In most action movies, we associate the image of a man coolly walking away from an explosion with a heroic act. This image gets a fresh spin in Blood Brothers: Bara Naga, the Malaysian action thriller now out on Netflix. In this instance, the moments leading up to the explosion bear a heavy emotional burden. Amusingly enough, it even goes to the extent of doing something hilarious with explosions.
At one point, we see one vehicle after another getting blown up, with repetitive staging, and I began to suspect that it was one of the film's shortcomings. But I changed my mind after realising that this choice is deliberate, because, a while later, the film's funniest character cracks a joke about it in the middle of its most intense action sequence. And by joke, I don't mean the forced Marvel variety.
Blood Brothers: Bara Naga is so good that it trumps most Hollywood action movies coming out today. It delivers the goods with plenty of heart. The concept is simple, revolving around brotherhood among men who opted to sacrifice their mental sanity for a life filled with violence. We have seen this numerous times before — in the work of such popular action filmmakers as John Woo ("A Better Tomorrow", "The Killer") Johnnie To ("Exiled", "The Mission"), Chad Stahelski ("John Wick"), or if we are going to use an example of a young filmmaker from India, Lokesh Kanagaraj ("Kaithi", "Vikram").
It doesn't matter how many times we have seen it. It only matters if you know what fresh ideas you can bring to the table with an oft-repeated idea or clichés. Blood Brothers: Bara Naga, directed by Abhilash Chandra and Syafiq Yusof, takes the familiar and attempts some unfamiliarly tragic — and surprisingly hilarious — combinations with it. In an age of over-saturation of action movies that offer nowhere close to the pleasures of the classics some of us 90s kids grew up watching, Blood Brothers: Bara Naga comes along like a breath of fresh air.
It knows that to make an action movie work well, it has to work with characters that audiences would likely find strongly endearing or despicable. You want the "good guys" to win and the "bad guys" to be beaten viciously by the former. It's as simple as that. We are not here to discuss rocket science, you see.
In terms of delivering just that pure action gold, this film, headlined by Sharnaaz Ahmed and Syafiq Kyle as brothers from different parents, delivers in spades. Right from the opening scenes, you have nothing to do but get hooked. And in this age of constantly dwindling attention spans — a phenomenon that even some of the big, but empty, spectacle-laden blockbusters of Hollywood aren't able to correct — Blood Brothers: Bara Naga succeeds at keeping your phone away. (I was playing with my phone, in fact, in the first few minutes of the film, but had to stop, because I realised its opening sequence is going to have a strong bearing on everything that happens later.)
The fight sequences are efficient, neatly choreographed. One shootout includes even a tribute to a moment in the Coen Brothers' No Country for Old Men — the nighttime sequence where Javier Bardem pursues Josh Brolin. The film's principal leads, despite looking mean — as though they're frequent inhabitants of boxing/wrestling rings — know how to act. Now, isn't that a surprise? Getting action heroes to act convincingly is a skill that only a few gifted directors possess.
Thankfully, this film was fortunate enough to have a technical crew that knows its job. Even the kids playing the lead characters' younger selves do their parts neatly. Even the villain has a clear motive — familiar, but good. And about the 'funniest character' I mentioned in the first paragraph? Even he has a strong story. Blood Brothers: Bara Naga is a winner in nearly every department.
Film: Blood Brothers: Bara Naga
Directors: Abhilash Chandra, Syafiq Yusof
Cast: Sharnaaz Ahmad, Shukri Yahaya, Syafiq Kyle, Syazwan Zulkifly
Rating: 4/5
