I will confess something. Last week I had watched Kill/Dil. In spite of it being a decent enough film, I couldn’t draw up the enthusiasm to write about it. But with ‘Happy Ending’, as soon as the film started rolling, the words also started flowing on their own.

Saif Ali Khan as Yudi Jaitley (I so loved the name ‘Yudi’. It’s hatke – different) is an author of a one-time bestseller book. Also, he is a classic case of Peter Pan Syndrome; thirty-something but refuses to grow up. It’s been more than 5 years since his lone book was published but he is still high on its name, fame and money. He loves women, and apparently women love him back. But no sooner one of them utters the dreaded L-word than he starts having panic attacks. Soon his fame withers away and so does his money, and he is forced to find work again. Yudi is called upon to write a screen play for a romantic Bollywood movie by none other than Armaan (Govinda). A hit with the masses, Armaan now wants to conquer the heart of the elite too and for the same he needs a ‘kickass’ script. Yudi has no option but to take on the assignment. But as Yudi doesn’t believe in sweet romance and love forever, he finds it difficult to write a romantic script. Enters Aanchal Reddy, a budding romance novelist whose first book is a roaring success. Yudi strikes a friendship with Aanchal to learn writing romance. Aanchal is also quite like Yudi; doesn’t believe in eternal loves either. But during a crazy fun-filled week, Yudi and Aanchal realise how alike they are. Will they confess their love? Will they live happily ever after? There’s no suspense, guys. The title of the movie says it all.

Saif Ali Khan as Yudi is convincing. But his double role as Yudi’s alter ego Yogi is the one to watch out for. Yogi with his unkempt hair, protruding belly and short pants is sharp and hilarious. Ileana as Aanchal is quite good. She is not your sweet girl next door. She is the free-spirited woman of today who at one end believes in love with-no-strings-attached but at the other also relishes in the old world chivalry of a man opening the car door for her. Ranvir Shorey as Yudi’s only friend Montu delivers his part with aplomb. Kalki Koechlin as Yudi’s annoyingly obsessed lover is a delight. Sadly, she has but a cameo. But the surprise package is Govinda. He has played the role of a self-obssessed actor to a T. He eclipses everything and everyone with his witty dialogues and quirky mannerisms, and proves once again why he is still the ‘King of Comedy’.

The soundtrack of the movie is decent with a few hit numbers like ‘G phaad ke’, ‘Pussy Cat’ and ‘Meherbaan’. The cinematography by Chase Bowman is a visual treat especially where he has captured the energy and essence of LA. Dialogues are fresh and thankfully devoid of clichés. The film could have done with a sharper edit. 20 minutes or so shorter and the film would have been crisp.

My Verdict: If romcoms are your genre, Happy Ending will certainly keep you happy.