If expectations from the audience of a Sandip Ray film are high, one can only sympathise with the film maker. Carrying the creative writing lineage of 3 generations of past geniuses on his shoulder, Sandip Ray displayed enough courage to write & direct (including music) a non-Feluda whodunit flick set in the backdrop of two cities, Kolkata & Kualalampur. The film is called Hit List although it failed to deliver a hit where it most matters, in the box office. And surely, Sandip Ray's effort flattered to deceive so far as the embedded intelligence of a whodunit is concerned. The script however has its moments of suspense , shock & an eeriness from confounding apparitions . Confounding because like many other scenes, including a photo-shoot at the Floatel & a low-skilled billiards game between the cops, ghost faces seem completely mindless.
In short, the movie is about the sequential execution of executives of an ad agency in a secret hit-list and its eventual detection by a private investigator, Pravat Roy. The latter is played by an experienced thespian , Dhritiman Chatterjee. Dhritiman plays an ex-cop whose method of detection is mostly based on "hunches". A far cry from the logical deduction process made famous by Sherlock Homes & adapted by Satyajit Ray in his Felu'da films. Dhritiman appears to be a complete miscast. There is enough thick line of difference between an intellectual & an intelligent person. Pravat Roy's role comes across as more of the former. The only actors to do justice to their roles were Tota Roychowdhury & Koel Mallick . Kualalampur was a visual delight , well filmed but did precisely nothing else to the story. Just like the role of Tinu Anand in the movie.
In conclusion, if you are going to watch Hit List because you expect a tight thriller, you will be disappointed. Even Sandip Ray states its only a social drama with thriller elements.
Just wonder when did a "Hit List" ever become a social issue ?
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