Hero helmed by Nikhil Advani which is a remake of Subhash Ghai's cult classic Hero (1983) has all the quintessential elements that a typical masala movie needs ; high octane action, good music, mesmeric visuals, slick execution but the convoluted plot doesn't allow them to flourish. It was 1983, when Subhash Ghai wrote and directed Hero which was lapped up by the audience at that time but now we are sitting in 2015. Taste of audience has changed and I don't understand why did the makers opt to remake the same storyline that was made in 1983. Though, the writers have tweaked the screenplay as per today's times yet the basic premise is the same. The only daughter of I.G. Police falling in love with a local goon who has kidnapped her and defying all odds to unite with him. What worked in favor of Hero (1983) was its defined story-line ably backed up by well etched out characters that were portrayed eloquently on-screen by veteran actors. Who can forget the nagging Bhua played by Bindu, Amrish Puri as dreadful Pasha, Shakti Kapoor as scheming Jimmy and above all Sanjeev Kumar who was seen in various get ups in the original cult classic. It was more of a character driven movie who lent ample plausible moments to the film which seem to be missing from the remake. Hero (2015) is more focused around its main protagonists especially the histrionics of its male lead i.e. Sooraj Pancholi who leaves no stone upturned to flex his muscles and showcase his skills but Alias! he is led down by a weak and non cohesive screenplay. The problem with Hero is that things happen at a very fast pace with various characters appearing from nowhere in a flutter affecting the continuity of the film. One moment you see Sooraj doing a headstand on nails platform and the next moment he arrives on a bulldozer and kicks the butts of Chetan Hansraj. Athiya Shetty visits a discotheque with friends and after she is insisted on going back by a friend, She is not only happy enough seeing him getting bashed by Sooraj but also thanks him and gets be-smitten by him. Similarly, in second half you see Vivan Bhatena doing kick-ass act with some people he owes money with blood littered on his shirt and the very next moment you see him walking away with Anita Hassanandani ( who is IG's daughter-in-law) after putting his blazer on. It is these moments that rob the movie of its plausible charm which was very much there in Hero (1983). It is disheartening to see that Sooraj Pancholi and Athiya Shetty who have given earnest performances are let down by a weak screenplay. Overall, Hero might appeal to a certain section of audience who love to watch typical commercial potboilers laden with all masala ingredients.
STORY & SCREENPLAY (SPOILERS AHEAD) :: The credit for writing the story has been given to Subhash Ghai who wrote the original Hero (1983) where as the screenplay of the movie has been penned down by Nikhil Advani along with Umesh Bist. Nikhil & Umesh have fine toned and spruced up the screenplay in accordance with today's times but the uneven screenplay & shoddily written characters are a major drawback of the movie. The film begins in Mumbai where Sooraj (Sooraj Pancholi) is doing his workout and cut next he arrives on a bulldozer to rescue his friends who have been kidnapped by Changezi (Chetan Hansraj). After bashing up Changezi and his henchmen, Sooraj along with his friends visits a club where he sights Radha (Athiya Shetty) and here too he bashes up Radha's boyfriend who's trying to be a pile on. Radha is daughter of I.G. Police, Mathur (Tigmanshu Dhulia) who is up against Pasha (Aditya Pancholi). Pasha is behind the bars for plotting the murder of a journalist which he is denying but Mathur says he is in possession of enough evidence to nail him. Sooraj has been bought up by Pasha and he affectionately calls him Baba. Sensing fear, Pasha calls Sooraj and tells him to kidnap Radha. Sooraj along with his friends pose as Policemen and kidnap Radha by telling her that they are taking her to a safe place as per orders given by her father. Soon, chemistry develops between Radha & Sooraj with both falling in love with each other. After some time, Radha comes to know about real identity of Sooraj who tells her to forget him saying I.G. ki beti ek Gunde se kaise pyaar kar sakti hai. But, Radha is defiant and convinces Sooraj to surrender and start a new life. Sooraj is imprisoned for two years and Radha's father is dead against the love of his daughter for Sooraj. Radha is helped by her brother (Sharad Kelkar) who tells her to pretend having a fake relationship with one of his old schoolmates RanVijay (Vivan Bhatena). But RanVijay who owes several crores to Pasha turns up at their home with evil intentions but is instantly liked by Radha's parents. Will RanVijay be able to succeed in his evil intentions, Will reformed Sooraj be able to win over Radha's father, Will I.G. Mathur be able to nail Pasha & Will Sooraj & Radha get married is what forms the rest of the story.
STARCAST :: Mukesh Chhabra (Casting Director) has once again proven his mettle as Hero is more of a character driven film and all the actors chosen by Mukesh have literally lived their part. As debutantes, both Sooraj Pancholi and Athiya Shetty have managed to impress in their first outing. Sooraj has worked really hard on building his physique and he gets ample chance to flex his muscles in the movie. He has a great screen presence which has been utilized to the optimum in this movie. He has come out really well in action sequences with his well chiseled body. As a first timer, Sooraj manages to leave a impression with his earnest act in the movie. He has ably portrayed the character of a hooligan with a heart of gold in enthralling manner. Athiya Shetty has portrayed the character of carefree and chirpy Radha with utmost conviction. Athiya seems to have worked really hard on essaying her character in the movie which is evident from her performance in the movie. Athiya looks so confident when facing the camera that it's hard to imagine that this is her first outing as an actress. Tigmanshu Dhulia plays his part in such a natural and effortless manner that it is hard to distinguish him from his character. He stands his ground firmly both as a tough cop as well as a worrying father. Sharad Kelkar shows the actor that he can be with his impeccable performance in the movie. Sharad has played his character with effortless ease. Aditya Pancholi shines as the villainous 'Pasha' in the movie. Vivan Bhatena throws a surprise with his wicked act in the movie. Though, he appears for a short duration in the second half but he has literally nailed his character with his convincing portrayal.
TECHNICAL FINESSE :: The musical soundtrack of the movie composed by Amaal Mallik, Jassi Katyal, Meet Bros Anjjan & Sachin Jigar has everything in it to make it a chartbuster album with the title track " Main Hoon Hero Tera" leading from the front. The background music of the film has been composed by Sandeep Shirodkar who has done an excellent job. Sandeep's background score is a huge strength to the movie as it underscores every scene without hammering in the situations. The cinematographer of the movie is Tushar Kanti Ray who has done outstanding job behind the lens. The cinematography by Tushar is seamless and excellent, not once invading the space of characters at work in the background. Tushar's cinematography is brilliant, bringing out the vision of Nikhil Advani eloquently on-screen through well captured vistas. A special mention of Amit Ray, Subrata Chakraborty (Production Designers) and Ravi Verma, Dave Judge (Action Directors) for their effective contribution in their respective fields. The movie has been edited by Ritesh Soni who has kept the run-time of the movie to 131 minutes. As a director, Nikhil Advani had a tough job at hands as it was never going to be easy to helm an entertaining remake of a cult classic film as the original one will always serve as a hard benchmark. So, the comparisons and expectations are always going to be high with respect to the original film. Nikhil Advani has ably extracted the best from his cast & crew and his execution of the movie is slick but is hampered by the convoluted storyline, hackneyed screenplay and uneven proceedings.
CONCLUSION :: Though, not in the league of original cult classic yet Hero makes for a descent one time watch for those who like to watch typical mainstream masala movies replete with good music, high octane action, mesmeric visuals and good performances by its starcast.
STARCAST :: Mukesh Chhabra (Casting Director) has once again proven his mettle as Hero is more of a character driven film and all the actors chosen by Mukesh have literally lived their part. As debutantes, both Sooraj Pancholi and Athiya Shetty have managed to impress in their first outing. Sooraj has worked really hard on building his physique and he gets ample chance to flex his muscles in the movie. He has a great screen presence which has been utilized to the optimum in this movie. He has come out really well in action sequences with his well chiseled body. As a first timer, Sooraj manages to leave a impression with his earnest act in the movie. He has ably portrayed the character of a hooligan with a heart of gold in enthralling manner. Athiya Shetty has portrayed the character of carefree and chirpy Radha with utmost conviction. Athiya seems to have worked really hard on essaying her character in the movie which is evident from her performance in the movie. Athiya looks so confident when facing the camera that it's hard to imagine that this is her first outing as an actress. Tigmanshu Dhulia plays his part in such a natural and effortless manner that it is hard to distinguish him from his character. He stands his ground firmly both as a tough cop as well as a worrying father. Sharad Kelkar shows the actor that he can be with his impeccable performance in the movie. Sharad has played his character with effortless ease. Aditya Pancholi shines as the villainous 'Pasha' in the movie. Vivan Bhatena throws a surprise with his wicked act in the movie. Though, he appears for a short duration in the second half but he has literally nailed his character with his convincing portrayal.
TECHNICAL FINESSE :: The musical soundtrack of the movie composed by Amaal Mallik, Jassi Katyal, Meet Bros Anjjan & Sachin Jigar has everything in it to make it a chartbuster album with the title track " Main Hoon Hero Tera" leading from the front. The background music of the film has been composed by Sandeep Shirodkar who has done an excellent job. Sandeep's background score is a huge strength to the movie as it underscores every scene without hammering in the situations. The cinematographer of the movie is Tushar Kanti Ray who has done outstanding job behind the lens. The cinematography by Tushar is seamless and excellent, not once invading the space of characters at work in the background. Tushar's cinematography is brilliant, bringing out the vision of Nikhil Advani eloquently on-screen through well captured vistas. A special mention of Amit Ray, Subrata Chakraborty (Production Designers) and Ravi Verma, Dave Judge (Action Directors) for their effective contribution in their respective fields. The movie has been edited by Ritesh Soni who has kept the run-time of the movie to 131 minutes. As a director, Nikhil Advani had a tough job at hands as it was never going to be easy to helm an entertaining remake of a cult classic film as the original one will always serve as a hard benchmark. So, the comparisons and expectations are always going to be high with respect to the original film. Nikhil Advani has ably extracted the best from his cast & crew and his execution of the movie is slick but is hampered by the convoluted storyline, hackneyed screenplay and uneven proceedings.
CONCLUSION :: Though, not in the league of original cult classic yet Hero makes for a descent one time watch for those who like to watch typical mainstream masala movies replete with good music, high octane action, mesmeric visuals and good performances by its starcast.
ROHIT SHARMA.
Follow me on twitter at https://twitter.com/smgr105
rohitreview@gmail.com
http://rohitmoviereview.blogspot.in/
https://www.facebook.com/moviereviewsbyrohit
No comments:
Post a Comment