We were wonderfully baffled by Nikhil Bhat’s KILL when we saw it at TIFF last year — and yes, we believe that it’s truly “all caps” unless Lionsgate changed the title when they bought the distribution rights — and we have to say, it’s awesome that Indian action cinema is having a big moment on these shores. Dev Patel’s Monkey Man was a solid blend of cultures, but KILL is a truly homegrown delight that has plenty of crossover appeal. Imagine Under Siege 2: Dark Territory if it starred Vidyut Jammwal and was directed by Sanjay Gadhvi (RIP) had he been a little more enamored with crazy-ass gore.
That’s what so baffling about KILL — it is intensely, absurdly bloody, but it retains all of the beautifully sentimental aspects of Bollywood’s best exports, and the seeming incongruity between these two things is just an intoxicating and entertaining combination.
So, yeah, Lionsgate did a good job picking up this one, and even better, it’s coming out soon. Hence, this is why the studio dropped a trailer on Wednesday morning, which we’re assuming will be attached to prints of Inside Out 2. We’re kidding.
Peep it:
Here’s a synopsis, though you can always just go back and read our review from last year’s TIFF:
“When army commando Amrit (Lakshi Lakshya) finds out his true love Tulika (Tanya Maniktala) is engaged against her will, he boards a New Delhi-bound train in a daring quest to derail the arranged marriage. But when a gang of knife-wielding thieves led by the ruthless Fani (Raghav Juyal) begin to terrorize innocent passengers on his train, Amrit takes them on himself in a death-defying kill-spree to save those around him — turning what should have been a typical commute into an adrenaline-fueled thrill ride.“
Kill hits theaters on July 4. It’s a real good time, so please go check it out and make this thing a Raid-like success, please. We need twenty or thirty of these.