The Terrorist

Presented in the U.S. courtesy of John Malkovich, writer-director Santosh Sivan's The Terrorist (inspired by events surrounding the assassination of Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Ghandi) stars the hauntingly photogenic Ayesha Dharkar as Malli, a hardened 19-year-old revolutionary handpicked to travel to an unnamed city to carry out a suicide mission/assassination on an unnamed VIP. As she makes her deadly odyssey, Malli reflects on past events, encounters people far removed from her insular world of all-war-all-the-time, and eventually discovers a surprising secret that may impact her singleminded devotion. Unfortunately, The Terrorist is a triumph of seductive cinematography over compelling substance, with (it seems) half the movie comprised of close-up shots of the brooding Dharkar's face. Optional. (R. Pitman)