Review of Fighter

Just saw Fighter on an IMAX 3D screen. It's a kind of Bollywood Top Gun, all about pilots and the air force.

 

Top Gun meets patriotism meets Armed Forces meets India vs Pakistan… all ingredients were there for the script writer to turn it into a heady mix or a pathetic kitsch. This film is neither. It is definitely not kitschy, but the story somehow lacks any layers and also fails to elicit an emotional connect at any point.

 

The story is simple enough. Hrithik and Deepika are pilots, and the best of the best in the IAF. Pulwama happens, and then Balakot. The arch villain is a terrorist on whom the Pakistani army, who are his handlers, seems to have no control.

 

Starting with the villain, almost every character in the movie is uni-dimensional. The villain is villainish; Hrithik is, well, Hrithikish, and Deepika and Anil Kapoor also lack any layering to their characters. The story is also quite simplistic, ending in a dishum dishum fight between Hrithik and the villain deep inside Pakistan while all around them everyone is blazing away with their machine guns.

 

The flying scenes are extremely well shot – the technical standards of Bollywood are definitely improving – this film throughout has a Hollywood feel to it in terms of technical excellence. The backdrop of Kashmir in the aerial shots are a treat to watch.

 

Hrithik and Deepika are both very likeable, and very watchable. To her credit, Deepika even manages to match Hrithik on the dance floor, not many would be able to do that. They are a wonderful on-screen pair. Anil Kapoor, as their Commanding Officer, is good too.

 

Definitely a good watch on the big screen, if possible on an IMAX 3D. Shorn of the big screen and the 3D, on Netflix, I doubt if this movie will be worth watching. I would recommend watching it on the big screen before it is taken off, you will certainly like it.