Columbia Pictures, Fuqua Films and 87North Productions’ Bullet Train (dubbed from the Hollywood film of the same name; A) is an action-comedy. Assassin Ladybug (Brad Pitt) has decided to give up the bad life but he is given another task by his handler, Maria Beetle (Sandra Bullock). He is asked to collect a briefcase on a bullet train heading from Tokyo to Kyoto. He soon realises that there are other competing assassins on board the train. What’s more, their objectives are all connected.
The film is based on the Japanese novel Maria Beetle (published in English as Bullet Train) by Kōtarō Isaka. The screenplay of the film is written by Zak Olkewicz. An out-and-out action drama has been converted into an action-comedy. That’s a big minus point, more so of the Hindi dubbed version, because most of the comedy is not of the kind which can tickle the funny bone or make people laugh out loud. Therefore, the comedy dilutes the impact of the action and stunts without adding anything extra. Some scenes do shock but that’s more because of the way they’ve been shot rather than because of the manner in which they have been written. The computer graphics in the climax look too overbearing to be true — and that’s another major minus point.
Brad Pitt does a fair job as Ladybug. Joey King is alright as Prince. Aaron Taylor-Johnson is good as Tangerine. Brian Tyree Henry acts ably in the role of Lemon. Hiroyuki Sanada performs well as The Elder. Michael Shannon leaves a mark as White Death. Andrew Koji is alright as Kimura. Sandra Bullock has her moments as Maria Beetle. Bad Bunny, Logan Lerman, Zazie Beetz, Mazi Oka, Karen Fukuhara, Kevin Akiyoshi Ching, Minchi Murakami, Kaori Taketani, Toshitaka Katsumi, Jim Garrity, and the others are adequate.
David Leitch’s direction is fair. Dominic Lewis’ music is alright. Jonathan Sela’s cinematography is very good. David Scheunemann’s production designing and Richard Bloom’s art direction are of a good standard. Elísabet Ronaldsdóttir’s editing could’ve been sharper. Dubbing is good but the Hindi dialogues, especially the comedy portions, leave a lot to be desired.
On the whole, Bullet Train is a below-average fare. Its original English version will fare better than the dubbed Hindi version, but only slightly.
Released on 4-8-’22 at Jai Hind Mukta A2 (daily 3 shows) and other cinemas and on 5-8-’22 at Maratha Mandir (daily 1 show) and some more cinemas of Bombay by Sony Pictures Films India Pvt. Ltd. Publicity: fair. Opening: so-so. …….Also released all over. The original English version has also been released simultaneously.
