No One Killed Jessica Reviews

Marvellous performances by Rani, Vidya, and a taut script ensured excellent ratings for the film from movie critics. The Aamir director Rajkumar Gupta has done it again by creating a heady mix of reality and drama in No One Killed Jessica.

Though the storyline of the film was a widely publicised murder case, yet the film is successful in keeping the audiences glued to their seats. Writes Kaveree Bamzai, India Today, "You know the story of how Jessica Lal was murdered. You also know the guilty will eventually be punished. Yet from the minute the phone rings by Sabrina Lal's bedside, the viewer is in the grip of a high fever. The pace is frenetic, the language forceful, the collapse of witnesses shocking."

The film's storytelling has impressed most of the critics. Writes Taran Adarsh, Bollywood Hungama, "Most storytellers entertain, a few enlighten. A scattering number of celluloid visionaries entertain as well as enlighten. Rajkumar Gupta fits into that exceptional variety of film-makers that opens up thought-processes about the condition of the homeland without losing the cinematic elements that constitute a film."

"No One Killed Jessica belongs to the unique hard-hitting, gut-wrenching genre of cinema. Script-wise, the director has tried to remain faithful to the episode that occurred during that fateful night and also what transpired subsequently, but besides depicting reality on celluloid, he adds the thrill element to the plotline, which makes it very viewer-friendly," writes Adarsh.

The film is also able to do justice to the public sentiment attached with the Jessica Lall case. Writes Sonia Chopra, Sify, "No One Killed Jessica is not as audacious and pacy as the promos would have you believe. But the film manages to do one very crucial thing: it evokes your sentiments. You feel empathy, rage, helplessness, and triumph at every step of the way with our two female heroes."
Performances

Aniruddha Guha, DNA writes, "Vidya Balan underplays Sabrina, letting the silence speak instead. Her face remains resilient in her pursuit for justice, even if the body language is timid. In a scene where she lashes out, letting the pent-up emotions find release through anger, Vidya sparkles."

"Contrasting her is Meera, performed brilliantly by Mukherji. She has the more appealing role of the two, but a lesser performer may not have made the same impact. As the foul-mouthed, strong-willed journalist, Mukherji gives one of her best performances till date," says Guha.

Kaveree Bamzai, India Today says, "Rani is a revelation as the star anchor with a heart of gold and the mouth of a sewer rat. She cusses, curls her lip in contempt at cuties, plays around with juniors, but when it comes to the story she is unerring in pursuing it. Vidya is strong and steady, often startling with her quietude--there's a scene in which she's walking on the street lost in thought and comes up short against an elephant."