3 Idiots definitely tries to do things differently ... to certain extent successfully!

Rating: 7/10 (2 November 2011)

I generally avoid commercial Hindi films but I watched 3 Idiots because I was told that it does things differently. For the most part, I found that to be true.
Story: While the theme of the story is quite valid it's hard not to notice that it was discussed by a very similar Hindi film starring Aarmir Khan recently (Taare Zameen Par). In both films Aarmir Khan plays a similar stand out role which create a continuous sense of déjà-vu. The main story line of 3 Idiots oscillates between being simple, heart-warming and humorous to outrageous and silly. This makes things pretty awkward. One moment you would be engrossed watching a story of two troubled students being helped by benignant idealist and the next moment the idealist starts acting like Jesus himself with infinite wisdom. The story never hits a good balance. Personally, wise cracking Aarmir Khan's character got under my nerves far too often.
Acting: Acting for the most part was quite solid with the exception Kareena Kapoor. Either all Hindi film directors want her to act the same role in every film or she has been copy/pasted from another film. Most scenes involving her were predictable resulting all attempts at humor to fall flat.
Direction/Editing etc: The film is pretty long which made me feel that editing was not great. There were a few scenes that were quite irrelevant and overdone. But 3 Idiots packed enough comedy and charming sketches to keep me interested until the end. The characters are skewed so much to black/white and right/wrong; the film gave me the sensation that the director wants me to enjoy the film in one particular way. There was very little to think about after watching.
Visuals: Most of the scenery and visual elements used to drive the story along was quite good and well thought out.
All in all, 3 Idiots is enjoyable and there are lot of things to like. It's still aimed at the core Hindi film fans but it's accessible enough for others too.