RA.ONE - a new benchmark in Hindi sci-fi action flicks

Ladai goliyon se nahin, dil se jeeti jati hain.

Hindi cinema has never had a strong tack record in the sci-fi and fantasy genres. Its product has tended to focus on the musical rom-com, melodrama and tragedy - sometimes all bound up in the same film.  There have been successful gangster, cop and thriller movies, and a consistently rich seam of independent cinema.  But with a few recent exceptions - KRRISH, perhaps - Hindi cinema hasn't really ventured into the lucrative arenas (in the West, at least) of children's animation, fantasy, horror, and sci-fi.  Perhaps this reflects the fact that all these genres need state of the art technical expertise of the kind that up until recently wasn't available in Mumbai - surprisingly so, when you consider India's considerable edge in IT.  But IT in the creative industries - that's something quite different.  Moreover, these films need considerable and expensive post-production work - again not the kind of facilities easily accessible in Bollywood.

All this pre-amble gives you some idea as to how revolutionary RA.ONE is. Because this isn't so much a new film, to be reviewed as other films are reviewed, but a statement of faith in the future of Hindi cinema on the part of its star, legendary Hindi actor Shah Rukh Khan, and his wife and now producer, Gauri Khan.  RA.ONE represents a massive gamble, and indeed investment, on their part - in creating production facilities in Mumbai - in using the best post facilities in London for effects and retrospective 3D.  They  have shown the world that Hindi cinema can now produce movies of technical skill to match anything Hollywood has to offer, and the box office receipts show that Indian audiences are quite willing to embrace the relatively new genre of sci-fi action thriller.  To that end, RA.ONE must be seen as a technical and commercial success - a seminal film - regardless of the quality of the actual work.

The movie itself is far more conservative than the radical technical achievement.  The story is a strange and not entirely felicitous mash-up of elements from TERMINATOR, THE MATRIX, and TRON, shoe-horned into a typical Hindi family comedy. 

Shah Rukh Khan plays a nerdy video game designer called Shekhar, married to his loving wife Sonia (Kareena Kapoor).  In order to impress his alarmingly feminine-looking son, Prateek (Armaan Verma), Shekhar invents a game in which the bad guy always wins. Problem is, the bad guy avatar, Ra.One (a  play on the Hindi name of an evil demon, Raavan) breaks free of the computer game and enters the real world, desperate to kill his gaming foe Lucifer, the avatar of Prateek. Only the good guy avatar, G.One (a play on the Hindi word for "life", Jeevan), modelled on Shekhar, can save the day.

The scenes of family life, with Shekhar and then G.One playing husband and father, are classic Hindi schmaltz.  It's a culture in which the family unit is idealised - where father is always right, mother is entirely dependent on father (despite a brief reference to feminist research), and the little kid is a spoilt brat who comes to realise that, well, father was right all along.  There are schmaltzy scenes of bonding, and Shah Rukh Khan's brand of typically broad, crude comedy.  He does things here that are so simplistic - donning a stupid perm wig to simulate being a geeky southern Indian - that no other actor would get away with.  But accusations that Shah Rukh Khan is a hammy actor are beside the point. His fans want to see through the thinly veiled disguise of costume and antics to the superstar beneath.  He is his own brand - losing himself in characterisation would be alienating to his admirers.

The handling of the sci-fi material is also pretty cursory.  This isn't THE MATRIX - posing deep questions about the nature of reality and perception. The explanation of how Ra.One and G.One can escape the video game is all a bit Basil Exposition.  No-one here is really interested in the philosophy.  But I have to say that I did appreciate the almost self-effacing way in which the screenwriters (David Benullo, Kanika Dhillon, Niranjan Iyengar, Mushtaq Sheikh, director Anubhav Sinha and Shah Rukh Khan) acknowledge this fact. Shortly after the interval they insert a scene where Sonia, Prateek and G.One meet Rajnikanth in the role of Chitti - the robot come to life that he played in the recent Hindi film ENDHIRAN - a much more subtle and intelligent investigation of the nature of virtual reality.  Sonia explicitly pays homage to the superior creation.

Where the film scores big is in the use of CGI and the staging of the action scenes, that surpass anything in recent Hindi cinema, and even surpass second-tier Hollywood action flicks like THE GREEN LANTERN and THE GREEN HORNET.  The imaginary worlds look amazing, Shah Rukh Khan looks superb in his blue-lit suit, and the set-pieces are just stunning - particularly a train chase sequence that culminates in the (subversive political?!) destruction of Mumbai's colonial Victoria Terminus railway station.  I also liked the in-jokes - the inclusion of Desi girl jokes at Priyanka Chopra's expense, for instance.  And, of course, completing the cross-cultural switch, we have the American rapper Akon singing the two key songs that frame the big musical item numbers.  These scenes work really well, and it's actually pretty surprising to see how convincing Akon is singing Hindi lyrics, although this is undercut by the absurdity of Khan lip-synching to them. Ra.One is also one of the more successful retrospective 3D movies of recent times.

Overall, it's easy to knock RA.ONE - the plot is shaky, the sci-fi exposition cursory - and it's basically just another vehicle for Shah Rukh Khan's brand of cheeky family comedy, newly supplemented by his buff physique. The movie was never trying to be a subtle sci-fi thriller.  What is was trying to do was lay down a new benchmark for CGI-packed action films. And in that respect, it's an unqualified success.

RA.ONE went on global release on October 26th. 

RAB NE BANA DI JODI / A MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN - a refreshingly old-fashioned Bollywood romance

A few weeks ago I was praising DOSTANA for tackling contemporary sexual morality and pushing forward the boundaries of Hindi cinema. By contrast, RAB NE BANA DI JODI is a rather old-fashioned Bollywood weepie that espouses the virtues of integrity, loyalty and selflessness over hot dance moves and good looks. Both movies have their strengths and, in some ways, I rather preferred RAB NE BANA DI JODI precisely because it's a throwback to simpler, more straightforward times.

In contemporary Punjab, Surinder Sahni (Shah Rukh Khan) is a geeky, hard-working, quiet man. He attends the wedding of his professor's daughter, Taani (Anushka Sharma) only to fall in love with her at first sight. She's a vivacious, beautiful much younger girl - they seem to be chalk and cheese. When the groom party is killed in an accident, and the professor dies from grief, Surinder does the honourable thing in marrying Taani, giving her a home. He doesn't press his marital rights - rather waiting for love to grow slowly ("Haule Haule"). She promises to be a good wife, but claims she can never love him. In order to cheer her up and spend time with her, Suri decides to enter a dance contest with her, under the guise of a cool, confident guy called Raj. The make-over is so dramatic that Taani doesn't even recognise him. Soon, Taani is having a wonderful time with Raj. So much so that Suri is wondering if he'll lose her to his alter-ego. Or will Taani learn to appreciate Suri's quiet goodness? Well, this is Hindi cinema, so you can guess the ending!

The success of the movie hinges on the performances of the two leads. Shah Rukh Khan is marvelous as Suri/Raj. As Suri he is suitably self-effacing and nervous - and takes immeasurable delight in small triumphs - such as when his new wife prepares his first tiffin! As Raj, Shah Rukh beautifully satirises ridiculous Bollywood Heroes - complete with camp outfits and cheesy one-liners. Model slash actress Anushka Sharma does a good job in the harder role - she has to express the conflict of a well-brought up girl who considers leaving her husband for another man. Still, she doesn't have the screen presence of a Shah Rukh (who does?) or of legendary Bollywood actresses such as Kajol and Madhuri.

Behind the screen, Ravi K Chandran shoots Punjab beautifully and the Merchant brothers have produced a beautiful score. I particularly liked the sweet love song "Haule Haule" - nice to see Sukhwinder Singh singing a slower, softer number. And the lyrics to the song "Tujh Mein Rab Dikhta Hai / I see God in you" are deeply moving. But by far the most entertaining and intellectually interesting number is a song called "Phir Milenge Chalte Chalte". It's a dream sequence in which Shah Rukh Khan sings himself through the history of Hindi film - pastiching the hit numbers of the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s. It's a tremendous set-piece - exuberant, cheeky but fundamentally nostalgic for a shared heritage. And if anyone's still in doubt about who really has the heart of India, wait for the reaction when the first "item girl" appears on the screen!

RAB NE BANA DI JODI is on global release.

DOSTANA - mainstream Bollywood tackles homophobia

DOSTANA is being touted as a breakthrough Bollywood movie but I think it's absolutely typical in its slippery depiction of modern sexuality. After all, Bollywood cinema delights in showing us waxed and bronzed men and women, scimpily clad, gyrating provocatively. But god forbid you actually show two people kissing!

DOSTANA takes this paradoxical attitude to modern sexuality and applies it to gay relationships. So, on one hand, this is a brave movie. It's telling Indian parents not to be so judgmental that their kids are forced to stay in the closet. Surely, loving parents should want an honest and open relationship with their children? But on the other hand, this is a movie that still wants to make money and can't afford to offend its conservative audience. As a result, the two gay characters are, in fact, only faking it. And faking it in such a crass manner that it makes Robin Williams' performance in BIRDCAGE look restrained. The message seems to be: yes, it's fine to be gay, but just so you know, I'm most definitely NOT GAY! In a Western movie - such as I PRONOUNCE YOU CHUCK AND LARRY - I would excoriate the hypocrisy and cowardice of the film-makers. But given that this is Hindi cinema I can only give thanks that we are finally inching toward maturity.

So, back to the nuts and bolts. DOSTANA is a movie about young single Indians living in Miami and enjoying a measure of freedom that they wouldn't enjoy at home. Kunal (John Abraham) and Sameer (Abhishek Bachchan) pretend to be gay so that they can share an apartment with Neha (Priyanka Chopra) whose conservative aunt won't allow co-habitation with straight single men. Problems arise when Sam's mother thinks he really IS gay and both guys realise that they are in love with Neha and try to ruin her incipient romance with her boss Abhi (Bobby Deol). The situations are resolved thanks to lots of typical Bollywood broad humour, farcical mix-ups, glycerine tears and ludicrously opulent romantic gestures.

Despite the fact that this movie is written and directed by Tarun Manusukhani, the movie has the look, feel and self-referential narcissism of your typical Karan Johar film. It's all lush location shots, designer clothes, over-styled actors and ludicrous over-acting. Having said that, in embracing his camp sensibility, Johar has finally found a narrative that suits his style and the result is highly entertaining. Let's face it, Priyanka is just a clothes-horse, and John Abraham is just there to flash his well-oiled pecs, but Abhishek Bachchan turns out to be very gifted at physical comedy, carrying the movie until the mid-way mark when Kiron Kher and Boman Irani show up. Irani is a scene stealer as flamboyantly gay magazine editor M - like a Hindi Mugatu for all you ZOOLANDER fans! - and Kiron Kher, as Sameer's devestated mother, has by far the best musical number in the movie, beautifully spoofing her performance in DEVDAS. Admittely, the movie starts to flag when we get into a tortously drawn out denouement, but at least it ends on a high with the dance number "Desi girl" and the first mainstream Bollywood gay (or at least man-on-man) kiss.

DOSTANA went on global release on November 14th.

KRRISH - state of the art Bollywood action flick

If you want to see the future of Bollywood, look no further than KRRISH - a slick, handsomely produced super-hero franchise that can rival anything Hollywood has to offer. Hrithik Roshan has watched Asian and Western action movies and sub-sumed the best of all worlds into a superlatively made movie that has the capacity to cross-over.

KRRISH is nominally the sequel to the sci-fi flick, KOI MIL GAYA. In that film, Hrithik Roshan played a disabled man called Rohit Mehra who is actually exceptionally gifted. Those gifts are unlocked when he and his love interest, played by Preity Zinta, discover an ET like alien called Jadoo. In KRRISH we fast forward twenty years. Rohit's son, Krishna Mehra, has inherited his special powers, but is living in seclusion with his grandmother (Rekha), after the death of his parents. He is lured to Singapore by a love interest (Priyanka Chopra) and creates a super-hero alter-ego called KRRISH. He battles against an evil super-villain, Dr Arya (Naseerudin Shah).

The first hour of the film is a classic, formulaic Hindi love story between Krishna and Priya. But the second hour sees the emergence of Krrish and wire-fu stunt choreography the like of which has never been seen in Hindi cinema. Hrithik Roshan has obviously been training hard and he has obviously hired the best technicians available, not least, Tony Ching Siu of HERO and THE CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER fame. The final hour is pure Superman style good versus evil stuff. Enormous fun and brilliantly executed.

KRRISH went on global release in 2006 and is now available on DVD.

DON (2006) - laughable

If Quentin Tarantino directed an old-school Bollywood action thriller, it would be like the original 1970s version of DON. That DON is a humungously popular flick starring Amitabh Bachchan and Helen. It has a kitsch sound-track, insane sunglasses and crazy-ass fight scenes. Seriously, if DEATH PROOF has you hooked, you should check DON out. Teasers and expos can be found here.

This 2006 remake is a different beast. It's caught between a desire to be all things hi-tech and a guilty love of all things 70s and naff. So we have polished stunts and glossy back-drops - namely Paris and Kuala Lumpur. But we also have disco-tastic outfits and dance sequences. The overall effect is as bizarre as the lead character's penchant for knitted ties and heavily patterned rayon shirts.

What's the plot? Director Farhan Akhtar remains faithful to his father's original script bar one crucial plot twist. As in the original, Don is a high-powered gangster being chased down by a vengeful hot chick and a wily copper. The hot chick infiltrates Don's organisation and soon becomes his trusted number two. Meanwhile, the wily copper has substituted a doppelganger street-kid for the real Don, in order to gain all of the organisation's secrets. Oh yes, and as this is a Bollywood flick, there is a regulation-cute street-urchin to tug at the heart strings.

So follows a lot of nonsense. Shah Rukh Khan is convincing as the street-smart doppelganger, but utterly unconvincing as a hard-as-nails gangster. Priyanka Chopra and Kareeena Kapoor are under-used in the female roles. Arjun Rampal is surprisingly okay in a smaller role but it is, once again, the multi-talented Boman Irani as the wily coppper, who gives the most credible performance. The tech package is decent but the 70s pastiche songs from Shankar Mahadevan are woeful.

In other words, the only real merit to this re-make is the unintended comedy. To wit, comedy gold like:

Don: I should've listened to what mother used to say...
other: What did your mother say?
Don: When I didn't listen to what she said, how can I tell you?

And the idiotic brilliance of a character who always refers to himself in the third person:
Don: Don's enemy's biggest mistake is that he's Don's enemy.
Don: People don't leave Don but the world instead...

DON went on cinematic release in October 2006 and is now available on DVD.

BLUFFMASTER - Slick Indian remake of Nine Queens/The Game

BLUFFMASTER is a beautifully shot and cleverly constructed Indian movie that tells the tale of a conman operating in Bombay. Should you watch it? Only if you haven't seen any of the following flicks: the 1963 original; Nueve Reinas; Criminal; Ocean's Eleven; Matchstick Men; Snatch or The Game. Let me break it down for you:

BLUFFMASTER borrows its title from the 1963 movie starring Shami Kapoor. The original bluffmaster also featured a conman undone by his love of a good woman but there the similarities end. The plot of Rohan Sippy's movie is stolen alost entirely from Fabian Bielinsky's superb 2000 flick, NUEVE REINAS, later remade in typical half-assed fashion as CRIMINAL for all those Yanks that can't read subtitles. Of course, all Bollywood movies have to have a happy ending, so about 2 hours into this caper we flip into David Fincher's outstanding 1997 flick, THE GAME. Being a Bollywood movie, we also have four musical numbers which are all shot in the manner of MTV videos. The music and the photography are a mish-mash of Will Smith's "Switch" and "Mambo number 5". I especially like the lead actor, Abhishek Bachchan, dressed up in a flat cap and sheep-skin jacket, a la Arthur Daley, rapping in the main song. About as hard as Fifty Cent.

I have to say that it is pretty ironic that a movie about the immorality of theft should be so thoroughly lifted from so many other cinematic greats. With a pedigree like that, it's not surprising that we have a good end-product! And all kidding aside, if you haven't seen the Hollywood originals, this really is a good movie. However, my enjoyment was definitely impaired, not only because I knew all the plot twists, but also because this sort of blatant ripoff leaves a bad taste in the mouth. It's not that there is any crime in remaking a Hollywood movie - Hollywood cannibalises its own back catalogue often enough - but there is surely some ethical, if not legal, obligation to credit the originator. Moreover, young directors like Rohan Sippy will surely only make truly great movies when they move away from homage/pastiche/plagiarism/whatever and into telling new and original stories.

BLUFFMASTER was released in India, the UK and US on the 16th December 2005.