Cast: Akshay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan, Boman Irani, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Saiyami Kher, Rajpal Yadav, Sharib Hashmi, Rajesh Sharma, Manoj Joshi, As...
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan, Boman Irani, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Saiyami Kher, Rajpal Yadav, Sharib Hashmi, Rajesh Sharma, Manoj Joshi, Asrani
Directed by: Priyadarsan
Priyadarshan’s second film of the year (both of them star Akshay Kumar) feels as reminiscent of his films from 2010, in that they feel disjointed, and his directorial skills seem dried up — probably due to him overworking. Whilst Bhooth Bangla’s disjointed editing did not take away anything from the film itself — the disjointed and atrocious editing felt part of the film — but, instead, added to it (albeit, it was atrocious to watch nevertheless), the disjointed editing featured in the first half of Haiwaan feels completely out of place, and purposeless. A scene from this film, that’s etched into my memory due to its horrible editing (sound, cuts, transitions) is the scene where a body falls on a car being driven by a woman — a character we did not know, and never get to know. The scene felt completely misplaced and from a totally different film until the second the body falls on the hood of the car; this scene sums this film up perfectly: scenes often feel misplaced and purposeless, trying their hardest to be maximalist in some way or the other purely based in arbitrariness. I will admit that the second Boman Irani’s character dies, the film gets better.
The second half of the film isn’t half as bad as the first half was — or rather, the first forty-fifty minutes. The second half does feature a complete tonal shift though: the film takes on this grim and morbid tone, which in contrast to the first half (which features some horrible, low quality — most probably stock footage — shots of the city) feels like its a completely different film. The sudden shift in tone, and directorial choices reminds me of the infamous 2004 film, Yeh Lamhe Judaai Ke. The background score feels totally tonally different from the scene (see: the scene where Boman Irani tells Saif Ali Khan about Akshay Kumar’s character near the cliff), throughout the first half, and for most of the second half. The second half, regardless of all my criticisms, was compelling to watch and kept me hooked; the more mature directorial choices that are clearly visible in the second half help the film achieve which (I assume) it wanted to assume.
The sound design is simply excellent in this film (by Bollywood’s standards), and the use of silence (albeit, nothing groundbreaking) is great in this. It reminds me of the 2016 film, Hush, with its use of sounds (it might be inspired from it). The cinematography is good as well, featuring the textbook use of wide-angle lenses associated with Priyadarshan. The performances on the other hand — one of the positives — are great all around. Sure, Akshay Kumar is still as over-the-top as he is when in a comedy, but his performance in this works pretty well, although it does feel like a caricature of a mentally ill person. The lack of dialogues on his part, and the lack of interaction his character is doomed with, helps balance the over-the-top performance. Saif Ali Khan is great in this. His performance feels natural and compelling to watch. His portrayal of a visually disabled person feels real (to a certain extent). Boman Irani is okay and does not stand out in any whatsoever, owing to the fact that he had practically nothing to work with. The same is the case for Rajpal Yadav and Asrani, both of whom feel unnecessary (especially Asrani). Shriya Pilgaonkar is also okay, and her case is similar to Boman Irani’s.
Haiwaan aims for the stars and lands flat on the face. Its conceptual ambition is humbled by its below average and dry execution.
A retired judge faces difficulty keeping his daughter safe from a convict he imprisoned. Later, when he gets murdered, a man with visual impairment who was loyal to him tries to defend his daughter.
By Ravit Mishra (a second year English Hons. student of DU)
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