Ahaa! Parineeti Chopra is open to make quite an impact with the upcoming Netflix remake of The Girl On The Train. A movie released in 2016 adapted from the novel of the same name by Paula Hawkins. The book indeed had a lot of fans. The 2016 movie despite delivering some grand performances with the likes of Emily Blunt failed to make the usual impact. The new version starring Parineeti Chopra, Aditi Rao Hydari, and Kirti Kulhari was aimed to give a desi take on the storyline. Directed by Ribhu Dasgupta, the movie has quite a hooks and shook to the original written material. So anyway here we are discussing how we felt about the new desi retelling of the book The Girl On The Train in the new Netflix adaptation.
The Girl On The Train follows the story of a once-happy lawyer who has now turned into an alcoholic divorcee. While she keeps dealing with her alcoholism, her ex-husband and his wife, the only happiness she finds is on her way home. The time she sees a woman much like she was in the past living a happy life. So let’s break down what the new Netflix’s Ribhu Dasgupta directorial has to offer to the masses.
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The Plot
The new desi take of The Girl On Train introduces us to Mira Kapoor (Parineeti Chopra), a much happily married lawyer from London. She is proving her career on every step and is about to expand her family. A tragedy struck her leading her to an alcoholic career-threatening life. Often being obsessed over her ex-husband and his wife, she starts spending most of her time drinking and stalking them. Suffering from mental health, the only happiness she finds is when she meets Nusrat (Aditi Rao Hydari).
Nusrat is a woman who Meera sees on every train back to her home. Watching Nusrat live a happy life which she once was destined to have made her happy. But one day, everything turns around. She sees Nusrat with someone else and suspects her having an extra-marital affair. To avoid her going through the same tragedy she did, Meera gets herself involved in a murder case she doesn’t want to be part of.
Overall Story Review
The Netflix desi version unlike the original film and book is quite choppy on its part, plus forced extension. The movie mostly took the murder mystery way and kept the psychological element out. There were hardly any moments that took us to a depth of Meera’s psychological state. On the other hand, it is a little fast-paced when it comes to violent sequences and slow-paced with emotional sequences.
The aura of the film might remind you of movies like Talaash: The Answer Lies Within or Badla. There is quite a silent slow vibe to the environment. Well, if you are already a fan of the book and have read it. Plus, watching the 2016 movie, there are not many changes. Even there are a few dialogue nods to the original film too.
Calling the movie a desi-take is quite an over-exaggeration itself. This has been pointed out by many fans. First of all the story is once again set in London, which already doesn’t give anything new. The only thing desi about it is a few Bollywood songs. That’s it, the same re-telling all over again. Also, let me repeat, if you love the book, the ending is something you might or not might be satisfied with.
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The Performances
We have to say we are happy watching Parineeti Chopra giving a try to some new extents in acting. Especially putting her previous mainstream roles aside. She has given her very best we could say. Her portrayal as a strong lawyer turning to an alcoholic was commendable and we personally loved it after a long time. The screams, looks, and anger paid off very well. There were a few slugs here and there. For example, her emotions and loneliness were quite mostly portrayed but lacked the feeling a little. On the other hand, when it comes to the alcoholic take of her, we felt it was a little of an overexaggerated one. Still not many complaints, we are happy with Parineeti Chopra trying something out of her usual mainstream takes.
The other two pivotal characters Nusrat played by Aditi Rao Hydari and Kriti Kulhari as a cop have their own presences felt. We have to applaud Aditi Rao Hydari for her innocent girl take which worked out pretty well for the movie. On the other hand, we believe the performance part didn’t do much justice to the eye-catching and talented Kriti Kulhari sporting a turban and an honorable cop bent on arresting a murderer. Another add-in, Avinash Tiwary too didn’t have much in for the story despite having some depths which were quickly flashed away.
Overall Verdict
The movie overall to be honest is just another take on the same old 2016 film starring Emily Blunt. Seriously the same old, been there, done that material. The Director has not made much of the changes to the original one. He kept the same old strategy. The only thing he might not have got was Emily Blunt’s performance which was downright amazing. By saying that we are not taking the shine away from Parineeti Chopra though. As we said we are really happy to see her trying to do something out of her area and wish she would continue to do so.
So, don’t mind giving it a watch. It’s a decent watch. Not that good, not that bad. In case you have read the book or watched the 2016 version of the film, you might end up disliking it. For newbies and desi-fans it’s a one-time entertainment for sure. Netflix’s The Girl On The Train is available to stream on Netflix. You might also check out the trailer below.
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