Unpaused Movie Review: Beautiful anthology of 5 stories filmed in covid era
Unpaused Movie Rating: 3 stars
Just watched Unpaused movie on Amazon Prime Video. So let’s analyze the cast, release date, story, positive/negatives and at last my personal view on this movie.
Cast: Gulshan Devaiah, Saiyami Kher, Sumeet Vyas, Richa Chadha, Ishwak Singh, Lillete Dubey, Rinku Rajguru, Abhishek Banerjee, Geetika Vidya Ohlyan, Ratna Pathak Shah and Shardul Bharadwaj
Director: Raj & DK, Nikkhil Advani, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Avinash Arun and Nitya Mehra
Release Date: 18th Dec 2020 on Amazon Prime Video
Story: Unpaused is an anthology of five short films that resonate with our lives during corona and our hope for a better tomorrow despite the odds. The film pays an ode to Mumbai, undying human spirit and our ability to forge relationships in the most unlikely scenario.
The first short film titled is “Glitch” which is directed by Raj & DK. The story is set in the near future where pandemics have become a norm. The world at present is dealing with COVID-30 and everything seems to happen in the virtual space. A lonely and nervous ‘hypo’ (Gulshan Devaiah) goes on a virtual date with a spirited Covid warrior (Saiyami Kher). The urge of companionship draws him to the girl, and he would personally love to meet her. But both touch each other in ways they can’t comprehend. Will their chance encounter develop into something more meaningful?
The Second short film titled as “Apartment” and it is directed by Nikkhil Advani. The story is about a couple (Richa Chadha and Sumeet Vyas), whose lives are irreparably damaged when he is charged with multiple MeToo allegations. He denies and While trying to come to terms with it, she loses all her strength and attempts to end her own life. But she stops halfway when a pesky stranger (Ishwak Singh) unexpectedly shows up at her door. Will she go back to finishing her ghastly act after he leaves? Or will she succeed in finding the inner strength to face the reality?
“Rat–A–Tat” is the third short film in the anthology and it is directed by Tannishtha Chatterjee. This story is about a young girl (Rinku Rajguru) and her grumpy elderly neighbour (Lillete Dubey). one who chooses to be alone and the other who is alone because of circumstances. While confronting loneliness during the lockdown, their paths cross in the mostly unlikely circumstances. Will they succeed in overcoming the stark generation gap and become friends? Or will their egos continue to evade all the possibilities of hope and new beginnings?
The fourth short film titled “Vishaanu” is directed by Avinash Arun. It follows a young migrant family (Abhishek Banerjee and Geetika Vidya Ohlyan) which gets thrown out of their rented house during the lockdown after failing to pay the rent. They then decide to illegally sneak into a lavish sample flat that’s situated in the same building in which they were working as construction workers. For how long can they stay there? What will happen once the bubble gets busted?
The last but not the least 5th story title is “Chand Mubarak” which I liked the most among all short stories and it is directed by Nitya Mehra. It follows an affluent middle-aged single woman (Ratna Pathak Shah) who is a little paranoid of contagion and wants to avoid social contact at all costs. But, she is forced to seek help of a young rickshaw driver (Shardul Bhardwaj) to get her medicine during the lockdown. The woman’s stubbornness and elitist views are in contrast to the driver’s orthodox views on relationships. Will the two strangers out of their common loneliness form an unlikely friendship? Or will their overwhelming divides get the better of them?
Positives
1. Star cast and their performances
2. Direction
3. Cinematography
4. Story
Negatives
1. Music
2. Shoddy editing
3. Screenplay
4. 2 out of 5 story could have been better
Durgesh Tiwary’s View : > When I watched the trailer and it’s star cast planned to watch it in free time. It is first movie which totally based on Covid-19 era in Mumbai and there are 5 stories directed by 5 talented directors.
When you have multiple directors calling the shots on multiple sets of actors in standalone stories, it is hard to find cohesion of quality. The parts that make up the entirety are often never consistently good or bad. First story is set up in 2030 era where everyone is dealing with Covid-30 which seems not convincing at all.
2nd story is beautiful but there is no specific reason why this story should have been set during lockdown and as such, there is hardly any factor that might hold your attention through the runtime. But last 3 stories will tough your heart with it’s story and emotions unfolded at a languid pace, the film captures the essence of human relationship making interesting use of music
Overall it’s a beautiful anthology of love, new beginnings, second chances, and a glimmer of hope which is set and filmed during the unprecedented times. My view Recommended.
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