Is it a roller-coaster road movie? Is it a novel tale about touring cinema? Is it about the water mafia? Is it a love story between an educated youth and a gypsy? Is it a road movie? The sole factor that stands out in this film is its breath-taking locations/visuals. They are more striking than the story. And that's the sad truth!
Sadly, despite immense potential, it’s neither of the two. This one is mediocre middle-of-the-road movie. Dev Benegal’s Road, Movie is designed as one of those typical festival films that pretend to be a transformative journey of a character who en route discovers the true meaning of life, love and blah blah blah.
To escape his father’s hair oil business, Vishnu (Abhay Deol) grabs the opportunity of driving an antique truck across the desert to be stationed in a local museum. Do not expect any rollicking road adventure since the narrative never picks up pace like the tiresome truck. Through his deserted journey, Vishnu gives lift to a young boy (Mohammed Faizal Usmani), a migrating mechanic (Satish Kaushik) and a gypsy woman (Tannishtha Chatterjee). Soon he realizes that his tattered truck also houses a touring cinema. Do not expect any innovative story emerging from the functioning of the transportable theatre. The portable projector hardly plays for a couple of times in the film, of which one is a part of an extended dream sequence.
So then where does this road lead to? Like Dev Benegal’s decade-old release Split Wide Open , even Road Movie attempts to expose a water mafia – this time in the deserts of Rajasthan. An infamous water lord (Yashpal Sharma) illegally operates in the drought-struck desert leaving the poor with no water. Is this another calculated attempt to showcase India as a land of poverty-stricken, hungry and (in this case even) ‘thirsty’ mortals to the world audience? Further, believe-it-or-faint but the director attempts to pull off a parody in the climax where the hero trades off water for homemade hair oil with the dreaded desert-don. The sudden spoof doesn’t go in sync with the mood of the film and, rather, looks ludicrous in the scheme of things.
The pacing is sulky for a road flick and Dev Benegal’s screenplay is bland, lacking basic level drama. The characters lack depth and the gypsy woman and the young boy are undefined to the extent that they remain nameless till the end credits. The direction is not abstract but a lot is left to your imagination. Especially the romance track between Abhay and Tannishtha is almost intangible and a shoved smooch scene doesn’t incite any chemistry between the two.
A fun-fair amidst deep desert brings hope of lightening the dull and dry proceedings, as the touring cinema truck is put to use. But soon the Cinema Paradiso promise is cut short with the entire setup turning out to be a dream sequence... or rather a nightmare. Expectedly the end is abrupt and open though you lose direction on this road much before reaching the destination. The only redeeming factor is some funny lines and scenes that click to an extent, thanks to the good comic timing of the actors.
The cinematography by Michel Amathieu is striking as he captures the virgin barren lands of Kutch and Jaisalmer with élan in his camera. But repetitive external shots of the desert façade add monotony to the film. Michael Brook has a Western Curry influence in his background score. The art and costume design is decent. The remixed version of the classic song ‘ Tel Malish ’ is passable.
Abhay Deol has had an impressive lineage of films to his credit so far. Road, Movie happens to be his first incoherent choice. Satish Kaushik is commendable in his character. Tannishtha Chatterjee is notable in the scene where she sings an impromptu number in the desert. Mohammed Faizal Usmani doesn’t get much scope. Yashpal Sharma does his regular act.
As the film comes to an end, Abhay Deol indulges in a tel malish (head massage) act onscreen. One would need an equally stimulating tel malish on watching this garbled movie. On the whole, Road, Movie is more for the festival circuit and some connoisseurs of art house cinema, who may savour it. That's about it! This road leads to nowhere. It simply takes you for a ride.
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