1917 (2019) - ENGLISH

                                                

The best film of 2019 technically. A must watch for those who love camera work.

Brilliantly shot and edited to appear as a single take, every camera movement is intelligent and serves a purpose as the mission unfolds.  The edits are camouflaged behind the camera work which is combined with precise time blocking.

The performances of the two young leads Dean-Charles Chapman and George MacKay are engaging, with both leads swapping the narrative focus from each other in meticulously planned storytelling beats. The mission is the key focus as the two soldiers make their way through increasingly dangerous situations. Along the way, they encounter key army personnel, played by a cameo row of British actors, including Andrew Scott, Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Richard Madden who put in brief like a single frame, but impressive performances

The cinematography by Roger Deakins is mesmerizing, choreographed, and executed to perfection around the horrific elements of war. Some of the frames are visually breathtaking, and demand to be revisited to absorb everything they have to offer. Thomas Newman’s score escalates the experience of soaring heights. This film could easily sweep up all the technical awards at the Oscars this year. All these factors firmly put director Sam Mendes in the upper echelon of directors currently working today, if he wasn’t there already. ‘1917’ is tense, captivating, meticulous, horrifying, and stirring – an exceptional achievement in filmmaking.

A 5/5 for this film.

RAAT AKELI HAI (2020) - HINDI

A classic whodunnit mystery that’s well performed and meticulously directed.

When it comes to writing a whodunnit story, the biggest aspect is the concealment of the motive of the murder until it’s revealed. This film did that job very well. Till the climax neither the murderer nor the motive was revealed although it’s sprayed all over the film that there are politics involved. For 2 and a half hours it just went on and on without giving any breathing space and kept me hooked. So that’s definitely a winner.

The acting by the ensemble cast is just perfect the casting is done nearly perfectly. A butcher looks like a real butcher, the policemen look real and even the maids are near perfect. Kudos to the casting director and a big thank you for selecting the OTT platform superstars Nawazuddin and Radhika Apte. These folks are ruling the roost I must say be it ‘Sacred Games’ or ‘Ghoul’ or this exclusive Netflix film.

Editing is a big factor that differentiates a great mystery film from a mediocre one because you got to know how much to show and when to cut to keep the suspense going. This film does not let us down in editing. Now, the editor, the master Sreekar Prasad. He is just getting better and better I guess.

The screenplay is tight and the direction is classic. There is a Hitchcock in there and I could see references for David Fincher too. So I must say this is a fine debut by Honey Trehan and hope to see more from him.

The use of lights just amazed me with not one moment having under or overly lit. They are just right setting the claustrophobic mood perfectly.

All in all, this is perhaps the best of the year so far from Hindi Cinema. Now the sad part of these whodunnit stories is that you rarely watch them a second time because once you know the mystery you may not like to revisit. 

So it’s a terrific one time watch that demands 4/5.