 |
MAACHIS ("Matches") (1996)
Written and Directed By Gulzar
Music: Vishal Starring: Chandrachur Singh, Om Puri, Tabu, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Kanwaljit, Raj Zutshi, Jasjit Shergill, Ravi Gosain, Suneel Sinha Running Time: 160 Minutes
CineRating: 5.5 out of 10
|
Maachis is an earnest but grim and plodding melodrama that examines terrorism from the terrorist's viewpoint, but does so in a square and predictable manner that seems dated compared to such later and more imaginative efforts as Dil Se (1998) and The Terrorist (1999).
Set in Punjab during the aftermath of the Indira Ghandi assassination, Maachis follows the exploits of Kripal Singh (Chandrachur Singh), a young man who resides with his best friend Jassi (Raj Zutshi), and Jassi's sister Veera (Tabu), whom Kripal has pledged to marry. When police show up one night searching for an assassin named "Jimmy," Jassi embarrasses them by bringing forth the only Jimmy he knows -- his pet dog. Unamused, the police take Jassi in for questioning, with the reassurance that they will release him within half an hour. The half hour turns into days, however, and when Jassi finally returns home he bears the obvious signs of physical torture. Enraged, Kripal sets out for revenge, and eventually crosses paths with a terrorist named Sanatan (Om Puri), who brings Kripal to his camp where other young men like him are trained to wage war against the corrupt authorities.
After Kripal succeeds in taking lethal revenge against one of the policemen who abducted Jassi, he returns home to say goodbye to his friend. Veera begs Kripal to take her with him, but, knowing the danger he's in, Kripal goes back to the terrorist camp alone. As Sanatan later preps his soldiers for another attack, a "missile shooter" is transported into the fold to aid in the terrorists' mission. Kripal is stunned when the shooter turns out to be his beloved Veera.
Director Gulzar (Hu Tu Tu [1999]) shoots the film in a gritty and naturalistic style that heightens the story's realism, but the clunky, sermonizing dialogues and unnecessary songs (sans the usual dances) undermine some of the film's tension and immediacy. While Gulzar takes a thoughtful approach to the material and offers no easy answers on how to end the vicious cycle of injustice and reprisal that gives birth to terrorism and continues to feed it, the film's viewpoint is conspicuously one-sided, and there's little in the narrative that hasn't been said before (and many times since). On the plus side, the director includes a few scenes of surprisingly graphic violence that give the film some much needed jolts, and the ending almost reaches the poetic heights it aims for. Chandrachur Singh (Josh) is sympathetic and believable as the innocent man who comes to see terrorism as the only alternative to an oppressive environment, but it's Tabu (in her first National Award winning performance) who supplies yet another film with its most emotionally resonant moments.
|
|
|
DVD Specs:
Eros/DEI DVD
All Regions
Removable English Subs (none for the songs)
Trailer for Hu Tu Tu
|
|