Review: ‘Agent Vinod’ - All style, no substance

Zeneews Bureau

The duo who share a symbiotic relationship when it comes to name, fame and reckoning in the industry is back. While Sriram Raghavan helped Saif Ali Khan develop a sauve macho character in ‘Ek Hasina Thi’, the actor relied on Sri’s potential to bring out the best in him. Result – Bollywood honours! After 8 years Saif and Raghavan joined hands to bring forth, perhaps India’s answer to Hollywood slick sly thrillers – ‘Agent Vinod’. Want to know how it fared? Just read on… The plot seems interesting with Agent Vinod (Saif Ali Khan), an Indian intelligence RAW agent discovering the shocking plan of a terrorist group to kill millions with a nuclear suitcase bomb. Drawing a connection between a series of events that happen across the world, AV sets out on a mission traversing some 9 to 10 exotic countries of the world. In the midst of his mission, Agent Vinod happens to meet undercover Pakistani ISI Agent Ruby (Kareena Kapoor), who pretends to be a doctor. Agent Vinod and Ruby have a common goal, but whether they will be able to crack the mystery and come to the rescue of people forms the rest of the story. ‘Agent Vinod’ sets out to revolutionise filmmaking in India. Sriram Raghavan’s ode to the spy genre, his continued love affair with ‘70’s Hindi cinema- ‘Agent Vinod’ is a genuine attempt at entertaining in a sensible manner. But it somehow falls short of being declared as a brilliant piece of work. The first 30 minutes of the film are intriguing and simultaneously puzzling. It is bifurcated into sub-plots which make it somewhat confusing. Kareena’s character seems to have been inserted in the drama only to ensure that the there is the stereotypical romance in the narrative. Saif Ali Khan described ‘Agent Vinod’ as Bond-meets-Bourne-meets-TinTin, but the makers seems to have neglected the finer nuances and perhaps that is the reason why the film fails to impress. Dialogues are witty and breathe life into the film. The editing is slick and perfect to make the film seem crisp. Watch ‘Agent Vinod’ for its stylish presentation, it hasn’t got anything else to offer. Ratings: Two cheers for this one!