Mini Review: Salaar: Part 1 - Ceasefire (2023) (Patreon)

If you have seen any of the two KGF films, this is very similar although I liked this more then those two movies (maybe a hot take I don't know I haven't seen the reviews for Salaar). I found the action to be much better than both KGF films. While it is still edited with quicker cuts than I would prefer in my action as I am a long take action kinda guy, the cuts are less intrusive in my watching experience and I was always able to tell what was happening. There some really great moments of brutality, especially one where Deva spears like 7 guys in one swing right after duel wielding axes. Great stuff. The cinematography as always with these action movies was beautiful and there were some shots that looked like an epic painting. What I appreciated the most about Salaar though was that it felt like it took more time to flesh out the world and characters. This is not to say that the characters have insane depth or anything, but I felt like I could connect to Deva much more than I did Rocky in KGF. The action was not relentless from start to end and the movie allowed itself to breath briefly which enabled us to explore the character and intense politics of this world just a bit more. The score was so intense and amazing and had me pumping my fists multiple times! There is a great scene were a bunch of women start to sing this song of rebellion while incredible background music overlays it and Deva is just slicing through people. Pretty epic stuff. I had only two minor issues with the movie. One would be that sometimes, the action felt very similar throughout the film as most of it involved swords and axes as Deva slowly walked forward while cutting people down. Maybe there will be more variety in the sequel though! My other issue is the ending. While it was so epic (and I won't spoil it here), the cliffhanger left me wanting just a little bit more because part of the suspense of the cliffhanger doesn't work as we already know how the event is going to play out. Besides that, the movie probably won't win any awards but it is a fun time!