Karz Review

Everybody's in on the joke - except poor Himesh Reshammiya. All the Kumars really want is to cash in on the singer-musician's insane popularity and make a quick buck. This is evident in the slick but oh-so-modest production values of the film. Only as much as they can recover and make a neat profit on, you see. Satish Kaushik is under no delusions that he has been given the job he has done so successfully in the past, that of remaking a film in its entirety.

This means that barring a throwaway character or two, and a twist in the end that isn't really much of it at all, the film is a very safe remake of the original, sans the many Zs. If anything, the movie has been positively made even more obvious and pandering to the ADD crowd. Even the actors are in on it. Shweta Kumar is looking for a break, and this probably seemed like a good idea. And Urmila is trying to revive her sultry days, albeit a bit more successfully this time round.

Poor Himesh then, because no one told him that this was a milking-the-cow film for everyone. A quick payoff, and nothing more. Because bless the poor chap, he gives this one his all. He tries hard and enthusiastically embraces his role as Monty the rock star, the over-the-top boyish charm included. He is an obvious fan boy, and failing the regular acting skills, he resorts to standard Hindi movie tropes to make them his own, so long as it makes everything believable.

And it does - for a while. Before Satish Kaushik's penchant for catering to the lowest common denominator kicks in, that is. Kaushik takes too long to set simple things up, and in this world the hyper-real camera work inherited from the time-wasting Saas-Bahu operas is the norm, making what should have been a fun escapist two hours, a tedious romp through as many clichés and stilted shock angles as Kaushik can cram in three hours.

With such great source material, Kaushik could have had a lot of fun, but in deciding to play it safe - too safe - he makes this movie as insipid as they come. The only ones who actually do have some fun are the supporting cast. Danny and Gulshan both delivering a knowing, winking performance in a film full of over-the-top performances.

Which logically brings us to Kamini. For her age and career path, the role was perfect for Urmila. What she has lacked in range, the actress has, in the past, made up for in charm, and barring that, some pouts. Here, though, while she definitely looks the part of a deadly female, she hardly utilizes her screen presence for much more. Hers could have been the performance that gave a bedrock to the film, but it instead becomes the dead weight.

Largely, though, I must squarely place the blame on the Kumars and Kaushik. They have made an obvious attempt at milking a classic film and a popular star, but have not put up enough effort to justify making a film. While the cynic in me believes that every film is this poorly conceived and made, the truth is that this isn't a half bad product. From the okay songs to the lead actor to the still-needs-work-yet-is-decent script, the ingredients were ostensibly there. Utter lack of focus, though, makes an entertaining film a merely okay time at the theatres. Only for diehard HR fans.