We are Family - A Review

Directed by Siddharth Malhotra
Produced by Karan Johar, Hiroo Johar
Written by Gigi Levangie Grazer; Venita Coelho
Starring Kajol, Kareena Kapoor,Arjun Rampal
Music by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Cinematography Mohanan
Genre: Drama
Rating: **.5(2.5/5)
Inspiration: Stepmom

(The aim and intention of my reviews is to critique and recommend while not revealing the whole story to enjoy the movie when seen. But minor details have been divulged for a proper review!)

'We are Family' is the first bollywood movie legitimately copied and credited and rights purchased from its original Hollywood version! But why make an apparently Indian version of ‘stepmom’ when it’s set in Australia, and is an' Expactriate-Indian' version of the story with similar scenes and dialogues as the original!  Yes, it has the natural performer and an excellent actress like Kajol, but why watch a movie which is a very predictable and sad version of the Hollywood one!

This movie handles the difficult issues of divorce, separation, relationships and death.  It’s a tragedy, and its written all over in every scene with its gloomy predictability, depressing story, zero light-hearted relief and lack of depth.  It has a few sad and heartrending scenes, but  that doesn’t affect you throughout the movie, because of its superficiality.

Kajol has to be applauded for her natural performance reflected as the multi tasker disciplinarian mom, with shades of possessive, envious, jealous, sad, helpless, big hearted, scared of her impending death and departure from her family and finally accepting of the inevitable. Kareena too has matured in performance but comparing her to Julia Roberts in Stepmom, it’s not good enough. Arjun Ramphal is the man involved with these strong women and nothing much.

This emotional drama fell flat from my  good expectaions of  it being a Stepmoms remake with actresses like Kajol and Kareena with a producer like Karan Johar!