Hyped as the biggest release of the year, and as the slickest action thriller to come out of India, “Dhoom 3” turns out to be a damp squib. For an action film, there is hardly any action – instead the 172 minute film is laden with an insipid romance and many other distractions that add nothing to the story except lengthen it further.

Aamir though manages to instil some faith in even this empty vessel. Had this been any other Khan or B-town heartthrob you could accept Dhoom 3 as a run-of-the-mill entertainer. But we’re talking here about an actor, filmmaker and genius who sets the benchmark for perfection. Sadly Dhoom 3’s lack of depth is a bonafide disappointment.

Dhoom 3 will definitely find a place for itself in the crowd and will be enjoyed by a great number of audience. However, it is not for those who rely on logic in the first half! Post interval, the story heats up. Dhoom target audience is likely to ‘lap up’ this treat and it would be the best DHOOM so far.

In a year that has produced films such as ‘Kai Po Che!’ and ‘Bhaag Milkha Bhaag’, that have boasted a crisp storyline and powerful screenplay, along comes a cinematic masterpiece that chucks the very backbone of a good film – it’s script – and decides to go down with a loud ‘Dhoom’ in the third instalment of this money-spinning franchise.

To watch Dhoom:3, you have to get rid of the expectations that are raised in most average human beings suffering from an illness called common sense. Once that is out of the way, Dhoom:3 is rather easy to appetise. It’s easy to believe that Abhishekh Bachchan, who looks as fit and flexible as a pillow, can do a somersault in mid-air, punch a man and get back to his seat on a bike. It’s also easy to believe that Uday Chopra has great degrees of self respect, yet he agrees to appear in Dhoom films.

Vijay Krishna Acharya’s screenplay is superbly exciting as it keeps the eyes of the audience glued to the screen. Yes, there are a few dull scenes but the impact of the interesting parts of the film is so outstanding that in the overall scheme of things and because of the brilliance of the major portions, the dull portions pale into insignificance.

Khan, who was billed as one of the big draws of the latest Dhoom, turns out to be one of its biggest liabilities. Pushing his body to the limit but limiting his facial movements, Khan sets himself up for a year’s worth of supply of parody through attempts to convey determination and purpose by knitting his brows together.