the unfulfilled road

At one point in Dev Benegal ‘s Road Movie , Satish Kaushik decides to cut off a few scenes from the reels of one of the movies they are showing to the villagers as they are too boring . How I hoped, why this thought never came to Dev’s mind . His ode to cinema could have been a mesmerizing tale where the effects of cinema on human mind is celebrated . But it ends up as a underwritten senseless movie that was supposed to be sensible in nature .
Cinema can have an unbelievable effect on human minds making them forget their problems & suffering for those precious 3 hours . We can all relate to being captured by the magical spell that cinema weaves on ones mind . Gaping on the movie posters of new releases every Friday . Having a dinner review on the movie just seen by the entire family . Dev had a very relatable idea .The impact of cinema (esp. commercial cinema) on small cities or villages of India which normally lead a boring & mundane life where the spurt of excitement come with the coming of a new movie .Cinemas , far away from the sophistication of multiplexes but are more often open cinemas or little huts with insects crawling all over them .
But Dev is let down as he tries to pack in too many things , water problem , water mafia , love story . travelogue , coming of age , with none of the plots getting a well written finish making it feel half baked & convulted. Especially , The way the characters escape water mafia is silly .Had it been a Priyadarshan movie or David Dhawan one , I would have taken it for its silliness , but for a movie that was supposed to be on realistic terms , I just cant swallow it. The whole fair stuff too is not well explained either. How do all the poor villagers assemble all those equipments & lightning for the fair
Infact initially I thought it will be a coming of age drama of Vishnu its protagonist (played by a restraint & natural Doel, conveying superbly through his eyes) . But if that was the case , it doesn’t quite make it clear to the viewer .
The saving grace in this movie are a few tender moments . Every time a film is used as a tool of escape by the characters followed by the scenes where the poor villagers go into a dream land with the projector playing one cinema after another & the audience bewitched - dancing , rejoicing , crying with it is one of the high points of the movie .had tit stuck with just that theme , it would have been a better movie .
The love making scene between the brilliant Tanishta & Doel is very well shot too. The relationship between the plump Santa who cares for all i.e. Satish Kaushik(, a real surprise his best work till date) & the kid is well shown too .There are some superb & witty dialogues . The way the initial minutes of the movie is showcased where Vishnu wants to run away , while his father wants him to sell oil , shows the stamp of a good filmmaker , slowly & stedily easing us into his world . The slow pace would have worked fine, if not for bad writing . The entire movie is superbly shot working as a visual delight . The way the whole road trip is captured combining the beauty of the deserts of Rajasthan along with the danger ,the boredom & laziness had given t filmamker enough help to setup his movie .
Road Movie could have been a compelling movie & though well shot remains half baked & unfulfilled .