Average Lukamari

Movie: Lukamari

PC: facebook.com/lukamarimovie

Director: Shree Ram Dahal

Screenplay: Binod Khatiwada

Actors: Saugat Malla, Karma, Bikram Singh Tharu, Surabina Karki, Rista Basnet and others

In My Eyes: 2.5/5

Lukamari is a suspense drama packed inside a box of comedy. The basic storyline is how two police officers go undercover to investigate a crime and how they carry their task. It is, as the title suggests, a hide-and-seek between cops and criminals.

Good things first, Lukamari carries good content. The presentation is well and so is the characterization of lead characters; the performances compliment it rightly. Making the movie not get overly serious by the use of comic factors helps the entertainment value of the movie. The punch lines and the few scenes make sure to get audience lol. The nuances of basic Kathmandu life in the first half are well-displayed. The last half hour is dramatic and keeps you hooked.

Gajalu Works

PC: merocinema.com

Movie: Gajalu

Director/ Writer: Hemraj BC

Actors: Anmol KC, Shristi Shrestha, Menuka Pradhan, Salon Basnet, Gaurav Pahari, Ritik Shahi and Gauri Malla, Krishna Malla, etc.

In My Eyes:  3/5

Gajalu is a rom-com that primarily focuses on the relation between an ex-Kumari and a guy helping her to live an independent normal life rather than succumbing to the cultural pressures of being Kumari, which is the main highlight of this movie.

Good things first, Gajalu turns out to be one decent movie with a good presentation of pretty average story. The flow is smooth and the movie, overall, is entertaining. This is director Hemraj BC’s best work till date. The little sibling chemistry between Anmol KC and Menuka Pradhan’s characters is sweet and seems realistic.

Wonderful – Kalo Pothi

Movie: Kalo Pothi

Director: Min Bahadur Bham

Screenplay: Min Bahadur Bham, Abinash Bikram Shah

Actors: Khadka Raj Nepali, Sukra Raj Rokaya, Jit Bahadur Malla, Hansha Khadka, Benisha Hamal, Nanda Prasad Khatri, Bipin Karki and Pravin Khatiwada

In My Eyes: ****1/2 (out of 5)

In a single line, Kalo Pothi is a brilliant presentation of a simple story. In one word – Wonderful! Watching this movie has left me completely enthralled that I have literally run out of words to describe it, however, I will try.

The best factor of Kalo Pothi for me is its sheer authenticity. Having its root in the rural village of Mugu, Karnali and growing it into a plant that it has turned out to be, not only make it delightfully authentic but also largely widen its universality. The rawness in the performances and finely detailed and balanced-in-all-ways setting bring the organic vibes in the movie, and this is what makes Kalo Pothi beautiful.

Homework – is short of homework

Movie: Homework

PC: www.isansar.com

Director: Nirak Poudel

Script: Shibham Adhikari

Starring: Aryan Sigdel, Gauri Malla, Namrata Shrestha, Bijay Lama, etc.

In My Eyes: 1.5/5

The social drama Homework has tried to show the clash of two generations and deliver the message on the importance of education through an old man’s journey of schooling in his sixties. Now, this very content is actually interesting and when I first saw the trailer, I thought there’s something new, substantial and authentic in this one. Turns out disappointing.

The old man in the movie is a rich businessman, who has ever supporting and loving and caring wife, a son ashamed of his lack of education and a childhood friend in the form of a school principal. An incident or two happens that leads the old man to disappear from his home, only to be found later in the school of his friend, as a student in full uniform. While he continues his study staying at school for years, his son back at home destroys the business due to his arrogance.

Rolpa Rog – loosely diagnosed

PC: facebook.com/RolpaRogMovie

Movie: Rolpa Rog

Director/Writer: Dipak Oli

Cast: Shishir Bhandari, Janak Gharti Magar, Kuldeep Adhikari, Sushil Pokhrel and more

In My Eyes: 1.75/5

Rolpa Rog tells the story of three young men and their lives on the periphery of civil war. How the conflict between army and maoist in the war affects their lives form the core content of this film.

One of the good aspects has to be the way it has dealt with the issue of civil war without taking sides of any party, but rather focusing on its effects on the innocent people of the village. It tries to depict how people got involved into the Maoists either forcedly or by the circumstances. Also, it shows how both Maoists and army had committed mistakes that had the direct impact on public.

Junge: A decent attempt gone failed

PC: nepalimovieworld.com

Movie: Junge

Director: Utkal Thapa

Screenplay: Subash Koirala and M.S. Agraj

Starring: Suraj Singh Thakuri, Reecha Sharma, Naresh Poudyal, Anup Baral, Nazir Hussain, Sushil Raj Pandey, Sushank Mainali, Deepsikha Shahi, Kevin Karki and more.

In My Eyes: 2/5

What started on a promising note ended making it feel like watching a south Indian action flick in spite of the carefully handled complex content.

In a sentence, Junge depicts the story of how the title character rises into a powerful position. It is all about the politics and games people play for the power and position. Modernizing the Junga Bahadur Rana history into the today’s time through modern-day characters is as tough as the subject matter itself. The director Thapa has done a decent attempt in so and quite impressively, but the movie overall lacks the grip due to the weaker screenplay.

How Funny? - Just average

Movie: How Funny

Director: Nilu Doma Sherpa

Writer: Shan Basnyat

Starring: Priyanka Karki, Keki Adhikari, Dayahang Rai, Anoop Bikram Shahi, Nisha Adhikari and more

In My Eyes: 2/5

In a sentence, How Funny is an average sit-com movie that happens to entertain just okay.

This is a story of two best friends Ramita (Priyanka Karki) and Pushpa (Keki Adhikari) hired by a CBI officer Tej Bahadur Rai (Dayahang Rai) for a case of missing daughter Heera (Nisha Adhikari) of a rich businessman (Shishir Rana). The girls mismatch the case with another one named ‘Diamond Case’ and the series of twists and turns begin. Anoop Bikram Shahi plays another CBI officer Kumud.

Forcedly Bloomed – Bato Muniko Phool 2

PC: facebook.com/Reeecha.Sharma

Movie: Bato Muniko Phool 2

Director: Subarna Thapa

Story: Yash Kumar

Starring: Yash Kumar, Babu Bogati, Ashishma Nakarmi, Dilip Rayamajhi, Reecha Sharma, Rima Bishwokarma, Arpan Thapa, Ganesh Upreti, Tika Pahari, Subhadra Adhikari and more.

In My Eyes: 1.5/5

This movie is yet another example of how the weak screenplay ruins the otherwise heavyweight content raised inside a film. This might also be an example of misbalance between the plots leading to the dilemma that what the primary motive of a movie or of a protagonist is.

The writing is very poor; it just couldn’t justify the theme of a movie. It raises the upper caste-lower caste discrimination problem, like in the first installment, but the developments for so look forcedly input. The whole initial processing between the characters of Yash Kumar, Ashishma Nakarmi and Babu Bogati looks rather unconvincing on the screen; it looked superficial and sadly, this was what the most of the first half contained.

Performances of the year 2072

There is no lack of talented actors here, what lack are the proper script and the direction to show the potential. Here are my favorites from the year gone by.

Top Nepali Movies 2072

Even though the year 2072 B.S. was devastating in many ways for a nation, it became quite a better year for the Nepali movie industry. The commercial success of movies was relatively greater in number. The main problem in most of the movies remains to be the screenplay. But the future is bright for sure, with many makers trying out to bring the better cinema. Pashupati Prasad is the greatest achievement of this year.

Pardesi, Dreams, Kabaddi Kabaddi, Pashupati Prasad, Prem Geet, Resham Filili, Hostel Returns, Bhairav, Classic, Woda No. 6 are the front-runners in the terms of business. The last releases of the year, Nai Nabhannu La 4 and Rampyari both are doing great business as per the news. Movies like Fanko, Ko Afno, Bhaag Sani Bhaag, Dhauli, Rahadani failed at the box-office despite their mostly average to good reviews.

Here are few movies that I found better amongst the rest.