Waar is only showing in about five Cineworlds in London, of which the closest to me is Wandsworth, so that's where I went tonight Considering it's so highly rated, it had to be worth a look.
Now, we've had some bathroom trouble lately in the flat, one instance of which involved my flatmate breaking the pull-cord for the light and having to pay for an electrician to fix it - only to discover that the letting agent would have provided an electrician gratis! If only she'd told us.. anyway, while he sulked in his room, I took myself off early to the cinema.
A handy bus each way meant I was there in plenty of time. And, unlike other places I could name, I had no problem with the ticket machine. So I was quite early for the film. This, and the size of the queue into the screens, meant I took advantage of the toilet facilities beforehand.
Were all those people queueing for Waar? Quite possibly. Certainly, the screen, which was quite large, was also quite full. I grabbed a seat in the row with the aisle in front of it - plenty of legroom. And, after hardly any ads at all, the film started.
The highest-grossing film ever in Pakistan, and the highest-rated film of the last year on IMDB, Waar is an action-adventure, based on true events, dealing with Pakistan's fight against the Taliban. This is, in more ways than one, a film of two halves. Firstly, because, despite it being only about two hours long, there is an intermission. Always, with Indian / Pakistani films! This may be why there weren't many ads beforehand, actually - if there had been, we'd have been there all night!
Secondly, the film divides into two distinct halves. The second half is noticeably more action-packed, and that's where I thought the film improved dramatically. Possibly largely because, in the long exposition scenes in the first half, much of the dialogue was in Urdu. See now, I was wondering why, although Cineworld generally mentions when films have subtitles, it said nothing for this one! What they've done is put the film largely in English - but some scenes, with politicians or Taliban members, would have done much to flesh out the film for non-Urdu speakers. Like me. Instead, there are many scenes where we're left wondering what everyone is laughing at, because there are no subtitles. Pity. In particular, I would have been fascinated to know what they had the Taliban saying. They seemed mainly to be making fun of them, but it was hard to tell precisely.
So anyway. Does it deserve 9.5/10, as it has got on IMDB? No, but I wasn't expecting it to. Maybe a 7 - it is a good film, but some of the music, and a lot of the acting, is just a bit cheesy to Western tastes. Having said that, there are some moving moments, and the action is thrilling. This is almost the only time I've seen the Taliban actually depicted in film - mentioned, sure, but we hardly ever see them. Only, generally, in films made in that part of the world. And I must say, there's something very novel - and satisfying - about watching a training camp, in the mountains, populated by men with long beards, turbans, white shalwar kameez, and machine guns, get blown to kingdom come. Another first for me, in this film, is an up-close depiction of a suicide bomber. "Idiots", the Pakistani woman beside me muttered as the two women strapped on their explosives. But it is gripping cinema, as she strolls into a canteen, moving unobtrusively to the centre, then we have a close-up, she smiles, closes her eyes.. and the place goes up in flames. Wow. Oh, and the attack on the police academy - based on a real-life attack in Lahore in 2009 - is absolute gold. That section is worth seeing the film for, all on its own.
As I say, the cinema was crowded, and we had the usual crowd problems. Phones constantly ringing - do they never learn? and a baby that would not stop crying! On and on.. eventually it stopped, they must have left. Really, I know it's hard to get a babysitter, but this is hardly suitable viewing for small people. But their reaction at the end was interesting. As the film drew to a close, I hadn't a hope of hearing what the lead actor was saying, for all the clapping, cheering, whooping and hollering going on around me. And that was nothing to when he stopped speaking, and this roar erupted all around! I can compare it to nothing but a rock concert. No wonder it has such a high rating on IMDB..! I have never seen a reaction like this to a film. What is it, I wonder - hatred of the Taliban?
Tomorrow, something completely different. The Wolf of Wall Street, finally. In my local Cineworld, this time, so I can walk.
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