- Movie Name:Hush Hush
- Critics Rating: 1.5 / 5
- Release Date: Sept 22, 2022
- Director: Tanuja Chandra
- Genre: Crime Drama
Hush Hush Review: The latest Amazon Prime Video series Hush Hush is a bearable watch at best. The shows that preceded it in the genre have set the bar high and the potential in the storyline has been underutilised here. The performances of the lead cast members emerge as the biggest drawback and the treatment lacks novelty. Juhi Chawla, Soha Ali Khan, Kritika Kamra and Shahana Goswami are four friends from Delhi's high society, who are battling their inner demons and family issues. However, problems compound when a murder takes place and they find themselves in the middle of the crime. Hush Hush has a template story and nothing out of the ordinary. Moreover, the show is slow-paced and due to non-engaging performances, it loses charm early on.
The story is intercut between the past and the present. Ishi (Juhi Chawla) is a lobbyist who has gone against her employers and has now painted a target on her back. Saiba (Soha Ali Khan), Dolly (Kritika Kamra) and Zaira (Shahana Goswami) are part of Ishi's inner circle and probably the only ones on her side. However, they are taken aback when they come to learn that Ishi has been living a secretive life and hiding her motives. The story unfolds and the dark layers of Ishi's life come off one by one. Hush Hush has enough mystery to sustain its narrative but the dull pacing and fewer thrills do not get one excited enough. The engagement is further lessened as the acting does not match up.
The biggest flaw of Hush Hush is its dialogues, which make the characters far from relatable. Juhi Chawla's performance is very on-the-surface. The other friends too, although part of the central storyline, do not try to delve deep for better character display. The music and cinematography do set the correct tone for a convincing drama but all is thrown off when the bland dialogues are delivered by some half-baked characters. Karishma Tanna as the investigating officer has a hard exterior and looks the part. However, the Haryanvi cop dialect keeps flowing in and out.
Tanuja Chandra's direction fails to bind the narrative together and some of the scenes come across as a half-hearted attempt at storytelling. The ambience is well set but the overall presentation lets down. What may have been a satisfying slow burn feels tepid and stretched. When urgency is required in actions, it fails to deliver.
Hush Hush is best skipped. It fails to leave an impact and disappoints as it does not attempt to push the envelope most of the time.
