Vedam Movie Review

I have to say, after a very long time the Telugu Film Industry, sweetly called Tollywood, has produced a wonderful movie. Vedam is a movie with content, message to carry home, action, a little romance and some very good comedy.

Padmashri Bhramanandam appears very early in the movie and has a short stay. However the remaining part of the comedy is attributed via the wonderful dialogues of Allu Arjun, our hero and few others. The comedy dialogues are actually punch lines which one cannot forget so easily.

The movie revolves around different individuals & their personal lives. Finally the story line connects everyone and shows how can everyone try and live together progressing towards prosperity. It also show how dogmas/prejudice can be proven wrong. Every human being should be considered by what they are rather than their caste/creed/sex/citizenship. That is the baseline.

According to me, it should be a career milestone for Allu Arjun and Manoj Manchu. Manoj Bajpai did wonderful however his performance in Rajneeti overwhelms most of his other performances. Similarly Anuskha's Arundathi is a top rank in her career ladder till date.

Anushka, put in a sleazy role did very well. However her role is mostly for the masala. Yes she was looking great just as usual. Moreover you get to see her hot bod in this movie; longtime after Billa. If that is what is the interest of the audience :-)

Overall the movie is very good and is a must watch for all those who understand Telugu language. After watching this movie one would understand how vital is money and how will your financial requirements change when you do not have the right attitude.

My rating: 4/5
My verbal rating: Must watch. Don't just watch, carry the message home.

Rajneeti Movie Review

For all those people who have watched the movie and are a little confused in comprehending it and for those who are yet to watch, Rajneeti, very simply to be put is a modern version of the Epic MahaBharatha. Also to remove the confusion/rumors that the movie is a resemblance to Smt.Sonia Gandhi or a Gandhi family story; no it is not at all. Not even a near match to it.

Now I am only wondering why the papers/critiques have not given either a 5 or a 4.5 for it. The movie is a perfect replica of what is going on in many countries like ours when it comes to political power. How far can insane people go just to retain/achieve power is perfectly shown.

I should say the director or whoever has chosen the right cast for each and every character. Ranbir, Nana Patekar were excellent. I felt Arjun Rampal has an unique personality and is something very similar to Anil Kumble's bowling. There is no bowler like him and similarly there is something very unique about Arjun Rampal. Each and everyone in the cast have put an impeccable performance.

This movie is highly recommended. Its a little lengthy; around 3 hours excluding the break. The best part of the movie is, there are no songs. I really liked it.

My rating: 4.5/5

My Verbal rating: Should watch at least once in the theater. It's lovely to watch the way the story turns.

Darling Telugu Movie Review

Darling, name given for the heck of filling the title is a good comedy movie. Prabhas and his group of friends including the villain have put decent efforts to make us laugh almost every moment.

The story runs around Prabhas and his childhood love and another girl who falls in the triangle. The movie was shot in the wonderful locations of Switzerland showcasing decent locations.

Now the best part I like in the movie is this. Once due to certain difficulties the hero and his group get, kind of jailed in a slum in Switzerland. Then a guy in the group says I never thought there were slums in Switzerland; why the heck was "Slumdog Millionaire" shot in India when there are slums even here? I clapped heart-fully to this dialogue. Something to ponder???

Well the movie is worth the money invested as it really gives you the comedy ride and makes you laugh well. However there were two minor things which I wanted to highlight in spite of them being minor.

1. Prabhas Wardrobe: I am not sure which idiot took care of his new style of clothing in this movie, however the clothing was awful and pathetic.

2. I have an example. If you goto any small restaurant for lunch/dinner in South India you would observe that many items which are supposed to be dry are generally wet and in fact contain a lot of water. If you bring the same chef home and tell him there is no need adulterate for profits he still mixes water because that is in his blood now.

Similarly Andhra movie directors, however good they make a film they can't spell complete without one or two silly/sleazy scenes which look awful for any ordinary human being with brain.

My rating: 3/5
My verbal rating: Watch the movie for a good laugh. Its a family movie. Actress Kajal Agarwal somehow kept all her clothes on.

Housefull - Movie Review

What else could happen when Sajid Khan and Akshay kumar pair up? A wonderful blast of laughter. However the one little change this time is the higher volume of Nitrous Oxide is packed for the part after the break. The first part of the movie goes a little normal.

Now as usual, our Bollywood babes have been used completely and fully in the prostitutionaly ... oops sorry glamorous ways. Every one was bought one bikini which could show them as sleazy as possible and the heroines very comfortably wore those clothing.

I remember once Smt. Asha Bhonsle explaining how a particular song can be sung in numerous ways. She just took one single chorus and sang it in different moods; viz, sad, happy, sexy, romantic ... as far as I remember.

Similarly a woman's body is supposed to be a sensual/subtle thing. People should have an aesthetic mind to show case the sensuality and bring in the right kind of pleasure. Just stripping a woman does not precisely ring the bell, unless you are seeing her for the first time like that.

Okay leaving my philosophy aside, the movie is a overflow of comedy. Boman Irani, Lara Dutta and very well our king Akshay have made it a blast of laughter.

It is a must watch as it acts as a good break from our normal routines.

My Rating: 3/5
My Verbal Rating: A must watch in theater. so that you can have fun without disturbance of either a cellphone or a door bell ring.

My name is KHAN and I am not a terrorist - Movie Review

Hum Honge kaamiyaab hum honge kaamiyaab hum honge kaamiyaaaaab ...... Ek Din!

हम होंगे कामियाब हम होंगे कामियाब हम होंगे कामियाब ... एक दिन!!!!!!

Now have you ever heard this song??? If so ... then sing the below lines in the same tune.

We shall overcome we shall overcome we shall overcome ... One day!

Just keep singing and watch My Name is Khan, not one/some day, but today. In the movie Hurricane, where Denzel Washington casts as Rubin Carter, he says to a small boy, "Hatred for some society/creed/culture has resulted in me serving 25 years in prison; so do not develop that feeling towards anything". The movie completely runs on the same lines.

Till his last film, all of Karan Johar's films were so far from reality. They were full of love, heart breaks, songs and dances. But My Name is Khan is different from all those.

SRK plays Rizwan Khan ('Khan' from the epiglottis :D ), who suffers from Asperger's syndrome, a type of autism.  SRK's performance was excellent. The story revolves around him, his wife Mandira (Kajol) and his son Sameer, and how their lives changed after 9/11 attacks. Rizwan Khan travels from San Francisco to Washington D.C to meet the American President, and tell him that all Muslims are not terrorists.

The message of the movie is old, yet unrealized. No religion, including Islam, preaches violence against the innocent. If one sect/caste/religion/country is called terrorist then mind you there is a terrorist in everyone. Those people who have made fun of democracy and stopped the filming of this movie in some parts of the country are also terrorists. Those people who went into a pub and misbehaved with young girls there in the beautiful town of Karnataka on the name of Lord Shri Ram are also terrorists. The movie sends this wonderful message, "No one is a terrorist by his caste/sect/religion/country".

My rating: 5/5

My verbal rating: A must watch ASAP for everyone.

On a lighter note: Today morning when I saw Times of India giving 5/5 for this movie, I thought these guys are too much. But the movie proved me wrong. Its certainly 5/5

Rann - Movie Review

After Ram Gopal Varma's recent failures, I was a little hesitant about watching Rann in the theaters, however the movie proved me wrong.

Rann is an unconventional movie. It highlights "Media Business" and how the fourth estate is cashing on people's insane craze for Sensational news. The movie has a strong theme, good casting, perfect background score and a nice story line. 

Vijay Harshvardhan Malik (Big B) owns a news channel called India 24x7, which runs on high journalistic ethics. In the age where news is edited, and presented with attention-grabbing headlines, Vijay Malik believes in showing people the true news and not in creating news. His son, Jai Malik, on the other hand, wants to use the channel to earn more money. He joins hands with opposition leader Mohan Pandey(Paresh Rawal) and Naveen Shankalia(Rajat Kapoor) , and turns his channel as a weapon which wins Pandey the Prime Minster's throne. The movie revolves around how Mohan Pandey plots to use the channel to win elections and how Purab Shastry (Ritesh Deshmukh) stops him from succeeding. 

The movie is not about media bashing. It is about how politics affect its transparency. The casting was perfect, with Amitabh Bachchan bringing in the seriousness, and Raj Pal Yadav adding humor. Ritesh and Paresh Rawal did justice to their roles. The background score of the movie was amazing, just like Sarkar. I enjoyed watching the movie, and you will too.

My Rating: 3.5/5
My Verbal Rating: The movie is for thinking viewers, go for it.

3 Idiots

3 idiots is an entertainer based on Chetan Bhagat's bestseller, Five point someone. The story is loosely related to the book. It is a story of three friends, Raju(Sharman), Farhan(Maddy) and Rancho(Amir), who join the country's best engineering college.

While Raju and Farhan are studious, Rancho is the odd one out. He is against the education system in India, and believes that learning should be passionate and practical. The movie is about how he explains the same to his friends and the director of the college Viru Sahastrabudhhe, aka Virus(Boman). Mean while he also falls for Pia (Kareena Kapoor).

Raju Hirani was all set to make the audience laugh and cry. The movie is a complete entertainer, and all the actors palyed their part well. The effort spent on deciding the casting did not go waste. Raju Hirani got just the perfect players for the roles. Personally, I liked the character of Chatur, aka Silencer.

To cut the long story short, the movie is a must watch for those looking for a complete entertainer.

My Rating: 4.5

My Verbal Rating: It's just awesome. Don't miss it.

Aarya - II

Someone once told me that this movie sucks big time. Respecting that Mr.Someone's opinion I refrained from watching this movie. However after good enough time after the release, recently I thought why not give it a try. After watching, now I am trying to find out that Mr.Someone.

This movie is a sequel to a wonderful entertainer of 2004, Aarya. You need to understand, in India a sequel doesn't mean you would be finding the same story of part-I getting continued. A similar concept, is what a sequel means in this country. The reason behind it is LOVE. Yes, our audience love to see the concept of love in every movie. So if part-I had a successful love story then what is left in part-II? Simple another love story has to start. Heroine changes, Hero is constant. MALE DOMINATION :-)

So just like the part-I, its all about love and sacrifice which every time is offered only by our hero, Allu Arjun. As usual with hatred for the hero, the heroine falls in love with the side-hero. Then the remaining movie runs around our hero getting back the babe. Though the story outline is not new, the entertainment is absolutely fresh. Also this guy Navdeep, I should say, got a very good break by this movie.

Padmashri. Brahmanandam garu, did marvelously. His humour and the way he presented it was exemplary. The other good part of this movie is, the heroine who used only to expose did not have to do that. She was decent. No indecency. May be the whole family got bored of her cleavage :-)

By all these means this movie is a very good entertainer. The ROI is 100%.

My rating: 4/5
My verbal rating: Good to watch with everyone in the family. A very good entertainer.

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Stop Piracy

Rocket Singh - Salesman of the Year

"Ethical movie of the Year"

Harpreet Singh Bedi(Ranbeer Kapoor) is an honest and ambitious salesman who believes in doing things the right way. After passing out from college with minimal marks, he decides to make his mark as a salesman. He joins in a company as a trainee, and soon finds out that the sales world runs on bribery and corruption. He innocently complains to a client organization about the bribery. Instead of the expected appreciation, he is treated as a loser and denied field work.

He secretly starts his own sales corporation while working as a trainee. His company has no employees, but only partners. He reaches out to clients and offers services honestly. He uses the old mantra of selling goods of higher quality for lesser cost. Soon his business becomes a great success. The rest of the movie is about how his bosses learn the lessons of running an ethical business.

Coming from the Chak de India team, Rocket Singh is a must watch movie for everyone. Ranbir Kapoor played his part really well, and I can surely say that he is a very promising actor. The best part of this movie is, there are no useless songs that disturb the flow of the story. All the songs are in the background. Shazhan Padamsee had a very short role to play, so I can not really comment on her acting.

My rating: 4/5
My verbal rating: Good for a onetime watch; can learn some ethics out of the movie

De Dana Dan - A Storyless Wonderful Comedy

The million dollar question that should come to your mind after watching this movie is "Why are Sunil Shetty, Akshay, Katrina and Sameera Reddy engaged in the movie???". The only answer;  they are the unnecessary selling factors involved for a wonderful comedy movie.

If I need to recompile and tell you what the story line is, it becomes the tough part. However if I need to think how long I was laughing then I can happily tell you that it was almost all the tenure of the movie. The comedy was so great that you need to take deep breaths in-between and drink some water. The entire movie hall gets filled with NitrousOxide. This movie has one more feature, it can be watched by everyone in the family together. Full PaisaVasool.

My rating: 3.5/5

My verbal rating: Its a must watch for everyone who can understand Hindi.

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Stop Piracy

Ajab Prem ki Gajab Kahani

Complete all your nature calls :-) buy popcorn, soft drink, water, nachos, cakes whatever and just get settled down before the Certificate of the movie is shown; cos you are up for an amazing fun ride. Right from the word go till the end of the movie there isn't a minute that passes without everyone laughing.

Okay, now the boring part, the story. Regular story, idle lad of a middle class guy who does nothing except that he falls in love with a pretty woman, who (the girl) as usual loves some one else. Doesn't it sound pretty boring. Yes it is. If you want a story movie nope then this movie is not for you. However if you still attempt to see this movie you shall never regret.

Ranbir, I think its genes, that he does acting so well. To say it in the Indian way, its Khandani :-). I also felt that Katrina how much ever she tries can never get rid of her western accent.  Both did pretty well.

"Run away Bride" concept has become very common these days. Almost in all the movies the heroin gets ready to wed another chap and suddenly just few minutes before the marriage she realizes that he is not the one. And THE ONE is none other than the hero. And that's it .... she runs away.

Directors of these so called Bollywood, Tollywood, Kollywood, Sandalwood made the values of marriage a fun. So brothers, I mean you directors, will understand this when either your daughters or would-be wives run out of the marriage you would realize how funny it can be.

Readers might think that I am getting serious unnecessarily, but friends there is a lot of influence on us from movies.

Well ...

My rating for this movie: 3/5

My verbal rating: Don't miss it; no story; but amazing comedy and you shall burst, laughing.

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Say no to Piracy

Inglorious Basterds

I am really wondering what should I write about this movie. It starts as a documentary showing us each and every Chapter which are to be compiled finally and ...

Well, I would give you a basic story. Its Nazis versus the Jews. A Jewish family gets killed by German soldiers and the lone person who escapes that tragedy is the beautiful lady below. Time gives her a chance to take revenge.

In an another episode there are a team of American soldiers who are named as BASTERDS by the Germans for their brutality in killing the Germans. These people make a plot to hit the German top brass big time.

Now the remaining part of the picture is their individual strategies against the Germans which become a combined effort by accident and lead to the Nazi downfall.

The movie is a must watch and that too in a theater. Every part of the movie has something to rejoice and has some funny element along with certain anxiety. Brad Pitt and Christoph Waltz were extremely good in their action.

As the above picture narrates, its the BASTERDS' bat versus Nazis' heads.

My rating: 3.5/5

My Verbal rating: Must watch; in a theater

Ganesh - Just Ganesh

I never dreamt even in my wildest dreams that I would go to a movie starring Ram on the first day that too after buying the tickets in Black. But then there is always a first time for everything... :P

Ganesh - Just Ganesh is a typical masala Telugu movie which tries to be different at times but then is gobbled up by the intention to reach out to the mass crowd...!!!

Movie starts well with our good Samaritan hero, Ganesh (Ram of Devadasu fame) putting his hand up to help fructify his friend's love. To attain this, he has to show fake love towards Divya (Kajal Agarwal). Divya falls for him. However our hero falls in real love while faking. Just before the interval, the heroine gets to know about his act. Post-interval is all about how he tries to prove his love. He follows a novel method to justify his act. I think this is something which would instantly connect with the audience.

Ram does well but in most of the scenes he tries to imitate Pavan Kalyan. as always. I think Ram has good potential as actor and it would be good if he creates his own style. Kajal Agarwal looks good. I am seeing her for the second time in one week. Saturday it was Magadheera and now it is Ganesh. I must say I am fast becoming a fan of this lovely lady. Acting-wise she is ok.

All in all, I think this movie is a decent time-pass but then there are 3-4 unnecessary songs which test your patience. There is decent comedy, not path-breaking but time-pass. I think you can watch this movie if there is no other movie ticket available. :)

My rating: 2.5/5

BLUE - Music Review

Here’s my music review of BLUE. The first underwater movie of India. Probably, the most expensive movie ever to hit the Indian movie industry. It is not a coincidence that two of the most expensive movies of Bollywood so far, Kambakkht Ishq and BLUE had Akshay Kumar as the hero. This shows the tremendous confidence the producers have in him when it comes to raking in the moolah. Hats off to Akki. !!!!


Well, coming to the music of this movie. It has A.R. Rehman composing music. This is the first time that A.R. Rehman is scoring music for an Akshay Kumar movie. As an Akshay Kumar fan, I had huge expectations from the album and it didn’t disappoint me.!!!


As they say, A.R. Rehman’s music is like slow poison. The more you hear it the more you like it. It is true even with this album as well. When I first heard the album, only two songs caught my imagination. But now after repeatedly listening to the album, I can say that there are 5 to 6 great songs and have the potential to be chartbusters. In fact, some of them already are. !!!


The album starts with Chiggy Wiggy, the much-hyped song featuring Kylie Minogue, the Australian popstar. The song definitely has an international feel to it in the initial two minutes. But honestly, I couldn’t understand the lyrics initially except for Chiggy wiggy.!!! I am sure this is going to be the case even with an average music buff in India. But we are in for a pleasant surprise after two minutes when the great Sonu Nigam enters the scene. There is a rustic feel to it the moment he comes in and the song takes a completely different route from here on in. I am damn sure that people are going to love this song from this part onwards. All in all, a wonderful song and catchy from the moment you listen to it. Final verdict. Definite chartbuster !!!!


Second in the album is Aaj Dil Gustaakh hai . This has a distinctly cool and simple feel to it. It is reminds you of beach songs, seriously. Sukwinder Singh and Shreya Ghoshal are behind the microphone for this song. This song confuses me always. Sometimes I like it . Sometimes I don’t. It is good in parts. This may not a big hit but it is definitely a timepass kind of song. Final verdict. Average song.!!!!


Third is Fiqraana. Music for the first 10 seconds reminds you of title song of Delhi-6 and also Kaise Mujhe tum milgaye from Ghajini, both of which are Rehman compositions. But the similarity ends just there as Fiqraana is a completely different song from the other two. This is a song which will catch your imagination the very first time you hear. It is just awesome and pumps in the adrenaline. Sung by Shreya Ghoshal and Vijay Prakash who also has the song Lat Uljhi from Yuvvraaj to his credit. This comes as a surprise as Lat Uljhi was a complete classical song and Vijay Prakash does great justice to this song. In fact, he is fantastic. A trivia – This song was supposed to be sung by Farhan Akhtar but he declined the offer due to some unknown reasons. Final verdict. Definite Chartbuster !!!!


Fourth in line is a slow sad song Bhoola Tujhe by Rashid Ali who sang Kabhi Kabhi Aditi from Jaane Tu Ya jaane na. When I first heard this song, I didn’t like it that much but after 2-3 hearings, this touched my heart. seriously. Lyrics are pretty well written for this song and Rashid Ali does well in this song. This song puts in a calm influence on you. It is pretty decent and I must say has the potential to be a big hit. Final verdict. Good song !!!


Next comes Blue Theme Music . Mark my words. This will just blow you away. Truly amazing. Sung by a host of singers. This is bound to raise goosebumps all over. Will act as a perfect charger for everyone. Magnificent. The more you listen to this the more it captivates you. I must say such a song can be created only by the maestro A.R. Rehman. Final verdict. Definite Chartbuster.!!!!!


After this comes Rehnuma. It starts as a slow romantic number. Somewhat similar to many songs sung by Alisha Chinai but soon goes into a completely different orbit. Once it reaches its crescendo. it is just ethereal. I am sure people are going to love this after 2-3 hearings. Sung by Sonu Nigam and Shreya Ghoshal, this is going to be a rocking ride. Oh yes. You will love it and I am sure this will be a chartbuster soon. Final verdict. Definite chartbuster. !!!!!


Last song in the album is Yaar Mila tha. Sung by the melodious duo, Udit Narayan and Madhushree. This is a typical shararat wala song of a Hindi film but you will be in for a pleasant surprise. Udit Narayan and Madhushree make this great song even more wonderful with their soothing voice. This will be a major hit particularly in the Hindi belt. Final verdict. Definite Chartbuster.!!!!


Overall the album has Five chartbusters, One good song and one average song. I am sure this is one of the best albums of this year. So far this year, I thought Love Aaj kal was the best album but now I have second thoughts after listening to BLUE. I won’t be surprised if this emerges as the best album of this year. Truly magnificent album. Go get it!!!!!


RATING : 4.5 / 5

The taking of Pelham 123

The taking of Pelham 123 reiterates few of the principles John Travolta teaches Hugh Jackman in Password Swordfish; The principle of misdirection being the important one. 

John Travolta once again features as the bad guy and this time takes 18 passengers as hostages on a local train in New York. He makes a demand for $10Million. Its just a misdirection. Denzel Washington plays the role of a station chief who unfortunately takes that chair only this day. The story runs as a drama with discussions between John and Denzel and the plot unfolds very well. Its fun to watch. At times you would feel that the story has a tinch of the movie PhoneBooth.

However we may not classify this movie as extraordinary or exceptionally good. The ending could not create the necessary bang. However its just good and fun. 

My rating for the movie: 3/5

My verbal rating: Watch it once for fun. You might even watch it at home, if you do not want to spend time or money going to a theater.

Kick - Buckle the belt tightly :-)

This is the best comedy movie of the times. The elders may not like the comedy which has a little bit of taboo added to it, however the young would certainly love it.

As usual, like in anyother RaviTeja's movie, the hero doesn't have any proper ambition or career. However here the hero loves to have a tinch of adventure/risk in everything he does. If he feels that there is no risk or fun in any task then he creates problems for himself and then tries solving it to satiate his hunger for risk and adventure. Now this guy falls in love with the herione who is a quoxotic. The story moves further where the hero is proven as a big theif. The remaining part of the story is a chase between the hero and a police officer who is none other than the fiance of the heroine.

Check it out. I would recommend it watching twice with a month's gap.

My Rating: 4/5

My Verbal rating: Very humourous. Should watch

Arundhati

Probably I am the last one writing a review on this, however. I am actually a little afraid of horror movies. People scared me that its the likes of Exorcist etc. However after my wife insisted I booked for it.

On the contrary its a very perfectly directed movie which is not so frightening except for few powdered faces which try to scare you in vain. Yepp the playback music guy did enough to scare you well. The movie runs around the same old concept, a man who dies and wants to take revenge. A little twist to it is, the demon is a rapist.

There are a few things which directly show the director's flaws but you know you can compromise these for a relatively good movie. There is nothing, absolutely nothing to be scared about and its a must watch for everyone.

My rating: 4/5

My Verbal rating: A cool ghost movie :-) (A ghost which can be killed by a weapon ha ha haaaaaaaaaaaaaaa)

Aakasamantha - A Sentimental Documentary

This is no nonsense movie. A very good one to watch with family. The story completely runs around a father and his love and affection for his only daughter. This is a must watch for all parents. Comedy is properly placed in the movie.

The father's affection for the daughter is properly shown and also teaches a lesson to all those guys who just took away girls away from their fathers in the name of love. 

I would give a rating of 4/5

My verbal rating: Must watch for all parents

Koncham Istam Koncham Kastam - A funny family movie

I might be a little late to express my opinions here, however I have seen it just over the weekend and thought I should not miss to express my views.

The movie is a perfect family entertainer. One would understand why Sri Brahmanandam garu has got the prestigious PadmaShri award recently. The comedy provided by him makes one gasp for breath. As usual Siddartdh movies are a mix of fun and family centiment. This movie is a must watch for everyone to understand Love. I am not speaking of the love which starts at college and ends up nowhere. The movie explains the responsibility that comes with LOVE.

Its about a relationship but not who is great relative to other - thats the message. And this is important in one's life.

My rating: 3.5/5
My Verbal Rating: Must watch - atleast once

King - A nice Comedy

 

Aaah what a movie. Its a true telugu movie with all the required masala for a typical Telugu movie. As usual, the movie doesn't have a strong story but makes you laugh and laugh till the end. The whole first half of the movie is absolute comedy and the humor is not weird. Its pretty good. The later part tries to bring in some story which mimics Om Shanti Om. Suddenly we realize that its not. If one expects some exciting story out of it, they are up for a considerable disappointment.

However if I have to rate the movie for comedy I would give ten out of ten. (Comedy: 10/10)

My Overall Rating: 3.0/5

My Verbal Rating: Good to watch once, Nice timepass