I didn't exactly drool over 3-Idiots. In parts it was really enjoyable (mostly the comedy) but on the whole, the movie did not live up to the expectations I had. (I am afraid of what my 3-I fanatic friends will do to me.)
First of all, a 44 year old Aamir did not in my mind pull off the 20 year old look (none of them did). The script called for someone younger and perhaps someone nondescript. I want to watch actors, not stars when I watch a movie.
Secondly, this had typical Bollywood fare- of a flat script and even flatter one dimensional characters. Therefore the 'principal' (Boman Irani's character) is nothing but a lisping tyrant- he even jeers when he watches TV. So, a flat script peppered with (melo) drama here and there did not do too much for me. 3-I did not escape this Bollywood tendency- over simplyfying and over-cooking the good-guy-bad-guy characterization.
I am bit peeved about this- Why do Bollywood iconoclasts always turn out to be wannabe wildlife photographers (Madhavan's character) or wannabe Lit. majors (Boman's dead son)? This is like in Hollywood movies, the woman who is not a bimbo for some reason always majors in Anthropology. Not that these fields are not worthy of pursuit, but to me that seems a bit escapist. And suggests again a lack of imagination and depth in the script. I mean, Bollywood, have you never heard of biology, chemistry and economics to name a few?
When you make a movie about a genius, please have one or two really original and bright ideas for him/her! The biggest problem I have with 3-I is the script does not live up to Aamir's character. For a character who is suggested to be a genius free-thinker, the script gives him some banal recycled lines and ideas. I expected something more original and smarter than the one with NASA's pen-pencil dialogue. Then there was the peeing on the live wire and the chopper with the camera, which is suggested to pass off as Rancho's brilliance. Apart from these attempts, the script itself doesn't have too many bright things for Rancho to do. For most part it sidesteps the character's genius, urging you to move along. The baby delivery thing is so nonsensical and cringe worthy, its not worth mentioning. There are of course the other small things but those are what make the difference between a great movie and an average movie. For instance, the virtual delivery of the baby has Kareena Kapoor instruct "pressure not more than 0.5". Then my 6th grade math teacher said in my head "0.5, What Ms G? Donkeys!?" Thats simply not professional talk. And these are the instances where the movie falls flat urging you to leave your brains behind.
What does work well in 3-I is the comedy. It is relentless and the timing is fantastic. The comic take on what would have been usual Bollywood melodrama was a breath of fresh air. I laughed till I cried at Chatur's chamatkar-balatkar speech. What also works is what the story teller envisioned for Rancho's future. I was terribly afraid he would turn out to be a monk in Laddakh who renounced the world.
Acting wise, Sharman Joshi and Kareena Kapoor are good. Aamir is okay but he looks like a 44 year old! Madhavan is caught acting most of the time. Boman walks a one dimensional line but as usual is good at what he is asked to do.
Finally, what makes the movie work is the theme even though you might not agree with the simplistic system-bashing. You cannot disagree with the message- chase excellence and not success. But neither can you substitute the message for how the story is told.
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