Chak De India

Chak De! India -- Let's go, India!

MAIN CAST:

Shahrukh Khan -- Kabir

Shilpa Shukla -- Bindia

Vidya Malvade -- Vidya

Sagarika Ghatke -- Preeti

Chitrashi Rawat -- Komal

There's actually no nuclear main cast here, so if you want a list of all of the "Chak De girls" (as they are affectionately known), check out this film's Wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chak_De_India#Cast:_Chak_De_Girls

BRIEF PLOT OVERVIEW:

Kabir Khan, an Indian hockey player, misses a crucial shot at the end of an India vs. Pakistan game. The country is convinced Kabir threw the game on purpose (it is implied that they think this way because Kabir is a Muslim), so Kabir leaves his home and hides for 7 years in shame. When he emerges, it's not as a hockey player, but as the coach of India's national hockey team for women.

FILM -- 4/5

Chak De! India is a feel-good sports film that knows what it is and doesn't push the limits too much. There are a few melodramatic speeches, but nothing cringe-worthy, and a lot of them focus on the film's underlying messages: team spirit, nationalism, and feminism. The sports scenes are very well shot; I never felt like I was getting motion sickness, which is a common issue I have with sports-related films. The costuming is simple but effective. The dialogue is good and provides insights in to most of the characters, although unless you get the DVD and check out the bonus scenes, you'll learn more about some of the girls than others. There are other parts where the script throws almost too much fluff and sentimentalism at you, so by the end of a scene you feel like you're being suffocated by the unrealistic sweetness. The film drags a good bit and could have been edited much better, replacing unnecessary scenes with more interesting ones. Chak De! India also features some absolutely obnoxious plot holes. Where did Kabir go for 7 years? Why DID he come back? (I get the whole "glory of the country" angle, but it wasn't explained very well.) Was there really a need to have Kabir's mother in the film, other than to blatantly tear at our heart-strings? And why didn't the film makers put Sukhwinder Singh's incredible pipes to better use?!

CHARACTERS -- 4/5

Can Shahrukh Khan just do films like this for the rest of his career? I'm not talking about films where he plays a Muslim and therefore gets to have a beard (although he looked mouth-wateringly hot with it), I'm talking about films where he's not the axis that the whole movie rotates on. Don't get me wrong, I love SRK, but sometimes I think it's better when he doesn't carry the movie's entire emotional premise. He just isn't a good enough actor to handle it. Instead, Shahrukh Khan takes the back seat and guides the young female actresses, and it really works. And since I've mentioned the young female actresses: they're all very, very good! I wish I had time to write about all of them, but I'll just name a few who stood out to me. The first one who comes to mind is Shilpa Shukla, who reminds me of Shabana Azmi--very intense eyes. She also reminds me of Shabana-ji a little in the face, albeit a much sharper, more angular Shabana. Chitrashi Rawat had a lot of spunk and stole the show a lot; I have no clue how old she actually is, but she looks very young until she actually starts acting. Then she stands out as a mature woman. I also love Tanya Abrol and her character, the quick-tempered Balbir, to absolute bits and pieces.

SOUNDTRACK -- 2/5

Don't misunderstand me. Chak De! India does not have the Soundtrack from Hell. But it does have the shortest soundtrack ever. The one track that truly stands out in my mind is the title song, which is sung by the oh-so-passionate Sukhwinder Singh. Seriously, can that man just marry me? His voice is A-MA-ZING! I also liked "Maula Mere" and its poetic, melancholic lyrics. "Badal Pe Paon Hain," however, is an obnoxious pile of suck that sounds like it's trying to be a young female vocalist's version of "Chak De! India," but fails miserably. I also didn't take much notice of the background music. It's not BAD, I just didn't pay attention to it, since the film makers didn't pay much attention to it. That's why Chak De! India's soundtrack gets such a low score: there's great vocal talent, and there could've been some more awesome songs, but instead they took the easy route out and made the soundtrack way too short.

OVERALL --3.5/5

I enjoyed Chak De! India, but it's definitely overhyped. Yes, it has a great young cast, Shahrukh Khan plays his part with uncharacteristic restraint, and the title song is made of awesome. But that doesn't excuse a lot of the issues I have with this film, like how long and tedious it can be and the sometimes too fluffy nature of the script. Still, Chak De! India excels in its field as a great feel-good film about sports with much-appreciated light touches on some heavier messages. It has some replay value, and I'd definitely recommend it. If you can spare the cash, buy the DVD with the deleted scenes so you can connect with the "less important" girls.

TOTAL SCORE -- 13.5/20 (really good)