Don (2006) and Don 2 (2011)

For a long time I haven't seen a good movie from Bollywood. There were a lot of expectations to Ra One, but at last it was a movie from all and thus for nobody. The other movie that had a high level of expectancy attached was Don2, a sequel to Don from 2006. To get the best from it, I wanted to see that movie before watching the newest blockbuster.

Don – The Chase Begins Again (2006) Don is a mobster; his antagonist is DCP De Silva. When Don is caught by the police, de Silva sees his chance to send a mole into the world of the gangsters. Vijay, a simple singer, is the spitting image of Don. Then a charade of mistaken identities is starting. Then de Silva dies and Vijay tries to prove his identity. Vijay has a foster son and the real father - beautifully played by Arjun Rampal - also has a grudge on de Silva.
But de Silva is in reality the criminal Vardhan, and Vijay is actually Don.  Additionally Don and Vijay have their respective girlfriends, as no Bollywood movie can do without a touch of romance.
All this is confusing, sometimes surprising and, of course, highly improbable.

Shah Rukh Khan enjoys visibly playing a criminal. Although his character is a murderer, he manages to portray him as a sort of gentleman criminal. His Don is not really malicious, but rather playful.  There is a very strong cast of supporting actors. I have been told that the music partionally is also a remix of older songs.The score is rather efficient.

Don is nice entertainment, although plausibility is not the strongest aspect of this movie.

I wanted to divide these movies on two evenings, but after the first part I became reallt interested in part 2. I thought it would be nivce to continue right after the 2006 movie.

Don2 (2011) even more depends on action. Don now is about to control the European drug market. His closest aim is to rob the Central Bank in Berlin. The plot is surprising, has many turns and twists and shows once more than Don is a criminal above the genius level. This time we are not concerned about the abominable aspect of drugs, but we sympathize with the devil, because he is robbing the bank. This Don is more like Thomas Crown, not so much Godfather or Tony Soprano. And there are more than hints that the adversaries deserve to be robbed. I was amused that one of the corrupt German politicians was called --- Kohl.
This movie is not worse than Mission Impossible or Ocean-11. It has become customary that voices from India loathe those movies that do well abroad. However, Bollywood has emerged as a serious competitor to Hollywood. 
And at last a movie that didn't leave us half dissatisfied.