Kill Movie (Guest) Review

  

Kill

Director: Nikhil Nagesh Bhat

Stars: Lakshya, Raghav Juyal, Ayesha Syad & Tanya Maniktala

Runtime: 1 hour 45 mins

Genre: Action Crime Drama

Kill premiered at TIFF in September 2023 to a rapturous response. It then went onto screen at Tribeca Film Festival in June of this year. Made on a shoestring budget (an estimated equivalent of $2.5 million dollars). The movie has piqued the interest of non other than action supremo David Leitch with his production company 87Eleven Entertainment purchasing the rights to a US remake.  

As for this movie, let's break it down... 

Story and Plot

When a highly trained army commando Amrit (Lakshya) finds out his true love Tulika (Maniktala) is engaged against her will, he boards a New Delhi train in a daring quest to derail the arranged the marriage. The problem is he's sharing the train with a gang of knife-wielding bandits led by ruthless Fani (Juyal) who is terrorizing innocent passengers, so Amrit takes them on himself and turns a typical commute into an adrenaline-fueled thrill ride.

 

Review by Sunil...

My son Nikhil (who shares the same first name as the director!) has been pestering me to watch this movie ever since he saw the trailer. I really watch it for him!! So, was it worth it?...

With a tagline stating that this is the most violent movie in the history of Indian cinema and a Rotten Tomatoes score of 92%, it would seem that it is worth it!!

Kill is the very simple story of a train, that gets invaded by a group of looting bandits that just happens to have on its passenger manifest, two Commandos!!

What happens next is a mix of brutal violence at the hands of both sides as people get mercilessly beaten/slaughtered while containing a light hearted love story.

However...

Things turn from bad to worse when something very unexpected happens and the Commando breaks his own rule and starts to... KILL!!!

What starts off as level 7 violence quickly winds up to 11!!! The movie does not hold back with showing blood, violence and gore (unsurprising given that it had been made in collaboration with Lionsgate Pictures.. makers of the Saw franchise) and is like a combination of John Wick meets Jason!! ... They come up with different ways to showcase killing. You can see the Hollywood influence with the kill types.. but this is definitely a Bollywood movie!!

The movie, like John Wick is non-stop and relentless in its action, but thankfully does give the occasional pause for a breather to allow for some storytelling!! ... That does include a girlfriend!!

The main character, played by newcomer Lakshya, is ok in his debut!! His fights are convincing and he looks the part, although he could have conveyed more emotion in the fight scenes with more intense facial expressions (he was better in the romantic scenes), but all in all, he was convincing!!

The movie is promoted on showcasing violence and does somehow work if you go into it wanting relentless action and fight scenes!! The standout character for me is actually one of the villains, who is charming, psychotic and an absolute nut job at the same time!! In my opinion, it leads to a very sad but sweet and touching ending. I am interested to see what the makers of John Wick do with their edit!!

Stand-out scene: Ghost Rider! You'll know what I mean when you see it!!

Living up to it's name, Kill is "Bloody" Bollywood at it's best. 105 pulsating minutes of non stop violent action cinema. Heart-torn melodrama mixed with thrilling action. Hop on board, grab a seat and enjoy the ride!

 

Verdict  - MATCHED EXPECTATIONS