BY - ANIRUDDHA ' ANI ' KUNDU

Humraaz, the latest flick by the deadly duo of Abbas-Mustan,was another much awaited movie of this year. The industry which has been suffering from from the slowdown, which is going through an absolute lean & rough patch, was absolutely confident that this movie will revive it's fortunes once again.

A&M better known for producing heart-chilling thrillers , have managed to dispatch another belter this time, in the name of HUMRAAZ. Movies full of the "what next " feel are the trademark of this talented duo and tell u what, HUMRAAZ is not a disappointment. A wealthy young business tycoon [Bobby Deol] lives in a mansion that looks less like a lived in house than a five star hotel.The pretty heroine [Amisha] remains with the limited emotional bandwidth enjoyed by the Hoary Bhartiya-Nari syndrome, and to beat it all , we have the violent climax drag-ons, broken limbs and other body parts, liftings[whatever you may say, weightlifying, powerlifting, or bodylifting], firing of gunshots, and oozing out of blood.

Akshay khanna with an absolutely new hair-do with Amisha plan a trap for poor Bobby who walks straight into it. Henceforth, we have a dummy marriage and n- no. of "mannateins" like walking barefoot, practising 'kouvaarapan' etc. A slow first half,budging ahead with a 'snail's pace', but still the second half managed to keep the viewers hooked. The most obvious question is -can Amisha break the jinx ? Can she come out of the series of flops, she has been going through with ? The viewers are the ultimate judge. A dharampeth although,in the movie,she managed to reflect various shades of gray.

Bobby deol had been gamuting between the various roles including that of 'Bhagat Singh',a 'Tycoon',a Policeman, and now also of a 'Chor'. But still except some action sequences in the dying moments, his presence went unnoticed. A remarkable thing about the movie is the reinvention of Akshay Khanna. His performance has been superb and we can rate it as a potential award winner. On many occations,we have a cool and composed Akshaye, the next moment, we see the hysterical part of him. He is the most lovable one minute, loathsome the other. Also we do have some fine music by the budding director Himesh Reshammiya. All the songs are worth listening and we already have a number of youngsters crooning the songs. So are good the swanky locations and the lavish sets,specially made for the songs.In the end,I can say thet the movie is a thriller,studded with action sequences,intrigue,the framing of others, some average performance ,a vfery special type of mirror,and a very common story line WITH NO SECRET TO SHARE.

Rating : **1/2 : Worth your money :