Sholay is a movie that needs no introduction to Indians. Labelled as a curry western by foreign media, the movie remains the all time blockbuster with supremely well written sequences, great characters enacted by aptly cast actors, a fantastic screenplay with almost every dialogue being remembered by fans and great songs. Sholay was the first movie where you used to get audio cassettes with only the dialogues.
Although more than eight scenes come to my mind when I think Sholay, I would focus on the opening action sequence as something that sets the movie apart. Sholay was India's first movie shot in 70 mm stereophonic sound . This gave the opening action sequence a pulsating racy impact. It had camerawork that gave us the long shot expansive view of the landscape and how the dacoits approach the goods train. At the same time it created the intensity of a fist fight when the actors were shooting at the dacoits and still the train was moving at a fast pace.
No wonder this sequence took 7 weeks to shoot and was enabled by a foreign crew. The following picture of the scene were the train powers over the barricade made of wood and tree trunks laid by the dacoits shows the power of the scene.The background music provides the throbbing pace, and the inventive nature of the fighters Jai and Veeru saves the train from getting captured. Sholay was the first movie I saw in the theater with my dad, the sound of the guns and horses was just so awesome.
Scene description:
Inspector Thakur Baldev Singh is carrying 2 petty crooks to prison. The goods train they are traveling in , is attacked by dacoits. Realizing that he wont be able to save himself alone, he asks them for their help. The first scene is about their negotiation with him where Veeru ( Dharmendra)the extroverted one claims that they have seen the inspector before. Jai ( Amitabh ) says he finds every policemans face the same. Realizing they are capable, the inspector enlists their help but tells them they shouldnt escape. Valiantly they fight off the dacoits, watch out for the scene where the train powers through and Amitabh turns over after killing a dacoit .
Although more than eight scenes come to my mind when I think Sholay, I would focus on the opening action sequence as something that sets the movie apart. Sholay was India's first movie shot in 70 mm stereophonic sound . This gave the opening action sequence a pulsating racy impact. It had camerawork that gave us the long shot expansive view of the landscape and how the dacoits approach the goods train. At the same time it created the intensity of a fist fight when the actors were shooting at the dacoits and still the train was moving at a fast pace.
No wonder this sequence took 7 weeks to shoot and was enabled by a foreign crew. The following picture of the scene were the train powers over the barricade made of wood and tree trunks laid by the dacoits shows the power of the scene.The background music provides the throbbing pace, and the inventive nature of the fighters Jai and Veeru saves the train from getting captured. Sholay was the first movie I saw in the theater with my dad, the sound of the guns and horses was just so awesome.
Scene description:
Inspector Thakur Baldev Singh is carrying 2 petty crooks to prison. The goods train they are traveling in , is attacked by dacoits. Realizing that he wont be able to save himself alone, he asks them for their help. The first scene is about their negotiation with him where Veeru ( Dharmendra)the extroverted one claims that they have seen the inspector before. Jai ( Amitabh ) says he finds every policemans face the same. Realizing they are capable, the inspector enlists their help but tells them they shouldnt escape. Valiantly they fight off the dacoits, watch out for the scene where the train powers through and Amitabh turns over after killing a dacoit .
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