Ittefaq Movie Review: Despite Few Loose Ends, This Whodunit Thriller Makes Up For A Riveting Watch

Plot

Ittefaq opens with a rainy Mumbai night where we see a man escaping from the cops in his Merc. Minutes later, his car skids off the road. But, the wounded man manages to dodge the police and disappear.

That same very night, a petrified woman runs out on the road and bumps into the police van seeking help. The shot then moves to the crime scene in her flat where right next to a shattered glass table, lies the dead body of her hot-shot lawyer husband Shekhar. Standing beside it is that same very man-on-run, Vikram Sethi (Sidharth Malhotra), a best-seller author who is already accused of murdering his wife.

The terrified woman is introduced as Maya (Sonakshi Sinha). Vikram ends up as a prime suspect in Shekhar's murder too. But soon, the needle of suspicion also points at Maya. Enter investigation police office Dev Varma (Akshaye Khanna) who sets out to solve this high-profile double murder case.

Both, Vikram and Maya claim they are innocent. He says she is lying and vice versa. Two murders. Two versions. Two different versions of the story. Will Dev nail down the real killer?

Direction

In Yash Chopra's Ittefaq starring Rajesh Khanna and Nanda, a Murphy radio blared out an urgent announcement about a madman-murderer on loose on a rainy night in Mumbai as Rekha (Nanda) shut down the doors and windows of her house.

Cut to 2017. The radio is replaced by a TV. But, the tension in the air is pretty much the same. The reprised version is helmed by first-time director Abhay Chopra and he almost manages to pull off it. If only there hadn't been loose ends and the writing hadn't faltered down at a few places! The few emotional scenes which has been added to peak your confusion instead ends up slowing down the narrative and ungrips the built-up tension.

Ittefaq keeps you engrossed with its cat-and-mouse game and nail-biting twists. Here's it's more of whose version is more convincing- Vikram's or Maya's. The 1970s staple cop Iftakhar has been replaced by Akshaye Khanna who could easily give Sherlock Holmes a run for his money!

Further, the twist in the climax doesn't quite fit into the puzzle (at least for me, it didn't!) which left me a bit disappointed.

Performances

Abhay Chopra & Co. have weaved the plot such that most of the heavy weight-lifting is done by Akshaye Khanna and his smart-alecky one liners! Initially, Sidharth Malhotra and Sonakshi Sinha ain't exactly at the top of their game when the film begins. But soon, they get a hang of it. Out of the two, it's Sid who manages to pull off a surprise. The cops and their funny banter adds a humorous touch to the otherwise sober tone of the film.

Technical Aspects

Michael Luka's lens is more into mood-lighting and efficently captures the red herrings to keep you glued to the screen. Nitin Baid's editing is slick.

Music

Thankfully, Ittefaq doesn't have any songs to distract you from the main plot. On the other hand, the promotional song 'Raat Baaki' which is absent in the film, is quite impressive.

Verdict

If the makers hadn't taken the phrase 'raat gayi baat gayi' too seriously to leave a few loose strings untied, this Sidharth Malhotra- Sonakshi Sinha- Akshaye Khanna starrer could easily have been one of the best whodunit thrillers Bollywood has seen in while. Nevertheless, it still manages to hold your attention for 108 minutes. This time, purely by 'Ittefaq' se!