Mammootty's latest release "Gangster" has received negative reviews from critics.
"Gangster", directed by Aashiq Abu, is a revenge drama that revolves around Akbar Ali (Mammootty), an underworld lord.
Akbar is the son of a don named Illyas Khan, who rules the underworld in Mumbai. Illyas and his family members (except Akbar) are killed by assassins sent by Don Philip, an arch rival of Khan. Akbar is saved by Hajjikka (TG Ravi), who is the right hand of Khan. A young Akbar turns into a gangster and moves to Mangalore, where his father has left behind a huge fortune.
Akbar establishes himself in Mangalore and makes peace with two other mafia dons in the city - Uncle Sam (John Paul) and Mani Menon (Kunchan). He takes control of the city's port and rules the underworld. Everything goes fine till the arrival of Anto Pandhare (Shekhar Menon), a nephew of Uncle Sam.
Anto, a drug addict, is a chemist who runs a pharmaceutical company and uses it as a cover for his crime business. His idea is to bring contaminated vaccines from foreign countries and sell it in India at a higher rate. Akbar is against the idea of selling drugs but Anto refuses to budge. He decides to kill Akbar in a bomb blast. However, Akbar escapes with injuries but his wife Sana (Nyla Usha) is killed. Akbar faces a few other setbacks and losses his men. The rest of the story is about how Akbar takes revenge.
Critics have torn apart "Gangster", terming it as a disappointing fare. They have said that the film's script is poor and unimpressive. On the technical aspects, critics have appreciated the background scores by music composer Deepak Dev and camera work by Alby.
Here is the review roundup of "Gangster
Sify says, "Malayalam had anointed Aashiq Abu right at the top of the promising directors' list after his Salt N' Pepper but it has been a disappointing journey for the filmmaker ever since. Gangster is perhaps an act of impudence, with scant regard for the time and money of the viewer. It's not easy to sit through this boring film even for a hardcore Mammootty fan."
Padmakumar K of Manorama Online says, "As the story enters the labyrinths of Russian mafia's den towards the end, the action sequences, instead of stunning us, take a toll on the senses and lay bare the hollowness of the film. With all its thunderous background score, dramatic slow motions, white-skinned cons, wowing locations, flamboyant frames and sleek cars, the film never fails from disappointing you to the core."
"While real gansgters out there will have the last laugh we receive the blow, before leaving the theater, with the message that is imprinted on the bottom of Akbar's cup. If you dare to watch the movie take a long time to recover."
Unni R Nair of Kerala9.com says, "There is nothing much to mention about Mammootty's performance either, he seems cold and indifferent at times. Shekhar Menon (of 'Da Thadiya' fame) is good as Anto, good in the sense that he is different from our usual villain. Of course there is nothing that great about his performance either."
"Nyla Usha and Aparna Gopinath don't impress you; in fact they don't have anything impressive to do. John Paul is OK, but Kunchan doesn't get much scope for performance. T G Ravi, as long as he lasts on screen, is good. Dileesh Pothan is also good."
According to Indiaglitz, "One disappointing thing in the movie is the lack of punch dialogues from Akbar's part. We can bet that he shot more bullets than words in this movie! Though there is nothing remotely 'new' in the movie, what sets it apart is the music. The superb BGM by Deepak Dev, beginning from the titles, is a great relief for the audience. There is only one song in the movie and an apt and relaxing one. It is a short respite from the bloody killings and violence that makes up the movie."
Verdict: "Gangster" is a Diasppointing Fare, Avoid it
Photo Credit: Official Facebook Page of Actor Mammootty
