‘The Diplomat’ Movie Review: John Abraham and Sadia Khateeb’s Cross-Border Drama Deserves a Slicker Storytelling Approach (LatestLY Exclusive)

The Diplomat Movie Review: There is something about John Abraham's movies - okay, those not directed by Milap Zaveri (which are uniformly abysmal) - that I cannot quite pinpoint where they start to go downhill. As a producer, Abraham has a knack for choosing subjects that are politically intriguing and, based on their plots alone, leave the viewer invested enough to think they could be watching an interesting film. Yet, except for the brilliant Madras Cafe, somehow the other movies - be it Parmanu, Romeo Akbar Walter, Batla House, or Vedaa - fumble in fully realising their potential, turning into half-baked thrillers that lose their impact in the fractured storytelling. Shivam Nair's The Diplomat is an unfortunate example of this trend. ‘The Diplomat’ Release Date Postponed: John Abraham’s Political Thriller Now Arrives in Theatres on Holi 2025.

The Diplomat is based on the real-life rescue and evacuation of Uzma Ahmed, an Indian woman trapped in Pakistan, with the help of the Indian Embassy and the then Minister of External Affairs, the late Sushma Swaraj. Director Shivam Nair and screenwriter Ritesh Shah have chosen to keep most of the real names intact, never mind that the actors may bear no other physical similarities to their real-life counterparts.

'The Diplomat' Movie Review - The Plot

John Abraham plays JP Singh, the deputy commissioner at the Indian Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan; Revathi portrays Sushma Swaraj, and Sadia Khateeb plays the unfortunate Uzma Ahmed. Uzma was tricked into coming to Pakistan by her lover, Tahir (Jagjit Sandhu, very natural), who, it turns out, is already married with several children. He takes her to the secluded region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where he subjects her to violent abuse and sexual assault before forcing her into marriage.

Watch the Trailer of 'The Diplomat':

Uzma tricks him into bringing her to the Indian Embassy, and how JP Singh and his team help her escape while navigating the tricky political landscape of Pakistan forms the rest of the plot.

'The Diplomat' Movie Review - Captivating Plot, Underwhelming Approach

As I said before, what captivates you primarily about The Diplomat is the plot itself. While it is hard not to deduce the eventual outcome - even if you haven't heard of the real incident from 2017 - the journey to that conclusion should have made The Diplomat a thrilling experience, akin to Ben Affleck’s Argo or even Neeraj Pandey’s Baby or Nikkhil Advani's D-Day. However, despite moving at a brisk pace with only a couple of detours, The Diplomat merely goes through the motions, failing to evoke the intensity needed for such a film. And when I say intensity, I don’t mean an overpowering background score in nearly every scene - sometimes so loud that it's difficult to understand the dialogues when characters speak softly.

For a film titled The Diplomat, I expected more emphasis on the protagonist's strategic acumen. But beyond John Abraham maintaining a poker face, walking briskly, and convincing people around him to take action, there isn’t much depth to be found. It could be the movie's attempt to keep it restrained and realistic, which is commendable, until it itself realises that approach isn't working and goes all bullets and chases in the climax.

The attempt to flesh out JP's personal life - his wife accusing him of being absent while his son humorously lands in one mishap after another - alongside a backstory involving a terrorist attack, feels tacked on. The character arc could have worked without these distractions. The Diplomat could have done a lot more with the camaraderie between JP and Mishra, Sharib Hashmi’s character - there was so much potential in that track. In fact, I could see so much potential to flesh out in the unspoken bond between Uzma and a female embassy employee, played by Vidhatri Bandi (quite good), or in the playful relationship between a friendly Pakistani lawyer (Kumud Mishra, effective as always) and his wife - despite the brief screentime given to them.

The film also enjoys stretching out dramatic reveals, even when the delay serves no real purpose. For example, Uzma doesn’t immediately disclose her ordeal to JP during their first meeting, not because of any narrative logic but simply to maintain the momentum of the initial encounter. It feels like an obvious storytelling decision rather than a natural progression. Similarly, Uzma’s friend advising her to go to the Indian Embassy is deliberately cut from their phone conversation and later presented as a dramatic revelation - even though the impact isn't as significant as the makers intended. Why keep it a suspense when it’s clear that’s exactly what happened? Also, may I ask why that friend reacted so nonchalantly upon learning of Uzma’s plight, immediately giving her the right advice as if dealing with women trapped in Pakistan is a regular occurrence for him? Did I miss some backstory there?

The film briefly mentions the Kulbhushan Jadhav case and how it could affect Uzma’s extradition. But beyond this mention, the broader diplomatic implications don't significantly affect the plot.

Even the dialogues weren’t as razor-sharp as they were meant to be, including the supposed witty comebacks. When they try to appeal to the gallery, they mostly serve as digs at Pakistan’s state of affairs, with a winking nod to how things are supposedly better back home. These lines almost always begin with, "Yeh Pakistan hai, yaha...”, the ellipsis being replaced by whatever taunt the writer could think of for that particular situation.

Perhaps even the filmmakers realised the film wasn’t tense enough, so they added an additional antagonist - a high-ranking Pakistani official who keeps obstructing JP’s mission. However, his motives remain vague till the end. This character exists apart from already established villains in Uzma’s husband Tahir and his henchmen, who create havoc outside the embassy and even chase JP and Uzma on the road - because the movie was lacking thrills, I suppose, or because it realised it didn't allow John to lead some action till then. ‘Vedaa’ Movie Review: John Abraham and Sharvari Wagh’s Gritty Action-Drama Is Let Down by an Abysmal Second Half!

'The Diplomat' Movie Review - Where The Movie Shines

That said, there are a couple of commendable aspects in The Diplomat. Despite having the opportunity, The Diplomat doesn’t take the The Kerala Story route in depicting the villains’ barbarities. There is some restraint in the approach, yet the film effectively conveys Uzma’s pain and suffering. For instance, the first time Tahir sexually assaults her, the scene focuses solely on her eyes, letting the trauma register without resorting to exploitative visuals. In an era where filmmakers often prioritise shock value to incite audience outrage, this restraint is laudable.

That brings us to Sadia Khateeb (who debuted in Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s Shikara), easily the standout performer in the film. She adeptly conveys Uzma’s naivety and resilience while powerfully portraying the trauma of her entrapment and abuse at the hands of her monstrous husband.

PS: Brace yourself for an exceptionally long disclaimer at the beginning of the film, preemptively absolving itself of every conceivable accusation under the sun. I truly felt like buying a can of soda and offering it to the poor soul tasked with narrating the entire ordeal.

'The Diplomat' Movie Review - Final Thoughts

The Diplomat is not a bad film, but it never quite rises to the occasion. It is a movie with an undeniably compelling story, but it lacks the cinematic urgency and depth it deserves, settling instead for a surface-level treatment of what could have been a taut, intelligent thriller. This is evident in the final scene, when the movie borrows Roja's "Bharat Humko Jaan Se Pyara Hai" to raise the emotional value of the sequence, yet the goosebumps feel sorely missing. This story doesn't deserve to feel that way.

(The opinions expressed in the above article are of the author and do not reflect the stand or position of LatestLY.)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 13, 2025 12:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).