Drona

Unexpected fantasy adventure falls short...

Aditya (Abhishek Bachchan) lives with his adoptive parents but is only cared for by his father, with his mother and brother treating him as a subordinate. Unbeknown to Aditya, he is actually part of a lineage of male warriors who protect the universe from demons, and each comes to be known as Drona. He discovers his true identity when he is rescued by Sonia (Priyanka Chopra) after he is attacked by forces from the Demon Riz Raizada (Key Key Menon).

Drona shares may similarities to other films, such as the humble beginnings of Harry Potter, to Lord of the Rings, though most notably with Prince of Persia. With a few name changes and a title change, anyone could have been fooled into thinking Drona was the film adaption of the popular video game series. Nevertheless Drona is the first Bollywood film deal with the realm of fantasy on such a large scale. Earlier this year the science fiction genre got a first with love Story 2050, but where Love Story faltered in ever way, being only watchable due to the fact that it was a science fiction Bollywood film, Drona actually has some substance going for it. The plot is nothing amazing, and fairly simple. Luckily, it doesn't take Drona to the intermission to get into the fantasy realm, but does so rather soon in the film. Though what Drona lacks in story, it makes up for in mythos. The opening, which is done in a comic form, builds up potential for future films as it appears there is so much left to tell in the world of Drona. Regardless of whether you enjoy the film or not, there is definitely hinted at for potential sequels.

The acting side of Drona is not as good as hoped. Jaya Bachchan is underused, and Priyanka Chopra is not entirely up to scratch, though her performance is thankfully better then that from love Story 2050. Abhishek starts off slowly and seems out of sync with his character. He gets better as the film progresses but seems more capable of the silent hero type than the normal everyday person. Whether this is indicative of how well his acting is, is difficult to gather from Drona, but its very possible that his acting skills won't be viewed greatly by the masses even though he definitely has the ability.Though it is Kay Kay Menon who steals the show: his role as the creepy, clownish, and somewhat nervous Riz Raizada is very fun to watch. His character is similar to the likes of Kefka from the popular video game Final Fantasy 6 - he is a villain who seems somewhat maniacal, and Menon plays the part well.

Drona's weakest aspects is definitely its special effects and music. Beyond a few scenes, the CG looks either too cartoon like, or just not well textured. There are however a few gorgeous special effects spotted every once and a while, but for a big budget fantasy film like this, everyone once and a while just does not cut it. The music is also disappointing, though thankfully quite unique to the usual Bollywood selection. There are a select few tracks which are listenable, with the rest being on the forgettable side. One such track also happens to occur during one of the most boring parts of the film making it a very slow preliminary to the final arc of the story.

No sex, nudity or language, Drona does depict some violent acts with a fairly decent amount of sword fighting involving stabbings. While none of the throat slitting occurs on screen the after effects are shown briefly, and blood does make an appearance.

Drona 2 is apparently ready to roll when ever Goldie can get to it., Honestly,he should do a film or two before proceeding with the sequel. The biggest factor in Drona not being as good as it should be is because it is evident that Goldie is still trying to find his feet in the directing world. With some more experience, Drona 2 can shape up to be quite a worthwhile experience. He'll be able to rectify the music selection, special effects and even his own cinematography. It was not everything it was marketed to be, but Drona has created a decent enough mythos for potential sequels. It is not a bad film at all, and a great individual in a flood of clichéd romance offerings.

6/10

Screen date: 08 October 2008
Release date: 03 September 2008