Oh' Boy! What a Film!
By Vikas Mohan, MovieTalkies.com, 14 January 2006
3 / 5
Zinda is a revenge saga inspired from the Korean classic cult Old Boy. Sanjay Dutt plays a computer software engineer in Bangkok, who is living a happy life with his wife, Celina Jaitley. Suddenly one fine day, he is kidnapped and locked in a cell, without knowing the reason or the person behind it. He has no contact with the outside world except a TV set in the cell, and watching action on TV prepares him for fight with the enemy. One morning he finds the beheaded body of his wife in his room, and suddenly after fourteen years he is set free.
Lara Dutta plays a taxi driver, who takes him around. Sanjay finds out that Raj Zutshi had kidnapped him and locked up on the order of billionaire John Abraham. John is taking the revenge on a boyhood prank played by Sanjay on his sister. To win a bet, Sanjay had boasted to his friends that he had laid the girl. Boys teased her and made her so miserable that she committed suicide. After killing Celina, John had raised Sanjay’s infant daughter as his own. John had planned to sell her in the market after she attained puberty. Does John take his revenge? The answer comes towards the end of the tale.
Production values are good. Technically, a well made film with Sanjay F. Gupta’s Hollywood like mood cinematography with some innovative angles. Editing is good. Music, having the mix of genre of rap, dance, black mamba and metal, is the plus point of the film, with the title track ‘Zinda hoon main’ being the best of the lot. Action is good, but excessive violence and sights of blood offend at places.
There is some novelty as it is a different kind of revenge tale. But the potential is limited as it is weak in romance and emotion. Mere technical finesse can’t take a film very far.
Performance-wise, Sanjay Dutt is very good and again shows himself as a reliable actor. John Abraham impresses as he looks enjoying his role almost in every frame. Lara Dutta impresses in her limited role. Celina Jaitley is fair in her brief appearance. Both Mahesh Manjrekar and Raj Zutshi provide able support. As the director, Sanjay Gupta again shows his technical skill and flair for action films.