There are some films that entertain you, some that engage you and some that make you want to pull every strand of hair from your head. Prabhu Deva’s Action Jackson doesn’t just belong to the last category, it’s a film that shouldn’t be watched. The only thought that constantly comes to your mind while watching Action Jackson is, why would an actor as talented and experienced as Ajay Devgn waste his time and career over a film as regressive as this?
Story: There are two Ajay Devgn’s in Action Jackson. Vishy is a street-smart roadside romeo, who lives a carefree life. The other is Action Jackson (AJ), who is in Bangkok, and works for a don. The Don’s sister Marina (Manasvi) falls in love with AJ, because he saves her life. But AJ is in love with Anusha (Yami Gautam). Unable to bear the feeling of rejection, Marina and her brother critically injure Anusha.
AJ gets her to Mumbai for treatment. Meanwhile, AJ meets Vishy, who is in love with Khushi (Sonakshi Sinha). AJ sends Vishy to Bangkok as his replacement, along with his sidekick (Kunal Roy Kapoor). What happens next? Will the don find out that it’s not AJ but Vishy? Does Marina finally get AJ to fall for her?
Review: How could a film like Action Jackson with strong sexual overtones be passed by the censor board with U/A certificate? The film starts with a scene where the film’s leading lady (Sonakshi) feels that it’s lucky for her if she gets a chance to check out Vishy’s male organ, and through the course of the film, she gets desperate just for a glimpse of him changing clothes. A title like ‘Action Jerkson’ would have probably worked better for the film!
Seriously, every scene, every song, every dialogue in Action Jackson makes you cringe. Even the lip-sync is off. The background music too has to be the worst of all time. You have to hear it to believe it. Sounds like “Vishiii”, “babyyy” “yooooo” are played in the background.
Prabhu Deva has directed films like ‘Wanted’ and ‘Rowdy Rathore’, both were wholesome entertainers, but both were scene-to-scene remakes too. How can a director take credit for a film where every scene is lifted? Action Jackson could probably be his first half-original film to date and he proves to be one of the worst directors in the industry. Someone who shouldn’t be allowed to make films.
The production values are downmarket. The least you could expect from a Prabhu Deva film are a few good action scenes, Action Jackson disappoints on that front too.
Coming to the performances, we wonder what the actors were thinking when they signed the film. Ajay Devgn is a complete misfit and looked uncomfortable right from the first scene of the film. You tend to miss the Ajay of old, films like Bhagat Singh, Zakhm, Gangajal, Raajneeti and many more. Sultan Mirza in Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai. Ditto for Sonakshi Sinha. She was incredible in Lootera, but has restricted herself to masala films. Yami Gautam is completely wasted. Manasvi Mamagai loses her skirt on a regular basis and for some reason screams “you’re my gangster baby”. Wearing bikinis and moving around in the skimpiest of clothes she yells from rooftops “I’m hot AJ” and he in return says ”touch me not”. Between “I’m hot” and “touch me not” lies the entire plot of Action Jackson.
Manasvi’s brother has to be the worst villain of all time. He has a weird goat-eye and appears on screen with a loud weird-sounding scream (straight from a 80’s c-grade film) and threatens AJ, who in return thrashes each of the goons – they fly to every corner of the screen wearing orange suits! Kunaal Roy Kapur also gets beaten up in every frame.
To sum things up, Action Jackson is the worst film of the year and possibly the worst of all time. A film that would make the likes of ‘Humshakals’, ‘Himmatwala’ and ‘Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag’ look like classics. Extremely regressive cinema at its worst. Don’t even think of watching this!
At the box office, Action Jackson has taken a shockingly poor start at multiplexes. At places, the occupancy was less than 20%. Given the costs of the film, Action Jackson will go on to be one of the biggest disasters of all time.
Rating: 
Zero stars.
Positives
- None, actually. But Ajay Devgn looks super-fit.
Negatives
- Prabhu Deva’s direction.
- Performances by the entire cast.
- Poorly choreographed action sequences.
- Terrible music and choreography.
- Dialogues that make you cringe.
- Irritating background music and songs.
Top 10 Worst movies of the year 2014
1- Happy New Year
2- Raja Natwarlal
3- Hamshakals
4- Kill / Dill
5- Happy Ending
6- Hasee Toh Phasee
7- Dawat e Ishq
8- Dedh Ishqiya
9- Shadi ke Side Effects
10- Action Jackson
love you indicine for this review m reading your review Again n again n laughing like hell :D
Love u so much indicine
#NoOffenceToAjayFans
100% correct review indicine….
Ajay with out rohit—–7-8cr opening
KING KHAN with out rohit—–45 CR opening with that director who well known for her film tmk.
AFTER ALL KING IS KING.
BTW last prabhu Deva film which I liked was wanted which saved salman’s career.but I don’t have any difference in his films now a days so as worthless actor/actresses like Ajay/sonakshi starrer movies.
@fazy come baby
come on .. Raja natwarlal should feature in the best movies. Raja natwarlal was good edge of the seat thriller. Get a life dude.
why do only srk fans talk so stupid comparing every actor with him.Iam akki fan and I know srk is much bigger star than both akki and ajay , but why do you like every actor to fail and srk to prosper.that is very selfish and insecure of you.iknow there is some good srkrians but most of hate all actor except srk.ilove akki the most but I also like the other great actors like khans, hr, rk and ajay. please stop the hate and don’t enjoy others misfortunes.
@sss
very gd comparison i think sss stands for stupid thrice
Respect to indicine. Salute. Yes this film and it’s lead stars need a kick on their backsides.
I THINK MASALA FILMS ARE NOT GOING TO WORK ANYMORE ESPECIALLY BAD ONES.I THINK P.K COULD WELL BE BEST FILM OF 2014 BY AS FAR AS CRITIC REVIEWS ARE CONCERD.THOUGH P.K DO NOT HAVE ANY CHARTBUSTER SONG IT WILL GET EARTH SHATERING OPEING. THOUH PEOPLE ARE EXPECTING IT TO BE THE 1ST 300 CRORE FILM BUT I THINK THAT IS TOO MUCH.AT BEST IT COULD CROOSS KICK OTHERWISE IT WILL BE 2ND OR 3RD HIGEST GROWSER OF YEAR.
ajays’s controversial comment against SRK’s abs too couldn’t help this film…
The same fate will happen to the over expected Baby and PK…
‘a film that would make films like humshakals etc etc look like classics ‘. The best line till date.
Guess u summed it up pretty well. U should have written on the top Indicine.
Wow. One of the best review articles I have read.
@ajinkya what the hell do you mean by saying aj will end ajay’s career? You better worry about akshay. Baby will be biggest disaster next year. Ajay still has strong linups in coming years. You bloody jealous asshole pigs. Worry about your Starr’s flops.
Hahah. Haven’t read a funnier review in a long time! I knew from the promos and the songs itself the movie was definitely looking regressive. Prabhudheva wanted to remake Dookodu but Ajay insisted on an original script. LOL, I wish he had chose that film, atleast that was a decent entertainer, could have done better than AJ!! Honestly, Ajay hasn’t learned at all after some really crap films, he should refrain himself completely from doing such craps, disappointed! Prabhdheva was never a good director.
I sympathize with Akshay Kumar now coz SINGH is BLING is an original script. LOL
dats what expectd frm a prabhudeva film…..bt @indicine frm d past some time i m nt able to undrstand ur reviews…coz in some reviews u say keep ur brains out nd d next friday u start putting brain in d film….
@arjuna rana. Correct if kick got 3 stars then action Jackson deserved Atleast 5 or more than that.
@fa Zyst in COMA. Dude what a list. Guess kick would be cherry on that list of Ur cake. Get well soon. Ha ha ha. Rofl
i always think that what raja sen actually want from movie because of criticizing every movie.but today i understand what raja actually want after he gave 3 stars to this movie hahahaha
now pk will come to rescue just imagine with out khans bollywood is nothing
@Fazy: Dedh Ishqiyaa is one of the best movies of the year. HTP was a nice one too.
The only interesting film coming soon is baby now. waiting for baby.
Humshakals’ director missed the opportunity to grab golden kela and ghanta award after the super performance of AJ.epic
Ajay probably thought its a masala film directed by prabudevha (who’s given hits/superhits in the past) and will automatically be a big hit
Funnier review i have ever read,every site(except a least) gave it worst view(review).hope it recover its cost
Zero??!!!!!!! hahhahahahahah this is the joke of year.
@Indicine, I might be little surprised about that big fat ZERO but wasn’t surprised at all abut the words that you used Ajay Devgn and his film. :)
All the years you were waiting a momment like this and finally it came so you have to chance to say whatever you want but AJ will be at least everage.
Don’t understand all the hate this film is getting, whilst it’s certainly not the best film of this year and definitely not the worst one , I thoroughly enjoyed it and will be watching it again on Sunday.
All AJay fans are in theaters watching this beautiful film, they don’t have time today for coming here and reading this pathetic and hatred review.
this review is neutral not like @Indicine.
3/5
Action Jackson is a drinking game of a film, one well over the so-bad-it’s-good line, its main merit being that it holds some genuine surprises, says Raja Sen.
“AJ,” the girl gasps into her cellphone, breathlessly and furtively while gangsters surround her, “Some people are after me.”
Efficient to the last word, her man wastes no time in getting to the point: “What are they wearing?”
This is but a taste of the relentless absurdity served up by Action Jackson, the peculiar new film from Prabhudheva.
It is an uneven, tacky, cheesy actioner, a film that has much going catastrophically wrong (the brunt of it involving Sonakshi Sinha).
But it is also — surprise, surprise — at times incredibly zany and, more importantly, a film that strikes back against the unending misogyny routinely perpetrated by our heroes in these larger-than-life movies.
In many ways, Action Jackson can be read as a feminist statement, a film that shows girls proactively leaping onto the top rung while the leading man languishes several footholds short of heroic.
That’s right, Ajay Devgn is anything but a ‘hero’ in this film.
Sure, he kills way too many people too easily. But at various points in this film, he’s a coward, he’s a liar, he’s clearly dishonourable, he’s easily tempted to cheat on his girlfriend, and he’s a horrible dancer. At one point, in order to laugh at the villain (with a too-elaborate gag borrowed from Farhan Akhtar’s ghastly Don remake, he lets his wife get walloped around by the bad guy for a while before swooping in to try and save the day.
Meanwhile, as mentioned, the girls are the ones carrying the narrative forward and inciting the story, no matter how ridiculously they do so.
Sonakshi Sinha is a chronically unlucky girl who walks into a changing room where Devgn is trying on some new orange underwear.
Yes sir, the superstar likes to try his briefs before he buys them.
Anyway, she is thus scandalised by a look at Devgn Jr, following which her luck changes.
This happens again, and she’s convinced that viewings of his schlong are key to her good fortune. Therefore she (naturally) plans to drug him in order to sneak a peek, which will, in turn, give her the luck required to dazzle potential America-based in-laws. (No, not kidding. Tell me you’ve seen this film before, I double-dare you.)
Also, a gangster’s sister finds herself abducted by a lecherous villain who starts peeling off her shirt buttons.
This lady, played by Manasvi Mamgai, the unquestioned highlight of the movie, seems to be enjoying the attention.
Devgn, samurai sword in hand, breezes in as an odd, Bond-inspired English song plays, and the film turns to a Wild Stone deodorant commercial as the girl — still tied to the chair — looks increasingly (and cartoonishly) aroused by the bloodshed.
She huffs and puffs to show off her brassiere, developing quite the crush on Devgn. A couple of scenes later, she’s rising out of the water in a yellow bikini, reaching out for the fellow’s zipper.
But he’s having none of it; leaving ambiguity to the wordsmiths of the world, he cuttingly tells her “I don’t like you” and walks away eating a candybar. (Because, as we all know, chocolate really takes the edge off these poolside situations.)
Mamgai too, like Sinha, decides obstinately to stay aimed at Devgn’s pants.
The film, from this point unfolding with all the slick-but-unsubtle schlock of a video game cutscene, explores both her libido (as she sits on couches with her legs splayed wide) and her obsession, as she decides to hack away at Devgn’s loved ones till he’s forced to be with her.
Therefore both halves of the film — which involve an Ajay apiece, since the film has two of them — are about women wanting Ajay’s, um, piece.
Flattering as this may seem, it turns the leading man into a led man, a prop for girls to fight over and build a story around.
And considering how rare it is to see a masala blockbuster actually giving girls the reigns, for this we must give Prabhudheva props.
Analysts of between-the-lines repression and sexuality, too, will have a field day with this metaphoric film, positively throbbing with visual and verbal innuendo: the Mamgai girl vamps it up and shakes her bottom in a song, but the audience-applause moment, the money-shot, bewilderingly enough comes when Devgn strips off his vest, fires a couple of blanks in her direction, and kicks the girl.
Much later, just so he’s left nothing to chance (and no imagination un-abused), he penetrates the villain. Yup.
It’s all tremendously weird stuff, weird enough to be worth recommending.
Visually, the film goofs around a fair bit — a villain shown in silhouette to look like The Undertaker turns out merely to be a Johnny Lever lookalike on steroids; superhero posters show up all through the film; Devgn talks about his shock and this is underscored by a flashback of, yes, him looking shocked; all the shots in Bangkok involve either samurai swords or dojos or conference rooms festooned by red lanterns — and parts of it pass by in a silly haze.
It’s a loony trip.
Which isn’t to say there aren’t painful problems.
The first half is a complete assault on the senses, Sonakshi Sinha cannot possibly be allowed to channel 90s Govinda anymore, and it’s cruel to make us watch Devgn try to dance.
Or worse still, watch him fight to music, resulting in highly effeminate Dance Fu, where he clutches at floating toothpicks as if threading invisible canapés.
And Kunal Roy Kapoor, man, is just… No.
No Kunal, no.
For not casting you in anything following Delhi Belly, this industry owes you a million beers. But aargh. It’s also at least a half-hour too long, even for a B-movie masochist.
Still, as trashy films go, this is properly nutty garbage.
Action Jackson is a drinking game of a film, one well over the so-bad-it’s-good line, its main merit being that in a sea of superstar-massaging vehicles, it holds some genuine surprises.
Skip the first half and smuggle in a quart of something bitter, and you’ll be just fine.
Not least because of how valiantly Mamgai shows up in the second half to combat Devgn’s monopoly on cleavage.
He still does his GaGa-hands, but she more than steals the show and gives us a new-age vamp with genuine potential.
Prabhudeva, bless him, gives us something too warped to be predictable, and it hurts how thrillingly close he came to getting the name just right.
A film this focussed on what lies under the jeans should really have been called Action Johnson.
Rediff Rating:
3/5
its review or interview of politician regarding opposition party ..ROFL
Thanks to everyone for saving ma 300 bucks..wl surely going to recharge my mobile wd 3g bt aftr reading comments wl nvr bear to watch dis movie in theatre..lol
@Babaji 1:51 PM – You summed it up very well!