Kalki 2898 AD Movie Review

The Baahubali star Prabhas hijacked the box office with his last outing Salaar and he is coming yet again with another mammoth project Kalki 2898 AD. Not just Prabhas, but the movie is starstudded with legends like Amitabh Bachchan and Kamal Haasan. Bollywood superstar Deepika Padukone also joined the project making it even bigger. Mahanati director Nag Ashwin made this happen by impressing the star cast with his mythology and sci-fi script. The movie is riding on huge expectations already with record-breaking presales in North America. Kalki 2898 AD trailer impressed one and all with its grandeur and the interesting futuristic elements blended with mythology. Kalki 2898 AD was released today worldwide and here is the review from the US Premieres.

What Is It About?

After 6000 years after the Mahabharata war, the world ends up under the rule of Yaskin (Kamal Haasan) with people suffering in the last city of the world, Kaasi. Bhairava (Prabhas) is a bounty hunter from Kaasi who dreams of going to the ‘Complex’, a real city built for the privileged that runs under the control of Yaskin. Aswatthama (Amitabh Bachchan) from Mahabharata awaits to fulfill his responsibility and finally, the day will come. Who is Sumathi (Deepika Padukone)? Why are Aswatthama and Yaskin after her? What is that links Bhairava to it? Kalki 2898 AD answers all these questions.

Performances

Prabhas returns to his comedy timing for Kalki 2898 AD after the recent violent films. The big man nailed the action episodes like always. Prabhas gets a limited time of screen space in the first half, but his role becomes indestructible over time. Prabhas gave his best as Bhairava in Kalki and no wonder he hinted at Part 2 already.

Amitabh Bachchan is the best fit as Aswatthama and the man carries himself in the responsible role so well. His character was etched well and Amitabh Bachchan carried it as it should be. He could make us understand his pain and responsibility through his performance. The character played by Amitabh Bachchan is the most crucial role in Kalki 2898 AD and he did absolute justice to it.

Kamal Haasan makes his power felt in every frame he appears in. Needless to say, the actor is known for getting into the character he plays and Kamal mesmerizes as Yaskin. Deepika Padukone is the center of the plot and she acted really well. She did great in the scenes opposite Aswatthama.

Shobhana got a crucial role and she did fine. Dulquer Salmaan, Vijay Deverakonda, Rajendra Prasad, Brahmanandam, and others did their part. Disha Patani will be seen in a brief part and for a song. All the actors in guest roles did fine.

Technicalities

Kalki 2898 AD should be applauded for its astounding visuals all along. Kalki has a huge setup of three different cities and each one is deeply detailed.

The graphics team deserves a big appreciation for getting the Hollywood range wondrous visuals for Kalki 2898 AD and for presenting the director’s idea in the best way possible. The effects during the climax episodes are stunning.

Background music by Santosh Narayanan is impressive mostly. The screenplay is fine with pacing issues here and there. Bujji remains the best partner of Bhairava and its presence is crucial in the whole movie.

Thumbs Up

Rich Visuals Effects
Mahabharata Episodes
Setup & Conflict Point
Amitabh Bachchan
Prabhas, Kamal Haasan, Deepika Padukone
Top Notch Cinematography

Thumbs Down

Emotions Not On Par With Visuals
First Half Screeplay
Inaffective Drama
Songs

Analysis

Telugu cinema has made many great mythological movies and also a few science fiction films. For the first time ever, Nag Ashwin’s brainchild Kalki 2898 AD has brought our Indian epic mythology and the futuristic world together. Though the concept of Kalki connects both worlds in this fictional story, the director’s presentation made it look so organic.

First things first, Kalki 2898 AD has grand and stunning visuals that would effortlessly stand next to the top Hollywood films with great visual effects. Kalki 2898 AD has a great starcast and each actor excelled in their part.

Prabhas shows us his old self after a long time with his comedy timing and fun-filled mode in the first half. Despite fun moments, Prabhas’ character is less impactful in the beginning portions. The second half has more of his character that rises slowly to the peak by the end leaving us all in the ecstacy.

The first half screenplay is flat with no high moments and also the pacing could have been better. The intermission part is well executed and effectively sets up the second half. The crucial characters gearing up to something tremendous is presented effectively. The second half picks up the pace and is more gripping than the first. Legendary actors Amitabh Bachchan who appears as Aswatthama and Kamal Haasan in the role of Yaskin remain the highlights of the film.

The action blocks of Aswatthama and Bhairava pack a punch. Kamal Haasan will be seen in a limited role but makes a great impression every time he appears on the screen. All the guest appearances worked well. However, the drama is ineffective and the emotional moments in many sequences could not make an intended impact. The moving drama added to the extraordinary visuals could have made Kalki 2898 AD even better.

However, the setbacks of the first half are completely compensated by the extravagant second half. The climax episodes and the last forty minutes could be inarguably called the best designed so far in Indian cinema. The way Nag Ashwin unfolded Prabhas’ character at the end with the help of great visuals is magnificent. The climax of Kalki 2898 AD gives a perfect lead to the part 2 of the Kalki Cinematic Universe with a resounding ‘Mahaprasthanam’ lines from Yaskin. Now that the conflict point is established, the second part is going to be the clash of titans and it is expected to garner great hype.

Overall, Kalki 2898 AD is definitely the film from India to the world audiences as a story rooted in the Mahabharata epic and connecting its way to thousands of years in the future. Kalki 2898 AD is a great start to an epic cinematic universe and its visuals are terrific for a theatrical watch.

Bottom Line: A Visual Epic Extravaganza.

Rating: 3.25/5