Khamosh (1986)

Did you people see the same film I saw?

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

I have watched this movie yesterday after reading comments on internet about this movie. Many people on different websites called this movie all time best suspense thriller of Hindi cinema. So I start watching it with lots of expectation and I must say It live up to my expectation to some extend.It has star cast and looks like VVC's first real effort in bollywood. All actors acted well specially Nasiruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi. Really liked Amol Palekar's style of dilevering dialougs in soft and sweet voice and in humble style.Location was perfect for this film. Cold and cloudy atmosphere added some extra effect to theme of this movie. I am sure anyone can enjoy this movie even in 2012.It positively has suspense and trill because I read some comment here that this movie has less suspense and more humor. If you like this movie then must watch "Death on river Nile (1978 film)", you will surely like it as well.

Vidhu Vinod Chopra has created a very Hitchcockian thriller. I liked the idea that the whodunnit story takes place among a films cast and crew as they are shooting on location. Chopra's reference to films like 'The Godfather' and 'Psycho' were quite funny. 'Khamosh' isn't as much a thriller as there's a lot of humour.While a few of it is unintentional, there's also plenty of satire. I especially enjoyed the humour that took place in the shooting scenes. For instance, the sequence where Shabana delivers her dialogue to Amol while lifeless hand keeps bumping on her foot and she's completely unaware of it.Some sequences were out of place and it appears as though Chopra just put them in for the sake of thrills. One such example is the scene where Shabana finds a drenched in blood dead chicken in her bed. It's also very easy to figure out that the lead suspects were not the actual murderers and after some time one can easily figure out who it is. Plot holes are also apparent. For example, why would Shabana go to the houseboat all by herself at night when there's a murderer on the loose?At the same time, it's great to watch such an excellent group of actors work together and I was interested in how the director would choose to conclude the film. Pankaj Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi and Amol Palekar are first rate. Azmi plays the Hitchcockian heroine with class and poise. Shah does a fine job as the fiery detective determined to solve the case. Palekar is cast against type and he is superb even though he has limited screen time. Soni Razdan does a decent job while the rest of the cast range from average to bad.Overall, 'Khamosh' may not be an out and about thriller it tries to be but it's entertaining nonetheless and I think it even has good repeat value.

Having heard comments from a few friends and users that this movie is the best thriller from Hindi movies, I was curious to watch it. Other reason was the plethora of star cast which had names like Pankaj Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi and Amol Palekar. But when I watched, sadly the thriller part was missing. Many of the suspects ham so much and have very clear objectives that you get a feeling that they are not the actual murderers and most likely the one not amongst them is the culprit. Mystery was not that good and I am saying that despite of not watching any other language movie from which this movie could have been inspired.What stands apart and as an appreciation is the performance of the investigating CBI officer by Naseeruddin Shah. Right from his entry the eyes, facial expressions and body language depict that he is not taking this murder just as any CBI officer's routine investigation. The way he tries to investigate the murder is shown very well and seems realistic. No wonder that Sir Naseer is the best actor ever to come from India.Rest of the cast(names I mentioned in my first para) do play their part with full honesty especially Pankaj Kapoor. Direction wise the movie is OK but some elements like the shooting of the rape scene really does not fit in the actual plot. At some places the comedy seems to be forced and puts a dilemma as whether viewers should chuckle or see the tragedy which goes on in a movie shooting.Overall, watch it once and get engrossed at the first time. Need not have a repeat view to enjoy the mystery part.

**SPOILERS**KHAMOSH is totally unrealistic, lacks a plot, and was basically only made to see stars portray themselves. The most suspenseful scene in the movie was when Shabana Azmi is in the shower and then we see her TV playing the shower scene from PSYCHO. This movie actually expected users to believe that Naseeruddin Shah's character has a good enough memory to remember where certain shots were fired and how many!***SPOILER BEGINS***At the end, the killer spills his guts to Shabana Azmi long enough to allow Naseeruddin Shah's character to run up and shoot him!***SPOILER ENDS***It is a little humorous (only a little) in the beginning to hear the director and cast members throwing insults at each other and hearing Shabana Azmi exclaim, "Oh sh-t!"Overall, a baaaaaaaaaaad movie!Rating: ** out of ********** (2 out of 10)