Director Vikram Bhatt recently denied rumours that his forthcoming film Speed was inspired by Hollywood film, Cellular.
'Producer Harry Baweja came up with the script and I loved the idea. We have changed the screenplay and our film is very original. Speed is an action thriller. There's a twist every two-three minutes in the film and it is completely unpredictable,' Bhatt is reported to have said.
The plot of Cellular involved a young man who receives an emergency phone call on his cell phone from a random woman. The catch? The woman claims to have been kidnapped; and the kidnappers have targeted her husband and child next. The kidnapped woman is kept in a farm house from where she puts together the remains of a smashed telephone and makes 'The Call.'
The plot of Speed involves a young man (Zayed Khan [Images]) who receives an emergency phone call on his cell phone from a random woman (Urmila Matondkar). The catch? The woman claims to have been kidnapped; and the kidnappers have targeted her child next. She is kept in a farmhouse / stable from where she puts together the remains of a smashed telephone and makes 'The Call.'
Wow, Mr Baweja! How do you get such brilliant ideas? Perhaps, a quick detour to the nearest DVD library? Now, lets forget the script for a second. To delve into this different screenplay -- we watch as the tension builds up. Urmila is frantically making faces on the phone and Zayed's phone battery beeps. Oh No! Battery Low. So he hijacks the nearest phone show and gets a car charger. Well, I've never seen such a brilliant twist in the screenplay. I've never ever seen this before. Oh wait! I did. The same scene was part of the Cellular screenplay. Mr Baweja, you had me fooled there for one second.
Anyway, if you are still interested in knowing the plot, it involves a patented prime minister assassination (Suhasini Mulay) that Raj Zutshi organises through Aftab Shivdasani [Images]. Thus, this miserable excuse of a film.
If someone calls you to see this film even for free, hang up!
Rediff Rating: