Long before CHANDNI CHOWK TO CHINA (2009) was proclaimed "Bollywood's first Kung Fu movie" Farogh Siddique made JIGAR starring Ajay Devgan. It had everything familiar to Indian audiences, romance, drama, music and a near 3 hour running time, but also some awesome fight action. Drawing heavily on American Jean-Claude Van Damme movies like BLOODSPORT (1988) and KICKBOXER (1989) as well as some classic Hong Kong Kung Fu flicks, the 1992 film arguably stands as one of Bollywood's best action movies. Shifting between brutal and unintentionally amusing moments and boasting more dancing and romance than any other action movie you're likely to see, even 18 years later it stands up as a hell of an action flick.
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filmnut12 August 2010
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guardians20069 September 2008There was a time in Indian cinema when no brains like Jigar was deemed as entertainment, thankfully the eighties are no more when screen violence had no reason, and men saw rape as a joy to view on screen. Still it mange to create curiosity with the then newcomer Ajay Devgan, who starred in the blockbuster Phool Aur Kannte (1990), and who was gaining stardom as an action hero. How much has changed from the past to what he is currently, a talented actor with quality films like Zakham (1998) and Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999) behind him.
The soundtrack of this film was quite a big seller and made the once S-Series record label, owned by producer Salim, quite successful for a short period of time. He even produced some decent movies like Phool Aur Angarrey (1992), and Bazzi (1993).
The film's main characters are the fight sequences that seem poorly executed and rushed. The choreography is somewhat dull and lacks what other excellent king-f films have in its pacing, editing and cinematography. It even goes to borrow scenes from numerous classic Jackie Chan films like Snake in the Eagle Shadow and Drunken Master. The performances from the entire cast are hammy and off-key, but that is expected for a movie of this genre. The romantic elements do take up most of the film time and some trimming could have been done. Technical values are average and now are appearing rather dated.
The plot is reminiscent to numerous Cantonese films that are within the king-f genre, and like films of this genre Jigar is gaining a cult like status with video rentals and satellite showings. It might not be one people are planning to watch but when it's on you can't help but watch along. It's what I like to call the "Mithun Syndrome" (see below to further understand what is meant by this term). You really don't get anything out of this feature; it's not even a time pass film but the Mithun Syndrome is quite high on this feature.
Mithun Syndrome = when you wouldn't rent that film, but when its on the screen you follow what is occurring with a strange willing to compromise and be contempt with whatever the film shows. -
silvan-desouza29 January 2010After the success of PHOOL AUR KAANTE(1991) Ajay returned with another actionner JIGAR which was a remake of KICKBOXER
Ajay showed his panache in doing stunts required for the role and his several martial arts stunts are a treat
The film has a good plot and it's well handled though there are lot of clichés and the film does have the typical cheesy scenes
Direction is good Music is okay
Ajay looked skinny and dull but his acting was decent his stunts got most appreciated Karisma annoys and looks expressionless and kiddish Ajit is good, Paresh Rawal as the Bihari villain is okay Gulshan Grover is good as the good cop Aruna Irani annoys as the mother as usual -
Jigar is the ultimate Bollywood Kung Fu style action movie. It has a mix of Hollywood and Hong Kong movies. Kickboxer, Bloodsport are the Hollywood Films it Copied. Snake in the Eagle Shadow is among the Jackie Chan film it copies. Ajay Devgan is the Hero, who's sister gets raped by local Fighting champion. Ajay wishes to take revenge, by beating him. He trains under Ajit (Remind you of Kickboxer, same training style's). He learns many moves including the snake style (Same fighting style as JAckie Chans Snake in the Eagle shadow). Ajay Enter's the tournament, and the Baddie cheats by throwing powder (Bloodsport style). The movie was a nice effort, I'm sure many people who have never seen Van Damme and Jackie Chan movies enjoyed this. For Bollywood, Ajay does have some impressive skills, nothing compared to Bruce and Jackie of course. Karishma is useless as usual. Aroona Irani is normally a great actress, but here she goes over the top. Good effort, but I'm a Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan freak, so i did not enjoy this.
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E-Lorenzsonn3 April 2006As a official Ajay Devgan Fan I try to get my hands on all his movies. So one day I also came across that one.
The story is quite simple. Raju (Ajay Devgan), a middle class boy, is sentenced to death because he is a Murderer. He and his girlfriend (Karizma Kapoor) go to meet the home minister on his birthday. And they tell him the story of how Raju ended up murdering someone. In the end it is all about a guy fighting against evil with his strength. Just like in the Honkong Flix you do have two schools competing against each other and you do have Raju joining one of them because he wants personal revenge. The training sequence is a mix of Bruce Lee and Jacky Chan movies but not even close to being as athletic or fast (even I could have gotten that Egg without braking it!) I usually enjoy the Veeru Devgan Action but this time I am convinced that he watched way too many Honkong Movies and decited to use the best scenes in that movie with the only problem that well.. AJ is really strong and everything but he is no good in Material arts Hongkong stile! As an Ajay Devgan Fan I enjoyed the movie non the less and it really has it's moments but if you want to see the movie because of the action I recommend to buy a real Bruce Lee movie -
namashi_16 March 20091992 flick 'Jigar' is an awesome film. One of the best entertainers from the 90's. The film's script is mediocre, but the way the director handles it is truly commendable. The film was blockbuster when it released and even today the film enjoys a great following. I love this film!
Songs: Pyar Ke Kagaz Pe is one the most beautiful songs I've ever heard. I love this song!
Performances: Ajay Devgan has done a great job. Lets not forget this is one of those flick when Devgan was new in films. Karishma Kapoor looks lost. Paresh Rawal is excellent as the villain. Arjun is also damn good. Aroona Irani is functional. Ajit is superb. Gulshan Grover excels. Others also do their part well.
'Jigar' is a solid entertainer. Two Thumbs Up!