Expected more

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Having heard comments from a few friends and users that this movie is the best thriller from Hindi movies, I was curious to watch it. Other reason was the plethora of star cast which had names like Pankaj Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi and Amol Palekar. But when I watched, sadly the thriller part was missing. Many of the suspects ham so much and have very clear objectives that you get a feeling that they are not the actual murderers and most likely the one not amongst them is the culprit. Mystery was not that good and I am saying that despite of not watching any other language movie from which this movie could have been inspired.What stands apart and as an appreciation is the performance of the investigating CBI officer by Naseeruddin Shah. Right from his entry the eyes, facial expressions and body language depict that he is not taking this murder just as any CBI officer's routine investigation. The way he tries to investigate the murder is shown very well and seems realistic. No wonder that Sir Naseer is the best actor ever to come from India.Rest of the cast(names I mentioned in my first para) do play their part with full honesty especially Pankaj Kapoor. Direction wise the movie is OK but some elements like the shooting of the rape scene really does not fit in the actual plot. At some places the comedy seems to be forced and puts a dilemma as whether viewers should chuckle or see the tragedy which goes on in a movie shooting.Overall, watch it once and get engrossed at the first time. Need not have a repeat view to enjoy the mystery part.

The problem with most Bollywood films is tone. "Khamosh," Vidhu Vinod Chopra's daring attempt to adapt the Hollywood whodunit in an Indian setting is, unfortunately, no exception. The lame dialogue and overwhelming hokiness (every character basically shouts his dialogue; they all act stark raving mad!) almost undoes the film's greatest accomplishment: mood. Chopra busts out the noir rulebook: sharp angles, hand-held cinematography, color filters and dark rainy nights are just some of the aesthetic choices on prominent display. It does work lending "Khamosh" a gritty feel.Let's now consider the plot which, although done before, is a bit clever. A film crew is shooting a murder mystery in a sleepy town; the story of their film involves the mystery surrounding a murdered woman. The story of our film "Khamosh" kicks off when the actress playing the character supposed to be murdered in the movie within this movie (get it?) is actually murdered herself! Since this is supposed to be noir, a shrewd Marlowe-type detective (Naseerudin Shah) quickly arrives on the scene to dig deeper. Shah plays his character with quiet intensity; it's an understated performance, and a welcome change from all the barking dialogue flying about from the other characters. Before the actress' murder, Chopra had immediately set up the suspects by implicating everyone in the crew: every one of them had a beef with the dead girl. (That's Motive multiplied by 1000.) Chopra who wrote and directed "Khamosh" keeps the big secret a secret till the very end. No clues are given, making the fun one-sided — it's irritating when all the doors of logic are slammed shut on the audience's face. As Shah's character connects the dots in his investigation, the film slowly starts to eliminate each suspect until the real killer is finally unmasked. By that time, we're barely interested anymore."Khamosh" is well-made. It's also supposed to be unconventional, by Bollywood standards: there are no songs; it is an ensemble film set in and around one hotel. There are even some successful attempts at satire when Chopra pokes fun at the Indian movie industry — the film crew in the story comprises a producer who is a depraved money-pinching scrooge while the director is, himself, hardly moral; all he wants is to finish his movie (in one hilarious scene he goads the bald movie villain to really go after the underage actress playing the rape victim, then rolls the camera conveniently forgetting to say CUT!). Plus, almost all the actors in "Khamosh" use their real names which amps the glib irony."Khamosh" is a pastiche of Western film-making and genre conventions, and may be that's really the problem. Hitchcock's "Psycho" plays prominently on a TV screen in one scene…the film also has clear influences of Lynch's "Twin Peaks" and some obvious borrowing of Godard's stylistic graces from "Alphaville." The mere fact that "Khamosh" is different from standard Bollywood fare may be enough for staunch supporters of this industry. But for the rest of us, it's all been done (much better) before.

Vidhu Vinod Chopra wrote and directed a great suspenseful mystery worth seeing. The movie moves along well, with great acting. The cinematography was superb, especially during the chase scene. The characters were well developed and this movie had me on the edge of the seat trying to figure out who was behind all the murders.I found this movie happily after watching "Munnabhai M.B.B.S.", another great movie based on Chopra's writing. Although this movie is far different, the plot is superb. The shower scenario was a surprise treat.Again, with finding another treat coming out of Bollywood, I am so glad for the internet and this site for allowing me to find and buy movies from other parts of the world. This is one that should definitely be seen by those who love suspense and film noir movies. It is a story worth having been done by Hitchcock, but Chopra did a worthy job of not only penning this plot but bringing it to life for all to see. Don't pass up wonderful movies from other countries. There are gems like this to be found out there.

**SPOILERS**KHAMOSH is totally unrealistic, lacks a plot, and was basically only made to see stars portray themselves. The most suspenseful scene in the movie was when Shabana Azmi is in the shower and then we see her TV playing the shower scene from PSYCHO. This movie actually expected users to believe that Naseeruddin Shah's character has a good enough memory to remember where certain shots were fired and how many!***SPOILER BEGINS***At the end, the killer spills his guts to Shabana Azmi long enough to allow Naseeruddin Shah's character to run up and shoot him!***SPOILER ENDS***It is a little humorous (only a little) in the beginning to hear the director and cast members throwing insults at each other and hearing Shabana Azmi exclaim, "Oh sh-t!"Overall, a baaaaaaaaaaad movie!Rating: ** out of ********** (2 out of 10)