DUM MAARO DUM - Movie Review : An average second half ruins the excitement created by the first one. (Review By Bobby Sing)

If a film starts off with a not so good or average first half but then gives you a very fine and entertaining second one, then there are strong chances of the film being a winner at the box office (For instance, think of “Yamla Pagla Deewana”).  But if a film gives you a well paced, fine first half and then suddenly delivers a comparatively dull and unentertaining second one then in most of the cases, its going to be disliked or rejected by the viewers.

Unfortunately this is the case with DUM MAARO DUM, which starts off perfectly and makes a fine impression with a well made speedy first half. But as you excitingly sit back to watch its second half with great expectations, the pace drops and the film fails to deliver anything great or shocking as desired. In fact, in its initial half an hour, DMD strikes you hard with its bold execution and thrilling moments, giving you the feeling that this is sure going to be a good crime noire movie ahead, made around the theme of drugs trafficking. And before the intermission, it also adds an extra element of suspense around the identity of one Michael Borbusa, which is supposed to keep the viewer guessing till the end. But right after the interval, the film loses track and is not able to maintain the same kind of pace or interest for the viewers as witnessed in its initial reels.

Now post intermission the film becomes a big let down because firstly it has nothing new to offer to the audience as a good entertaining thriller with a touch of mystery. Secondly, the revelation of the secret identity towards the end is not capable of giving any kind of big shock or surprise to the viewers because for many it may come out to be as quite obvious. Thirdly the concluding hour of the film seems to be too long with most of the people getting killed one by one without any great interesting build up. And lastly there are too many feebly visible scenes in the second half where the screen remains quite dull and dark for much longer periods making the viewers a bit restless after a while.

However the bitter and unusual truth about DUM MAARO DUM remains that at one side I really liked the way the film was designed and conceived in its first part. But at the same time I found the second half very loose, tiring and unconvincing which in the end results in just an average kind of impact on the viewer. So, moving out of the theater, one doesn’t feel great or energetic but feels like just having watched an average time pass thriller without any great remarks to make about anything.

Now apart from the above mentioned demerits, the film also has some other major disappointments for the viewers. The writers fail to encash upon the brilliant curiosity level generated around the name of Michael Borbusa. Once the identity is disclosed, it turns out to be not as great and exciting as expected. Moreover, too many sequences keep on going endlessly towards the climax, which could have been avoided to have a crispier ending.

The major highlight of the film, its item song, “Dum Maaro Dum” also fails miserably since its not at all enjoyable from any angle. However if you are only interested in some flesh show then the case is different. The song neither has any great dance moments nor is it able to make you feel like dancing as it is played. The biggest problem with this remix lies in its Antra, which was in fact the main attraction of the Original Track composed by R. D. Burman. In the original song the lines “Duniya Ne Humko Diya Kya” make you feel like going higher with the high notes and then returning back to the main line. But in this latest version, the innovative composition has been badly tweaked by Pritam to the level of unacceptability. The only part created well by Pritam is the opening tune with some great beats and nothing else. Further, the icing on this sour cake comes as some highly ridiculous lyrics, surprisingly written by the otherwise thoughtful Jaideep Sahni. Deepika Padukone on which the song is picturised does nothing but just staring and making some sensuous moves with the minimum clothes on. So for me this major attraction of the film was just like a big atom bomb exploding without any sound effects.

In the acting department, first of all I have some serious concerns with the casting director. One, why to use Govind Namdeo for such a major role, who is already known and famous for many similar acts done before on the screen (giving un-necessary suggestions to the viewers)? Why to bring in Rana Daggubati for a not so well written character and introduce him to the Hindi audience in such a weak manner? And more importantly Why to cast Deepika Padukone in the sexy, item number, when you already have a better sex siren Bipasha Basu in your cast of the movie itself to render the over-famous track? Further I also couldn’t guess, What was the need of roping in Vidya Balan for only 1-2 scenes in the movie, which any other lesser known actress could have easily done.

Coming to Abhishek Bachchan, he seriously needs to take care of his career choices made since all his major decisions taken in the last few years have gone wrong. Also his mannerisms and acting style has started giving you the feeling of Deja-Vu, which should be a big concern for an actor. In DMD too, he gives you nothing fresh in terms of acting but only looks smart and younger in his modern police persona. Aditya Pancholi too remains the same as seen earlier many years back. Both Rana Daggubati and Bipasha Basu play their under-written roles well. Govind Namdeo is repetitive and Anaitha Nair is wasted. So, once again the pick of the lot turns out to be Prateik Babbar, who superbly proves the acting genes in him very strongly. He alone gives the most impressive performance in the movie as the innocent victim.

The director Rohan Sippy gives the right treatment to the movie as required by its theme. But he sadly doesn’t give the much required attention to the script in the second half. He does give you some extremely bold scenes, like the torture scene in the jail but they are not enough in numbers throughout the film. If only he had made the second half more exciting and happening then it would have been a different game altogether. Musically I liked “Na Aaye Ho” and “Thanye Thanye” numbers more and would only like to praise the arrangement of the song “Dum Maaro Dum” but not its lyrics. Cinematography of the film is great in its first half but I couldn’t appreciate the deliberately kept dark tone of the movie in its second half which was used in excess and could have been avoided.

Overall, for me the film was very fine before its intermission, but post that I was not able to enjoy it entirely. So it would be very absurd to say that you can watch it only for its first half. Still the choice is all yours.

Rating : 2.5 / 5