I think the movie is a pretty decent effort given a very rich script. I will have some reservations calling this movie anything more than decent.

Firstly the movie breaks no fresh grounds in movie making. And secondly it makes a point, albeit tangentially, which I think was bad given such a nice script. The background score was done very nicely, though at various instances one can see a parallel to "1942 a love story", a movie made by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. The setting for the Haveli appeared to be inspired from "Ghare Bhaire". Some of the highlights were the pace of narration and no-nonsense approach without resorting to melodrama, which is a rarity in Indian cinema, but not without precedents.

The acting performances from Saif Ali Khan and Vidya Balan was good. Vidya really excels. Sanjay Dutt scampers along decently enough, not to spoil the show. Other highlights are possibly Saif's friend begging to a beggar and Rekha song, which is repeatedly in the background on more than one occasion later in the movie.

Vidhu Vinod Chopra is not the director to spoil a nice story with a bad movie making. He gives the subject enough respect that it commands. Just for that, this movie deserves praise and possibly a couple of views.

The emphasis on the character of Vidya should have been more especially during the time of emotional turmoil that appears in the middle of the movie. With such a talented actress, to spend time on some cheesy songs seems like a crime. There are hundred things that could have been done better, that I think would have been done by any art house director like Gautam Ghosh. I think my personal experience was damped due to commercial or make-it-mainstream-enough considerations.

Many critics had acclaimed Black for cinematic excellence. But I see Black as an attempt to make an emotionally overdrawn to epic of survival. Parineeta is much better done cinematic ally and aesthetically speaking than Black.

My feeling is mixed on this one. I can definitely recommend seeing it once.