Gulliver’s Travels

Rating: **

Movie Review: Gulliver’s Travels It’s only in the hands of Hollywood that Gulliver would travel to Lilliput and Brobdingnag to basically make the journey from a newspaper office’s mail room to the editor’s cabinet and to get the girl. It’s only in the hands of Hollywood that Gulliver would be considered noble and valiant for basically saving the king and the kingdom by “releasing” himself on them during a fire. It’s only in the hands of Hollywood that underpants would be exposed — pun intended — as the weakest link during any fight. And it’s only in the hands of Hollywood that a robot that could put Iron Man to shame would rise up against Gulliver,and rather than marvel at the achievement of the little men behind the gigantic task,the film would use it as a prop to be pummelled upon. But why should this fate befall the much-beloved Gulliver’s Travels,a story that piques a child’s imagination as much as an adult’s understanding of size and differences and how they are relative and inconsequential? The Gulliver (Black) of this film does no such growing up. The guy from the mail room,in love with an editor (Peet) but afraid to tell her so,plagiarises articles from Time Out to land himself a trip to the Bermuda Triangle. On the wheel,he dozes off,gets caught in a vortex and wakes up in Lilliput. Once that strategic dropping of the trousers has established him as a hero,there is no looking back for Gulliver. He lets them think he was the president — “President the Awesome” — where he came from and merrily lets the Lilliputians slog to build him a grand house overlooking the ocean. Unmindful of what the effort costs them,that house includes everything from an extendable couch to a coffee machine. His next demand is a replica of the Times Square,with billboards advertising everything from “G-Pad” to “Gavatar”. The only person not taken in by him is General Edward,Lilliput’s saviour for all seasons till Gulliver came along. Edward is engaged to the Princess (Blunt),and during the course of his busy day — including compulsory village pillage — he drops in for “courtship”. This could be one of the film’s funniest sequences,pitting a stuck-up general against a princess whose wont so far has been to sit around to be kidnapped. But true to the bland nature of this Gulliver’s travels,bland conversation marks these exchanges. Still,Edward is the only character with some depth,and movement. Even Segel (of How I Met My Mother) is a miserable flop,looking ridiculous in the scarves he is made to sport and the lines he is trained by Gulliver to spout in the course of wooing his love,the Princess. Eventually Gulliver wins the battles that matter,with little effort and even less pain. But does he emerge bigger or smaller from these encounters? Sometimes,size does matter.

shalini.langer@expressindia.com