WHEN JUSTICE FAILS, LAWLESSNESS FOLLOWS

“Every story needs an element of suspense– or, it’s lousy”, said Sydney Pollack, the American film director. Add a good measure of thrill; top it with a mysterious murder; and, you have the recipe for a terrific story on the silver screen.

“ತರ್ಕ” (‘Tarka', which translates to ‘Logic’) is a 1989 critically-hailed Kannada flick. Based on Agatha Christie’s novel, ‘The Unexpected Guest’, the commercial blockbuster won a few awards too. Remade into Tamil (Puriyaadha Pudhir) and Hindi (Chupp) and, the suspense thriller is indubitably a milestone in Kannada films.

The plot revolves around Akshay (Shankar Nag), a prisoner, who has escaped from custody and is on the run. The fugitive accidentally runs into his classmate, Sudha (Vanitha Vasu). Sudha confesses to murdering her sadistic, schizophrenic husband, Ritwik Kumar (Devaraj), who is monomaniacal in his suspicion of her fidelity.

Akshay assists Sudha in disposing of the corpse; but, the two are soon targeted for blackmail. Inspector Kowri (Avinash), assigned to the case, suspects foul play; hence, he continues the search for Rithwik’s killer. 

Does Kowri crack the murder mystery? Who is the blackmailer? How are the two cases connected?

Sunil Kumar Desai has slickly directed his debut film. Despite a longish script, his non-linear screenplay is fast and furious. He has used plot twists and red herrings effectively to heighten the nerve-wracking tension in the narrative. The film is unusual since it has no musical tracks. The sound effects are a highlight. The camerawork is a tad pedestrian; so, the cinematic appeal suffers.

Shankar Nag is BRILLIANT in the lead role. Avinash, Vanita Vasu and Devaraj are good too in most scenes.   

I rate this suspense thriller: 7.5 on 10!

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