Film Review: Don 2

Release Date: 23^rd December 2011

Genre: Action/Thriller

Director: Farhan Akhtar

Star Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Boman Irani, Lara Dutta, Kunal Kapoor, Om Puri

Rating ***/5

Farhan Akhtar’s risky remake of Amitabh Bachchan’s ‘Don’ worked because he stayed true to the heart of the original story, but added a touch of sophistication with the slick action sequences, alongside an extra pinch of masala with the catchy soundtrack.

Fast forward five years and we’re reintroduced to Don (Shah Rukh Khan) in the films sequel. Don 2 is entirely the work of Farhan Akhtar and the rest of his team. The film has the star power of King Khan himself, some thrilling action sequences and beautiful scenery.

However the film falls well below expectations with a less than impressive script. While there are echoes of Hollywood blockbusters Ocean’s Eleven, and the Mission Impossible series, Don 2 fails to hold your attention. The first half is too slow, the dialogues aren’t very impressive, and dragging the film further down is the absence of a decent song on the soundtrack, which incidentally was put together by usual hit-making trio Shankar Ehsaan Loy.

Don 2 starts off in Thailand and then moves on to Malaysia where Don surrenders himself to cops Malik (Om Puri) and Roma (Priyanka Chopra) – both of which audiences will remember from the first film. This time Don’s big plan is to break into a heavily guarded vault in Berlin to rob the currency plates and to gain immunity from the law for all of his wrong doings.

To help make his robbery plan a success he enlists the help of fellow Malaysian prison-mate Vardhan (Boman Irani). Together they escape the prison with a very unbelievable plan of poisoning all the inmates by inserting a liquid into their food, and then making a quick escape though an ambulance van.

Don then needs the help of hacker Sameer Ali (Kunal Kapoor) to make sure his plan goes ahead without a hitch, and gives his new lady Ayesha (Lara Dutta) a few odd jobs to do along the way.

Some worthy moments in the film include a racy car chase between Don and Roma, a brief guest appearance by Hrithik Roshan (who funnily enough maintains his own accent even though his voice should have been dubbed by Shah Rukh), and the penultimate 20 minutes or so which really bring the audience up to speed with the goings on through some clever narration.

What isn’t so great is the slow-paced and boring first half and some ridiculous and unexplainable romantic vibes between Roma and Don. Why would the woman take a bullet for the man who killed her brother and his fiancé?

Shah Rukh Khan does ok as Don. The film belongs completely to him and there is not much scope for anyone else. The only problem is that it sometimes looks as if he’s trying to hard to add a sense of humour.

Priyanka looks good but doesn’t have anything to do apart from beating up a few baddies. Boman Irani provides a few laughs for the audience and glides through his role. Om Puri and Lara Dutta are wasted. Kunal Kapoor is ok.

Despite its flaws Don 2 should do fairly well as it will ride on the success of the previous Don film and reel crowds in with its star power. The film looks polished and slick but is a waste in 3D. Final verdict – though the packaging might be pretty, be wary of the content inside.