Is Atul Agnihotri a worse director than actor? Well that's a discussion not worth having. His debut film ripped off 'Return To Me' and it was a pathetic movie. This film is pretty bad (though not as bad as other disasters of the year such as 'Drona', 'Krazzy 4' etc) and the worst thing about both of Agnihotri's films is the direction. The guy should have given up after his first attempt and perhaps do something not-related to cinema (perhaps follow the footsteps of another non-talented ex actress like Twinkle Khanna who has now become an interior decorator).
I haven't read Bhagat's book but what convinced me to give this movie a chance were Isha Koppikar and Gul Panag. The movie really drags at several sequences and the dialogues are stale. The romantic scenes are corny and dull e.g. Priyanka proposing to Shyam. The songs are irritating and of the fast-forward quality. The characters are not well-developed and as a consequence, some of the performances suffer. The entire God sequence appears forced and ridiculous and the Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif track are cringe-inducing. The film is offensive to non-Indians and there is even a forced 'patriotic scene' about how Westerners use Indians and then treat them like nothing etc etc. The resolution is presented in an amateur way.
'Hello' is carried by Sharman Joshi and the actor does a fairly adequate job. Sohail Khan is mostly annoying but there are a few scenes where he displays signs of good acting. Amrita Arora shows some improvement in acting as she's cast against type. Sharat Saxena too is good. Anusha Dhandekar makes a funny appearance as the bimbo girlfriend. Salman Khan's scenes are puke-inducing. He looks and acts like a 50 year old haggard has-been retarded popstar (who has gone under the knife and thinks he's 20 and cool). His fake hair and age are oozing out of the implants and, as always, he's stripping again (ghastly!). Katrina Kaif has never been able to act and she is laughable (unintentionally of course). A gorgeous Isha Koppikar and a sensual Gul Panag are sufficient (but this is far from their best works). The rest of the cast are truly abysmal (especially that office rapper)
There are a few funny moments and I liked the chemistry between the five main actors. But, overall, it's a very weak film. Atul Agnihotri should give up on cinema (and so should Salman). Perhaps one can give it a go if they are fans of the actors but otherwise, there isn't much to miss.
