Media Magick

Many actors have gone type-casted either because of their personality or because of the inability of the director to pull the best from the actors – this is somewhat getting true for Nawaz Uddin Siddiqui. Besides the fact that I am a fan of his acting whether he performed a cameo or meatier role in a film but there are films where he acts the same way and director fails to bring the newness in his performance. Raat Akeli Hai is the latest venture where Siddiqui unites with Radhi Apte, Tigmanshu Dhulia and other actors. The expectations were really high before the release of the film on Netflix. Many compared the film with Knives Out, let’s explore what the film has to offer.

Trailer: Raat Akeli Hai

First of all Raat Akeli Hai is not an adaptation or inspiration of Knives Out. The film has its unique story, characters are different and have their motives (although those motives are weakly handled). The script is strictly average. There are scenes that look misplaced in the film and at times the audience suffer from a dragged narrative where director and writer try hard to develop some highpoints but unfortunately fail terribly because of the length and trying too hard to stand out.

Performance wise Radhika Apte is impressive, she changes her expressions like a chameleon. Nawaz Uddin Siddiqui once again delivers similar performance and his fans will love that – no matter what. Ila Arun, with limited screen presence and fewer dialogues, is a treat to watch.

Tigmanshu Dhulia is also repetitive. Aditya Shrivastav is effective. Rest of the cast is fine. But the script is unrealistic at places and it looks like a 90s flick. The story and suspense unwind way too quickly leaving the fine detailing and characters’ motive a back seat. This Is one of the major hiccups in Raat Akeli Hai.

Watch it if you are a die hard fan of Siddiqui and Apte, else it’s a mystery film gone wrong because of weaker writing and execution.