Pathaan is a pastiche of multiple spy and thriller films, and high-octane fights and chases. The film rests entirely and unabashedly on Shah Rukh Khan’s star power, as does the Mission Impossible series on Tom Cruise. Directed by Siddharth Anand, the 146-minute-long film is an ode to King Khan’s mass appeal and dimpled charisma.
The director, whose last venture was the Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff-starrer War (2019), knows his action scenes and paces them well.
The film starts with a Pakistani military commander Qadir making plans to retaliate against the abrogation of Article 370. He hires Jim (John Abraham), who leads a private terrorist group named X. Jim is a former R&AW agent turned rogue. Meanwhile, Rubina Mohsin aka Rubai (Deepika Padukone) is spotted on the security camera of a metro in Paris. This makes the head of India’s Joint Operations and Covert Retrieval, played by the stunning Dimple Kapadia, board a flight to Paris.
The destination isn’t important, but on the flight, Kapadia narrates the story of Pathaan (Shah Rukh Khan) and why people get uncomfortable when his name is mentioned.
A Shah Rukh Khan show
In the film, Shah Rukh Khan is at his best. Be it his body language, dialogue delivery, or his signature smile, everything ensures that he remains the star he is. His sculpted body is rivalled only by that of his nemesis in the film, Jim.
John Abraham almost reprises his most iconic role as the suave and sexy villain of Dhoom (2004). He is most effective while showing off his abs Dostana (2008) style, holding a machine gun or fighting Pathaan. That seems to be the brief and Abraham sticks with it.
Deepika Padukone, despite sustained screentime, doesn’t do much acting. She is to Pathaan what Gal Gadot was to Fast Five (2011). She definitely has her presence felt on the screen and gives a good fight to men, alongside Pathaan.
Veterans Dimple Kapadia and Ashutosh Rana do not have a lot to do but they do their bits flawlessly.
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Weak screenplay, mediocre dialogues
The screenplay by Shridhar Raghavan is disappointing. He doesn’t create anything new with the plot and stitches together scenes from different Hollywood movies from the Fast and Furious series(2001-present) to Transporter (2002). Car chases, machine guns, and exotic locales dot the screen every few minutes. There is no new story, except maybe a plan to include Pathaan’s character in Yash Raj Films’(YRF) spy verse eventually. The 10-minute-long fight scene atop a train in Russia shows the maker’s ambitious plans for the franchise.
The twists are so predictable that Abbas-Mastan seem to have done a better job with Race 1 (2008). Although, the post-interval surprise does make the audience clap and hoot.
The only innovative bit is how the film seems like a clap back to SRK’s critics. Despite everything, the King of Bollywood continues to entertain fans with a smile on his face.
The film also takes the audience on a mini world tour as it pans from Africa, Dubai, Pakistan, and Spain to Russia.
The best dialogues are all used up in the trailer. YRF is facing the same problem as Dharma Productions. Both Brahmastra (2022) and Pathaan want to rely on the spectacular but weak dialogues ruin most of the impact. If it was not for Shah Rukh Khan’s delivery, the dialogues are ridiculous at best.
The VFX falters in scenes that are already inspired by The Falcon-like costumes worn by both Jim and Pathaan in an aerial fight. What could have been a stunning spectacle, looks like an overworked intern’s output. The film is saved by its top-notch action scenes, be it between Jim and Pathaan or Rubai and Jim’s men.
Watch Pathaan for the sheer screen presence of Shah Rukh Khan.