FILM REVIEW: KILL

The greatest spot to see "Kill," a violent Indian beat-em-up set on a train to New Delhi, would definitely be a cinema theater. A few visually striking battle scenes are featured in the film, which was photographed by cinematographer Rafey Mehmood and directed by Nikhil Nagesh Bhat. The fight scenes were choreographed by action directors Se-yeong Oh and Parvez Sheikh. To see "Kill" at its best, you might need to be sat beforehand and concentrated on a large screen because to its tattered plot and a few too many pauses in between action scenes.

Fortunately, these flaws don't take away from the overall positive vibe of the film. Even so, you might walk out of the theater wishing you had cared more for Tulika (Tanya Maniktala), a largely helpless woman whom Amrit takes out a few dozen tough guys on behalf of, and Amrit (Lakshya), a one-man army commando. A boisterous crowd and/or a powerful sound system will probably provide the extra momentum required to keep this helium-light genre exercise going.

"Kill" is still 105 minutes long. "Kill," which is produced by prominent Bollywood actor Karan Johar, eschews many of the showy theatrical elements that have come to characterize modern Indian cinema for Western viewers. Furthermore, there isn't really a traditional cause to cheer for Amrit as he smashes through successive cars full of hazy villains. After Tulika celebrates her engagement to someone else, he meets her but does not win her over. Like her fiancé, her father (Harsh Chhaya) vanishes too swiftly to be significant, yet she still wants to honor him. Other supporting characters include Fani (Raghav Juyal), a brazen young kidnapper who becomes fixated on Tulika, and Viresh (Abhishek Chauhan), Amrit's best friend and fellow National Security Guardsman. In the end, the sheer spectacle of witnessing Lakshya and Chauhan tumble, flip, and throw themselves across different train compartments is far more exciting and significant than them.

Compared to their previous Yash Raj Spy Universe projects, such as "Tiger 3," where the action scenes were mostly centered on action figure stances and computer-generated mayhem, Oh and Sheikh's choreography is given a better platform here. Though occasionally it seems like more time should have been spent with the train's many other nervous passengers, "Kill" often provides the kind of action one might anticipate from a film with an action-verb title.

The generic framework that Bhat and co-writer Ayesha Syed present should not be a concern, in theory. However, a number of significant and smaller dramatic moments lag when they ought to flow seamlessly into the following key scene. Certain action scenes appear and feel a little cheesy, in part because of the confines of the main location of the film. These set pieces are usually lively and captivating without being overly forceful or dramatic.

Because other passengers are so distractingly close to Lakshya and his opponents rather than cowering in the background, the battle that occurs approximately thirty minutes into the film feels like a missed opportunity, even with excellent choreography. A few pivotal scenes, in which Amrit recovers or realizes why he is fighting, resemble professionally staged practice footage. Even non-fans of Johar will see that this film lacks a little bit of melodrama, but you should still watch his most recent romantic comedy, "Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani."

The high-concept situation in "Kill" is largely an enjoyable concept in need of improved execution. The on-camera actors do a wonderful job of complementing one another, and the producers do a good job of pacing their performances and editing their battle scenes such that you never have to crane your neck to see what's just out of frame. A sense of ambient suspense is also maintained by the sound design, and the soundtrack's sparse usage of music leaves you wondering what might happen next. Even better, at least moment to moment, the blood and gore that bursts from a variety of good and bad individuals is effectively unexpected.

The movie "Kill" frequently moves fast enough that you might not notice the little hiccups along the way until the credits roll—ideally, by then, your adrenaline will have taken over and you won't care. One shouldn't be too hasty to write off the basic lizard-brain delights of watching a straightforward crowd-pleaser deliver precisely what its title promises on the biggest screen possible when considering the reasons why moviegoers should prioritize watching movies in theaters. Beyond air conditioning and snacks from the concession stand, isn't it what you want from a nice summertime movie to beat the heat? "Kill" checks off the majority of the must-have items for a fantastic popcorn movie, making it difficult to resist but difficult to ignore.