Of course the western is a universal genre — one of the best recent examples, “The Proposition,” comes from Australia — and it must be said that Mr. Crowe and Mr. Bale both do excellent work. They and a fine, all-American supporting cast, including Gretchen Mol, Ben Foster, Dallas Roberts and a surpassingly grizzled Peter Fonda, are the main reasons to see “3:10 to Yuma,” an unpredicted addition to the current western revival.

Directed by James Mangold from a script by Halsted Welles, Michael Brandt and Derek Haas, “3:10 to Yuma” remakes a 1957 film of the same title (based on the same Elmore Leonard story), which starred Glenn Ford as the charming baddie and Van Heflin as the rancher who risks everything to escort him to a rendezvous with justice.

The original, directed by Delmer Daves, is a lean and satisfying specimen, a western more concerned with the psychology of its characters than with the mythology of the frontier. Mr. Mangold’s new version, though it expands the story and cranks up the brutality, does its best to honor the unpretentious spirit of the original.

Directed by James Mangold; written by Halsted Welles, Michael Brandt and Derek Haas, based on a short story by Elmore Leonard; director of photography, Phedon Papamichael; edited by Michael McCusker; music by Marco Beltrami; production designer, Andrew Menzies; produced by Cathy Konrad; released by Lionsgate. Running time: 117 minutes.

Gouri Shanker, a popular novelist, makes a trip to a brothel in search of a story for his new novel. He encounters Ammu, a sex worker. Struck by her simple charm, the progressive writer in him decides to rehabilitate her. Gouri offers her marriage and a life of respectability which Ammu finds amusing, and accepts only after her mother's coaxing.

For Ammu was quite comfortable in her profession, and her way of life, and couldn't understand what Gouri was saving her from. Ammu had grown up watching her mother and the rest of the women around her practising the oldest profession in the world. And when her time for initiation came she had taken to it like a fish to water. In fact, she had waited eagerly for the day of her initiation.

Through the scenes of Ammu's childhood, the director provides an interesting insight into her character. Like the scene where little Ammu, seeing the men choose their partners for the night, runs and stands in line with the women. And stands there alone, a forlorn expression on her face, for not being the chosen one. It's in this matter-of-fact way of etching the character of Ammu, and in the depiction of the profession, that the director strikes a different chord.

In fact, the ambience at the brothel is so benign, simple, the women all demurely dressed, that you could have easily mistaken it for one of those joint family settings! And in this too lies the charm of the film.

The credits card mentions Bharati ,the debutante. In a way it's right. For though Bharati has done some inconsequential films, this film gives her a new lease of life. Bharati's interpretation of Ammu lends the character a certain charm and innocence.

Partibhan has come out with an impressive performance playing Gouri with a lot of subtlety and finesse. There's adequate support from Sadhana as Ammu's mother; Mahadevan as Nathan who demands his pound of flesh in return for selecting Gouri for a popular literary award; and Thennavan as Gouri's buddy, a man of the world who berates Gouri for his refusal to trade Ammu for a night to Nathan. Contributing to the film's feel and mood is its effective cinematography by M S Prabhu, its apt melodies by Sabesh Murali and some crisp editing by Sures Ursfilm, which, despite its flaws, and its fairy tale look at the not-so-pleasant world of sex workers, is refreshingly different and worth a watch.

Shortcomings? Oh yes! The romantic track, involving Ajay - Nisha Kothari, is a yawn. To be more specific, the by-now-famous 'suicide' sequence doesn't work. Prior to that, Prashant and Sushmita's meeting with Nisha's parents to seek her hand in marriage for Ajay also falls flat. Besides, this is not for the faint-hearted who detest violent films. RAMGOPAL VARMA KI AAG is sure to give them hiccups.

To cut a long story short, the comparisons with SHOLAY will tell on RAMGOPAL VARMA KI AAG.

In the dark underbelly of Mumbai city, a nihilistic new leader has risen to rule the fetid underworld. His name is Babban [Amitabh Bachchan]. Cruel beyond imagination, psychotically violent and far more devious than any gangster the city has ever known.

Nobody has ever seen him and if they did, they didn't survive to tell the tale. But one man believed in his existence. And that is Inspector Narsimha [Mohanlal], who has a single-minded determination to finish Babban.

RAMGOPAL VARMA KI AAG is SHOLAY, yet different. Sure, the story is the same, but the setting and interpretation of the story are different, very contemporary. As a storyteller, the RGV stamp is visible in a couple of sequences. Note Bachchan's spine-chilling introduction. Nisha's introductory sequence also makes you break into a chuckle. The Sachin episode that gives birth to a bitter enmity is tremendous. The sequence outside the courtroom [Bachchan - Mohanlal face off] is remarkable. Bachchan avenging his brother's death by eliminating Mohanlal's family is terrifying…

After a riveting first half, the pace suddenly slackens in the post-interval portions. Courtesy: The prem kahani. These scenes are far from exciting and only add to the length of the film. In fact, the second hour should be judiciously trimmed by at least 20/25 minutes so that the events unfold at a feverish pace.

There aren't many songs in the narrative. The song that deserves 10 on 10 is 'Mehbooba'. The track is foot-tapping and Urmila's presence sets the screen ablaze. Abhishek Bachchan's appearance in the number will be greeted with surprise and of course, whistles. The Holi track is interesting as well, more for the picturization, not as much for the tune.

Amit Roy's cinematography is outstanding. Note the scene when Bachchan plays with an apple and simply watch the movement of the camera. Awesome! Dialogues [Sajid-Farhad] are in sync with the mood of the film. Besides, the writers haven't lifted any of those legendary lines ['Kine aadmi thhe?', 'Soja, warna Gabbar aa jaayega', 'Yeh haath mujhe de-de Thakur'], but provide interesting alternatives. Action scenes [Pradhyumna] cater more to the desi audiences. Do not expect the MATRIX stunts here!

Bachchan as Babban is exemplary. The veteran has portrayed a variety of roles in his illustrious career: Vijay in ZANJEER, Vijay in DEEWAAR, Jai in SHOLAY, Anthony Gonsalves in AMAR AKBAR ANTHONY, Don/Vijay in DON, Vijay in TRISHUL, Sikandar in MUQADDAR KA SIKANDAR, Vijay Dinanath Chavan in AGNEEPATH, Baadshah Khan in KHUDA GAWAH, DCP Anant in KHAKEE, Debraj Sahai in BLACK, Sarkar in SARKAR and Eklavya in EKLAVYA. Now add Babban to this enviable list!

Mohanlal is topnotch. He matches up to Bachchan in every sequence. Ajay Devgan is competent and balances the mischievous streak with the serious one with ease. Newcomer Prashant Raj does very well. He stands up to the veterans and looks confident all through. Sushmita Sen is restrained. Her performance is perfect. Nisha Kothari does well in her introductory sequence and maintains the pace all through. Sushant Singh is first-rate. Rajpal Yadav irritates. Virendra Saxena is okay. Rasika Joshi makes her presence felt. Sanjay Narvekar, Jeeva, Raju Mavani, Ravi Kale, J.D. Chekravarthy and Suchitra Krishnamoorthi are adequate.

On the whole, RAMGOPAL VARMA KI AAG has a strong first half, but a lengthy and violent second half plays a spoilsport. At the box-office, the film will find the going tough in the wake of its comparisons with the mighty SHOLAY. Its dull opening coupled with uninspiring publicity [the posters/billboards give an impression of an outdated film] will make a dent in its prospects.