barack Obama had signed an order to suspend the proceedings of the Guantanamo military commission for 120 days and that the detention facility would be shut down within the year.
