I watched this movie because of some strong recommendations. But I came away disappointed. Apart from the core concept, I did not find any redeemable factor in the movie. Let me explain in my own way.
10 Things Wrong With Gumnaam
1. Everyone goes on insulting Mehmood's character just because of his dark skin. It goes on and on, and in various insulting forms. Gets sickening after the very first time. And all this is supposed to be comedy. For whom, even for people of color?
2. The same character is given a Hyderabadi accent, and that's again supposed to be funny.
3. The movie has the most insulting song to any demographic of people ever created. The song, Hum Kaale Hai to Kya Hua (What if I am dark?) is an absolute travesty, cringe-worthy to watch. Mirror of those times, eh?
4. The only way the lead actor gets the girl is by stalking her. When he gets insufferable, she tells him, "You have made my life difficult." Then he breaks into song Ek Ladki ne Jeena Mushkil Kar Diya (A girl has made my life difficult). At the end of the song, they are in love. And the actor is the holier-than-thou Manoj Kumar.
5. Logic dies several deaths in the movie. In one scene a female actor is informed that her uncle has expired. She does one of those mandatory "Naheeeen" things, and the next scene she is dancing the cabaret in a shiny gold dress.
6. Second death of logic: Manoj Kumar is shown as a steward on a plane. Then the plane goes haywire and they land on a mysterious island. There, people wonder, "What did you do in Bombay for a living?"
7. Another logic death: On the island where they are stranded, they find out from a diary that they are brought here as punishment for their past sins and they are all going to die miserable deaths. No one even bats an eyelid at that; they are more interested on what's in their dinner plates. And the next morning, Helen goes for a swim in the ocean in a bikini, and men such as Pran and Dhumal forget everything and lust over her.
8. This is one of those Indian movies where foreign countries mustn't be named, for IDK what reason. When people win a raffle, the announcement is "Aap videsh jaa rahe hai." (You are going to another country.) No one asks which, the plane has no name, and they all land up the next day dressed in three-piece suits (the men) for the journey! En route, when the plane develops a snag, the pilot tells the plane can still land. The people hop out of it, and the pilot comes and says, "It will take two hours for me to repair the engine. Meanwhile, you can roam around." IN A FOREIGN COUNTRY! As if it is a Neeta Volvo Bus!
9. And they find nothing in the place they land, but a desolate haveli and in that the Hyderabadi character of all things! Hyderabad is everywhere, right!
10. Pran goes on drinking booze all the time on the stranded island.
I can go on and on about this Indian "classic" but now I have other things to do. However, even watching this was a learning experience. I get a feel of what people of those times used to rave about. Today, this movie would have been laughed out of the cinema halls.
