Udita Jhunjhunwala 

One Two Three

Direction: Ashwani Dhir
Cast: Paresh Rawal, Suniel Shetty, Tusshar Kapoor, Esha Deol, Sameera Reddy
Rating: *
 
Some filmmakers seem to take the ‘leave your brains at home’ adage a little too literally. But One Two Three is the kind of film that makes you wish you had stayed at home with your brains and not wasted precious time and effort on such excruciating nonsense.

If only there was a rating less than one-star, because even that is too much for this film masquerading as a comedy. Indeed, the minute long TV promo was the best of the film, and as much as one can tolerate of this drivel.

The idea of mistaken identities, with three Lakshminarayans – Paresh Rawal as an underwear salesman, Suniel Shetty as a jobs-worth executive and Tusshar Kapoor as an aspiring gangster, being confused for one another while a priceless diamond heist has gone wrong, had the potential to be mindless fun at best.

Coming from Mumbai and Delhi, all three end up in ‘Pondi’ (which sometimes looks like Ballard Estate), where they are accosted by a Bihari cop (huh?), a gangster and his henchmen (all of who should have been shot at the scripting stage), a shapely car saleswoman and a hysterical lingerie designer. The proceeding situations are almost engaging enough to cure a chronic insomniac, but the shrieking and screaming would prevent him/her from getting any sleep.

The ensemble of actors seems to feel that being in a comedy means acting like a clown; some even dress like they have stepped straight out of a circus act. That’s what sets fine actors and directors apart from less than average ones.

Even the usually dependable Paresh Rawal manages to disappoint. Much has to do with the script which does not offer even one laugh-out-loud moment. Often even silly films will have you laughing against your will, but not One Two Three. The choreography, music, cinematography and art direction compound the somnambulistic effects of this movie.

If One Two Three is successful, director Ashwani Dhir (writer of TV series Office Office) has threatened to make a sequel called One Two Three Four. I shudder at the thought.Suneil Shetty, Paresh Rawal and Tusshar Kapoor in One Two Three