Yahoo Movies Review: Welcome Back

Cast: John Abraham, Shruti Hassan, Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, Paresh Rawal, Naseeruddin Shah, Dimple Kapadia

Direction: Anees Bazmee

Rating: **½

‘Welcome Back’ has everything that a slapstick Bollywood comedy must have - an impressive star cast, ostentatious backdrops and all possible glamourous and glitzy elements incorporated.

What our director seems to have completely disregarded is the need for a coherent script. While the setting up in the first half happens swiftly and there are moments of genuine humour, Anees Bazmee seems to have completely lost the thread post interval. The plot trajectory seems to veer out of control almost bordering on the absurd by the climax.

The mistake most Bollywood filmmakers seem to make is that when they want to replicate the success of a previous hit – they choose the path of least innovation. Instead of infusing the franchise with a tangy twist, they rehash the old concoction with cosmetic changes.

So, in ‘Welcome Back’, we have Shruti Hassan playing the sister instead of Katrina Kaif and the squeaky-clean-prospective-groom Akshay Kumar replaced by the brawny bad boy John Abraham. The premise and most of the supporting cast remain the same.

It’s a shame that usually viable actors like Naseeruddin Shah and Dimple Kapadia fail to add zing to this tepid tale. It’s eventually nostalgia that works – Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar and Paresh Rawal provide intermittent comic relief and you find yourself laughing at the same jokes that you laughed at eight years back.

Albeit with more money at their disposal, the filmmakers make the film look bigger, better and infinitely more sleek than before. Our characters are given a flamboyant lifestyle; therefore, swanky houses, fancy cars and hovering choppers are aplenty.

The music and the dance numbers just don’t work in this film. The director has an item number and a talented dancer like Lauren Gottlieb is performing it, why instead on focusing on her, does he cut away to show us other non-descript women gyrating to random beats? There are a host of musicians mentioned in the credits including the likes of Anu Malik and Mika Singh but there isn’t a single track I can recall after I have left the theatre.

‘Welcome Back’ is not completely insufferable and there is definitely some fun to be had. It helps that John Abraham looks like a million bucks and seems to have enjoyed playing this part. Anees Bazmee also keeps cringe-worthy humour to a bare minimum. If slapstick is your kind of thing, then you will enjoy this one.

Did you like the film? Share your views/comments with us on Facebook and Twitter.

You can also connect with me on Twitter.