Review: Run
Baradwaj Rangan
Baradwaj Rangan
(C) The Economic Times, Madras Plus - May 20, 2004
In this age of metrosexuality and Shah Rukh Khan, a leading man -
unless named Sunny Deol - is no longer expected to be a muscle-bound
mass of machoism, single-handedly (and simultaneously) beating to
bloody pulp any number of bad guys. In Tamil cinema, however, the
emphasis is still on the "he" in "hero," and the ultimate hero is he
who'll thrust out a big, beefy arm and cause the villain's henchmen to
fall in heaps after perfectly executed triple back-flips.
Most of the fun in the original 'Run', therefore, was in watching
chocolate boy Madhavan be the one to send these goons into orbit. Had,
say, a Vijay done this role, it wouldn't have been news, but the
'Alaipaayuthey' hero's switching from smiles to snarls made for a
refreshing change of pace, adding fizz to a story that was otherwise
as plain as water.
Abhishek Bachchan, unfortunately, hasn't been defined by any role of
his thus far, so when he takes on the 'dishoom-dishoom' duties in
'Run', it's just another day at the office for just another Bollywood
hero. That makes this movie less fun than the original, at least for
those who've seen the original.
Those who haven't may still enjoy parts of 'Run', for it's not just
about the action, it's also about Siddharth (Bachchan) wooing the
puzzlingly unapproachable Jahnvi (Bhumika Chawla). She's pretty but
not in the dazzling-goddess way, he's smart but not in the hunky,
gym-bodied way, and their romance generates good vibes in a very
boy-girl-next-door way. You root for them even through the overdose of
Himesh Reshammiya songs, the pick being the nicely staged 'Zara Zara'.
While they're trying to cook up some 'kabab', local goon Ganpat bhai
(Mahesh Manjrekar, suitably ominous) becomes the 'haddi', and triggers
a series of well-choreographed (by Peter Hain) action sequences. This
involves a lot of brawn, but there's some brainwork as well in the
unexpected (unbelievable?) games of one-upmanship between Ganpat and
Siddharth.
To lighten this intensity, there's a completely unrelated comedy
track. This, again, was a highlight of the Tamil version, with Vivek
bringing down the house as a small-towner who goes to the big, bad
city and loses - one by one - his luggage, his money, his kidney, and
(almost) his sanity. This character is played here by Vijay Raaz,
whose loopy, gangly presence makes him a natural for physical comedy,
but he's let down by the gags. They are translated (literally) from
the original, and what's amusing in one language becomes annoying in
another.
Luckily, there are comic sidelights to Siddharth's character. During a
song-and-dance with an all-male group, he suddenly hears a female
voice. So he turns to the dancer nearest him and looks inside his
shirt, as if to check if he's got... well, you know. Elsewhere, he's
after this girl who tells him her name is Stella, and his immediate
reaction is to cross himself in mock-seriousness and give her a
thumbs-up. More genial goofiness is present in the scenes with his
sister (Ayesha Jhulka) and brother-in-law (Mukesh Rishi, in a very
interesting and effective bit of casting).
The jury is still out on whether Bachchan Jr. can be as all-round a
leading man as his father, but he's definitely on par with the
lighthearted stuff. There's a future for this actor, even if the
box-office asks the intermittently entertaining 'Run' to take a walk.
Dhirajlal Sahaya
is foolish to assume that folks watch the movie in its entiriety or are
interested in the story or the fights. Many I know see movies just for the
songs.
Dhirajlal
"Baradwaj Rangan" <b_ra...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:c04b79a9.04051...@posting.google.com...
> Run
>
> Baradwaj Rangan