Not 'Miracle'ous

Rating: 7/10 (4 September 2007)

There would be people who will call this a blatant copy. Although the movie reminds a lot of 'Miracle', it is not a copy. For, in addition to being inspired by real events, this movie faithfully follows the set rules of the underdog flick. Almost every underdog movie follows the same story pattern and will keep doing so. So, we see a team fighting all possible odds and, guess what, overcome them. The film goes about delivering its message in a classic over-the-top way trying excessively to appeal to Indian sensibilities. The problem with Chak De is it adds nothing to the genre. The underdog theme is not new to Indian cinema (Lagaan), the emphasis on hockey is incidental and in fact, gives the writers with ammunition to place hockey's popularity as a deterrent to the determined team's success. The scenes where one of the player's cricket-star boyfriend trashes hockey is one of the examples how the film-makers have gone out of the way to add to the existing obstacles facing the hockey team. Similarly, the battle of sexes to send the team to the world cup is melodramatic and subtracts from the believability of the movie. Chak De is annoying because it invents problems in the form of blatant prejudice and red-tapism in hockey associations to make the task of winning look impossible. While these may be real problems in Indian sports, I am sure no sporting association discriminates only and so much on the basis of gender. People understand the problems in winning a world cup as it is, it is an overkill to stuff the content with road-blocks for glorifying the achievement. The lack of subtlety is where Chak De misses its mark. In this aspect, i wish Chak De had borrowed from Miracle. While Miracle built-up the sense of achievement slowly, Chak De tries too hard to convince us of difficulties. Shahrukh as a coach lacks the understated elegance of Kurt Russell. Russell elevated Miracle with his icy performance of tough hockey coach. Shahrukh goes for an over-the-top, preachy coach that inspires irritation more than admiration. The scene where the coach makes the players say they play for India (than for their state) is a rip-off from the "who do you play for?" scene in Miracle, and it is an example of how Chak De brash approach contrasts to Miracle's subtlety. Despite its short comings, Chak De builds up a steady narrative. The dialogues are smart and the team-building efforts of the coach are engrossing. The hockey scenes are impressively framed and though you know how the movie ends, there is a sense of euphoria at the end that is so important in such movies. Chak De is an honest attempt at making a totally Indian underdog film, but if you want to experience the real emotions of watching such a film, try Miracle.