The most anticipated movie of 2017 was finally released on November 17 and we were all excited for another masterpiece by the legendary director Shoaib Mansoor. The question that remains is whether it has lived up to our expectations or not.
With a lot going on in the movie, it is hard to keep track of the exact storyline and connecting with each character, be it Sara, the protagonist or Sultan, the vicious antagonist trying his best to get his hands on Sara. Aami (Aimal), the polio-stricken husband of Sara remains in constant struggle with the insecure husband within him. A confused man with the mindset of a typical husband in our society, taking his frustration out on his already victimised wife, portrays him as a dastard.
The unrealistic story that was somehow thought-provoking, yet could not manage to get to the hearts of the audience. The feeble screenplay and the unimpressive dialogues were enough to put the audience off. The trials and sufferings of Sara that could have been very hard-hitting, had they been depicted through a stronger plot and connecting dialogues. There are times when Mahira Khan, through her spark as a veteran actress, managed to make people feel her pain. There are other moments of utter vagueness and lack of connectivity at the same time.
After the success of his two films, Bol and Khuda Ke Liye, people looked for more of Shoman. Verna had been in the news since 2016. With the expectations mounted and the hopes held high, Verna became the most awaited movie of 2017. Khuda Ke Liye and Bol’s effortless portrayal of the social issues engulfing our society, took the Pakistani film industry to the next level. The movie made in 2017 was expected to offer much more than the movies made in the year 2007 and 2010, respectively.
Khuda Ke Liye and Bol as the commercial movies with strong messages they gave respectively, contributed to the film industry when it was at the verge of cinematic downfall, so did Verna that revolves around something (considerably) as trivial as the significance of polio vaccination to something as sinister as rape, depiction of women rights, the patriarchal society and its VIP culture. However, the negligence shown when it comes to the direction, the dialogues, the technicalities and the unrealistic end of the movie, could not cajole the audience much.
Where we see a lot of loopholes, some unnecessary scenes and feeble performances by the few actors, there we get to see moments of sheer effulgence too. Zarrar Khan’s performance as the antagonist has been a treat to watch, proving that no one else could have done it better than him. Mahira Khan who never fails to disappoint her fans, definitely lived up to the expectations of the audience as well.
Verna has so far gotten mixed responses by the audience. Where some find it a well-made, mind-boggling film, there are others who think it was technically flawed with feeble and unrealistic plot and lacked quality direction and acting at the same time.