Remaking a classic is never an easy task. However, given that I was six years old in 1978, and haven't seen Chandra Barot's Don, my experience watching Farhan Akhtar's Don was mostly untarnished by any comparisons to its predecessor. That, of course, takes into consideration the fact that Amitabh's performance in Don has achieved legendary status in filmi history. Therefore, though I haven't seen the film, the story and Bachchan's renditions of songs like "Main Hoon Don" and "Khaike Paan Banaraswala" are imprinted on my mind as iconic images of Bollywood history.

So that's what Akhtar and Shah Rukh Khan are up against with Don. How do they fare? I think they did an impressive job: To sum it up, Don is fun - it's glossy, stylish, and campy, and no one seems like they're taking themselves too seriously. Akhtar should be thanked for bringing back the Shah Rukh Khan of yore. In Don, Khan is not afraid to vamp it up, poke fun at himself and charm the audience with his illustration of a villain you love to hate. Khan's ability to be evil onscreen, so wickedly captured in Darr and Baazigar, is still razor-sharp. Simultaneously, Khan's portrayal of Vijay, the village innocent with a UP accent as thick as mud, is on the mark and brings to the forefront (after a long period of hibernation) Khan's comedic talent. Khan's version of the Bachchan classic, "Khaike Paan Banaraswala" is a rocking, energetic track that has your heart pounding and your feet tapping.

Without giving away too much of the plot, Don goes like this: Don, played by Shah Rukh Khan, is a major player in a crime organization that has its base in Malaysia. DCP Silva (Boman Irani) is an Indian detective determined to crack the gang and nab its leaders. Don is killed by De Silva, who then ropes in Vijay (also played by Shah Rukh Khan), a village innocent and Don look-alike, to impersonate Don in order to lead the gangster to his arrest. Into the mix, there is an orphaned child, a sultry woman looking for revenge (Kareena Kapoor, who's never looked better), a vengeful sister (Priyanka Chopra, well-skilled in the stunts aspect of the film but wooden in her acting), and an imprisoned man (Arjun Rampal) looking for his son after losing his wife and job at the hands of Don's gang. Will Don's gang realize that he is not the same man? Will one of Don's many enemies attain their revenge, unwitting to the fact that won't be killing the real Don? The complex plot keeps the viewer on their toes.

Don is a stylish machine that maintains a fast pace and jumps from one suspenseful scene to the next. The scenery of Malaysia is gorgeous, and the actors are glossy and glamorous, like models in a Gucci ad circa the Tom Ford era. For me, if I leave the theatre entertained and sated, it's a good film. Don held my interest for three hours and left a smile on my face.