Don

Starring: Amitabh Bachchan, Zeenat Aman Director: Chandra Barot Dvd Release: 21st January, 2002 Number Of Discs: 1 Format: PAL, Subtitled, Region 0 Encoding Subtitled In: English

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Don is the remake of the 1978 film, to be directed by Farhan Akhtar. The script of the previous film was written by his father, Javed Akhtar & Salim Khan. The previous film starred Amitabh Bachchan, Zeenat Aman, Pran & Helen. The new film will star Shahrukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Arjun Rampal, Kareena Kapoor & Isha Koppikar. Shooting for the movie has already begun in Malaysia. The movie, to be shot 80 per cent in Malaysia, will be filmed around the tropical Langkawi island as well as the towering Petronas Twin Towers here & the Jalan Masjid India area, which is the little India of Kuala Lumpur. The film is slated for a mid 2006 release.

One word sums up this film. Ludicrous. What makes it so ludicrous makes it so thoroughly watchable. The opening scene of Amitabh Bachchan in a pair of huge specs & a large bow tie sets the tone. Everything is so in-your-face & huge. The wigs, the songs, the colourful sets & the plot.

Amitabh is in a double role as Don - a ruthless & much-feared gangland boss - & as Vijay - a down to earth street singer who has to unexpectedly infiltrate the gang & pass himself off as Don after the real Don is killed. The other big characters include the vengeful vamp, the past -it hard done by tightrope walker come small time crook & the joker in the pack - one character who isnt all he seems...

This is a real deal guns cars & sitars adventure which will have you both gripped & laughing out loud at the stunts & dialogue. The director seems to have really had a ball throwing in all he could to keep this from ending up an overly earnest crime thriller.

A couple of the actual songs are amazing, the rest are pretty pedestrian. The best song is picturised in a hotel room with veteran star Helen attempting to seduce Amitabh with a wild dance. Its the background score which is most thrilling of all. Disco & funk pop up all over the place & the theme tune is raw brownsploitation.

The only complaint is there are no real great extras on the DVD -not even a theatrical trailer - Im inclined to say it doesnt matter. Its fantastic stuff.

Amitabh Bachchan is an Indian actor. He was born in Allahabad, India. The eldest son of Harivanshrai Bachchan, a well known contemporary poet & Teji Bachchan, he was brought up in the rich tradition of the arts. He did his schooling at Sherwood College in Nainital & went on to Delhi University to earn a science degree. His first film was Saat Hindustani & he has since made over a hundred films in a career that included such box office successes as Zanjeer, Deewar, Sholay, Do aur Do Paanch & Amar Akbar Anthony. Amitabh Bachchan is most famous for introducing the character of the angry young man into Hindi cinema, in stark contrast to the more romantic characters being played by his contemporaries. Amitabh Bachchan retired from the film industry to briefly enter politics by winning a seat in parliament from his hometown of Allahabad. However, his political career was short lived. In 1997 at the age of 55, Amitabh Bachchan made his comeback to cinema with the film Mrityudata.

Editors Choice: Deewaar, Sarkar, Black, Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan, Dev, Khakee, Lakshya, Aankhen, View DVDology

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