STORY
A young group of friends in the Riverdale High School take stand to save Green Park, the heart of the town Riverdale.
REVIEW
The Archies is based on the characters created and published by Archie Comics. The film is directed by Zoya Akhtar who herself is a fan of Archie comics. The Archie Comics is remembered for its golden run from the early 1940s until the late 1950s. These characters and their Riverdale cannot look fit in any other era at all. Setting Archie Comics in India was also difficult so Zoya did a huge favor by setting the storyline in the Anglo-Indian community based in India of the 1960s.
There can no question over the production and costume designing at all. The architectures, color tone, and the camera technique really brings that time back.
The detailing in the film is meticulous. The story is set in the year 1964 and I noticed the newspaper that Archie’s father reads. The year is 1964 and two headlines are about reforms in Nepal and cyclone in India. And both events actually occurred that year. Another point, Archie asks the tourists if they ever heard The Beatles five years ago. The Beatles was formed in 1960, their first studio albums were released three years later but 1964 is the year when the band gained international stardom.
Another good reason for setting the story in the 1960s is because of the rebellious elements in the plot. When the developers decide to destroy the legacy of Riverdale and build a hotel by destroying the Green Park, the young ones take stand, sign petitions across the community, protest, and perform for more votes. That is the most 1960s thing one can remember.
Making the film a teen musical was the only way to run it. The music and tracks really lived up to that time period. Excel Entertainment’s most trusted musical team Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy were well supported by Ankur Tewari, The Islanders, and Dot.
A couple of scenes were well shot. I loved the one where after kissing, Archie and Betty close and hang in their doors, and touch their lips and then leave on the opposite directions at the same instant when the camera is moving out.
I liked the corporate angle that folds the Riverdale society. Zoya showed how the community affects by the decisions. People and their emotions are bought by the rich, you get the capitalistic vibes in the book shops and salons.
CAST
The teaser of the film that was released last year sparked outrage among the netizens and Bollywood buffs due to sense of nepotism as three of the seven kids belonged to major film families. After the release of the film, the netizens showed no mercy to note down how badly star kids performed on the silver screen.
Someday I will speak about Bollywood and nepotism but in brief, the criticism is harsh because the audience needs to understand that nepotism is one of the main roots that defines the film industry. These kids have made their debuts but their acting careers in the future will run ONLY if the audience accepts them.
The three in the lead are Agastya Nanda, the grandson of Amitabh Bachchan; Suhana Khan, the daughter of Shah Rukh Khan; and Khushi Kapoor, the daughter of Sridevi.
Almost a year ago, in a podcast with Nadir Ali, the British-Pakistani actor Alyy Khan, who play’s Suhana’s father, shared his experience of working in this very film and showed his dissatisfaction working with these newcomers. He gave an interesting insider that these kids get to work in a workshop for one year. He judged that if the kids still do not perform, then damnation on them. He was absolutely right.
Out of seven, none of them performed. They all were disappointing. The dialogue deliveries, the facial expressions, the body languages, they failed everywhere despite having Zoya Akhtar on the director chair. The fun fact is that the supporting actors are the actors.
I am unsure if the kids were instructed to act like that despite one year at the workshop. Particularly, Suhana’s acting was extremely messed up but if you look at her performance in that short film “The Grey Part of Blue”, you will be surprised.
But readers, again! time will tell. Many star kids were awful on their debut in the past. Some of them became very outstanding actors.
CLOSING REMARKS
The Archies with all impressive technicalities and music is halted to crafting the film into excellence for one major reason and that is the leading cast. The film depends on the Archies more than the pluses I mentioned above.
The era of rock’n’roll and miniskirts dashed by the obviousness and predictability. If the spine is broken, it leads to paralysis. A factory ready to manufacture the best possible product with best available resources but failing to deliver the required result due to weak labor force.
RATING 6.5/10
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Sami Naik | Film Critic 