It would be blasphemy to review the movie since that would mean putting a lot more thought into the review than the makers put in its making, but I am willing to make the effort, even if only for Sallu. I loved the fact that dependable actors like Mahesh Manjrekar, Manoj Joshi, Paresh Rawal and Manoj Pahwa get to play reasonably significant roles and they do pretty well. Most of the rest of the cast is okayish - special metion must be made of the bike riding maid though :D There are plenty of funny gags altho a couple of pathetic scenes stand out like a sore thumb. Like that one involving a kid and pee and a skeleton suit. Not sure who the target audience was for that one! The direction is ho-hum - anyone who knows something about movie making could have directed it. The dialogues are not very funny but the actors put enough conviction in them to make us laugh. The cinematography is nothing we havent seen before, and the editing could have been sharper.
Ultimately what saves Ready is the spate of in-jokes and comic timing of most actors! Sallu's self-digs at Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, Prem, his colossal flops Yuvvraaj and Veer, the hit-and-run case and more are quite amusing and make you laugh, even if for their sheer silliness, or at times, the honesty with which Sallu owns up to all accusations made against him. Sample the scene in which he takes his shirt off after his uncle says "Prem, shirt utaarne ka isse acha mauka nahin milega" after the goon's shirt tears, and how it all turns out to be a figment of Asin's imagination, meaning she wants to get a look at the hunk herself :D Also, the way Sallu asks later "Mazaa aaya?" ; its hard to imagine any other actor who can pull this off while being self-critical and brash at the same time. Few such moments aside however, Sallu looks disinterested in the proceedings. Hopefully, Bodyguard will be a welcome change from his bored-looking roles (I have read the story and it has a lot of potential if made well). Asin looks horrible - I was constantly chiding her to go wash her face throughout the movie. Not sure what went wrong with her make-up, coz she's quite pretty otherwise. The music is a mixed-bag. The romantic Humko Pyaar Hua is a yaaaawn and the shaadi song is an exercise in showcasing Sallu's moves. Dhinka Chika and Character Dheela however are superb in terms of picturization and I definitely got my money's worth with those two music videos. The cameos by a horde of actors are fun to watch too!
Ultimately, Ready is a fun, family film that does nothing new and yet ensures you enjoy. I must admit I alternated between being non-plussed and amused, but the rest of the jam-packed theatre was enjoying every bit of the movie. Its all luck - had this movie released 3 yrs earlier, nobody would have seen it. Post-Dabangg, everyone wants a slice of Sallu entertainment. One one hand, its sad Ready will make more money than a lot of Sallu's much better and under-appreciated movies like Jaan-e-Mann and Salaam-e-Ishq, on the other hand, it was fun to watch an entertaining Hindi movie in theaters after so long!
P.S. : Does it seem like I was disinterested when writing this review? Well, can you blame me? :)
