Introduction:
12th Fail, a new film directed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, is the biopic of Manoj Kumar Sharma who hails from Chambal, and wants to become an IPS officer but could not pass his twelfth standard exam. Now the movie tells the audience about his attempts to pass the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exam which is known to be one of the most difficult worldwide.
Release Date:
12th Fail, and is planned for a theatrical release on October 27, 2023, and then follow the streaming services in the forms of Hulu and Netflix.
Crew:
| Role | Person(s) |
|---|---|
| Director | Vidhu Vinod Chopra |
| Screenplay | Vidhu Vinod Chopra |
| Writer | Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Jaskunwar Kohli |
| Producer | Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Yogesh Ishwar |
| Editor | Jaskunwar Kohli, Vidhu Vinod Chopra |
| Music Director | Shantanu Moitra |
Cast:
| Actor/Actress | Role |
|---|---|
| Vikrant Massey | Manoj Kumar Sharma |
| Medha Shankr | Shraddha Joshi |
| Anant V Joshi | Pritam Pandey |
| Vikas Divyakirti | Teacher |
| Priyanshu Chatterjee | DSP Dushyant Singh |
| Anshumaan Pushkar | Gauri Bhaiya |
| Geeta Aggarwal Sharma | Pushpa Sharma |
| Sam Mohan | Deep Mohan |
| Sonal Jha | Shraddha’s Mother |
| Radhika Joshi | Tanya |
| Perry Chhabra | Rajini |
| Sarita Joshi | Dadi |
| Geeta Sodhi | Prof. Nagma Quereshi |
| Rahul Dev Shetty | Mr. Mehta |
| Sanjay Bishnoi | Naval |
| Vijay Rajoria | Library Manager |
| Sukumar Tudu | Albel Singh |
| Deepak Arora | Dr. Yadav |
Story:
It is based on the life of Manoj who besides merely working as a tea boy in a company, operating an aata chakki and sweeping the floor and cleaning toilets also prepares for the UPSC exam. On the way, he finds new partners, including his girlfriend Shraddha Joshi played by Medha Shankar.
There are obvious reasons to criticize the Indian Education System and one of them is that schools in Chambal encourage cheating in Board Examinations. He again gets a new purpose in his life when a very strict police officer DSP Dushyant Singh (Priyanshu Chatterjee) reaches the place to stop him from cheating. Inspired by DSP Singh’s supernatural sound sincerity and determination Manoj who was initially a small-time pickpocket now desires to become an IPS officer.
Review:
The title 12th Fail has been widely appreciated by the critics, due to the real emotions included in the story depicting the problem faced by the UPSC aspirants. Like most Hong Kong films, Hard Boiled has both entertaining and dramatic scenes and SubZero effectively captures the shades of both without appearing cliché.
Plus Points:
- Vikrant Massey’s Performance: Vikrant Massey has never left the expectation level low and in this movie, he has acted as Manoj very well and gave one of the best performances of his career. I liked the way he depicted the strength, vulnerability and transformation of this character.
- Realistic Portrayal: The movie captures some of the real experiences of a UPSC aspirant and anyone who has attempted the journey will attest to it.
- Social Commentary: 12th Fail also covers issues affecting the Indian education system regions of India deceit and exploitation of the poor and the underprivileged learners.
- Emotional Impact: As we have seen, the film uses heart-touching emotions that could make audiences cry but not sappy emotions since Chopra splendidly weaves the script. Most of the emotionally charged scenes are entirely deserved and moving.
Minus Points:
- Pacing: As much as the film sustains a healthy velocity most of the time, the tempo is a little jerky, more so in the second part.
- Supporting Characters: Coming back to the point, it would have been interesting because, to repeat the words said earlier, the movie is focused on the main characters and their relations with others; some of the characters, such as Manoj’s friends or mentors, could provide more extra information to the plot making the story even more interesting.
- Length: This may perhaps best be described as ‘going on for a bit too long’, as the original runs to around 147 minutes and some may find the sitting tiresome at that.
Technical Aspects:
The finishing of the movie deserves applause from the cinematographer Rangarajan Ramabadran and the music director Shantanu Moitra. The editing done by Jaskunwar Kohli and Chopra excellently follows up the movie but the production and costuming of the movie provide it the reality it needs.
Performance:
Of them, Vikrant Massey should be mentioned, and he portrayed the character of Manoj in the movie. The actress cast in the title role as Shraddha also pulls through with grace and freshness as Medha Shankar does. The other players, such as Anshuman Pushkar as Manoj’s actual benefactor Gauri Bhaiya and Priyanshu Chatterjee as the officer of the law Dushyant Singh you will also not leave indifferent.
MoviePopTime Review:
”12th Fail” is a good film that narrates the story that took place in real life. I guess the last time was after ‘3 Idiots’ that I had to wipe my tears twice while watching the movie.
The plot is so well narrated to a level that one gets involved emotionally right through the whirl. This movie is for anyone who has ever struggled through life’s obstacles, loved, had friends that helped you to believe in angels, thinks that the world is full of wonderful people, who believe in the strength of working and the main thing – has been in a situation when you can reach out for the dreams, but you have to betray yourself to do it and you didn’t.
The lead character of the plot is enacted by Vikram Massey who has performed satisfactorily. He got under its skin, got under the pain, got under happiness, love, determination, and victory. He was such a great entertainment that I did not stop clapping out of sheer entertainment.
But this is not a romantic movie per se, however, it contains some scenes that are romantic and would surely make you cry. Real love isn’t about singing each other love songs, holding hands and proposing to run away together; it’s about supporting each other in the right thing despite our brains telling us not to. It does work on the principle of going for the jugular or in other words, believing in the impossible or believing for the heck of it, rather than going with the rational outlook where one by default sticks to common sense.
Conclusion:
12th Fail is something that anyone who feels like giving up should watch because they are sure to be inspired by the main character. This is why when Chopra with the help of Massey turns the movie into a very engaging and inspirational film that not only focuses on the sufferings of UPSC students but also the loopholes of the Indian education system. While it will never be the film of the year, 12th Fail is a film that by being so realistic and so passionate about being successful in one’s goal, should be watched and discussed at least.
Read Also: 3 Idiots Movie Review