.::Nothing extraordinary, but has its moments!::. Review on LOC - Kargil

Snapped-off fingers, bullet-pierced chests, crushed faces with torn lips through which blood had been vomited—blood that’s frozen and has crimsoned the snow below. As the lens sharpens and moves ahead, several more mutilated, flattened, shot yet silent bodies of soldiers lying in desolation on the slope lie exposed with only the other end of a lone receiver creating a shrill ruckus in the mournfully white milieu. Even as I settled myself, this opening scene had me ruminating whether a more powerful visual could so easily sum-up a soldier’s demise.

Much equivalent to this scene is Dutta’s gory new war film—a penetrating tribute to those who breathed their last in the Kargil war (1999), though not without its share of flaws.

Predominantly, LOC revolves around three fiercest episodes of recapturing of key peaks by the Indian army in the chronic war of 1999. Commencing with the scene illustrated above, the knowledge of unexpected infiltration leads to the mobilisation of all major regiments and battalions to the Kargil area; it being the epicentre of all the strategic planning. After some enlivening speeches by the respective commanding officers, the troops agree to battle against the enemy of unknown human and weapon strength owing to an intelligence slumber.

As expected, the lack of artillery support and acclimatisation only succeeds in accelerating the number of casualties from the Jat Regiment who are out to capture the Tololing heights, and it isn’t till the reinforcement arrives with another regiment (the Rajputana Rifles), that the first major victory is sealed. What follows are a couple of more combats resulting in recapture of strategic points (Point 5140 and Point 4875) necessary to maintain the safety of national highways and the grand finale which includes the capturing of the most gruelling peaks of Tiger Hills.

Blame it on the sheer incompetency of the makers or their ignorance, the Indian Air Force is reduced to transport choppers and aircrafts lifting everything from alive troops to coffins but little else. Shrugging off the unputdownable benefaction of this military force that had been instrumental in our victory without even a decent mention (let alone a visual) was disappointing. Even considering the fact that Dutta preferred to capture the war on the ground level, his complete shrugging off vital details like the unpredictable supplies and the various political interventions wasn’t that appealing either. So, instead he’s concentrated and filmed the man-to-man war by stuffing in more than 2 dozens actors and exploited the already bloated screen time to get through with the whole cinematisation.

With the camera magnified into the valour of the key PVC and MVC winners, Dutta tries to fit in snippets of their life and battlefield, but quite amusingly, they all end up being Xerox copies of one another. Right into the first battle and you start noticing trends in feelings, desires and even actions of the soldiers. Particularly the latter when you encounter almost everyone on screen getting hyperactive once their colleagues are shot in the battlefield and in this state of hyperactivity and superhuman-hormonal surge they end up killing two birds (that is the enemy bunker and themselves). The trend starts with Amar Upaadhyay, continues with Bajpai and Mohnish Behl and climaxes with Devgan. Even the heady and impulsive boys (Saif and Abhishek) show a pattern in their quest to martyrdom and the prize for such mechanical display goes to the sketchy screenplay which seems to be so barren of situations that after a point, the actual wars become just yet-another predictable crusades.

Yet, LOC has its moments. Other than the opening sequences which are genuinely chilling, given the megascopic scale on which LOC is mounted, Dutta’s deftness in handling the interpersonal conversations, the anxiety, the diligence, the responsibility, the communion, and the patriotism amongst the soldiers is brilliant. And he’s helped largely by the brilliant lineup of actors who give wonderfully nuanced performances replete with individuality despite their somewhat clichéd characterisations. Principally its Abhishek’s confident banter, Saif’s energy, Ajay’s dynamism and the earthy combo of Ashutosh-Manoj that impart sheen for most time backed up by polished performances from one and all.

One can’t deny the importance of the emotional satisfaction from a partner (or a family) especially to a soldier and though the feminine touch is much criticised for its cinematic leanings, since Dutta again seems too divided between the number and too bereft of situations, it undeniably imparts brighter hues to the almost perennial narrative, and however repetitive it might be, the last moments of every soldier is ingrained deeply thanks to their presence. Credit has to be given here to Kareena, Rani, Maya Alagh and Mahima for their convincing and heart-rending portrayal of the beloveds and for defying the imperativeness of more screen time in registering an impact.

Given its canvas, LOC’s technicalities, particularly the camera-effects and the acoustics are also pedestrian with only cinematography and to an extent, art-direction making an effort to veil the cost-cutting.

Dialogues seemed rushed and though are disinfected from ear-blasting jingoism and lectures, are saturated with maa-bahen vitriol and given the double standards of the censor board, even with an 18 certificate in UK, what one hears is ample doses of complete silences amidst charged-up scenes and venom-spitting dialogues which is nerve-grating to say the least. Fight-sequences, though shoddily written have been canned brilliantly on-screen thanks largely to cinematography, fights and performances.

Editing is non-existent in the second half and the emotional angle seems too forced and obnoxiously stretched when the audience is waiting for the grand finale. On the screen, LOC didn’t need any more songs than “Seemayein Bulaaye Tujhe” and “Main Kahin Bhi Rahoon” both being so brilliant, so different yet so complete in their expression, but when have audiences been consulted before the film’s release?

Its larger than life, boasts of well-honed performances and the adherence to the chronology and expanse of the real war is credible (especially Dutta’s keenness to focus on the sacrifice of soldiers). Yet LOC fails to paint a neutral picture as its bogged down by the weight of the number of lives to be ticked, the blotchy screenplay and the editing that makes the second-half’s length unbearable.