I think I've been following Srijit Mukherjee's films for quite sometime infact from the very beginning if I'm exact. "Autograph", "Baishe Srabon", "Jaatishwar" , "Rajkahini" and "Gumnaami" were, I believe, among his finest creations. He is definitely one of the flag bearer of the so called phrase "bringing commerce and art together". So, obviously he's one of the very important filmmakers in Bengali cinema in the last decade. Not the greatest but definitely important. But the thing is in Bengali Film Industry, as I've observed, the more you're successful the more you have to churn out movies each year. And also there is a lack of diverse filmmakers in Bengali cinema unlike what we see in the south. Lately, Srijit Mukerjee is creating 3-4 movies every year and so are many other notable filmmakers in the industry. This creates an impact on the quality. Now if we take this movie "Dwitiyo Purush", it feels like a very tired creativity from the Director. Why ?-
1. The Writing is very weak. The biggest strength of any movie especially for a mystery thriller is its level of engagement of the audience. It has to play with their mind, make them anticipate, imagine and be thrilled. I would even say that engagement is way more important than the logic of the plot (That doesn't mean the plot should be an illogical pit but little artistic liberation to crank up the intensity is welcome). But here the engagement is very less. The plot of the tumultuous marriage & romance is such a big portion. It was not unnecessary. But it felt like three glasses of water for one little bowl of dry spicy food just so you are not "confused" for what's coming.
2. A good editing can save even a poorly written story. But, the editing here is lack-lustre. There is nothing much in the plot. So it could be at least 30 mins shorter. But, things are moving at a very slow pace like there is no hurry whatsoever. See a mystery thriller is like a well-adjusted game of light & shadow. Its about the tension and curiosity it generates. This is where editing plays the key role. But, here it failed to create tension or curiosity. This is where the Spanish or the Korean Thrillers take us on a ride. Somewhere in the middle I almost forgot that it's a thriller. Baishey Srabon was way better edited.
3. The music is not at all reinventing nor does it elevates the narrative. For a viewer who is not aware of the dark alleys of Chinatown and its prevailing lawlessness, it's sure very confusing to be introduced at the light tunes of a guitar melody. This is what happened when you choose any song from the diary of your favourite musician and not show any creativity. Take for example "Udta Punjab", how remarkably we were ushered into the drug scene of Punjab through the tunes of "Chitta Ve" and some hard hitting lyrics. Hooked you from the very first scene but that was a only a black comedy.
But, there are also few good things of the movie. Acting is its biggest strength. Both Parambrata and Anirban are very good. Truly honest to their characters. Parambrata's character is tired and haunted by Probir Roy's memory and you can see that in his body language and in the final breakdown scene you can see what is eating him from inside. A very matured & Top-notch performance. Anirban on the other hand is one heck of a bold performer. Even though he's Menacing & Vulnerable but he played his part with a pinch of unpredictability and you can witness that in his quiter moments. Cinematography has some flare. Liked the way it captured the Chinatown alleys and painted the visual picture. Dialogues are pretty good but Baishe Srabon had better dialogues.
Dwitiyo Purush is thematic for sure. It's there in almost all of Srijit Mukherjee's crime thrillers & which is about the blurring lines between the psyche of law-keepers & law-breakers and how that is shaped by the system and the society in which we live. Our psychology is only a by-product of our surroundings. Which ultimately makes it a very human movie. But the execution of Dwitiyo Purush makes it a below average experience.
