The Last Lear fails to impress the Audience

Rituparno Ghosh, one of the finest storytellers from Bengal, chooses Utpal Dutt's play 'Aajker Shahjahan' as the premise for his new endeavour "THE LAST LEAR". The plotline is the type that holds appeal for a miniscule section of audience.

The problem with THE LAST LEAR is that there's too much Shakespeare in the movie,which everyone cannot dissolve. Besides, all theatre themes may not hold good on cinematic level.

Yet, there's no denying that THE LAST LEAR has its share of engrossing moments. A few individualistic sequences are noteworthy as also the portrayal of characters by some prominent names. But that's not enough!

In a nutshell, THE LAST LEAR fails to connect. At best, it may find some patronage at Festivals, but there's nothing for Indian moviegoers.

Harry [Amitabh Bachchan] lives for acting, loves theatre, adores Shakespeare and absolutely detests cinema. Enter Siddharth [Arjun Rampal], a movie director. He is smart, Harry finds out in the very first meeting. He is glad to have found a cerebral partner to have a conversation with.

Slowly, they bond over coffees, vodka and conversations. Harry decides to work in Siddharth's film. New relationships blossom. But an incident changes everything…

Director Rituparno Ghosh's choice of the subject has its limitations. It's good to think different, but THE LAST LEAR is abstract. From the writing point of view, a number of points remain unexplained and even if they are, it's difficult to decipher.

Like, for instance, Shefali Shah's hatred for Preity is unexplainable. Also, the accident and the aftermath lack clarity. Why does Arjun want a retake? Why does he want Amitabh to perform the death-defying jump all over again? This, when he knows that Amitabh can't see without his glasses. This and many more questiopns remains unanswered.

Amitabh Bachchan is the life of THE LAST LEAR. But it's definitely not his best performance so far. The actor has delivered stronger performances in the past. He's good, not great. Arjun is evolving into a fine actor. After ROCK ON!!, this is another performance that would fetch Arjun laurels. Preity is very effective. Shefali Shah is superb. Divya Dutta is wasted. Prosenjit is alright. Jishu impresses.

On the whole, THE LAST LEAR has something for the Festival circuit, but nothing for the cinema-going audience in India.

Preity new looks stuns many ..

Preity Zinta has played the glam doll to perfection in many films. But in her next release, The Last Lear, the bubbly actress would be seen in a different look from what she has been sporting in her last few films. Preity would be seen wearing some really beautiful sarees and salwar suits in the film. One look at this picture and you will agree that she indeed looks ravishing even in a saree.

Preity herself loved the experience of getting decked up in a saree. "What a pleasant change it was, from all the dolled up work I have done. I got to play Shabnam, someone so real! I love my look in the film. Ever since the posters of The Last Lear are out, the compliments haven't stopped coming in! Everyone's look in the film is extremely different. You can trust Rituparno Ghosh to surprise everyone with his films, even his own actors!", says the bubbly actress.

The Last Lear, which opens across cinema halls on September 12th 2008, has generated tremendous curiosity amongst audiences ever since the promos began. People are inquisitive to find out the roles that Amitabh Bachchan, Preity Zinta and Arjun Rampal play in this hatke film. In fact, Amitabh's performance in The Last Lear has been hailed by many as the best of his illustrious career. As for Preity, considering the fact that she has become so choosy about selecting the right films and that her last release (Jhoom Barabar Jhoom) was in June 2007, all her fans must surely be charged up to see their favorite actress don a brand new avatar! The wait would be worth it, we are sure!