Knock Out Hindi Movie
Knock Out is an upsetting fair. There have been some good films raining off late and you would only expect it to continue. Knock Out does not serve the purpose. The film completely borrows its primary concept and structure from 2002 Hollywood film Phone Booth. A man with a gun dictates another man to stick to a phone in a booth else he will be shot. The role played by Colin Farrell in Phone Booth is essayed by Irrfan Khan in Knock Out and the one played by Kiefer Sutherland is enacted by Sanjay Dutt.
Of course there are alterations made in the storyline and characters. The poor hostage called Bachchu or Tony (Irrfan) is an investment banker and not a publicist in Phone Booth. And the theme is more about being loyal to the country than about personal conduct. In the original Hollywood film the hostage is arrogant and cheats on his wife. In Knock Out the hostage has his bank of black money.
Yes you may give credits to the writer-director for creating a different screenplay and scenes for his movie. At least you can't call his film a complete clone with different actor and language - unlike many other films we know of. And Mani does a good job on that. Good enough to keep you interested. Good dialogues, classy cinematography and stylish editing also keep things going. And thankfully for us there are no dance numbers in between!
One more thumbs up are for performances of both Sanjay Dutt and Irrfan Khan. Irrfan especially is very likable for his timing. Sanjay Dutt remains the deadly cool! Kangna evokes confidence but falters as a reporter with her diction. Gulshan Grover is delightful as usual in whatever little we get of him.
Overall, this movie might turn to be an interesting fare for one who has not seen Phone Booth. The concept is very unlike Bollywood masala fares. But the very fact that it is copied takes away all its sheen. There are enough options in the theatres for you to go for something which you have already seen eight years back!
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