Between films like Ed Wood about the life and work of a B-movie filmmaker and Tarantino constantly getting to us with what he had learned from the B movies I’m sure I’m not the only one who has a certain interest in these. With the internet making the world of cinema available I think there is enough of an educated audience with interests in film history and the future of it.
Now, where exactly does Race fit into all of this, it was for me the quintessential B-movie experience. Not only because of the single screen with the fluctuating sound levels, but, for contributing to the cult of awkward B moments. The best had to be the psychedelic masking (the censor) of a girl in a bikini, the mask was absent when there is a close up of her (more of a mid-shot). So psychedelic waves on a girl then nothing, waves again and nothing. It was fun.
Plot
The trio of Abhi, Chai and Sid decide to go to Bangkok for the bachelor party of Chai’s wedding (remember The Hangover). The one line characterization which our guys confuse for character is that Abhi is an altruist, Chai is money crazy and Sid loves chasing skirts.
They accidentally find a million dollars in a car crash and our ‘Bangkok’ genre conventions dictate that there have to be dons attached to it, flamboyant ones. Loosely interwoven into this are the sub-plots of the Abhi-Aarthi love story and Chai’s ex-girlfriend whom he had dumped for a rich girl.
Still needs work
In spite of a score that can get your feet tapping and a basic premise that is original enough for a Telugu screen the film’s flat digital photography,ineffective editing, punch ambitious dialogue and supremely sloppy performances (Vikram and Desha rank the highest here) render this film to be a strangely bad product that looks like a rough cut still needing work.
Placing this…somewhere between Vennela one and Half and a film called Disco starring Nikhil (the Happy Days fellow). Most people haven’t seen either of those and unless something magical happens, from the attendance of last night’s show this might end up in such obscurity too.
Verdict
For anyone who has time enough for a strange B-movie experience.
