…aka ‘Dhoom-3’.

Dhoom-3, the latest in the Dhoom franchise forces you to redefine words like ‘circus’, ‘magic’, ‘illusion’, and ‘reality’. If you succeed in doing so,  you might be able to sit through this ‘fast’ paced revenge caper that is a cross between a ‘James Bond’ and a ‘Pink Panther’.

Let me present a few cerebral challenges that you might face if you attempt to slot it in either of the above instead of the hybrid.

• Jackie Shroff is a visionary who saw that animals based circus feats would be passe and takes it on him to reinvent circus with the help of magic. Much later, his revenge seeking son, adds a few acrobatics to give it some semblance of circus.
• All it takes for international police to summon Indian super cops is notes left by criminals in Hindi. These Indian super cops come in between scenes, unlike the old films where they come in the climax secene and arrest the baddies. (By the way, Indian super cops do not even arrest the baddies in this film).
• A bank can go public and still have all its branches in a single city. Such banks extend loans based on full dress rehearsals.
• Dhoom-3 baddie (Aamir Khan) grows up into a handsome young(?)man in his 20s? in the span of 13 years and works hard on his tap dance, muscles and updating his father’s tricks. But he does not inherit his father’s vision and limits his revenge to one old banker who once scowled at his father and did not extend the bank loan beyond five days.
• Bikes vroom in and out real slow to make sure the riding star is established, even if such stunts are badly executed on set and off-set. (Is it the only way to ensure screen space for stars amidst too many stunt scenes featuring doubles?)
• When you adapt themes from Hollywood films, simple substitutions will work just fine. For example, take ‘The Prestige” and substitute a pigeon with a kid and voila, you have a second-half. Of course, no kids are harmed in this movie.

Now, for the saving grace in this record breaking movie.

The makers of the movie chose not to incorporate the ‘great indian rope trick’ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_rope_trick) and let Aamir Khan get away with his crime. Or did he? I didn’t quite understand the ending and the theme song kicked in.

Spoiler alert for Telugus- ‘Police Brothers’

Peter Jackson got noticed when he made a film called ‘Bad Taste’. It’s about  group of aliens that chase human flesh for their intergalactic fast-food chain.

In the early 90s our local cable guy played this movie, that too during Diwali festival season. I confronted him later when he paid a visit to collect the monthly bill and asked him ‘why’…’WHY’ of all the movies he had to broadcast this movie, and that too during the festival season. Don’t quite recollect what he said other than his broad smile. I am sure, I will not pose the same question to him, had his choice were ‘Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug’ now 🙂

Peter Jackson has come a long way from his amateurish, home-grown special effects laden films to blockbuster spectacles that have raised the bar in story-telling and audio-visual splendor. It’s an amazing journey for Peter Jackson, and so it is for the audience of his movies.

‘The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug’ is a delight for senses and a must watch for all movie lovers. The movie takes-off with a small back-story that connects to the prequel and moves ahead with break-neck speed. As the good and bad forces unite to battle it it out, The Hobbit and the dwarves march on to the lonely mountain to confront the dragon and make a claim on the dwarves’ fortune. Peter Jackson reserves the best to the last, and the scenes with the dragon are outstanding. The ending disappoints but the rest of the movie’s experience more than compensates for it and makes you wanting for more. (A third installment is on the anvil, of course).

It calls for a brilliant mix of art and craft to create a true blockbuster, that can be watched with family n’ friends. Peter Jackson and his home-grown Weta Digital are probably the best in this business right now. Hope he looks beyond and digs into old Telugu hits like ‘Patala Bhairavi’ or a few of the Vithalayacharya’s films and create ‘our’ heroes on the big screen 🙂