Never Ending Movie Carnival
Never Ending Movie Carnival
Gaslight review: An eerie whodunit
What: Gaslight starring Sara Ali Khan, Chitrangada Singh and Vikrant Massey by Pavan Kirpalani, streaming on Hotstar is an eerie whodunit
Gaslight movie synopsis
In Gaslight, co-written and directed by Pavan Kirpalani, Chitrangada Singh portrays her character Rukmini as a stepmother to Sara Ali Khan's character, Meesha and the two are at odds. Wheelchair bound Meesha returns to her palatial home and tries to unravel the mystery of her missing father, whom she calls as Daata, suspecting that her stepmother is hiding something.
In the sprawling mansion with most of the parts being dark and dingy, Meesha is driven to insanity with spooky appearances that hints towards his father's existence in the palace.
She finds help and emotional cushion in her father's soft-hearted manager and caretaker, Kapil( Vikrant Massey).
There are shocking revelations which Meesha encounters while in her endeavor of excavating the truth.
Kirpalani has a penchant for psychological thrillers and he glosses them with horror and eerie atmospherics. In Phobia, he dabbled in agoraphobia by giving a spooky touch to the proceedings. In Gaslight, which is a psychological term for manipulating someone to such an extent that he starts questioning his own sanity, he puts Meesha in a similar spot ridden with spooks and something sinister.
Gaslight, backed by Ramesh Taurani( Tips Films) and Akshay Puri, an intriguing plot but honestly after a point, it feels tedious and predictable except for the revelation before the climax.
Some scenes involving Sara Ali Khan do scare you. However, the story hardly stays with you after the film ends despite a solid assembly of good actors, which is a defeat for the entire creative process.
Kirpalani draws sincere performances from the cast. Chitrangada looks spellbindingly beautiful and handles the shifts and swings in her character competently.
Massey has an inherent charm to his character and despite the stubbled and navy cut look, he comes across as a sober and caring person.
Sara Ali's sullen and sulky looks and exasperated dialogue delivery appears convincing for most parts. Apart from the trio, Akshay Oberoi, Rahul Dev and Shishir Sharma try to rise above the ordinary and render earnest performances.
Gaslight - shot in 36 days, is an eerie whodunit with fine performances, considering its 1 hour 52 minutes of runtime, it is a decent one-time watch.
I go with 3 stars. The film is streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
Ahwaan Padhee, is an IT Techie/Business Consultant by profession and a film critic/cinephile by passion, is also associated with Radio Playback as well, loves writing and conducting movie quizzes. More By Ahwaan Padhee