I love murder mystery films and this film does manage to keep your attention whilst giving an interesting insight into the nature of men and women.
Raat Akeli Hai follows Jatil Yadav, a police officer who investigates the murder of the patriarch of a wealthy family.
It may sound like Knives Out and the film does have a few similarities to it but Raat Akeli Hai is certainly different in terms its tone and themes. For the most part, this film is engaging. Debutant director Honey Trehan does manage to keep the audience interested but it does run into a few bumps along the way. There are some scenes sprinkled with humour here and there but for the most part there is a dark feeling to the film. Pankaj Kumar, who did the cinematography for Tumbbad, does a good job here especially during a scene that takes place under a bridge.
Smita Singh's script is interesting as she questions the nature of men and the treatment of women and it's done in a way that's not preachy which is commendable. The main problems lie in the editing. It's a 2 hour 30 minute film and at places the tension does dilute. What really annoyed me were the song placements as they really weakened the intensity and tension. If a couple more minutes were trimmed off, then the pacing would feel faster.
The ensemble cast is solid. Nawazuddin Siddiqui delivers another fabulous performance. Ila Arun provided more of the humourous scenes and worked well with Siddiqui. Radhika Apte was great. Aditya Shrivastav and Tigmanshu Dhulia did well and Padmavati Rao is terrific. The rest of the supporting cast also do a good job.
Raat Akeli Hai is definitely not perfect but it's a decent attempt at a whodunnit and Honey Trehan is a promising director.
Raat Akeli Hai follows Jatil Yadav, a police officer who investigates the murder of the patriarch of a wealthy family.
It may sound like Knives Out and the film does have a few similarities to it but Raat Akeli Hai is certainly different in terms its tone and themes. For the most part, this film is engaging. Debutant director Honey Trehan does manage to keep the audience interested but it does run into a few bumps along the way. There are some scenes sprinkled with humour here and there but for the most part there is a dark feeling to the film. Pankaj Kumar, who did the cinematography for Tumbbad, does a good job here especially during a scene that takes place under a bridge.
Smita Singh's script is interesting as she questions the nature of men and the treatment of women and it's done in a way that's not preachy which is commendable. The main problems lie in the editing. It's a 2 hour 30 minute film and at places the tension does dilute. What really annoyed me were the song placements as they really weakened the intensity and tension. If a couple more minutes were trimmed off, then the pacing would feel faster.
The ensemble cast is solid. Nawazuddin Siddiqui delivers another fabulous performance. Ila Arun provided more of the humourous scenes and worked well with Siddiqui. Radhika Apte was great. Aditya Shrivastav and Tigmanshu Dhulia did well and Padmavati Rao is terrific. The rest of the supporting cast also do a good job.
Raat Akeli Hai is definitely not perfect but it's a decent attempt at a whodunnit and Honey Trehan is a promising director.