October (2018) (Movie Review)


Dir: Shoojit Sircar
Starring: Varun Dhawan, Banita Sandhu, Gitanjali Rao
Dur: 1 hr 55 mins
Genre: Drama
Rating: 2/10

This is the second Shoojit Sircar film I watched. I didn’t like the first one (Piku) and I didn’t like this one either. I really don’t get what he was trying to show in either of the films. I understand the key idea to some extent, but the delivery, performance and final product are far from satisfactory. In Piku, he dwells on the idea of a motion that sets in motion a family drama with some added characters for comic relief. Here he dwells on the theme of suffering but in the worst way imaginable. I get the film is about grief and loss but you don’t have to make all of it one long drudgery!

Honestly, I wonder with what nerve he decided to stretch this insipid story for nearly 2 hours! The material was just enough for the first hour. The remainder was pure arrogance that demanded you sit in your seat just because you paid for it. To be frank I enjoyed the air condition in the hall more than the film.

The film had no solid foundation whatsoever. The trailer is extremely misleading and I seriously wonder what film critics were thinking when they rated the film highly. The film could serve as a decent lullaby since it neither tugs at the heart which should have been its aim nor does it do much else. The drama is there but not palpable. Even the turning point in the story is shown in such an ordinary way that its significance is undermined. The romance is externally forced on to an otherwise straightforward drama, and that too in a creepy and weird way. Frankly, I think Shoojit should stop directing since his skill has pretty much worsened since his last outing. Or perhaps, I ought to never go for his films again, and thus spare myself the money, time and peace of mind.

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