Without being a fan, I've seen some Bollywood films in the past few months. Not bad at all. But, this is by far the best of them. And, most difficult to achieve as a genre, thriller with a big plane hijack. True story. Very touching. I almost cried. And I'm not a guy who cries easily. Bollywood filmmakers are experts in tearjerker stories and they have a long tradition in melodrama(remember Raj Kapoor?) But, this is not, as usual, a fiction story, this is truth, it happened for real in 1986. Sonam Kapoor is very good in the title role, Neerja Bhanot, the heroine of the Pan Am flight 73. Then the actors interpreting the terrorists, they are all very natural and convincing, you feel like living that hijack, assisting those real terrorists in full action in front of you. Shabana Azmi, impressive as the mother of Neerja. There have been many movies, most of them made in USA, with the same subject, airplane hijacking: "Ransom" (1975), "Raid on Entebbe" (1977), "Airport" 77 "(1977), "Passenger 57 "(1992), " Con Air "(1997), " Air Force One "(1997), to name just a few. This one is better than all. It made me think also at "Dog Day Afternoon" (1975), directed by Sidney Lumet. Last but not least, Jim Sarbh, the actor who plays the terrorist Khalil, not only physically resembles very well Gian Maria Volonté in "For a Few Dollars More" (1965), but has something of his style of acting and his personality. One last thing, the real Neerja Bhanot, who gave her life to save 359 passengers, was also a model and, except for her inner beauty, was of a great outer beauty.
Review of Neerja
