Chehre movie review: Heavy on conversations, light on story

Language: Hindi A drama that features Amitabh Bachchan, Raghuvir Yadav, Annu Kapoor and Dhritiman Chatterjee, in a conversation-driven made-to-thrill set up, could have been brilliant. Chehre, directed by Rumi Jaffery, misses the mark by a mile and more. It also ends up leaving you with a frustrating feeling of a lost opportunity. Set in an isolated, magnificent colonial mansion in a snow-clad valley, four retired veterans of the law play a serious game. A judge (Chatterjee), a prosecutor (Bachchan), a defence lawyer (Kapoor) and a hangman (Yadav), are friends that play a mock trial with any stranger that walks into this beautiful home. By assumption, the stranger is guilty. Which it itself, is a strange premise. A young girl (Rhea Chakraborty) serves as household help, paints like a pro and behaves in a weird child-like manner sometimes. Siddhant Kapoor plays a mute Man Friday, complete a tableau of sorts of people seeking justice beyond the limits of law. Emraan Hashmi is the stranger on the mock trial, stranded in a snowstorm and a corporate honcho. He is reluctant at first but agrees to take part in this game, which eventually leads to revelations and a rather lame climax. Chehre aims to cock a snook at present-day fast-paced chasing of ambitions, money and success. It also makes a preachy statement on the state of India’s justice system. Only it belabours this point too much and tries to be clever in a storybook-like manner, which doesn’t hold up. Conversations drive this film. Sometimes, they work well. Watching veteran performers like Kapoor, Yadav and Bachchan effortlessly tackle dense Hindi dialogue and post-modern couplets bring back memories of solid writing in yesteryears Hindi films. But these conversations also weigh in heavily on its pace slowing it down to a point where the viewer gets restless. [caption id=“attachment_9916631” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Amitabh Bachchan in a still from Chehre[/caption] For instance, Bachchan, suave and subtle in his changes of tone and expression, dressed a bit like Dumbledore from Harry Potter, has an unusually long and telling monologue towards the end. By itself, it is a scathing comment on society’s tendency to forge ahead despite grave injustices. It also leans in heavily on the academic debate about the anatomy of rape, whereby victims and their families suffer multiple times beyond just the incident. While soaking in Mr Bachchan’s baritone stating out stark facts about social behaviour, one simply can’t find the connection that it bears to the film’s plot. This tells all there is about where Chehre falls short- in telling a gripping and engrossing tale. Conversation heavy films, by itself, don’t always become boring. Classics like Glengary Glen Ross or 12 Angry Men are all conversation. Here though, the talking takes on so much heft and moral high ground that it sinks the entertainment entirely.

With classy cinematography by Binod Pradhan, and rather catching art decoration, Chehre had a lot going for itself. Hashmi, as is often the norm, is wasted in yet another average film, despite delivering a taut performance. Yadav carries intrigue with his few words and Kapoor matches Mr Bachchan’s act in tone. Chatterjee is measured. Chakraborty, whose appearance on screen conjures up sickening memories of bizarre media trials , looks vulnerable for her part. But she has little to do in the film, just like Krystal D’Souza, who is unable to evoke any emotion in the film. Credit goes to the film’s actors for making its patchy writing work; that a star hierarchy isn’t in place amongst the retired characters testifies to their commitment to a good part. The film is theatrical making you wonder if a good play adaptation might do its concept more justice. Jaffery and Ranjit Kapoor set out to write about social behaviour and the rush of ambition over morals. But too much writing and too little plot makes you wanting for so much more from this film. Those who enjoy watching actors that complement one another and have a thing for the theatrical, Chehre is worth catching in movie theatres, with a mask on.