Dilwale (2015)
Viewing Platform: Netflix
Raj's rascally younger brother Veer goes
to great lengths to woo a beautiful girl he happens upon, even going
so far as telling lies about being the sole owner of his brother's
successful car detailing shop and about Veer receiving regular
beatings from his brother. While trying to impress Ishita, Veer steps
in when some drug dealers try to coerce the local bar owner to sell
drugs. The drug dealer's leader, King, later sends his men to beat up
Veer for interfering. A mysterious figure then shows up at King's
warehouse, beats his men, and sets everything on fire – including
millions of dollars worth of drugs. King is determined to find the
man who calls himself Kaali and seek revenge, not realizing his new
“car guy,” the mild-mannered Raj, is none other than his enemy.
Will defending his brother bring back bad memories from Raj's former
lifestyle? What happens once Raj discovers the identity of Ishita's
sister? And how will a misunderstanding fifteen years in the past
resolve itself as the two young lovers struggle to reconcile their
families' differences?
*This is the best version of a
forbidden Romeo-Juliet type love story I've ever watched. However, it is
much more violent than I typically enjoy (beating up bad
guys with half a dozen repeated punches to the face, versus just one
punch to knock someone out – there was a lot of hatred represented
in the repetition that made me like the good guys less). The serious, deadly
confrontations mixed in with the silly, comical moments was a strange
juxtaposition as well. I did love
the vivid colors in this film, though, and several of the musical
numbers were fun. The ending was a bit too abrupt, and some might
find the flashbacks a bit confusing (I kept track by noticing if Raj
had a beard or not: beard = present day, no beard = flashback.) It's
fun for a first watch, so I can recommend it for that, but I probably
won't watch it again.*
