I'm starting to think I simply don't get Indian humour. Every single comedy I've seen from that country has left me banging my head against the proverbial wall. But, oddly enough, this only applies when they're pure comedies. If they're comedic dramas like 3 Idiots or Munna Bhai M.B.B.S., I like them just fine. But if they're supposed to be comedy classics, they've left me cold.
Hera Pheri being no exception. The story is about these three dudes. Two vagabonds and good-for-nothings who are bunking with this third dude, their quote-unquote landlord. They're all suffering from poor prospects and crippling money shortcomings. That is, until a kidnapper accidentally contacts them instead of his intended target. And they decide to insert themselves as the middle-man into this situation.
It's a workable plot. I've heard much worse. Unfortunately, I simply loathe the execution. The two vagabonds, played by Akshay Kumar and Sunil Shetty, are insufferable. You want nothing more than to slap them on their heads and tell them to shape up and take responsibility once in their lives. Their landlord, played by Paresh Rawal, is the only sympathetic character in the movie, and even he plays it way over the top in a way that I haven't seen in a Western movie since the middle of the last century. The constant singing and dancing doesn't help.
Cultural differences, I know, but it's still a rather tall order for me to ask one of my friends to sit through a comedy way over two hours long if I didn't laugh even once during its run-time.
Apparently this is a beloved comedy classic in India. And if they find the film hilarious, power to them. Personally, I regret the hours I had to spend watching this.
Hera Pheri being no exception. The story is about these three dudes. Two vagabonds and good-for-nothings who are bunking with this third dude, their quote-unquote landlord. They're all suffering from poor prospects and crippling money shortcomings. That is, until a kidnapper accidentally contacts them instead of his intended target. And they decide to insert themselves as the middle-man into this situation.
It's a workable plot. I've heard much worse. Unfortunately, I simply loathe the execution. The two vagabonds, played by Akshay Kumar and Sunil Shetty, are insufferable. You want nothing more than to slap them on their heads and tell them to shape up and take responsibility once in their lives. Their landlord, played by Paresh Rawal, is the only sympathetic character in the movie, and even he plays it way over the top in a way that I haven't seen in a Western movie since the middle of the last century. The constant singing and dancing doesn't help.
Cultural differences, I know, but it's still a rather tall order for me to ask one of my friends to sit through a comedy way over two hours long if I didn't laugh even once during its run-time.
Apparently this is a beloved comedy classic in India. And if they find the film hilarious, power to them. Personally, I regret the hours I had to spend watching this.