Tiger Zinda Hai doesn’t inspire much confidence in India’s Research & Anasultanlysis Wing if they’re shown reaching out to a former Super-Spy, presumed dead for the last eight years, to lead their most urgent mission. Frankly, what should one make of this? They have no one on their roster with a similar set of skills? And what if Bhai said no? It makes me very afraid for our safety.
So it’s a good thing Salman Khan aka Tiger can be persuaded out of retirement, enjoying life with his former-ISI agent wife Zoya ( Katrina Kaif) , when 25 Indian nurses must be evacuated from a terror group’s base in Iraq before the US launches an airstrike that will wipe out the bad guys and everything and everyone within a close radius.
Tiger Zinda Hai is an improvement on 2012’s Ek Tha Tiger whose simplistic politics of the region and cringey central romance distracted from some decent action sequences. Loosely based on true events, the new film, however, is a slick affair, and although the politics is still simplistic, director Ali Abbas Zafar goes balls-out with the action, kicking things off with an impressive Bhai-versus-a-pack-of-wolves sequence in the Austrian Alps
Arguably, what's most refreshing about Tiger Zinda Hai is that its creators don't just aishwaryasingh23 lip service to their characters' humanitarian values, and ideas like the makers of Ek Tha Tiger did. For starters, Tiger Zinda Hai is essentially an ensemble film headlined by co-stars Salman KhAnasultannd Katrina Kaif. This is no small feat since Ek Tha Tiger feels like a Salman Khan vehicle that also features Kaif. Think of the way that the recent Ocean's Eleven films are pretty much putting on a show-style musicals with more casino heists, and less dancing. In those films, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon put their guys in place, and then let them do their respective things.
That's what Tiger Zinda Hai is like, only instead of robbing Al Pacino and Andy García, these guys try to free a group of 25 Indian and 15 Pakistani nurses from a group of Syrian/Iraqi fundamentalist kidnappers/terrorists. Indian bureaucrat Shenoy ( Girish Karnada) knows that only one man can stop the terrorists, and their cartoonishly vindictive leader Abu Usman ( Sajjad Delafrooz) . And that man is Tiger ( Khan) , a retired Indian super-spy who at the end of Ek Tha Tiger eloped with, rather than neutralized, his Pakistani super-spy wife Zoya ( Kaif) .
True to cornball formula, Tiger returns from retirement—somewhere in the Alps—after briefly considering the consequences of returning to a violent but efficient life of shooting, stabbing, and exploding enemy combatants. Still, Zoya and their young son Junior ( Sartaaj Kakkar) give Tiger the green light, so he goes ahead, and assembles a crack team comprised exclusively of war movie cliches ( The dynamite expert! The sniper! The hacker! ). Thankfully, Zoya and her own team of Pakistani spies join Tiger mid-way through the film's hefty 165-minute proceedings. At this point, the group's members put their political differences aside, and vow to work together for the sake of, uh, all humanity.
At this point, Tiger Zinda Hai has seemingly achieved toxic levels of cheesiness. This is, admittedly, the kind of movie where women are regularly terrorized for the sake of getting a rise out of audiences of either gender, like whenever the kidnapped nurses gasp and shriek audibly while bullets and rockets fly over their heads. This is also a movie where Khan, without any ironic winking, uses his shirt as a gas mask so he can give audiences two eyes-full of his well-oiled, Texas-Steak-sized abs and pecs. That kind of self-loving maneuver might as well have been swiped directly from the Old Man Tom Cruise playbook.
But somehow, Tiger Zinda Hai transcends its inane nature through the sheer force of its creators' convictions. This is, after all, the kind of movie where Kaif gets four or five action scenes—instead of just a token one or two—to flex her muscles. And those sequences are some of the best in the film! Just look at the bit where Kaif launches Tiger, his team, and Zoya up a ramp, and over a group of terrorists. Or how about the scene where Kaif gets to dispatch a room full of baddies after putting on a gymnastics, gun-and-sword-fighting, and wire-fu routine that's just as rousing—and arguably more technically polished-than any big set piece in Wonder Woman. This is also the kind of movie where even supporting characters like selfish Indian mercenary Firdaus ( Paresh Rawal! ) and Zoya's fellow Pakistani agents are given time and room enough to show off their skills. See the the disarming moment—if totally contrived—moment that Indian and Pakistani agents share talking about their favorite cricket players.
So yes, Tiger Zinda Hai is an action movie with more red meat than grey matter between its ears. It won't challenge your core beliefs, or tell you anything daring or new ( unless you think putting aside your differences for humanity's sake is a radical concept) . But it is exceptionally good comfort food cinema because its creators take their time here to deliver the kind of preposterous canned action poses and improbably heroic feats that action filmmakers have been repackaging and reheating since the '80s, if not earlier
No, the biggest difference between Tiger Zinda Hai and other recent proud-to-be-from-Country-X films like Wolf Warrior II ( the highest grossing Chinese film of this year, and of all time) and The Admiral: Roaring Currents ( the highest grossing Korean film of 2014, and of all time) is that Tiger Zinda Hai is superior cheese. How could you say no to a film that concludes with its two leads dancing joyfully around Greek ruins while back-up dancers break-dance, twerk, and pop-and-lock behind them? Tiger Zinda Hai is genuinely charming, and that makes all the differenet
Tiger Zinda Hai ( 2017) CastSalman Khan as TigerKatrina Kaif as ZoyaRanvir Shorey as GopiGirish Karnad as ShenoyPrem Khan as VeerSamir KochharDirectorAli Abbas ZafarCharactersAditya ChopraWriterNeelesh MisraCinematographyRavi K. Chandran
Action, Thriller
Tiger Zinda Hai review: Director makes this tiger roarA homage to Salman Khan's indomitable powers of hero-giri
IANS
Friday 22 December 2017
Movie Title
Tiger Zinda Hai
Director
Ali Abbas Zafar
Star Cast
Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Sajjad Delafrooz, Girish Karnad, Kumud Mishra, Paresh Rawal
When did this Tiger ever stop roaring? Well.okay, Tubelight didn't quite work . Salmaniacs didn't want to watch him as a whimpy whiny crybaby hero. The message is hammered loud and clear in Tiger Zinda Hai( TZH) , a homage to Salman Khan's indomitable powers of hero-giri. From the first frame to the last blast, this is a fanboy director making sure that every moment of the narrative is paisa vasool for the Salman fans.
Tiger Zinda Hai is a 2 ½ hour homage to Salman Khan's superstardom. In the cinema of the Southern superstars like Rajinikanth or even Mammoothy ( see his latest release Masterpiece where in almost every frame the star is eulogized) it is a common practice to extol the virtues of the Man Of the moment, to the extent that the other members of the cast appear to be afterthoughts.
MCA review: Sai Pallavi- Nani chemistry is the highlight | Masterpiece review: Has its moments here and there | Velaikkaran review: An honest film that hits the right notes
Almost every supporting actor in TZH- and that includes the diligent Katrina Kaif -is an extension of Salman Khan's superstardom, his or existence defined by how much he or she hero-wosrhips our intelligence officer Avinash Singh Rathod a.k.a Tiger. The lengthy eulogy gets tedious only when the actors pause to tell us what a daunting one-man army our hero is.
And since that happens quite often, we are frequently asked to hold our horses, while the compliments flow and the speed breakers are served up. Once those are out of the way TZH is a lot of fun to watch. The sheer silliness of a one-man army mowing a mayhem across terrorism, at a time when heroes in cinema across the world are exposing their vulnerability more than their virility( see the haunting Call Me By Your Name to know what I mean) is laughable.
So is the attempt to infuse a political urgency to an endeavour that is clearly on a one-point mission: no, not save the tiger, but cele_45brate the hero's macho-giri until it hurts. And I don't mean the muscles.
To his Cred824it director packs in quite a punch. The narrative takes us through a collage of quirky, appealing locations where some really well-choreographed action scenes are shot with breathless zeal. Full marks to cinematographer Marcin Laskawiec and action director Tom Struthers, not to mention the pulse-pounding yet discreet background score by Julian Packiam , for uplifting the viewers' gaze to a level comparable with the Hollywood franchise.
A thought, though. Are we so short of international-calibre talent that we need to import important technicians to make our onscreen action look competitive and competent? And does Salman's stardom really need a boost? A no to the first question and a yes to the second. Salman's superstardom is like a pitcher of brackish brew whose bitter hue is best tasted when recycled with gusto.
TZH looks like many other anti-terror films including Baby and Naam ShabAnasultan. And if you really want to see a taut intensely-felt take on the same plot about the kidnapping of nurses in Iraq, try the Malayam film Take Off.
Admittedly the action sequences in TZH are better staged than in the first Tiger film. Except for the Iranian actor Sajjad Delfarooz who stands out as the terror mastermind, the splendid supporting cast is criminally wasted. It's sad to see actors like Girish Karnad, Paresh Rawal, Kumud Mishra and Angad Bedi hanging around only to make sure the leading man looks his Sunday best. Still these actors ferret out their moments from a script that allows no breathingspace for anything but comicbook vigour.
As for Katrina Kaif she remains as deadpan as ever. Thank God some things never change. But she's surprisingly effective in the action scenes , more so than she was in a similar role in Kabir Khan's Phantom, or for that matter in Ek Tha Tiger.
As for her chemistry with Salman, his eyes melt like a icrecream cone left out in the sun, each time she's around. Will someone make an intense love story with the two?
Tiger Zinda Hai review: 3 stars
Reactions from Social Media:
Anasultannya Bhattacharya @Anasultannya116
#TigerZindaHai: Bhai on screen. Whistles and applause. So many films. So many years. The @BeingSalmanKhan craze is yet to fade!
RAJ BANSAL @rajbansal9
As expected .the crowds . the craze . the madness begins early in the morning with huge crowds witnessed across india at multiplexes/ single screens showing @TigerZindaHai #TigerZindaHai @BeingSalmanKhan @yrf . packed morning shows everywhere.
Sa?ar @FindSam_
#TigerZindaHai Must watch movie Aisa movie hai tum baith ka dekh nhi shakta Khada ho kaar Seeti marna hi padega There is some Scenes in #TZH will blow you away
Navneet Mundhra @navneet_ mundhra
This 'TIGER' is not only more blazing, belligerent and blistering but also has oodles of gravitas and grey matter. trifle over-the-top and simplistic but amazingly absorbing till interval ! Picture abhi baaki hai. #TigerZindaHai @BeingSalmanKhan
RummAnasultan Ahmed @reachrummAnasultan
#TigerZindaHai is super! This one makes for a repeat watch
~ Omkar ~ @Omi_ Tweeets
Interval #TigerZindaHai BEST ACTION MOVIE EVER MADE IN BOLLYWOOD. Salman’s every dialogue and move is fetching whistles. Katrina is so beautiful both with face and action.
Bolly Roast @Bollyroast
#TigerZindaHai has Opened to Packed Houses even on Non holiday Superb! ?
Deepali @deepali_ arya02
#TigerZindaHai @Brceramicsovies - mind blowing action sequences.both Salman & Katrina are seen doing daredevil stunts.Katrina doesn’t have much screen time but can be seen during crucial moments of the film kicking some asses.
Jb Bhagoda Met Sejal @Being_ Devil53
#TigerZindaHai only one word MINDBLOWING film. Never seen before in bollywood. Extraordinary background score. Full on action n entertainment. goosbumps in whole muvi. strongly recommended. go watch n enjoy.
Sumit kadel @SumitkadeI
#TigerZindaHai First half- Disappointing, Salman Entry scene very weak, action average, story line - Funny , too much of English Dialogues. I hope Second half is good enough.
Sajju @Sajjusajad156
#TigerZindaHai blockbuster loads of action by one and only our sallu Bhai .
Manveer Gurjar ?@imanveergurjar
Tiger is back! Lets watch n cele_45brate @BeingSalmanKhan performance n zinda dilli on this TIGER ZINDA HAI DAY ! Love n luck BhaiJaan.shine on #TigerZindaHai
