Sriram Raghavan had been telling the media that Johnny Gaddaar is neither a whodunit nor a whydunit, that the viewers would know the offender and his motive from the very start itself. But watching clips (specially the sequence motivated by the Big B-starrer Parwana) of the film with him more than a month before its release, I was wondering what would be left of the film for me now, considering he had shown me the howdunit part as well? I was pleasantly surprised that Johnny proves to be more than a howdunit too. It’s about how crime begets crime, how fate catches up with the criminal and offers him just deserts. So, while it might overtly be paying homage to Vijay Anand and James Hadley Chase, Johnny is actually Hitchcockian.
A gang of five headed by Dharmendra cobbles together Rs 2.5 crore for a business deal. Then one turns traitor and gets away with the loot. The beginning of the film is a little confusing in setting up the characters. The deal, what it’s about, is never spelt out. But does it really matter? As it moves forward, you are kept on the edge, always guessing, with the filmmaker a step ahead in the game.
Sriram stages some gripping moments, aided by sharp editing—the sequence on the moving train is brilliant; Parwana on TV sowing the seeds of crime in one character is juxtaposed wonderfully against another watching it and casually talking about Big B’s rise. Sriram also weaves in the element of destiny very well—the flick of a coin and the choice of cards sealing people’s fate, of life becoming a gamble.
Mukesh is well cast in the lead role, handsome and reptilian at the same time. But it’s characters on the side—Zakir Husain, Ashwini Kalsekar and Vinay Pathak—who steal the show. The homage to films is nice. The opening titles—the high-decibel music and the bright images—are a great throwback to the old thrillers. In fact, the song are so ‘then’—songs like Zindagi ittefaq hai.... I specially liked the Anand reference and Dharmendra’s wife singing Mora gora ang from Bandini, a film which had him looking so fabulous as the young jail doctor; a stark contrast to the embattled, worn out face of today.
High Fives
Bollywood
1. Dhol
2. Dil Dosti Etc.
3. Chak De! India
4. Dhamaal
5. Jhonny Gaddaar
Hollywood
1. The Game Plan
2. The Heartbreak Kid
3. The Kingdom
4. Resident Evil: Extinction
5. The Seeker: The Dark is Rising
Country
1. Syill Feels Good (Rascal Flatts)
2. Reba Duets (Reba McEntire)
3. Just Who I am (Kenny Chesney)
4. Taylor Swift (Taylor Swift)
5. Me and my Gang (Rascal Flatts)
Courtesy: Film Information
