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Suspect X Reviews

An engaging story told with a certain skill that keeps audiences hooked from the first scene until the last. It’s engaging, and ominous and creates an intense suspenseful atmosphere that prevents it from getting bogged down with its dreary and dark tone

Full Review | Sep 28, 2023

Suspect X, which is based on the Japanese novel The Devotion Of Suspect X, is a well-crafted, well-acted mystery in which you can never truly trust the nature of the relationships between any of the characters.

Full Review | Sep 26, 2023

Elevated tremendously by Kareena Kapoor Khan, Vijay Varma and Jaideep Ahlawat's central performances, Jaane Jaan is director Sujoy Ghosh's finest film yet.

Full Review | Sep 23, 2023

An accompanying predicament of watching Jaane Jaan is reckoning with this duality. The writing (Ghosh and Raj Vasant are credited) is patchy but the three actors on screen are so mesmerising that till the most part they make you take no notice of it.

Full Review | Sep 22, 2023

There is enough fun to be had here, especially if you don’t ask too many questions.

Few actors share Kareena's fearlessness for closeups in their 40s. A still force in a high-strung thriller, her marvellously opaque portrayal of a woman hiding skeletons in her closet turns a crafty police procedural into a wistful story of survival.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Sep 21, 2023

On Jaane Jaan, [Sujoy Ghosh is] working with the best material he’s ever had and two actors (in [Vijay] Varma and [Jaideep] Ahlawat) who can seem to do no wrong these days. ([Kareena] Kapoor Khan is solid too, but she’s not given enough sadly.)

Full Review | Sep 21, 2023

The performances in Jaane Jaan are its only saving grace.

Full Review | Original Score: 1/5 | Sep 21, 2023

Jaane Jaan Review: Kareena Kapoor Conveys Wide Gamut Of Emotions In Mystery Thriller

Jaane jaan review: jaideep ahlawat makes light work of an extremely demanding character. vijay varma, who has to work the hardest because his policeman is bereft of the layers that the single mother and the math teacher have, lifts the character well above the ordinary..

Kareena Kapoor in Jaane Jaan . (courtesy: netflix_in )

Be it a retaliatory, spur-of-the-moment act or a pre-planned strike aimed at eliminating a threat, a murder is a murder. But when the principles of mathematics are employed to either disclose or obfuscate the truth, can a killer escape the noose? That is the question that writer-director Sujoy Ghosh's deftly crafted, superbly acted mystery thriller Jaane Jaan answers.

The Netflix film hinges on a single mother and her 13-year-old school-going daughter who are drawn into a calculated but risky cover-up attempt and a police investigation that hits a trail that nearly goes cold.

A taut script, spiffy dialogues (by Ghosh and Raj Vasant), first-rate performances and a keen sense of place serve to enhance the mystery that surrounds a lonesome math teacher who goes about his daily chores with mechanical detachment and a woman who moves in next door and becomes an object of silent, obsession for the reclusive man.

Based on the third novel of Keigo Higashino's Detective Galileo series, The Devotion of Suspect X , Jaane Jaan takes only a few minutes to deliver the watershed moment from which everything else in the plot flows.

The suspense stems from the chain of events that are set in motion by an unfortunate incident that tests the math teacher's genius and puts his neighbour's future under a cloud. Jaane Jaan is a genre-bending police procedural that dissects the minds of three characters rather than play out like a standard whodunit (in any case, we know who from the very outset).

Maya D'Souza (Kareena Kapoor in her OTT debut) has escaped an unhappy past and settled into a stable life that revolves around her daughter and a thriving cafe in Kalimpong. Naren Vyas (Jaideep Ahlawat) is in love with mathematics more than with anything else in the world.

Mumbai Police detective Karan Anand (Vijay Varma), sent to Kalimpong on a mission, is the only one who puts all his cards on the table. He is in search of a wanted man. With no emotional or psychological baggage weighing him down, he gets down to work with a local policeman, Sub-inspector Sundar Singh (Karma Takapa, who loses no opportunity to make his presence felt).

When Maya's past returns to hound her, the well-being of her daughter Tara (Naisha Khanna) becomes her priority. She finds an unlikely ally in Naren, who is awkwardly trying to find a life beyond math and his evening jujitsu sessions.

It transpires that Karan and Naren were classmates. As the two men probe each other's susceptibilities, the cop is under increasing pressure from his boss to find a corrupt policeman and hawala racket kingpin, Ajit Mhatre (Saurabh Sachdeva in a terrific cameo), who was last seen in Kalimpong.

The precise world building and the measured dialogues - a Hindi crime drama for once steers clear of cuss words - make the battle of wits between the two men consistently gripping and intriguing despite the fact that the audience is in the know of what is being sought to be swept under the carpet.

Love or, to be precise, infatuation that inches dangerously close to stalking, finds an exceedingly strange way of expressing itself in Naren's case, while a hint of lust colours Karan's exchanges with Maya, his prime suspect. Obsession, jealousy and anguish are all at play as the trio tread on ethically slippery ground.

The wall around the uncommunicative math teacher, an inscrutable enigma locked in an unbreakable shell, is like the mist that hangs over f Kalimpong. It hides a great deal even as it constantly shifts to reveal hitherto hidden nooks and vistas. Karan nearly gives up on the case, having hit his head against the wall a few times.

Maya has to hold her ground through it all in the face of the dichotomies that confront her. Her assistant Prema (Lin Laishram) claims that their cafe makes the best momos in town. But it isn't for the dumplings that Naren makes his way to the eatery every day.

The staid, painfully shy Naren has a receding hairline, looks older than he is and walks like a man who would rather let time pass him by. He plays chess with himself and sets question papers so tough that the school authorities request him to take it easy. But he has his reasons. Pull yourself higher, the world will not descend to your level, Naren tells a student.

Jaane Jaan explores the debilitating isolation of a man lost in his own world as well as the pitfalls in the way of a woman determined to put her troubled past behind her. Multiple dualities - protector-predator, victim-perpetrator, friend-foe and genius-oddball - are central to the twisted plot.

The title, which might suggest that this is a story with an undercurrent of romance, comes from one of the rare cabaret numbers that Lata Mangeshkar sang (Intaqam, 1969, filmed on Helen). The song plays in a karaoke bar and provides a fleeting glimpse of Maya's back story.

Jaane Jaan is laced with a slew of retro songs from other decades of Hindi film music. Some of them play so faintly that they are almost inaudible. Anirban Sengupta's sound design and the background score by Shor Police (Clinton Cerejo and Bianca Gomes) add appreciable allure to the film's soundscape.

The choice of songs may seem a tad arbitrary, but they together hark back to an era of perennially popular Hindi film music even as it points to - at least a handful of the numbers do - what the female protagonist of Jaane Jaan is running away from.

Editor Urvashi Saxena creates crisp and aptly complex patterns as she intercuts scenes into each other all through the film. Cinematographer Avik Mukhopadhyay locates the mystique of Kalimpong in everyday settings without resorting to any obtrusive means.

Kareena Kapoor's conveys a wide gamut of emotions in a performance marked by remarkable restraint. Jaideep Ahlawat makes light work of an extremely demanding character, capturing the man's interiority and body language to stunning effect.

Vijay Varma, who has to work the hardest because his policeman is bereft of the layers that the single mother and the math teacher have, lifts the character well above the ordinary by imparting to it the subtlest of behavioural nuances.

Promoted Listen to the latest songs, only on JioSaavn.com

Jaane Jaan stays true to the text it is based on (but for minor tweaks here and there and a major departure from how the novel ends) - and to its genre - but it consciously and intelligently waters down the conventional crime drama tropes.

With the writer-director, the technicians, the music team and the actors at their very best, Jaane Jaan is an all-round triumph.

Kareena Kapoor, Jaideep Ahlawat, Vijay Varma and Saurabh Sachdeva

Sujoy Ghosh

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Jaane Jaan Movie Review: Kareena Kapoor, Vijay Varma Jaideep Ahlawat's 'Mathematical' Moody Thriller Is A Winner

Updated Sep 23, 2023, 11:47 IST

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Refrain from posting comments that are obscene, defamatory or inflammatory, and do not indulge in personal attacks, name calling or inciting hatred against any community. Help us delete comments that do not follow these guidelines by marking them offensive . Let's work together to keep the conversation civil.

6192877 6915 216 days ago

Selvakathirvel 16644 216 days ago.

there is frequent change of angles in the first few scenes makes big eye strain in TV viewing. dont know what is the need for such short bursts of frequent change of camera. editor should have seen the movie in tv screen.

Anand Katke 2307 217 days ago

Leena Bhanot 2271 218 days ago

It was definitely different and Ahlawat was really good. But I am not sure about Kareena Kapoor. There were times when I thought she was either nervous of the new medium or she was hamming it. I did not feel she became Mrs. D'Souza. She somewhere remained Kareena Kapoor...All in all, definitely a one time watch....

Shanti Subra 18788 218 days ago

Why Kareena looks so old and her make-up is horrible. Also is it her own voice or dubbed? The voice is not good to hear. The movie is well taken and Jaidep and Vijay have done their best. Photography excellent.

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Jaane Jaan Movie Review: Kareena, Jaideep Steal Show in Drishyam-like Thriller

The movie "Jaane Jaan," skilfully directed and written by Sujoy Ghosh, combines the principles of mathematics with the complexities of human behaviour, resulting in a gripping mystery thriller that leaves audiences enthralled.

Centered around a single mother and her 13-year-old daughter, the film delves into a meticulously planned cover-up and a subsequent police investigation that teeters on the edge of going cold.

With a sharp script, crisp dialogues co-authored by Ghosh and Raj Vasant, stellar performances, and a keen sense of place, "Jaane Jaan" intricately weaves a tale around a solitary math teacher who leads a mechanical existence, and a woman who becomes the object of silent obsession for him after moving in next door.

Based on Keigo Higashino's novel "The Devotion of Suspect X," the film swiftly establishes a pivotal moment from which the entire plot unfolds. The suspense revolves around a series of events triggered by an unfortunate incident, challenging the genius of the math teacher and casting a shadow over his neighbor's future. "Jaane Jaan" is not your typical whodunit; it is a genre-defying police procedural that dissects the minds of its three central characters.

Maya D'Souza (played by Kareena Kapoor in her OTT debut) has escaped her troubled past and built a stable life for herself and her daughter Tara (played by Naisha Khanna) in Kalimpong. Naren Vyas (Jaideep Ahlawat), on the other hand, is more in love with mathematics than anything else in the world. Mumbai Police detective Karan Anand (Vijay Varma) arrives in Kalimpong on a mission, and his relentless pursuit leads him to uncovering the truth.

The film skilfully builds its world and features measured dialogues, steering clear of explicit language typically found in Hindi crime dramas. The battle of wits between Karan and Naren, even though the audience is privy to the information being concealed, remains consistently gripping.

"Jaane Jaan" explores themes of love, infatuation, obsession, jealousy, and anguish as the trio navigates ethically murky waters. It vividly portrays the isolation of a man lost in his own world and the challenges faced by a woman striving to overcome her troubled past. The film is rife with dualities, such as protector-predator, victim-perpetrator, friend-foe, and genius-oddball, all of which play pivotal roles in the intricate plot.

The film's title, derived from a rare cabaret number sung by Lata Mangeshkar, adds depth to Maya's backstory. Kareena Kapoor delivers a nuanced performance, portraying a wide range of emotions with remarkable restraint. Jaideep Ahlawat effortlessly embodies the complex character of Naren, while Vijay Varma elevates his role with subtle behavioral nuances.

"Jaane Jaan" remains faithful to its source material, with minor alterations and a notable departure in its conclusion. It intelligently subverts conventional crime drama tropes, resulting in a thought-provoking and gripping cinematic experience. With a talented team of writers, directors, technicians, musicians, and actors at its helm, "Jaane Jaan" stands as a resounding success in the world of cinema.

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Home » Movies » Bollywood Movie Reviews

Jaane Jaan Movie Review: Give Jaideep Ahlawat Every Acting Award Out There (& Indian Remake Of Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker), Kareena Kapoor Khan Surrenders To The Brilliance Of Sujoy Ghosh

This is an intriguing affair to the last second, with a performance to be remembered forever in jaideep ahlawat's naren.

Star Cast: Jaideep Ahlawat, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Vijay Varma, Saurabh Sachdeva, Karma Takapa, Naisha Khanna

Director: Sujoy Ghosh

What’s Good: We’re getting the best out of the best in Jaideep Ahlawat’s Naren & Kareena Kapoor Khan; signing this film is a sign that she’s ready to surprise everyone in her second innings

What’s Bad: It’ll be compared to Drishyam, but the truth is its source material (the original novel from which this is adapted) was written way before Jeethu Joseph conceptualised Drishyam 2

Loo Break: Despite being an OTT release, I’d suggest you not leave your couch/bed/seat even for a minute; you’ll enjoy this more if you watch it in one go

Watch or Not?: Watch it even if you’re not a fan of mystery thrillers; this could be your gateway drug!

Available On: Netflix

Runtime: 2 Hours 19 Minutes

A genius mathematician-cum-teacher, Naren Vyas (Jaideep Ahlawat), in West Bengal’s bewitching-but-underrated town Kalimpong, is leading an isolated life, taking a decade to solve an unsolvable problem. Having hots for his single-mother neighbour in Maya D’Souza (Kareena Kapoor Khan), he lends a helping hand to her to cover a murder she has executed with her daughter Tara (Naisha Khanna). Who is killed? Well, I’ll try to be as spoiler-free as I can, still keeping my points.

An Inspector from Mumbai, Karan Anand (Vijay Verma), handles this murder investigation and keeps Maya as his prime suspect for having all the reasons to kill the deceased. She keeps getting saved due to the mastermind Math teacher’s ability to step ahead of the police’s legwork. The story revolves around how Karan tries to unravel the shrewd web of confusion designed by Naren and what he finds (or not) to solve this complicated murder mystery (or not).

Jaane Jaan Movie Review: Script Analysis

The film never shies away from claiming that it is based on the Japanese worldwide-celebrated Mystery Novel The Devotion Of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino; from displaying under the main title to mentioning ‘Suspect X’ in the conversations, it proudly accepts the fact that it’s an adaptation. Before this one, in India, a Tamil film titled Kolaigaran (starring Vijay Antony) also adapted a similar story. Sujoy Ghosh very smartly mixes some elements from both the book and the movie, adding his slick touches to give it the distinctive look it desires.

Yes, it’ll remind you very much of Drishyam, but being adapted from a novel released in 2005, it has the classic ‘Ghosh Stamp’ imprinted all over it and it kind of changes how I used to look at Jeethu Joseph’s masterpiece. Ghosh’s non-linear treatment gifts you with an impeccable scene like Naren & Karan conversing about the case with the clips of them performing Jujutsu playing as a flashback in between their chess-like-moves dialogues.

The master cinematographer Avik Mukhopadhyay (Pink, October, Sardar Udham) brings the gloomy, dreary Kalimpong to life with its fog being reminiscent of the blurriness the film’s narrative portrays. Jaideep’s make-up artist deserves a raise for nailing Naren’s immaculate demeanour in the perfect way. Ghosh turns this Japanese epic into a ‘Raja, Rani, Chor, Sipahi’ game, with Raja & Chor being so contrastingly similar that you’ll start questioning your belief in the second half.

Jaane Jaan Movie Review: Star Performance

If Jaideep Ahlawat doesn’t get significant acting accolades in the upcoming awards season, the tad bit of remaining faith in these shows will die a silent death. WHAT A PERFORMANCE! FLAWLESS. Yes, I know how he always manages to surprise, but this is something else. This is special. Can Sriram Raghavan make a film loosely based on Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker, casting Ahlawat in the lead? I’ll empty all the 954 bucks remaining in my hollow bank account. Jaideep: You’re a gem & it’s time you get your due. *bowing down in respect for you*.

Kareena Kapoor Khan’s choice of this project is in itself an indication of how she has her vision crystal clear in choosing some meaningful subjects in her second innings. The subtlety she brings to Maya is precisely how a seasoned actor like her would perform. She keeps the oomph around her character alive and still be dead, shocked at what’s going on.

In such a short span of his career, Vijay Varma has already heard all the positive things a performer craves, and the way he still keeps surprising with each of his performances screams the greatness of the performer in him. To stand tall to two solid performances in Jaideep & Kareena, Vijay does everything right, making him stand out of all the stalwarts. Saurabh Sachdeva is WOW! A few minutes after his performance, he exhales menace like a villain who can creep you out like anything.

Jaane Jaan Movie Review: Direction, Music

Sujoy Ghosh manages to hit a home run in the world of mysteries once again, keeping your brain hooked till the last minute of the film. Yes, the climax will initiate some debates around how it should have been, but I’ll jump at Ghosh ‘s side for keeping it different from the book & yet not making any mess out of the story. Jeethu Joseph’s treatment of a similar story was on the other end of this spectrum, but they should’ve acknowledged the original source somewhere, is what I feel.

Clinton Cerejo & Bianca Gomes’ band ‘Shor Police’ has composed the BGM, which heavily relies on sound design, keeping it as authentic as possible. The dull aura of the film is complemented well by the band’s subdued score, keeping things mysterious and respecting the genre.

Jaane Jaan Movie Review: The Last Word

All said and done, Jaane Jaan is not only one of the best thrillers we’ve seen in Indian cinema but raises some ambiguity against this: another one of the best thrillers Indian cinema has ever seen. Nevertheless, it’s an intriguing affair to the last second, with a performance to be remembered forever in Jaideep Ahlawat’s Naren.

Jaane Jaan Trailer

Jaane Jaan releases on 21st September, 2023.

Share with us your experience of watching Jaane Jaan.

For more recommendations, read our Love-All Movie Review here.

Must Read: Jawan Movie Review: Shah Rukh Khan Gets From South What Bollywood Failed To Do For Years!

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'Jaane Jaan' review: Jaideep Ahlawat towers over this shaky thriller

More than the killer, it is fun to catch the themes that are hiding in plain sight in a murder mystery. Bong Joon Ho’s masterpiece Memories of Murder (2003) is not only about understanding the motivations of a repressed serial killer, but also sheds light on the apathetic policing structure of South Korea. Knives Out: Glass Onion (2022) is as much a capitalism critique as it is a whodunit. Seven (1995) while being an investigation procedural, delves into the depth of man’s capacity to evil.

Last month, before the release of Jaane Jaan, its director Sujoy Ghosh thanked writer Kiego Higashino for letting him adapt his bestseller The Devotion of Suspect X into a film. What caught my eye was how Ghosh described the book after, “Have you read? read. read. best love story ever.” It was evident what the director was interested in and that’s what I went looking for in the Netflix film. The love story between a genius maths teacher, insecure of his looks, and a damsel in the distress of the murder variety. Let’s just say what I got was less killing and even lesser loving.

A balding, blemish-faced Jaideep Ahlawat plays Naren Vyas, a loner math teacher at a school in West Bengal’s Kalimpong. He must be a genius as evidenced by the books and papers scattered in his room. If you still have doubts, he plays chess with himself. Naren drops his eyes in front of his neighbour, Maya D’Souza (Kareena Kapoor Khan), a single mother who works at a local food joint. Her little world is turned upside down when her ex-husband, Ajit (OTT omnipresent Saurabh Sachdeva), a cop, comes knocking for money. It doesn’t end well and Maya strangles Ajit to death. Naren steps up to help, scribbles some math formulae on the wall (won’t that be evidence?) and ultimately disposes off the body. On the case is Karan Anand (an easygoing Vijay Varma), who was college mates with Naren. “Bro, what are the chances?” he exclaims when he meets him.

Casting FTII batchmates Ahlawat and Varma works in favour of Jaane Jaan. In certain scenes their cheeky camaraderie is visible. They shine as individual performers too. Five years back, Varma would have played Naren, the lovelorn genius but now, as the investigating cop, he adds a fresh ease to the character. In a funny scene, he even ridicules the creepy image his previous roles have made him infamous for. He peeps at Kareena’s Maya as she changes clothes, before shutting the door softly. Then he taps himself on the head and says, “Sudhar ja (Grow up).”

The one whose performance towers above the film is Ahlawat. He emotes enough with just a twitch of his lips and deftly plays a sociopath in love. The writing, however, lets him down at times but Ahlawat somehow still manages to level the material. Being marketed as Kareena Kapoor’s OTT debut, the actor’s performance in the film remains mostly serviceable. She fits well but doesn’t stand out and her jittery expressions felt tiring after a while.

Jaane Jaan is a performance vehicle unsure of the route its taking. It had more potential of being a moody drama than a fast-paced thriller. The setting of a misty Kalimpong could have been instrumental but Sujoy Ghosh’s direction doesn’t interact with its surroundings. The three lead characters are immigrants and the film lacks a sense of rootedness. Moreover, the love story Ghosh hinted at is as hazy as the hills of Kalimpong. The spark is there but it gets extinguished in the whirlwind of a pacing plot. Sometimes in the horde to weave a brainy plot we omit what is in plain sight. The beauty of a love story.

Name : Jaane Jaan

Director : Sujoy Ghosh

Cast : Kareena Kapoor Khan, Jaideep Ahlawat, Vijay Varma, Saurabh Sachdeva

Rating : 2.5/5

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Jaane Jaan Twitter Review: Kareena Kapoor's Maiden OTT Movie Receives Mixed Reactions From Netizens

Sujoy Ghosh's Jaane Jaan, an adaptation of Keigo Higashino's novel, premiered on Netflix in September 2023, marking Kareena Kapoor Khan's OTT debut. The film revolves around a single mother attempting to cover up her estranged husband's murder with the help of her neighbor. The early reviews of netizens suggest a mixed reception.

• By Akshat Sundrani
• Published: Thu, 21 Sep 2023 03:36 PM (IST)
• Source: JND
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Jaane Jaan Review: The film delivers loose ends with a boring climax and exaggerated scenes which are not required. The only shining saviour of the film is the on fleek acting of Kareena Kapoor Khan and Vijay Varma. #JaaneJaanOnNetflix #KareenaKapoorKhan #VijayVarma — Piyali Bhadra (@PiyaliBhadra10) September 21, 2023

#JaaneJaan could have been better. The expectations were too high for Sujoy Ghosh's film, couldn't live up. — Akshat Sundrani (@akshat_sundrani) September 21, 2023

Finished watching #jaanejaan on @NetflixIndia take a bow @sujoy_g @JaideepAhlawat @MrVijayVarma #kareenakapoor for a fab adaptation of #Higashino 's Devotion of suspect X. Superb acting and direction. True to the book. Thank you. What a treat. — Ginny (@Velvetyvirgo) September 21, 2023

A Good film, insane Cinematography & well acted across the board... the only issue is the climax - wraps up too fast & you don't feel satisfied by the ending, at least for me. Also, the familiarity with Drishyam where the climax hits hard but not here. #JaaneJaan https://t.co/RUv8rmQaXl — SM  (@beingshubho) September 21, 2023

Watched #JaaneJaan on @NetflixIndia very entertaining movie, performance r outstanding either its #Kareena or #Jaydeep or #vijay . But i did not like the climax. Climax should had been better..

— Bipin (@Bipintola) September 21, 2023

#JaaneJaan hats off to Jaideep Alhawat just superb acting Vijay Varma and Kareen looked side kicks Very crisp plot...loved it #Sujoy — diya banerjee sur (@diyabanerjeesur) September 21, 2023

#JaaneJaan wow this is so gripping. Out n out edge thriller. #Bebo nailed it with her fearless looks. #Vijay looks charming. @JaideepAhlawat just stole the show with his brilliant performance. #KareenaKapoor #Netflix #bebo #NetflixIndia pic.twitter.com/43zw5KeZLO

— Wesley Kiran V (@wesley_kiran) September 21, 2023

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Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Suspect X’ on Netflix, An Indian Thriller About A Woman Trying To Cover Up Her Husband’s Murder

Where to stream:.

• movie reviews

Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Down the Rabbit Hole’ on Netflix, a Fascinating Mexican Satire About a Cartel Boss’ Secret Son

Stream it or skip it: ‘broken horses’ on hulu, a solid journalistic expose about doping in horse racing, stream it or skip it: ‘hack your health: the secrets of your gut’ on netflix, a documentary about actual poop, and the emerging science about it, stream it or skip it: ‘curious caterer: foiled plans’ on hallmark mystery, the coziest entry in the nikki deloach and andrew walker series.

The new Netflix movie Suspect X (released in India as Jaane Jaan ) is a murder-thriller where an intriguing investigation leads to a major reveal in the film’s final moments. The movie is not a whodunnit as much as a “how are they going to get away with it?” and though there are certainly a couple of unexplained plot choices that keep this from being a truly great film, it’s definitely a thrill ride that’s worth your time.

SUSPECT X : STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: The film opens on a man in business attire sitting in an office looking upset. A moment later, he puts his head through a noose hanging from the ceiling. Startled by a knock at the door, the chair beneath him falls and we hear the crack of his neck. A moment after that, with the brightness dialed up a bit to acknowledge that what we just watched was a dream, the same man wakes up, having just imagined his own death.

The Gist: Kareena Kapoor Khan plays Maya D’Souza, a woman who fled from her violent husband Ajit with their shared savings. Maya lives in the remote Indian town of Kalimpong with her teenage daughter Tara, and has successfully avoided having Ajit find her for 14 years until one day he locates them. Ajit is a crooked cop who moonlights by skimming money from the profits of a strip club, and he tells Maya that he wants to take young Tara away so she can work at his club. A scuffle ensues when a disgusted Maya refuses, and, with Tara’s help, Maya kills Ajit in self defense, strangling him with an electrical cord.

The man in the first scene, Naren (Jaideep Ahlawat), who everyone calls Teacher because of his job as the math teacher at the local school, is Maya’s neighbor in their apartment complex. Naren is a brilliant mathematician who keeps to himself, but it seems that everyone in town knows that he fancies Maya from a distance. The night that Ajit is killed, Naren astutely surmises that something is off with Maya, and he offers to help her move Ajit’s body. Naren, it turns out, is former police, and so with that insider knowledge, he helps her craft an alibi so she won’t be considered a suspect.

Meanwhile, a Mumbai police inspector named Karan Anand (Vijay Varma) has been tasked with investigating Ajit’s illegal financial activities, and his search for Ajit leads him to Kalimpong. Though Karan wasn’t in town to conduct a murder investigation, eventually when he discovers Ajit’s burned remains, that’s what his job turns into.

To really ramp up the drama, Karan and Naren were classmates at the police academy, and immediately recognize one another, so while Karan looks into Maya’s past and alibi, Naren continues to try to outwit Karan by helping Maya in an attempt to keep her from getting arrested. Both men basically fall in love with Maya, which complicates the investigation, but it isn’t until the final ten minutes of the film that the game everyone is playing at is revealed (and we also finally get an explanation for the film’s opening suicide dream).

What Movies Will It Remind You Of? There’s no shortage of movies with great plot twists and reveals, and Suspect X is right up there with Primal Fear , The Usual Suspects , Presumed Innocent , and Shutter Island where you ultimately learn that one of the main characters is not really who you think they are.

Our Take: Suspect X , which is based on the Japanese novel The Devotion Of Suspect X , is a well-crafted, well-acted mystery in which you can never truly trust the nature of the relationships between any of the characters. While Maya and Naren seem to be in cahoots with one another the whole time, it’s unclear is Naren is trying to help Maya because he’s in love with her, or if he has ulterior motives. Likewise, Karan and Maya both seem to be playing one another in a cat and mouse game. (Fortunately, though Karan seems to have a crush on Maya, they don’t ever truly become romantic, but the fact that he takes her out on a date becomes a pivotal plot point for the film.)

The film uses flashbacks, very deliberate language, and Naren’s love of math (the film is very math heavy) to create a climax that you know is coming, but you don’t know exactly how it will play out. Will The police get outwitted? Will the real killer be brought to justice? While the final moments reveal all, there are certainly some details that feel a little strange and unsettling, such as a [SPOILER ALERT] homeless man casually being killed so his body can be used to trick the police, overall, the intended effect of the film’s big surprise twist is well played.

Sex and Skin: Almost none, save for a couple shots of scantily clad women dancing on stripper poles.

Parting Shot: [SPOILER ALERT AGAIN!] Naren stands in a prison cell with his wall covered in mathematical equations. “Is this mathematics or logic?” he hear Karan say, repeating a line of dialogue from earlier in the film, to which Naren responds, “Math is logic.”

Memorable Dialogue : “Just do what I’ve told you,” Naren repeatedly tells Maya in an effort to clear her name. What Maya doesn’t realize is that, though those instructions are very simple, he has orchestrated an entire, elaborate plot to save her.

Performance Worth Watching: Naren, who is played by Jaideep Ahlawat, appears to be a vulnerable, sad man, consumed by his passion for math. But deep down, he contains multitudes, and he flips between sad sack and Liam Neeson’s particular set of skills throughout the film.

Our Call: STREAM IT! If you love thrillers with surprising, completely unexpected reveals, Suspect X is a great new entry in the genre.

Liz Kocan is a pop culture writer living in Massachusetts. Her biggest claim to fame is the time she won on the game show Chain Reaction .

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Release Date : September 21, 2023

123telugu.com Rating : 2.75/5

Starring: Kareena Kapoor, Jaideep Ahlawat, Vijay Varma, Saurabh Sachdeva, Naisha Khanna

Director: Sujoy Ghosh

Producers: Jay Shewakramani, Akshai Puri, Hyunwoo Thomas Kim, Shobha Kapoor, Ekta R Kapoor

Music Directors: Sachin Jigar, Shor Police

Cinematographer: Avik Mukhopadhyay

Editor: Urvashi Saxena

Related Links : Trailer

Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor’s new film Jaane Jaan was released directly on Netflix today. The film is the official adaptation of the Japanese novel “The Devotion of Suspect X,” written by Keigo Higashino. Jaideep Ahlawat and Vijay Verma played crucial roles. Directed by Sujoy Ghosh, the film is streaming in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu languages. Let’s see how it is.

Set in Kalimpong, the film is about a single mother, Maya D’souza, a.k.a. Soniya D’souza (Kareena Kapoor). She works in a cafe to take care of her daughter, Tara D’souza (Naisha Khanna). Maya doesn’t like her husband, Ajit Mhatre (Saurabh Sachdeva), and hence, she separates from him even before Tara is born. Maya’s neighbor, Naren Vyas (Jaideep Ahlwahat), a high school teacher, secretly loves her.

Out of the blue, Ajit Mhatre shows up in Kalimpong and visits Maya’s house. Maya thinks Ajit came for money, but the latter has other plans. Maya kills Ajit, and her daughter Tara assists with the crime. Naren helps Maya to cover up the murder. What made Maya kill her husband? Did Maya, Tara, and Naren get caught by the police? This is what Jaane Jaan is about.

Plus Points:

Jaideep Ahlawat of Paatal Lok fame displayed his sheer brilliance with Jaane Jaan. He, as a maths genius, gave a thumping and a nuanced performance. Jaideep’s subtle acting is the film’s biggest asset, and he walks away with the cake in this crime thriller.

Kareena Kapoor is no doubt a terrific performer, and she brought all her experience to the table. The way she emoted in key sequences is superb. The last 40 minutes of the film are dealt well, and there are gripping moments here.

The small town set-up is quite brilliant, and the art direction team succeeds in setting up the mood required for a crime film. Vijay Varma, as a police officer, gave a solid performance. Lately, the actor has been playing negative roles, and it was refreshing to see Vijay in a different character this time.

Minus Points:

Unfortunately, the film is the official adaptation of the Japanese novel “The Devotion of Suspect X,” which was the inspiration behind the Malayalam blockbuster Drishyam. One can’t help but find the similarities between Drishyam and Jaane Jaan. The way in which the alibies are created to cover up the murder has a striking resemblance with the Malayalam film.

Hence, the comparisons become inevitable, and one feels like watching Drishyam again in the first hour. The same Drishyam has been remade in several Indian languages, including Hindi. This works against the film, but thankfully, the stunning performances of the lead cast and the final portions make the difference.

The first half is very slow, and the editing team could have done a much better job. The movie also ends on an abrupt note without providing answers to the few questions. The character of Ajit Mhatre should have been shown in a more detailed manner.

Technical Aspects:

The background score composed by Shor Police is impressive. The camera work by Avik Mukhopadhyay is top-notch. The production values are good, and the dialogues are well-written. The editing is not up to the mark.

Coming to the director, Sujoy Ghosh, he did an okay job with Jaane Jaan. He extracted good performances from the lead cast, and the final moments were gripping. As Drishyam is a popular franchise in India, and the same Japanese novel is the inspiration behind it, comparisons are unavoidable. Hence, Sujoy Ghosh should have altered the screenplay a bit for the better good.

On the whole, Jaane Jaan is a passable crime thriller with some gripping moments in the last forty minutes. The movie is based on a Japanese novel which was the inspiration behind the Drishyam franchise. Hence, comparisons will come into the picture definitely. The makers should have come up with some novel ideas as Drishyam is watched by the majority of the audience. Kareena Kapoor, Jaideep Ahlawat, and Vijay Varma are spectacular in a familiar terrain. Along with their stunning performances, a few well-executed scenes make this film a passable fare.

123telugu.com Rating: 2.75/5

Reviewed by 123telugu Team

Click Here For Telugu Review

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Jaane Jaan (2023) ‘Netflix’ Movie Ending Explained: Why did Naren surrender himself to the police?

‘ Jaane Jaan ’ (2023), the new Netflix mystery thriller starring Kareena Kapoor Khan, Jaideep Ahlawat, and Vijay Varma, is directed by Kahaani fame Sujoy Ghosh. An official adaptation of the famous novel ‘The Devotion of Suspect X’ by Keigo Higashino, ‘ Jaane Jaan ’ lifts the entire story and tries to ground it into an Indian context. Since the story has been adapted half a dozen times, including serving as the skeleton of Jeethu Joseph’s Drishyam , it’s difficult to understand why another iteration was needed. While it is a fairly serviceable thriller, the film fails to leave a mark despite interesting turns from its lead actors.

However, it has its fair share of twists and turns, which can be confusing for a more casual audience. In the following article, I have tried to discuss the film, explaining what happens at the film’s end. The article contains spoilers ; hence, read it at your discretion. 

Jaane Jaan (2023) ‘Netflix’ Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:

Maya D’Souza is a single mother living with her 14-year-old daughter, Tara, in Kalimpong. She runs a café called Tiffin and feels really whole in her life. Naren is an introverted math teacher at the local school, and people fondly call him “teacher.” Karan works in the Mumbai police with a very cheerful but unapologetic personality. The lives of these three characters intertwine when one of the police inspectors, Ajit, goes missing after his money laundering case. Karan is tasked with working on the missing case, and when Ajit’s last location points to Kalimpong, Karan arrives in the scenic town.

Who is Ajit, and what does he want from Maya?

Maya lives a very quiet life with her daughter, Tara, often keeping to themselves in their daily routines. However, when Ajit comes to see Maya at her café, we understand that the two share a tumultuous past. She asks him to leave and meet her at a secluded bar to avoid conflict at her workplace. Maya then meets him, and we learn that Ajit manipulated her into marrying him and sold her off to a local pub as a dancer. Now that Ajit knows that Tara is his daughter, Maya feels insecure because she is aware of his tactics and intentions to disrupt her peaceful life.

Later in the night, Ajit comes unannounced, knocking at their door while the mother and daughter are together. Maya asks Tara to hide and goes to confront him. However, he manages to enter and tries to gaslight her into doing what he wishes. Maya has had enough of him in her life. Annoyed by his demeaning behavior, she offers him whatever money she has and asks him to leave – even promising to pay him every month to avoid any interaction among them.

However, Ajit has plans of his own and intends to stay and spend time with his daughter, blackmailing Maya to take her away the same way he did to her. When he starts to misbehave with Maya, Tara intervenes and hits him with an immersion water heater rod, which makes Ajit furious. In a rage, he raises his hand on Tara, causing Maya to lose her calm, and in self-defense, the two women mistakenly end up killing him. While Maya is shocked and says she will come clean to the police, Tara is afraid of being separated from her mother.

Why does Naren help Maya?

Before we delve further into the story, it is essential to understand how Naren comes into the picture. He has a deep fondness for Maya. His apartment shares a wall with her house, but he claims to have come to the conclusion that there is a dead body by doing basic maths.  He steps up to offer his help when he finds them helpless.

Upon entering their house, he examines everything and swiftly takes charge of the situation, instructing Maya with details to take care of. While Maya suggests she should tell everything to the police, Naren explains to her the cons of the entire situation and how it can affect her daughter and now him as well. Instead, he suggests Maya and Tara should keep it low but continue with their lives as if nothing happened. He further gives them instructions about how, from now on, they will have a different narrative of everything, including the death of Ajit.

Why is Maya Karan’s only suspect?

The following day, while Karan tries to find the area where Ajit’s phone had transmitted the last signal, he becomes hungry and lands up at Maya’s Tiffin. He shows Ajit’s photo to Maya as a routine job, but she casually refuses to know him. When Naren visits the café for his usual takeout order, Karan recognizes him, and we learn the two were classmates back in their college days. Later, when Karan learns Ajit’s phone signal was last found somewhere near Maya’s house, he follows her and keeps track of her daughter.

The police, in the meantime, find a burnt body with a face completely smashed into a pulp so no one can identify it. However, Karan finds Ajit’s ID card in the pile of half-burnt clothes beside the body and immediately sends it for postmortem. After matching a chunk of hair strands from the comb found in the hotel room Ajit was staying in, the pathologist confirms Ajit’s death took place on the 10th. Meanwhile, when Naren sees that Maya is susceptible to the police investigation, he calls her from a pay phone and warns her about presenting a narrative that will keep the police away.

However, Karan’s suspicion of Maya becomes more apparent when, after questioning her, he learns that Ajit did meet Maya. He then interrogates her whereabouts on the 10th, and she tells him a detailed itinerary of the day, including going to a movie – Pets 2 with Tara, and then having dinner at a restaurant followed by a brief visit to the karaoke bar. While Karan keeps his eyes on Maya, the only suspect in Ajit’s death, all his efforts and investigation go in vain when all the evidence repeatedly points to Maya’s innocence. When the forensic confirms that the weapon used to kill Ajit is a heater rod that doesn’t match the one found in Maya’s house, Karan decides to work on the matter from Mumbai.

Why does Karan suspect Naren?

Right before he is about to close the case in Kalimpong, he finds out from Tiffin’s employee that Naren is a usual customer with a huge crush on Maya, contrary to his claim of only visiting her occasionally. It leads Karan to run through Naren’s movement on the 10th. He learns that in his tenure as a school teacher, it was the first time he had taken a day off from school, leading him to believe there is a new suspect in the case. When Karan confronts Naren about the day off, he reveals that he took off since he wasn’t feeling well and was upset after discovering that someone else had solved the math equation he had been working on for almost a decade.

Jaane Jaan (2023) ‘Netflix’ Movie Ending Explained:

What does naren confess to the police.

Realizing that Karan would eventually get his equation right about finding Ajit’s murderer, and Maya doesn’t feel romantically inclined to him, Naren decides to take things one step further. He goes to the police station and confesses that he killed Ajit.

Karan is stunned to see Naren come up with this narrative, but soon, things take a different turn as Naren starts to reveal his side of the story. He claims to the police that he is Maya’s bodyguard, and she would often tell him details about her life. They even made sure never to interact in public to avoid any attention. He further added that Maya would talk to her daughter, and he would listen closely from the hole the two neighbors shared in the wall of their apartment.

It is when he learns that Ajit, Maya’s husband, had followed her to the apartment on the 10th night with dubious intentions. Naren had taken Ajit to the mountains around the monastery and killed him with his heater rod to protect Maya. He even describes how he burned the body to eliminate the evidence that made Karan think that Naren is the culprit, who can only explain the gritty details of the murder since he killed Ajit. During cross-examination, all the alibis for Maya continue to prove her innocence, and Naren has nothing to prove as evidence except for the details of the murder that make Karan point him as the murderer.

Why did Naren surrender himself to the police?

Ever since Naren realized that Karan would do everything he could to prove Maya the culprit, he had to devise a plan to weigh towards Maya’s innocence. He had to make a believable story, so he had to first change the date of Ajit’s death, which was on the 9th and not the 10th.

Right after Ajit’s death, Naren helped Maya hide the body and implanted a decoy dead body in the mountain to lure the police. It turns out that he took a homeless man to Ajit’s hotel and offered him food and a bath so he could plant evidence all over the room with the man’s DNA that would match the body found in the mountain after killing him.

He then leaves Ajit’s ID on the pile of burnt clothes so the police can take the body as Ajit’s. In the meantime, Maya has an entire day to plan her evidence by following his instructions of going to the movies with Tara, having dinner, and visiting a karaoke bar that will work as her alibi. The plan obviously works because Karan believes Ajit’s murder occurred on the 10th, preventing Maya from Karan’s allegations and proving Naren as the murderer.

What made Naren go all this length to prove Maya’s innocence?

Before leaving the station after her interrogation, Maya requests Karan to allow her to speak to Naren to understand the why behind all this. In one of the film’s initial shots, we see Maya knocking on Naren’s door, asking for a plumber’s contact when he is contemplating taking his own life because of wasting years of his life to solve a math problem that someone was able to do only two days before him. Her knock at the door somehow saved him, and he felt like his life was indebted to her. 

Naren’s heart was broken when he realized that she had not disclosed all the details when Maya and Karan visited the karaoke bar; he felt betrayed. However, despite how he looked, her unchanged kindness and empathy towards him made him forgive her instantly, especially when she was the reason he stopped himself from committing suicide. Since she saved his life, he wanted Maya and Tara to lead the life they deserved, so he offered his help. The ending of Jaane Jaan (2023) shows Naren in jail with the walls of his cell covered with Mathematics solution. He claims to be happy because he is now alone with his first love, i.e., Mathematics – a love that would not break his heart. 

Read More: Jaane Jaan (2023) ‘Netflix’ Movie Review –  Sloppy as a standalone mystery and abysmal as an adaptation

Jaane jaan (2023) ‘netflix’ movie trailer.

Jaane Jaan (2023) ‘Netflix’ Movie Links:  IMDb Jaane Jaan (2023) ‘Netflix’ Movie Cast: Kareena Kapoor , Jaideep Ahlawat, Vijay Varma

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Quit my job to watch movies with my husband and occasionally write about it. I am also a social media and momo tasting expert, who loves Masala Dosa and Tilda Swinton.

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'Heeramandi' Review: Sanjay Leela Bhansali's queen's gambit pays off

Sanjay leela bhansali's new netflix series, 'heeramandi', is here. the show stars manisha koirala, sonakshi sinha, aditi rao hydari and fardeen khan among others. read our complete review of the series..

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• 'Heeramandi', a series about 1920s nautch girls, took 14 years to create
• Manisha Koirala shines as Mallika Jaan, the matriarch of Heeramandi
• Read our full take on the Netflix series here

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Sonakshi Sinha

Release Date: 1 May, 2024

It took 14 years for Sanjay Leela Bhansali to make Heeramandi. So, please don’t blame the filmmaker for giving himself the creative licence to let loose and go all out to create this world of nautch girls and their coterie. With eight episodes and each one clocking anywhere between an hour to 50 minutes, Heeramandi will reward those who are patient enough to stay focused through the multitude of storylines and characters thrown at us.

Set in the 1920s, the series revolves around Heeramandi and the women who own the nooks and corners of the palatial building. Amidst the crowd and chaos, there is a system and hierarchy in place. At the top of the family tree is Mallika Jaan (Manisha Koirala), who is the matriarch of Heeramandi. She is the queen bee and the others vie for her attention.

Sonakshi Sinha essays the double role of Fareedan/Rehana and is the nemesis who is out to destroy Mallika. There is history between these two women and scores have to be settled. But the task isn’t easy. Obstructing her path are Mallika’s nautch girls Lajjo (Richa Chadha), Waheeda (Sanjeeda Shaikh), Bibbo (Aditi Rao Hydari) and her very own daughter Alamzeb (Sharmin Segal Mehta). Almost like a game of chess, these women are ferociously chasing their dreams. Some want revenge, others attention from an estranged lover, another seeks to change the path of her destiny.

Bhansali has a knack of painting his men in equally interesting shades as his women. In Heeramandi, the men too have battles to fight. Tajdar (Taha Shah) seeks to fight for his love and his country, while Wali Mohammad (Fardeen Khan) is a man who realises he is destroyed in love. Bhansali’s men are also tyrants -- There is Cartwright (Jason Shah), who leaves no stone unturned to humiliate and break the ego of Mallika Jaan and her clan.

Heeramandi is mounted on a huge scale. Parallel to the story of these women runs the track of independence from the British rule and the simmering fire of revolution. A case of being over ambitious, Bhansali’s weakest scenes and lowest points in the series come when the characters are torn between the two. Another flaw in the series is its pace. Some scenes feel over-indulgent, and the jump cuts from present to past story lines get slightly confusing.

Heeramandi is an actor's delight , a performance-heavy series. Richa Chaddha’s Lajjo wins you over with her rawness, while Sanjeeda’s scar-laced act is all heart. Aditi looks like she was made to act in this. Her ethereal beauty compliments her character's honesty. Sonakshi comes into her own very early in the series. She’s an absolute treat. Jayati Bhatia and Nivedita Bhargava are terrific as Mallika Jaan’s sidekicks, Satto and Phatto.

Bhansali is known to be a task master. He doesn’t settle for less. His movies are a testament to his passion and madness for cinema. The pages of Heeramandi will be etched in his opulent and star-studded universe for posterity. It might not be his best work, but at a time where VFX and remakes are taking precedent, it’s worth applauding a filmmaker who hasn’t succumbed to the pressures of conforming to the norm.

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