Four years in the making, amir khan making a comeback after a long hiatus, costliest film ever made, i guess these are enough reasons for a person to get attracted towards a cinema hall to watch Mangal Pandey.But does the film deliver...No!!!.
First of all I guess the amount of publicity done behind the film worked against it.There was so much hype & publicity before the movie’s release that even a non movie goer would be curious to know & watch whats the movie all about.First of all the movie doesnt instill that fire that patriotism in you which is the most important part of a period movie’s success.The movie is very slow especially in the first half(agreed its not set in the modern era) but still its too slow at some places which tests the patience of the viewer.Secondly the songs pop up at any time when you are not expecting them, to top it even the songs are ordinary which makes it more boring.Even the use of english dialogues(with heavy british accent) will not go too well with the masses, though om puri’s translation in hindi takes over but still its not upto the mark.The plus points of the movie are the cinematography, set designs & of course the perfomances.
Amir delivers a knockout perfomance again & doesnt dissapoint.Toby Stephens is the surprise packet in the film.He looks quite comfortable speaking in hindi which is commendable.His charachter shown is also a pleasing, lovable one which the viewers will love.He’s done a brilliant job especially towards the end(watchout for his outburst on the english officers).
Rani & Amisha have nothing to do in the film & look like fillers.
The direction & screenpaly looks very patchy & doesnt look convincing with some charachters totally unexplained.
Overall the movie I feel was not at all upto the mark & I definately expected a lot from this movie but at the same time didnt feel a complete waste of time as well.