FilmyReviews

Don 2 rides on star power and brand value. The film has a bland first hour, but the second half takes the film to another level. There's no denying that a cohesive script would've made a world of a difference to the film, but the tremendous hype, star power and the lucrative period [Christmas and New Year celebrations] will make its investors reap a harvest.

The film does lack a bit on the emotional quotient and human relationships are hardly given a chance to grow. But just when you think it's all sound and fury, there's a sensuous tango between Roma and the Don as the cop opts to help the gangster she once loved and the gangster is determined to save his junglee billi (wild cat), any which way. A word about the dialogues: brilliant. A word about the music: mediocre.

Don 2 is beautifully shot, well lit and has a very clean look, whether on the streets of Berlin or inside the studio, thanks to Akhtar's terrific cinematographer Jason West. But then, as with many good intentioned, and technically well crafted Bollywood films, Don 2, fails in the key test. Akhtar is definitely one of the smartest filmmakers in Bollywood, but this time he presents us a story, plot and script that is dull, almost boring. When we are not seeing Khan's swagger, or hearing the hip upbeat background score by Shankar Ehsaan Loy, Don 2 starts to lose steam.

It wasn’t hard to tell where Farhan Akhtar’s 2006 remake of Chandra Banot's Don (1978) was coming from. The director, among India’s most talented, could interpret an old, clever story on a contemporary visual scale: Common man Vijay, who’s a Mafioso look-alike, gets planted into a dead don’s den. He’s stuck now. The cop who put him there is also dead!It was Vijay’s story. Salim-Javed’s tight script had a striking plot. The writers here have sub-plots. They continue to stretch and add thought to thought. The picture promises to never end. It gets hard to carry on with inane inventiveness, when you just couldn't care less. At some point it becomes essential to wonder, as the adorable Vijay might, from the original: "Ee Down Sahab hain con? (Who is this Don?).” Truly. So much for a franchise.

Don 2, Akhtar's latest, is a glossy, unashamed action offering polished within an inch of itself, visually coming together seamlessly and effectively. It's evident in the very first few minutes that Khan is going to chew scenery like a particularly ravenous goat, but he does it with flair and it's hard not to be seduced by the perfectly manicured film Akhtar builds around his star. It is as the film goes on that it becomes painfully clear that while the film gives us a memorable villain, there is nothing that stands in his way.

Sadly, with a director who showed much promise with his first film, Don 2 should have been more than just another big-ticket Friday film that rests solely on the shoulders of its lead actor. What keeps Don 2 alive, then, is its pulsating action. It helps the pace quicken as the film progresses, including a thrilling chase sequence and a wonderfully choreographed-and-shot pre-climax sequence. Watch Don 2 for some kick-ass action. And Shah Rukh Khan.