Class of '83: The Climax Disappoints In An Otherwise Excellent Film
Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.
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By Linus Garg
First publised on 2020-09-03 11:53:32
About the Author
Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.
View all posts by this Author
Class of 83 is a story that could have made for a gripping film. In parts it is. But the whole falls flat only because the climax is very simple and rushed. After having set the stage for a riveting fight between the honest and aggrieved police officer and the elusive don, director Atul Sabharwal reduces it to a single event which spoils the fun.
The film is set in the Mumbai of the 1980s when Datta Samant lorded over the mill workers and Dawood Ibrahim ruled the underworld. A senior police officer Vijay Singh (Bobby Deol's brooding presence and style makes him a perfect fit) is sent as the dean to the police training academy on a punishment posting as his political masters do not like the way he tries to disturb the status quo by going after a don with whom they have a cozy relationship. The recruits wish to be trained by the dean as his exploits are well known. But he is conspicuous by his absence. When he does take their class, it is only to deflate them.
But Vijay has a plan. He wants to train five independent young recruits to make them encounter specialists in order to eliminate gangsters. He tries to convince his friend and senior officer and the police commissioner about the need for such a squad. After much persuasion, he has his way. But the five young men get corrupted in the line of duty and start working for rival gangs, bumping off goons as per their affiliation. When Vijay confronts them, they tell him that times have changed and honest officers cannot last in the force. Their views change when one of their colleagues is trapped and killed by gangsters. They wow to finish off the gang that did it. Vijay hatches a plan to bring the don to India and the climax plays out, but unexcitingly.
The film is watchable and holds the interest of the viewer until the climax. The training scenes are well executed. The idiosyncrasies of the recruits (there is one who is given to regular masturbation, even in the toilet of the police station) are shown in detail and so are the planning and execution of their encounters. The 1980s era of Mumbai is created well. If only the director had worked on the climax, the film would have been extraordinary. Produced by Red Chillies, the film is streaming on Netflix.
