Carl Roberts 
“Kill is the Bollywood version of Die Hard, only thirty years too late. Its blend of action and violence can’t save it from being completely average.”
When Die Hard opened in the summer of 1988, it ushered in a brand new era for action movies. A witty, violent, claustrophobic action thriller, it remains to this day as one of the quintessential action movies. Of course, it spawned sequels and ripoffs that tried to cash in on the formula (Passenger 57, Cliffhanger, Under Siege, etc.). Now, Bollywood has got in on the act with Kill.
This Hindi-language actioner is set almost entirely on a speeding train (Under Siege 2, Bullet Train comes to mind). You don’t know what to expect when you see the film. Whether it will be a stunning action thriller that showcases Bollywood to the full. Or a blatant, uninspired rip-off that fails at almost every level. Sadly, it is the latter.
PREMISE
When an army commando finds out his true love is engaged against her will, he boards a New Dehli-bound train. In a daring quest to derail the arranged marriage. But when a gang of knife-wielding thieves begins to terrorize innocent passengers on his train, the commando takes them on himself in a death-defying kill spree to save those around him—turning what should have been a typical commute into an adrenaline-fueled thrill ride.
THOUGHTS
Going into the film, I had an open mind. I’m always willing to watch movies that are not in English and experience World Cinema at its finest. This isn’t it. Anyone expecting an action thriller in the mold of The Raid movies (two personal favorites of mine) will be sorely disappointed. The film does contain some of the most gruesome violence and gore that audiences have seen. And I do mean gruesome. When you have a character get beaten to death with a hammer, and said hammer is left embedded in his skull, you get the picture. The film’s second half is much better than the first, for sure. However, an action film needs some semblance of reality. It is noticeably absent here.
When you have good or bad characters get stabbed so many times, they should resemble a sieve, but keep fighting as if nothing has happened; you’re in trouble. The audience won’t just suspend belief; they’ll shrug their shoulders and lose interest. That’s what will happen here. With a first half that drags itself along at a snail’s pace, not even giving the film’s title until 45 minutes before kicking into gear, the film is a contrast of halves. The first part, you could say, is that the story setting is just plain dull. The second half sees extreme violence and bloodletting before the train, and the film arrives at its final destination. By this time, the audience will be looking forward to the cinema exit.
PERFORMANCES, WRITING AND DIRECTING
Many of the acting performances are good. Lakshya Lalwani as Amrit, the hero, is good in his role, if a little TOO handsome to be an action hero. Tanya Maniktala, as Tulika, Amrit’s love interest, tries hard but doesn’t have much to do for the time she appears in the film. As Viresh, Amrit’s best friend, Abhishek Chauhan gets his time to shine but vanishes for long periods of the film. Raghav Juyal, as Fani, the psychopathic main villain of the piece, the one that we can’t wait to see get killed nastily by the end credits, plays his role well. But the characters are one-dimensional, meaning we really don’t care about them or their eventual fates. And that is a fatal flaw.
Nikhil Nagesh Bhat is the film’s director, who writes the screenplay and story. I’m not going to knock him too much. At least he tried to make an action thriller that would appeal worldwide. But he’s created something we’ve seen many times before and in better movies. He also is guilty of writing and filming some of the most excessively violent scenes ever seen in a movie. While most of the time, action fans will lap it up, even if they may get turned off. That’s not to say that they are not staged well. They are. But they go way beyond what we usually see in these movies. Sometimes, even the most hardcore action fans may need to reach for the sick bucket. There’s only so much brain matter on display that they can stomach.
VERDICT
Kill is the Bollywood version of Die Hard, which is only thirty years too late. Its blend of action and violence can’t save it from being completely average. No characterization, a plodding and uninspiring first half, an over-the-top second half, and a feeling of deja vu give the film the feel we’ve seen it all before. It is a good try, that’s for sure. But they have missed the point of movies like this. We need strong characters we can believe in, a story that has a semblance of reality attached, and a pace that is comfortable and not pedestrian. Sadly, Kill, for all of its visual flair, is severely lacking in almost every department. It’s no better than a run-of-the-mill bargain bin action flick. It is a pity. It could have been so much more.
Kill is in cinemas on July 5th from Lionsgate.
Introducing Carl! As the News Editor at Future of the Force, Carl has been an invaluable member of our team since early 2016. His expertise and dedication have made him an integral part of our editorial staff. Beyond his professional role, Carl is a fervent supporter of Liverpool F.C. and an avid follower of pop culture. He has a deep passion for Halloween, Friday the 13th, and the iconic movie franchises Star Wars and Star Trek.
He can be found either at his neighborhood cinema, enjoying the latest releases on the big screen, or at home streaming the newest blockbuster movies.
