Dhoom (2004)

There's really nothing original about DHOOM. It's a slick-looking action thriller done up Bollywood style, and if you're prepared to go into this film with that Bollywood mindset, you won't be ambushed by the derivative plot, the sometimes broad humor, and the cheesiness, all these being standards of Indian cinema. Dhoom purloins moments from The Fast and the Furious (Widescreen Tricked Out Edition), Mission: Impossible (Special Collector's Edition) [HD DVD], Ocean's Eleven (Widescreen Edition), and even from The Matrix. And, because this is Bollywood, there's also a smattering of musical numbers. With all that said, I'm actually recommending DHOOM. Yep, it's hokey and certain scenes made me groan. But it won me over.

At 123 minutes, DHOOM is weird in that it's shorter than the average Bollywood offering. Even before I saw it, DHOOM had already garnered some good will from me by having as its lead star Abhishek Bachchan, one of my favorite dudes in Indian cinema. Also contributing to DHOOM's likeability is the undeniable eye candy provided by two lovely ladies, Esha Deol & Rimi Sen (oh, mama!). Lots of fabulous skin are shown by the sexy ladies, as they both find occasions to get wet, thanks to a timely garden hose and the weather. Meanwhile, Bachchan and Uday Chopra demonstrate good buddy chemistry. Then, too, there is John Abraham's cool, villainous turn, proving himself a worthy nemesis for the supposed supercop Jai Dixit (Bachchan). DHOOM does provide several big, stylish action sequences. The stunts aren't anything we haven't seen before in American action movies, but they're polished and neat to look at, particularly in the climactic 15 minutes or so, as we check out quite a display of excess in vehicular stunts and a somewhat blatant plagiarism of THE MATRIX f/x. I got a chuckle out of the sequences wherein Bachchan and Abraham would, every now and then, execute a gaudy, slo-mo martial arts move only to have it degenerate into a vicious but basic slapfest.

Plot breakdown and SPOILERS now: Laconic and super-dedicated Assistant Commissioner of Police Jai Dixit is tapped to nab a gang riding souped-up motorbikes and pulling off daring robberies, one of which was carried out right in front of the befuddled police. Jai Dixit, thinking outside the box, hits on the idea of setting a crook to catch a crook. He latches onto the breezy but underhanded Ali (Uday Chopra), who is a whiz on a motorbike. Ali, you see, fixes motorbike races and also sells stolen bikes. Dixit and Ali immediately don't like each other (maybe because Ali was hitting on Dixit's beautiful wife Sweety - yes, her name's Sweety!), but the two muddle thru and eventually get a scent of the audacious biker gang. A television interview by Dixit incenses the gang's calculating, steely-eyed (and often shirtless) leader, Kabir Bhai (John Abraham), who sends out a personal challenge to Dixit, taunting him and unveiling the location of the next crime. What then follows is a cat and mouse game between the two, as they try to one-up each other and the clearly defined roles of hunter and hunted begin to blur.

The song numbers are pretty poppin'. "Dilbara" and the Latin-flavored "Salaame" were the ones I thought the catchiest. In fact, all the songs (even the first song "Shikdum," which I didn't initially care for) were tuneful. Highlights in the Special Features section include an alternate ending (involving a day in the life of Inspector Ali), sexy Tata Young's "Dhoom Dhoom" video, and a "Making Of" featurette (23 minutes long and mostly in English).

Having been a fan of Bollywood since '06, I'm not yet a connoisseur but I do think I've become more in tune with Indian cinema and its sensibilities. The main reason I first checked out this film a few years ago is that I learned Aishwarya Rai was slated to star in Dhoom 2 Back in Action. Aishwarya Rai happens to be the primary reason I got into Bollywood, and, frankly, the girl is so beautiful she makes the two lovely girls in here look like spat-out prunes. Anyway, as cheesy and goofy as DHOOM sometimes gets, I'm glad I saw it. It does go all out in trying to be entertaining. So give it a chance before you start nitpicking it to bits. I rate DHOOM 3.5 out of 5 stars because I believe the positives outweigh the negatives. Enough people apparently agree. Else, why the sequel, right?

'Dhoom' is a classic cops-and-robbers movie slicked-up for modern audiences and jam-packed with speed and flash. The action dazzles, but the characters drive the story.

Workaholic police detective Jai Dixit (Abhishek Bachchan) is after a motorcycle gang of robbers in Mumbai. Jai is so determined to rid the city of the bad guys that he neglects his eye-popping wife Sweety (Rimi Sen), who wears next to nothing while doing housework in order to get his attention. But her efforts are for naught--she ends up alone in her negligee when duty calls him away. The frustrated-housewife routine and ball-and-chain jokes may be old, but they're groaningly funny nonetheless.

Because the thieves are expert motorcyclists and their bikes are high-end, souped-up machines, Jai forces Ali (Uday Chopra), a mechanic who fences stolen bikes, to help him infiltrate the world of motorcycle aficionados. Jai also needs someone who can ride as well as the thieves and Ali is the perfect man for the job. Ali is a little shady, but he's basically a good guy who wouldn't hurt a fly--and he's desperately looking for love. Chopra makes his character likeable in a pitiable sort of way, playing up his vulnerability with a cloying eagerness to please women and a smile that's too expectant and wide. His romantic hopes are repeatedly dashed--until he meets a mystery woman named Sheena (Esha Deol). When it comes to police work, Ali's a reluctant sidekick, afraid of his own shadow, the perfect foil to the tough, determined, and unemotional Jai.

Kabir (John Abraham), the leader of the motorcycle gang, and his fellow thieves are thrill-seekers--they race and steal for the rush. Kabir knows their crime spree will eventually end with their capture or deaths--which he makes clear to his gang with the cool, creepy acceptance of someone who is crazily self-destructive. A true adrenaline junky, Kabir needs to take bigger and bigger risks in order to get keep getting the same high. The death of one of the gang members in the course of a robbery leads them all to a casino in Goa for Kabir's diciest gamble yet.

The film borrows from Hollywood films 'Point Break' (1991) and 'Thelma and Louise' (1991), and those are the weakest parts of the plot. The immediately recognizable rip-offs are shoehorned into an otherwise solidly crafted story.

The film's sequel, 'Dhoom 2,' was released in 2006.

- The Bollywood Ticket: The American guide to Indian movies (Subscribe: The Bollywood Ticket)

This movie is full of suspence, drama, and humor. It is a movie that will help put you in a good mood.

I purchased Dhoom and Dhoom 2 together (then went to see Dhoom 3 in the theater). Dhoom is just silly fun, filled with music, dance, and a lots of action sequences. Watch it before seeing the other movies as it sets up the character relationships between Jai and Ali, that carry over in all of the movies.

I KNOW VERY LITTLE ABOUT WHAT IS GOING ON IN THE FOREIGN FILM INDUSTRY, BUT THIS FILM KNOCKED ME OFF MY FEET. BEAUTIFULLY PHOTOGRAPHED, DAZZLING EFFECTS, MUSIC BRILLIANTLY CHOREOGRAPHED, A JOY RIDE FROM START TO FINISH. WISH I COULD GIVE IT TEN STARS!!