Breakaway

Right from the day when the first look of the film was revealed, SPEEDY SINGHS failed to create any kind of excitement even in the northern Punjabi belt of the country due to its repeated, uninteresting and forced kind of content. There was nothing new in the storyline, no novel idea to offer in the name of sports and no freshness in its looks, concept or presentation.

So, without going into its story details, which is easily predictable, I would like to share that whenever a movie like SPEEDY SINGHS comes, it simply forces me to think that there has to be some other fishy reason to make and spend time on such worthless projects. Because otherwise, there is no way, someone can think of making it with any kind of cinematic vision at all. In short, it's a silly mixture of all seen before sequences which do not give you even a single moment to enjoy in the whole film.

Now, why Akshay Kumar associated himself with this and even produced it with his full spirits again sends me into the suspicious zone. Frankly I think Akshay is now overdoing and dangerously playing with his popular SINGH IS KINNG image in a very funny way. At times it becomes quite hilarious to see the desperation in his SIKH portrayal on the screen with that entire fake make up. And with SPEEDY SINGHS he is again going to experience failure, like his last unsuccessful venture PATAILA HOUSE based on an identical sports theme of Cricket. Hence its time he switches on to a different fresh mode at the earliest.

The film raises many valid interesting questions regarding its overused plot and execution. Obviously the makers were not focused on the Indian Market since they have chosen Ice Hockey in the script which is not a sport played in our part of the world. So, Indian market was just going to be a bonus for them in case the film was a HIT.

But, I seriously couldn't understand why Akshay and Anupam Kher said yes to the script, when they both had already done a similar movie in the past dealing with two different sports. Surprisingly Anupam Kher plays an exactly identical role to what he played in Gurinder Chaddha's BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM which revolved around Football. And Akshay himself played the lead in recent PATIALA HOUSE which talked about a Punjabi underdog player willing to play Cricket for England against the will of his father. Incidentally in that film too there was a sequence explaining Akshay's "Hair Cutting Act" as shown in SPEEDY SINGHS, which has been deliberately added only to satisfy the religious sentiments of a particular section of viewers.

Actually the film is called BREAKWAY in its original English title and is directed by Robert Lieberman, who amazingly uses all 'ages old' Indian ingredients for his foreign film. There is family drama, a love angle, a group of friends as a team, a deliberately added Punjabi comic character, and almost everything which we repeatedly see in all the Regional Punjabi films made nowadays. But the weakest part of SPEEDY SINGHS is that despite of being a Sports Film, it never offers a great crescendo kind of euphoria towards its end, featuring the obvious win of the SINGHS team. And the viewer keeps wondering, Is this really a film written around an exciting sport?

However, in case you loved its groovy track "Shera Di Kaum Punjabi", heavily promoted by Akshay himself, then I would like to comment that SPEEDY SINGHS has simply got nothing even close to a Sher (LION), Speed or Sport. So better play an indoor game at home with your entire family instead of watching this un-necessary film in the theater.

Are you kidding me? What a blast this movie was to watch. A beautiful cast to gaze upon, even the medically enhanced Lowe. A remarkable musical journey through upbeat and disconnected tunes that don't fit together or have anything to do with the plot points they bracket. Super fun cameos that come out of nowhere really deliver the surprise element. A Bollywood initiation for those not familiar with the genre, as two lavish, colorful sequences materialize out of the ether and a handful of middle school night wet fantasies let us into the mind of Sikh youth. Also a crash course in the Sikh culture although not the religion itself, which in all honesty could go a long way in educating those not otherwise familiar with the Sikh. Pointedly addresses intolerance, and not just at the Sikh, but also women, as the true unsung heroine is the 20- Something law student who sets a land speed record in defeating social injustice while studying and dating full time. Watching the subtle transformation of Belle into Sikh light is the entire point of the movie as a metaphor for the ongoing march of multiculturalism. Sure the ending was saccharine, but if you're in a candy shop for 90 minutes do you really think you can leave without a sweet taste in your mouth? I didn't think so.

My rating and review is strictly based on dubbed Hindi version.

There are two kind of audience to this movie. One, who have seen Patiala House(PH); and second, who have not. Movie carries a lot from Akshay kumar's PH. Change the cast, remove cricket and add Ice hockey & insert a friendly uncle instead of cousins and you get Breakaway.

It also carries the same flaws that PH had. The plot has so much to deal with that its neither a full patriotic sports movie like Chak de, India! nor a family/love story like PH or Apne. Most of the comic situations are lost in translation. I hope that Russell peters' joke must have been good because I couldn't get a laugh in dubbed version. Most disappointing fact was that someone else(probably Raju kher) did the voice-over for Anupam kher.

All in all watch it ONLY if you have access to Breakway and steer clear of Dubbed version, Speedy Singhs.

There are some real cruel reviews of this movie, interestingly many coming from the ethnic audience that it's supposed to have in its pocket. I don't think this movie deserves such harsh criticism. It's actually a very sweet movie with likable characters, including Russell Peters in a great supporting role. We get to enjoy a bit of the hockey thrill and watch the beautiful Camilla Belle. This movie was never supposed to be an Oscar contender. Even though you know how the story will end in the first couple of minutes into the movie, the uniquely Canadian atmosphere and the few side stories that support the plot make your time worth watching it.

We liked Breakaway - sure it's pretty much lightweight sports comedy but its heart is the right place and it was fun.

I guarantee this movie will be make it big, even if it's being treated with some disdain in Canada.

Here's why:

1. There's a reason why Russell Peters is currently the number one selling comedian in the world. The global diaspora of Indian populations in the UK, the US, South Africa, Dubai, not to mention India itself will buy this.

2. No other country on earth has as many cinemas and cinema goers (and not downloaders, but real paying cinemas with seats and people) as India and they love movies that celebrate their culture abroad.

3. The UK has a huge following for Peters and this: Peters sold out Wembley Stadium for three nights twice, and Indian TV is huge this is going to run and run on subscription TV channels forever.

4. It's a fun, innocent, sport movie - and people like that worldwide......

I agree it may not be Canada's number one movie, but I think this is marketing savvy and I bet you the receipts when added up in twelve months time make it the number one earner globally of any Canadian movie of the year.......

All in all if you like sports comedies like Men with Brooms and / or what an insight into Sikh culture in Toronto, while enjoying a competent sports movie you could do much worse (now you can vote me down).....