Mard

I grew up watching this movie. This is one of the First Movies I've ever seen and i loved it. I have seen this 100 times and never get bored of it. This was at the time a Big Budget movie for Bollywood. The movie has loads of light hearted fun moments that keeps you entertained all the way. It also has some serious moments of torture that the British do to the poorer indians. It is definitely the Best Bollywood Period movie I've ever seen. Others include (Bhagat Singh, The Rising etc). The movie has some weaknesses which include the mother getting help from co-incidenses, which is not realistic, but Manmohan Desai directs it in a way that keeps the movie enjoyable. Even if you are not a Amitabh Fan (which is rare if you watch Bollywood) you might enjoy this movie.

Director Manmohan Desai with star Amitabh Bachchan made history of wonders like (Amar Akbar Anthony - 1977), (Naseeb - 1981), (Coolie - 1983), and (Gangaa Jamunaa Saraswathi - 1988). Here, it's not Desai's most fantastic world inasmuch as his most fantasia.

If you wanna be silly: actually (Mard) gives you an ideal chance. It's one realm of absurd hyperbole, where you'll watch Roman gladiatorial combat, secret service masks, colony with mine and slaves, evil guys with tankers,.. etc. It's (Spartacus) meets (Mission Impassable) meets (Indiana Jones) meets (Rambo)! Nobody dares to define what year all of this was happening: Helena as "Lady Helena" wears heavy 19th century clothes, then Amrita Singh as "Ruby" has a car from the 1950s, and clothes from the mid-1980s??? The most laughable one came from Manik Irani as Ruby's bodyguard "Zybisko" with his black leather punk garb, and for sure Dan Dhanoa as the evil "Danny" who wore Freddy Mercury's costume yet with Dracula's cape! Not to mention a horse that has an elephant's memory, explicitly shoddy back-projections, and an electric shocker as a torture device along with a bikini both in the 19th century??!!

If you wanna be merciful: the character of the popular hero, along with his melodramatic story and conflict, was great according to this kind of let's say: genre. The storylines come from so many folk stories or old legends, but through the Desai's distinct style of making highly satisfying piquant MOVIE, and with a patriotic sense too. Amrita Singh did fair, and kind of reprised her first role 3 years earlier in (Betaab - 1983) which was Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew. Amitabh Bachchan was larger than life, particularly at that time, when he was super superstar and deserving it; look at him fells the screen while the movie's title appears, being The Man ("Mard" in English stands for "Man"). The songs were shot highly enthusiastic and vivid. "Mard Tangewala" is a great classic apart. Everything was quite ardent, so you have to feel exhilarating because of this non-stoppable action. In fact, we say the precept of "leave your brain at the door, and enjoy" about so many American movies, aren't we? So why not saying it about this Indian interpretation of fun?!

If you wanna be nostalgic: I watched it while I was 10-year-old, it was shown at the Egyptian theaters for a record time (20 weeks), and what a crush I've had. I ranked it at my early list of the best action movies ever. However, when I re-watched it, while I was 30-year-old, I discovered that it's special case of entertainment; like a comic book movie from India. Look at the last shot; it can summarize perfectly the whole condition of this movie as a fantasy with comedy / action / romance / melodrama / Desai! It's such a huge extravaganza of nearly all the quintessential cinematic factors of enjoyment, as pure piece of escapism however a' la Indian.

If you wanna be rational: You'd think cheese, delirium, or act of decadence. But simply (Mard) represents Bollywood picturization of ecstasy, as the ultimate commercial Indian movie of the 1980s at its highest peck of being dainty, with all the deficiencies of the previous too!

In one word: Enjoy it, it meant to do this exceedingly. And believe me, it will make you forget your worries.. along with your name as well!

I love this movie. Get me some of whatever the director was on. I don't want to spoil the insanity for anyone who's never seen this, but ... tanks, gladiator fights, Sherlock Holmes outfits, a dog who's smarter than anyone in the movie, black leather bondage gear, and villains with Union Jacks on their evil capes. Get some friends and some beer and I guarantee this movie will be a good time.

All hail Moti the Wonder Dog (as he is actually credited in the movie).

This movie is really great. It is a picture where Amitabh can show that he is very good in Action Movies , too. The performance he shows is great (which one isn't it?). The theme of this film is good, as well. A movie for Amitabh Fans who also loves his Action movies. Just watch it and make your own picture of the film.

Oh well, Mard is really an unintentional comedy, that's how I used to watch it, and that's what made me want to watch it to begin with back when I was a kid. A middle-aged Amitabh Bachchan plays a young brutal man, which was the greatest symbol of manliness. Mard is in many ways a quintessential Hindi masala potboiler of the 1980s - exaggerated action, many songs, some (often lame) attempts at comedy, heroes, villains, and basically more caricatures than actual human characters, tons of stereotypes, bad dialogues, and absolutely implausible, ridiculous situations. Some of these basically border on the absurd.

I often wonder why someone of the stature and talent of Amitabh Bachchan never used his star power to promote better, more quality work. After all viewers would see him in anything. It's particularly surprising considering how much good work he did the previous decade - from Hrishikesh Mukherjee to Yash Chopra, from Saudagar, Abhimaan, and Zanjeer to Don, Trishul, and Amar Akbar Anthony, he did it all, and he was so good and, mind you, successful at it. And he does some routine stuff he got used to and it seems like for him it was just another acting job, although he does seem to have fun.

Mard is watchable for those fond of mindless Hindi films, but it's also quite embarrassing. I guess if seen in the required spirit and taken in the right context, it can be quite enjoyable, senseless entertainment. I honestly can watch it for comic relief. Then the songs are so nostalgic - "Will You Marry Me?", "Sun Rubia", "Mard Tangewala". And I like Amrita Singh, too. I know there's a growing following nowadays of young foreigners who are slowly discovering new Hindi cinema, and Bachchan is one hell of a find. After all, this man is a phenomenal actor. I wish they wouldn't try to get acquainted with some of his 1980s stuff like this one. This is an acquired taste, for sure.