What do you expect when Karan Johar, Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol get together for a movie? Well, maybe an emotional drama about love, loss, family ties with lots of laughter and tears like Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gam, but no, that’s not what you can see in this latest movie. The plot is different, albeit a bit similar to what we’ve already seen in New York or Kurbaan, but the plot line was definitely different and maybe a bit childish.
The film opens with Shah Rukh stating, “My name is Khan. And I am not a terrorist” and the film ends with the same line repeated by King Khan: “My name is Khan. And I am not a terrorist.” So what’s in the movie? A story of Rizwan Khan who suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome, a type of autism but is very good at learning and remembering things and brilliant at repairing almost everything! The film begins with Rizwan being stopped by San Francisco security at the airport, as a passenger suspects that he is reciting prayers in Urdu. That’s when he tells the security officers that he is going to Washington DC to meet Mr. President and tell him that although he is a Khan, he is not a terrorist.
The film shows the true story in flashbacks as Rizwan continues to think about his past as he travels to meet Mr. President. He makes some friends, he makes some enemies in his way, he helps some people, he scares some people. A simple story about the world changing its perspective towards Muslims after 9/11, which was tragic and bad by a select few people, but the entire religious community had to pay the price!
The performances were okay, could have been better. Kajol returned to the screen after a couple of years and she was fine, although there were times when you would expect a little more from her. She screams a lot in this movie, so be careful! There is no extraordinary performance worthy of best actor awards, the music is good to listen to. The cinematography was good, a scene where they show the sun rising over the city of San Francisco was impressive. Overall, it’s a good movie, one time only, but if you’re not a fan of Shah Rukh Khan or Kajol, you can skip it and wait until it shows up on TV.
