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Chup Review: The Complex Cinema-Critics Relationship Via The Lens of Guru Dutt!

• By All That Trending
• 26-09-2022
• 20.12K

R Balki's latest movie, Chup: Revenge of the Artist, starring Dulquer Salmaan, Sunny Deol and Shreya Dhanwanthary, is an intense and thought-provoking thriller that examines the real purpose of film criticism. The film does so by filming a realistic approach to real-life characters. The storyline revolves around a psychopath who brutally kills movie critics for their false movie reviews.  Perplexed by the regular recovery of critics' bodies paves the way for the entry of Sunny Deol, who is a bold cop having expertise in investigating murder cases by strange killers. During his investigation, he identifies a pattern which sets the stage for a cat-and-mouse chase. 

R Balki’s Tribute To Guru Dutt

Through Chup, director R Balki cleverly gives tribute to Guru Dutt, the legendary film director who has been at the receiving end of film critics. The Dulquer-Shreya romance with SD Burman’s composed iconic songs like Jaaney Kya Tuney Kahi and Waqt Ne Kiya Haseen Sitam playing  in the background is enthralling to watch. The world of Chup created by R Balki is filled with darkness and tragedy, like that of Guru Dutt.  Guru Dutt, the director who gave Indian cinema some timeless films like Pyasa, and Kaagaz ke Phool experienced the dark, unglamorous and ruthless side of cinema. Chup delves into the dark corners of arts and is a film ahead of its time, much like Guru Dutt, a man really ahead of his time. 

Plot of Chup: Revenge of The Artist

The basic storyline is quite compelling as it covers all those aspects people expect from a good thriller film. Additionally, Chup makes the audience seat on the edge because of its skillfully-executed screenplay.  In the cinematic world, you can call a film successful only of the audience can related to the characters. For instance, Drishyam was away from unnecessary drama. Instead, it revolved around the story of a middle-class family, which most audiences found relatable.   R Balki, too, followed the same tenet by allowing Chup to move at its own pace. In the first half, the director finely constructed the characters, while in the second half, the story went into a thrill mode as the director left no stone untouched in crafting the story's compelling plot.  As mentioned in the genre, the film has violence as its integral part, so there's nothing extra to say about it. However, the director's talent of crafting that genre into the psyche of the murderer is highly appreciable. 

Chup Movie Script 

Although the film’s script was piled with romantic scenes, it was not so flimsy or pretentious. It is because the director crafted them in short and watchable sequences. R Balki gave more time to establish the complex relationship that art has with its critics. Although the film's second half marked a slow start, it did a fair job of setting the stage for the thrilling climax. Chup touched upon a sensitive topic while celebrating the magic of cinema. 

Cast Review

Speaking about casts’ performance, Dulquer Salman played very well the role of a complex character. Also, his chemistry with Shreya somehow seemed similar to one of his breezy rapport with Nithya Menen in OK Kanmani. His traumatic character's role completely differs from that of Fahadh Faasil's approach in films like Joji and Maheshinte Pratikaaram. It is because Fahadh used his eyes to internalize his characters, while Dulquer used his body movements to bring out the character's complexities. In addition to Shreya and Dulquer's work, Sunny Deol's entry to the big screen was tremendous as the veteran actor delivered a beautifully restrained performance. His natural intensity in impressing his audiences reminds his efforts in the underrated Ghayal 2. 

Overall Performance

The film dialogues, too, have a sensational appeal, as lines such as 'Scorcese Nahi Shetty' and 'Galti Se Tax' stood out outstandingly in the movie. While the romantic songs featured in the film were a little catchier, the picture editing was intriguing.  Chup as a carefully layered thriller can silence its critics through the courtesy of its refreshing concept. 

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