Shootout at Wadala Review

Shootout At Wadala:
There you go. Matching the scorching heat outside the theatre you have blood gun smoke bullets violence and crude sex within. This is a clear case of style over sensitivity and a brazen celeb of violence. Sanjay Gupta exploits in hidden voyeurism in our collective psyche and the concealed sense of violence that we all suffer from. While thematically it is the choice of a film maker to work out his space, the trend that is disturbing that we have so many who reveal is dealing with gory violence and fashion scripts revolving around guns guts and guck.
Manohar Surve (John Abraham) is our protagonist. His world comes crumbling and all in a while the studious God fearing Manohar is in the barracks at Poona. Violence replaces the righteous and with even love going sour, our Manohar becomes Manya and the achievements thereafter are as simple as getting a degree from an unrecognised Institute through distant Education. This is brainstormed brawl at its bloody best, still. Bhaiya turns Bhai. Juxtaposition alongside crude language, scene that have gone past a sleeping censor board and you have a kind of cinema that has its defined space.
Manya runs into the local don Zubain Imtiaz (Manoj Bajpai) and his equally angry brother Dilawar (Sonu Sood) and so begins the clash of the titans. Also chasing them with utter lawlessness is ACP Afaaqui (Anil Kapoor) who with his team of men including Raja (Ronit Roy) and Inspector Shinde (Mahesh Manjrekar) who wear ‘encounters’ on their sleeve and are willing to sleep with the enemy to shoot another .
The script runs a narrative style with ACP in a story hearing session from the injured captive Manya in the ambulance. A narration that is high on testosterone and low on class. Every moment of escape from abusive language and ear shattering violence transports you to raunchy dance numbers – three item songs from Sunny Leone (too dressed for her repute) Priyanka Chopra (too invisible for her star value) and Sophie Chaudary (too repetitive and predictable) and scenes of love nearer to lust.
The film is not without value, though. The dialogues (Milan Milap Zhaveri) are surely dramatic here is a sample: dost aur mauke baar baar nahi milte; baadshah ke gali mein aake unke paata nahi puchte; doosra maka sirf filmon mein dethe hain zindagie mein nahi; waqt ki fiqrat hi bewaafai hai…… the film offers a very high style quotient and despite (or exactly because of its violence raunchy numbers and lewd language) keeps you engaged.
The other high point in the film is the cast. Every one gives his sincere best. Though it does demand a trifle more than what John can really deliver, the rest of the cast deliver with élan. Special mention must be made of Sonu Sood who is growing fast as a villain and could have been given a little more space and there is the usual polish from veterans like Anil, Manoj Bajpayee. Tushaar Kapoor yet again delivers leaving you to wonder why this actor has not got his due. He has hitherto established his skill sets as a comic guy. Even in the scenes where is required to play the tough guy and called to handle the emotional scenes he does them with equal confidence.
As a piece of a dramatic cinema, this film could be seen as an entertainer and will have its audience asking for more. However if cinema is even a small step beyond, this film calls for some serious questioning.

L. Ravichander.