Beware: RGV is at it again. The
messiah of dark cinema is out again shooting gangsters and parading familiar
faces in a heady mix with the unknown using the c *** word as if it were part
of our regular grammar. Suddenly in the last few weeks we have had film after
film using abusive language as a fashion statement.
Why RGV, why? Why this cinema? The shelf is so, so bitter and surely
purposeless. It is not Kafkaesque, not an Outsider’s protest. It is almost
celebration a la Karan Johar, only it is spewing vitriol, venom and peace
smashing.
It is the same tale of gang wars and how shoot outs in broad day light rules
cities in India. It is about the hackneyed connect between the law and the law
breaker. It is nauseatingly repetitive about guns shoot outs and vulgarity in
display to a tiring over kill.
The film starts with Inspector Shiv Narayan (Rana Dagupati) going berserk in
the name of law and with a textual caveat quoting Lord Atkins who said: Power
corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Though he is suspended, he is
quickly recruited by another senior colleague Inspector Mahadev Bhonsle (Sunjay
Dutt) who runs the “Department” in a fight against gang wars. This is
justification, in fact license, to kill indiscriminately. This makes neither
social nor cinematic sense. It is alibi for a story less script dedicated purely
to guns , splintering glasses, broken cameras, camera wandering in tea cups
glasses, mouthing stale statements about the anachronisms including one on
doing legal things illegally and vice versa.
The Department is out to put to end the gang war between Ghori and Sawatya
(Vijay Raaz). Now Sawatya has lieutenants like DK (Abhimanyu Singh- in the
worst screen presence of his life) and his girl friend (Madhu Shalini) always
fanning revolt. As the story goes along, the filmmaker thinks there is just enough
space for one more character in place of the thousand odd guys who have fallen
literally by the road side, and introduces Sarje Rao Gaikwad (Amitabh). This
time round the Sarkar get up is on, the punch off.
Sarje Rao is a gang leader turned politician. You are supposed to guess if the
cheetah has out grown its spots. Shiv Narayan is organising shoot outs as if
they were daily stories in the media or he is in the line of catering business.
IN the mean while he finds time to romance with Bharati (Anjana Sukhani- who
for some strange reason behaves as if she is a left over of Juhi Chawla)
Mahadev takes Shiv under his tutelage and soon Bhabi Satya (Lakshmi Manchu)
also takes the young loving couple under her care. However with no time to
spare for anything but mayhem the script returns with promptitude to killings
galore and tires you out of your seats. The RGV cinematography is there for
further irritation and to add to the gory experience of viewing.
In a scenario of this kind you loose count and interest on who is on which side
and who is dead, who alive. Any way most make it to the grave, systematically
including one principal character to who the script owes a few dramatic moments
and the writer some heavy duty dialogue.
The film is individually trained at helping the industry that produces
analgesics and the script singularly designed to welcome Rana to the macho
club.
While Rana lacks the punch that would have been good for the role the rest
carry too much of it. Sanjay Dutt is a sleep walker with a dead pan expression
that he carries with the same felicity in a comedy or a thriller. None in the
cast have the luxury of behaving like normal human beings. It is pathetic to
watch Bachchan ham his way through the entire script. Soon he could kick start
the debate as to whether he was worse in Sholay Ki Aag or Department. Well
Bachchan has always been a Director’s product. For years he invested in the
likes of Desai and Prakash Mehra, now he does the same with film makers(?) like
RGV.
Department is a stay away film. It is signature RGV stuff. Even for the brand
committed it is getting too loud , predictable and avoidable.
L. Ravichander.