Planet Bollywood
Out Of Control
 
Producer: Vashu Bhagnani
Director: Ramanjit Juneja and Apurva Asrani
Starring: Ritesh Deshmukh, Brande Roderick (introducing), Hrishita Bhatt, Amrish Puri, Satish Shah
Music: Anand Raj Anand
Lyrics: Dev Kohli
Genre: Comedy
Recommended Audience: General
Approximate Running Time: 2 hrs 30 mins
Film Released on: 21 November 2003
Reviewed by: Ron Ahluwalia  - Rating: 4.0 / 10
 
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Public Rating Average: 5.11 / 10 (rated by 410 viewers)
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Looking back on Vashu Bhagnani´s career as a producer to-date, it would be an understatement to say that he has achieved enviable fame and fortune. However, if one looks back on all the films Vashu has associated himself with, none can claim to possess any cinematic merit. It seems as though Mr. Bhagnani prides himself in producing hackneyed, commercial potboilers, because he has made another one: Out of Control. From the very beginning, Out of Control had only one USP: Brande Roderick. The sad thing is that´s all that the movie was able to live up to; all the other expectations went down the drain.

Out of Control tells the story of Jaswinder "Jimmy" Singh Bedi (Ritesh Deshmukh), who comes to New York to fulfill the Indo-Americal dream: a nice family and lots of money to send back to India. One night, at a club, Jimmy meets Sally (Brande Roderick) who saves his life. The two instantly become friends and gradually fall in love. This relationship--along with the need to extend Jimmy´s visa--results in marriage. 

Jimmy and Sally are living a happy life until one day, Jimmy is hoaxed into retuning to India. Upon his arrival, Jimmy finds that his father, Jatta Singh Bedi (Armish Puri) has arranged Jimmy´s wedding with Richa (Hrishita Bhatt). Under duress, Jimmy marries Richa and promises to apply for her immigration to America when he gets back to New York. When he gets back, he avoids telling Sally of Richa and continues living a normal life, hoping that his relationship with Richa will disappear.

As a result of Jimmy´s lack of communication, Jatta Singh Bedi and Richa turn up in New York in search of Jimmy, and with the help of Flower (Satish Shah), they do. Now Jimmy´s life goes out of control, as he is forced to live a double life: one for Sally, one for Richa (and Jatta Singh Bedi).

The synopisis speaks for itself: Out of Control is nothing but "old wine, new bottle." The presence of a white girl as the leading lady does allow for some novel sequences in the movie, but overall, the outcome is rather predictable. The screenplay is commendable in the first half, mainly because the writers and directors have been able to present Jimmy and Sally´s developing relationship with utter realism; it is one of the most genuine and convincing love stories in the recent times. To be honest, the first half shows that director duo Ramanjit Juneja and Apurva Asrani have talent, they just need the right script and screenplay.

It is the second half that really disappoints. Consisting mainly of how Jimmy handles his wives, the events are pathectically obvious, such as the department store scene and when Flower drops Jimmy off. Furthermore, the sudden arousal of love in Jimmy´s heart for Richa is underdeveloped and the placement of their love song is terrible.


The scenes in which the two women discover their husband´s infidelity are horribly handled; Brande Roderick hams the entire scene, whereas Hrishita Bhatt seems out of characer. What´s even more despressing is the climax of movie. Not only does it stink of Bollywood bias, but it is so quickly executed that the intended affect is never achieved.

The editing of Out of Control could have been a lot crisper. Many scenes seem to have been added just for the sake of giving Amrish Puri and Hrishita Bhatt more scenes. The music is pathetic and does nothing to boost the film. A technical note on the music: if the movie is set in New York, then how is Brande "LA di Maina"? (Don´t you just love Bollywood incongruities?)

As for the performances, Ritesh Deshmukh has greatly enhanced his abilities as a thespian since his debut early this year in Tujhe Meri Kasam. He has an excellent speaking voice and could really soar if he mastered the art of inflection. It would also benefit him if he avoided Shahrukh Khan imitations. Amrish Puri delivers what could be his loudest and most idiotic performance ever! His constant referral to himself as "The Jatta Singh Bedi of the Punjab" is immensely annoying. Hrishita Bhatt is unfortunately sidelined with a role of guest appearance proportions! It would be great to see her in a role of some substance and length simultaneously. Satish Shah and Satish Kaushik are terrible in their pointless roles.

Brande Roderick is the saving grace of Out of Control. Her discomfort with the language is obvious, and that cannot be held against her. Nonetheless, she oozes a confidence that is evident is the most seasoned of performers. Her facial expressions are fantastically vivid and her dialogue delivery is apt for the given role. If only she had not overacted her pre-climax sequence, Brande´s performance could have been flawless. She should take her film´s advice though: Expose your talent, and not your skin. Overall, Ms. Roderick is a welcome addition to Bollywood! Hope to see more of her in better roles and films.

That´s Out of Control for you! A movie that is not worth a watch! Sure Brande Roderick is brilliant, but nobody deserves two and a half hours of utter stupidity of the highest level! If you want to see a romantic comedy, avoid Out of Control like the plague! I´m sure you all could do better!

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