Kanoon Movie Review: BR Chopra's Legal Thriller

Kanoon Movie Review-In Short:

An idealistic prosecutor finds himself in a dilemma, when he witnesses his mentor and prospective father-in-law murder a man in cold blood…

Kanoon Movie Review-Verdict:

A nail-biting legal thriller, B. R. Chopra's Kanoon also offers an interesting argument against capital punishment.

Kanoon Movie Review-Story Plot:

Kailash Khanna (Rajendra Kumar) is an idealistic public prosecutor, who holds his mentor and prospective father-in-law, Judge Badri Prasad (Ashok Kumar) in high regard.

When Kailash goes to meet money-lender Dhaniram (Om Prakash) to warn him against threatening his prospective brother-in-law Vijay (Mehmood), he sees Badri Prasad coming there and killing Dhaniram with a knife in cold-blood. The shocked Kailash initially decides to keep quiet about it, but when a thief is arrested for the murder, Kailash, who knows that the thief is not the killer, takes it upon himself to defend him in court.

What follows is a legal thriller that manages to surprise everyone with its constant twists and turns.

Kanoon Movie Review-Performances:

Rajendra Kumar as the idealistic prosecutor gives a restrained performance and effectively brings out the dilemma of someone, who is stuck between love and duty. Ashok Kumar too performs his part well and keeps one confused about his guilt and innocence till the very last minute. The other actors of the movie too put in decent efforts.

Kanoon Movie Review-Direction:

A rare song-less thriller, Kanoon is watchable mainly because it is a delightful legal thriller-something that fans of Perry Mason would appreciate. However, Chopra's talent lies in not just weaving a thrilling tale, but also putting forward arguments with regards to capital punishment and the authenticity of evidence produced in court, which might affect the outcome of a case. Chopra also scores brownie points for not focusing too much on songs or romance, which would have undoubtedly diluted the impact of the film.

Kanoon Movie Review-Final Word:

As far as legal thrillers go, Kanoon is a must watch…