Unlock Review: Hina Khan, Kushal Tandon's superficial thriller unravels mystery of dark web

Movie: Unlock: The Haunted App

Directed by Debatma Mandal

Cast: Hina Khan, Kushal Tandon, Aditi Arya, Rishab Sinha

Platform: Zee 5

Rating: 3.5

Social media is a blessing as well as a curse. The web platform helps us connect to our loved ones and often takes us to a place where there is no coming back. Everyone out there in the virtual world wants to fulfill their wish, need and greed and end up losing a lot in return. Social media app does make us dwell deep into virtual reality but takes us away from reality. This is what Hina Khan and Kushal Tandon's new web film Unlock: The Haunted App talks about.

Directed by Debatma Mandal and produced by Wind Horse Films and Kartina Entertainment. This one-hour film is based on the lives of three people (Aditi Arya, Kushal Tandon, Hina Khan) who are best of friends but fall in the trap of a diabolical app (Unlock) and its virtual assistant voice promises to fulfill their darkest wishes. The concept of the film is never seen before content on the webspace and will give the viewers an edge of the seat entertainment experience.

Before you unlock the app and watch the film, read on if it is worth your time!

Storyline

The story is a simple love triangle between Suhani (Hina Khan), Amar ( Kushal Tandon) and Ridhi (Aditi Arya). Amar and Ridhi love each other but on the other side Suhani loves Amar and wants him at any cost. As she can't get him in any authentic way, she decides to use the technology and dark web. Suhani's compulsive and obsessive nature compels her to install the Unlock app. The app promises to fulfill her wishes but in return the virtual assistant wants her to complete three tasks. Obeying the orders of the app assistant, Suhani completes her first task and learns that she has landed in trouble. Suhani gets involved in murder and a lot of illegal things that make her dwell deep into the dark world of the web.

What happens to Amar and Aditi's love story? Will Suhani get her love ? Or will she fall into another trap?

Performances

Hina Khan shines in her role as Suhani, her bold and sassy avatar will be appreciated by her fans who've seen her in Akshara bahu avatar transform in this revengeful avatar. Hina justifies her stint as an obsessive, compulsive lover. Aditi Aarya has barely anything to do in the film, she hardly has any dialogues, however, her screen presence is impactful owing to the narrative. The only highlight about her role is the lovemaking scene that she has with Kushal Tandon.

On the other hand, Kushal is a powerful actor, his intensity and expression required for the role of a lover boy role are truly commendable. Kushal and Hina's chemistry is certainly why his ardent fans would love to watch the film. Rishabh Sinha who plays the role of Abhinav has a very small role in the film as he is also a victim of the Unlock app, his story is well etched out. The actor has very little to do in the film but still, he managed to make presence felt.

Positives

Screenplay and Editing

As the movie is superficial and is not even remotely based on a real-life incident. The makers have tried their best to keep the core value of social media and dark web impacting our personal lives. Certain scenes in the movie will remind you of things that you must have read over the internet on how millennials got involved and fall into the trap of dark web. The amalgamation of human emotions like guilt, betrayal, love, passion, possession is the core of which the crux of the film is based on. Needless to say, the film keeps you connected. There are a few twists and turns in the movie, which will keep you hooked. As it's a short film the director has ensured crisp storytelling. The climax of the movie captured with brilliance.

Background music

The BGM and music used in the movie deserve special applause. The background music makes the audience feel the intensity of the scenes and keeps you intrigued. 

Climax scene

The ending steals away the entire film. It is remarkably shot and placed well with the narrative.  The real culprit is the dark web, which is shown as a superficial thing that haunts those who download the app like a ghost. The deep mess surrounded by the social media world is shown like a chain that's never going to end. This does give out a strong message to all the current social media savvy generation. 

Negative

There are a lot of loopholes in the screenplay, but that's intentional to keep the audience guessing where it came from. Certain scenes in the film are so predictable that the suspense, drama kills our momentum. The songs in the film are unnecessary and don't fit the screenplay. 

Verdict

Hina Khan and Kushal Tandon's Unlock is a cliffhanger superficial thriller that surely makes it for a good one time watch.