You know you’ve done something right if a theatre full of critics and bloggers are clapping in a few scenes, especially when the said theatre is not Gaiety Galaxy and nor is the movie a Salman Khan starrer releasing on Eid. Brothers is exactly that, an entertaining film based on sibling rivalry. From Mahabharat to Deewar, Indians love good old family drama, and Brothers manages to hit the right notes. It’s rather surprising that the film is a remake of a Hollywood movie – Warrior, because this one has all the makings of a desi tearjerker.
The story is rather simple, two step-brothers face each other in a fight due to circumstances that were never really in their hands. Their father both binds them as well as seperates them due to his issues with alcoholism and his ill-treatment of their mother. The chemistry between Akshay Kumar and Sidharth Malhotra is awesome.
Talking about the heroes of this film, I remembered this thing Priyam (from Team MissMalini) often says about Akshay Kumar, that he’s a “taste the thunder” type of man. I never really got the phrase until I saw him get down and dirty on the streets of Bombay with tattooed arms and six-pack abs. This man can do anything, and by anything I mean, making my jaw drop with some of his stunts in the ring. Giving him great support is Sidharth Malhotra who looks every bit of the ‘bad boy‘ his character Monty is required to be. From his complete badassery (the part where he doesn’t wait for his opponent to signal defeat because he knows he has knocked him out) to his emotional scenes with his father, Sid has done a great job.
Jackie Shroff is aptly cast as Akshay and Sidharth’s troubled father, but I think he could have toned it down a little. Jacqueline Fernandez looks gorgeous and has done a decent job in the few scenes she has. Shefali Shah is brilliant in her cameo. Seriously, why doesn’t this woman do more movies? The supporting cast lead by Kiran Kumar, Ashutosh Rana, Raj Zutshi, Khulbhushan Kharbanda and Kavi Shastri is alright.
The music of Brothers is decent and thankfully no one is lip-syncing, except Kareena Kapoor in an unrequired item number. Bebo looks gorgeous, but her song really makes no difference to the movie. There are the ‘typical‘ emotional scenes the director Karan Malhotra has peppered the film with, some of which, made the audience groan a little. But because of a fantastic confrontation scene between Jackie and Shefali a few minutes before the interval, I forgive him for using the same old tropes Bollywood uses to stir emotions in the audience’s heart. The fight choreography is intense and as I said before, some of the stunts are jaw-dropping. The action and Akshay are the USPs of the movie, but I’ll give credit to Sidharth for summing up what Brothers is all about in one line – Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham with Mixed Martial Arts.
Don’t miss it!
Rating: ***1/2