HIT 3 Review: Nani drives a stylish, grit-heavy action thriller; goes on a killing spree

The film opens with Arjun Sarkar under arrest, a development shrouded in mystery.

HIT 3 is the 3rd title in the long-awaited series HIT, inspired by real events to be discovered, offers a thrilling experience for the modern investigator.

Only those who see and bear sorrow, people talk about them HIT 3 It is the first game of promotions that allowed them to talk about the stylish action, it's almost more than action in one game. Directed by Dr Sailesh Kolanu, the film follows Nani’s Arjun Sarkar — an ill-tempered, hardheaded cop whose past and present come unravelled in a flashback-heavy storyline running heavy on cinematic spectacle and light on procedural roughness.

Plot Overview

The film opens with Arjun Sarkar under arrest, a development shrouded in mystery. As he confides in a fellow inmate, we’re transported into his past as a Superintendent of Police in Jammu and Kashmir. Renowned for his brutal efficiency in neutralizing terrorists, Arjun stumbles upon a disturbing pattern: 13 murders committed across India on a single day with uncanny precision. What follows is a nationwide manhunt that leads him to an underground crime syndicate operating with chilling precision and a twisted ideology.

The rest of the film follows Arjun’s relentless mission to expose the gang, unveiling a world that mirrors the dystopian brutality of shows like Squid Game.

Analysis

Whereas its predecessors took as their starting point tight, grounded investigations, HIT 3 went for a wider canvas. The whodunit theme has now fallen by the wayside, and the movie has reminded us all that the tension is so high that it is this man (this one guy) versus a crime organization. Though this new spin makes room for more action-packed moments, it sacrifices the series’ original investigative core.

The film also includes pithy romantic and familial moments, with Samuthirakani playing Arjun’s father. Their banter provides occasional relief from the otherwise stark story. But they are brief interludes at best and mostly narrative glues more than anything that speaks to the heart. Nani once again shows them how it’s done; born to perform.

Arjun Sarkar, as the raw, gnarly, and occasionally vile — is designed to entice youth and the masses. The way he delivers those punchy dialogues in the first half would certainly go down well with the frontbenchers.

The turning point of the film comes in its second half when it shifts gear and raises the theatrics. The secret world Arjun infiltrates is visually striking and conceptually ambitious and owes a lot to Squid Game, Kill Bill and John Wick. A last-minute intervention by two more heroes in the climax gives a jolt of fan service sure to bring you whistles in theatres.

And beyond anything, Karthi's cameo makes it clear that he is the lead in HIT 4.

Technical Merits

Visually, HIT 3 is a treat. The cinematography is equally split between the creepy forest settings and set pieces that are both cinematic and embedded. The director Sailesh Kolanu imbues the violence with a medic’s precision to make it seem purposeful rather than gratuitous, but there are patches of uneven pacing in the film.

The serviceable music and score by Mickey J. Meyer do not quite stay in the mind as long as one would hope for in a film of this magnitude. But the production values — by Nani’s Unanimous Productions and Wall Poster Cinema — are good and give the film a glossy finish.

Frankly, what does work in HIT 3 is Nani’s intense and charismatic act that keeps the movie grounded. The great big-screen style adds to the film’s cinematic feel, with snappy dialogue and good-looking photography that captures the grungy and grand alike. But the film falters with uneven pacing and not enough in the way of depth to the investigation that made the previous HIT films so compelling. The villain is an underdrawn character, and the emphasis is on sensory overload over the story, rendering it more slippery and emotionally distant to the audience.

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Verdict

HIT 3 is not a typical detective thriller. The film is a bold visual pastiche, mashing up genres with Western influences and stylized violence. It can pull away from a grounded mystery, and drive away the audience … for the ones who like big set pieces and larger-than-life stories they would be in for a ride. Nani carries the film on his shoulders with a riveting performance and makes HIT 3 worth a watch despite its narrative glitches.

The high-octane second half and its exceptional approach from a franchise formula.

Director: Sailesh Kolanu
Cast: Nani, Srinidhi Shetty

Production: Wall Poster Cinema

Rating: 3/5