HIT The First Case Review
 |
| hit the first case review |
HIT The First Case Review: The Sanya Malhotra and Rajkummar Rao film stumbles and drags at times, but it still has enough power to be a gripping, tense murder mystery.
Hit The First Case Movie review:
Movie:
Hit: The First Case
Also known as:
Hit Hindi Remake
Genre:
Action
Crime
Drama
Thriller
Country:
India
Language:
Hindi
Release date:
15 July 2022
Starring:
Rajkummar Rao, Sanya Malhotra, Shanu Kumar, Rohan Singh
Directed by:
Sailesh Kolanu
Written by:
Sailesh Kolanu
Produced by:
Bhushan Kumar, Dil Raju, Krishan Kumar, Kuldeep Rathore.
Cinematography:
S. Manikandan
Edited by:
Garry BH
Music by:
Score: John Stewart Eduri
Songs: Mithoon
Manan Bhardwaj
Production Company:
T-Series Films, Dil Raju Productions
Distributed by:
PVR Pictures
HIT The First Case is not merely one of the numerous south cinema remakes in Hindi that are currently available. The movie is much more than just a clever, though perhaps over-the-top murder mystery. It begins by setting up a prospective franchise, the success of which will depend on how well this movie does at the box office. HIT is a well-made thriller that keeps you thinking right up until the very end, which is a trait that modern whodunnits seem to have lost. The 136-minute thriller starring Rajkummar Rao and Sanya Malhotra is an homage to classic Bollywood suspense films and will have you riveted to your seat. Read the HIT The First Case trailer here as well: Police officer Rajkummar Rao is looking for his lover Sanya Malhotra.
HIT centers on police officer Vikram (Rajkummar), who must contend with his past issues while surviving the horrors his line of work brings. Vikram was diagnosed with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) as a result of the terrible demise of his wife. But he finds himself in over his head when his girlfriend Neha, a forensic specialist played by Sanya, too vanishes during a missing person investigation. Vikram now faces a race against time to figure out how these instances are connected and determine whether he can save both ladies.
Three distinct tracks serve as preludes for the movie's opening, introducing us to the individuals and their backstories. However, they seem to be somewhat out of sync, which makes the first 30 minutes of the film feel overly boisterous. It isn't boring even though the initial part lacks context. However, the picture really starts to shine once the investigation gets going. Red herrings are subtly thrown in your direction, and you soon begin to doubt each figure.
The thrill aspect of HIT can be favorably compared to some of the other good Bollywood thrillers of late, most notably Drishyam (interestingly, another south remake). The action, suspense, and tense and loud background score keep you on the edge of your seat for almost two hours. It also depicts the protagonist's intelligence in a very clever way. In showing that he is smart, the plot does not belittle the other cops or show them as bumbling buffoons, which many a film has been guilty of. Everyone is competent to vary degrees, Vikram is just a notch above the rest.
PTSD and panic attacks are well-portrayed, although they can rapidly get boring. You can only witness someone become short of breath repeatedly as a result of the same trigger. I am aware that this was done to highlight how deeply the tragedy of Vikram's past has affected him, but after a time, the scenes start to feel repetitive without much advancing the story.
However, there is one more drawback. The conversation and emotional passages come off as flimsy. You get the impression occasionally that the actors are merely reading lines from the script without showing any emotion. But given that the same actors perform superbly elsewhere, one cannot criticize the actors there. I'll have to credit Sailesh Kolanu's direction and Girish Kohli's dialogue for this one. Both of these elements contribute to the film's patchwork quilt-like vibe, which makes it less effective as a whole. They are both wonderful in some places and amateurish in others. HIT: The First Case isn't really a must-watch because of this inconsistency.
Watch it nonetheless. Watch it if only to witness the talented Rajkummar Rao. The actor needs to carry a lot of the weight of the movie because it nearly entirely centers on him. actors like Dalip Tahil and Milind Gunaji stand by him and perform admirably. Rajkummar, though, is the star of the program. By now, the tortured-yet-smart cop looking into a mysterious case has become a genre unto himself. This cliche has been used far too frequently for us to expect anything new. Rajkummar, however, does that. Instead of just emphasizing the character's fury, as many other such representations do, he highlights the character's fragility, including his worries and hesitancy. As the movie goes on, you start to feel for Vikram as he battles his problems and even starts to think like him. It really transports you inside the protagonist's head. I do, however, have a gripe. Sanya Malhotra receives insufficient screen time. She gives each scene the respect it deserves. But I do wish that the movie had spent more time developing the bond between the two leads so that her disappearance would have had a bigger impact.
HIT: There are a lot of unresolved issues in The First Case. The film mysteriously ends on a cliffhanger, setting the stage for a second case, and Vikram's past and trauma are never fully explored. Even though it doesn't really require one, a sequel to the Telugu original is now in the works, thus this one will likely receive one as well. The movie had enough time to wrap up all of the plot lines. In fact, as the cliffhanger drew near, I began to wonder if the movie's tone and vibe were more OTT than large screen. HIT might have fit in better as a four- or five-episode season of a web series. Much while it is still a fantastic watch, I think it could have been even better.
0 Comments