Raees
2017 · Directed by Rahul Dholakia
Original language: Hindi
- thriller
- action
- crime
The story
Set in the early ’80s and ’90s in Gujarat, India, ‘Raees’ is a fictitious story of a crime lord named Raees, who builds an entire empire from scratch, and a police officer who is determined to bring him down.
What it’s like
Hot, dusty streets lit by harsh midday sun give way to smoky, sodium-lit nights in Gujarat, with a warm amber palette that bleeds into the grit of 1980s and 1990s small-town life. The camera moves with brisk, muscular energy: tracking shots through crowded bazaars, wide frames of arid roads and dim liquor dens, and hard cuts timed to the beat. Bollywood-style songs punctuate the story with bright, rhythmic pop, while tense underscore swells during cat-and-mouse confrontations. The vibe is swaggering and gritty, a period crime drama with a charismatic, sly energy and a sense of rising pressure. It suits a Friday night out or a settled evening with snacks, when you want something watchable with momentum. Violence is present, including shootings and fistfights, and it lands with a sharp, cinematic punch rather than lingering gore. Tension and menace run throughout, though the mood is more playful than bleak. It is for viewers who enjoy old-school gangster stories, star-driven performances, and musical interludes inside a crime narrative.
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