Director: Sujoy Ghosh
Rating: ***1/2
Badla, as the title suggests, is a revenge drama but with many layers. The film is an adaption of a Spanish film Contratiempo (The Invisible Guest). Director Sujoy Ghosh has brilliantly adapted the screenplay and has given his own touch with Mahabharata references.
A dead body has been found in a hotel room where a man named Arjun (Tony Luke) has been murdered and the prime suspect Naina Sethi (Taapsee Pannu). All the evidence are against her and even her family, her husband and child, have also turned their back on her. She has no place to go and no one to her rescue and then Badal Gupta (Amitabh Bachchan), the ace lawyer comes into the scene who has never lost a case.
The film mostly (completely) relies on these two main characters and most of the film is in a room only recollecting the episode of Arjun's murder.
Taapsee's character has many shades and each new one reveals itself as the story progresses. The actress makes all the transitions seem perfectly authentic.
Amitabh Bachchan, on the other hand, has a more straight-laced role, but deft nuances and his ability to pull off the best lines with his elegant baritone makes the performance as clinical as a veteran lawyers arguments.
Director Sujoy Ghosh's Badla delivers solid thrills and some genuine twists with great effect. This whodunit, keeps the viewer engaging and constantly guessing about the big reveal. The solid performances by Amitabh Bachchan and Taapsee Pannu, along with the eye-for-detail writing by Ghosh and his team make the film a thrill-a-minute ride.
The powerful performances by Amitabh Bachchan and Taapsee Pannu have been complimented by some really powerful dialogues. The
The cinematography, background score, and editing, all the sections are on point.
Though the screenplay is a bit predictable which dampens the thrills otherwise Badla has all the elements of a revenge thriller.
Director Sujoy Ghosh has once again impressed his audience with another thriller, despite a predictable screenplay he has delivered a spellbinding thriller.
Overall, Badla is a film which will help you to enhance your guess game!
