Housefull 5 review: A star-studded chaos with some laughs and a lot of noise
The biggest Bollywood franchise, Housefull 5, has hit the screens. And this time, the makers have gone all out – not three, not five, not 10, but 17 actors make up this mad ride. Imagine reading out a menu! that's what the cast list feels like: Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh, Abhishek Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Fardeen Khan, Shreyas Talpade, Nana Patekar, Jackie Shroff, Dino Morea, Jacqueline Fernandez, Nargis Fakhri, Chitrangada Singh, Sonam Bajwa, Soundarya Sharma, Chunky Pandey, Nikitin Dheer, and Johnny Lever. Phew!
Directed by Tarun Mansukhani and produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, the film runs for 2 hours and 30 minutes and is split into two versions – 5A and 5B. The entire movie remains the same in both, except for the climax. India.com's team watched 5A.
Plot of Housefull 5:
Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and directed by Tarun Mansukhani, the story revolves around 99-year-old billionaire Ranjeet Dobriyal, who dies on a yacht during his 100th birthday celebration. As family and friends gather on the cruise to celebrate, Ranjeet passes away just before the party, leaving behind a 69 billion pounds fortune to his son Jolly – but who is Jolly?
Three men suddenly claim to be his long-lost son: Jalabuddin (Riteish Deshmukh), Jalbhushan (Abhishek Bachchan), and Julius (Akshay Kumar). What follows is a lot of chaos, laughter and suspense as secrets unfold one by one. Amid all the confusion, a murder takes place aboard the ship. Now let's get to the point – how is the film?
If you've followed the Housefull series, you know what to expect: loud gags, over-the-top madness, logic-defying twists, and loads of double-meaning jokes. Out of the earlier ones, only the first Housefull worked well for the audience, but Housefull 5 is not entirely unbearable. It's a decent entertainer by franchise standards. Yes, the plot is all over the place and doesn't make much sense. Yes, the jokes can get cringe, and yes, some scenes will make you go, 'Why is this even here?' And that's exactly why we won't call it a family entertainer.
However, if you leave your brain at home and go in expecting some good old slapstick fun, some moments will make you laugh. It caters to the masses and doesn't pretend to be anything more than a no-brainer comedy.
That said, objectification of women is a major downer. Actress Soundarya Sharma, known for Ranchi Diaries, is unnecessarily objectified, and it adds zero value to the story. Bollywood really needs to move past this.
Final verdict:
Housefull 5 by Nadiadwala has turned out to be the most expensive comedy film of Indian cinema with a massive budget of Rs 225 crore. Watch it if you're a Housefull/Akshay Kumar fan or just in the mood for silly, mindless fun. Otherwise, you won't miss much.
Rating: 2 out of 5
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