It is a typical crime thriller-murder mystery. A young boy is found dead in a car in Buckinghamshire; there are several cues—enmity between the boy’s Sikh family and Muslim business partners and notorious teens involved in drugs. Arrests are made on initial suspicions. An obvious plot twist comes when a grieving British Indian detective Jasmeet Bhamra enters the case and takes it upon herself to find the teen’s killers, motivated by her own personal tragedy. As usual, like most crime thrillers, the most unsuspected candidate emerges as the killer.
The much-awaited Kareena Kapoor Khan murder mystery The Buckingham Murders, directed by Hansal Mehta, stands its ground because of a restraint Khan. As Bhamra, she brings forth the perfect balance of a grieving mother and a focused detective. Khan, who has often outdone herself in roles like Chameli, and Jab We Met’s Geet, wears versatility on her sleeves. In the 2023 Netflix film Jaane Jaan, Khan was a whole new self in an unassuming role. With The Buckingham Murders, it is clear Khan is serious about picking scripts where she wants to let the actor in her play along and do the talking before she returns to stun the audience.
The supporting cast is at their professional best but chef-turned-actor Ranveer Brar, who has in the past proved his mettle as an actor in Modern Love Mumbai, is convincing as a Punjabi immigrant and as an abusive husband, whose anger knows no bounds. His talent knows no bounds both in the kitchen and now, onscreen.
However, the Hansal Mehta directorial fizzles out as a slow-paced stereotypical murder story where the usual happens. The problem lies in the conceptualisation that fails to surprise the audience with a new flavour, even as its A-lister does her job to perfection. Mehta, apart from his critically acclaimed films has, in the past, created cinema, close to perfection but missed the mark. Simran and Chhalaang are a few examples. The Buckingham Murders does not deserve to be written off, yet it passes off better as a Netflix watch, which happens to be its media partner.
Rating: 2.5/5
Cast: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Brar, Sarah-Jane Dias
Director: Hansal Mehta
