'Agent' hit the screens this Friday. Early shows in Hyderabad receive a thumping response. In this section, we are going to review the latest BO release.
Story:
Ricky (Akhil) itches to become a spy so that he can create a beautiful world. The God (Dino Morea) is planning to lord over India by creating a government of the Syndicate, by the Syndicate, and for the Syndicate. If you are wondering what this Syndicate is about, it is a consortium of evil billionaires and politicians of the country. The God's whereabouts are unknown. He lives in a foreign country and owns a floating ship with loads of currency.
Ricky is recruited by Mahadev (Mammootty), the RAW chief, to bring down God's plans. In the process, Ricky has to traverse geographies and nearly disappear.
Analysis:
When the project was announced, there were rumours that the film is inspired by the Bourne series of Hollywood. The film's producer, Anil Sunkara, was quoted as saying in 2021 that 'Agent' will make Indian soldiers proud. In the era of espionage thrillers like the recent 'Pathaan' (Hindi) and the 2019 Bollywood blockbuster 'War', how fresh (if at all) does 'Agent' look?
There is little to no freshness in the movie. You can predict the plot turns from miles away. Akhil's character should have been projected as a trained and hired gun. Instead, his genius is accidental in a movie that repeatedly exhorts that nothing is accidental. His language is plain. Reducing everything to his hacking skills is laughable.
As someone who loves action movies to the core, Akhil takes to his wild character with the swag of a confident star. However, the writing doesn't lend a sophisticated aura. Dino Morea never manages to come out of the shadow of his cardboard character. He fails to chart his own path. Mammootty is the fulcrum around whom a lot of the story takes place, but his characterization is barely inspired. Sakshi Vaidya is a talent who gets wasted in a terribly-written love track.
Vikramjeet Virk (as Deva), Denzil Smith, Sampath Raj (as a Minister), Satya, Ajay, Bharath Reddy and others are wasted thoroughly. The first of the actors gets to play an important part, but the action scenes and the writing fail him.
Urvashi Rautela looks bearable because the song 'Wild Saala' is interspersed with story elements. The climax is unending.
Hiphop Tamizha's songs are distracting. The BGM is boisterous and vague. and Rasool Ellore's cinematography works.
The stunts by Vijay Master and Stun Shiva needed to be way better. The editing is haphazard and the tempo is bizarre. Mission Rabbit, sleeper cells, bomb lasts, machine guns, macho looks, and biceps don't quite come together to save the film. Vakkantham Vamsi's ideas would have worked some ten years back when the Indian spy cinema template was yet to be explored thoroughly.
Director Surender Reddy's attempt at telling a stylish film comes a crapper. He relies heavily on Akhl's acting chops. The film bites the dust in the second half more comprehensively than in the first.
Verdict:
'Agent' goes for a toss. The story is predictable, while the overlong, lackadaisical narration leaves much to be desired.
