After the illogical Race 3 from Salman Khan and Thugs of Hindostan from Aamir Khan – all eyes were on Shah Rukh Khan’s ZERO and does this movie live up to its expectations? Let’s find out.
Unfortunately, this one even disappoints Shah Rukh Khan fans, not because of the superstar but the outlandish script and sequence of events. It was great seeing Shah Rukh Khan attempt this role and featuring in a role that he hasn’t portrayed before which was refreshing but the screenplay and running time of the movie and the second half of the film tiresome.
So, Bauua (Shah Rukh Khan) is a vertically challenged 38-year-old man who lives with his family in Meerut. He comes across the profile of Aafia (Anushka Sharma) at a marriage bureau and decides to woo her. Aafia doesn’t show interest in Bauua but falls in love with him subsequently. Bauua backs off. A few months later, Bauua is shocked to see Aafia at his residence. Bauua’s father decides to get Bauua and Aafia married and a reluctant Bauua agrees too. Meanwhile, Bauua had signed up for a dance competition where the winner will get to meet the superstar, Babita [Katrina Kaif]. I mean, yeah a superstar with Katrina’s looks, dress sense, and character styling will be named Babita Kumari in 2019??? An ardent fan of Babita, Bauua runs away and leaves Aafia on the day of marriage. What happens next, forms the remainder of the film.
The biggest hurdle of the movie is the wafer-thin plot. The writer has integrated space travel in the narrative but he fails to weave a compelling, riveting and captivating screenplay the flows with logic. ZERO appeals in bits and a few moments in the first half does grab your attention but the second half is totally unhinged.
Shah Rukh is the best part of ZERO. He is in supreme form. The actor is good. Anushka Sharma is brilliant. There’s no doubt that she’s amongst the best actors of today. Katrina surprises you with a stunning performance – I think her best performance in a very long time. ZERO features Sridevi, Kajol, Rani Mukerji, Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone, Karisma Kapoor and Juhi Chawla in an inconsequential sequence but it was great seeing so many leading ladies and the amazing Sridevi one last time.
What saves ZERO, besides the performances of its lead cast, are some sharp and witty lines but this does not make an impact to the greater screenplay as the story in the second half is like a bunch of disjointed scenes merged together. The graph of the film goes haywire in the second hour. ZERO lacks the power of a strong and cohesive script. Ajay-Atul’s soundtrack is a big plus. ‘Mere Naam Tu’ is, undoubtedly, the best track of the movie and one of 2018’s best compositions. The song featuring Salman and SRK is a treat for the fans of the two superstars. The cinematography is brilliant and takes full advantage of locales, cityscapes, and architecture. The production design is great. The VFX matches the global standards.
Watch this movie if you are a true Shah Rukh Khan fan but if you love Aanand L Rai’s style of cinema, this one will not be impressive to you. There was so much of potential for this movie to be great but when a script is flawed in 2018, no star power can camouflage that any longer.
Rating: 5/10