Race 2 – Movie Review

Director: Abbas Mustan

Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Deeoika Padukone, john Abraham, Jacqueline Fernandez, Anil Kapoor and Ameesha Patel

b! Says: *½

Race 2 gets the red signal

If good sense does not prevail and you do decide to watch ‘Race 2′ this weekend, be prepared for a bumpy ride. Despite a delicious-looking cast and promising trailers, Abbas Mustan’s latest offering falters more than it delivers.

Ranveer Singh (Saif Ali Khan) has a get-rich-quick business proposal (that includes terribly original ideas like duping gullible casino owners) for business tycoon Armaan Malik (John Abraham) and his sister, Aleena (Deepika Padukone). Joining the team is Ranveer’s old friend RD (Anil Kapoor), his new assistant Cherry (Ameesha Patel) and Armaan’s girlfriend, Omeesha (Jacqueline Fernandez).

Gaining a perfect 10 only in the style department, the film barely manages to score passing marks in the others. The ‘kahaani mein twists’ are predictable, and everyone, except the characters on screen, will be able to guess what’s coming next from a mile away (thus defeating the purpose of a thriller). Although the action sequences are good, the director duo use decade-old fundas, like car bombs and poisoned drinks, to excite their audience. You know the stunts are ridiculously unreal when Saif and Deepika jump off a crashing aircraft in their swanky car and land safely without suffering even a scratch. There are other moments of unintentional hilarity like when Ranveer talks about his lost love Sonia Martin (Bipasha Basu) and suddenly, the infamous Kareena tattoo shows up.

Saif Ali Khan, as the beefy Ranveer Singh, is one of the few cast members who do a good job in the film. Anil Kapoor, who’s gone from being a police officer to a ranch owner, is still tolerable, surviving literally on the fruits of his first performance. His pairing with bimbo Ameesha adds some humour to the proceedings, but (and we can’t believe we’re saying this) we do miss Sameera Reddy.

John Abraham does what he is paid for – he shows off a lot of skin and flexes his muscles when required, but his performance gives us a sense of déjà vu that screams ‘Dhoom’! Deepika tries to put in an understated performance, but is defeated by the cheesy dialogues. Jacqueline Fernandez is a total waste of space as the thief with ace archery(?) and fencing(??) skills.

There are more suitcase exchanges than exciting car chases in ‘Race 2′. Take this review as a red signal and skip this blah movie.