Yes, indeed this is old wine in a new bottle. This is of course a remake of the classic DON starring Big B. However altough certain sub plots are copied in their entirety the resemblance ends there. What we end up with is a Bollywood equivalent of ’The Mission Impossible’ with a character that has the flamboyance of 007.
King Khan has been given the task of playing both the good guy and the bad buy at the same time, which he seems to do reasonably well. Initially we are made to see the darkest side of his ruthless nature when he deals with Kamini, in a way that is both cold and calculating.
Priyanka Chopra plays :
a)Avenger of her friends murder
b)Lover to ’Banarasi version of Don’
So indeed she too alternates between good and evil.
The same holds true for all the characters, save Singhania who is the apostle of evil. Incidentally Don-II is his scion and besides that nurtures ambitions of his own, it may be said.
Vardhan is another goodie-baddie guy.Altough in the beginning of the movie it is not clear as to which way he is oriented.
The locales are spellbinding. The camerawork is slick.
The tracks like "khaike Pan Banaras wala" and the title track are noteworthy.
I think natural curiosity and the time of it’s release demands that the avid cine goer buy tickets and watch the movie on the big screen, rather than wait for the DVD (something that I found on a number of reviews).
Of course, this movie is to be treated as an action flick and all that goes on defies the numerical odds and turns probabilies out of impossibilities.
Vijay aka good Don wants the best education for Dipu and testifies that he cannot drive a vehicle. How then does he, in his avatar as bad Don perform the car getaway with the confidence of Micheal Schumacher. Any way the car in the chase is great.
Inconsistencies forgiven :-).
Vijay under the influence of Bhang gives Don (real or imaginary) the chance to voice his own https://lyrics. Yes, you guessed it.
Shah Rukh has some vocals in the song "Khaike....".
The tension is palpable throughout the movie and keeps you gripped most of the time.
I would say Farhan Akhtar has carried out an experiment that should prove sucessful and possibly inspire more to come in it’s wake.
Isha Koppikar is the moll of bad Don and her hostile expression to Priyanka’s overtures to good Don / bad Don !? are not hostile enough to supress simmering passions.
Priyanka has been diplomatic in her bikini scene. She chooses to expose but not over-expose and Farhan Akhtar through out the movie does not rely on steamy sex (but the gore is appreciable) to titillate the viewer.
The firangs in the movie are like mannequins in a wax museum, but I guess they are a must in all modern pot-boilers.
Anyway all in all, it is worth seeing the movie, even if it is for the deja vu.
Here’s to happy viewing :-).