‘Fighter’ (2024) Movie Review - A Shiny, Expensive Package

Squadron Leader Shamsher Pathania, call sign Patty, is reckless, confident, and daring. In his hands, the aircraft becomes a toy with which he plays audaciously. "Fancy stunts" is what his skills are referred to as by Group Captain Rakesh Jai Singh, call sign Rocky. Since Patty is a hero in a big-budget Bollywood movie, he's more than just a pilot. He also has a charming smile that melts the hearts of his targets. And since Hrithik Roshan steps into the shoes of Patty, this character also gains killer dancing abilities. Patty doesn't see himself as a pilot. He considers himself, wait for it, a FIGHTER. Bam! The speakers excitedly announce the hero as well as the title of the movie.

But let's go back to Patty's charming smile. Why is he given this quality? Does he save his country with his smile? Does he flash his teeth in front of the enemy, making them fall to their knees? Unfortunately, Patty doesn't use his smile for national emergencies; he prefers to solve them with violence. An eye for an eye. But he does use his seductive grin to take...biryani! Okay. Later, when he uses the same smile to get a seat on a flight and is asked to meet Abhijeet (Ashutosh Rana), you understand why Patty is provided with this hypnotizing gift. You see, Abhijeet is the father of Squadron Leader Minal Rathore, call sign Minni. In an earlier scene, Minni tells Patty about his familial problems. Now, Patty is placed in front of Abhijeet so that he can mend Minni's personal situation. And all this is achieved through that charming smile.

What this means is Minni's issue, as well as that smile, is echoed during this airport scene. Ramon Chibb's screenplay is filled with echo moments. The call sign of Patty's ex-fiancée (Seerat Mast) was NJ. When Patty is transferred to Hyderabad, he guides a nervous pilot whose call sign is NJ. In a way, he receives some sort of inner peace by rescuing another NJ. Minni jokes that Patty likes Zomato, and at an airport, we notice a giant poster of Zomato. The cheerful moments between Patty and his team are recalled when another group of friends at Hyderabad show a similar camaraderie. Squadron Leader Sartaj Gill, call sign Taj, mentions that he should change his name to Rambo to impress Rocky. During the climax, Taj, like Rambo in Rambo: First Blood Part II, attacks his enemies from a helicopter. Even the way Patty and Rocky look at each other initially reminds you of that silent exchange in War between a mother and Kabir. The gazes are packed with so much history.

Since every scene in Fighter is connected to some other scene, the movie looks clever but never involves us emotionally. Everything is reduced to set up and payoff. Even a close-up of a badge is brought up later when the screen is filled with teary eyes. Every little detail is calculated and not displayed dramatically. Fighter is a "nicely connected" film, not emotionally engaging. This is why the friendship between Patty and his team feels artificial (one of the friends is Muslim, which naturally means he dies. The movie, through his demise, delivers the message that religion doesn't matter when it comes to serving this country. Basically, a character is sacrificed at the altar of good intentions). What we simply see are pictures of actors acting. There is no chemistry. People merely make faces on the screen.

At one point, the emotions are converted into cheap sentiments, making them repulsive. Two soldiers wave the Indian flag at each other, and one of them dies. Notice the execution of this death scene. One Indian soldier is seen on a video call with his parents. Another entertains his team with his shayari. There is a third soldier who also does some mawkish stuff, but I don't remember it. This whole sequence is shamelessly manipulative. It makes you cringe. The fact that they were soldiers was enough to drive home the emotional point. However, these extra "steps" leave a bad taste in your mouth.

Fighter does not paint the entire Pakistan as a villain. The movie, however, indirectly labels the country as weak by telling us that it is under the thumb of a terrorist. That terrorist in Fighter is Azhar Akhtar (Rishabh Sawhney). He has a red eye, yet his monstrous appearance never leads us to believe he could overpower the good guys. Of course, in movies like these, the hero ultimately wins, but shouldn't the villain at least generate some suspense, some uncertainty regarding the fate of the good guys? This is what Tiger 3 got right. It made Aatish Rehman as smart as Tiger. There were moments when he proved more powerful than Tiger and his team. Azhar fails to generate menace and is sorely uninteresting. We merely wait for the arrival of his death scene.

The flight sequences look good on the big screen, though they only raise your excitement a bit near the finish line. Fighter wants to entertain, but this blockbuster package just looks shiny and expensive. It looks pretty. Nevertheless, it doesn't make you feel anything.

Final Score- [5/10]
Reviewed by - Vikas Yadav
Follow @vikasonorous on Twitter
Publisher at Midgard Times