Monday, September 5, 2016

Akira review: "Performances let down by an insipid script!!!"

Over the years, Bollywood have remade numerous South Indian movies with the hope that it would fill in the coffers as the original did. Anywaz it's not a sure shot at success after all the culture & cinematic taste of the audience are different in different states. However, A R Murugadoss is one director who had managed to hit the bull's eye with his previous remake ventures be it "Ghajini" or "Holiday". This time he has chosen to remake another Tamil flick "Mouna Guru" & had Sonakshi Sinha playing the protagonist rather than a male lead. The trailer definitely looked smashing, but can it create magic at the box office???


Akira (Sonakshi Sinha) hailed from Jodhpur & had a rather eventful childhood which many others would have dared to have. Right from her formative years, her father instilled in her the virtue to stand up against injustice & help the ones in need even if the culprit was bigger in size or stature. Apart from her strong will power, he also had trained her in martial arts so that she was strong in both body & spirit. It all began when her friend became a victim of acid-attack & when she witnessed a similar harassment later on, she stepped in & taught the hooligans a lesson which landed her in a juvenile home for a few years. After her release, she pursued her education but it was at this juncture that her brother decided to take them with him to Mumbai. But little did she realize that this change in environment would threaten her very existence.


As mentioned earlier, this is Murugadoss's third tryst with Bollywood & he has had some fond memories from his previous experiences. Coming on the back of the dud, "10 Enradhukulla" he would be hoping that "Akira" would provide him with a sigh of relief. Since I havent watched "Mouna Guru", I didn't have the luxury of comparing the two which was actually a positive thing. Scripted by Santha Kumar, the audience is treated to a gripping tale for most parts in the first half & kudos to the director also for having picturised it well. However, the latter half failed to build on that momentum & eventually the film culminates in a rather disappointing climax which was way too outlandish. But the performances given by the artists were damn good be it Anurag Kashyap, Sonakshi or Konkona Sen.On the technical side, Rajasekharan's visuals were impressive while Vishal-Shekhar's music barely had any significance. 

This was a movie where the artists inspite of some terrific performances were let down by an insipid story line, As for the question who was the best among the lot, the answer would be Anurag Kashyap who was absolutely brilliant as the coke snorting sly ACP. Sonakshi was totally convincing as the "girl who could kiss ass" & did utmost justice to her role but the writer should have given her character more variations rather than just cold stares. Konkona Sen might not have a lengthy role, however she displays her class with subtle nuances as the pregnant SP. As for the rest, all of them gave decent performances as well.

Verdict: Despite praise worthy performances, I dont think the movie would be able to make much of an impact at the box office. It's surely not boring but neither is it unique & to make matters worse the second half doesnt pack much of a punch. In short, since there wont be much high expectations it wont hurt to give it a try for the Dabaang girl!!!

Rating: 2.25/5

Regards...Ben





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