Bollywood Hero

Saturday Night Live veteran Chris Kattan stars as a comically exaggerated version of himself in this 2009 made-for-cable miniseries. Reduced to playing an alien in a second-rate TV series, the comedian/actor is offered the lead in a Bollywood musical called Peculiar Dancing Boy (“It's a poor translation,” the director assures him), which offers him the chance to play a dashing hero—or so he hopes. Shot mostly on location in Mumbai, India, the comedy is built largely on Kattan's mugging through the usual culture-collision gags as an oblivious American in a foreign land, not to mention his blatant miscasting in a big-budget musical drama (“You spend months in Hollywood looking for a star and that's what you bring back?” screeches the producer). But if he can't be an action hero, at least he gets to be a romantic lead (of sorts) when he falls in love with his no-nonsense producer (Pooja Kumar). The near-three hour IFC-aired Bollywood Hero is filled out with a handful of musical numbers (staged by Slumdog Millionaire choreographer Longinus Fernandes), offering Kattan the opportunity to show off his wannabe suave and sophisticated moves. Although intermittently enjoyable and even a little sweet, this is also a very predictable tale. Maya Rudolph, Jennifer Coolidge, Keanu Reeves, David Alan Grier, and Andy Samberg all appear in cameos as themselves. DVD extras include deleted scenes and outtakes. Optional. (S. Axmaker)