Child John Film Assessment & Score: At a late stage within the movie, Rajpal Yadav’s character, who performs a side-kick to the hero, will get the most effective line of Child John: comedy is severe enterprise.
It was about the one time I heard a ripple of laughter within the preview theatre. It’s the form of punchline that masala motion pictures use to convey the home down. And it says a terrific deal about Child John, which weighs in at a punishing 164 minutes, {that a} comedian’s dialogue will get extra taalis than the hero’s ‘taqia kalaam’ line: ‘par most important toh pehli baar aaya hoon’.
After sitting via this bloated, cacophonous, spinoff, incoherent mess, you are feeling like like telling lead actor Varun Dhawan, who’s all fallacious for this type of movie — cameras can assist him do the slo-mo swagger factor, however his supply is match just for low-fi comedies — that he needn’t have bothered. Child John bids truthful to say the title of the worst movie of 2024, a 12 months when huge, starry Bollywood tanked nicely and actually.
Really, making masala motion pictures is severe enterprise too, particularly once you see the baap of all masala, Pushpa 2 nonetheless reeling within the punters. That one is even longer, however there the hero feels natural, and the set-pieces have a rhythm to them, and the Sukumar-Allu Arjun duo throw all the pieces — the kitchen sink, the dishwasher liquid, and the spuds — at us, and a few of that stuff sticks.
Additionally learn – Bawaal film overview: Varun Dhawan-Janhvi Kapoor-starrer guarantees lots, however retains faltering, by no means fairly figuring out what to make of a completely harebrained flourish within the plot
The difficulty with Child John, a remake of Vijay’s 2016 hit Theri, with which Varun Dhawan, will get his huge fats South masala movie, is that little or no sticks. The distinction between good and dangerous masala is the novelty issue. Child John appears like it’s cobbled collectively from a number of sources: what’s with this infinite fascination with ships and docks and containers, and heroes hanging the wrong way up? First Pushpa, now Child John.
The connection between cutesy Khushi (Zyanna) and Child John (Vaun Dhawan) reminds you of Shah Rukh Khan and the little lady in Jawan, and a number of other different father-daughter duos. The placid tempo of Alappuzha in Kerala is ruffled when these two get entangled with a flesh-trading gang, run by the evil Babbar Sher (Jackie Shroff). Sure, that’s his title, not kidding. There’s a backstory, after all there’s, once we uncover that the lungi-wearing common joe Child John was a cop in his previous life, with a sweetheart (Keerthy Suresh) and mom (Sheeba Chadha, Bollywood’s new favorite mommy).
However all these plot factors are simply an excuse to get Child John aka DCP Satya Varma to get into his stride, and pulverize the baddies, utilizing weapons, swords, fists, something that may flip right into a weapon. The director, who has assisted Atlee, chucks in as many struggle sequences in as many places as he can discover. People are carved, burnt, trampled, physique elements are strewn about, blood spurts, and who cares if we’re completely desensitised by the ugliness on show?
If you wish to watch Jackie Shroff severely being dangerous, catch him within the rollicking 2010 Aranya Kaandam, from the place he started his villainous journey in Southern cinema. Right here, he shakes his straggly locks, and slits throats, with a thick coat of ‘haldi’ on his face (ours to not ask why), and listens to a little bit lady, who is aware of he did one thing horrible, name him ‘daadu’. Sure, that’s proper. How does she know? Proper, we’re not asking. And no, youngsters haven’t been protected on this movie.
Keerthy Suresh has an important presence however zero reference to Dhawan; Gabbi, who performs a teacher-with-a-secret, will get simply sufficient display time to justify her presence. Earlier than you recognize it, Sanya Malhotra comes and goes in a blink-and-miss half.
When Varun Dhawan, channelling his interior Salman Khan for all he’s value (shirts and vests come off right here and there), shares a climactic second with the latter, very ‘Pathan’ fashion, you immediately know two issues: Child John can attempt all he may, however even an ageing Bhai Jaan ups the ante. And that there shall be one other from the place this got here. Groan.
It feels apt that that is actually how this dismal 12 months ends. What does Bollywood have in retailer for us in 2025? I’m not holding my breath.
Child John film forged: Varun Dhawan, Zara Zyanna, Keerthy Suresh, Jackie Shroff, Wamiqa Gabbi, Sheeba Chadha, Rajpal Yadav, Sanya Malhotra
Child John film director: Kalees
Child John film score: 1 star
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