Article 15 Movie Review

This is a spoiler free review, analysing the performance of the cast and the technical aspects of the movie, without giving away any important facts or scenes from the movie. A basic storyline is given for better understanding of the movie, but you may skip it should you wish to.
  1. The Cinematography: Possibly the best part of the movie for me was the cinematography. Each scene has been shot very well from different angles, thus capturing the mood of the movie perfectly. Be it dawn or dusk, mist or dust, all have been captured brilliantly. I personally thought it’s cinematography resembled that of the TV Show Crime Patrol, not the weekday ones, but the special two part episodes that come on the weekend. A job well done.
  2. The Storyline: Without giving much away, just from the trailer we can make it that it is about the murder of two girls, who were hung from a tree and a third girl who is missing. The clash of castes is also obvious. The movie has bent certain facts from the original case (Badaun Rape Case of 2015) to better suit the story, as such it will be better if you assume it to be fiction than a true representation of the case. Who killed the girls? Where is the third girl? Will the victims get their justice? These questions form the crux of the story.
  3. The Screenplay: The first thing I would like to point out is the lack of any songs in the movie, except for a title track and an end sequence. Kudos for that. It is tough to keep the audience attentive without already released singles or foot tapping beats, just relying on the story. Secondly, the narrative is loosened at a few points and stretches a bit in the second half, but the drama makes up for the lack of thrill. The story is well paced except for a few parts. There are a handful of moments in the movie that makes you laugh as well as certain scenes which leave you curling in your stomach. Both are well executed.
  4. The Performances: Another win. I will analyse each performance here on the basis of their impact on me during the movie, rather than their order of appearance or screen time.
  • Manoj Pahwa (Playing Bhramadutt): I have been a fan of Manoj Pahwa since I was a young kid and he used to come on TV shows on Star Plus such as Shaka Laka Boom Boom. I’m used to seeing him in light hearted characters, so him playing a serious role such as in this one left an impact. He is not a comic relief in the movie, but the way he handled a dramatic role as this one, enthralled me. Stellar performance.
  • Kumud Mishra (Playing Jatav): Kumud Mishra is an extremely reliable actor and plays sort of a much needed comedic relief in the movie and gets the most laughter filled scenes in the movie. However, when the grimace of the movie spreads, he handles it exceedingly well. One of the most heart wrenching scenes in the movie also involves him and Sayani Kher (Playing Gaura). Another Stellar performance.
  • Subyajyothi Bharat (Playing Chandrabhan): I did not know what his name was when I saw the movie and didn’t remember his characters name as well. So I searched for him online and found it. I have given a sort of description of his character only, so it becomes easier to recognise him. No Spoilers. It was my first time seeing him act and he was extremely good. He got very little screen time and most of his dialogues are stories his mother used to tell him. He plays sort of a foreshadower in the movie and his act is spot on. Thoroughly enjoyed his performance. Spot on performance.
  • Ayushmann Khurrana (Playing Ayan Ranjan): Another feather in his acting career for Ayushmann. As a protagonist, he gets the greatest screen time and makes good use of it. I think this was the first time that I saw him in such a calm and subdued role, as compared to his previous, fun outings. He is a terrific actor, although he needs just a little bit of polishing for such no nonsense roles. His serious demeanour and inner conflict is reflected very well for viewers as he too is somewhat of a viewer in the whole story. Great performance nonetheless.
  • Sayani Gupta (Playing Gaura): I first saw her in the Hungry, then Baar Baar Dekho, then Four More Shots Please. In this, she ventures into a new territory altogether as compared to her previous roles. Her accent, her emotions and her chemistry with other character is spot on. Her character, along with Kumud Mishra’s has possibly the most heartbreaking scene in the movie. Her character makes you care and in that she proves what a good actor she is. Had she had some more screen time, I might have placed her above Ayushmann as well. Spot on performance.
  • Sushil Pandey (Playing Nihal Singh): I have mostly seen him in various episodes of Crime Patrol and seeing him on the big screen made me very happy for him. For the better part of the movie, he seems unnecessary. But in certain crucial scenes, he performs excellently. A very very good performance. Spot on performance.
  • Sumbul Toqueer (Playing Amali): First time seeing her too. I will give a brief summary of her character. She plays Nihal Singh’s sister and resident cook for Ayan. She is very well cast, playing her role to the T. In certain crucial scenes, she gives a remarkable performance. Well done.
  • Ashish Verma (Playing Mayank): It was my first time seeing him as well. Most of his scenes were wish Kumud Mishra, so he was mostly overshadowed, but in standalone scenes, he was incredibly accessible. He is reminiscent of a sidekick in movies and does a good job in portraying his character. In certain scenes, his character being a native of the place also provided certain insights into other characters and the workings of the place. Good performance for an almost pivotal character.
  • Veen (Playing Ashish Nehriya): Again, my first time seeing him on screen too. His scree time is one of the lowest in the movie, but he makes an impact with some of the best dialogues given to him. He is good, made even more memorable by the dialogues given to him. Spot on performance again.
  • Akash Dabhade (Playing Satyendra): His performance was good but his character was rather shoddily written. His character is too convenient and takes out the thrill of the movie rather quickly. His performance had very little impact on me but I attribute it mainly to the character given to him than his acting. An OK performance.
  • Isha Talwar (Playing Aditi): She had possibly the least impact on me of all the characters. She had more screen time than some other characters who left a more profound impact. We do not see much of her acting skills, but it could be attributed to her character. An OK performance. Out of all the characters, she had the least impact on me inspire of heavy screentime.
CAMEOS: These are the special appearances in the movie. If you do not like to know of them beforehand, kindly skip this section. The cameo list is based on the screen time given to the respective characters.
  • Mohammad Zeeshan Ayub (Playing Nishad): I have seen him in so many movies, yet I think this one was his best performance so far. His was a long cameo, so I included him in this section. In terms of impact, he was second for me, just below Manoj Pahwa and above Ayushmann, Kumud Mishra and Sayani for me. He is extremely well written into the plot of the movie and his was a splendid performance.
  • Ronjini Chakravarty (Playing Malti): Another well made cameo. I first saw her in Tumbbad and then in a few YouTube videos. Seeing her in the movie made me almost as happy as seeing Sushil Kumar there. A very good performance, given her limited screen time. In terms of impact of the entire cast, she is somewhere between Sumbul Toqueer and Veen for me. A much needed and well cast cameo.
  • Nasser (Playing Panikar): As a South Indian, I’m a bit biased towards Nasser. But I will try to be as unbiased as possible. In the movie, his accent showed up sometimes, but like a pro, his performance was never affected. He is well cast and classy in the movie, truly a well done cameo appearance. In terms of impact, he is somewhere between Sayani Gupta and Sushil Pandey for me.
5. Overall review: An exceptionally well made movie with excellent cast performances and cinematography as it’s strength. The story drags a bit and becomes dramatic at times, losing its thrill, especially in the second half, but the performances make up for it. If you are someone who doesn’t like gory scenes or hurls easily, I would avoid the popcorn and any other food. This might be a movie where you wouldn’t wish to take popcorn. :-)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

MALAAL MOVIE REVIEW

My review of the movie is given here. It is a no spoiler review.  1. The cinematography: A big plus for the movie. Mumbai in all its finesse is captured wonderfully in the movie. Slow moving shots, landscapes and especially the song Udhal Ho, truly capture Mumbai beautifully.  2. The story: The story revolves around a guy and a girl belonging to the same colony falling in love. It is a remake of the Tamil movie 7G Rainbow Colony, which was also remade into Bengali. The girls family is going through economic changes while the guy is aimless for the most part. A typical story without much change from the original.  3. The Screenplay: The screenplay is rather stretched out at some places and too much time is wasted in establishing the characters rather than the story. As it is not a character driven film but a plot driven one, a tighter screenplay would have been better. A runtime of well over 2 hours was not required.  4. The performances: While there...
Read more

What this Blog is about!!!!!

This is my first Blog to review movies regardless of their region, language and country of making. I will be reviewing movies without any spoilers and focusing on only the important aspects of the films. The films I review will include recent releases as well as any older movies I happen to catch. I happen to like movies and this hope my reviews will be helpful for you to decide whether to watch it or not. I will not be rating the movies as cinema is an art form, but just give certain views of the movie experience in general. For the first few days, I will be including reviews of movies that I write previously on other platforms before starting this blog. I hope you enjoy the movies more than my reviews. Don’t forget your popcorn. 
Read more

SHOPLIFTERS MOVIE REVIEW

This is my spoiler free review of the movie Shoplifters. I hope this gives you a useful insight of the basic storyline and characters.   The cinematography: This is one of the weaker points of the movie, in my opinion. While the family is the point of focus in the movie, the cinematography is often shaky. It makes me aware of the surroundings of the family, sometimes more than the family itself. The camera captures the family’s emotions and actions, but in certain scenes makes my attention waver from the point of focus. Nonetheless, it truly hits the mark when it is required, of including certain pivotal scenes involving Hatsue, the grandmother and Osamu and his wife, Nobuyo which made me feel somewhat hollow inside. A job well done, but which could have been a bit better, especially in less important scenes.  The storyline: The story of the movie centre’s around a blue collar make shift family in Japan who do almost whatever is required in order to survive, including shop...
Read more