Without
the
risk
of
exaggeration
we
can
'safely'
say
Vidyut
Jamwal
takes
the
kind
of
risks
in
his
action
scenes
that
we
haven't
seen
in
any
screen-hero
from
any
part
of
the
world.
The
choreographic
precision
with
which
Vidyut
flips,
somersaults,
and
fells
his
adversaries
is
a
sign
of
an
exceptionally
skilled
action-hero.
To
be
sure,
a
star
is
born
in
Commando.
We
saw
Vidyut
completely
upstage
John
Abraham
in
the
hand-to-hand
heart-in-mouth
fight
scenes
in
Force.
Now,
Vidyut
proves
himself
a
maestro
of
unequalled
sinewy
skills,
gliding
rather
than
fighting,
pre-empting
the
adversary's
moves
almost
like
a
chess
game.
With
tongue
firmly
in
shriek
mode,
Vidyut
in
one
of
the
early
stunts
scenes
of
the
film
rips
open
a
poster
of
Force
and
attacks
the
baddies.
The
action
never
stops.
And
the
song
breaks,
especially
an
item
song
in
the
second-half
by
Nathalia
Kaur,
are
unwelcome
speed
breakers.
We
really
don't
want
to
see
Vidyut
romance
the
pretty
Punjabi
damsel
in
distress
played
by
Pooja
Chopra
who
seems
a
tad
too
well-groomed
for
the
rigours
of
the
jungle.
Not
that
we
care.
We
just
want
to
see
Vidyut
take
on
the
bad
guys,
full-force.
And
boy,
does
Vidyut
deliver!
Admaker-turned-feature
film
director
Dilip
Ghosh
keeps
the
plot
wisely
simple
ramrod-straight
and
to
the
point.
Apart
from
those
utterly
annoying
song
breaks,
there
are
no
digressions
from
the
dynamics
of
instant
score-settling.
It's
a
straight
one-to-one
fight-to-finish
between
the
silently
simmering
Commando
and
a
satanic
goon
from
a
small-town
in
Punjab
with
no
eyeballs
and
apparently
no
balls
either,
who
believes
the
power
of
the
gun
and
the
strength
of
Santa-Banta
SMS
jokes
can
be
co-ordinated
in
one
range
of
activity.
Jaideep
Ahlawat,
last
seen
giving
a
riveting
performance
in
Kamal
Haasan's
Vishwaroop,
gives
to
the
goon's
part
a
wacky
spin.
The
man
is
half-devil
half-imbecile.
The
goon
makes
Simrit
(Pooja)
an
offer
-
either
a
suhaag-raat
with
him
after
the
wedding,
or
a
'suhaag
raat'
with
him
and
all
his
battle-stained
cronies
right
away?
Hmmm?
Is
it
any
wonder
that
the
pretty
spunky
Punjabi
lass
makes
a
run
for
the
jungles
rather
than
accept
the
goon's
marriage
proposal.
Predictably,
Simrit
runs
into
the
banished
army-man,
our
commando-hero,
who
seems
to
have
seen
the
collected
Rambo
series
back-to-back
at
least
eight-10
times.
The
first
time
Vidyut
plays
the
saviour
at
a
bus
stand,
we
know
he
means
business.
He
is
not
just
a
one-man
army,
he
is
also
the
Indian
army's
favourite
bete
noire.
Despite
the
heavy
burden
of
playing
protector
to
country
and
the
leading
lady,
Vidyut's
fights
manage
to
bring
in
a
lot
of
warmth
and
some
humour
in
their
execution.
The
narration
is
an
unabashed
homage
to
Sylvester
Stallone's
jungle-survival
saga.
And
yet,
thanks
to
Vidyut's
powerful
screen
presence
the
combat
between
the
commando-hero
and
the
goons
never
slackens
in
pace.
The
physical
combats,
which
are
undoubtedly
the
crux
of
the
theme,
propel
the
plot
forward
in
leaps
of
inspired
action.
Happily
for
Vidyut,
his
opponents
are
not
shown
to
be
ineffectual
jokers.
The
back-and-forth
of
fists
and
rhetoric
are
uniformly
engaging.
Though
we
know
exactly
where
the
protagonist's
one-man
battle
against
his
enemies
is
heading,
we
never
lose
interest
in
the
plot.
The
film
is
shot
on
some
interesting
locations.
The
backwaters
of
Punjab
and
the
thick
jungles
serve
as
just
the
right
ambience
for
the
rugged
actioner.
Vidyut
takes
care
of
the
rest.
His
action
definitely
speaks
louder
than
his
words.
Sejal
Shah's
cinematography
and
Ritesh
Shah's
dialogues
constantly
add
to
Vidyut's
fist-power,
imbuing
his
combat
to
the
finish
with
some
unexpected
flourishes
of
serious
socio-political
comment
towards
the
end
when
we
are
told
we
need
to
clean
up
our
act
if
we
want
to
protect
the
country
from
external
threats.
It's
a
one-man-show
off
all
the
way.
Pooja
shows
flashes
of
talent
when
she
isn't
busy
brazenly
aping
Kareena
Kapoor's
voluble-Punjabi
act
from
Jab
We
Met.
Not
her
fault.
If
the
hero
is
a
silent
seething
ball
of
implosive
fire,
and
the
heroine
is
a
talkative
Punjabi
girl
who
runs
away
from
home
to
escape
an
unwanted
marriage,
'phir
toh
boss
Jab
We
Met
banta
hai'.
To
its
credit
Commando
creates
a
climate
of
clenched
conflict
for
the
hero
to
vent
his
voluminous
talent
as
a
martial
artist.
Indeed,
a
star
is
born.
IANS
Cast:
Vidyut
Jamwal,
Pooja
Chopra
and
Jaideep
Ahlawat
Director:
Dilip
Ghosh