Controll Review: A cybercrime thriller that clicks much more than it crashes

A Personal Fight Against a Systemic Monster

At the center of Controll is Abhimanyu, played by Thakur Anoop Singh, an Indian Army officer whose disciplined exterior hides a storm of grief. When his brother-in-law becomes the target of online fraud, a chain of events unfolds that pushes Abhimanyu from duty-bound soldier to relentless seeker of truth.

The initial tragedy feels real and immediate. Abbas smartly grounds it in the ordinary – the kind of online scam that could happen to anyone, and then lets it spiral into something much bigger.

As Abhimanyu digs deeper, the story opens up to show just how impersonal and tangled digital crime can be. There are moments when the film almost feels like a procedural, following breadcrumbs through layers of deceit, corrupted systems, and manipulated data. It is here that Controll finds its most gripping rhythm. You sense the frustration of chasing ghosts in a network where the guilty hide behind screens and fake identities.

Performances That Keep the Film Anchored

Thakur Anoop Singh gives Abhimanyu both strength and restraint. His controlled energy fits perfectly with the story’s tone, especially in scenes where silence speaks louder than words. His performance keeps the emotional thread intact even when the writing occasionally slips.

Rohit Roy enters midway as the antagonist, and while his presence is brief, he brings a calm menace that lingers. There is something unnerving about the way he plays power – not loud or exaggerated, but unsettlingly casual. Priya Anand, Rajesh Sharma, and Denzil Smith add some texture to the world around Abhimanyu, though they never get enough space to leave a lasting mark.

What works best about the cast is that no one tries to oversell their emotions. The film benefits from that restraint. It feels like a story about ordinary people caught in extraordinary situations rather than a melodrama about revenge.

Strong Start, Uneven Finish

The first hour of Controll is where Safdar Abbas truly grips the viewer. The emotional pull is immediate, and the investigation begins with steady intrigue. The writing keeps the tone realistic, focusing on human reactions instead of cinematic exaggeration. The tension builds gradually, supported by editing that moves briskly without feeling rushed.

However, the film begins to lose some of that control in its latter half. The pacing tightens to a point where certain developments feel too convenient. Key revelations arrive without enough buildup, and the emotional peaks are not always earned. You can feel the intent, but the execution occasionally cuts corners. Some of the writing in the second half seems eager to wrap things up rather than explore the consequences fully.

Still, even when the storytelling falters, the themes hold the film steady. Abbas is clearly more interested in showing the system’s cold indifference than in delivering a flashy thriller. That choice makes Controll imperfect but sincere.

Style Meets Substance, Almost

Visually, Controll does not aim to overwhelm. It relies on clean, unfussy framing and muted tones that match the film’s subject. The cinematography occasionally stands out in the smaller, more introspective moments rather than in the larger action scenes. A few shots cleverly use light and shadow to suggest the duality of online and offline worlds.

The background score, however, could have done more. While the music supports the mood, it rarely heightens it. In a story where silence and tension could have been powerful tools, the score sometimes plays it too safe. The editing is neat, keeping the narrative focused, though one wishes for a bit more polish in transitions between key emotional beats.