Fitoor Movie Reviews

There is so much to admire in Fitoor that it is easy not to be put off by its ponderous pace and lack of contextual detailing. Go for it because there might not be too many better films than Fitoor this year.

Quite simply, it works for you, or it doesn’t. There is no logic. It is about emotions. You sound like a fart verbalising or intellectualising beyond a point. I’m wholly aware of it. So, will rightly desist. Or will try to.

Yes, there are blemishes and the film from nowhere is flawless. Comparing it with the book is something that we would certainly ask you to avoid. It’s slow paced at some points but it’s the grandeur and visual representation that will help you get through those moments. Watch it with a fresh perspective, and it will not disappoint you. We go with a three and a half star for this one where that ½ a star is added just for the love of Kashmir. 

Kapoor ditches many of the overarching social themes of Great Expectations to focus on what is primarily the story of star-crossed lovers and a complex romance. Fitoor isn’t perfect, but it’s a skillfully made film that’s easy on both the eye and the ear. In these times of fast-paced, hyperactive storytelling, you can appreciate the film’s dreamy, moody pace.

You get style – including six-pack Noor painting shirtless (explains why artists score more – can you imagine writers taking their tops off to work?) – but little depth. To play with a great quote, oh what a tangled web we weave, when we learn to retrieve – in this case, retrieving a classic indeed caused a tangle, albeit one of Pashmina dhaagas.

…devastatingly beautiful, thanks to director Abhishek Kapoor’s portrayal of Kashmir in it. However, underneath all the surreal beauty, this adaptation of Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations falls short of fulfilling the great expectations people had from it.

Alas, Abhishek Kapoor’s ‘Fitoor’ looks better than it feels.

Watch it for its beauty (cinematography by Anay Goswami), music (Amit Trivedi) and a few and far in between tender, touching moments.

There is certainly a different kind of curiosity which binds the viewers in watching a story unfold on-screen which has been read before. Despite, knowing the basic plot, the director’s vision surprises us in each scene. Fitoor has some power-packed dialogues by Supratik Sen.

Fitoor stands in a shaky space, wobbling between being average and brilliant. There are moments that will blow your mind – the passion is enlivening. You want to invest in the characters, get sucked into the extravagant world of enchanting valleys and the stories that inhabit its nook and corners, alleys and bylanes…with the Persian lyrics of Haminastu in Zeb’s earthy voice echoing in your ears… Sadly, the only love story you would want to celebrate in Fitoor is the director and cinematographer’s love for ethereal beauty of Kashmir and Amit Trivedi’s undying romance with melody. The rest of it is prosaic.

Fitoor is a film that looks magical, has impressive performances, yet lacks ‘wow’ factor. This love story is not everyone’s cup of tea and hence those with artsy tastes may like it.

The problem with Fitoor is that it’s a love story that is not romantically compelling. The climax seems too rushed – it needed more drama and emotional depth but that’s missing.

FITOOR packs in a lot visually (DOP – Anay Goswamy) and held out a promise to be Danielle Steel’s The Promise. However, it remains just that, a promise!

If you love modern art and abstract paintings then Fitoor should appeal to your senses!

If you love Great Expectations, keep no expectations from this one. Else, be prepared to entranced by the visual splendor of the movie, and be disappointed by the lack of emotional connect.

There are moments in Fitoor which are brilliant, but they are few and far between. But what elevates the film greatly is music composer Amit Trivedi’s haunting score. His potent music makes the young lovers’ yearning real and legitimate. Watch this if you want to see a visually stunning piece of filmmaking, but if you are looking for an intense love story, you are barking up the wrong chinar tree.

Fitoor looks highly enchanting but the plot only disappoints as the movie inches closer to the end. The film does not live upto the expectations.

Overall, “Fitoor” does not live up to the great expectations you have for the film.

Melodrama and a superficial love story are some of the road blocks that hinder a beautiful cinematic journey Abhishek Kapoor wanted to take you on.

What shines through the 130 minutes is Anay Goswami’s painterly cinematography and Amit Trivedi’s velvety soundtrack. Fitoor doesn’t lack pace, it lacks the finesse and the depth. And we are left with not much to do except marvel at the white beauty of Kashmir, while the real Pip, Estella and Miss Havisham remain buried under that thick blanket of snow, perhaps occasionally stirring in their graves.

The director casts two attractive people where he ought have chosen a couple of actual actors instead, and thus it becomes hard to care about the protagonists or their sundered hearts, and despite aesthetic appeal, what we end up with is — at best — a screensaver…

Fitoor could have been a grand, epic romance with its visual deftness, opulent sets and soulful music but the characters and story both fall short of delivering what they were expected to.

Shot beautifully, Fitoor does appeal to you. Anay Goswami’s lens captures Kashmir beautifully. There are shikaras, snow-clad mountains, wooden houses and, of course, chinar leaves that have a special talent of turning everything mediocre into OhhhMyyyGoooodddThat’sSooooBeauuuutiifulll.

If only Abhishek Kapoor had stuck to the original story, indulging in the complex intertwined tale of expectation, fate, luck and love, Fitoor may have worked perfectly for an Indian audience. The original tale has all the markings to feed our drama loving audience its fill. Unfortunately, Kapoor strayed from the course, botched up and we have a film that is worth watching only for three reasons. Oh! The third being Aditya Roy Kapoor’s chiselled torso.

…a huge letdown despite its great visuals, as it fails to connect emotionally. At the Box-Office, the movie will appeal only to a minuscule set of multiplex audience.

Poor Charles Dickens! I am sure he never meant for Great Expectations to be a Bollywood romance. He called it a ‘very fine, new grotesque idea’ when he thought it up. Fitoor is this very finely shot, very bizarre breathy romance film which is saved by moments of true madness displayed by the brilliant Tabu.

Katrina Kaif starrer spares no one, not Kashmir, not Delhi, not London, not Kashmiris, and not even poor Pakistan, which somehow finds its way into this tale essentially about love traversing social divides.

Fitoor has to be one of the most enchanting films to look at, in a long time. But this great looking film that captures the surreal beauty of Kashmir does not live up to the great expectations attached with it.

Fitoor takes a multi-layered classic, dilutes its themes of imperialism and social hierarchies, and chooses instead to interpret it in a more Bollywood-esque manner. But that isn’t what’s wrong with it. Ultimately, what prevents the film from truly soaring are the undeniable chinks in its otherwise attractive armour…

‘Fitoor’ is a staggeringly beautiful canvas, but nothing else.

Fitoor is one of the most disappointing literary adaptations ever attempted in Indian cinema. Director Abhishek Kapoor had earlier done Chetan Bhagat’s 3 Mistakes Of My Life (Kai Po Che). This is less Dickens, more Mills & Boon. Kashmir has a lot to be happy about. Wish we could say the same about Charles Dickens.

Abhishek Kapoor‘s brilliance as a director can be seen in the shots of Kashmir. Right from the start of the film, Dal Lake’s serenity and Srinagar’s virgin beauty will leave you awe-struck. However, in terms of performances, you wonder if he could have pushed the lead pair a little harder.

To Kapoor’s credit, his vision is ambitious and “Fitoor” (Obsession) has the look of a brooding, sweeping romance that transcends time and, at times, the realities of the era in which it is based.

Fitoor is lush and aching, more Regency novel than Dickens. And it works, but only up till a point.

Of course all the loose ends are tied up eventually, explanations are offered but it is done clumsily and stretches credibility.

Fitoor is a class movie like Haider, while there are flaws, it is definitely worth the watch.

Fitoor’s plot has no central motor to power it through its twists and turns, and no discernible big idea to replace the critique of privilege and entitlement. Despite being residents of one of the country’s most politically volatile states, the characters are largely bereft of ideology.

Fitoor is very slow and confusing too. Rather than happiness, it sells depression. It may be liked by a section of the class audience but it will be rejected by the masses and will, therefore, prove to be a box-office disaster, entailing a huge loss to all concerned.