Don't listen to the negative reviews

A Brilliant Conflict

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

When you watch a movie about Mumbai being from mumbai the first thing one would want is the dialogues to be in the local language or at least the manner in which they are delivered to be of some semblance but sadly our own "Bollywood" filmmakers have done a bad job at it than someone like Danny Boyle in SDM.To expect once upon a time in mumbai to rise to the level of Slum Dog Millionaire in terms of the story telling and the reality would be a big mistake but these days Bollywood is reaching out much wider than before and has a lot of investment flowing in as well from all quarters. So Once upon a time does deliver a lot of substance and entertainment but it still lacks the feel of being anywhere near reality as its title purports it to be.By now everyone is aware of the story of this movie about the rise of a Robinhood like gangster inspired from Haji Mastan played by Ajay Devgan and his ardent follower turned henchman turned enemy inspired from Dawood played by Imraan Hashmi. Most of the movie was meant to be a sort of showcase of the lives of these smugglers and kingpins , their alliances and disputes as well as the struggle between them and a weak police force. All this from the point of view of a failed police officer. But some of the vulgarities are replaced with the rosiness of bollywood by focusing more on the love stories of the 2 main gangsters more than all these aspects of the story which would concern the narrator's point of view. The love story is given so much importance that the gangsters end up looking more like caricatures of a typical Tapori Romeo than being capable of becoming the heads of a crime syndicate. This is a sorely lacking pint in the character of Shuaib Khan(imraan hash mi) who is barely tolerable in any of the scenes or situations let alone displaying the sharpness or passion of the most feared Don of mumbai. Most of the times he ends up either arguing with friends or messing up with other fellow gangsters or parading his girlfriend who for some reason keeps sticking onto him despite a lack of any connection to his inner character or decency in his attitude towards her. The gullible aspect of entrusting responsibilities on Shuaib by Sultan Mirza(Ajay Devgan) seems totally unconvincing considering how much intelligent the character of Sultan is portrayed to be. If that weren't enough Shuaib's differences with Sultan are more visible to an outsider like the police inspector than Sultan himself which would make no sense at all.The dialogues and their delivery is no doubt very powerful and at times thought provoking but it severely lacks any realism or conveys the context of the story or the intelligence of the characters. Shuaib is then forced down to appear like a leader even though none of his actions or words make him appear to be so and on the other hand Sultan falls into a betrayal that would seem so obvious to those he has dealt with shrewdly in the past. All of this weakens the story a bit along with the slow pacing of events.I think Ajay devgan redeems this movie from a downward spiral which brings out a memorable performance in him, He completely excludes command and domination in every scene. His co-star Kagna Ranaut also delivers to her role quite believably. The other 2 co-stars do their part but again Imraan Hashmi seems a wrong choice for the role of a don. It seems like he was chosen for the lover boy side more than the gangster side of the role as most of the time he is seen pursuing a love interest than doing anything worthy of a crime head.In summary this movie is more bollywood than a historical drama and the filmmakers did no justice to the inclusion of the name of Mumbai in the title in terms of the atmosphere.Watch it for Ajay Devgan's best performance!

Mumbai goes rewind with 'Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai', does this tribute flashback work? In parts, YES, in parts, NO. Milan Luthria's direction is sharp, but the writing is half-baked.Gangster films have always caught Media attention, and so did 'Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai', but somehow this flick doesn't rank amongst those classics. A tale of a gangster/robin-hood and a complete Hitler, has it's moments, but at the end of the day, it gets restricted by it's unavoidable flaws. The film begins well, and the characters of Sultan Mirza & Shoaib Khan have appeal, but it's the writing in the second hour, which pulls down the momentum. The culmination however, is effective and note-worthy.Milan Luthria is in complete form this time. His direction is sharp, and truly commendable. The Screenplay, as mentioned, is flawed. Aseem Mishra's is Cinematography stylish. Pritam's music is superb, most of the songs are of chart-buster category.In the acting department, Ajay Devgn shines as Sultan Mirza. Emraan Hashmi is awkward in most scenes. He doesn't really suit the part. Kangna Ranaut looks stunning each time she appears on screen, and does her part naturally. Prachi Desai is alright. Randeep Hooda is good, in a brief role. Naved Aslam & Avtar Gill are passable.On the whole, an above-average fare. Watch it if you must!

Ajay Devgan rocks in this movie. a must watch movie. Excellent. You seldom get period dramas in Bollywood which are not about historical characters. This year that way has been very lucky that way. Couple of months ago we had Badmaash Company and now we have Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai. Of course both are completely different from each other, the first being set in the fast 90s and the latter being set in colorful 70s. And director Milan Luthria makes enough efforts to make OUATIM look very authentic and worth a watch for its settings.Settings apart the film has its pluses with some superb performances and great dialogs. However the problem with the film is the not so new storyline and the very slow screenplay. Though the characters are well established and well rounded the writer takes the entire first half to do that without much movement in the story. And then as you expect fireworks in the second half it fizzles out too fast.OUATIM is the story of two gangsters. While one was ethical the other was reckless. It has inspirations of the characters of infamous smuggler Haji Mastan and now infamous don Dawood Ibrahim. The film is about Sultan (Ajay Devgn) who labored through his childhood and became a smuggler as he grew up completely ruling the sea routes. He however always preferred keeping the city clean and never smuggles which was against his conscience. Shoaib (Emraan Hashmi) is inspired by Sultan's life as a child and wants to it as big. He is a son of a police officer but has no inclination towards the law. As he grows up he makes his way to Sultan's gang and proves himself good enough to go up the ladder fast. However his reckless ambitions soon outgrew Sultan and he decided to take over the city on his own.The story is built on the line – 'behind the myth is the city's greatest betrayal story'. The screenplay does not give much importance to the betrayal. The slow pace of the first half could be a put off. Also funnily Sultan and his girlfriend Rehana never seem to age as they continue to look the same even as Shoaib grows from a child to rustic young crook.The film has its pluses. Luthria has taken care of everything – right from trains to cars to sunglasses to shoes to buildings! Everything takes us back to the 70s. Luthria handles the dramatic moments well and great use has been made of dialoguebaazi. All actors have come up with some memorable performances. Ajay Devgn's overpowering presence is matched by Emraan's charm. Kangna Ranaut and Prachi Desai do their bits well though they don't bear many consequences on the story itself. Randeep Hooda is effective as the police office.Overall, 'Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai' is an entertainer. It does not need any effort to be understood of liked. It is the mere magic of characters created that makes this film worth watching.

After a long time, a movie that manages to entertain throughout its 2 hour+ running time has released in theaters. I went to see this movie in theaters just for the sake of it, but surprisingly, it turned out to be a pleasant and worthwhile experience. The story, screenplay, dialogues, direction, acting, music, etc. were all top notch. Let's start with the performances of the main leads (in order from best to least): 1. Ajay Devgn- Is there any role this man cannot play? His dialogue delivery, costumes, and screen presence were impeccable. He carried the movie brilliantly with his intensity and his ability to show a range of emotions. His performance makes the trip to the theater worth it. 2. Randeep Hooda- Before this movie, I had no idea who he was. I was surprised that he could make his presence felt when he was next to a seasoned, intense performer like Ajay. He delivered his dialogues well and carried himself well throughout the movie. 3. Emraan Hashmi- The serial kisser of the industry surprised me with his performance. He acted very well and was able to make his presence felt. He also showed a great range of emotions.4. Kangana Ranaut- It is a known fact that she has ability to act, but she also looked beautiful. Her chemistry with Ajay was also great. She played her role effectively, although I don't think that this is her BEST performance to date, but certainly one of them. 5. Prachi Desai- She plays her innocent, doting character very well. This is only her third film, yet she can make her presence felt. Out of her 3 films (Rock On, Life Partner, and OUATIM) this was my favorite. Now let's move on to the music by Pritam. All of the songs are great, but "Tum Jo Aaye" is the best for me and is easily one of the best tracks of the year, as well as one of Pritam's best. The soundtrack is one of the best works of Pritam's.The next element is the direction by Milan Luthria. He incorporates Mumbai during the 70s very effectively. This can easily be said to be his finest work to date.People criticize this movie for being "predictable" but where did they get the idea that this movie is of the thriller or mystery genre? It is meant to entertain, which it does very effectively and is one of Bollywood's best crime/mafia movies. Also the violence was not gratuitous, as the fight scenes showed the true violent, psychotic, and dark nature of Shoaib (Emraan's character). So if this is not worth the price of the ticket, then what is?