War Movie Review, Release Date, Star Cast, Story
War Movie Release Date:
2nd October, 2019
War Star Cast:
Hrithik Roshan as Major Kabir Dhaliwal
Tiger Shroff as Captain Khalid Rahmani
Vaani Kapoor as Naina Verma
Nithish as Kavin Rahmani
Ashutosh Rana as Colonel Sunil Luthra
Anupriya Goenka as Aditi Nahta
Yash Raaj Singh as Saurabh
Mashhoor Amrohi as Firoze Contractor
Sanjeev Vatsa as Rizwan Iiyasi
Dipannita Sharma as Dr. Mallika Singhal
Soni Razdan as Khalid’s mother
Arif Zakaria as Dr. Utpal Biswas
War Movie Review:
Once upon a time, two hero films were in vogue but in today’s time it is a rarity. Yash Raj Films provides relief in this regard in the form of WAR, one of the most anticipated films of the year. The film features two of the most popular actors today and the way they are portrayed has raised the excitement to insane levels. So does WAR manage to live up to all the expectations and emerge as a true blue action entertainer? Or does it fail to entice? Let’s analyze.
WAR is the story of two patriotic soldiers fighting against each other. Khalid (Tiger Shroff) is the son of an army officer who joined hands with enemies. As soon as Khalid’s mother (Soni Razdan) finds out, she informs the army and the father is killed by fellow officer Kabir (Hrithik Roshan). For an important mission, Khalid is assigned a part in Kabir’s team. Kabir is clearly apprehensive but Khalid wins him over with his loyalty and bravery. After this the story moves forward two years. Kabir is assigned the task of eliminating a dreaded terrorist. Instead of killing him, Kabir kills his commanding officer VK Naidu (Mohit Chauhan). Khalid and the others are shocked that someone like Kabir has become a crook. Khalid is instructed to kill Kabir immediately before causing more harm to him. While Khalid tries to trace Kabir’s whereabouts, Kabir steals army equipment in a daring mid-air stunt. In another act of bravery, Kabir appears before Khalid and informs him that his next target is a certain Dr. Utpal Biswas (Arif Zakaria). What happens next becomes the rest of the film.
Aditya Chopra and Siddharth Anand’s story is good and full of twists and turns. The screenplay by Sridhar Raghavan and Siddharth Anand is effective and engaging for most parts. However, there is a lot of dumbbell down in the second half which could have been avoided. Some developments are quite disjointed and therefore difficult to digest. Abbas Tyrewala’s dialogues are not memorable but useful.
Siddharth Anand’s direction is simple and he shows that he has the ability to handle a film of this scale. He connects the dots in the narrative neatly. On the flipside, he could have shortened some of the action sequences for better effect. Some moments also give a scene from previous YRF movies like Dhoom, Tiger Zinda Hai etc. In the end, the way Tiger Shroff and Hrithik Roshan are pitted against each other may not seem completely acceptable to fans.
The WAR starts on a rocking note. There is a twist in Kabir’s entry sequence and the audience is going to be shocked. If Kabir’s entry impresses, Khalid’s entry blows away in a jiffy as it is a powerful action sequence shot in one take. One would expect the cat and mouse chase to begin right here. But instead, the film goes on a flashback mode to explain the dynamics of Kabir and Khalid’s bond. The mid-air action scene is quite fun while the intermission comes at a turning point. Post interval, the Hrithik vs Tiger saga begins in full force and turns into a fun watch. The film does get a bit stretched but the twist in the story saves the day to some extent. Ideally a film like this should have ended on a high level but the finale battle is exhausting and very long.
Talking about the performance, both Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff give excellent performance. Hrithik Roshan is looking very dashing and his acting is amazing. He is brilliant in every frame. In some emotional moments, he is quite sweet. As expected, Tiger Shroff’s action is out of this world and the way he fights the villains in the long action sequences in the beginning is commendable. He shines in the emotional sequences and his acting gets better in the pre-climax and finale. Vaani Kapoor’s (Naina) entry is too late but she manages to impress with her performance and oomph. Also, she dances like a dream. Ravi Awana (Bashir) is very convincing as a terrorist. The actors who play Sanjeev Vats (Rizwan Ilyasi) and Feroz Contractor are quite good as the villains. Ashutosh Rana is dependable as ever. Anupriya Goenka (Aditi) has a good on-screen presence and suits the role. Dipannita Sharma (Dr Mallika Singhal) is fine in the cameo. Soni Razdan, Arif Zakaria, Mohit Chauhan and Swaroop Ghosh (Sherna Patel) are fine.
Vishal-Shekhar music does not have a long shelf life. Thanks to Hrithik and Tiger’s chemistry, ‘Jai Jai Shivshankar’ is the better of the two songs. Next comes ‘Ghungroo’. Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara’s background score is energetic and adds to the thrill. Benjamin Jasper’s cinematography matches global standards. The film has been shot in some of the most beautiful locations in the world and the lensman does justice to every place. Rajat Poddar’s production design is rich and eye-catching. Action by Paul Jennings, Oh Seeung, Parvez Shaikh and Franz Sphilhaus is the high point. Every action scene is well thought out and choreographed. The finale battle could have been shorter and more imaginative though. The costumes of Anita Shroff Adajania and Niharika Jolly make the actors sensual. YFX’s VFX is better. Editing by Arif Sheikh is slick. The various action shots are stitched together nicely. But some scenes in the second half needed to be trimmed.
Overall, WAR is a paisa vasool action entertainer with enough twists and turns along with style to keep the audience hooked. The extended weekend at the box office, dazzling action, scintillating international locations and stylish execution will ensure a huge audience for the film.