There was a time when Bollywood was adept at creating suspenseful murder mysteries. Be it Abbas-Mustan’s blockbuster thriller films or films like ‘Gupta’ and ‘Itifaq’, the audience was not only interested in knowing who the killer was but also how the events unfolded. Such films kept the audience hooked till the end. But cinema has changed and today’s audiences are exposed to more complex legal dramas and quality crime thrillers. This makes Siddharth P Malhotra’s ‘Eeka’ a film that is at least two decades late.

Movie Review: ‘Eeka’

Cast: Sunny Deol, Akshay Khanna, Akanksha Ranjan Kapoor and others

Director: Siddharth P Malhotra

Rating: 2.5/5

What is the story of the film?

The film starts with a lot of suspense. Soma (Akanksha Ranjan Kapoor) is seen enjoying a night out with Shauryaman (Aksha Khanna), but is thrown out of a speeding luxury car moments later. The case of Soma found seriously injured on the roadside soon turns into a game of influence, politics and power.

Then enters Arjun (Sunny Deol), a famous defense lawyer. Arjun walks into the courtroom with the same moral fortitude that once made his character in the film ‘Damini’ iconic. In his opening arguments he talks about how power and class often influence justice. They also attack the image of lawyers which assumes that lawyers are only after money. A dialogue from the film grabs our attention – “Law and justice are not always the same.”

Parallel to this is the story of Arjuna’s personal life. Their daughter, who is a promising swimmer, suddenly started bleeding from her nose during an important election trial. If you have watched 90s Bollywood movies, you can easily guess the whole story as soon as the doctor says that he has a terminal disease and will need stem cells from one of his parents for treatment.

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A clash of old moods and characters

It is quite strange and a bit funny to see in the film that Akshay Khanna is playing the role of a spoiled son of a powerful politician at this age. He is a privileged man-child who spends nights with other women while his wife waits for him at home. When her case comes to Arjuna, Arjuna initially refuses due to some bitter past experiences, but the circumstances of his daughter’s treatment force him to fight the case. What follows is a court battle between personal history and evidence.

The film takes an interesting turn when Sunny Deol’s character is fighting the case of an alleged rapist. But like ‘Damini’, Arjun does not allow his team to kill the character of the victim. When a witness tries to do so, Sunny Deol gets into his signature ‘Angry Young Man’ mode and his screams in court remind the audience of 90s cinema.

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On the other hand, looking at Akshay Khanna, it seems that his old ‘Rahman Daku’ character has been included in this film. The same dark wardrobe, pausing while talking, glancing to the side, walking with a slight bow, always arrogant. In one scene, the background dancer is seen doing his same old viral dance step, which is clear that the makers wanted to cash in on his old screen swag.

Where was the lack of direction and screenplay?

The film takes many twists and turns in its final moments and makes the audience doubt every scene. But as much as the screenplay wants to make these revelations a masterstroke, the audience feels them much earlier. Even the climax, which was shocking, turned out to be completely predictable.

Director Siddharth P. Malhotra tries to pack too much into one film. There is also courtroom drama, a murder mystery, emotional aspects of family, and commentary on privilege and justice. Taken individually, each idea is good, but together they compete for attention. The film keeps changing directions without really deciding what it wants to be, making the story feel disjointed rather than interesting.

As its title suggests, the film thinks it has its ‘Ace’ (strongest card) till the end. Unfortunately, by the time that card hits the table, the audience already knows the bet. Despite an excellent cast and an interesting story, Malhotra’s thriller never manages to make a winning move. What could have been an interesting legal thriller ends up being a familiar story with a very predictable ending.

Why to watch: If you are fond of Sunny Deol’s old ‘Damini’ style and Akshay Khanna’s villain attitude, then you can watch this one.