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Dhan
Dhana Dhan Goal****
*ing: Arshad Warsi, John Abraham, Boman
Irani and Bipasha Basu
Directed by
Vivek Agnihotri
Tagline:
Heroes Will Rise
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The official tagline of Goal is "Heroes Will Rise". And
to their credit, the filmmakers manage to do that. Heroes do rise
in this film and they manage to evoke the right emotions in the viewers.
Sports are now becoming a favourite theme for Bollywood. This is the
second film from Bollywood this year (after the brilliant Chak De
India) that has been dedicated to a sport. Goal is a simple story
but it works because it is (a) well-told (b) is shot spectacularly
and (c) deals with racism and fanaticism as undertones.
Goal is nothing like Bend It Like Beckham. And this film plays testament
to two things: (1) John Abraham is more than a hunk and is the star
of the show here and (2) Arshad Warsi is a versatile actor capable
of much more than just comedy
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The
film opens with the story that The South Hall Football Club is facing
its biggest crisis. A ground and a team that was once brilliant has
now become shoddy in every sense. Its players are really bad footballers.
And barring the captain Shaan (Arshad Warsi), they simply suck. The
ground is home to Asians, who face racism from every other club because
of their colour.
A championship is on its way and if the team wins, they get to win
3 million pounds - a sum enough to pay the lease for the next 30 years
- or lose the ground, the club and the game. |
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Two
men can make it happen: Tony (Boman Irani), an ex-footballer who becomes
the coach and Sunny Bhasin (John Abraham), a fabulous striker of the
ball, who is as fast as lightning on the field. The catch is, he plays
for Aston Club. And so begins the story.
As a film, Goal keeps the story simple. It is about saving South Hall
Football Club, becoming champions and fighting back.
The film, which is shot primarily outside India, addresses some serious
issues. Racism in UK is still a big problem for Asians. And it doesn't
matter if you're a British citizen and born and bred there, you are
still an outsider if the colour of your skin isn't white. |
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It
also addresses that men who go onto become international sportsmen
and heroes for generations have to fight long and hard. To become
a champion, you have to act like one and rise above it all.
The promos of the film make it look like it is a John Abraham film.
But that is just a marketing tool because he is the biggest star
in the film. In reality, the biggest role belongs to Arshad Warsi
who shows that he has many shades as an actor. This is perhaps the
most serious and by proxy, the most important role of his career
yet and he performs superbly.
The captain, the man who takes it upon himself to make sure that
South Hall is saved for other generations of Indians, Pakistan and
Bangladeshis, has a hard role to play. And his face off with Sunny
Bhasim is fabulous. Their disdain for each other that slowly takes
a twist is a gripping subplot. Arshad surpasses expectations.
And then there is John Abraham. He is the only one who fits the
physical description of a footballer. But his is the most complicated
character. An estranged relationship with his father, the need to
be accepted and the self-confidence that is crucial to a great player.
John does not have the biggest role but he has the most significant
part. It is him who can save this legacy.
This is the first time in over two years that John Abraham has a
film that has managed to rake in decent bucks at the box office.
And for this film, John goes for shorter hair that makes him look
the part.
Boman Irani is an exceptional actor. Here he gives another unforgettable
performance as Tony Singh, the man who needs to build players into
a team. And play the pacifier for Sunny and Shaan.
The only disappointment is Bipasha Basu. Unlike Jism, there is little
chemistry between her and John. And to top it off further, her role
is boring. She is too cheeky and a cut between a complete airhead
and a sentimentalist. It really doesn't work.
Another gripping, in fact stunning part of this film is its cinematography.
It is not easy to shoot a football movie. But the way Atrasingh
Saini captures UK, the fields and those goals is awesome!
To some extent, the first half is a little slow but come intermission
and the equation changes. It draws one inside and the finale of
the film is a killer. It is fabulous, well-timed, full of suspense
and nail-biting drama. Brilliant.
After the awful Chocolate, Vivek Agnihotri has come back fighting
hard and it is visible in the film that is Goal. Now one can say,
watch out for this young new director on the block.
In a nutshell, this is one rocking film. If you haven't seen it
yet, go see it now. It is playing in cinemas in Pakistan and comes
highly recommended!
-Maheen Sabeeh
*YUCK
**WHATEVER
***GOOD
****SUPER
*****AWESOME
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