Director: Sanjay Gupta
Cast: Sanjay Dutt, John Abraham, Celina Jaitley, Mahesh Manjrekar and Lara Dutta
Finally, here’s a film —explosive. Absolutely exhilarating from the word go! There are several surprises in this Sajnay Gupta flick.And for a change there is absolutely no crying or heavy emotion that is likely to make you feel morose as you stream out of the theatre!Oh!what a relief!
Plot.....
Imagined being locked up in a room with a TV set...Same is the case with Sanjay Dutt.Here he plays a software engineer Bala who is imprisoned in a mysterious apartment complex for 14 years, having been kidnapped and taken there. He doesn’t know who is responsible and doesn’t have any connection to the outside world. He has been forced to create his own world in this room, whether it’s watching television to keep up with the times or working out physically in hopes of seeking revenge on whoever put him here.
When he is released, he befriends a cab Lara, a woman who is drawn to him. Soon, an anonymous person hands him a cell phone, and after answering it, he is told that if he doesn’t figure out why he was imprisoned, something will happen to Lara in five days. Sanju then begins his journey of looking up his former arch enemies to figure out the big mystery.
Then John Abraham enters into the scene; who is he? And there is also Mahesh Manjrekar in the film. In what way he is related to Imprisonment of Sanjay? Is Celina still waiting for her husband Sanjay this long 14 years? Would Sanjay be able to lead a normal life? And above all, why Sanjay has been kept for such a long time inside a dark cell. All these plots sum up the storyline of the film.
Critical analysis....
At the core , Zinda is a revenge flick but the gradual realisation that our hero isn’t actually finding his own path to revenge is a good one; wherever he goes, whatever he does, and whoever he speaks to, he’s falling into one of his imprisoner’s traps.It is as if everything Sanjay does has been pre-ordained, scripted even, by his enemy. It’s an intriguing set-up, but for it to make any sense, screenwriters have to resort to a long list of psychological conceits - , suggestion - that even Gupta would have trouble pulling off.
The revelations that explain why Sanjay was locked up for 14 years are even more twisty-turny and in the end are shocking and rather satisfying.
Its priorities constantly change as it transforms from paranoid thriller, to bloodthirsty action flick to high drama. What the plot initially presents as a quest for truth becomes distorted into a hunt for blood, leading into a ho-hum examination of the existential concerns that swirl around the movie’s topic. These larger themes are a bit forced, given the delights the movie takes in showing off its style and the humor that’s liberally inserted throughout. zinda is a movie that comes on strong and peaks about an hour in. Afterwards, it’s less kinetic by far, usually doling out exposition instead of action.
This isn’t one of those movies with the villain revealed in the last 5 minutes, with a nice and tidy summation of the reasons for his actions.Instead of being a straightforward revenge thriller, Gupta has managed to graft on aspects of pathos and tragedy - lots of tragedy. In the process he has created a film both extreme and tender, yet tremendously entertaining, and with so much more to offer than routine Bollywood Drama. Zindaa is actually more complicated than described and in fact there are moments when certain scenes make no sense. However, through sheer force of style and energy, Gupta keeps us well entertained.
Besides the mystery/mysteries that we unravel with the protagonist[Sanjay Dutt], what makes Zindaa a cut above rest is the look and feel of the movie. It’s so damn gritty and ferocious. And it’s all in-your-face too, without seeming like the visuals are there to shock you.Oh, then there’s that one chase scene that is so punch-kick-wow with its non-stop 3 minute brawl.
The best part of film are those early scenes of the Sanjay Dutt in solitary confinement. He suffers self-inflicted physical punishment , the years are shown to pass by means of TV newsreel montage, and the audience shares Sanjay’s confusion about who?, why?, how much longer? The drama reaches to all time high when Sanjay Dutt is released from there....But the sequence thereafter are not that impactful..Sanju meeting with Lara[Taxi driver] , the restaurant sequence and introduction of John in the narrative could have been far more engaging .Despite these hiccups , director Sanjay Gupta deserves browny points for attempting something daringly different....
What is great about the film is that the direction, music and characterisations also display a similar range. No two scenes resemble each other and when placed together, they make perfect sense. This is an expansive, extravagant-seeming film, but as it turns out, everything is there for a purpose: no matter how crazy the diversions or distractions, the twists and turns of the narrative.Seat-squirming moments include a dental extraction using a claw hammer and a brilliantly fight scene in which Sanju takes on 20-odd blokes single-handedly, throwing himself in all directions as the camera struggles to keep up.
Technically the film is fantastic as expected from a Sanjay Gupta production.Secondly background score is one of the best scores in recent times. The score is truly of International class and enhances the impact in many scenes.
Performances.....
Zindaa belongs to Sanjay Dutt.A character like this needs to dealt with utmost sensitivity and conviction , Dutt manages to bring the right motions to his character and delivers an extraordinary performance. John Abraham delivers a smashing performance as a psycho .The actors eyes speaks volumes and this is no doubt his best performance of late. The scenes that he shares with the Sanjay Dutt in the latter half are simply magnificient! Celina is ok in her role whereas Mahesh Manjrekar [ Sanju’s friend] hams .Lara Dutta is also good in her role and is immensely likeable. She looks gorgeous on screen and is a confident performer.
Conclusion....
ZINDAA is not everyones cup of tea, but it cannot be denied that the film is one of the best thriller to come out of Bollywood in recent years.It’s a completely enveloping film experience and a twisted ride worth taking .