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An Action Hero Movie Review: Ayushmann Khurrana’s film rides on a solid first half & an unexpected climax
Ayushmann Khurrana and Jaideep Ahlawat starrer An Action Hero's trailer itself had created a lot of hype and now the film is finally out in the theatres. Scroll down to read the review.
Name: An Action Hero
Director: Anirudh Iyer
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Jaideep Ahlawat
Rating: 3.5 / 5
Plot:
Much like all absconders, India’s biggest action hero, Manav Khurrana (Ayushmann Khurrana), escapes to London after he accidentally kills the brother of a top politician in India, to avoid the arrest by local cops. While Manav decides to fight his legal battle from London, believing in the power of truth, little does he know that the politician, Bhoora (Jaideep Ahlawat), has vowed to take revenge and has already arrived in London to kill him. How does Manav protect himself from the cops and the goons? Watch An Action Hero to know more
What works?
The biggest strength of An Action Hero is director Anirudh Iyer’s conviction to narrate this quirky tale of revenge in a certain way. His storytelling pattern and direction manage to hold attention all throughout the narrative. The screenplay is laced with some great one-liners and movements that take you by shock. The entire first half moves in a brisk pace, with engaging episodes, one after the other. Right from the entire style of setting up the story in India, to the airplane block with Akshay Kumar and finally, the cat-and-mouse chase between Manav, the cops, and Bhoora in London – the screenplay keeps you hooked.
The second half too has some solid moments, especially the climax, though, it might get varied reactions from the audience. The team has a big win on the background score front, as it’s upbeat and in sync with the tempo and mood of the film. The action scenes too are surprisingly well-designed, well-shot, and well-written, as they are not mere additions, but actually take the story forward. One of the biggest high points of the film is the 5-minute appearance of Akshay Kumar, as that’s sure to bring the house down with laughter. His mere expressions are enough to evoke laughter and to add to that, his dialogue parting dialogue with Ayushmann is easily among the best scenes of the year.
What doesn’t work?
The screenplay of An Action Hero gets a little repetitive in the second half. There are certain moments, where you are forced to think, why aren’t the characters killing each other? In fact, the film also goes off track for a brief period, but the director does well to pull all the strings and bring the story back in the grove with the extended climax. The entire underworld track doesn’t work in the initial few frames, and the entire way of making a satire out of the current sad state of Indian media is stretched beyond imagination. While the makers are true in their projection of TRP, the entire track could have been trimmed.
The drawbacks would have had an edge if not for the extended climax, particularly the twist in the tale makes you look beyond some of the logical loopholes. While most of the emotions are desi and relatable, the climax might not be everyone’s cup of tea, restraining the reach of the film. The reactions might be polarised to the final 30 minutes, but this one is sure to find appreciation from a large chunk of the audience post its digital release. Malaika Arora’s dance number doesn’t add any value to the film and is a bad recreation of an iconic song.
Performances
Ayushmann Khurrana steps into the action space for the first time and this is the most heroic he has ever looked in a film. He carries the attitude of a superstar in the initial frames and transforms his body language as the story progresses. He brings in several shades to the character and passes the test of getting into the slightly macho space with flying colors. Jaideep Ahlawat is fabulous as Bhoora and some of his straight-face dialogues define what dark comedy exactly stands for. The anger beneath him translates into some fun moments in the film. Akshay Kumar’s cameo is hilarious to say the least and it’s such a delight to finally see him in an urban avatar this year, doing what he does best – comedy. Jitender Hooda and Hiten Patel do well in their limited roles. The rest of the ensemble do well in their limited roles.
Verdict
An Action Hero is an intelligently written action thriller, wherein the director follows his conviction to strike the right balance in the genre with some humor and whacky scenarios. The conflict does get repetitive in the second half, but the finale saves the day for this Ayushmann Khurrana film. It’s definitely Worth-A-Dekho this weekend.
ALSO READ: Here’s why Ayushmann Khurrana is ‘losing his head’ these days; The reason will leave you intrigued
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