Perceived Expectations Versus Reality: The Case of Baaghi 4
With the release of Baaghi 4, the film franchise cross into mainstream cinema and their skewed perception of this hyped cultural phenomenon. The franchise Blaghi 4 is about Shroff’s athleticism, already a cultural phenomenon in the gym and action cineam, and the perception of the audiences watching the film to see their action cineam and action cinematic limits being pushed.
Pre-release buzzed the social media with over populated edited clips of the gym performing gravity controlled stunts while predicted scenes of jumping off a helicopter, stunting through a gang, and dismembering a syndicate in solo combat. There were posters of shredded characters performing the above acts in gym. The irritate release was amplified with Dutt and Sandhu’s peak in the filmography.
The audience buying tickets had expected a visual spectacle amusement. The social media fueled audience had expected a modern cinematic action, and the cinema owners expected a cash bonanza.
With the franchise name, expectations would be sky-high.
What Audiences Thought They Were Getting \ The marketing strategy for this audience segment included stunts, slow-motion body shots, and grandiose sets. For the loyal Baaghi base, this was enough. Nonetheless, there was a desire for something more, something of increased meaning. Fanfare aside, viewers were requesting more emotional depth – a story that didn’t feel like a complementary afterthought that accompanied a fight choreography rehearsal. \ \ Could Baaghi 4 bring depth and meaning to this age-old question of the franchise? \ This question permeated every teaser, most promotional interviews, and numerous behind-the-scenes teaser clips. \ The Story That Unfolds on Screen \ Baaghi 4 begins with a jolt: Tiger wakes up from a coma, and after regaining consciousness, he learns that the woman he loves is missing – and worse, everyone around him is insisting that she never existed. \ What ensues is an action-packed extreme sports choreography and shadow play to create a complex narrative that interlaces the diverse strands of revenge and folly, a dark mind and a detective’s prowess.
Cry About the Untold Story is the story of a man who is determined to find the truth of his wife’s murder and the mystery surrounding her with the help of people in the hilly areas of the North. During this journey, he meets a few people, including the wife’s brother, who add to the mystery. Eventually, he ends up in a dark arena, represented by the shadow of a brutal and devious man played by Sanjay Dutt. The entire arena is filled with people who have lost the essence of humanity and look like dangerous beasts. Dutt’s character is theatrical and is the main antagonist, who at this time has more knowledge of the hero’s past than the hero does himself. And what is to come to Hayat Harnaaz Sandhu’s character is a mix of memory and mirage moments, very purposely and artfully building layers of questions regarding who she is and what happened to her.
The building of intensity is achieved through the numerous high-level stunts and battles with a solid emotional core. This is signified by the workings of a man fighting for his ideals, truth, and justice.
The lower half of the movie, however, disrupts this with an implementation of worksheets. A puzzling mix and a poor transition between the high emotional tones of a dark thriller and a classic bollywood “song and dance”. This resulted in a poor warped emotional flow of the movie.
Tiger Shoff’s performance: Strengths and stumbles. Tiger’s dance and movement cut of line and he gained the starting huge respect of the industry for his extraordinary movement, and this continues to allow him to be bollywood’s trusted action star. But, when he is being put under an emotional character, and is guided to show the darker aspects of the character, he always falls short. He has the feeling of grief and frustration along with an attack on himself, but this is also not core to the character and is surface level to the action of the screenplay.
Sanjay Dutt \n \nDutt Masterframe Joy films Dutt has underlying menace \n \nDutt’s iconography has always had elements of swagger and theatrical delight. Dutt brings elements of menace as well. His villainous personas seem unbeatable and performable characters. They know how to steal frames and command them. He pulls of cartoonish characters with style. \n \nHarnaaz Sandhu \n \nHarnaaz Sandhu’s debut is as spectacular as her name. In Sandhu, we see the subtle poise that reveals a certain presence and experience, given that she has been under the spotlight. The vulnerability she displays is great, she has the ability to embody a character. The trouble is the writing fails. Too often a character is more of a plot device than their own person.
The Cinematic Packaging: Gloss, Grit, and Gaps \n \nBaaghi 4 is aesthetically supreme. \n \nBaaghi 4 is aesthetically supreme. The nighttime neon shots intertwining with aerial slow-motion shots of fistfights create a gripping chaos that feels artfully bounded. The level of dedication in the score and stunt choreography is commendable and often unattainable in many multinational action movies. \n \nThe screenplay remains the franchise’s Achilles heel. \n \nThe dialogue is disappointing. The writing is weak and lacks the conviction to drive the action. The choreography is superb, but the writing fails to deliver action motivation.
The work attempts to be all these things at the same time: emotional drama, romance, mystery, action thriller, and because of their need to please all at once, it ends up tasting all things bad and uneven.
Real-Life Parallels: Point in One’s Career
At an intersection in his career, Tiger Shroff stepped into Baaghi at 4. He is known for action films but could not escape the mounting calls for a reinvention of his craft, and the onlookers mounting pressure for a hit film, along with proving that he is more than a flying gadget. The performance reflects this struggle of expectations and evolution.
On the other hand, it is the phase of the career of Sanjay Dutt where he hops around the spectrum of grand villainy and seasoned mentorship. The film does well to his legacy, utilizing it to craft a character that is large in presence but shallow in depth.
The film was a turning point for Harnaaz Sandhu, not only because it was her first entry into the Bollywood film industry but also due to it being a reintroduction to the public, after having watched her through her real-life transformation process that required much criticism, and displayed a lot of resilience. It was also a risk that paid off, due to her having a starring role in a large franchise.
The Hidden Stories Behind the Screens
No large film today meets the world with a smooth reality. The film Baaghi 4 had its share.
The team seems to have encountered some rigid certification requirements, leading to the removal of some of the darker elements initially included, which sadness, pacing, and tone issues were encountered, primarily on the second half which weren’t lighthearted to begin with.
On the relationships of the industry, some were also mentioning of the apparent silos and of some abusive power, which seems to have driven the tone of the film to head in a continually darker presentation.
Moreover, as seems the norm with most of the major releases nowadays, the team was also on the receiving end of an early leak, a regrettable outcome which seems to have pointed holes in the film’s box office prospects and outlook.