Lowbrow heist thriller

Lowbrow heist thriller
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Highlights

Nothing succeeds like excess. In case entertainment is synonymous with the loud, crude, noisy , in case it is the grotesque step next to bro Sajid’s takes on entertainment- ‘Himmatwala’ and ‘Humshakals’ -- and high decibels packed in glitz, glamour and hoopla, then this boondoggle indulgence by our ‘Tees Maar Khan’ director Farah Khan is good cinema.

Nothing succeeds like excess. In case entertainment is synonymous with the loud, crude, noisy , in case it is the grotesque step next to bro Sajid’s takes on entertainment- ‘Himmatwala’ and ‘Humshakals’ -- and high decibels packed in glitz, glamour and hoopla, then this boondoggle indulgence by our ‘Tees Maar Khan’ director Farah Khan is good cinema. If you are decibel challenged and weak in your intelligence and want something that goes into ashes and makes as much noise as the fireworks outside then go for it. It is clear that Farah Khan thinks very lowly of just not cinema and entertainment but also has a very demeaning estimate of audience taste and sensitivity. Grandeur is not just her scale, it is her defence. The films humour (bright few times) is so lacking in taste that you wonder if you have just got yourself a ticket to a circus of the 60s to laugh at the clown. Grandeur is loudly marketed as are sculptured bodies of the metro sexual.

The visual iatrogenic approach seems to have come a full circle that after decades of men exploiting the woman’s anatomy to the delight of the voyeurist it is time for men to find their place. The paradox is complete with the film being directed by a lady.

Everyone including the uninitiated know the story. It is a heist of a precious diamond from Shalimar. The guys aiming to flick it are Charlie (Shah Rukh Khan) and his newly recruited team of Tammy (Boman Irani) a safe buster, the gym bomber Jack (Sonu Sood,) the hacker Rohan (Vivaan Shah) and Nandu Bhide (Abhishek). The motley group is on its way to Dubai to steal the rock from its keeper Charan Grover (Jackie Shroff) who decades ago had played evil with Charlie’s dad Manohar (Anupam Kher). Also in the group is Mohini (Deepika Padukone) a cabaret dancer recruited to teach the guys to dance and sing at the World Dance Competition.

Reels and reels (the film is about three complete hours!) are spent on introducing the characters and their background and justifying their presence in the heist to be. Each is an embarrassment and it is a miracle that they can pull of a heist with pigeon heads and silly strategies that have Murphy’s Law written all over.

Noise and exaggeration is the central theme and style of this over the board take. Scale can surely be an attraction. ‘Mother India’, ‘Mughal-e-Azam’, ‘Sholay’ and ‘Shaan; are all instances but Farah ends up with a product nearer to being a spoof than a well launched product.

It is surprising that Deepika and Shah Rukh hardly share screen space after the wonderful chemistry in ‘Chennai Express’. Shah Rukh, for once, doesn’t ham but he is also somewhere performing from memory and his well maintained torso notwithstanding jaded and tired. Sonu Sood steals the macho image title from the more cultivated Khan. Boman Irani is required to be loud and ham as much as he can. Deepika Padukone is gorgeous and though the role offers very little she is good for the eye and her English hangover gives the script its few light moments. It is Abhishek Bachchan who steals the show. He too is loud as is his dressing too. Yet he keeps things alive and worth watching. With a proven track record for comedy, he is the mainstay of ‘Happy New Year’ which is neither about new year and certainly not happy for the viewer. It could well make the filmmaker happy on her way to the bank but when it comes to being artistic, well that is asking too much of Farah Khan.

Happy New Year

Cast : Shah Rukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Boman Irani, Sonu Sood and Vivaan Shah

Direction : Farah Khan

Genre : Action-drama

Rating : ** Abhishek and Deepika, Loud and long

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