Star Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Priya Bapat
Director: Sejal Shah
Costao Movie Review Synopsis:
COSTAO is the story of a brave man being tormented by the system. The year is 1991. Costao Fernandes (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) is a brave Customs officer in Goa. He lives with his wife Mariya (Priya Bapat), son Chris (Abeer Jain) and daughter Marissa (Asmi Deo). For Costao, duty comes first and he has got a tip that 1500 kilos of gold belonging to a local politician and smuggler D’Mello (Kishore Kumar G), will land in Goa. Costao keeps an eye on the various beaches but to no avail. One day, an informer (Shravan Fondekar) informs Costao that the ship has landed and also divulges the name of the beach where the gold is being unloaded. Costao reaches the smuggling point and sees D’Mello’s brother Peter (Hussain Dalal) transporting the gold in his car. Costao chases Peter and asks him to stop the car. A fight ensues between the two and Costao accidentally kills Peter. The villagers are about to confront Costao and he opens the trunk of the car to prove that Peter was indeed smuggling gold. He contacts his senior, Naik (Rohhit Tiwari), about the demise and gold. Realizing that his life is in danger, Costao runs away. By the time Naik reaches the crime spot, the gold has vanished from the car. Thus, the media and the Goans are made to believe that Costao killed an innocent man and is on the run. A day later, Costao surrenders and the case goes to court. Sadly, victory seems remote as Costao has no way to prove that he was acting on a tip and that Peter died accidentally. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Costao Movie Story Review:
Bhavesh Mandalia and Meghna Srivastava’s story is inspired by real-life events. Bhavesh Mandalia and Meghna Srivastava’s screenplay is a bit slow and arrests attention in some places. Bhavesh Mandalia and Meghna Srivastava’s dialogues are normal but some one-liners are very funny.
Sejal Shah’s direction is alright. One gets moved by the protagonist’s woes and also how his family also suffers. The first half has some gripping scenes. The chase sequence stands out. Another track that works is that of the CBI officer Narang (Gagan Dev Riar).
On the flipside, the narrative is a bit slow and hence, one loses interest in some places. A minor issue is that this is not a typical hero vs villain story. Hence, it doesn’t culminate as intended in this regard. But the biggest issue is the finale. On one hand, it comes across as a pleasant surprise. But on the other hand, no explanation is given on how the tables get turned. The makers should have explained the reason for the turn of events.
Costao | Official Trailer | A ZEE5 Original | Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Priya Bapat
Costao Movie Review Performances:
Nawazuddin Siddiqui, as always, delivers a supreme performance. His deadpan humour adds to his act. Priya Bapat’s character is the soul of the film and she does full justice. Kishore Kumar G, who was recently seen in L2 EMPURAAN and SIKANDAR, is fair. Hussain Dalal leaves a huge mark in a small role. Gagan Dev Riar performs aptly. Shravan Fondekar and Rohhit Tiwari lend able support. Asmi Deo is cute. Mahika Sharma (Peter’s widow) does well.
Costao movie music and other technical aspects:
All songs – ‘Danke Ki Chot’, ‘Pedro’ and ‘Kinaarey’ – are forgettable. Ketan Sodha’s background score is nothing special.
Rafey Mahmood’s cinematography is functional. Sapna Chandra’s production design and Sachin Lovelekar’s costumes are realistic. Abbas Ali Moghul’s action is minimal and cinematic. Unnikrishnan P P’s editing could have been crisper.
Costao Movie Review Conclusion:
On the whole, COSTAO rests on Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s performance and some arresting moments. But it falters due to a slow narrative and a weak climax. An average fare.