Ittefaq

Ittefaq is said to have been inspired by the 1969 classic of the same name by Yash Chopra. Indeed, there are similarities in the plot and some of its elements, but this film has pretty much a story of its own which takes an altogether different direction. The film is a very good production - it is well shot, it enjoys the benefits of high production values, from camera to sound, and above all, it is successfully suspenseful and tense thanks to good writing and direction. The most enjoyable element in the narrative style is the Rashomon effect, namely the way in which flashbacks are presented: each character recounts their version of the story and the flashbacks are presented accordingly, so we end up having a nice repetition of multiple flashback scenes based around the same incident and which are very similar, but with twists and changes in core details. This creates a fascinating watch for the most part despite the inclusion of some unnecessary proceedings, especially towards the end.

Ittefaq.is overall quite well played, although the acting is not as important as the story. Sidharth Malhotra has everything it takes to be a lead in Hindi films, including looks and presence, and acting-wise he is quite okay even if he is suited for very specific types of roles. He is just too wholesome and decent looking to be credible for anything less than a good human being and it's obviously a compliment. Sonakshi Sinha is good for the role and quite attractive even if her presence is felt much less. Needless to say, it is Akshaye Khanna who leads the film with his excellent performance as the tough cop. The film has some good turns from the character actors, by the way, especially from Ajay Jadhav who is consistently and effortlessly funny as Tambe. Overall, then, a nice thriller which I didn't like as much as liked the original. Like the original though, the film has a very poor ending. Here, I found it awfully contrived, predictable and unconvincing, but so are many other films of the genre, so let it be. It is worth watching.

The beginning and the ending,they are really different.and it could blow my mind at all....Siddharth and Sonakshi done the job very well.and the Akshay Khanna was perfect....clever direction and he thought every side of the story,we even can't think that he is a new one to the direction.everything is perfect of the movie and really talented performance by everyone who been part of the movie.and this one no need of any comment because it's a BRILLIANT ONE!!! And don't miss this!

The director of this film seems to have worked hard to give his audience the chills and thrills that they want to see in such a movie, and he succeeds too. They audiences will remain hooked throughout making guesses only to be proved wrong. The film has an unpredictable climax and this makes it a watchable thriller too. However, in midst of all that there are some questions that remain there till the end. In acting, Sonakshi Sinha disappointingly has put up a week show. Akshay Khanna is awesome while Siddharth Malhotra does what he always does. Mandira Bedi has nothing to do in her cameo and the remaining cast is okay. I will go with 9/10 because such movies deserve being made in Bollywood.

This movie is a really good suspense thriller, and in my experience Bollywood films are generally much longer than this, usually 2.5 hours or more, and this one wasn't even 2 hours. I don't know much about suspense films in Bollywood, this is the first one by the industry that I have seen and I really enjoyed it. The acting performances are all great, especially by the police officer, played by Mr. Akshay khanna. I watched Sidharth in a lovely film called Kapoor and Sons and he was great in this one as well. The background score was terrific too. I read that it is actually based on an original film from 1969. Interestingly I recognize the lead actor in that one by the name Rajesh Khanna, as he was mentioned frequently in the amazing film Neerja that came out last year in 2016. So I will make sure to watch the original Ittefaq soon as well.

It has been a while since Bollywood has churned good thriller films. Films like Kahaani, Manorama-Six Feet Under, Error 404 or Phobia had a good twist which will remain embedded in your memories. Will Ittefaq be able to create enough tension to keep audience at bay ? let us find out ..

Ittefaq tells the story of 2 suspects (Siddharth Malhotra and Sonakshi Sinha) who are involved in a murder leading to 2 different stories that happened one night. The investigating officer (Akshaye Khanna) must be find out which story holds the fact.

First time director, Abhay Chopra, follows the foot-step of 1969's Ittefaq directed Yash Chopra but introduces his own world. The film has a pretty solid opening scenes involving car chases and the confrontation between Siddharth Malhotra and Sonakshi Sinha. The film adds more flavor with Akshaye Khanna entering the scene and taking the charge of murder. The director does a fine job in building tension when two victims tell their own version of stories. In second half, you will be convinced with the suspect and while everything is about to end well, there will be another twist in the end which is unconvincing and fails to keep the momentum. This is where director could have created more impact with crisp editing and interesting plot.

As a first timer, Abhay Chopra does a fine job but is mowed down by loose second half. Screenplay is good but suffers towards the climax. Better writing would have helped. Cinematography is just about okay while the background is decent (should be good in thriller films). Siddharth Malhotra does well as Vikram Sethi and emotes his expression better than his previous films. Sonakshi Sinha is wooden. It is Akshay Khanna who steals the show with his upright performance. He infuses humor in his character and is even speaks serious tone when investigating the complex case.

Overall, a fair attempt to show the double murder but is saddened by the weak spot. Decent 2.75 / 5