The unsaid key rule of a good thriller demands hell of a
convincing, compelling, shocking and intelligently electrifying disclosure in
the culmination when all the puzzle-pieces get set together to form a concrete ground
and clearer & clever picture to what exactly had happened and why? Viewers
should feel delightedly cheated at the end not because they have expected more
from it but because they hadn't have the tiniest clue in their weirdest dreams
about it. Lacking the same, Debutante writer- director Ahoshor Solomon's
promising dark-edgy noir JOHN DAY sadly doesn't meet its promised end and
remains a 'Could have been much better' effort.
JOHN DAY, played by Naseeruddin Shah, a sincere bank manager
with his lovely wife [Shernaz Patel] is trying to recover from the distress of losing
his loving daughter in a mysterious accident. After 2 years, John finds himself
in no choice left situation where his wife is at gun point and he has to co-operate
with unknown lawbreakers for a planned bank robbery. To worsen his life, the
wife has been hit badly by robbers to land in coma. In between, John finds a file
that may have connection with his daughter's unfortunate death. In other significant
parallel plot, Randeep Hooda plays an angry lawless corrupt cop who is torn
between 2 land-grabbing sharks of the real estate business. Their paths never
quite cross till the very end...but will it be sure, confident and powerful
enough to leave a lasting impact? Find out yourself!
In his maiden effort, Solomon promises with his efficient direction and an engaging screenplay at some level. He creates a perfect mood for dark thrillers with tainted & toned visuals (...special mention to a chase sequence where we see shadows on the run falling over buildings, churches and roads. Innovatively conceptualised and executed. Full marks!), haunting background score and characters that aren't always defined as black/white. Cinematography by Prakash Kutty belongs to the genre. On the performances, Hooda impresses but never actually tries to reinvent and wears that same angry look throughout. Naseer Saab is good and that's bad when we have actor of such caliber in hand and can't utilize to the fullest, still he remains my sole reason to stay put in the theater.
But all of this doesn't really save your day if the narrative
sails in a snail’s pace and has confusing plots & subplots more than
wrinkles on Naseer saab’s forehead. Almost for 2 hours, you scratch your head
to stumble on if not something big, at least smart but they don’t really care
and in next 18 minutes, they let your expectations washed away with a
lethargically written ending that gives you more satisfying moment than any in
the film.
To sum up, not every day is A Wednesday! And let’s hope, no
day ends up being a John Day. Catch it on TV if released or on home videos…or
just leave it! You have better things to
do! [2/5]
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