DAVID - MOVIE REVIEW
In a music review of the soundtrack of DAVID, yours truly had mentioned that if nothing else, DAVID will turn out to be a visual roller coaster.By that yardstick alone, DAVID is worth the price of your movie ticket. As the film deals with three diverse stories set in different eras only linked by a name, ’ David ’ this reviewer deems it fit to review each one individually.
P.S. In the order of appearance.
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD !
LONDON : The first story of this film, it is also the best. Set in the 1970s sepia toned London, boasting of spectacular action set pieces and great background music, this one hits all the right notes ending with a clever twist in the climax. The supporting cast are all impressive, be it the don ( his introduction scene with a certain Mr Smith is memorable ) his hippie son or David ’s lover ( Monica Dogra last seen in DHOBI GHAT arrests you with her fiery presence ) The two actors playing the RAW agents look less like bounty hunters and more like the Thompson duo from TINTIN adding unintentional humour to the goings-on. And was it Nikhil Chinappa in a blink-and-you-miss role in the cage fight scene? One major hitch here is that Neil Nitin Mukesh in the lead role seems out of depth in a powerful role demanding someone with more gravitas.
MUMBAI : There was a series on MTV by Nambiar called RUSH. This one could easily pass of as one of the episodes from that. In the lead role Vinay Virmani is quite the charmer though the role itself is one dimensional . The story is full of quirky cameos, like the good samaritan padre ( played by veteran NASSER ) the scheming politician ( a good outing by Rohini Hattangadi ) David’s spunky sister ( who stealthily smokes cigarettes with him ) and even the akhada wala hired goon. Yet the sum of the parts just dont add up here. Also, the Lara Dutta track seemed unwanted and did not work for me at all. And can the director please explain who the bearded journo type ( he comes out of thin air ) who provokes Virmani’s character is ? The shocking turn of events at interval point raises one’s hopes for an explosive finale. But instead, the story just implodes after that with the biggest culprit here being the weak screenplay.This one just passes muster.
GOA : Of all the three stories, this one is the whackiest ( some may find it too weird ) And if you dig a hero who goes bride bashing (literally !) dressed as Santa, punches middle aged women in the face when provoked and drinks more than he talks, you might like this DAVID. Even more zany are the characters here, the massage parlour owner Tabu ( what a consummate actor she is ) David’s marriage obsessed Mom and David’s best friend, Peter ( the actor is first rate ) and above all his dead father ( a brilliant Saurabh Shukla ) who loves to enter other people’s bodies to enjoy a drink with his son ( Girish Karnad would have been amused ) Vikram is splendid but ( there is always the BIG, FAT but !) is let down by a badly written role which is too one dimensional. More ever, his scenes with Isha Sharvani seem incoherent. Special mention must be made of the idyllic setting in Goa here which creates the right mood for this story. The climax is predictable and throws up no surprises.
Technically, the film is flawless with the editing ( Sreekar Prasad) cinematography ( kudos to Randy & Co) and the background score ( a sublime Mike Mccleary ) all counting as plusses. The production values are also of the highest order. But the songs ( the soundtrack has 15 songs, no less ) are not picturised that well. And with a more taut script and better direction, this one could have become a cult movie. As it stands right now, it is just a one time watch. Which is a bit sad, because there was so much potential here.