’We all think we’re heroes...until we meet the real ones.
The line struck me the moment I saw the promos, and I was looking forward to watching Heroes. And I was promptly in line on day one to see it.
I think I can safely say that Heroes is one of the few very good original films Bollywood has come out with this year. And while director Sameer Karnik cannot for the life of him get people like Riya Sen and Amrita Arora to act, and get his editor to do a good enough job in the first 30 mins, the film is a good mix of entertainment and a deep realisation of something we take for granted so easily.
The film deals with the lives and families of three army jawans, and why the lives of two college buffoons changed forever when they embarked on a mission one fine day.
I won’t get into details of the plot. I never do. That’s for you to find out for yourself, were you to feel interested enough to watch this beautiful film after reading this. I’d rather give you my usual list of what worked for me and what didn’t. Here goes...
What WORKS!
Sohail has finally realised his comic potential and is a delight in most scenes he’s present in.
Vatsal is pleasant to watch and doesn’t get overenthu anywhere.
Salman Khan is...well he’s Salman Khan...what can I say? Did you know that he grew the beard for this film cos a fake one wasn’t working for him? And he didn’t smoke every time he was shooting for this film cos he plays a Sardar. And yes, he’s acted well too.
Preity Zinta, who in a small role has proved she can be more than the bubbly actress who wears tight clothes and dances (not so well) in nightclub sequence songs.
Mithunda, who’s aging so gracefully and playing his age so very very well.
What DOESN’T WORK!
Sunny Deol sans legs beating up 20 goons single handedly (no actually he used both hands....but still re!)
Amrita Arora and Riya Sen in oh-so-forgettable roles
Bad music, bad choreography, bad lyrics (why did we need those songs, again?)
But to be fair, Heroes is a war film that works despite the fact that it doesn’t have a single war scene. The three heroes are an epitome for thousands of others who have pledged their lives for their country and continue to do so every day, so the rest of us can sleep easy.
Sounds filmi. It isn’t.
It’s something that all of us know, but it takes a good film maker to make you realise it, make you appreciate it and make you stand up and salute these men.