Vishwanath

Can anyone make a Half good and half very bad film? Yes Subhash Ghai can and did...in Vishwanath a 1978 offering ..Riding on the success of earlier Kalicharan ( Note Cricketers name as titles in both) with the same team of Shatru-Reena Roy, this one is a dud ,a mindless crime and retribution movie with Shatrughan looking very good in the first half , but comes off very stereotyped and predictable with cheesy one-liners having a series of repeated showdowns with Premnath, the villain..

The film drags on interminably ..yaaawnnnn..and I was glad when it ended..even though it was the very typical good over evil finish...The music is average and Pran's performance is sparkling. Reena Roy as the glamour gal, gives bold skin show in cabaret dances, something surprising for her star status those days... An average entertainer , but it marked the arrival of Shatrughan sinha , the star...

Vishwanath, an honest lawyer, is implicated and imprisoned at the behest of a powerful underworld don, GNK, and his associates. After his release from prison, Vishwanath decides to seek vengeance, but finds out that it is virtually impossible to do this through due process of law. So he decides to change his identity, hire a gang of crooks and assassins, to carry out his vendetta. Not realizing that in doing this he is alienating himself from the love of his life, Soni; and making himself a criminal.

This the 2nd Subhash Ghai film starring Shatrughan Sinha, and though it's not as good as Kalicharan, it's not too far behind in delivering a powerful action drama that really belongs to Shatrughan. His gargantuan performance dominates the whole picture. He's intense, and totally convinces as a lawyer who turns criminal and leads a gang of misfits against the don, GNK, well played by Prem Nath. Their dialogue is well-matched.

The film can drag a bit towards the end, but it's rarely boring and drips with masala dramatics. Perhaps, the film is a little uneven, with the first being gritty and serious, and second half veering into masala territory, but overall it's a solid film that gleans good performances from Reena Roy, Pran, and Ranjeet, a drugged-up villain who likes to utter the lines "once in the blue moon."

Most stupid movie I have ever seen in my life. Such a third class melodrama. Idiotic dialogues. Third class acting.

I gather audience back in the 70s were real easy to please, to make this drivel a hit. People say if it wasn't for the indomitable Amitabh, Shatrughan would have been real big in bollywood. I say "Horsecrap", if this is considered as one of his top movies, I really don't want to watch his average or bad films. Dialogues were pedestrian at best and no memorable songs. The cast were hamming it up rather than acting. Pran was ok, he reprised the same kind of role in Karz couple of years later. Premnath was the antagonist with his usual efficiency as he would do so again in Karz. I guess Subhash Ghai more or less stuck to one kind of supporting cast. Shatru was wooden throughout the movie with limited expressions. You can't be just a macho character all the time, you have other emotions and expressions that are needed to complete an actor. That's the reason why Amitabh is still relevant to the hindi cinema compared to his peers. I wouldn't put this on a must watch movie list.

Premnath wanted to be a hero like his BIL Raj Kapoor. But couldn't really make it. This movie marks the second phase of his career. as a character actor and villain. The really shone this time. the villain..

Subhash Ghai can and did.in Vishwanath a 1978 offering.Riding on the success of earlier Kalicharan Note Cricketers name as titles in both with the same team of Shatru-Reena Roy, this one is a dud ,a mindless crime and retribution movie with Shatrughan looking very good in the first half , but comes off very stereotyped and predictable with cheesy one-liners having a series of repeated showdowns with Premnath, the villain.