After the debacle of Raksha Bandhan, Akshay Kumar is back with his next flick Cuttputlli. It is a crime thriller released on the small screen, i.e., Disney Plus Hotstar, instead of the regular canvas Kumar is used to.
Akshay plays a cop in the movie for the first time after Rohit Shetty’s Sooryavanshi. Interestingly, Cuttputlli comes at a time when he is struggling from back-to-back box office disasters.
Can his latest outing better Akshay’s record and offer him the much-needed stimulus? Here’s my Cuttputlli movie review.
Cuttputlli Review Summary
A mixed bag of thrill and average suspense, Cuttputlli cannot raise the bar above. It starts on a high note and maintains the feels for a decent time; however, the movie fails to carry the momentum in the second half.
Cuttputlli Synopsis
When his dream of writing crime thrillers, based on the premise of serial killings, hits rock bottom, Arjan agrees to his family’s wish to join the Indian police force.
Destiny plays a role when the first case he gets involved in relates to a deadly serial killer in the small town of Kasauli, Himachal Pradesh.
Directed by Ranjit Tewari, Cuttputlli stars Akshay Kumar (Arjan), Rakul Preet Singh (Divya), Sargun Mehta (SHO Parmar), Chandrachur Singh (Narinder), Hrishita Bhatt (Seema), and Gurpreet Ghuggi (Guleria), among others.
Cuttputlli is a remake of the South Indian film Ratsasan.
What Works for Cuttputlli?
Fascinating First Half
The first hour of Cuttputlli keeps you glued to the screen. One can sense the makers have put in their heart and soul to sustain the audience. The background music is top-notch, the story is well presented, and the compulsion factor allows you to stay.
Furthermore, the movie tries to stick to the basics of a crime thriller, which is usually not the case in Indian films. There are no unnecessary scenes or songs in the first half of Cuttputlli.
Thrill
Facilitated by rousing background music, Cuttputlli manages to infuse the Screenplay with thrill. Though it’s not an edge-of-the-seat thriller (specifically, in the second half), the film does touch the crust of titillation.
Decent Performances
Akshay Kumar leads the way for everyone else in Cuttputlli. His towering personality, at times, feels too much for a rookie cop. However, the actor manages to sustain himself somehow. He mostly seems in control of the character and adds flavor to the film whenever it strays from the subject.
Rakul Preet Singh, as Divya, stays there and creates a distinct identity for herself. Her sweet demeanor keeps the affability factor alive in the movie. Maybe, her character sketch could have been better because the kind of talent Rakul possesses is much more than Divya.
Sargun Mehta appears for the first time in a prominent role in a Hindi film. In all honesty, I felt she needed to infuse more intensity into her act. Though her expressions are decent, developing a mien was necessary to portray a top cop in Cuttputlli.
Chandrachur Singh makes a weak appearance as Narinder. We have seen him in his prime days in several films, but how he restricts himself in Cuttputlli could not do justice to his real potential as an actor.
What Doesn’t Work for Cuttputlli?
Second Half
I couldn’t have imagined the downfall of Cuttputlli after a riveting first hour. As soon as the film enters the second half, the makers barrage us with songs, fluffy dialogues, and half-hearted scenes. That’s when I realized why they didn’t opt for a theatrical release.
Even the performances take a downturn as Cuttputlli moves toward the finishing line. A more compact depiction was needed to ensure things didn’t go out of hand. Furthermore, I felt the mystery surrounding the killer became too conventional as a result of convenient writing.
A weak presentation accentuated the plot’s glaring loopholes.
Stretched at Wrong Places
One strange thing about Cuttputlli is that it stretches at the wrong time. Instead of strengthening the emotional scenes, the makers decided to fill the tank with ancillary things like songs and forced mystery. Because of this, Cuttputlli cannot make a place in your heart.
Additionally, the last 10-15 minutes are untidy and force you to keep thinking about when the mess will end. Maybe, they should have swapped the time and allotted more to one important emotional event in the film that I felt was highly perfunctory.
Emotionally Unproductive
Cuttputlli badly misses some of the most focal points of emotion. It cannot produce the required emotional stimulus to evoke the audience’s sentiments. From an Akshay Kumar film, I expected a lot more emphasis on sensibility.
Mostly, the actor successfully makes you shed a tear even with his massy films. However, in Cuttputlli, that doesn’t entirely happen.
Yes, there are moments when you will feel touched. But I am talking about the scenes that demanded more emotional crispness.
Dialogues
A lot of clutter surrounds the dialogues of Cuttputlli. The jokes are acceptable, and the punches are decent. What fails the film is the everyday conversations between characters. You can witness a massive gap in how a regular group of people would talk compared to the movie’s dramatis personae.
Final Word
Cuttputlli is a sure-shot one-time watch. However, if you are looking for nuances and succinct narration, you may leave unsatisfied. In my opinion, the film is let down by the second half.
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