Bollywood remake of South Korean thriller is let down by a poor screenplay
THE Bollywood remake of 2013 South Korean film The Terror Live premiered recently on Netflix.
A prime-time TV news anchor has been demoted to hosting a radio show and is on the verge of divorcing his on-air reporter wife. He gets a phone call from a terrorist, who has blown up a bridge and instead of reporting it to police, the unscrupulous host sees it as an opportunity to get back on network television. The terrorist is holding the city hostage with bombs and demanding an apology from a politician, but the news anchor is chasing ratings with the help of his unscrupulous boss, until he realises his own life
and that of his estranged wife, who is stuck on the bridge, is in danger.
The edgy thriller stays faithful to the original and has a gripping build up that balances a tense terrorist stand-off with a magnifying glass on an out-of-control news media with no morals that will do whatever it takes to get ratings.
The film moves along at a brisk pace in a claustrophobic studio setting and takes shots at news media, which hit the target.
Unfortunately, the film starts to unravel in the second half with plot-holes, preachy dialogues and what turns out to be a hugely disappointing ending. Although it is supposed to be some kind of comment on media, the way this movie ends will make you forget all the positive elements, which includes a good performance from lead star Kartik Aaryan.
Accomplished director Ram Madhvani is unable to match up to his previous successes Neerja and Aarya with a film that starts off strongly and loses momentum by the end. He is also not helped by unrealistic special effects and a screenplay that could have been so much more.