O Romeo Review—Director Vishal Bhardwaj has collaborated with Shahid Kapoor yet again in the stylish gangster-romance film, which, although the visuals are rich and stunning, seems to fail on the emotional front to leave an impression on the viewer’s heart. With the film carrying the trademark style of Vishal Bhardwaj and Shahid Kapoor delivering yet another powerful performance on the screen, the movie seems to fall flat in recreating the magic of the duo’s earlier collaborations like “Haider” and “Kaminey.”
O’Romeo lacks a clear identity from its first scenes. It vacillates between a love story, a revenge plot, and a gangster film, without committing to any of them. This ambiguity makes for a disjointed film, even though it’s highly visually pleasing.
The first half is easily the best part of the film and of the protagonist, Romeo Avtar, a.k.a. Ustra, played by Shahid Kapoor, who has a striking entry, replete with violence and intensity, as the volatile gangster with a shade of moral conflict. Shahid Kapoor is in total control, and you remember how good he has been in negative and complex roles and how his screen presence is entirely magnetic.
The film sees Triptii Dimri play Afsha, a character fueled by vengeance for what has happened to her. Avinash Tiwary plays Jamal, a criminal figure who inspires fear. While Triptii does a good job in the film, Jamal never really comes across as a figure to be feared. The character development of the film does not live up to expectations.
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The second half, where the romance between Romeo and Afsha is highlighted, is where this film loses its steam. The audience is not given enough time to witness how Romeo comes to love Afsha. Moreover, Romeo’s transition from being emotionally unattached to being emotionally attached and willing to do anything for his woman seems unnatural. Therefore, there is no way to emotionally connect to this character.
The Spanish sequences and the symbolic bullfight are visually impressive but emotionally unimpressive. What is required is an emotionally impressive conclusion, but instead, the film ends on an unimpressive note. The long duration of the film and the many songs also slow down the proceedings.
Conclusion:
This O’ Romeo Review sums up a film that is high on ambition and visual style but low on emotional depth. Shahid Kapoor’s performance is a major highlight of the movie, but an uneven screenplay and weak emotional buildup did not allow O Romeo to be truly memorable. It is a film worth wgangster romanceperformances and aesthetics; however, it does not quite live up to the expectations of a Vishal Bhardwaj–Shahid Kapoor collaboration.
