Movie: Wazir
Direction: Bejoy Nambiar
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Farhan Akhtar, Aditi Rao Hydari, Neil Nitin Mukesh, John Abraham
Music: Shantanu Moitra
Cinematographer: Sanu Varghese
Editor: Vidhu Vinod Chopra
Genre: Action, Thriller, Crime, Drama
Rating: ∗∗∗½
What is it about: This revolves around a traumatized ATS officer (Farhan Akhthar), who befriends a grieving handicapped father (Amitabh Bachchan). These two are tied with one notion revenge and becomes a part of a dark conspiracy. This forms the crux of the story directed by Bejoy Nambiar.
Why it’s disappointing: Wazir starts off with a great pace, but later dips down. The plot revolves around two central characters establishing a premise, which is set at slow pace. This becomes little restless with the audience, who don’t have patience in deciphering the game laid in front of them. These tiny un-attended factors become a weak link to Wazir.
What to watch out for: The movie had great production values which reflected right from first till the last frame. The shootout sequence was great and shot well. Then comes the dialogues which were crisply penned by Abhijeet Deshpande and Gazal Dhaliwal. The films leaves good clues throughout the run time, if watched closely will be able decipher the game earlier than you think.
Amitabh Bachchan makes a strong case as “Pandit”, he convinces you in every frame that why he is still the undisputed one. He throws a fit which can be hardly matched by one from today.
Farhan Akhthar is a dynamism which is catching up like a fire. His screen presence is remarkable. Put him any situation and he comes out like it is nothing. He did a commendable job.
Niel Nitin Mukesh and John Abraham are seen for a brief moment, who do their job effortlessly with style and class.
In this high tensed drama, you get a relief in the name of Aditi Rao Hydari. She looks delectable, those traditional outfits designed for her just hugged her pretty. Apart from looking so beautiful she gave a good performance, she can emote really well and roles of this kind are just tailor made for her.
The cinematography by Sanu Varghese is a remarkable one, the shots were elaborate and intense making the racy look racier. The editing by screenwriters Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Abhijat Joshi was crisp.
The film had a decent album of tracks which mixed well with the mood swings of the film.
Verdict: The game of Chess is the backbone of Wazir, the writers didn’t use it to its potential. But Bejoy Nambiar makes it up with a tight direction balancing the compelling performances hailing around Amitabh Bachchan and Farhan Akhthar.
