Sardar Movie Review: Karthi Shines As An Action Star In This Flawed But Watchable Spy Thriller
PS Mitra is a director to be taken seriously as he constantly tries to push the limits. After an impressive debut in the horror thriller Irumbu Tirai, he went on to star in a critically acclaimed superhero thriller. Mitran has now made a spectacular comeback with Sardaar, a thoroughly gripping spy thriller that touches on a very serious subject. Despite a mostly predictable second half, Sardaar has some really interesting set pieces and really wants to introduce Tamil audiences to the world of spies. The result is not innovative, but it makes you feel that this story has a lot of potential. Also read: PS1 and Sardare Karti
Karthi plays Inspector Vijay Prakash who wants publicity and will do anything to make the news. The Tamil Nadu Police are a regular topic of discussion on social media for their sincere efforts. However, Vijay's dedication to his work is undermined by his father, a former spy convicted of treason against the government. Vijay is seen only as the son of a spy who betrayed his men and this further infuriates him with his father.
When an important file goes missing from a secret R&AW unit, Vijay makes it his life's mission to capture the person who stole the file. In the process, Vijay learns that his father was once branded a traitor and has been rotting in a Bangladeshi prison for 32 years. Karti also plays the father, who is named Sardar. As Vijay tries to find out more about his father, the story immediately introduces him as a stage actor. The rest of the story revolves around Vijay trying to find out if his father really became a thief and rebelled against his people.
There have been several spy movies in Tamil cinema over the years and Mithran's Sardaar is definitely a worthy addition to the list despite its notable flaws. Sardar remains as simple as possible in his attempt to explore the spy genre, and it works to the benefit of the film. It is the background of the film that makes it so interesting.
Sardaar's only complaint is that it wants to be an informative film when it talks about the water mafia and how multinationals meet the demand for drinking water. This is where the movie struggles to stay relevant and slowly becomes a boring read. At one point, it's unclear whether the film is intended to be a spy movie (which would be more effective if it didn't try to spread a message) or a water mob informational film. For example, Bhavesh Joshi explored the problem of the water mafia, but made a big impression as a superhero movie trying to solve the problem. Unfortunately, Sardar is intended to be both a spy movie and an informational film, and the result is not entirely satisfactory.
Sardaar is still a watchable spy thriller based on gorgeous settings. Karti as Sardar, a spy in his sixties, facilitates their movement. The opening scene in the middle of a prison riot has to be one of the best scenes in the movie. The action is very well staged, especially when it involves Sardar, who can't fight like a typical hero in his 20s or 30s. Young Carty is a crowd-pleasing character and fun to watch at first, but he disappears aimlessly in the second half of the movie. Young Hrithik is one of the best children's characters in recent years. He has such an unbelievably good screen presence.
sardar
Director: Comrade PS
Cast: Karti, Chunky Pandey, Rajisha Vijayan and Rashi Khanna.
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