One By Two Movie Review: Fun By Two

One By Two could have been fun, so so so much fun. The basic premise (of the lead pair never really meeting each other) was fantastic, the treatment was so much Hollywoodish, the choice of actors was right too and the man behind it all, Abhay Deol, has been aiming to push the envelope for a decade now.

However, and this is the sad part, the overall result doesn't turn out to be the kind of fun that could have come, courtesy the sum total of all ingredients coming together. Instead, is it barely half of what one could have rather experienced on screen. For a film which was basically aimed at the multiplex audience, it is disappointing to note that even for that segment, the film doesn't offer much.

Reason being that the target audience has been exposed to quite a few romcoms coming from the house of West, where such films release in dozens on a regular basis. The likes of Anne Hathway, Jennifer Aniston, Katherine Heigl and for vintage cinema lovers, Drew Barrymore, have been regular in such circuits. Hence, for newcomer Preeti Desai, it was some mountain to climb indeed. As for Abhay Deol, he hasn't done a quintessential love story with a comic twist to it since Socha Na Tha and hence one expected nothing but a terrific outcome from the film.

Unfortunately though, beyond the core idea, writer-director Devika Bhagat doesn't quite keep the proceedings water tight in this two hour affair. Oh yes, there are some cute-n-funny scenes interspersed in the narrative that ensure that you don't completely look away from the film. However, what one looks forward to in a film belonging to this genre are some continued smile-through or heartwarming scenes. This doesn't turn out to be the case though as just after an interesting scene or two, the plot gets dragging (or at times unbelievable), hence dividing the fun element by two at an alarming note.

Of course, on a regular day one doesn't mind the non-believability factor since a film is expected to step into a fantasy world. Still, what one looks forward to are situations that keep you engaged. Here there are a few, even though supporting actors comprising of Rati Agnihotri, Darshan Jariwala, Jayant Kriplani and Lillete Dubey try to infuse excitement into the film, courtesy their acting experience. The ones who play ex's of Abhay and Preeti are okay though and one actually doesn't mind when they dump the protagonists.

The very fact that you are plain stoic towards the main leads of the film is what makes One By Two and ordinary affair. Yes, you do get an impression a few minutes into the film that it would eventually conclude into a happy ending. In that context, you are suitably engaged to know how that would ultimately happen. However, since the entire film is more about the journey than the destination, how one wishes that there were more interesting incidents placed in the lives of lead couple that would have made it all the more enjoyable.

Wish Devika realized at the editing stage, if not during writing the film, that passing gas and other flatulence jokes are not what constitutes for audience entertainment. This wasn't meant to be Delhi Belly after all!

Joginder Tuteja tweets@tutejajoginder