Don: slick and sophisticated remake

Farhan Akhtar tries to emulate the 1978 Amitabh Bachchan starrer Don by asking Shah Rukh Khan to fill Bachchan's shoes. The task is convincing audiences that Khan can match Bachchan's charismatic performance.

It's evident that Khan does not have Bachchan's persona, but he gives it his best. The best way to enjoy this film is avoiding comparisons as the film simply does not match the original. To Akhtar's credit, he gives the film some gloss and the gadgetry and unexpected twists help.

Don (Khan) is a ruthless Indian druglord who operates out of Malaysia and DCP D'Silva (Boman Irani) is assigned the task of tracking him down. During a police encounter, Don gets seriously injured. Just when the underworld begins to believe he is dead, D'Silva gets Don lookalike Vijay to replace Don among his gang members. Vijay gets added support from Roma (Priyanka Chopra), who joins the gang to avenge her brother's death at the hands of Don.

In a bizarre twist of events, D'Silva is killed and Vijay comes to terms with the horrifying realisation that both the police and gangster are out to nab him. Help comes in the form of Jasjit (Arjun Rampal) who wants to repay Vijay for the favour of taking care of his son during his imprisonment. Vijay has to outsmart everyone in his way to prove his innocence.

Akhtar retains the soul of the original, but loses out the charm of the simple, fast-paced entertaining original in his attempt to offer something new. The narration is surprisingly sluggish and seems to be heavily influenced by Mission Impossible, Kill Bill and Con Air with the focus being on hi-tech gadgets, amazing stunts and breathtaking visuals. The best part is the twist he adds at the end of the film giving his story a new perspective.

Khan has done a good job in a negative role and he is impressive in the action scenes. Chopra fits the glamorous role and Irani proves why he is among the best when it comes to character roles. Rampal's character is ill-defined, but he makes an earnest effort to make up for this weakness. Kareena Kapoor oozes oomph in the Yeh Mera Dil track. A plump Om Puri is wasted and yes, he better lose weight fast. Isha Koppikar as Anita has nothing much to do.

Shankar-Ehsan-Loy's retro style music is good though their remix version of Yeh Mera Dil and Khaike Paan Banaraswala pales in comparison to the original tracks. The action sequences are outstanding and the car chase in the bylanes of Mumbai is brilliant. The camerawork and special effects are impressive.

One thing is for sure - the Malaysiaian tourism board will be mighty impressed with the way the film has exploited the various locations in Malaysia. Meanwhile, we still look forward to Akhtar to give us another trendsetting and refreshing film such as Dil Chahta Hai.

Critic's warning: None. Can be watched with the family

Comparitive fact files

- Farhan Akhtar is not the first to remake Chandra Barot's 1978 original; Kawal Sharma attempted one with Dav Pech (1989) that had Jeetendra in the lead role. It was a disaster.

- Amitabh Bachchan as Don wore classy suits while Shah Rukh Khan as Don wore a weird printed neck tie tucked inside the shirt.

- Pran played the elderly Jasjit, a trapeze artist in a circus in the original, while Arjun Rampal as a younger Jasjit is a software specialist.

- Helen as Kamini had danced gracefully in the track Yeh Mera Dil while Kareena Kapoor as Kamini concentrates more on revealing than her dance steps.

- DCP D'Silva was played by Iftekhar, a specialist in playing cop roles while Boman Irani as DCP D'Silva has been given liberty to flesh out his character.

- Interpol Officer Malik as Om Shivpuri was a surprise package in the original while Om Puri as Malik is a dampener.