Dabangg

I don't normally bother to write any reviews for films I have watched. But after reading some of the reviews of imbeciles who CLEARLY missed the point of Dabangg, I felt compelled to add my two cents.

Firstly, to all those people who are bashing Dabangg because it's action scenes are over the top, or it can't decide whether it's an action film/comedy/drama etc........here's a thought.....do you think maybe (just MAYBE) that was the whole point in the first place??

This is generally the problem with the nouveau Indian cinema goers of the multiplex era. They will happily watch Bruce Willis in Die Hard 4 bring down a helicopter with a taxi cab. They will applaud when Jason Statham drives a car off a bridge and lands it perfectly on to a moving truck in The Transporter. They will not bat an eyelid when Pierce Brosnan drives around in an invisible car in Die Another Day. Uma Thurman single handedly killing a hundred Chinese assassins with a sword in Kill Bill? "Sure, that can happen. And a very good movie from Tarantino" they might say. But GOD FORBID that any Indian movie has action scenes where the hero launches a guy in front of a speeding train and pulls him back just before the train smashes into him. "NOOOOOOO!!!!" they will scream. "That is so stupid!" they will say. "Where is the REALISM?" they will exclaim. A bunch of HYPOCRITES if you ask me! I mean honestly, any person who expects a serious and realistic action film after the first scene in Dabangg where the two main character's names are established as "Chulbul" and "Makkhi" (and after seeing the trailers of the film no less) is, quite frankly, a moron of the highest order.

Dabangg is a film which doesn't take itself seriously for a single second (which already makes it FAR superior and a more honest effort than the over-hyped Ghajini that took itself ridiculously seriously while at the same time offering NOTHING new). It is what it is; a complete no-brainer masala film. And tell me, what is wrong with that? Reading some of the reviews here about how Dabangg is "taking the Hindi Film Industry backwards" you would think that other film industries all over the world just churn out serious films all the time. NEWSFLASH! They don't (as you can see from the list above). Then there are complaints about how some action scenes are copied from Western films (namely Salman's opening scene resembling Transporter), second NEWSFLASH! Hollywood copies A LOT of it's action scenes from Hong Kong and Chinese cinema all the time. But do you complain about that? Of course you don't. Because you are either ignorant or, as said before, hypocritical. As long as the scene is done well, who cares if it's copied from another film?

Dabangg sets it's stall out very early on in the proceedings and it has a fabulous kitsch appeal to it. Salman Khan bites into his role with relish and he is clearly having a lot of fun playing Inspector Chulbul Pandey. This material in the hands of other actors might have gone down in flames, but Salman grabs the film by the scruff of it's neck and runs with it. Make no mistake about it, this film is a one-man show and, luckily for us, Salman carries it off with élan. He plays the role of Chulbul with just the right amount of self-mockery (the type of which Shahrukh Khan was aiming for in Om Shanti Om but failed miserably at). There are moans about how actors like Om Puri and Anupam Kher aren't given enough scope, but who cares? Like I said before, this film really doesn't require brilliant performances from secondary characters. Character development is not the agenda here. However, it has to be said that débutant Sonakshi Sinha does perform very well in her (smallish) role.

Bottom line: if you are expecting an intelligent and realistic action thriller like any of the Jason Bourne series, then avoid Debangg at all costs. With that sort of mindset you are sure to be disappointed. BUT, if you are in the mood for an old fashioned masala movie in the mould of films such as Die Hard 4, Kung Fu Hustle and Desperado, then you are in for a treat. Just sit back, relax, accept the film for what it is (a pure popcorn and purposefully OTT flick) and let Salman Khan entertain you.

'Dabangg', 'Dabangg', 'Dabangg', 'Dabangg'.... the most-discussed chat of this week, finally has hit the silver-screen! And fortunately, 'Dabangg' lives up to it's gargantuan expectations!

Let me get this straight: 'Dabangg' is no path-breaking, life-changing cinema. It has an outdated story, which worked big time back in the 1980's, but it's presentation & execution is mind-blowing. This one's an out-and-out mass entertainer, with perfect direction, clap-worthy dialouge, Marvelous Action, Meldious Music & Salman like never before!

'Dabangg' starts with a bang, slips in the middle, but picks up big time in the final 30-minutes. The climax is bombastic, it's kick-ass & worth whistling. One more thing that works for this film, is that, it's not a violent experience. It has loads of Action, but there's hardly any bloodshed.

Abhinav's direction is perfect. The Screenplay is Mass-Meant, it has Action, Romance, Comedy & little bit Melodrama. Cinematography is satisfactory. Stunts are marvelous. The Music is a chart-buster!

In the acting department, Salman is the life of the show. As Chulbul Pandey, he performs fearlessly & leaves you in awe of him. Chulbul Pandey is sure to go down as a legendary character. Sonu Sood is another topper. He excels as the conniving villain. Sonakshi makes a good debut. Dimple is wonderful in a brief role. Arbaaz Khan is decent. Vinod Khanna is able. Om Puri is wasted. Ditto for Anupam Kher. Mahesh Manjrekar is good. Tinnu Anand is effective. Mahi Gill is casual.

On the whole, The Legend of Chulbul Pandey is worth your time and money. A Fearless, Thumbs Up!

I was avoiding it for a long time but atlast watched as I had heard enough of the hype. Now I just don't know what to say. Am truly astonished how they won so many awards for it. Well I wonder how many movies they copied from. Mmmmm Inglourious Basterds, Matrix, Desperado, Planet Terror, The Transporter, Sherlock Holmes, The Dark Knight, Romeo must Die, District B 13, Kill Bill of what I know and etc etc. There is no character development and they have not tried to characterize any other character than Chulbul Pandey's. Dialogs are pathetic for me. There is no scene where I could laugh. Action scenes are much more pathetic and its foolish to say that why can't we like such scenes in bollywood if we like such mindless action in Hollywood movies. The answer is simple they are screened with perfection making them realistic with efficient direction. Abhinav Kashyap here simply tries to grab the style of Tarantino and place it exactly over his project but he even could not do that. Sonakshi Sinha has nothing to do with the movie and it would not have mattered at all if they removed her completely. She should at least learn to speak the dialogs if she's been given two or so. There is practically no script involved and its like someone wrote a story in childhood over which they tried to make a movie.Especially the climax is where you'll wanna bang your head. On whole the movie is below average. Songs are nice and are only savior. It got the hype of Salman and became a blockbuster. Obviously Salman fans must love it but others stay away from it.

Director Abhinav Kashyap puts Salman Khan in Rajnikant's shoes in action sequences while the film's setting in U.P gives it a grand scope to explore the bhojpuri realm and take advantage of it for entertainment through dialogs and characters. Although the plot is dead simple, it still has enough juice in it to keep its momentum going with action, romance, comedy and Salman's screen presence. There is something about Salman's performance here that may not necessarily be charismatic but it engages you enough to make you whistle even in a multiplex (although this is totally a G7 or Chandan movie). This is Sunny Deol on drugs and Rajnikant revamped for Bollywood. Dabangg is different from 'Wanted' yet similar in Salman's prowess against adversaries.

The music by Sajid-Wajid-Lalit is hummable with Tere Mast Mast and full of masti with Munni Badnaam and Humka Peeni hai. Reminiscent of 'Omkara's title song is Hud Hud Dabangg with excellent cinematography. Salman in all these songs is a charmer and looks to be enjoying the filming completely. There is no choreography. Just some drinks on- the- house.

As the unstoppable Macho-man, Salman Khan excels in action sequences. He is, of course known to be stiff and it becomes very apparent while he is dancing but it is fun to watch no doubt, when he lets loose in most songs and just goes wild. Delivering bhojpuri dialogs, threats and romanticism, Salman Khan earns your whistling and hooting. Wanted and Dabangg both would've been catastrophic flops if it weren't for Salman re-inventing himself. Here, he doesn't look like he is out to prove that point. Most of the time, you can see him simply enjoying himself. Arbaaz Khan is passable but could've been sillier to add to the fun as Makhi. Om Puri, Vinod Khanna and Anupam Kher in cameos were superlative while Mahesh Manjrekar delivered a shockingly good performance as a drunkard father. Sonu Sood has been better in 'Jodha Akbar' but he is quite adequate as Chulbul Pandey's adversary. Newcomer Sonakshi Sinha looks beautiful, can put up a straight face pretty well and can compete well against her contemporaries.

It goes without saying that Dabangg was never going to be an intellectual enricher. This is pure, flawed entertainment and that is how it needs to be enjoyed. The action seems like a spoof of our southern counterparts and therefore, is fun to watch. Dialogues, however rude at times: 'haraamzade se yaad aaya, aapke sasur kaise hai?' are thoroughly laugh worthy and the sensational cinematography around Salman's entry at various points in the film augments his heroism. Considering these factors, Dabangg offers tremendous value for money and is no surprise that it opened to such an overwhelming response. Nevertheless, this is not going to be a revolution in Bollywood but just a passing tide and it better remain that way.

I saw this film recently, because of all the hype around the film and breaking 3 Idiots' box office records and I could say for the first time, I enjoyed watching Salman Khan in a 'mass' movie!! :) I watch Telugu/Tamil films a lot and when I say 'mass' movie, I mean like masala (songs, fights, dances, senti-scenes, all that good stuff). It was a difference experience watching a Bollywood star do this kind of film, whereas in South India, there are hundreds of films like this one. But still, DABANGG is the BANGG!! I don't like to watch much of Salman khan's films like MAMK, Yuvvraj, films with David Dhawan, etc but this movie was great to see Salman Khan perform. I know there are a lot of cheezy fight sequences and silly dance steps but it was fun to see Salman in it.

Camera work was really good. Nice brown and reds throughout the film..I did not like the camera-work/Artwork of Salman's previous film WANTED because it looked too colorful..these kinds of movies need to bring down the color..Story is very weak but directions takes over. The movie is only 2 hours, 8 min. so definitely no boring scenes..

I recommend this film for one and all. Have a Blast!!