One Man Show...

A lot has already been written, said and shown about what has turned out to be the biggest hit of 2008...what more can i add to that? I'll try anyway...

Doubtless, you're thinking that this is a long-overdue review as it has been more than a week since the movie released (and got the biggest opening for an Indian film ever)...well, that doesn't matter to me a bit and therefore you will have to put up with yet another piece on this film/marketing extravaganza called Ghajini.

As a marketing exercise there is probably no parallel to this film in recent memory...Aamir really went all out with this one, helping to create a phenomenal buzz which obviously played a huge part in the instant success the film saw. But the real question is, how is it as a film? And that is what I'll attempt to answer here.

Well for starters, Aamir Khan...Mr. Perfectionist has shown yet again that he is by far the best actor amongst all his contemporaries...if there is one reason to watch this film, it is definitely the amazing performance by Aamir...he's wonderfully believable as the high-flying executive...but as the guy with anterograde amnesia (wrongly identified as short term memory loss throughout the film and therefore by most media) looking for revenge for something he hardly remembers he delivers a performance which will be remembered for a long time to come. He's brutal and convincing...furthermore, he exudes an animal rage and an air of sub/super-humanity through every fibre of his being. Saying any more would make me sound like a gushing teenage girl so I'll just stop here.

Asin does decently well in a role which she had already done in Tamil. Jiah Khan is, well, Jiah Khan (read Bimbo who shouldn't be doing any films which are not porn). Pradip Rawat as Ghajini Dharmatma (the villain) is not bad, but somehow the character leaves a lot to be desired. He doesn't come across as a very powerful or menacing villain, which would have really helped the film. But that is more due to the lack of character development in the script than his performance.

Finally, the direction...Murugadoss does a great job in the action scenes. The very stylized and very definitively south Indian camerawork makes you feel like a part of the extremely well done action sequences. The brutality is what stays with you after you're done watching the film. Even the song sequences are very well done cinematographically but sort of impede the story buildup. The weakest part of the film though is its length. It could have used a lot more cutting and chopping on the editing table. Because of the unnecessary meanderings of the film, it sort of falls flat in parts...which is a real drain on the audience's minds. The script and editing could have made the film much more taut and rivetting.

Despite all this, Aamir Khan's intense performance makes the film worth a watch. No doubt about it, Ghajini is a one-man show. There are a lot of shortcomings but if you look at some of the other crap that Bollywood has been churning out lately it seems almost sublime in comparison.