Mildly disappointing..

Rating: 7/10 (16 August 2013)

Review of Bhaag Milkha Bhaag!!! This is my first review. I regard movie-watching as a genuinely important experience. It is an opportunity to learn and expand my perspective rather than just 2 hours blandly watching things moving on the screen.
Having said that, I was very eager to see this movie after reading about all critical acclaim it had garnered and that this is a good 3 hrs long.
Maybe, because of such high expectations, I was mildly disappointed. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't all bad. It had its good moments too.
The Negatives:
The story: The base story is quite simple which in itself is not a bad thing, but having to watch it slowly unfold in a predictable manner for 3 hrs is. What did bother me was the fact that all, the movie offered to us was the story and nothing else. We get to see the ghosts of Milkha Singh's past coming to haunt him but the ghosts are never buried. There is no triumph. With such a complicated past, the character of Milkha Singh appears to be very simple. I feel there is lot that could have been done with the character.
The length: One of the biggest drawbacks. This movie is 3 hrs long but lacks the content of a 3 hr film. We do get to see the struggles faced during the path to success but it is all too short in a film that is 3 hrs long. In the end we are left with a lot of slow-motion shots of Farhan Akhtar runnig, jumping, etc. Therefore, I can not help but feel that this was more of a sponsorship of how Farhan Akhtar put in enormous effort (dont get me wrong, he did put an enormous effort) to prepare for this film rather than that of the Milkha Singh himself.
The Feel Good factor: Its truly not a sports film. There is a hero who has suffered a lot in childhood and has risen from mediocrity to become successful. But while the whole movie portrays his Olympic and Asian games effort and how hard he tried to break the records, the movie ends in a race between just two nations and against a competitor who he had already beaten when his leg was injured. Surely that's not a climax.
The soundtrack of the movie is not bad, but its not appropriate either. The triumph scenes of Milkha are accompanied by a rock sound which generates feeling of a rush but doesn't lead to generation of emotions. This combined with the above factor leads to a lack of feel good factor even in the climax. Maybe something more orchestral would have been good. Mediocre acting: Other than Farhan Akhtar, I found others to be mediocre and/or overly-dramatic
The positives
Great Entertainer: If you overlook all the above facts, its really not a bad film. You'd find it money well spent.
The biggest positive is that it celebrates the life of a true Indian athlete and a forgotten legend.
Very few people in Indian history can boast of the same level of athleticism as Milkha Singh in his prime. We have always been good at cricket and while cricket involves a lot of technique, athletics involves a lot of effort and preparation which is what I feel is lacking among young Indian sportsmen. We are good at chess, shooting and badminton, but when it comes to pure effort, we leave a lot to be desired.
Indian sports has been poor in track events at Olympics and other games. Hence, such athletes are extremely rare and this is all the more reason that they should be given all the recognition possible. They should be seen as an example by young athletes aspiring to become future champions.
Preparation by lead actor: I like few things like Farhan Akhtar bending forward near the finish line at the end of each race like real athletes. This shows the attention to detail and the commitment/preparation on the part of the actor to get in the shoes of the athlete. Then, there's the running style with and without shoes, and obviously the effort to get in shape would have been challenging as well.
My overall review: You should watch this once to get to know the story of Milkha Singh. Although it might not inspire you, you still can take away positives from this movie.