Blue - Film, A hurricane or a watery grave

Cast: Akshay Kumar, Sanjay Dutt, Zayed Khan, Lara Dutta

Direction: Anthony D'souza

Blue, directed by Anthony D'souza is a brainless, forgettable action-thriller that quickly sinks without a trace. Let me say this right away: anyone expecting anything other than the sight of Lara Dutta in a skimpy bikini, or indeed Akshay Kumar with his shirt off, is going to be very disappointed.

The film's hare-brained plot involves a coveted treasure buried at the bottom of the ocean, and a reluctant Sanjay Dutt playing Sagar, a working class, regular-Joe in the Bahamas who refuses to seek it out even though he seems to be the only diver in the world who knows where and how to find it.

No amount of coaxing from his friend and employer Aarav (played by Akshay Kumar) will do the trick. But the out-of-shape Dutt – whose unsightly man-***** suggest he's been bunking too many sessions at the gym – finally agrees to take the plunge when his kid-brother's life depends on it. Sam (played by Zayed Khan wearing a single expression throughout) is in trouble with some goons who must be paid $50 million immediately.

For a film that's titled Blue, most of the action here involves bike chases and car explosions, while the underwater portions are gorgeously filmed but evoke no real excitement. To be honest, in fact, the tension never heightens to the point where you worry about the protagonists. How can you, when you notice even the sharks are swimming peacefully around them, oblivious and uninterested even when underwater brawls result in blood being spilt!

Blue suffers from a dull script and inane dialogue, and is cursed with characters that are as shallow as the waters they paddle. You want to burst into laughs when Lara Dutta (playing Sagar's girlfriend Mona) slips into Miss India mode and complains that they have no money to realise her one dream of setting up a marine research facility. The lady does not show so much as a passing interest in fish, by the way!

Coming back to the business of the buried fortune, let's just say we've all participated in school treasure-hunts that were more challenging than this one. We're told the fortune hasn't been retrieved in 60 years, and yet Sagar leads the way to the loot as if it's lying in his backyard.

Neither slick nor fast-paced, this film lumbers in circles before crashing into a moronic finale involving ridiculous back-stories about dead family members.

In the end, despite its travel-brochure look that might afford some momentary National Geographic-style relief, Blue doesn't have a shred of intelligence, and it sinks in a sea of lame writing and laughable performances. Sanjay Dutt sleepwalks through his scenes, and Akshay Kumar overdoes the smugness. As for Zayed Khan, how I wish the makers had spent the fee they paid him to hire a few more sharks and include a few more thrills instead.

The music by AR Rahman is strictly average; even the item song by Kyle Minogue can't save this film from reaching its watery grave.

I'm going with one-and-a-half out of five for director Anthony D'souza's Blue; beneath its flashy exterior, it's one dead fish. Watch it strictly at your own risk.

Rating: 1.5 / 5

BLUE, the most awaited movie of the year, with its canvas as huge as the ocean, comes alive on the Hindi screen this Friday. Like every biggie, this one also comes with the baggage of monumental expectations. With tremendous hype surrounding it, the inescapable question that crosses your mind is, will BLUE live up to those colossal expectations?

Let me keep it concise and to the point. You haven't watched something like this on the Hindi screen before. Never ever!

It requires courage, willpower, fortitude, vision and of course, the financial backing to accomplish a project of this magnitude. And debutante director Anthony D'Souza puts his skills and the financial resources to best use. BLUE is not merely a stunning looking film, it's also a well structured film. Most importantly, it's a solid entertainer that packs in so much in those 1.58 hours.

Final word? Go, grab a ticket, if you haven't booked one yet. This under-sea treasure hunt is a kickass film. A must-see for all those who love adventure flicks.

BLUE is set in the sun-soaked white sand beaches of Bahamas. Sagar [Sanjay Dutt] is a simpleton, while his friend Aarav [Akshay Kumar] is a rich, ambitious businessman.

Sagar's brother Sameer aka Sam [Zayed Khan] has inadvertently managed to rankle the mafia in Bangkok [Rahul Dev]. He flees Bangkok and arrives in Bahamas. But the dangerous men reach Bahamas too. Sagar is the sole person who can bail him out from this crisis, but to save his brother, Sagar has to wrestle with the ghost of his dead father.

If you're a die-hard moviegoer, you'd draw parallels with a lot of international projects [especially THE DEEP] that were set in the ocean. In Bollywood, flashes of the Dharmendra - Jeetendra starrer SAMRAAT cross your mind instantaneously, but comparing the two is akin to comparing chalk and cheese.

BLUE grabs your attention from its opening titles itself. The marine life, which you may've watched on National Geographic Channel or Animal Planet, comes alive in all splendour at the start itself.

The story is uncomplicated and Anthony D'Souza garnishes it beautifully. If the aquatic life keeps your eyes wide open, the action sequences are sure to make your jaws drop to your knees. The bike chase at the start, yet another chase subsequently, the chase soon after the interval [atop a running train] is simply astounding.

Anthony's expertise comes to the fore in several sequences. One sequence that needs to be singled out is when Sanju narrates the tragic past, how he was responsible for his father's death. It's simply incredible!

Major portions of the film have been filmed in the ocean and you can't stop admiring and appreciating the enormous contribution of the underwater cinematographer [Pete Zuccarini]. The lighting in those sequences deserves special mention. Also, the underwater sequences, which feature aquatic life like puffer fish, stingrays and sharks, hold tremendous appeal. Cinematography [Laxman Utekar] is gorgeous.

On the flip side, the climax could've been more impactful. The villain's track looks cliched, but you tend to overlook the minor aberration since the film never falls prey to mediocrity.

Anthony D'Souza is a director to watch. This film has style as well as substance. Also, it requires courage and conviction to think out of the box and most importantly, execute the material with panache. There's not much scope for music in an action thriller, yet A.R. Rahman's score suits the requirements. The Kylie Minogue track - 'Chiggy Wiggy' - is already popular. Sanju and Lara's romantic track - 'Aaj Dil' - is sensuous. The song at the end credits - 'Fiqrana' - has a lot of energy.

Sound design [Resul Pookutty] is fantastic. Action scenes [James D. Bomalick and R.P. Yadav] are a treat and, in fact, one of the mainstays of the film. Dialogues [Mayur Puri] are effective, while the screenplay [Anthony D'Souza and Jasmine D'Souza] is well thought-out, especially towards the second hour.

Sanjay Dutt carries his part well, although he looks very well-fed in some scenes. Akshay Kumar steals the show with a sterling performance. This would easily classify amongst his best works. Zayed Khan is highly competent. This, despite the fact that he's sharing the screen space with two hugely experienced actors.

Lara Dutta has never looked so good before. Though the story revolves around the guys, you can't overlook Lara's small but significant contribution to the film. Katrina Kaif [sp. app.] looks gorgeous and performs exceedingly well. The feminine charm [at the start specifically] would send the youth in a frenzy. Rahul Dev is first-rate. Kabir Bedi is hardly there.

On the whole, BLUE has style as well as substance. The film has everything going in its favour, right from its incredible star cast to the superb action scenes to the hitherto unseen marine life to the tremendous hype and hoopla. At the box-office, BLUE will strike like a hurricane in the festive week. It should set new benchmarks in days to come. In short, the business will be humungous.