Movie Review : Dangal

I generally don’t review Indian films, partly because I don’t watch a lot of them and mostly because a lot of them don’t appeal to me. But once in a while a film comes along and blows everything out of the water, with its amazing production and incredible acting, intricate story, flawless pacing and complex story arcs. While Dangal does not tick all the categories completely, it is still the best Indian big budget film that I have seen in a long time and definitely one of the best sports films that I have seen both from Bollywood and Hollywood.

Since this is not my normal review I will split it into two simple parts, things that I liked about the film and things that I didn’t like about the film. Before you go any further I do want to warn you that I will be getting into some light spoilers but nothing that can’t be found in the trailer and since it follows a true story we all knows how it is going to end, so I think that it is the experience of watching the film that matters more than the plot details, at least for this one.

Why Dangal Works

Produced by Disney India, the movie has Disney’s fingerprints all over it from the point of view of empowering women and also from the fact that they are really good at making family oriented movies which can be watched by everyone in the family. Generally, movies with these types of corporate fingerprints all over it seem cookie cutter, but what Amir Khan brings to the table is what makes it go above and beyond a generic Disney movie.

The acting in this movie is, for the most part, flawless and it really makes you empathize with the characters. While the story is based on true people, just three to be exact, the movie takes a lot of liberties with the story and, in a way that allows the creators to branch off and find new ways of bringing this story to life.

Normally, too much creative freedom over something that is based in real life results in a lot of undesirable elements which results in the movie becoming unbelievable. Indian filmmakers have a general affinity towards fantasizing action to the point where the characters don’t obey the laws of gravity, but here the movie has been fine tuned to such an extent that the end product is, at least when it comes to the wrestling scenes, flawless.

The story is not anything groundbreaking. If you have seen a sports movie before, you can probably predict the story, and I do believe no efforts were made to actually break the mould with the story. Instead a lot of effort was put into telling the best possible story using the tropes of the genre. They are so beautifully integrated with the drama and the movie that you don’t notice the movie hitting the tropes, at least in the first half of its runtime.

Personally, I felt that it was almost flawless till the words “Intermission” came on screen. It was only after the intermission that I started noticing some of the flaws that the movie had and while did enjoy every moment of it, flaws and all, I just wish the same polished execution could have been extended to the second half of the film. More on that in the negatives part, though.

Despite all this, the film does what it sets out to do, and that is tell a solid story and depict an uplifting and inspiring story. Have no doubts that it succeeded in both the accounts. Amir Khan is his usual brilliant self in the movie, but it was the girls who portrayed Gita and Babita, the two wrestlers, that stole the show. Both the actresses for the younger and older versions of the girls bring their A game on screen and I would go so far as to say they deserve awards for their performance, keep in mind not academy awards.

What Parts Didn’t Work

To me the biggest disappointment came during the second half and towards the climax of the film. The way the characters acted and made decisions felt almost unnatural when compared to the realism that they showed in the first half. Keep in mind this is in no way jarring and ninety nine point nine percent of people won’t even notice the shift in the film.

I never liked the fact that they decided to bring in an antagonist, because the film never needed one. Despite all the complex characteristics displayed by the characters in the end the villain ends up being a one dimensional who performs the “Evil” stuff you expect form a classic Bollywood Villain. I almost understand why it was done, and it is because the Indian audience has come to expect a bad guy in all out films, but it was the lack of one that made me like the first half that much more.

I realize that certain things had to happen and there is a reason why the Villain is introduced so we can have a really poignant and awesome scene later, but I would have loved the film even more if they had done something else to get the same result. But in a way I have to thank god that they didn’t go the route of “After Earth” in the climax, because if they had, I would have flipped my head off.

Most of the songs in the film, with the exception of one are really well done, and I didn’t like this song, because it is also one of those tropes, and while said tropes weren’t noticeable when they were mixed with the story, it suddenly became plain when it was done in a song.

Despite All of This

I have complained and nitpicked a lot about the film and it isn’t half as bad as I make it sound. I loved Dangal, and it was one of those movies which made me want to stand up and cheer. In fact, one of the most amazing things that it did was making the whole theater stand during one particular scene. I ended up cheering on during the wrestling scenes which are masterfully crafted and shot in such a beautiful way with proper long takes and not jarring edits.

The stunt work on display is amazing and even the CGI is unnoticeable for the untrained eye, or unless you are specifically looking for it. Yes the plot is sort of cookie cutter and the events are predictable and you can probably guess the whole movie from the trailer, but what you can’t deny is that this is a damn good movie and that made me cheer for the lead characters and I thoroughly enjoy it despite the flaws.

I give Dangal 7.5 out of 10. But despite this score, if I was not someone who critically picked apart movies I would score it a nine or higher, so take that as you will. 

Wishing you all a Happy New Year folks!! Until Next time,

Sayonara!!!