Rocky Handsome Review

Expectations

John Abraham shocked everyone by announcing the launch of his production vehicle 'Vicky Donor'. He further astonished everyone by letting them know that this movie does not feature him as an actor and launched a young talent in form of Ayushmann Khurrana. 'Vicky Donor' was path breaking in its own way and followed by its success, John launched his second film as a producer, 'Madras Café'. Both these films were high on its content and managed to again critical acclaim. The expectation level related to John's production house raised high due to these films and thus the promos of his latest venture 'Rocky Handsome', managed to gain high amount of curiosity. The movie is directed by Nishikant Kamat who is riding high after the success of his last film 'Drishiyam'. These factors and the high-octane action promos are enough reason to pull the audience to the nearest cinema hall.

Story

'Rocky Handsome' is a story of Kabir Ahlawat (John Abraham), a loner residing in the heart of Goa. His neighbor (Nathalia Kaur) and her daughter Naomi (Dia Chalwad) are kidnapped by a local drug lord, Kevin Pereira (Nishikant Kamat) and his crazy brother Luke (Teddy). Kabir gets involved into this matter as Naomi's mother had pawned a bag which contained the drugs. The Pereira brothers’and the local narcotics officers discover that Kabir is not an easy guy to deal with and has a dreadful past associated with him. Kabir with his expertise in brutal killing sets out to find Naomi and seek vengeance with the Pereira brothers.

The 'Glitz' Factor

There are few brilliant fight sequences featuring John Abraham's dealing with the goons and the narcotic officers. These fight scenes are the only saving grace in this bland film which moves on a snail pace. The action sequences also are quite gore and probably among one of the boldest, from our Hindi films. The action part are total paisa vasool which gets mellowed down by a bland and predictable screenplay. These scenes are brutally choreographed and manage to entertain its targeted audience. The cinematography is of top-notch and gives the film its required due. Speaking about the music, 'Rehnuma' is appealing and 'Rock Tha Party' featuring Nora Fatehi is nostalgic.

John Abraham looks great and is brilliant in all the action scenes. It's due to his action hero image all these action scenes seems convincing and entertains to the fullest. Sharad Kelkar and Nathalia Kaur lend good support. Baby Diya Chalwad is sweet but lacks the cuteness required for such role.

The 'Non-Glitz' Factor

The story has shades from a Korean film 'The Man from Nowhere' followed by some glimpses from 'Bajrangi Bhaijaan'. The story takes lot of time to get established and till then the film looks quite abrupt. There are lots of stuffs happening in the film but, at the same time nothing concrete takes place in terms of the screenplay. The narrative pattern is slow and at times bland. The emotional bonding between John and Dia fails to connect due to which the whole setup of the film seems bit weak. Director Nishikant Kamat made his mark with some good films like 'Mumbai Meri Jaan', 'Force' and 'Drishyam'. Thus, it's a big letdown from this ace director who has displayed his potential in different genre and out here manages to deliver a half-baked product which only works in its brilliant action sequences.John Abraham fails to connect in the emotional scenes due to weak writing. Nishikant Kamat and Teddy overacts and hams to the fullest. Shruti Hassan, Suhasani Mulay, Shiv Subramanium and others are wasted.

Final 'Glitz'

'Rocky Handsome' is great in terms of its action scenes and totally opposite in the emotional drama. The movie ends up delivering rock solid action and shaky emotions.