Ikka Review {2.5/5} & Review Rating
Star Cast: Sunny Deol, Akshaye Khanna, Dia Mirza
Director: Siddharth P Malhotra
Ikka Movie Review Synopsis:
IKKA is the story of a lawyer fighting his toughest case. Shouryamann Gaur (Akshaye Khanna), son of politician-cum-industrialist Harshvardhan Gaur (Shishir Sharma), is accused of attempting to murder Soma Mittal (Akansha Ranjan). Public perception is largely against him, prompting Harshvardhan to approach Amritraj and Mehra Associates, the firm that handles his legal affairs. He wants the case to be fought by Arjun Mehra (Sunny Deol), who is known for his righteousness. Arjun refuses to take it up due to his past enmity with Shouryamann. However, a cruel twist of fate compels him to defend Shouryamann. The fight is difficult as not just perception, but even the evidence is stacked against Shouryamann. Meanwhile, Arjun is also dealing with a crisis on the personal front. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Ikka Movie Story Review:
Althea Kaushal has written a story that has the potential for a lot of drama. Althea Kaushal's screenplay (additional screenplay by Mayank Tewari) is a mixed bag. A few scenes, especially the confrontational ones, are riveting. But the writing also suffers at several places. Mayank Tewari's dialogues are not overtly filmy but have enough punch.
Siddharth P Malhotra's direction is decent. To give credit where it's due, he maintains a balance – the film has some sort of mass appeal. But at the same time, he doesn’t go overboard as that would have taken away the film's realism. Hence, one can’t expect Sunny to bash up baddies or mouth ‘Taareekh pe taareekh’ type of dialogues. The first 20 minutes of the film are very promising. The circumstances that compel Arjun to take up the case are unusual, and they set up the story well. A few scenes of the courtroom are very engaging. The finale justifies the title and hence, the film ends on a just note.
On the flipside, the legal proceedings shown in the film appear juvenile at places. The film is set in a world where all modern technologies exist, except CCTV cameras. We are living in times when we regularly read in newspapers about cops tracking criminals or accused persons through CCTV footage. In IKKA, the characters spend a lot of time debating whether the accused was at home or at the scene of the crime. Funnily, no one bothers to check the cameras. Secondly, while prepping for the case, public prosecutor Madhura Banerjee (Tillotama Shome) finds out that Shouryamann’s blood and flesh were found under Soma’s fingernails. This was a strong point, but she never raises it in court. Lastly, the connection between Shouryamann and Arjun is interesting, but it also gives a déjà vu of an old Sanjay Dutt film.
Ikka | Official Trailer | Sunny Deol, Akshaye Khanna, Tillotama Shome, Dia Mirza | Netflix
Ikka Movie Review Performances:
Sunny Deol keeps his act restrained and yet it is quite powerful. He is presented in a heroic manner and hence, it would be lapped up by his fans even though he’s not indulging in action or typical dialoguebaazi. Akshaye Khanna looks like he walked out of DHURANDHAR. However, no complaints as he delivers yet another powerhouse performance. His scenes with Sunny Deol are a highlight. But watch out for his sequence with Dia Mirza (Avantika) in the second half; his performance is riveting. Tillotama Shome is let down by the writing, but as always, she delivers a terrific performance. Daria Bedi (Samaira; Arjun's daughter) puts up a confident act. Sanjeeda Shaikh (Gauri) leaves a mark. Vijay Vikram Singh (Judge) is too good as the judge. Shishir Sharma and Akansha Ranjan do well in cameos. Karan Kishore (Rishabh), Devendra Mishra (Chaturdev), Francis Augustine (Vijay Kamte), Santanu Ghatak (Piyush; Madhura's husband), Madhuri Bhatia (Dr Carol Hakim), Abhinav Grover (Sudhakar Pillai), Ivan Rodrigues (Dr Galvankar) and Arun Malik (Dr Ghosh) are fair.
Ikka movie music and other technical aspects:
'Papa Ki Jaan' fails to impress. The title track is missing in the film. Julius Packiam's background score gives the film a big-screen appeal.
Jishnu Bhattacharjee's cinematography is captivating. Sheetal Iqbal Sharma's costumes are realistic while Mayur Sharma's production design is classy. Shweta Venkat Mathew's editing is slick, though a few scenes could have been crisper.
Ikka Movie Review Conclusion:
On the whole, IKKA rests on the star power of Sunny Deol and Akshaye Khanna and a few powerful moments. At the same time, the film suffers due to a weak script. Nevertheless, thanks to its casting and the appeal of the courtroom drama genre, the film is expected to attract impressive viewership.