My comparison of Nair Saab v Keerthi Chakra
I was waiting for such a topic to compare both films.
Both are very difficult to compare because
1. Both came in different eras
2. Mammoty is not a general throughout like Mohanlal
3. Mammoty and Mohanlal's characters have different styles and are characterised differently-so impossible to compare them
4. Keerthi Chakra can be called a military film. But Nair Saab is more of an action thriller in the 2nd half rather than a military film.
If I were to state my opinion, I would go for Keerthi Chakra for the following reasons
1. A true military film should NOT have unnecessary comedy or love scenes (Aran has that, but KC I am talking about..). In Nair Saab a few scenes are wasted on the usual young soldiers flirting with ladies and competition as to who is the most handsome, etc etc.
2. A true national military film will NEVER have a whole batch of Malayalees, the Home Secretary being a Malayalee and the chief villains being Malayalees. One has to be realistic here. Also, in Mukesh's dream, the India-Pakistan signs are in Malayalam
. In Keerthi Chakra, there are Tamilians, Maharashtrians and Afghanis and Kashmiris all speaking their various languages. This is what should happen. And unlike Nair Saab, a good 20% of Keerthi Chakra's dialogues are in Tamil, Hindi and Urdu.
3. A true military film will never ever have Mukesh, Kunjan, Maniyanpilla Raju as soldiers
. Biju Menon, Shammi Thilakan, Jeeva etc are more suitable for the military uniform than the others.
4. A true military film should be an army film throughout. In Nair Saab, 20% of the 1st half is comedy and romance and 80% of the 2nd half is action and suspense. In Keerthi Chakra, 90% of the film is devoted to training and commando operations and tactics.
5. A true military film should have atleast some patriotic dialogues and words to remember, eg where Major Mahadevan says "Yudham kalikumbozhum cricket kalikannumbol mathram nammal Indiakar avila". Nair Saab does not even have 1 patriotic dialogue or even "Bharat Mata Ki Jai"
6. A true military film should deal with issues in the military rather than outside. In Nair Saab u have the army being infiltrated by villains and Lalu Alex acting as a general, whereas in KC there are more pertinent issues such as the human rights of killing a prisoner, the sacrifices a soldier makes, none of which are dealt with in Nair Saab.
7. In Nair Saab soldiers do not have an identity to speak of themselves. In KC each soldier has his complex mannerisms and we can have a detailed look at the problems he faces. In Nair Saab soldiers follow the general (Mammoty or Lalu Alex)
Some points in favor of Nair Saab
1. Kashmir has been captured brilliantly even though it is 1989.
2. Though not a military film as such the suspense and action is racy and entertaining
3. Mammoty is outstanding as Nair Saab and his performance can really intimidate the audience. His dialogues are brilliant and he ssymbolises a true major.
4. The training manouvres are interesting to see in Nair Saab.
So I feel KC as a military film is better. My own opinion only. Sorry to Mammotyfans.