Runtime:
142 minutes
Directed
by: Milap Zaveri
Starring:
John Abraham, Manoj Bajpayee, Aisha Sharma, Amruta Khanvilkar, Tota
Roy Choudhury
From:
Emmay Entertainment/T-Series
The past few days I've revisited some movies I previously reviewed here; last night I saw two foreign movies on the big screen; the second one I'll review tomorrow night:
So, I was hoping the first Indian movie I ever saw on the big screen would be the insanity that some of the country's cinema can be... thank heavens it was.
Remember in those halcyon days when MoviePass was supposed to result in moviegoers taking more chances on random flicks they otherwise wouldn't pay a ticket for due to cost or other reasons? Well, yesterday I went and saw a pair of foreign films (the review for the other one will be posted tomorrow) and even though Indian cinema is commonly screened near where I lived, I had never actually seen one theatrically until this one. I knew little about the plot-the schedule just worked out that way where I could watch two movies back to back in the same cinema.
The plot of this: hilariously melodramatic and over the top. Most of the reasons why this became so preposterous won't be revealed by me but we follow an honest cop in Mumbai who is tasked with tracking down a vigilante that is killing corrupt police officers... by lighting them on fire. Note that we spend time with this vigilante (the dude who played Kabir in the first Dhoom) Veer and usually he is portrayed as not a bad dude. Yes, the guy who ends up burning many people alive. Eventually you find out why this specific punishment is done; wild, it is. There are a few musical numbers, and they were well-done. This is 142 minutes long yet considering Indian cinema, the runtime isn't too lengthy.
The entire film is pretty ludicrous and outre-this encompasses the acting, the music, the plot twists, the coincidences, etc. Yet the entertainment value was high despite how technically this was not great. I am pretty sure I was the only non-Indian at this screening; plenty of Indians did show up and they were boisterous, usually not to an annoying degree. I won't speculate as to why I heard some catcalls during a few “sexy” moments involving female characters, though.
The feelings of occasionally laughing during the goofiest moments went away when the rest of the crowd did it also. Another gaudy aspect is the action beats. Veer might as well be in a comic book movie or a Fast & Furious picture due to his superhuman abilities. I mean, he punches through windows w/ no damage, brick walls are knocked down after he tosses people into them, and even rips off a door from an SUV and uses it as a shield. Of course I will guffaw at such ludicrous moments. Thus, in my confusion over how to properly rate such a movie I suppose a nice score will be applicable as I was never bored by this spectacle.
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