Movie Review: Chennai Express

As an ardent fan of all kinds of movies, there are quite a few aspects that captured my attention in this movie. Let me be very clear, the plot or the script is not among those few aspects. With Rohit Shetty directing the movie, I am not going to waste my time discussing about the plot or the script. If I were to sum up the plot line, this is how I would do it. A fun trip to Goa, planned by an overgrown adult Rahul(Shahrukh Khan) goes haywire when he meets Meenamma(Deepika Padukone) on the train referred as Chennai Express and then Rahul gets accidentally becomes the nemesis for the best laid plans of her father(Sathyaraj) to get Meenamma married to Thankabali(Nikitin Dheer).

Timing the release of the movie with Ramzan, Rohit Shetty and Shahrukh Khan(also one of the producers) wants to cash in on the festival season and the holidays associated with it. Everyone is in the mood for a movie during this time. Rohit Shetty and Shahrukh Khan has done a good job to make this a clean movie. Even the movie has a fair share of lowbrow humor, at no point does it cross into the territory of vulgarity. This move is obviously aimed at the "U" certification of the censor board. There is neither excessive violence nor skin show. The makers keep the visuals and dialogues to what is suited for a family audience. Even the song number "1 2 3 4", a nod to the dappan kuthu songs from Tamil movies, is sans the signature shots of the navel. On the flip side, Shahrukh cannot dance like Vijay but to the lead actor's credit, he matches up with his boundless engergy.

Although the theme is about mismatched couple represented by Rahul the boy from the north and Meenamma the girl from the south, the real mismatched couple is the director Rohit Shetty and actor-producer Shahrukh Khan. Who would have thought this combination would work. At the end of the day, it is Rohit Shetty who thankfully overshadows the lead actor. Because of this, we see a different comic version of Shahrukh Khan. Shahrukh still has the infamous stutter but Rohit is bring out a performance which is a cross between that of Woody Allen and that of the Golmaal gang.On top of this, Rohit pokes fun at some of the famous movie scenes of Shahrukh Khan. Unfortunately, the director fails to successfully convey this fact to an ordinary viewer.

The movie also stands out for the visuals and the action sequences. As for the visuals, it is very colorful. When Rahul meets Meena's father for the first time, the train stops in the middle of a bridge in supposedly Konkan area. The bridge is set against a mountain and a waterfall whose water falls below the bridge. Where did they find such a location? Is it CGI? Similarly in many other scenes, the director makes us forget the absurdity of the situations by having abundance of color everywhere. No movie of Rahul Shetty is complete without spectacular action sequences and vehicles blowing up in the mid air. Compared to the previous movies of Rohit Shetty, the action scenes are toned down. But the final fight sequence where Shahrukh Khan fights Nikitin Dheer and his sidekicks is the best in the movie. The interspersed slow motion with normal motion during the fight sequences elevates the viewing experience.

The movie belongs to three people - Rohit Shetty, Shahrukh Khan and Deepika Padukone(despite the bwakwaas accent!). Sathyaraj because of sheer presence and Nikitin Dheer because of massive size makes an impression in spite of badly written roles. The only Shetty regular Mukesh Tiwar as the Sardaji inspector who speaks Tamil makes us desire for a more longer role for him.

It is not a landmark movie. But it is an enjoyable one. My guess is you have already seen it. If you have not, what are you waiting for? It is holiday time. 1 2 3 4.

Language: Hindi

Genre: Comedy

Rating: **

Tags: Movies,Shahrukh Khan,Deepika Padukone,Rohit Shetty,Comedy

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