Silly comedy is an art. Contrary to what many might assume, 'silly comedy' is not a criticism. It is a brand of comedy, like dark comedy. In recent times, Jathi Ratnalu, MAD and Sivakarthikeyan's Prince excelled at this brand of comedy to varying degrees.
Robinhood, whose Trailer is out now, seems to attempt the silly brand of comedy in the context of an action comedy. The intent is praise-worthy, but the jokes don't land. Usually, trailers feature the best jokes. And the best jokes in Robinhood are embarrassing. Rajendra Prasad's character confusing 'forefathers' to mean 'four fathers' is a dad joke. School kids crack these jokes before they reach the high-school stage. The 'England-India' joke is not even one; it is an SMS-era observation made for the amusement of, again, school kids.
To be fair, the makers of Robinhood were warning us all along. Their 'Honest Podcasts' series has failed to extract laughs. The quality of humour in the film could be as impressive as Sreeleela's acting talent.
At this rate, Robinhood must rely heavily on its style quotient and the action sequences. Going by the trailer, again, the villains seem to be all flashy and no substance. They try hard to be punchy, much like our hero.
Produced by Mythri Movie Makers, this March 28th release has music by GV Prakash Kumar.
