The violence in Kennedy is often unflinching and the characters offer no easy sympathy, but you stay hooked on how it all plays out.
And that's when the classic Anurag Kashyap twist arrives, bringing an unexpected emotional payoff that lands just right, observes Mayur Sanap.
Key Points
- Anurag Kashyap's Kennedy finally finds a release on Z5 after touring the world at various film festivals.
- The film is a crime thriller starring Rahul Bhat and Sunny Leone.
- It is a strong pick for anyone who likes their cinema very dark.
Rooting for the protagonist of Kennedy is not easy.
Kennedy follows a deeply troubled man trapped in a violent criminal world. And no, this is not a story about morals or redemption. Instead, Kennedy forces us to sit inside a broken mind consumed by guilt and brutality.
Director-Writer Anurag Kashyap has painted various shades of grey in his films, but the tone of Kennedy is even darker. The world he builds is bleak and unforgiving, much like the characters that inhabit it. Thematically, Kennedy feels similar to Kashyap's neo-noir thriller Raman Raghav 2.0, where the story digs into a troubled psyche laced with violence and trauma.
What Kennedy is about
Rahul Bhat plays Uday Shetty, a cabbie by day and a hired killer by night. He is a brooding anti-hero at the centre of this bleak crime story about a broken system, which makes him a perfect Anurag Kashyap hero.
The quiet but tense opening sequence shows him calmly peeling an apple while smoking.
Once a star police officer, Uday is unceremoniously stripped of his uniform after a failed operation, abandoned by the very system he served. Declared missing and presumed dead, he slips into the shadows and resurfaces as a contract killer, carrying out orders from Mumbai police chief Rasheed Khan (a scene-stealing Mohit Takalkar).
The opening stretch shows him preparing for yet another hit, one in a long chain of murders that define his new life as Kennedy.
Beneath this bloodshed runs another personal mission for Uday as he searches for a mysterious man named Saleem (Aamir Dalvi). This hunt further puts him into a whirlwind of secrets, double crosses, and well, more murders.
Anurag Kashyap's return to form
For a film centered on a criminal, Kennedy can seem familiar at first. But Anurag Kashyap develops the story with a steady hand, shaping it into a carefully mounted, character-driven drama. The film takes its own sweet time, as the tension builds quietly, scene by scene.
The story gains an added sense of realism with the grim backdrop of the Covid crisis.
Small background details quietly build this world: People wear ill-fitting masks, a bar owner complains about losses under the 30 per cent occupancy rule, and in one chilling moment, stretchers carrying bodies pass by in the distance. There's even a brief scene that takes a sharp potshot at the mismanagement of the situation (a crackling cameo by Varun Grover).
The use of real locations (in this case, South Mumbai) and the rough indie texture associated with Kashyap-style of filmmaking add to the film's impact. This uneasy atmosphere is further shaped by cinematographer Sylvester Fonseca, who shoots Mumbai with a sleek, stylish touch.
There's also an operatic feel to the action, where the violence is graphic and direct, but is still played with dark humour.
In one long, tense sequence, a bickering family scene quickly turns into a chain of brutal killings. It recalls a memorable moment from Raman Raghav 2.0, when Nawazuddin Siddiqui's Ramanna visits his sister, played by Amruta Subhash.
It’s a masterfully eerie sequence that shows violence is simply an extension of the character.
In moments like this, Kennedy feels like a return to form for Anurag Kashyap, whose raw, gritty voice once defined his most distinctive work. As for his move toward a more crowd-pleasing masala space, that shift was already hinted in his last release Nishaanchi.
For all its unsettling beauty, Kennedy becomes convoluted once Uday's past fully enters the picture. In one deranged moment, Kennedy sees his dead victims speaking directly to him, which feels like a nod to The Sixth Sense. They talk to him like a twisted version of his conscience as his mental state slips further.
Rahul Bhat, Sunny Leone are terrific
Rahul Bhat is excellent as a man trapped by his past, showing almost no remorse or emotion. His muscular physique shows strength, but his permanently baggy eyes reveal a deep emptiness that gives his Kennedy a haunting edge.
Sunny Leone has limited screen time, but she makes it count as Charlie as she brings softness to the film's harsh world.
There's a real sass to her Charlie. In a playful beat, a man curiously asks her 'Aap India se nahin hain kya?' To which she casually replies: 'Indian hu, kaafi nahin hain kya?'
She is often drunk on whiskey, swearing when she is confused or angry, and then suddenly breaks into laughter in the most unexpected moments. That mix of mess and mischief makes Charlie very interesting. You wish the film had given her more space because Sunny is immensely watchable in the role.
Yes, the violence in Kennedy is often unflinching and the characters offer no easy sympathy, but you stay hooked on how it all plays out. And that's when the classic Anurag Kashyap twist arrives, bringing an unexpected emotional payoff that lands just right.
A strong pick for anyone who likes their cinema very dark.
Kennedy streams on Z5.
