2022 ‧ Crime/Action ‧ 2h 26m Rating: 2/5
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Kriti Sanon, Jacqueline Fernandez, Arshad Warsi, Prateik Babbar, Pankaj Tripathi and Seema Biswas.
Produced by: Sajid Nadiadwala
Director: Farhad Samji
Release Date: 18th March, 2022
Farhad Samji's 'Bachchan Pandey' tells the storey of Bachchan Pandey (Akshay Kumar), the self-proclaimed don of Bhagwa, who has unleashed a reign of terror, viciously slaughtering those who dare to resist him.
How a budding director, Myra (Kriti Sanon), from Mumbai, and her actor-friend Vishu (Arshad Warsi), decide to make a biography on him and land in Bhagwa, and what happens afterwards, is the crux of this two-and-a-half-hour drama.
The film is rife with stereotypes and appears to be a dark comedy, since the humour is frequently cloaked in gore, with only a few comedic one-liners come to the rescue.
The plot appears to be good, but the ambitious treatment adds to the uncertainty. The scenes are very long, and the brutality is a concerted effort.
Aside from the action sequences, there is a lot of blood and violence. Bachchan Pandey and his gang of thugs slit people's throats and shoot at them without blinking an eyelid, including Kandi (Saharsh Kumar Shukla), Bufferiya (Sanjay Mishra), Pendulum (Abhimanyu Singh), and Virgin (Prateik Babbar).
The first half of the film, while exaggerated, appears convincing in establishing Bachchan Pandey's character, but after the intermission, the film becomes tiresome to watch.
In the third act, elements such as Bachchan's love life with Sophie (Jacqueline Fernandez), who is slain, his boss's betrayal (Mohan Agashe), and his mother (Seema Biswas), who hasn't spoken to him in ten years, appear to be forced attempts to enhance melodrama and elicit pity for Pandey. Apart from being out of rhythm with Pandey's character and the flavour of the plot, these just serve to extend the picture and take it down many notches all at once.
The director's attempt to rationalise Bachchan Pandey's transformation into the virtuous soul, Bhola Pandey, causes the picture to lose focus. The music is far from melodious. It's startling and further adds to the film's grim tone.
On the performance front, the film belongs to Akshay Kumar, who, as always, offers a strong and self-assured portrayal with a broken stone eye, an evil persona, and driving around in his vintage automobile. While Bachchan Pandey's backstory validates his motivation to be the evil guy, his change of heart is a little flimsy, hasty, and unconvincing.
Kriti Sanon's performance as Myra, the determined director, is a sure-fire winner. She is every bit the self-assured, creative, and brave individual she is supposed to be. She radiates unrivalled confidence when she is at ease with Akshay Kumar.
Arshad Warsi, who plays Vishu, an actor attempting to fulfil his father's unfulfilled desire of becoming famous, excels in several scenes. Some others, such as Seema Biswas and Mohan Agashe, are squandered, and Pankaj Tripathi as Bhavesh, an acting coach from Gujarat, is exceedingly disappointing, with his over-the-top act and fake Gujarati accent.
Overall, despite ending on a high note, with a message of good triumphing over evil, this Akshay Kumar-starrer fails to captivate the spectator, except in portions.