Kabzaa Review

'Kabzaa' hit the screens today. In this section, we are going to tell you how the movie is.

Story:

'Kabzaa' is set in a fictional town named Amarapuram. The film begins with a feared cop (Kichcha Sudeepa) trying to terrorize rowdy sheeters with his swag. He starts narrating to them the tale of the most feared gangster named Arka (Upendra). This Arka, the son of a freedom fighter, started out as an IAF pilot but his life took an unbelievable turn when his elder brother was brutally murdered by a gangster (who behaves like a street thug from the movies made in 1980s).

Meanwhile, Arka is also in love with a princess named Madhumathi (Shriya Saran), whose father Veera Bahadur (Murli Sharma) has his own political motives. The film ends with a lead to the second part. 'Kabzaa 2' will be made with Shivarajkumar in a prominent role alongside Upendra.

Analysis:

Do you remember that action block from 'KGF 2' where the screen blackens out every other second in an action scene? The Editor and director of 'Kabzaa' are so much in love with that scene, probably because it's a metaphorical representation for them. They likely wanted to completely forget the experience of conceiving and developing 'Kabzaa', a pathetic period action drama where wooden acting and borrowed ideas combine their forces to give a mind-boggling viewing experience.

It's evident that 'Kabzaa' is a poor imitation of the 'KGF' films. Director R Chandru appears to have made the film with the sole intention of discouraging any future filmmaker who might consider making a homage film to 'KGF'.

The tropes are solidly old-school. The hero, who is otherwise hyper-masculine, turns timid in front of his mother. And his mother is played by Sudha, who unfortunately fuses the spirit of the 'KGF' mother with the emotionalism of our Lady Gummadi (read Tulasi). Shriya Saran plays a princess who speaks in chaste Telugu so we start believing that her character Madhumathi is from an aristocratic family.

Amid gory head-hunting and beheadings and non-stop blood-letting, the messy film struggles to find its identity. Everything is a derivative of a derivative of a derivative, with 'KGF' being at the root of it all. 'KGF' worked mainly because Yash looked believable in the role of a monster who terrorizes the system. Upendra doesn't bring any sort of physicality. His expressions lack gravitas, while the hype and hoopla around his character are an insult to 'KGF'.

Verdict:

'Kabzaa' is a poor imitation of the 'KGF' films.