Fighter: Flying high on adrenaline

Bollywood's love for featuring India-Pakistan stories on the big screen knows no bounds. And the subgenre of war drama takes precedence, when the director wants to lace it up with an overdose of adrenaline and thrill. Siddharth Anand's latest visual spectacle Fighter, has only upped the stakes in the genre, and mostly for the right reasons.

Touted as India's first aerial action film with Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone playing top combat aviators, Fighter creates an immersive experience and turns out to be equally impressive. It's flawless, but honestly, the near-perfect screenplay keeps you invested and engaged to a point that you barely focus on the loopholes.

I went into Fighter thinking it's going to be riding high on the sizzling chemistry between its lead actors, but I was in for a surprise, and a rather pleasant one. 

An ode to the relentless and undying courage of the Indian Air Force (IAF), Fighter doesn't digress or distract, and stays committed to its sole intention — presenting a visually stunning experience and giving an adrenaline rush that lasts for pretty long.

Although it's never explicitly stated which exact period the film is set in, there are enough references to the deadliest terror attack on Indian air forces in Pulwama, and the subsequent strike by India across the border in Balakot. 

The film begins with Commanding Office Rakesh Jai Singh aka Rocky (Anil Kapoor) forming a quick response team comprising top IAF fighter pilots — Squadron Leader Shamsher Pathania aka Patty (Hrithik Roshan), Squadron Leader Minal Rathore aka Minni (Deepika Padukone) — to form a special unit called Air dragons. Together they display a great camaraderie, and brotherhood and serve several fun moments while bonding with each other and at the same time, fighting the enemies.

The story co-written by Anand and Ramon Chibb offers a fine mix of action, emotion, patriotism, music, humour and a bit of romance too. Though I wish the way Anand had paid attention to minute details when it comes to action and execution, he had thought a bit more about the storytelling, too. 

The plot is intriguing yet so predictable and doesn't let you feel awestruck on any big reveal. Dialogues by Hussain Dalal and Abbas Dalal are so average that it actually takes away from the impact the story could have had. I mean we have heard cliched lines over and over again, and they no longer excite.

Despite the story barely managing to stay afloat, it's a smooth screenplay by Chibb that keeps you on the edge of your seat as you watch that spectacular air combat. Here, I'd like to mention Satchith Paulose's cinematography that gets full credit for making Fighter a visual treat and a stunning extravaganza. 

The film captures some extraordinarily gorgeous locales and snow-capped mountain ranges that adds to the whole experience. Having said that, Fighter doesn't suffer from pace issues. 

After a super engaging first half with a well-timed build-up, the film nosedives in the second half with portions that seemed forced fit only to cover the desired runtime. It's only in the last 20 minutes then during the climax that the film picks up and moves towards an enthralling finish.

Stellar cast

What's definitely worth lauding in Fighter is the stellar performances from almost everyone. Hrithik is a sight for sore eyes. With his unmatched swag, and chiselled body, he owns every frame with so much ease. Whether it's in the air doing all the aerial combat, donning the uniform or him just doing that stylish walk across the big screen, Hrithik is the strongest link in Fighter. Don't miss checking out the hand combat between him and a terrorist on Pak land, which is one of the most well-shot sequences.

Talk of Deepika, and she once again effortlessly delivers a convincing act. Having seen her do some high-octane action in last year's 'Pathaan,' I can easily say that she has taken her act a notch higher in Fighter and you won't complain that it's not just her glamorous avatar that gets highlighted here.