Every superhero has a symbol, something they stand for. In case of Krrish, it’s something he stands on. A ginormously tall construction crane.
Jesting apart, this is the only thing original about India’s ‘original’superhero film. Because Krrish 3 is comfortably inspired by virtually every Hollywod superhero film in the last two years. The throbbing background score and action sequences are reminiscent of the ones we saw inAvengers and Man of Steel. The ‘super villians’ are a mish mash from X-Men (Mystique, Charles Xavier, Magneto, Toad). The theme story itself has significant similarities to Superman and Harry Potter in terms of how the hero and the villain are related, and there’s a bit of Iron Man gone wrong in Vivek Oberoi’s Kaal.
This is not necessarily criticism, because the fact is that the Hollywood films mentioned above have a boilerplate they themselves follow, and is clearly a structure that works. Further, in aspiring to be like them, Krrish 3 has some redeeming qualities. The VFX is more often that not impressive. Be it in the subtler moments of Kangna’s shape shifting scenes (once, delightlfully, even using her shadow), or the ambitiously mounted action sequences between Krrish and Kaal, you are hard pressed to fault the quality of special effects. The inevitable tackiness comes through at times (Krrish’s introductory scene with the airplane landing for example), but you realize it’s more to do with lazy filmmaking than ability.
The basic premise is solid. A happily married and domesticated Krrish finds it hard to hold a day job (a bit like Mr Incredible there), but continues to be a savior for Mumbai and its people (yes, we have a superhero hometown full of adoring people, primed for a mega destruction in the climax). His father, played superbly again by Hrithik, is now a prominent scientist pursuing inventions for the better of humanity. Their world is shattered with the advent of Kaal, a mysterious quadriplegic scientific genius who is bent on destroying mankind in search of finding a cure for his ailment. With this setup, the conflict lines are clearly marked, and the film has to simply follow it up till the end.
In doing so, however, it often falters. For one, the unbelievable in-film promotions. There’s literally more than you can count, and one of them is critical to the film’s climax. This makes it a highly compromised viewing experience. It’s unfortunate that something that has nothing to do with the cinematic quality of the film hampers it so much, but that’s what happens when you mix business with cinema. Then there are songs. Even if we discount the fact that they’re merely crude intrusions to the narrative, not one of them is hummable or noteworthy at any level. Finally, as I’ve already mentioned, yo’ve really seen all of this before. So even if Krrish 3 doesn’t do anything glaringly wrong, there isn’t one idea or scene or action sequence that is unique or memorable. For a film made at a spectacular budget of 70 crore, you’ve got the right to expect more than the usual.
Understandably, the entire platform is set to orbit around one actor. As expected, Hrithik manages the double lead of the ridiculously sculpted superhero Krrish and the ageing scientist Rohit with ease. He is sincere in his performance, honestly invested in both roles. Even though you will cringe at some of the preachiness his superhero indulges in, it’s the writers letting him down more than anything else. Both Kangna and Vivek are competent in their roles as super villians
As a solo Diwali release, Krrish 3 will probably be a smash hit. As the holder of India’s first superhero series, Krrish is still considerable work in progress.
Hindi, Action, Color
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCCVVgtI5xU