Good story, Not enough for a whole film

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

I could never have imagined that a remake of Amitabh Bachan's 'Don' from 1978 would have been considered by any director. I regard Farhan Akhtar as a film maker who has gone beyond the boundaries of commercial movies. His knowledge and understanding of movie making and concepts is more advanced than any other director of this generation. It was evident from his debut movie 'Dil chat hair', that he is talented individual. Many youngsters who aspire to become a director can learn a lot from viewing his movies. His father too was popular for writing movie scripts back in the seventies and eighties. This remake has not only exceeded the quality that was present in the original, but has integrated original thoughts and ideas too. 'Don' is truly the best Indian remake I have seen to date. No other remake has given a spellbinding experience that can be so unforgettable. What makes this movie unique is the concept. Prior to 'Don' there had been two movies which had similar themes, 'chinatown' and 'notorious'. Back in the nighties many movies had used undercover operation themes. Farhan Akhtar's Don is very high on the style factor. There is also a fresh and slick feel to it. The movie has a high production value. Shooting in Malaysia and the action sequences had most probably contributed towards higher costs. Small elements like these have made the movie appear more superior to the original. The climax portion without giving it away has been witnessed time and time again in Hollywood. However the use of it in this movie has given it the unique touch. The plot twist in the ending actually makes the movies stand out in comparison to the original.**********************SPOILERS*********************** The main core of this movie lies on the double role scenario and how the undercover operation entwines together. Don is a international criminal who is on the wanted list. He supplies drugs on an international level and uses Malaysia as his base. Inspector Vardhan (Boman Irani) is hell bent on bringing him to justice. Vardhan is informed that Don will be in India to make a drugs deal. Vardhan appears on the scene to apprehend him but eventually admits Don in a state of unconsciousness. He is in a coma and kept in hospital. No one knows about it. This gives Vardhan an idea to approach Don's duplicate (Vijay) who is a normal guy that lives in Mumbai, to rejoin the gang undercover and hand over to him a disk. This disk contains all confidential information regarding Don's business connections with his boss Singhania.Vijay learns that Don's boss Singhania will be at a party. Vardhaan takes the opportunity to kill Singhania, but also gets killed after a gunfight ensues between Singhania's men and the police. Vijay is arrested and is taken in to custody along with Don's men. After failing to convince the authorities that he is not Don but is Vijay, he is flown to another location by plane to be put on trial. However he escapes and decides to prove his innocence by locating the disk. ****************END OF SPOILERS******************* Farhan has given the movie a very updated and modern feel. His perception of the theme is unique. I don't think any other director could have presented the movie in this style. His directing abilities were displayed at the highest standard. The quality of direction is what sets the movie apart from anything else. The cinematography is another element that gives the movie the lavish image. Many wide angle shots are breathtakingly captured. For example when Don is playing golf, the view of the ocean is seen well too. Initially I felt it was difficult to accept Shahruck in the villain role once again. He did not possess the same fear factor that was present in earlier roles in movies like 'Baazigar' or 'Anjaam'. The negative portion in his role was only evident in the first 35 minutes, so there was less scope in that part. However I was not disappointed by his effort. It was commendable. Sometimes one would feel that he tried too hard.The movies running time was kept to the same as the original. The director has surprisingly managed to achieve this. Personally I don't feel there was any need for this. Maybe a few minutes short would have given the movie a faster pace. Arjun Rampal's character was not enhanced either. This contributed to the movie's longer duration. His involvement was not required until the climax. I expected his role to contribute to the movie to a much larger extent. The climax and Prue climax portion of the movie is the surprise element. In contrast to the original it has been altered in a positive manner to suit ones tastes. In many ways it is more sensible and also seems like an improvement. The climax also encourages the viewer to re watch the movie and search the plot holes. To my amazement I could not uncover any due to the change in the climax. Unfortunately in many other scenes there were flaws which had not come to the editor's attention.All performances were to standard. Sharuck displays his different shades convincingly. He gives a good performance which is certainly better than Amitabh Bachans. Priyanka Chopra was the actress that had the closest resemblance to Zeenat Aman. She also makes a good attempt at martial arts and is very glamorous. Her role was well integrated in to the movie. Kareena Kapoor gives a 5 to 10 minute special appearance, which does not go unnoticed. Boman Irani should have lost some weight for his role but he gives a good performance as the cop. Overall if you are a fan of remakes then this is surely recommended. I will be sure to catch the sequel when it releases.

I watched it in a theater I had certain things pulling me back first:Im not a fan of SRK and dislike most of his filmsI liked Farhan Akhtar's DCH and LAKSHYA but can he do such cinema?I liked the original DON and this is a remakeThe film starts off well and the first scene is better then the original but here the problem is the Vijay scenes are plain boring Arjun's character too is boringThe film slows down in most places and gets boring especially being a remake Though he does drop hints at various places to gain interest Unlike original DON this doesn't keep you on tenterhooks throughout However Farhan has luckily not used certain parts of the original The climax fight between Boman and SRK(directed by SRK) is bad and laughable but the twist is well handledDirection Farhan Akhtar is good but the film has many flaws Music by SEL is good, but the Khaike Paan redone is so badly choreographed it sucksCamera-work is fabulous, stunts are good barring the last one which is shot by SRK himselfSRK gives it all to the role and does manage in the role of DON nice to see him in negative roles back after a hiatus but he could've toned his act more AS Vijay he is terrible Priyanka is average Isha is okay Pawan stands out, Arjun is feeble Boman Irani is restrained in parts and he works there but he overacts badly in some scenes

I was initially sceptical about Don being remade because the original Don is one of my favourite Amitabh movies and was even more sceptical when I found out that son of Javed Akthar, Farhan Akthar was going to direct it. I was however pleasantly surprised, though not quite as good as the original but considering that most remakes are terrible it was decent entertainment. There are however some quite serious flaws. One of Farhan Akthar direction, his movies are known to be slow and stately paced, for instance Dil Chata Hai. Unfortunately Farhan Akthar brought that same slow stately pace to Don, which considering Don is meant to be a fast paced action thriller can be a huge flaw. Another flaw is that the original Don had an element of surprise and since this is a remake the element of surprise disappears because I already know that the policeman(In the original played by Om Shivpuri, in the remake played by Boman Irani)will be the head of the criminals. Thankfully it is not a complete disaster, Shah Rukh Khan almost saves the movie singlehandedly. His rendition of Khaike Pan Banaraswala could have fallen flat on its face but instead is a success. Another saving grace is the twist ending, which was not in the original that had me reeling from the shock days later. As far as remakes come, you could do a whole lot worse than Don.

The problem with remaking a classic film is that chances are you're going to make it worse, and be judged more harshly than you would if you made a new film. The remake of DON would be mediocre even if it wasn't being compared to one of the most entertaining films of all time. We already more or less know the story, and the new twists that are added to keep it fresh make little or no sense. SRK pales next to Amitabh's multifaceted performance, and the sheer cheesy fun of the original is mostly absent. The sub-par music is the final nail in the coffin. Only the action is better done here (though Malaysia makes a beautiful setting).Next time try remaking a really bad film, then you might at least get credit for improving it!