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Bad Cop Review: Brace For The Double Impact
What: ‘Bad Cop’ - Gulshan Devaiah and Anurag Kashyap keep you riveted in this masala potboiler.
Bad Cop synopsis
Twin brothers on the opposite sides of law, an eccentric gangster, a hell-bent CID officer, a fierce lady cop and an illegal consignment – form the crucial characters in Aditya Datt’s twisty action thriller, ‘Bad Cop’, a re-imagination of the 2017 German drama with the same title that is in line with any cult masala extravaganza.
It gives us a fateful moment where everything changes for the two estranged brothers – Karan and Arjun (both played by Gulshan Devaiah). Karan, the cop succumbs to the fatal shootout, and Arjun, the thug, who is fatally injured, sees himself taking on his brother’s identity upon regaining consciousness.
Within no time, Arjun’s life turns topsy-turvy – he has to manage Karan’s family comprising his wife, Devika (Harleen Sethi) who is senior in the department and his little daughter, his girlfriend and partner-in-crime (Aishwarya Susmita), tackle the CID officer, Arif( Saurabh Sachdeva) who thinks Arjun murdered his dear friend and informer , and bust crime nexus that involves the wicked and volatile gangster behind the bars, Kazbe ( Anurag Kashyap).
Cases of mistaken identities have always generated excitement and popcorn thrills– ‘Don’, ‘Kaalicharan’, ‘Humshakal’ and even ‘Kishen Kanhaiya’ have worked in favor of the audience in the past. Bad Cop has its premise rooted in these basic potboiler elements, and Datt (Crakkk- 2024, Commando III) delivers remarkably in the action department.
Rensil D’silva’s story is rudimentary and flat, and the writing doesn’t reap any novelty and so are the dialogues (Hussain Dalal), but what excites you is its brisk execution. I was quickly reminded of his 2014 vigilante thriller, Ungli when it came to world-building. The six episodes are breezy and fast-paced, not spilling over 30 minutes on an average. The action is relentless, and I wish it was made for the large screen going by the impressive chases and choreography.
Falling short of the intrigue, it relies on the leading man and the antagonist for its mojo. Devaiah is more involved and evolved as far as his characters go – and he gets to flex his action chops, a lot in this along – both physical and mental. His agility meets a quirky and eccentric antagonist in Kashyap’s Kazbe, who apparently, borrowed from Nana’s anna in Parinda and Irrfan’s Rannvijay in Haasil to adorn his character with a wicked aura and devilish charisma.
Coming to the female brigade, Harleen Sethi renders a stupendous performance as the tough cop who traverses a complex trajectory with Gulshan’s character. There is a remarkable confidence that Sethi oozes while playing Devika, juggling between her professional and personal terrain, with a hard-edged look and a genuine Marathi accent. Aishwarya Sushmita as Arjun’s partner makes her mark as a resilient and bold badass.
Bad Cop heralds a brand-new chapter in Fremantle India’s journey of content creation and its collaboration with Hotstar specials.
I go with 3.5 stars out of 5 for Bad Cop. The first two episodes are streaming on Disney+ Hotstar and the remaining episodes are planned to release on a one-per-weekend. Basis.
Ahwaan Padhee, is an IT Techie/Business Consultant by profession and a film critic/cinephile by passion, is also associated with Radio Playback as well, loves writing and conducting movie quizzes. More By Ahwaan Padhee