Though the testosterone level is pumped to the max, thereвЂ™s still room for funny jokes, fooling around and vibrant film characters that spring to life with mythical deeds and single-minded passions. Less successful is the screenwritersвЂ™ attempt to embed the tale in a historical and political context, which simply doesnвЂ™t have room to emerge amid all the mayhem. Tipping his hat to Scorsese, Sergio Leone and world cinema as well as paying homage to Bollywood, writer-director-producer Anurag Kashyap ( Black Friday) fashions a kind of вЂњOnce Upon a Time in BengalвЂќ, a piece of violent entertainment that never seems to run out of invention or bullets.

PHOTOS: Cannes Day 7: Brad PittвЂ™s вЂKilling Them SoftlyвЂ™ Premiere, вЂLe Grand SoirвЂ™ Photocall Its bow in CannesвЂ™ Directors Fortnight met with rousing consensus, but itвЂ™s still an exotic taste at a delirious length. Split into two parts, as it will be released in India, this epic gangster story spanning 70 years of history clocks in at more than five hours of smartly shot and edited footage, making it extremely difficult to release outside cult and midnight venues. All of this bodes well for cross-over audiences in the West. An extraordinary ride through BollywoodвЂ™s spectacular, over-the-top filmmaking, Gangs of Wasseypur puts Tarantino in a corner with its cool command of cinematically-inspired and referenced violence, ironic characters and breathless pace.

Gangs of wasseypur