Rustom, a legal thriller came out almost a week ago and has finally managed to enter the 100 crore club. But is it really worth it? Lets find out.
Lets just face the fact that Bollywood has always failed to deliver good legal thrillers/courtroom dramas! Of course there are a few exceptions but sadly Rustom falls in the former category.
Being a law student, having read the famous Nanavati case on which the movies’s plot is essentially based, I was highly disappointed. Bollywood can’t even get the courtroom details right in legal thrillers let alone the laws and other technicalities.
The Nanawati trial was one of India’s most sensational court cases and even then Rustom fails to be a gripping thriller than one expects it to be. It lacks the unnerving tension that a courtroom drama should accompany.
Rustom has a cracker of a beginning. Without wasting any screen time, the director straight away comes to the murder. He takes the viewers quickly through the circumstances in which Rustom shoots Vikram (the three shots that shocked the nation!) and the trial begins.
First half is a thumbs up but then second half makes you question your choice of movie, your attention shifts to the watch a lot more than it should!
Akshay Kumar undoubtedly is the backbone of Rustom. The ‘Khatron Ka Khiladi’ renders yet another amazing performance in the uniform! He looks absolutely stunning in the navy uniform, his personality in fact is well suited for the character.
Ileana is perfectly cast and does a good job with crying and looking pretty on screen. Esha Gupta’s inappropriate outfits and over-the-top acting evokes laughter though. Arjan Bajwa plays a rich Sindhi guy here (just the way he played a rich Parsi guy in Guru) and does an amazing job!
Tinu Suresh Desai’s melodramatic direction still struggles to maintain momentum. It lacks subtlety and is almost like a bad daily soap with forced humour and drama!
MEHS
First and the foremost all the legal inaccuracies! To add to it, this time the director has even got the details with the navy uniform wrong!
Loopholes and lose ends in the storyline ( for e.g. : the entire aircraft crap!).
WOOHS
AKSHAY KUMAR IN UNIFORM, AKSHAY KUMAR IN UNIFORM, AKSHAY KUMAR IN UNIFORM!
And his acting, of course!
(Yes, that’s the only and the best WOOOOHOO point and part of the movie!)
VERDICT
To cut to the chase, despite its multiple flaws and huge blunders, Rustom can be watched for Akshay Kumar, whose action/comic brilliance often overshadows his acting prowess.
He reminds you to value the honest officers who serve our country with dignity and valour. He makes you want to support the man who probably did the right thing the wrong way.
I’d give it 3 stars out of 5.
Meaning : It doesn’t deserve to be an entrant into the 100 crore club..
..but then, Rustom >>>>>>>> Mohenjo Daro.
Period.
Other Recommendations:
http://edtimes.in/2016/08/lack-ideas-garb-creative-liberty-whats-bollywood/
