Dibakar Bannerjee has raised the bar with his earlier films, and though this one slips a fair bit under that bar, it's still probably worth the weekday price of the ticket.
He is still pushing the envelope, no doubt about that. You can tell that a great deal of effort has gone into visualising the period - from matchboxes to trams, clothes and newspapers. On the other hand, the sound and music makes the story contemporary, even grungy, in a very good way. The international elements were cool too, especially the short scene in "japan", and authentic looking Japanese and Brit characters. While some of the period stuff jumps out at the viewer awkwardly here and there, the jewel of production piece must be the boarding house, which looks completely real and lived-in.
The story, and its telling is where the film falls short. Though the basic idea is great - because it lifts the narrative out of Kolkata and puts in context with international goings on - it got too complex. It could not told so that the viewer can connect the dots; it needed to be spelt out, in words, by the protagonist near the dragging end. As a result, it keeps the viewer distracted and confused through most of the slow fragmented narrative.
Despite good performances from the entire cast, it is hard to relate to anyone in particular. It's not Sushant Rajput's fault, it must be something about the writing. Women characters lack depth, which i think is an unfortunate / unintentional director's trademark. Emotionally, there is no memorable moment in the film, though there could have been a few.
The films ends with a hint of a sequel. Hope the storytelling is fixed in the next one; though I wouldn't miss it in any case because it is, after all, a Dibakar Banerjee film.
He is still pushing the envelope, no doubt about that. You can tell that a great deal of effort has gone into visualising the period - from matchboxes to trams, clothes and newspapers. On the other hand, the sound and music makes the story contemporary, even grungy, in a very good way. The international elements were cool too, especially the short scene in "japan", and authentic looking Japanese and Brit characters. While some of the period stuff jumps out at the viewer awkwardly here and there, the jewel of production piece must be the boarding house, which looks completely real and lived-in.
The story, and its telling is where the film falls short. Though the basic idea is great - because it lifts the narrative out of Kolkata and puts in context with international goings on - it got too complex. It could not told so that the viewer can connect the dots; it needed to be spelt out, in words, by the protagonist near the dragging end. As a result, it keeps the viewer distracted and confused through most of the slow fragmented narrative.
Despite good performances from the entire cast, it is hard to relate to anyone in particular. It's not Sushant Rajput's fault, it must be something about the writing. Women characters lack depth, which i think is an unfortunate / unintentional director's trademark. Emotionally, there is no memorable moment in the film, though there could have been a few.
The films ends with a hint of a sequel. Hope the storytelling is fixed in the next one; though I wouldn't miss it in any case because it is, after all, a Dibakar Banerjee film.