Saturday, October 01, 2016
M.S. Dhoni The Untold Story
A Mixed-bag Biopic
For a viewer not too interested in cricket, it would seem a biopic on M.S.Dhoni is a bit premature. It is supposed to be an ‘Untold Story’ but almost everything is known even to the casual newspaper reader or TV viewer.
Which is not to say that his achievements are not remarkable, but his story seems to be similar to that of many in the cricketing circuit—ordinary background, discovery of his talent by a coach, the passion and the struggle to make it big and his success on the field.
There are not too many highs and lows in his life so far, which is why Neeraj Pandey is hard put to bring drama into a bland story. Dhoni (Sushant Singh Rajput) has a regular middle class childhood, with his father (Anupam Kher) having small expectations for him, like a safe government job.
Most of the film is about his playing in different matches as he rises up the cricketing ladder, and the happy or sad responses of his family and friends watching him on TV. What Pandey does get right is the small town atmosphere, and the heartwarming camaraderie between Dhoni and his friends.
But for a small burst of rebellion and depression, Dhoni’s life seems to be on the up and up. There is not a hint of darkness or controversy. Except for glimpses of Yuvraj Singh and a couple of others, there is no interaction between Dhoni and his teammates. It hardly seems like a team sport with keen competition and a lot of external and internal politicking, but a one-man game.
The overlong film is almost winding down, when as an afterthought the two women in his life are introduced—Priyanka (Disha Patani), who is killed in an accident, and Sakshi (Kiara Advani), who he ends up marrying. There is a dash of humour in the scene in which Sakshi, a hotel receptionist, does not recognize the star cricketer.
Sushant Singh Rajput does his best to make Dhoni look like a flesh-and-blood character—moving slowly from reticence to flamboyance, getting the stance and walk and attitude right, but is let down by a lacklustre script. Cricket is a game of thrills and longeurs—the film, unfortunately, has more of the latter.
Labels: Cinemaah
Comments:
Post a Comment
