so i was messing around with sanjay, my photocopier, trying to even out some nearly micro-scopic bumps on the optical scanner rails, and i was watching a sanjay dutt movie at the same time.
the movie is called munna bhai MBBS and it’s generally considered to be the movie which propelled him to superstar status, and which incidentally got him off the hook for the whole terrorist bombing thing. it’s probably the best bollywood film i’ve seen yet. the comedic format seems to work a lot better with the singing and dancing thing than does grim futuristic thrillers.
sanjay plays a mobster in mumbai, but he’s a really nice gangster! when he beats people up, or kidnaps them for not paying their debts, it’s done in a funny, hearfelt kind of way. when his father comes to visit, he puts on an elaborate ruse to pretend that he’s actually a doctor. when this falls through, he decides to actually go to medical school. imagine "back to school" meets "patch adams" but actually funny. the gangster clashes with the dean, cheats up a storm on various exams, and teaches everyone the healing power of hugs. okay hugs-slash-thugs.
having seen this movie i can now understand the sentiment of the indian public in regard to sanjay dutt’s criminal record. it’s like "sure he’s been implicated in the mumbai bombings, but he’s so well-meaning!"
let’s hope robin williams doesn’t decide to go on a killing spree.
i also watched "the fog", not the movie you’re thinking about, this one’s a bollywood slasher film. and there doesn’t seem to be any actual fog in the movie. it’s just mentioned by the heroine in a song-number while she’s walking through the spooky house singing about "the shadowy figure in the fog".
the song and dance numbers don’t work so well with horror.
if you actually watch this, other than just watching the "songs" option on the DVD, fast forward to the end where the villian who’s been killing people with a rake while pretending to be a dead man takes a full ten minutes to explain his plot.
damn bollywood movies are long.
