David (2013) Reviews

• Truck Loads of Background Music & Stylized Direction Makes This Movie More Than Worth a Watch!

  iamwhatiam89902013-02-04

  This is my first movie of 2013. I had planned to stay away from those big releases like Race 2 after watching the trailers itself. Anyway, David is really high on style and personally, I loved that aspect of the movie. The background music gave a good flow to the movie. Out of those three stories, Neil's story was far more on the action and drama side. It was pretty intriguing too! Even though I watched the Hindi version, I'd heard a lot about Vikram. His acting was really good and his story line was more on the comical side. He acted really well as a drunk fisherman. Though, I feel his story angle was a little weak. May be it could've been written better. Over all, the story was decent but the performances and direction were brilliant. I loved the music too! Damadam mast kalandar was mixed nicely. Background music was awesome. All of them looked pretty apt for their characters and fitted very well in their shoes. A special mention would be Neil's dad(Iqbal Ghani) in the movie. What intensity in his acting! The guitar guy's acting was also decent. Personally, I didn't like the fact that the guitarist David turned into a father(church) in the end. I thought that was a little dumb. The movie might not be perfect and yes, it does have some flaws but the director is high on talent and gets creative stuff on the screen. This is a very different kind of a cinema, far far away from those 'typical' movies. Bejoy Nambiar has experimented really well. The story had a few weak holes but the best part of the movie was it's direction and performances.

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• A Visual painting by Nambier

  rangdetumpy2013-02-04

  Bejoy Nambier had brought in dark psychological cinema in a sleek fashion & raised the bar with "Shaitan". With "David" he only sealed the fact that he is a consummate artist. David is about three "Davids" in different places & time-zones & how they are connected by destinies. David #1-Set in 1975 London, David(Neil Nitin) is the side-kick of an infamous gangster Ghani. A sharp shooter & a Ghani loyalist, David's life takes a turn when some arcane matters regarding his origin comes to surface which challenges his relationship with Ghani. David #2-Set in the 90s Mumbai David (Vinay Bimani) is an energetic aspiring rock-star who aims big. Like any regular guy he loves his family even though there is an ideological tension with his father who is an incorrigible optimist & a philanthropist. The father-son proximity develops when a Hindu fundamentalist with a sinister motive tries to malign his Christian father to rise up the political ladder by maneuvering "religious" sentiments. The incident gives birth to a new David who takes the risky path to unravel dark societal realities. David #3-Set in 2010 Goa, David (Vikram) is an inveterate drinker having a sad history of his wife leaving him on the wedding day. From thereon he becomes the object of "bad luck" in his region. With a troubled existence he is in search for true love which comes in form of beautiful "roma" who is the fiancée of his best friend Peter. The beauty of Nambier's film is the structural & thematic similarity of the three stories that move in parallel. The film starts with a glimpse of the climax and goes back to the genesis of each segment. Each of the stories reflect father-son relationship and the trajectory is thematically same. Each "David" is fighting their inner Goliath as they choose the path of redemption. While "Shaitan" gave us a glimpse of how the darker side have the potential to control human psyche, "David" explores the world of truth & forgiveness amidst dark & unpleasant times. "David" shreds their past anguish, forgives their present enormity & fight against their inner Goliath to shape a peaceful future. That's what makes a "David' stand out from the crowd. He may be alone but not shaken. Nambier's eye for detailing is tremendous & every frame looks carefully edged out. The unconventional camera angles provided the extra zilch. The Varughese's cinematography & photography department demands awards for their excellence. The story set in London had the neo-noirish look with sleek black-and-white frames adding in credibility to the gangster story. The action sequences in both the London as well as Mumbai stories are 'choreographed" with precision. Ejaz Gulab's stunt is one of the best in recent times (along with brilliant action sequences of technical marvel "Viswaroop").veteran Shreekar Prasad's editing joins the story sensibly without confusing the viewers. Background & foreground are rocking and gels with the mood of the film adding extra weight to the proceedings. Two men fighting in the cage during "Mastakalander" song is a master stroke. Nambier & Sehgal's script is apt. The characterization is superb. The idea of David (the one in Goa) talking to his father's ghost is simple out-of-the world. The wacky yet cute sequences of father-son are fresh,honest,touching & funny. Amongst the actors all the Davids gave a commendable performance with Vikram scoring a little high over others.It is heartening to see a tremendous actress like Rohini Hattangadi getting such a powerful role & as a immoral Hindu fundamentalist she expressed devil through her eyes.Saurabh Shukla, another tremendous under-rated talent impresses as ghost of David's father.Tabu rocked in a significant cameo in a role of a true friend, philosopher & guide of David.Veteran Naseer excels as father Noyal.Neil Bhopalam,Monica Dogra,Shweta Pandit,Shetal Menon made their presence felt. Isha Shravani as Roma seriously looked like an angel.Lara Dutta's track looked forced. Nambiers film gives a message on the path to righteousness with a captivating narrative.It could have been a superlative experience like "shaitan" but thanks to the dragged second half it misses out from being a masterpiece.Also the stories could have been more compact for more impact. Nevertheless David is fine celluloid attempt which needs to be appreciated for its innovative execution. Looking forward to all Nambier's films in future.. 'Spoiler' P.S : Couldn't resist myself from writing about a particular sequence from the film.In the second story there is a discerning sequence which is an eye-opener to the god-fearing society. Like other business "God" has become a subject of business with 'bhagwan",'allah',"jesus" being different brands created by people with vested interests. It is analogous to "undergarments" business whereby people wear their own brands even though all of them are the same thing. Like depicted in "OMG" those people have no religion & they manipulate religion for their own benefit. In the process the common man knowingly or unknowingly suffers.

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• Amazing Movie

  livinonprayer2013-02-04

  OK, many people gave negative reviews because they were not able to keep up with the plot. This movie has everything, action, drama, comedy, romance, tragedy, amazing cinematography, superb songs, and quite unique style of handling a movie. Although superficially it may look like a movie with three protagonist with same name 'David', last few minutes really define the movie name and common string that holds all three stories together. Some references to decide whether you'll like it or not If you like Quentin Tarantino - Please go watch David If you love rock music -just watch the movie for "Mast Kaladar" rock version If you can like Neil Nitin Mukesh - this is a must watch If you like art movies - you are on borderline If you like Amir Khan's performance in Talaash - you are on borderline If you like Karan Johar movies - this is waste of money for you If you love Shahrukh Khan - you'll hate this flick If you like Amir Khan in 3Idiots - you won't like this one Overall I am kind of disappointed it got so less collection at box office. I might watch it again in theater.

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• David.. cool

  jijoijk2013-02-06

  David (tamil) ( 2013 ) The making. That was the main attraction of director Bejoy Nambiar's previous project : Shaitan. I was so excited to see that movie in a totally new making style. Bejoy Nambiar was added to my favorite film maker's list and I don't miss my favorites' creations. That's how I got in for 'DAVID' , the tamil version. Watched this in a local theatre near to my house. The main advantage of this is that there wont be a 'mass' presence to disturb the peaceful movie watching. It was released quite a few days back and I went for a noon show on a Tuesday. So there was no chance of a disturbance and I like it that way at times. 'DAVID' is a sleek n simple tale of two persons with the same name. though their life is shown on a parallel mode, it happens during 2 different times(1999 & 2010). Jiva as the aspiring guitarist and Vikram as the so called 'unlucky' fisherman of goa, tabu as his friend,his mother,his dad; all were great delight to watch. Isha Shervani does her part decently and the good moments in this were in the Vikram's story. The album is awesome and I loved all the tracks in this. The film opens up with the theme song of 'DAVID' and that's very exciting to watch. The unconventional 'khoya khoya chaand' style (of Shaitan) is repeated in this also in a fight sequence. The way I understood , 'DAVID' is about the identity that each one of us have and why its not possible for one to be someone else. We all have a name, a soul and a character and we are supposed to do certain things which only we can do. So we shouldn't be trying to be someone else. If we did, then who is gonna do our part?? I felt that's what the movie is all about. The name 'DAVID' was just a random pick ; it could have be anyone , any name..

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• Please grow up Indian viewers!!!!!

  Hash1002013-04-16

  It happens rarely... But whenever I watch movies like 'David' I always think that Bollywood would never improve artistically. Reason why? Well it's simple and sad to see movies like Dabangg & Ek tha Tiger or Race 2 performing on box office, while movies like David even don't get a screening in popular cineplexes. What an irony of this industry!! What a sad part!! I just finished watching David at my home theater and I am thinking to myself what if I have watched it on a big screen? It still feels great but it would have been greater. I hardly write reviews and in fact rarely on Bollywood movies as I don't follow it much now but this movie made me to right away visit here and write an honest opinion. I wanted to personally thank Bejoy Nambiar and his team as well as the whole cast for making such a masterpiece. This movie is by any standard not less then a Hollywood show, be it the story itself, the narration and twists, the acting and the most important thing of all, the Artistry of camera and lights. Honestly I haven't experienced such shots and takes in a Bollywood film before (Yeah may be a very few!). All the three stories were amazing but I would give a five star to the 1975 portion. Niel is always my fav actor due to his selection of characters and movies and he yet again did true justice to his role as a macho man. Each detail was perfect in there, it's whole environment, the sets, dresses, cars and above all how intelligently the black & white color! wow!! It gave me a true feeling of 70's. Seriously guys, I don't have words to explain it, may be I can't find those words but I would only tell you that if you miss this movie, you are gonna miss a wonderful journey through time and artistry. I can understand that David may not impress the masses of Indian cinema but I am also sure that many deserving audience has already missed this flick due it's lack of presence in the theaters and marketing. This is a must watch for them all. There's one more beautiful thing about this movie. It's 'Message'!! The climax is so amazing that it would leave you thinking on your seats for some time in silence and remind you of your own life decisions and errors that we make. How beautifully done Mr. Bejoy.. Thank you so much for that.. Thank you!

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