Katrina Kaif looks lovely and makes an earnest attempt in the acting department too in a film like this, that's plenty effort.Yuvvraaj uses scale and grandeur to compensate for the fractured script, but as Ghai's own films Kisna and Yaadein will tell you no amount of ambition and passion can hide poor writing. The characters are all underdeveloped - from the protagonists who have no layers, no edge whatsoever, to the supporting players who are all silly caricatures. The dialogue is a mix of clunky lines that make you cringe in embarrassment, and a bunch of unintentionally hilarious gems that will make you laugh every time you think of the film. And then there's Anil Kapoor whose character I had difficulty understanding - was he autistic, was he blind, did he have arthritis? I never did get it in the end because of the strange mannerisms and quirks Anil brought to his performance. And yet, it's the only performance in the film where some competence is visible. Ghai spares no efforts in giving Yuvvraaj a fancy feel, there's pleasing photography and spunky choreography on display, but AR Rahman's soundtrack throws up only three good tracks which is a shame considering the film's designed as a musical. Yuvvraaj doesn't quite hit the right note because it's an archaic drama that feels too tired. Barring a handful of vintage Subhash Ghai moments that still work, the film sadly is far from his best work.There was a slim chance the film might not have hurt this bad if the acting was any better, but to think the stars of this film were paid crores of rupees to put up this show makes you realise that indeed life is unfair. Salman Khan does pretty much as he pleases, walking in and out of scenes as if he were at home, never mindful of the fact that he's playing a character here and that some consistency in performance is expected of him. He just about scrapes through the comedy with a few light moments, but completely fails to touch your heart in the film's emotional scenes.
Review of Yuvvraaj
