Pathan Review {4.5/5} and Review Rating
Pathan is the story of an ambitious agent working for Malik. In 2019, after the Indian government abrogates Article 370, an enraged Pakistani General Qadir (Manish Wadhwa) decides to take revenge. He signs a deal with Jim (John Abraham), a fearsome terrorist with a deep enmity towards India. RAW’s Nandini (Dimple Kapadia) meanwhile gets a glimpse of a mysterious woman in France, with whom she has had a past relationship. Due to this development, she decides to meet Pathan (Shah Rukh Khan), an agent who was once one of the best agents in India but has now supposedly gone rogue. Three years ago, Pathan met Rubina Mohsin (Deepika Padukone) and things went downhill for him since then. But the country needs Pathans now to save itself from Jim’s clutches. What happens next makes up the rest of the film.
Movie Review: Pathan
Siddharth Anand’s story is simple and even clichéd. But Sridhar Raghavan’s screenplay is highly engaging as the writer has peppered the narrative with loads of action, humor, thrills and even emotions. Abbas Tyrwala’s dialogues are smart yet conversational. A few dialogues are going on.
Siddharth Anand’s direction is first rate. To begin with, they have handled very well. In fact, the scale is higher than what was seen in WAR [2019]. The way he made sure not to go overboard with the scale is admirable. He also does justice to the various twists and turns of the story. The director handles an emotional sequence very well in the second half, which takes place at the Indian Institute of Contagious Diseases.
On the other hand, logic backfires at several places. The way a Pathan can easily enter even the highest security areas and escape almost unscathed is hard to digest. The Afghanistan episode in the climax is predictable. However, the makers make up for these shortcomings with some high-octane action and thrilling scenes and hence one will not complain much after coming out of the cinema hall.
Pathan begins with the entry scene of Shah Rukh Khan’s Paisa Vasool. Flashback segments also add to the fun. Rubina’s entry and the scene that follows is sure to be greeted with claps and whistles. The Moscow episode has a lot of humor and the intermission point is surprising. After the interval, there are several scenes such as a chase sequence on a frozen lake, madness on a train, and at the Indian Institute of Contagious Diseases. The climax is nail-biting and the film ends on a high note. The scene after the end credit song is fantastic and because it is related to a real life scenario!
Pathan | Official Trailer | Shah Rukh Khan | Deepika Padukone | John Abraham
Talking about the performance, Shah Rukh Khan is in excellent form. Superstar looks quite sharp and performance-wise, he is a treat to watch. With his humour, style and action, he elevates the commercial factor of the film to several levels. And as expected, he excelled in emotional scenes as well. Deepika Padukone is at her best and delivers a brilliant performance. Her character is crucial to the narrative and she looks pretty cool doing the action. John Abraham is a perfect choice for the role of the dangerous and fearless villain. His screen time is limited in the first half but he makes up for it after the break. Salman Khan (Tiger) is brilliant to say the least. Both their scenes are the most memorable in the film. Dimple Kapadia, Ashutosh Rana (Captain Luthra), Manish Wadhwa, Prakash Belvadi (Scientist), Akash Bhatija (Nandini’s junior) and the actors who play the pilot do well.
Vishal Shekhar’s music is of the chartbuster variety. ‘Beshram Rang’ is already a rage and comes at a turning point in the film. The same is the case with ‘Jhum Jo Pathan’. Special mention should also go to Vaibhavi Merchant’s choreography (in ‘Beshram Ring’) and Basco-Caesar’s (in ‘Jhoom Jo Pathan’). The background score by Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara is memorable, especially the theme played during the gym scenes.
The cinematography by Sachit Palos is superb and the various exotic locales are shot in a charming manner. Rajat Poddar’s production design is top notch. Casey O’Neill, Craig McRae, and Sunil Rodriguez’s action is one of the high points of the film. The costumes of Shaleena Nathani, Mamata Anand, and Niharika Jolly are stylish, especially those worn by Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone. yFX’s VFX matches global standards. Arif Shaikh’s editing is razor sharp.
All in all, Pathan is a complete entertainer, full of action, emotions, patriotism, humor, thrills and of course the star power of Shah Rukh Khan. At the box office, it would make a historic debut and emerge as one of Bollywood’s biggest hits. In short, it has BLOCKBUSTER written all over it!
