SPECIAL 26 - MOVIE REVIEW
STATUTORY WARNING: This reviewer will not delve too much into the story of the movie on review, reckons a one line description will do just fine. For filmophiles who have suffered for years at the hands of sadistic reviewers including yours truly, all SPOILERS are at the end i.e. are only for those already done watching.
STORY: A thriller loosely based on a real life incident that took place in Mumbai in March 1987 where in a daring heist, some con men posing as CBI officers conducted a daylight income tax raid on the Opera House branch of Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri in Mumbai, and disappeared with jewellery worth lakhs.
Five years ago A WEDNESDAY created ripples in Hindi cinema. With virtually no stars, (yep no heroine even ! ) no songs and released with zero publicity, it was a game changer. The angst of the protagonist ( a gut wrenching Naseeruddin Shah ) touched a raw nerve in the audience. It also ushered in an exciting new talent, Neeraj Pandey. This Bihari lad seems to have the uncanny knack of choosing the right subject. In 2008, terrorism was uppermost in the minds of the common man. Today, the man on the streets is fed up with all the muck (read corruption ) going around in politics today. Which is what SPECIAL 26 is all about.
SPECIAL 26 starts off on a high with the first scene itself bringing down the house. And like its characters who are always scampering around, the film moves at a feverish pace and the build up to the climax is quite superb, quite akin to a nail biting finish in a limited overs cricket match. Sadly, the climax is a big letdown and the twist in the end is quite unconvincing. Be that as it may, for most of its 120 minutes ( the length of the film is again a big plus ) SPECIAL 26 sparkles. Simply put, A WEDNESDAY was all heart. SPECIAL 26 is well, a smartly written film.
The background score is good in patches. There are three songs here and frankly, they add nothing of value to the overall goings on. Except for Akshay Kumar’ s romantic track which should not have gone beyong the editing table, the editing by Shree Narayan Singh is brilliant. Bobby Singh has a great outing behind the lens and his sad demise is quite unfortunate. The writing and direction both credited to Pandey is razor sharp and his attention to detail is great. The attempt to recreate the era of the 1980s India is laudable.The DI works well in the title credits but jars at other places.
Above all, what makes this enterprise work are the performances. Akshay Kumar, Anupam Kher, Rajesh Sharma ( in a restrained performance after his hilarious role in LUV SHUV TEY CHICKEN KHURANA ) and Kishore Kadam ( he is the surprise package ) make a fab team so much so that every time they pull off a daring heist, the audience roots for them. What can one say of Mr Kher ? In the last three decades, this actor has made us laugh ( DIL HAI KI MAANTA NAHIN, LAMHE, DDLJ ) and cry ( SARAANSH, DADDY, JANAM ) at will. Here again, as the common man getting back at a rotten system , he is in fine form. Akshay Kumar gives what is arguably his career best performance. The only grouse is that much like Nasser’s character in A WEDNESDAY, little is known about Ajju here. Whether this was deliberately done by Pandey is something only he can answer.
Last but obviously not the least is the character of Wasim Khan played by the incomparable Hazraat, Hazraat, Hazraat Manoj Bajpai. Each and very scene of his is a delight to watch and inspite of his looks, when he is on screen, it is difficult to look at anyone else. To sum it up, SPECIAL 26 has more highs than lows. If only the climax had been better. Be that as it may, SPECIAL 26 is recommended as a one time watch. For sure !
SPOILERS
THE SCENE : There are quite a few contenders for this ( all with Bajpai in them as the common factor ) but the ’ dupatta ’ wala scene with his wife’s character takes the cake. It even has a nice ACT 2 at the end.
THE DIALOGUE : There is nothing like the extraordinary monologue by Nasser’s character in A WEDNESDAY ( in the climax) here. But the best line is the one where in an interview for the CBI job, a character unwittingly blurts " I want to do my Country "
THE CHARACTER : No prizes for guessing this. The character of CBI officer Wasim Khan is one of the best written roles for a supporting actor in recent times. His scenes alone are more than worth the price of your movie ticket.