Selfiee Review: A genuinely funny remake that mines the right kinds of humour and drama

Selfiee Movie Review Rating: 3.5/5

Bollywood has served yet another remake in the form of Dharma Productions’ Selfiee, starring Akshay Kumar, Emraan Hashmi, Diana Penty, Nushrratt Bharuccha, and Rahul Dev in prominent parts. Helmed by Raj Mehta, who last directed Jugjugg Jeeyo (2022), the comic-caper is the official remake of the successful 2019 Malayalam-language film Driving Licence, which featured Prithviraj Sukumaran and Suraj Venjaramoodu. Does the remake get anywhere close to the original or surpass it? Well, our BollywoodMDB reviewer has seen the film, and here is what his observation is. Read the detailed review before booking your tickets.

STORY: Vijay Kumar (Akshay Kumar) is one of the biggest stars to ever explode onto the silver screen. He enjoys a massive fan following. While shooting for the climax of his next film in Bhopal, he urgently requires a driver’s licence to complete the shoot on time. The urgency brings him to the RTO office where he meets RTO inspector Om Prakash (Emraan Hashmi), who also happens to be his ardent fan. A misunderstanding leads Vijay to humiliate Om in front of his seniors and his son. This hurts Om a lot and now, he is a man with a mission. He is ready to go all out to shatter the arrogance of the arrogant star. What happens next forms the crux of the story.

HIGHS & LOWS: Writer Rishhabh Sharrma, who has previously written Good Newwz (2019) and Jugjugg Jeeyo for director Raj Mehta, adapts the screenplay of Lal Jr’s critically and commercially successful film Driving License extremely well. He does not copy the original frame by frame. It is indeed a big relief at a time when Bollywood has sort of stopped tapping into its creating juices and relying too much on South remakes for quick bucks. Raj Mehta’s direction adds more freshness to the film. After a slow start, the film gradually accumulates pace and then there is no looking back.

Akshay Kumar plays his character of an arrogant superstar effortlessly. It looks like a cakewalk for him. The actor has proved his comic-timing time and again and he does the same yet another time.

Emraan Hashmi as revengeful RTO Inspector is good, but he could have been far better. The problem does not lie with the actor and his acting prowess but with the script which does not build his character very well. There is no doubt that Hashmi is a brilliant performer, but we have seen more often than not that he does not get the kind of roles that bring his brilliance as an actor forth.

Coming to the leading ladies of the film Diana Penty and Nushrratt Bharuccha, well, as expected, they look like just glamorous pieces in the film. Why do the writers and the makers shy away from giving meaty roles to women in a film which features big male stars?

The editing of the film is taut and so is its background score. The cinematography and production design of the film are also plausible.

FINAL VERDICT: Selfiee is a good entertainer for those who have not seen the 2019 Malayalam film Driving Licence. Those who have seen the original will also find many interesting things to enjoy in the remake. The best part about the remake is that it does not copy the original film frame by frame, thus delivering an all-new experience even to those who loved the original. I am going with 3.5 stars.

Watch Selfiee trailer:

MOVIE CREDITS

Banner: Dharma Productions, Cape of Good Films, Prithviraj Productions, Magic Frames

Director: Raj Mehta

Cast: Akshay Kumar, Emraan Hashmi, Diana Penty, Nushrratt Bharuccha, Rahul Dev

Runtime: 143 Minutes

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