Wanted MOVIE REVIEW - POST HERE - Page 2

REVIEW: WANTED (2009)
WANTED: Salman Ka Dum
Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Starring: Salman Khan, Ayesha Takia, Vinod Khanna, Mahesh Manjrekar, Prajkash Raj, Govind Namdeo, Inder Kumar, Aseem Merchant, Sajid.
Director: Prabhu Deva
If you are crazy about regular commercial masala films leaving your brains at home, Wanted is the right choice. Wanted is a canvas painted in south Indian colours where you can get a glimpse of Rajnikanth in our macho man Salman Khan. Woah hold down It's a Prabhu Deva film, Bingo
Wanted is undisputedly a well-written story with an excellent screenplay. But there is a flipside to it. It is a well-written story which lacks good direction and editing.
Wanted opens up with an interesting plot with commissioner Ashraf Khan (Govind Namdeo) leaving no stones unturned to eradicate underworld terrorism from the country. Radhe (Salman Khan) is a hardcore gangster known for brutality and commitments. All he knows is the language of money. His loyalties lies with any gang provided the money is right. His entry in Gani Bhai (Prakash Raj) gang under the wing of Golden (Aseem Merchant), the right hand of Gani and betrayal to his existing gang headed by Data Pawle leads to bloodshed, as disputes crop up unexpectedly. However, story takes a twist with Golden's death, which compels Gani Bhai to take matters in his hands and fly back to India. How Gani Bhai realizes the trap of commissioner Ashraf Khan, and the truth of Salman Khan, would have been an exciting watch had Prabhu Deva tightened his script.
Cinematographers Nirav Shah and S Sriram are simply excellent. Special effects are over the top; could have been subtle. The music is awful, except "Dil Leke' track, which is the only saving grace.
No refreshing treat for ears, as far as stereotypical dialogues go.
Wanted rides on Salman Khan despite his regular run-of-the-mill, yet nice performance. Ayesha Takia is good and looks gorgeous. Mahesh Manjrekar is perfect for his part as a womanizer. Prakash Raj as Gani Bhai has small, yet pivotal role and lives up to it beautifully. Vinod Khanna and Inder Kumar don't have much scope, though they are instrumental to the pace of the story. Aseem Merchant is fairly good. Same goes for Govind Namdeo.
On the whole, "Salman Khan' factor will pull the audience to make this film survive. Infact, half the battle is won, courtesy loads of hype. My verdict: One time watch.

MUMBAI: 'Wanted' is an action flick, which marks the directorial debut of Prabhu Deva, the dancing wizard from South, who has also dabbled in acting. The star ensemble of the movie includes Salman Khan, Ayesha Takia, Om Puri, Mahesh Manjrekar, Sayaji Shinde, Prakash Raj, Aseem Merchant, Vinod Khanna. Sajid-wajid duo has composed the musical score, while Arun Bhaivar has penned down its lyrics. The producers of the Hindi film 'Wanted' are Sahara One Motion Pictures and S. K. Films Enterprises.

Radhe (Salman Khan) is a sharpshooter, who works for Gani Bhai, the hardcore Mumbai Mafioso. A bit of a maverick, he likes to work on his own terms. The fearless Radhe eliminates all the enemies of Gani Bhai, quashing all the opposition single-handedly. In the process of this cleansing, Radhe makes more enemies than Gani Bhai himself. Meanwhile, the young and pretty Jhanvi (Ayesha Takia) falls for Radhe, much to his astonishment. Soon, bloody gang wars ensue in Mumbai, with each gang bent on outrunning the other, be it the Golden Gang or Data Pawle's Gang, with the aim of wresting control of the city.

The Police Commissioner of the crime-torn city vows to undertake a crusade to clean it of this colossal network of criminals and arrests 200 criminals in a day, as a starter. A gory mayhem follows, as the criminal gangs are after each other and the police after the gangs. The twist in the tale arrives when Radhe is, as expected, dragged into this and becomes the 'most wanted' man in Mumbai. Everyone, right from the gangsters to the police, is vying for his life, as he is the man who knows too much.

Radhe is a source of valuable information for the police; criminals are alarmed that he may reveal their dark secrets. Who will find Radhe first? Slated for a September 18 release, 'Wanted' is riding solely on Salman's shoulders and an exploding plot. The man in question has charmed the audience to the theaters for years now, but as the plot is rightly said to be the soul of a film, the Salman Magic could be tested. With the release date not being far away now, we will soon see whether the magic works or not!