Hello, you're watching. Critically speaking, filmmaker Nag
Ashwin's highly anticipated film Kalki
2898 AD is out in cinemas.
The ambitious film is touted to be the most expensive
film ever made in India.
A dystopian sci-fi which uses crucial points from Hindu mythology,
the epic saga features a stellar star cast that includes
Amitabh Bachchan,
Prabhas, Kamal Hassan and Deepika Padukone.
With VFX at par with Hollywood films of the same
genre and a story that seems to have merged mythology
with modern day science,
Kalki 2898 AD seem to have a lot of potential.
So is it worth your time?
Let's find out.
Nagashwin film is mounted on a big scale and so
the film has stunning visuals all throughout.
The films high point is its awe inspiring special effects
which make the futuristic film believable as well as grand.
The veteran actor plays a character from the Mahabharat who
has lived through a curse of immortality all these years.
Bachchan towers over everyone and everything in the film.
The actors larger than life persona is very well captured.
Since it is a big budget film,
the makers rope in some prominent names from the South
film industry to play small parts.
From Vijay Devarakonda to Dulkar,
Salman to even film makers S S Rajamouli and Ram
Gopal Varma all feature in small but key characters in
the film.
It's a slow first half and has an unnecessary subplot
involving Disha Patani and Prabhas forced romance.
Written by Naagashwin, the film has taken huge references from
Dune,
Star Wars, Mad Max Fury,
Rd. Blade Runner and even Marvel movies.
The shots also look very familiar to sci-fi films that
have been made in the West.
There is a reason why superhero films have started to
fail in the past two years.
No one is keen to indulge makers with absurdities anymore.
In such an environment, I'm not sure how great an
idea it is to introduce a similar franchise in India.
It is also a pity to watch an actress of
Deepika Padukone stature being reduced to play such a sketchy
character with A1 dimensional emotion.
Prabhas's comic timing too seems a little off.
A good sci-fi with a legible story can still be
tolerated if it has great performances,
catchy lines and some awe inspiring VFX.
Nagashwin film only takes one box and fails in the
rest of the departments.