Citadel Honey Bunny Review: Varun Dhawan And Samantha Ruth Prabhu Shine In A Solid Spin-Off – News18

Last Updated:November 07, 2024, 00:35 IST

Citadel Honey Bunny Review: Varun Dhawan and Samantha Ruth Prabhu deliver impressive performances in Raj & DK’s new show.

Citadel: Honey Bunny Review: Raj & DK’s ambitious series brings the spy-thriller genre to an Indian setting, yet ultimately only partly fulfills its ambitious promise. The story centres on Varun Dhawan’s Bunny (aka Rahi Gambir), a stuntman who lends a helping hand to Samantha Ruth Prabhu, aka Honey, a struggling actress. Facing eviction due to unpaid rent and a stagnant acting career, Honey is drawn into a quick-cash opportunity put together by a covert agency.

Together, Honey and Bunny find themselves plunged into a shadowy world of espionage. At the heart of their mission is Kay Kay Menon’s character, the agency’s head Guru, who is determined to acquire a cutting-edge tracking device from Citadel, capable of surveilling anyone — from world leaders to rival spies — potentially shifting the global balance of power in his favour. Eight years later, their past catches up with them in ways they never expected.

The series, set between 1992 and 2000, tries to build suspense by jumping back and forth in time, but this approach ends up confusing the viewers. The constant shifts disrupt the flow of the story, making it difficult to fully immerse in the plot. What’s intended to be a gripping spy-thriller often ends up feeling like a collection of clichés, lacking the coherence that could have possibly made it far more compelling.

Varun Dhawan as Bunny shines in his gritty moments, and his scenes with child actor Kashvi Majmundar, who plays young Nadia delightfully, are some of the series’ most touching. His acting chops also take centre stage during the series’ climax and he commands your undivided attention. Kashvi’s portrayal of the young girl deserves a mention — her character is unshakably curious and resilient. She delivers a heartwarming performance as the young girl thrust into the dark underbelly of the spy world. Despite her age, she brilliantly portrays the internal conflict of having to deal with the harsh realities of the dark world of espionage that continue to rob her of a carefree childhood.

Samantha Ruth Prabhu looks the part in Citadel: Honey Bunny. She’s fit, she handles the action sequences with ease and she’s got that effortless spy swag. Her performance in the action scenes is fantastic — there’s a bit of raw intensity and precision. One scene in particular, where she takes down a group of assassins and then gently closes her daughter’s eyes to shield her from the bloodshed, is brilliantly written and executed. That said, in some of the quieter, more emotional scenes, she doesn’t quite manage to hit the mark. Her expressions sometimes fail to carry the weight the script demands.

Kay Kay Menon, as always, commands attention, as the agency head – a role tailor-made for him. He oscillates between sinister and almost fatherly in his scenes, reprimanding agents one minute and cooking for them the next, creating a character you both fear and respect. However, his talent feels underused, as he seems to effortlessly sleepwalk through the role, which lacks the complexity his fans might expect. While he shines in many moments, even an actor of his stature can’t fully lift the flatness of the script. Soham Majumdar as Ludo, a techie, is convincing enough but is given little beyond his “tech genius” trope to work with. Saqib Saleem is suitably menacing as KD, an agent who lets nothing come between him and his mission. He delivers a palpable threat throughout, making him one of the more engaging parts of the story.

When it comes to action, Raj and DK certainly bring to life their knack for choreography and top-notch cinematography. The sequences are sharp and visually engaging, yet some verge on the absurd. In one scene, Varun’s character intimidates a scientist by showing him a gun and then casually strolls through a bustling street in Belgrade with the scientist in tow — without drawing a single curious glance from the crowd. The implausibility here might be funny if it weren’t so out of place in an otherwise serious spy series.

Citadel: Honey Bunny explores the main characters’ backstories through frequent flashbacks, aiming to reveal the motivations and struggles that shaped them. While this adds some depth, the constant connection to the past feels a bit forced, slowing down the pace.

The twists, intended to deliver the show’s climactic punches, often come across as forced and predictable. Many come abruptly in the final episodes, which are undeniably grittier but arrive too late to compensate for the show’s lackluster buildup. The finale attempts to tie too many loose ends, but it feels rushed. For a spy thriller, it lacks the gripping, edge-of-your-seat suspense that fans expect from the genre until the last few episodes.

But all things considered, Citadel: Honey Bunny does a solid job as a spin-off that gives us a glimpse into young Nadia’s life — a mere six-year-old here — setting up the world for what we see in Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas’s Citadel. This Indian prequel is stylishly made, with a grand, cinematic scale that draws you in. It has its moments, especially as it moves forward; the action sequences are top-notch, and the suspense amps up with each episode.

A good, one-time watch.