Bollywood Movie Reviews
Pathaan Is A Slick Spin On SRK’s Stardom
Pathaan Movie Review: There is no reason why any review of Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathaan(directed by Siddharth Anand but it’s an SRK showcase all the way) needs to be written. The two-and-a-half hour eruption of stylish action will be seen at least once by every movie patron in India, and then of course out West where Sharon Stone, I believe, has already bought bulk tickets for the entire weekend for her friends, family, fans and househelp .
Cast
Shah Rukh Khan as Pathaan, a RAW agent
John Abraham as Jim, a rogue agent turned leader of ‘Outfit X’
Deepika Padukone as Rubina Mohsin, a ISI agent
Ashutosh Rana as Colonel Sunil Luthra
Manish Wadhwa as General Qadir
Dimple Kapadia
Siddhant Ghegadmal
Gautam Rode
Gavie Chahal
Shaji Choudhary
Diganta Hazarika as an ally of Pathaan
Salman Khan as Tiger/Avinash Sing Rathore (cameo appearance)
Directed by Siddharth Anand
Rating: *** ½
Pathaan is a very slick action film. The stunts leave us open mouthed , like Sharon Stone when she saw SRK pass by.
We get to see Shah Rukh Khan more than just pass by in the title role. He is all there muscled and armed ready to take on the world to protect his country. There is a lot of stress in the rippling writing on how patriotic ‘Pathaan’ is. And if we consider the fact that the audiences do not separate the character from the actor when it comes to Salman or Shah Rukh, then the dialogues on nationalism(by Abbas Tyrewala) make a lot of sense.
The political undertones(Article 370 is the triggering point for the bullet bath) are not to be missed. The director won’t let you.
Speaking of Salman and Shah Rukh their Karan-Arjun kinship in their sequence together is winsomely rugged. Most of the film is designed to give Indian fans of Shah Rukh Khan and action cinema a run for their money.
Director Siddharth Anand has a fairly firm grip over a plot that goes all over the place. Not that there is much of it to go anywhere. The screenplay is slinky skeletal and not epic in intent content or impact. But there is always a sense of urgency built into the goings-on. So that we never get a chance to get distracted.
On the other hand, the unfolding of the surprises in the plot is a bit like doing a Santa on a child who already knows about the Christmas gifts hidden under the bed.
Visually, Pathaan is a feast of fury. The fights especially between Shah Rukh and John Abraham(the latter as a seething terrorist grits his teeth so hard we fear for his teeth) are virile and boisterous. The sound decibel drowns out all subtlety.
But then who is in this for tact? Be prepared for your senses to be attacked.
Pathaan Premise
Pathaan, an exiled RAW field operative is assigned to take down his old nemisis named Jim, a former RAW agent turned rogue, who leads “Outfit X”, a private terrorist organization, which is planning to spread a deadly virus dubbed “Raktbeej” across India.
