The setting of The Archies is fascinating yet looks believable. One gets sucked into the world of Riverdale in no time and even understands the various spots of the town. The seven characters are established nicely and their interaction with each other and elders keeps the interest going. The conflict is introduced at the very start and it’s quite intriguing. The makers deserve kudos for smartly infusing a political angle into the narrative. The film, however, suffers due to limited humour and touching scenes, which is a must in a Zoya Akhtar film. The songs are novel (watch out for ‘Everything Is Politics’) but there are too many of them. Lastly, the performances of the debutants are good but not out of the world. Agastya Nanda, Suhana Khan and Khushi Kapoor try their best and it shows. But they need improvement and if that happens, there’s nothing stopping them. Vedang Raina (Reggie) is okay while Mihir Ahuja (Jughead Jones) raises the maximum laughs. Aditi Saigal aka Dot (Ethel) suffers from limited screen time. Yuvraj Menda (Dilton) is lovely. From the supporting cast, Alyy Khan (Mr Lodge), Satyajit Sharma (Hal), Vinay Pathak (Dawson), Suhaas Ahuja (Fred), James Alter (Mike Gomes; council member) and Puja Sarup (Mrs Otters; council member) leave a huge mark. All in all, The Archies is a decent entertainer.
My rating – *** out of 5!