It is indeed admirable to see Priyanka Chopra, with or without Jonas, bring so much of her native vivacity to her part in this middling political thriller.
The kindergarten political premise of the plot is propelled by Priyanka’s perky pun-filled performance. You see, her character Noel loves puns. Her opening gambit in Bunol at the Tomatina festival (remember Zindagi Na Milegi where she is reporting Live is, “I will ketchup with you later.”
Haha, clever. We love Priyanka’s saucy (pun intended) conduct at the start. But then she disappears from the plot as the restless narrative takes off with the two protagonists, the President of the United States and the Prime Minister of Great (?) Britain, no less, as they try to dodge terrorist, bullets and clumsy writing (not necessarily in that order).
To be fair, John Cena and Idris Alba are a barrell of fun together as the Prez and the PM, respectively. Cena especially with his childlike joy in the moment and his often-challenged view that every person in this planet knows him, if not for his current Trump card, then as the former action star of the silver screen.
It is a fun character, played with the right amount of self-deprecating humour and a levity that defies the gravity that this kind of Frederick Forsyth plotting may have gotten trapped into.
The action is fun and video-gamish all the way. The trick of making something so silly seem fun, is to keep the irreverent momentum alive till the end. Admittedly the pace slackens, when it tries too hard not to lose our attention. However that mood of a tongue-in-cheek Tomatina festivity (rotten tomatoes and all) remains unharmed right till the end, largely thanks to the fun-fuelled cast, and no thanks to the writing which is demonstrably infantile.
The two heads of the State bob like Tom and Jerry, and their mutual conflicts have more to do with their ego than any concern for the state of world. The gags are certifiably jejune at times.
“Don’t make that call,” warns one HOS.
“Make that call,” warns the other.
“I can’t, there is no dial tone,” says the guy on the phone.
Come on, guys. You could have done much better especially with so much talent and resources available.
The Prez-PM on the run theme livens when Priyanka Chopra reappears an hour into show. She sort of adds creases to the over-smooth surface in a yarn that otherwise feels like an animation film.
The characters are credibly cartoonish. They don’t aspire to be anything else. When the big revelation happens towards the end, the cat among the pigeons, no one is surprised. Heads Of State has no room for surprises. It is a tightly wound piece of cinema with a clear agenda: make it large, and make it fun while it lasts.
