When the Bollywood kitsch is wrapped in a glossy package and peppered with something still unseen (in Hindi films) as nail-biting chases on superfast bikes, a viewer is obviously going to get tempted to spend the money worth a ticket? not just to see John Abraham, Uday Chopra and Abhishek Bachchan in their speed-thrilling acts but also for their hi-tech bikes? the slickest, meanest and fastest riding machines on the road.
The usual modus operandi of the gang is to commit the robbery, flee from the scene and then change into innocent pizza boys. The leader of the gang is Kabir (John Abraham) who keeps a Suzuki Hayabusa 1300 cc bike, gives nightmares to the police department. He is a man with controlled temperament and unquenchable thirst for money.
The responsibility to catch the gang falls on the shoulders of an ?strong-willed? cop Jai (Abhishek Bachchan). Jai is a married man with a lovely Bengali wife Sweety (Rimi Sen). At times she looked really Hot leaving Esha much behind her act. Occasional use of bengali words (like.. ki misti..) really suits her image!
Jai is not dull to not know that the robbers are using some special bikes to commit their acts. So he loops in on Ali (Uday Chopra), a local mechanic and an excellent bike rider, who keeps a Suzuki Bandit 1200 cc bike and is ?world famous in saara Mumbai? for his knowledge of the mean machines. Besides bikes, Ali has another weaknesses ? search for beautiful ladies and dream about them.. Poof! There appear Uday, his rani and two cute dogs one after another?. That really tickles you to utter cachinnation.
The first half has a few interesting moments and part credit should be reserved for Uday Chopra. His constant search for that perfect woman does bring a smile on the face, while the pedestrian lingo that he uses is also enjoyable at times.
But the film goes completely haywire after you come back from washroom, making space for digesting more goodies?. The post-interval portion which include the burgle in a Goa hotel should?ve been the soul of the film. The crooks are up to their final act ? the finale should?ve been nothing short of a novel experience.
The gang takes the loot from the hotel at such an ease, without slightest resistance looks like one cakewalk and is somewhat indigestible.. At least the viewers expected some thrill there. Even that can be overlooked. But after having trapped John and the chums, the lights suddenly go off and what follows next is one long chase, with heroes fighting atop a goods? carrier that?s speeding at 150 miles an hour and then, of course, the climax. I am sure the way they showed their acrobatics.. they would have at least got a bronze medal had they been performing at the Olympics.
To sum up, Dhoom is an action thriller with an overdose of bike chases and speed-thrills. Uday Chopra who stands out with an above ordinary performance, playing to the gallery completely. His role chips in some light moments in this otherwise gritty fare with his ?tongue-in-cheek? humor. Abhishek Bachchan needs to master a few emotive expressions other than his usual brooding.
John Abraham looks dashing and cool as the evil guy and perfectly fits the role of a bike-riding thief to T. Rimi gets more scope than Esha; she is quite likeable. Esha gets two songs and two scenes ? that?s it!
Pritam?s music sounds good to the ears. The title track [filmed on Esha, Uday] and ?Shikdum? [filmed on Abhishek, Rimi] can easily be singled out. The choreography of the title track in particular is spectacular. Cinematography is first-rate. As mentioned earlier, the thrills and the pace of the story are the saving grace.