Film: Raees
Directed by: Rahul Dholakia
Starring: Shah Rukh Khan, Mahira Khan, Atul Kulkarni, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub and Narendra Jha
What it's about:
Raees is rumoured to be based/inspired on the life of the infamous Gujarat bootlegger Abdul Latif. The similarities between his life and Raees are many, but the makers claim that this is the fictitious story. Set sometime between the 80s and 90s, the film is about the meteoric rise of Raees (Shah Rukh Khan) from a poor kid to a rich crime lord. His downfall is eminent with police officer Majumdar (Nawazuddin) on his tail. For most part the film is about the power shift between the cop and crime lord. But crime doesn't pay as realisation dawns on Raees, when he loses his friends and finds himself vulnerable but he does the right thing in the end.
What hot:
Raees begins so well. Rahul Dholakia captures the journey of young Raees' fascination with crime so well that you are completely engrossed in the story. Raees holds you spellbound all through his rise to the top - his journey to Bombay and back is a highlight. The scenes between him and his mentor Atul Kulkarni are brilliant. The fight scene in the meat market is one of the best (read realistic) ever in Hindi films. SRK's performance in Raees for most part, is on par with Swades and Chak De India. The supporting cast is exemplary, Zeeshan Ayyub deserves a special mention.
What's not:
In a recent interview director Rahul Dholakia said that Raees was planned as a documentary and it was never meant to be a commercial film. The makers should have stuck to the original plan. By making in into a potboiler, they have landed the film in a genre somewhere in the middle of a docu-drama and a commercial film. The biggest failing of the film is the story. There is talk of how Raees takes you back to the Bachchan era of the 80s. This is bizarre because Bachchan played a hero in each one of those films. In Raees, Nawazuddin is the clear hero. He has all the lines, the scenes and the wins. It's the biggest fail of the makers to cast a superstar in the title role and then not have him play the hero. The romance between SRK and Mahira has no spark. Sunny Leone's song, meant to be a highlight, does nothing for the film.
What to do:
Far better films have been made on crime in the 80s. There is nothing special about Raees. But if you're a Shah Rukh fan, go for it.
Rating: **1/2 (2.5 stars)
