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Kaante
(meaning ‘Thorns’) might have been inspired by ‘Reservoir Dogs’
but this Indian version matches its Hollywood counterpart down to
a tee as far as the technical aspects and slick production values
are concerned.
The
film opens on six Asian suspects who are rounded up by the Los Angeles
police department during a routine criminal investigation.
Fed
up of such continual harassment, all six decide to rob the American
Service Bank which holds the accounts of the entire Los Angeles
police force.
The
members of the gang comprise of Major (Amitabh Bachchan) the leader
and mastermind behind the whole plan.
The
rest of the gang consists of Ajju (Sanjay Dutt), Marc (Sunil Shetty),
Andy (Kumar Gaurav), Baali (Mahesh Manjrekar) and Mak (Lucky Ali).
Each
has differing characteristics and motives to rob. There's the Major
who is nursing a bed-ridden wife (Rati Agnihotri), there is Marc
the 'The Bouncer', who want to get his girlfriend (Malaika) away
from cabaret dancing, and then there is Andy, who is trying very
hard to save his marriage and to be close to his son.
However
‘trust’ for these characters forms their greatest challenge in order
for their plan to work.
So
for them to succeed, they must put aside their differences in order
to pull the whole thing off.
On
the D-Day everything moves smoothly and the bank robbery is successful.
But
the twist in the storyline comes when all six are confronted with
a bloody ambush. It’s then that they realise that one of them is
an undercover cop.
So
the race begins to find the traitor, with guns pointing at each
other as the film reaches a shocking and surprising climax not seen
before in even Hollywood films.
Shot
entirely in Los Angeles, ‘Kaante’ is a visual treat due to the involvement
of Hollywood technicians at all levels of its production, whether
it is its slick editing, background score or its mind blowing stunts.
Overall
the script could have been tighter but director Sanjay Gupta manages
to keep the film at an even pace which in turn sustains the audience’s
interest throughout.
Neisha
Folkes' choreography deserves a special mention, especially the
‘pole dancing song sequence’ with Malaika Arora and Isha Koppikar.
Simply breathtaking!
The
tension in the film is relieved at regular intervals by lighter
moments, provided by actors Sanjay Dutt and Mahesh Manjrekar.
Mahesh
Manjrekar comes out a winner in terms of screen performance. He
portrays his crude character and stammering dialogues with élan.
The
rest of the cast has equal footage which does not over-shadow the
performance of each individua,l thanks to director Sanjay Gupta
‘s script.
In
terms of style and looks, actors Sanjay Dutt and Sunil Shetty take
full credit in this film. Their appearance will definitely gel well
with the female audience.
Overall,
‘Kaante’ is doing exceptionally well at the UK Box Office - even
against the Lord Of The Rings - The Two Towers due to a combination
of good performances, slick production values and a novel storyline.
It’s Bollywood at its best.
For
once this ‘Kaante’ has no ‘thorns’ for other film critics to pull
out !
Reviewed
by Manish Gajjar, Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú Shropshire’s Mr Bollywood. |
