Oct 26, 2006 12:54 PM
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Remember the old Don? Remember the dialogue, “Don ko pakadana mushkeel hi nahi, namumkeen hai!” uttered slowly yet dynamically in his mesmerizing baritone by Amitabh Bachchan? Remember his extremely expressive eyes doing half the job? Remember the fast-paced screenplay and powerhouse performances by Iftekhar, Pran and Om Shivpuri as well? Yes, we are talking about the old Don directed by Chandra Barot (unfortunately, this brilliant director could make only one film in his career as a director) and the protagonist ably portrayed by Amitabh Bachchan. Unfortunately, new Don falls flat on almost all the fronts. We need not discuss the storyline here since this is a remake of the old Don. Writer has kept all the scenes intact except a few changes in the storyline itself which were not required.
When you shout from the rooftop that we are remaking one of the most skillfully written and directed films of the yesteryears, you enjoy the liberty to copy it frame-to-frame albeit with some amount of innovation and relevant changes in the milieu, montage and treatment to the entire plot. The writer miserably fails in retaining and enhancing the charm of the older version while dealing with the subtle nuances of the screenplay. Farhan Akhtar foundered in visualizing and retaining the fast pace of the original script and treats the readymade plot the way he did in Dil Chahata Hai. The storyline demands the screenplay full of thrilling and entertaining scenes that succeeds in making the audience glued to the seats. The audience should not get much time to think and they should be presented with something interesting and gripping all the time. This is where the new Don glaringly fails.
On the acting front, Shahrukh Khan plays don with élan but certainly not the way Amitabh did in the older version. AB has his own unique style and Shahrukh nowhere reaches even close to what AB delivered in the older version. His mannerisms, attempt to look stylish and efforts to outperform AB keep him far away from going beyond the iconic status AB has bestowed upon the old Don. Boman Irani is superb in De’sillva’s and Vardhan’s role. (In the original film, Iftekhar and Om Shivpuri played these roles respectively.) Om Puri is completely wasted in Malik’s role. Pavan Malhotra fails to exhibit the style and carelessness Kamal Kapoor successfully exuded in Narang’s role in the older version. Arjun Rampal too, was not able to impress in Jasjeet’s role. Priyanka Chopra, Kareena Kapoor and Isha Koppikar are just okay.
Background music is insufficient. The new songs are redundant. Remixes of the old songs are horrible. Title song is fabulous and Shan has sung it very well. Photography is in accordance with the screenplay. Technically, new Don is appealing but it reminds the audience coming out of the cinemas of the age-old adage – old is gold. And the science says – gold cannot be remade!
Don
Banner: Excel Entertainment
Producer: Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar
Original Screenplay: Salim – Javed
Written & Directed by – Farhan Akhtar
Music – Shankar Ahasan Loy
Cast – Shahrukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Isha Koppikar, Kareena Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Boman Irani, Om Puri, Pavan Malhotra
