Does anyone here remember 1989's Kanoon Apna Apna, starring Dilip Kumar and Sanjay Dutt? I just caught it again, and, well... it's not "quite" so good as I remember its having been. Yes, Dilip Kumar is great in his role — a somewhat more sympathetic rendition of his character in 1982's Shakti, I feel — and Sanjay Dutt's great in the action, but, as a movie, it's just plagued by all those irksome little "'80s' obligations": myriad irritating rape scenes, songs that exist just so the heroine has some screen-time, a whiny mother unable to anything but... whine. It's still OK, but, certainly, this is one movie that has not stood the test of time very well.

The film is dated and embarrassing.

However, I did enjoy the comic villains played by Kadar Khan & Anupam Kher.

Anupam Kher had a pretty small part, and Kader Khan struck me as doing absolutely nothing new in comparison with the countless villains he'd already portrayed in the past. Really — though Sanjay Dutt was, again, good — though only really compelling aspect of the film, for me, was Dilip Kumar (and I'm not even a huge fan of his).

DEI DVD vs YRF DVD:

viewtopic.php?t=2765&highlight=kanoon

The same could be said for all the cast members of this film (Dilip, Nutun, Sanjay Dutt)?? Being typecast is a conventtional part of Indian cinema.

Also, Sanjay Dutt good?? His acting was weak and his meek voice lacked any emotion - as with all his films shot in the 1980's. The scenes with him and Dilip Kumar/Villians highlight this to a major extent. The same happened with this earlier Dilip/Sanjay film "Vidhaata". He only began to improve himself after the 1990's and has only hit peak with recent gems like Vaastav & MunnaBhai 1/2. At least the villians dark humour kept me glued to this otherwise shoddy made film.

Again, I did think that Dilip Kumar's role was a bit of a re-hash of his part in Ramesh Sippy's, Shakti. Nonetheless, I feel he brought enough to it to make it "fresh enough," watchable "one more time." Perhaps Kader Khan's role was more restrictive, but, at the end of the day, I just got nothing out of his performance (and he, too, is a good actor). I very much like Nutan (I loved her in Hrishikesh Mukherjee's, Anari), but actually cringed just about every time she was on screen; it wasn't she — it was her character. I guess I'd just had too much of the "whiny 'maa,'" when I was watching the movie. Sanjay Dutt didn't really carve out a niche for himself in movies until the early–mid 1990s (after which he, too, ended up being typecast time after time as the "gritty, 'Babu' gangster"), but, as an action hero, I've always been reasonably fond of him, even in his earlier work. He lived up to my expectations, and then went a little further, and so I liked his performance. Again, for me, the "villains" did absolutely nothing; they were, of course, cardboard-cutout, "stock" characters, but, even knowing this going in, I couldn't enjoy their presence.

To talk a little more about Dilip Kumar, I think he's a very good actor (and I don't say that simply because it seems like the type of thing a person just "has to say" before embarking upon any discussion about the icon), but I've always ranked him second in the "trinity" that was Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, and Dev Anand. I love Kumar in some of his works (e.g., Aan, Gunga Jumna, Ram Aur Shyam), but find him, overall, unreasonably lauded. Raj Kapoor has always been my pick for "best," both as an actor and as a filmmaker (of course, concerning the latter, he was never in competition with Dilip or Dev, anyway). I don't know quite why I mention this here; I suppose the mood just struck me... .

First things first, you think Kanoon Apna Apna isn't that good on repeated viewings, try watching Mard - I used to love that film as a kid, when I got the DVD, I couldn't bear to watch past the first half hour!!

Secondly, guys, you're talking about a typical masala film - is there much point in analysing the performances? Hundreds of films were made like this in the 80's, some better than others - but at the end of the day, they're just typical masala movies - not films that are gonna be considered a major part of Bollywood cinematic history.

I would have thought that performance was key to any drama...even if it is a 1980's dated, low budget masala film!!!

Also, I think its great that we can debate over such a lousy film It makes for a more intresting read and point of conversation.

Mard is one of those films that I just loved as a kid. Watching it as someone more "grown up," however, an odd thing happened: I still liked it. It's strange, I know, but true. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that, prior to re-watching it, I found myself thinking back to what so drew me to the movie when I was younger. It occurred to me that what I liked was probably what I would now see as sheer "cheesiness." I went in on the DVD, then, expecting something "bad." I got what I expected, and I ended up having a great time. Don't get me wrong: Mard is, by no defensible means, a "good" film. It's dumb, anachronistic, and clichéd; that said, it's an out-and-out "Amitabh-Bachchan film," and, for this "Amitabh-Bachchan fan," it's still a very enjoyable venture.

My point, I guess, is that, while I still really like Mard, I don't appreciate Kanoon Apna Apna as even an "extraordinary 'typical '80s' movie." Dilip Kumar does a great job, and Sanjay Dutt is more than "acceptable," but that's about it.

What you talking about Commando? What "Trinity"? And Dev Anand in the same league? Puhleeez niggah, watch your mouth boy!...................

Come on, you know that, together, Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, and Dev Anand formed Indian cinema's first great "trinity of actors." The three, as contemporaries, rose to be the greatest stars of their time. The phenomenon, I feel, can be seen as somewhat similar to what happened with the "Three Khans" (Aamir, Salman, and Shah Rukh) during the 1990s. With the former group, most people seem to name Dilip Kumar the "winner" as far as talent is concerned. Personally, I like all three (including Dev Anand), but would rank them, 1) Raj Kapoor, 2) Dilip Kumar, and 3) Dev Anand. Of them, it seems that Dev is the only one still active in the industry, though... that might not be a good thing -- .

dev anand in the same list as dilip kumar and raj kapoor.. lol.. come one man.. dev anand was always a pervert in disguise.. shammi kapoor was a lot more fun and energetic than dev anand.. id have him in the trinity over dev anand any day!!

As for lousy films.. i have to agree.. there have been loads of films which I used to love as a kid and I used to think that these movies were comparable with hollywood.. movies such as mard, ajooba, toofan, yudh and a few others i cant exactly think of at the moment.. but looking back at them now, I realise what a crock of shit they are.. they make you cringe at every other scene.. probably a reason why Ive gone of bollywood in a major way recently!!

As per Boxofficeindia stats for top 3 stars over the Yrs Dilip, Dev and Raj Kapoor dominated the list between 1949 and 1965. (Dilip appearing first in the list in 1947 and Dev appeared last in 1971)
http://www.boxofficeindia.com/topactors.htm
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If we count 1 point for #3 slot, 2 for # 2 slot and 3 points for # 1 slot, we get:
(1947-1971)
Dilip Kumar:
1,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,2,2,0,0,0,0,0,0, Total = 53 points

Raj Kapoor:
0,0,2,2,2,2,2,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0, Total = 17 points

Dev Annand:
0,1,0,0,1,1,1,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,1, Total = 23 points

Amitabh : 50 points till 2006

SRK: 33 points till 2006

Rajesh Khanna: Total = 15 points

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There may be minor math errors. Pl point out if find any.

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Any volunteers to do the math assuming 10 points for #1, 9 points for # 2 and 8 points for # 3 and see if rankings change ??

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Of course the best criteria is to see what the stars themselves claim their ranking to be, based on how much they earned or how much Income Tax they paid ??

Faddy, I think Dev Anand was a good actor who did some very good movie (e.g., Jewel Thief, C.I.D., Hare Rama Hare Krishna), and, like him or not, it's undeniable that he was one of India's three "original megastars." I, too, like Shammi Kapoor more, but he came along (especially as a "star") quite after Anand, Kapoor, and Kumar.

As I said, I still like Mard as a sheer "cheesey entertainer." Concerning Ajooba, I loved it as a kid, then began to loathe it as I grew older; then, I started to very much like it again. I think it's more a "kids' movie" than anything else, but I don't find it to be a bad one. It's well-shot, well-acted, has some good songs, and relies on a predictable-but-still-watchable plot. As for Toofan, I haven't seen it in a while, and don't remember it well enough to comment.

You know it just dawned upon me. I never really thought of him in that fashion and now "Swami Dada" seems to be looming foremost in my recollection!