Kambakkht Ishq - Review

A mega-budget film, some popular Hollywood names & two of the biggest Bollywood stars....is it enough?
Well, not really.
Kambakkht Ishq give a new definition to funny. One that does not tickle any bones.

The film revolves around Hollywood stuntman Viraj Shergill (Akshay Kumar), who doesn't think too highly of women & doesn't believe in the word marriage. He happens to meet Simrita Rai (Kareena Kapoor) at his brother Lucky Shergill's (Aftab Shivdasani) wedding. Simrita hates men & believes that they want only one thing. This starts of a war between the two, to prove to each other that they are right.
The first half goes past without much of the narrative actually moving forward. The jokes are average and hard to come by.
The second half of the movie is when it actually plummets. The story (already non-existent) spirals out of control, leaving the viewer completely baffled . Viraj hears a hindu chant (Om Mangalam) wherever he goes & Simrita is the only one who can solve his problem. On that premise, the film stumbles towards it's agonizing climax, which towards the end of it, is stretched and frustrating.
The film also has its fair share of stereotypes; a goofy sidekick (Vindu Singh), a pestering aunt (Kirron Kher) or an over-the-top Sindhi (Javed Jaffery) wanting to make a quick buck.

Where the film falls flat is the script itself. The narrative is extremely weak & one does not find the story moving anywhere. Random sequences & songs appear and the jokes are far from funny.
Akshay Kumar falters yet again after Tasveer & CC2C. His performance is good in parts, but even he cannot salvage the brutality of the script. His wardrobe leaves one wondering why his designer would do that to him.
Kareena Kapoor looks fabulous & her role has glam written all over it. Her performance is ordinary and nothing to write home about. Sylvester Stallone & Denise Richards have blink and miss roles. Aftab Shivdasani & Amrita Arora are decent. Javed Jaffery overacts.
If there are two things that can be considered as positives for the movie, they are the beautiful locations & the high production values. The music from Anu Malik is decent & the title track from RDB works.
First time director Sabir Khan fails miserably. He provides no entertainment & creates a film that lacks soul. One wonders why Sajid Nadiadwala would put the onus of such a high budget film on such shoulders.

At the box office, one can see this movie laughing all the way to the bank. A houseful opening weekend, this movie will send the cash registers ringing. A marketing strategy that works again, Kambakkht Ishq is an ominous sign for Indian cinema, one that shows that even without any story whatsoever, a HIT Bollywood movie can be made. It tests the audiences intelligence & takes them for granted. I would strongly recommend Sabir Khan to let the art of making mindless comedies rest with David Dhawan.

Unless you are dared, have free tickets or just want to see a mockery of cinema, I would suggest you not to tread this path.

Critical: 1.5/5
Commercial: 4/5