Golmaal Again movie review: Ajay Devgn, Rohit Shetty blend horror and melodrama with comedy

Golmaal Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Cast: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Parineeti Chopra, Arshad Warsi, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Tusshar Kapoor, Kunal Kemmu, Shreyas Talpade, Sanjai Mishra, Mukesh Tiwari, Vrijesh Hirjee
Rating: 2.5/5

When it comes to Rohit Shetty’s Golmaaal series, there are two kinds of movie buffs - one can’t get enough of it while the other slams it as illogical. If you fall in the former bracket, the filmmaker has a heavy dose of nostalgia for you. If you are part of the second category, Rohit has tried his best to entice you adding elements of horror, melodrama, revenge and even a storyline but that takes an hour to build up.

Golmaal Again, the fourth installment in Rohit Shetty-Ajay Devgn’s Golmaal series, starts with Tabu narrating the childhood stories of Madhav-Gopal and gang - they were orphans and found home with Jamunadas who started an orphanage with our five stars as the first “batch” of kids. The story tells us what made the gang of five take different paths and what brought them back together.

Rohit takes a lot of time to establish this entire set up and there aren’t too many one-liners or jokes to keep you entertained during this period. It is only after the ghosts enter the scene that I saw smiles on faces around me. The spirit that is chasing the lead gang possesses several characters and Shreyas Talpade’s version works perfectly. As Laxman, he plays close aide to Gopal (Ajay) who often sings lullabys to Gopal whenever he is scared of ghosts. The sudden transformation from the saviour to the attacker is funny and the fact that this is the first time the ghost makes its appearance works better.

The supernatural element in the story adds freshness to the narrative and it is interesting to watch Tabu in a different role – she pulls punches with a straight face and talks to spirits. She also manipulates almost half the events in the story.

Interestingly, before we see the ghosts, Arshad Warsi, Tusshar and Kunal Kemmu are shown using technology to make people believe their houses are haunted. They work as goons-for-hire for real estate agents and tycoons.

Ajay seems overburdened with the weight of his own films: There are references to Singham – both the film and the famous dialogue (Ata maajhi satakli). The romantic angle between Ajay and Parineeti is offensive. It has elements of paedophilia and the filmmakers want us to laugh at the hint of paedophilic relationship!

Promos of Golmaal Again promised Lucky aka Tusshar would speak in this one. He does, when possessed by the spirit, and his version is perhaps the worst of the lot. Lucky is best doing his silent jokes.

Neil Nitin Mukesh seems to be playing similar roles over and over again ever since Players (2012). He is the unapologetically mean, calculative and greedy. He has done this in Prem Ratan Dhan Payo (2015), Wazir (2016) and many more. In fact there is a scene where Neil is hanging by the railing of a very high rooftop – even the camera movements and frames are exactly like the ones used during the climax of Prem Ratan Dhan Payo.

The film that marks Golmaal series debut for Parineeti Chopra, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Tabu, brings back everything you remember and the things that you forgot, from the previous movies. From the blind owner of a house (Paresh Rawal, Golmaal) to Vasooli bhai, south Indian goons (ala Chennai Express) and Pappi bhai (Johnny Lever), Golmaal Again is like a major throwback to not just Golmaal films but a lot more.

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The side characters of Golmaal – Vasooli Bhai (Mukesh Tiwari), Pappi Bhai (Johnny Lever), Paandu (Vrijesh Hirjee), Inspector Dande (Murli Sharma), Babli Bhai (Sanjay Mishra), are in their true elements and offer sparks of laughter throughout the film.

Rohit has used his trademark slapstick comedy sparsely and mainly relies on the supernatural elements to make things look funny.

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