Yesterday this movie premiered in the largest cinema chain in Indonesia. I have seen its trailer few times earlier and I thought it seemed like a good movie. So I decided to give this one a try and it happened to be playing in the cinema very near to our home. It was a good thing that my wife was willing to accompany me, as I was a bit reluctant to see this by myself. Anyway, we saw this one at the 6.25pm show. Ok, let's get on with the movie now.
Brief Story Line
It looked like it was going to be a normal busy day in Mumbai on the 26th of November 2008, when Arjun (Dev Patel - Lion, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel etc) left his pregnant wife and baby daughter to go to work at Taj Hotel. The hotel was quite full as various guests were coming to stay that night, including some VIP such as Zahra (Naznin Boniadi - Ben Hur 2016 version etc) with her husband David (Armie Hammer - Mine, Call Me By Your Name etc) & nanny Sally (Tilda Cobham-Hervey) who was taking care of the baby. There was also another VIP guest, a rich but shady Russian businessman named Vasili (Jason Isaacs - Star Trek Discovery TV series etc) and many others from different countries.
Due to its busy night, the hotel staff were all getting ready for their guests. The hotel chef Oberoi (Anupam Kher - Bend it Like Becham, Silver Lining Playbooks etc) was particularly concern with ensuring all the guests eating at the restaurants would be satisfied.
Meanwhile outside the hotel, a group of terrorists started to initiate a seemingly random attacks on various locations. With many people running around on the streets, some of them sought solace into the hotel. Little did the hotel staff know that there were some of the terrorists who also went inside the hotel. So what would happen to the hotel guests and staff? Find them all in this terrifying movie of a horrifying inhumane terrorist attack in Mumbai.
End of Brief Story Line
Wow, this movie was absolutely amazing. It was thrilling almost from the start and it was a nonstop suspense till the end. This film was done in a very outstanding way that there was never a dull moment. The early part where we were shown the terrorists arriving at the city of Mumbai and the introduction of the people were done in a brief but somehow felt sufficient to give the feel of attachment with the characters. Like Arjun's love for his family, or the father figure of Chef Orberoi, the romantic couple of Zahra & David, even the rather snobbish Vasili.
All of these characters were played wonderfully by the cast and each & every one of them were able to provide us a huge sense of distress & sympathy towards them. And the actors playing terrorists were also amazing, since they really made us felt disgusted and horrified by their actions. My wife kept on saying how evil what they did. And to be honest, one of the reasons audience were really strapped to their seats including me and my wife were the absolute horror we felt when watching the terrorists randomly killing innocent people. The film makers were not hesitant in showing the gruesome and violent images in the film, which made the movie really not suitable for the young (it was R rated in the US).
Obviously knowing this movie was based on true events, certainly made us really appreciate the humanitarian acts some of the people in the hotel and outside did. There were many emotional moments for us during the 2 hours 3 minutes movie which touched my wife few times during those scenes. The ending was such a relief to us that it was finally over, though the message shown after the movie ended, left us a bit of irritated feeling. However, there were some wonderful footage before the end credit scene that was inspiring. There was no mid or post end credit scene.
For a movie based on true story, this one had to be one of the best I ever saw. The terror attacks were done in such a detailed manner and the terrifying effects were successfully shown to the audience. The musical effects were amazing, and the sound effects were absolutely superb. There were moments where we would be shocked by the gunshot sound that accompanied the shooting scene. There were also few times where we were holding our breathe when any of the victims were trying to escape or hide with only the sound of terrorists walking around which ended with the loud bang. I was really glad that we saw this one in the studio with great sound system, even if it was only the usual Dolby Surround. Without good sound effects, this movie might have been less impactful to us.
One thing that we have to remember that despite being a true story movie, there would definitely be some parts that have been dramatized. So I hope when people see this, they would not be thinking it was illogical or impossible in certain parts. It should be seen as a movie trying to show us there were still heroes among normal people, and the humanitarian act of some people should be inspiring. This movie itself is a joint production of Australia and India, where the director was an Australian named Anthony Maras who also served as the co-writer. I personally see this film as a drama of terror attack and not an action movie. It is probably similar to movies like Hollywood's Patriots Day based on Boston Marathon bombing, or Indonesian movie 22 Menit based on Thamrin street bombing in Jakarta.
Overall this was a great movie. I was totally amazed by the whole film and there was nothing in here that I personally thought needing any improvement. It was one of those perfect movies which would stay in my mind for a long time. I agreed with one of the critics who said this movie was a masterpiece. Those looking for an amazing historical terror drama, should be satisfied with this. As long as we keep in mind that this is not an action movie a la Die Hard.
Happy watching!
Mike's movie moments rating: 5 out of 5 stars
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