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Patriot Review - An important and interesting core, a mostly solid film but minus the fizz!

PUBLISHED DATE : 02/May/2026

Patriot Review - An important and interesting core, a mostly solid film but minus the fizz!

Patriot – An important and interesting core, a mostly solid film but minus the fizz!

Bharath Vijayakumar

Mahesh Narayanan’s Patriot has the heavyweight stars of Malayalam cinema coming together. The premise is set around a pressing and pertinent issue of our times - the dangers of surveillance and technology and the loss of privacy. With the stars onboard and this premise, there is enough fodder to approach this film in multiple ways. A globe-trotting spy thriller with focus on adrenaline rush, a high voltage larger than life actioner with focus on masala and melodrama, a lowkey and subtle investigation drama (the Malayalam style) or a docu style message movie. Though Patriot has portions that could reflect each of these styles, it is a predominantly event driven globe-trotting thriller with occasional mass moments.

 

I really dug into the first half of Patriot which is nicely set up. The villains seem dangerous and a strong conflict is established. The stakes are big and the characters look and feel real. The hero Daniel (Mammootty) doesn’t have superpowers, but he is a highly skilled expert in his field. So, the battle is interesting. Though the pace is unhurried, the film is packed with events with one leading to another and there is some genuine tension. Most importantly, we are rooting for Daniel. The film isn’t resorting to gimmicks (at least yet) and it is some good old basic storytelling. And it all leads to an interval block that is sufficiently massy but within the film’s sensibilities.

 

The second half of Patriot is when the film’s length starts showing. And this is primarily because the film now begins feeling one note. The second half is in fact packed with more events but apart from occasional sparks, the excitement goes for a toss. I guess one reason is that there are more action sequences in this part of the film, but it feels like the makers themselves are in a hurry to get them done with. With senior heroes, action sequences are a challenge. You cannot go overboard making it look silly. Guess Vikram (Tamil) was the film that managed to succeed in this regard with some clever execution. But even Lokesh couldn’t repeat it in Coolie. I think Patriot might have worked a lot better without these mandatory action sequences. With the emotional investment already dipping and with these actions sequences not really making you sit up, you are just waiting for things to wind up. The film also occasionally flirts with the idea to create some mass moments but doesn't go full throttle. It kind of keeps hanging midway and this dilemma doesn't help.

But to give its due, Patriot is quite solid for most of its running time. It takes a style of filmmaking and sticks to it (few missteps aside). It is a film that I liked for at least two thirds of its running time and as a complete film, it is one that I did not mind. An all-right film about a very important issue is how I would like to call it.

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