Kahani 2 is NOT as gripping, thrilling and suspense-filled as Kahani. It is actually predictable, esp. in the second half. But it is certainly worth watching (just once only), but with the feeling that the film could have been presented in a more intense, thrilling and focused manner.
MERITS of Kahani 2
1 – The first-half is far more gripping than the second. The build-up is good and creates proper suspense in our minds.
2 – The film is based on the theme of double identity with the intention of keeping ones past a secret. Although this certainly is not a new theme but is thrilling enough to watch - provided it is presented in a focused and intense manner.
3 - Vidya Balan as Durga Rani Singh essays her role with ease and finesse (the great actresses that she is) – and without any make-up.
DEMERITS of Kahani 2
1 - As I mentioned it is predictable. You knew who the villains are.
2 - Towards the end things get a bit "filmy" which is totally unnecessary. This dilutes the tension and the gravity of the situation.
The shoot-out scene between the kidnapper and Vidya Balan is very filmy and old-fashioned. The same could have been executed with more tension and suspense. The casual talk – just after the blast in the house – between police officers (Arjun Rampal and his senior) about their possible promotions for having caught Vidya is totally flimsy. It just dilutes the gravity of the occasion.
3 – Kahani 2 is not as suspenseful as Kahani (which is surely is a path-breaking one in the Suspense genre).
4 – I detest the cheap and dirty locations in which some scenes are shot. The nursing home and the police station are shot in totally cheap, filthily maintained houses.
You will see out-dated switch boards of the 70s. Wall colours have peeled off. Walls are damaged. CRT monitor in police station.
I really wonder what made Sujoy Ghosh do this. Same was the case in Kahani. What was the need to be so "realistic" (If this is the reason)?
The only plausible reason could be to save money for the film. Otherwise, is there shortage of neat and clean houses for the film-makers to hire and shoot in?
5 – The way Vidya goes about dousing the house with Kerosene and the reactions of Kharaj Mukherjee (Arjun's senior) is slightly melodramatic. The same could have been shown in a more seriousness and intensity.
6 – In the role of a middle-class sub-Inspector Inderjeet Singh, Arjun Rampal is NOT the right choice. His urbanised upper-middle-class accent is just not suited for this role.
Sujoy should have hired someone who can speak Hindi with real accent like Mohan Bajpai, Rajkumar Yadav or Nawazuddin Siddique.
7 – Vidya's verbal thrashing of the child sexual abuser could have been more forceful and incisive.
She could have said: "If you are so sexually starved just go and sleep with a prostitute." & "You are a curse to humanity. You do not deserve to live in a civilized society."
8 - It is very strange to hear Gargi Bharadwaj, the hired killer, who is perhaps non-bengali, speaking a distinctive bengali accent - and which sounds totally ineffective and weak.
MERITS of Kahani 2
1 – The first-half is far more gripping than the second. The build-up is good and creates proper suspense in our minds.
2 – The film is based on the theme of double identity with the intention of keeping ones past a secret. Although this certainly is not a new theme but is thrilling enough to watch - provided it is presented in a focused and intense manner.
3 - Vidya Balan as Durga Rani Singh essays her role with ease and finesse (the great actresses that she is) – and without any make-up.
DEMERITS of Kahani 2
1 - As I mentioned it is predictable. You knew who the villains are.
2 - Towards the end things get a bit "filmy" which is totally unnecessary. This dilutes the tension and the gravity of the situation.
The shoot-out scene between the kidnapper and Vidya Balan is very filmy and old-fashioned. The same could have been executed with more tension and suspense. The casual talk – just after the blast in the house – between police officers (Arjun Rampal and his senior) about their possible promotions for having caught Vidya is totally flimsy. It just dilutes the gravity of the occasion.
3 – Kahani 2 is not as suspenseful as Kahani (which is surely is a path-breaking one in the Suspense genre).
4 – I detest the cheap and dirty locations in which some scenes are shot. The nursing home and the police station are shot in totally cheap, filthily maintained houses.
You will see out-dated switch boards of the 70s. Wall colours have peeled off. Walls are damaged. CRT monitor in police station.
I really wonder what made Sujoy Ghosh do this. Same was the case in Kahani. What was the need to be so "realistic" (If this is the reason)?
The only plausible reason could be to save money for the film. Otherwise, is there shortage of neat and clean houses for the film-makers to hire and shoot in?
5 – The way Vidya goes about dousing the house with Kerosene and the reactions of Kharaj Mukherjee (Arjun's senior) is slightly melodramatic. The same could have been shown in a more seriousness and intensity.
6 – In the role of a middle-class sub-Inspector Inderjeet Singh, Arjun Rampal is NOT the right choice. His urbanised upper-middle-class accent is just not suited for this role.
Sujoy should have hired someone who can speak Hindi with real accent like Mohan Bajpai, Rajkumar Yadav or Nawazuddin Siddique.
7 – Vidya's verbal thrashing of the child sexual abuser could have been more forceful and incisive.
She could have said: "If you are so sexually starved just go and sleep with a prostitute." & "You are a curse to humanity. You do not deserve to live in a civilized society."
8 - It is very strange to hear Gargi Bharadwaj, the hired killer, who is perhaps non-bengali, speaking a distinctive bengali accent - and which sounds totally ineffective and weak.