Blackmail Review

Fridays bring in the lives of movie reviewers the ultimate question - do we get paid enough to put ourselves through so much self-inflicted angst for three hours? But sometimes, just sometimes, a movie like Blackmail comes along that tells us how wrong we have been in asking ourselves that question. Because, one, it is only a two hour movie, and two, no one can ever get paid enough to do this job.

That does not mean that it is a bad movie. In fact, we are still unable to decide whether it is a movie and not a prank played by the Devgan family (the credits read all Devgan) on the poor unsuspecting junta. While jury is still out on that, let us just say the most politically correct thing we can. Priyanka Chopra is hot, and Diya Mirza is, well, a Hyderabadi.

Shekhar (Ajay Devgan) is a transporter of the type who escorts fugitives to their hideouts. After a painfully inane song, Anjali (Dia Mirza) decides to put an end to the audience's misery by marrying him. Alas, Sana (Priyanka Chopra) has no such song-singing opportunity since she is already married to ACP Abhay Singh Rathore (Suniel Shetty). So she makes one for herself. She mouths something like Police waala hai na. Liye bina maanega nahi, puts on a pair of black knickers, and breaks into a song.

The bond between Abhay and Shekhar is much deeper than the usual chor-police relationship. Shekhar blames Abhay for the death of his pregnant wife for no cause. Other than Abhay hitting Shekhar's car with his wife in it, of course. And you can never project the hero in a negative light. That is just not done. Unknown to Shekhar (who is cooling off his heels in prison), Abhay adopts his son.

When Shekhar gets out, he vows revenge until he learns that Abhay is the only one who can tell him where his son is. Then he just kidnaps Chiraag, and as ransom asks for the whereabouts of his son. For no reason save for prolonging the movie's length, Abhay does not tell him that. And when Sana does, it creates an opportunity for an unpalatably portrayed father-son relationship.

Had anyone trying to make their bones in the world of Bollywood done it, the movie could have been passed off as a decent effort. But when Ajay D and Suniel S have a hand in the matter, it is hard to pass it off as anything other than a gross miscalculation. Probably, the only thing they got right was Priyanka Chopra. The woman is not only gorgeous. She can act, too. Personally, me thinks Ajay Devgan should either stop smoking or do what Demi Moore did to her teeth.

On the bright side, if there could be one, there is no reason why you should put yourself through this movie.