The quiet town of Buckingham is rocked by a brutal crime in The Buckingham Murders, a taut crime thriller that explores the darker facets of human nature. Directed by Hansal Mehta, this film delves into the intricacies of murder, grief, and the relentless pursuit of justice, all while keeping the audience on the edge of their seat. With sharp performances and a haunting narrative, it’s a film that compels you to look beyond the surface of good and evil.
AT A GLANCE
Film: The Buckingham Murders
Director: Hansal Mehta
Cast: Kareen Kapoor Khan, Keith Allen, Jonathan Nyati
Writers: Aseem Arrora, Raghav Raj Kakker, Kashyap Kapoor
Genre: Thriller/Mystery
Indian Link Rating: (3.5/5)
Runtime: 1 hour and 47 minutes
Kareena Kapoor Khan plays Jaspreet Bhamra (Jass), a seasoned yet emotionally troubled detective who is tasked with solving the murder of a local boy found in a small town, Buckinghamshire. As the detective navigates the murky waters of small-town politics, personal vendettas, and hidden secrets, the story tightens its grip, revealing layer upon layer of logical complexity.
Without revealing too much, The Buckingham Murders offers slightly more than a traditional whodunit. The film intertwines the investigation with personal stakes for the protagonist, weaving a tale that blurs the line between justice and morality. What begins as a straightforward case soon spirals into an emotional reckoning for Prabhleen Sandhu as Preethi Sethi, leaving the audience questioning how far one can go in the name of justice.
Kareena Kapoor Khan delivers a captivating performance as the emotionally scarred detective. Her portrayal of Jass is both nuanced and intense, capturing the internal conflict of a woman on edge. Ash Tandon also shines as Hardik Patel (Hardy) adding depth to the story through his character’s inhibitions.
Hansal Mehta masterfully maintains the film’s brooding tone, using the picturesque yet foreboding Buckingham setting to full effect. The cinematography, with its lingering shots of fog-covered landscapes and dimly lit interiors, mirrors the film’s pervasive sense of unease. Every scene is meticulously crafted to heighten tension, whether it’s a whispered conversation between suspects or a high stakes chase through the town’s winding streets.
The use of silence, music and background score in key moments creates an almost suffocating atmosphere, drawing viewers deeper into the psychological torment of the protagonist. It’s this attention to detail that makes The Buckingham Murders stand out from a typical detective mystery.
Beyond its murder-mystery premise, although Kareena delivered one of her best performances yet, the character’s relationship with her son was underexplored. The scenes that depicted the mother-child bond were repetitive and singular throughout the film, shabbily perpetuating a connection between the audience and the character.
There are subtle but sharp critiques of societal privilege, with Buckingham’s social factors playing a key role in how the case unfolds. The film doesn’t shy away from exploring religious/class tensions and how they shape both the investigation and its outcome.
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However, the attempt to complete Kareena’s character arc felt forced in the final scene, which was tragic given that until then the film depicted the grief and loss of a loved one commendably. The trope of a murder/kidnapping case helping Jass finding peace about her son was insufficiently addressed.
What Hansal Mehta did right, however, was red herrings – an element of the plot meant to distract or dismay the audience to delay and enhance the effect of the conclusion. Clues were masterfully scattered throughout the plot and clinically “foreshadowed” before plot twists that made the tension prompting, only failing at the “Eureka” moments.
Indian audiences are known largely to like an emotional connection with the character and Hansal Mehta does a fabulous job in exploring the characters individually. However, the screenplay here lacks contention when providing an emotional connect with the character. Jass’s emotions are justified, but the anger she is supposed to have felt toward her son’s killer, did not translate – except perhaps in the earliest scenes of the film.
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