Singham

Bollywood is pure cinema of attractions. In addition to its traditional aspects such as dance numbers and the colourful visual concept of individual sequences, in Singham any given action is rendered in an excessive form that makes essentially mundane things into attractions, such as when the protagonist simply goes somewhere. The combination of crane shots, extreme views from above and below, fast- and slow-motion shots and post-production effects makes a spectacular viewing experience not only out of the comic-bookishly exaggerated fights, but also out of the sequences in which the protagonist faces romantic or even moral challenges. Unfortunately, this spectacularity at all costs cannot fully hold the viewer’s attention throughout the film, especially when every grandiose scene is followed by stultifying and annoying passages in which either someone makes faces, a dull beauty casts amorous glances or would-be serious issues of ethics and the law are dealt with in a completely absurd way. Said more precisely, this negative assessment applies for more sophisticated western viewers spoiled by rationality and at least the basic logic of Euro-American (pop) culture. Actually, some Western action movies (e.g. Taxi, the films of Robert Rodriguez and Michael Bay) lend themselves to the idea that Euro-American filmmakers would actually want to make films like they do in Bollywood, but they simply have to justify the excess through exaggeration and references to certain past tradition in pop culture. Thanks to the fact that Bollywood is folk cinema in the true meaning of the world, it doesn’t have to disguise anything and can offer up maximum excess and affectation like that seen in animated slapstick. (2012-11-04)