Raghavan's Nostalgic ode!. Review on Agent Vinod

A quick, unedited review:

Intro: It had been a long time since I watched a good action thriller from Bolywood. Courtest Johny Gaddar, Kahaani and probably the upcoming Talaash, we aren’t doing too bad on the ‘smart thrillers from Bollywood’ bit. But a desi, original Bourne Identity? (sounds weird – does it?) with all Bollywood masala elements in its place sounds a task that might be hard to achieve, given the consistent trash shoved into our brains Fridays upon Fridays of screen space. But trust Raghavan to come up with a film that for a change respects masala instead of making a mockery of it!

Analysis: It isn’t that Agent Vinod is a perfect masala weekend for the quality-famished movie buffs.. It has got its share of blemishes – starting with an inconsistent screenplay that tests your patience and in its first half confuses you with weird, even if necessary plot twists. It does bear the Sriram Raghavan stamp in places. This man, like a certain Quentin Tarantino, revels in his clever film references. There’s this Good, Bad and Ugly reference just at the start of the film, quoting the immortal Tuco and somewhere in its initial hour of running time, with its theme tune finding its place in Prem Chopra’s mobile. There’s a charming ode to Mahendra Sandhu in the first scene while Saif’s being interrogated in Afganistan, and Don and Charlie Chaplin references – which are all fun to watch. These individual scenes make for a great watch, however the set-pieces when put together do not make a coherent narrative when put into entirety. By the end of it, the film feels heavy, unnecessary long and all over the place.

From a movie geek’s point of view, however, who’s been well-fed with Bollywood ingredients all his life and still cannot get enough of them, it’s a must-watch. It takes him through the experience once again and makes for a satisfying journey by the end of it. Well-fed, again, is the feeling I got by the end of it. If the masala genre was what Raghavan was paying a tribute to, then immediately – at once, the blemishes stand neglected and in some cases, the narrative inconsistencies serve a positive purpose.

Ultimately, what one takes away from Agent Vinod is an interesting movie-watching experience. The two halves, very cleverly separated and as different from one another (it gave me a quirky feel I had watched two separate films in a day) are a delight in themselves, and carried by not only the directorial nuances of the very talented Raghavan (Johnny Gaddaar being one of my favourite films in the crime genre – from all over the world – no kidding) but by a very competent set of actors. There’s the ever-reliable Saif Ali Khan, in a role that fits him like a pair of surgical gloves, the brilliant Zakir Hussain playing his aide, Ravi Kissen in a small but effective role, and the very fine Ram Kapoor. Prem Chopra is a delight in his role of a slightly dim-witted, occasionally hilarious Kazaan. But my pick of the lot is the cold, calculative Colonel played flawlessly by Adil Hussain. Hope to see more of the actor in future.

Agent Vinod is, to summarise, not perfect cinema if you’re looking at it from the point of view of a critic. But take a trip down nostalgia lane, and recall, the ‘being-bowled-over’ moments you’ve had while watching cheesy entertainers. Agent Vinod, in a nutshell, amalgamates all elements of Bollywood cheesiness with trademark Sriram Raghavan signature styles. And the result is cocky Bollywood attitude that screams in the face of Doug Liman–

‘You’ve got your own way of looking at it baby. I guess that proves that I got mine’

Reference: Keith Urban ;)