Accolades Revolve Around ‘Revolver Rani’

Bollywood’s latest “Revolver Rani,” or Revolver Queen looks like it was inspired by Quentin Tarantino’s 2003 hit “Kill Bill.”

The movie stars Kangana Ranaut in the lead role as Alka, a trigger-happy politician who is inducted to the world of crime her uncle Bali (actor Piyush Mishra). One revenge begets another when Alka kills to avenge her father’s death.

Here is what critics had to say about the film:

In a review on NDTV, movie critic Saibal Chatterjee said ‘Revolver Rani’ was “uproariously funny and deeply disturbing.”

Mr. Chatterjee was impressed with Ms. Ranaut’s performance: “Kangana lends a crackling and corrosively sharp edge to the central character of a tough-as-nails woman in a mug’s game.”

He gave the movie three-and-half-hour stars out of five.

Writing for the Rediff website Paloma Sharma said she was disappointed with the movie. “Revolver Rani could have been the film of the year. It is sad that it chose to be a confused story instead,” she said.

The narrative was incoherent as it progressed. The focus of the movie shifted from Ms. Ranaut’s Alka to other characters in the movie. “The story disappears and so does the editor, or so it seems,” Ms. Sharma said.

Ms. Sharma  gave the movie two-and-a-half stars out of five.

Tanushree Bhasin of Firstpost appreciated the film but said it had its share of problems.

When the script takes a turn from gangs and guns to babies in the second half, the movie “smacks of sexism,” for judging the character’s “sexual independence,” Ms. Bhasin said.

The film was a “half-hearted attempt to make a hero out of a heroine,” Ms. Bhasin concluded.

Shubha Shetty-Sahaj of Mid-Day said the film started with a promise of quirkiness and black humor that “fits well with the subject in hand.”

Ms. Shetty-Sahaj had words of praise for the director, Sai Kaibeer and the depiction of day-to-day life in the Chambal valley.

She also noted Ms. Ranaut’s performance. “The capable actress portrays this offbeat role of a violent, passionate but vulnerable dacoit with commendable ease,” she writes.

She gave the movie three stars out of five.

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