RRR (2022)

How does one describe RRR? Perhaps approximate what movie made in collaboration between Sam Raimi, Baz Luhrmann, and Quinton Tarantino would love like, throw in Bollywood numbers, and amp it up a few notches. RRR is a gonzo superhero adventure, bromance, musical, historical fiction, brutal action movie like nothing you've ever seen. And it is glorious. 

Like 2021's The Harder They Fall, RRR takes real historical figures (in this case Indian anti-imperialist revolutionaries) and tells a completely made up story. It is a superhero origin story about how these men began fighting for independence. Writer/director Rajamouli runs the gamut here from moments of tender characterization, the wild absurdist (and often brutal) action, to hilarity, to blunt critiques of colonialism. He really does throw in everything AND the kitchen sink. 

But it is all just so engaging and fun. He finds this magical way of both holding up the brutality of colonialist history in a manner that does not let you look away while couching it in a fantastic unreality that allows it to be digested and fully appreciated without being too hard to handle. His stars Charan and Rama Rao are beyond Avengers in their screen presence. They manage the action, the comedy, the relationships all so perfectly. 

RRR remains completely gonzo with all the flourishes that Bollywood is known for. There were times I was a bit overwhelmed by the absurdity that I was pulled out of the film just a bit. Bit it always managed to hook me back in. The film doesn't compromise on selling out to an international audience that isn't used to the heightened stylization that is part of the film culture it comes from. While sometimes it becomes too much you just have to let it happen to get all you can out of it. 

It really is impossible to explain what you are going to experience with RRR. You just have to see it to believe it. 

RRR

Starring: NT Rama Rao Jr., Ram Charan, Ajay Devgn, Alia Bhatt, Ray Stevenson, Alison Doody, Olivia Morris

Writer/Director: SS Rajamouli