Vivek Agnihotri's directorial debut 'Chocolate' is a slick product with many a twist in the tale and a surprise at the end.
The story of the movie is set in London. It revolves around a lawyer and five Indians, two of who are implicated for involvement in criminal and terrorist activities.
Anil Kapoor plays the suave and flamboyant lawyer Krishna a.k.a. Krish. He practices law without prejudice and sentiments. His gets his kick out of winning his cases.
It is Christmas time in London. Two Indians are arrested for involvement in terrorist activities. Monsoon (Sushma Reddy), a reporter with a newspaper called The Indian Tribune, breaks the story. On probing further, she decides to help the two.
She approaches Krish. Monsoon and Krish share muted feelings for each other. Reluctant at first, Krish decides to take the case of the arrested Indians.
In his interrogations he finds that the two arrested are Pipi (Irfaan Khan), an artist, and Sim (Tanushree Dutta), a waitress.
As Krish interrogates Pipi and Sim, the story of the movie goes into flashbacks. The two recount several incidents that, one way or the other, led to their eventual implication.
It turns out that Pipi and Sim are a part of a group of five Indians, all wannabe musicians who work during daytime and play their gigs at night.
The other three are - Rocker (Sunil Shetty), an obsessed lover who wants to marry Sim. Tubby (Arshad Warsi), a happy-go-lucky guy with a good sense of humor. And Devaa (Emraan Hashmi), a passionate musician.
As Krish digs deeps into his investigations, he uncovers ploy, crime, seduction, intrigue and betrayal. But he can't pin down the truth.
A number of sub plots in the film add new angles to the story, making it more complex and murkier. And the revelation of truth at the movie's end takes you by surprise.
Many parts of 'Chocolate' resemble a Hollywood movie (starring Kevin Spacey) that became quite famous about ten years back. 'Chocolate' itself has been shot in a very Hollywoodish way. The camera work is brilliant and lends lot of style to the movie. The music by Pritam provides pleasant succour in this otherwise dialogue-heavy fare.
Anil Kapoor gives a praiseworthy performance as an eccentric lawyer. Although Kapoor seems to overdo at times, the overall credibility he brings in his character is quite convincing.
Irfaan Khan stands in equal stead to Kapoor and shows his histrionic skills in several sequences. Tanushree Dutta looks every bit a temptress who keeps playing subtle games with Rocker. Her performance in the movie is several notches better than her lackluster debut in Aashiq Banaya Aapne, two weeks back.
Emraan Hashmi and Arshad Warsi play their roles with élan. Sunil Shetty's acting, as usual, leaves too much to be desired.
'Chocolate' is quite a gritty fare, but not without glitches - firstly, the regular shift of the story into flashbacks and then back into the present time sometimes create wee bit confusion. Also, the movie tends to get dialogue heavy in between.
Vivek Agnihotri has a relatively decent command over direction. He handles the technicalities well and maintains a steady pace throughout the movie, spicing it up with unexpected kinks and twists. And the movie's climax (although not original) is sure to take some by surprise.
Movie Review : Worth a Watch (1/10) Vivek Agnihotri's directorial debut 'Chocolate' is a slick product with many a twist in the tale and a surprise at the end.
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