Review By: kalyan Review Date: 18 Feb 2009
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A Wednesday is one of those rare variety films about which one can't discuss much despite a strong desire for it could hamper your viewing experience as an unapprised audience. It's a film one wants to rave liberally about but even then you can't conveniently converse on the instances of acclaim since those are the moments of surreptitious surprise held in reserve by the director. It's the kind of film that is discussed in detail once it acquires the cult status.
From the outset it initiates as a basic edge-of-the-seat action-thriller where an anonymous individual (Naseeruddin Shah) makes a call to the Commissioner of Police Rathod (Anupam Kher) and warns him of six bombs being planted in the city of Mumbai. He threatens of detonating them if his demand isn't met, which is emancipation of four hardcore anti-national terrorists. The caller is extremely insightful in his operation and always a step ahead of the equipped and efficient police force. The film progresses as a one-upmanship race between the two, detailing the intricacies in the techniques of the trade.
A Wednesday isn't in those conventional potboiler categories where a hero goes fighting single-handedly against the villains or munificent cinematic liberties are attempted to accomplish an assignment. The minute specification incorporated in the script adds conviction to the trade-off that sets the film a class apart.
Neeraj Pandey's well-etched screenplay adopts concise character introductions (without pointlessly probing much into their past), convincing buildup, an amazing pre-climax (where the suspense unfolds), a compelling climax (aftermath) and a satisfying conclusion. As a director, his hold on the script is admirable. At duration of 100 minutes, the film is crisply and effectively edited and appreciatively devoid of reels of redundancy. Fuwad Khan's calculative camera movements influences subconsciously.
Though you are unremittingly glued to the screen throughout its runtime, it's the superlatively intelligent pre-climax that catches you unaware. It's at this juncture that the social genre of the film surfaces, which was so far camouflaged behind a thriller format. The meticulously worded common man's discourse, here, addresses every single question that might arise in the audience mind out of ambiguity, if any. Thoughtfully this common man is not given the stamp of any religion for his rebellious actions. A Wednesday reminds of the prohibited path that the common man had to opt for to revolt against the defunct system like in Rang De Basanti.
The film doesn't fall prey of the usual setback of thrillers starting off impressively but losing momentum midways. It's consistent all through and the imaginative culmination imparts the film that extra sheen. One might attempt to find minor errors in the execution with some extra emphasis but the emotional appeal of the screenplay overpowers all these insignificant inaccuracies.
The film is blessed with fine performances with Naseeruddin Shah and Anupam Kher topping the list as competent opponents. Jimmy Sheirgill and Aamir Bashir as fellow officers are equally adept and gracefully natural. Deepal Shaw as a news TV reporter is quite capable and her voice is dubbed with a typical accent characteristic of the profession.
This one is strongly recommended!
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Good: A Wednesday has an unforeseen treatment and an unassuming demeanour. Don’t get deceived by its unpretentious title.
Bad:
Recommend: Yes
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