Murder 3

Vishesh Films are back with the debut of their in-house fresh talent Vishesh Bhatt who thankfully gives us a decent Indianised version of a Spanish Film THE HIDDEN FACE / LA CARA OCULTA which is already there in my list of must watch suspense dramas form the World Cinema.

For a change this time Vishesh Films cannot be blamed of making a blatant rip off as MURDER 3 is an official adaptation of its Spanish original with the same producers, Fox Studios backing the project in India too. However since there is no mention of it being an official adaptation in its opening titles (where it should be ideally), so I would like to take it as an "intentional hiding of facts" from the Indian audience by the makers, which was not expected.

Having said that, MURDER 3 could have been a landmark film in Indian Cinema, if only the young director had added some kind of clues or engaging moments in its first half. Because in real terms before Interval, MURDER 3 has simply got nothing and post intermission it actually has got everything.

To tell you the truth, I even saw few couples moving out of the theater at interval and I personally requested all of them to stay. One of those couples obliged to my request and then especially came forward to say thanks in the end, for not letting them leave the movie in the mid way. Now that was possible only because I had seen the original and very well knew what was coming next which was undoubtedly going to be worth watching for all. But the normal (innocent) audience, not familiar with its original, didn't knew that at all and therefore were all confused at the Interval that what kind of film it is (mystery, horror, or crime- drama) showing no progression of any kind even till its midpoint.

So from that point of view MURDER 3 doesn't work at all till its intermission. But post interval it suddenly becomes a shocking eye opener with a never seen before kind of twist in Indian Cinema turning the film into a must watch indeed. To give you an idea, as the characters in the script started revealing their actual truths, all the giggles, casual conversations and phone lights simply went off in the theater resulting in a pin drop silence, rarely found watching a Bollywood film. People literally got stunned with the sudden, wicked twist in the tale in its final 40 minutes giving you a mixed feeling of love, distrust, uneasiness, guilt, anger, revenge or justice. And then with a solid, open but thoughtful climax coming next, everyone couldn't deny watching a good film at last forgetting its avoidable first half.

Hence in totality MURDER 3 is a fine attempt by the debutant director Vishesh Bhatt giving you something never offered before in Hindi films. Yes, he majorly follows the original Spanish film sincerely till the added climax, yet the way he conceives his second hour in particular, surely deserves appreciation both from the veterans as well as by the audience unarguably.

Another merit of the film is that despite of having few erotic sexual scenes, it doesn't rely on them completely and remains utterly unpredictable in its final hour, resulting in a great emotional suspense drama in the end. Without revealing its basic plot having a great shock value, I would like to add few lines from my short review of the Spanish Original that,

"The film has something important to share about the hidden inner psyche of a lover in some sudden or extreme situation. To be precise, every lover in the world has this one thought at the back of his or her mind that in case I die this very moment then would he (she) go for another woman (man)at once, will take some time or will never opt for another one in his (her) entire life."

MURDER 3 also talks about this very question in a lover's life but unfortunately its not able to focus on the same in an impressive manner as they did in its original THE HIDDEN FACE. This emotional part of the script comes into the limelight only in the last 35-40 minutes and by that time the viewer is too tired of waiting for something substantial. But still, since this last half an hour remains too good to watch as per the standards of many recent big projects, so one cannot write off the film just like that and has to appreciate the effort truly following the saying, "All is well that ends well".

In the musical department, it has few good songs but not any instant hits associated with the brand name of Murder. Raju Singh's background music scores much more than the soundtrack itself as its highly impressive in the sequences revealing the shocking twist. Cinematography is fine capturing the basic essence of the subject and dialogues are just average with nothing path breaking.

Performances wise MURDER 3 cannot be rated as a strong film since other than Aditi no one rises above the routine level in the lead roles including Randeep Hooda and Sara. Aditi excels in her portrayal of various emotions in the last hour but Sara only looks beautiful giving the same expressions throughout till the end. However the trio of Rajesh Shringarpure, Shekhar Shukla and Bugs Bhargava make their present felt in their small roles.

Finally, it can easily be said that MURDER 3 definitely rises much above the level of its first two parts in comparison. It has a strong plot driven content with an exclusive shock value for the audience and a brilliant climax. So you can surely go for it this weekend, keeping in mind that the film will actually start post intermission.

The third installment in the Murder series and the official Bollywood Remake of the Colombian thriller The Hidden Face, 'Murder 3' is A Fair Thriller, that sums up as a one-time watch.

'Murder 3' Synopsis: A wildlife photographer tries to solve the mystery of his missing girlfriend.

'Murder 3' has a solid first-hour & manages to keep its viewer glued. The second-hour dips, but the culmination is executed nicely. The twist in the tale does offer shock value. Mahesh Bhatt's Writing has meat, but dips in the second-hour. Vishesh Bhatt's Direction is atmospheric. Cinematography is first-class. Editing is sharp. Music is foot-tapping.

Performance-Wise: Randeep Hooda is sincere, as always. Aditi Rao Hydari is first-rate. Sara Loren is restricted to a few expressions. Rajesh Shringarpure is capable.

On the whole, 'Murder 3' can be viewed once.

It was going so smooth and suspense was at peak ...then they ruined the ending and left me with wtf?

I like this kind of storeys.i this is a based on hollywood movie .i dont know but movie and plot was very good.all actors acting are really good

It could have been better if they had an own script for the movie. The movie is a copy of the Spanish movie "THE HIDDEN FACE(2011)". It has copied every bit of the movie right from the start where the recording is seen. the Spanish movie has some frontal nudity.That was the only difference seen. The most awaited movie in the series of MURDER was released and was not a movie that should have been come under the title Murder. Given Title must have some reason at some point but there was none in the movie.There was not even a single murder in the movie or anyone had intention for a murder.The movie was not so good compared to its previous parts.