Netflix India is in business with Vikrant Massey again — and he’s playing another psychopathic character.
SECTOR 36: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
The Gist: Based on the true story of the 2006 Noida murders, sometimes referred to as the Nithari Killings, Sector 36 follows the cop who is investigating a string of cases tied to missing children in India’s villages, and the men behind the crime.
What Will It Remind You Of?: Also centered on investigations into the abuse of young girls, Bhakshak tells the story from the POV of a local journalist.
Performance Worth Watching: Vikrant Massey nails the tics and demeanor of a serial killer to a chilling degree.
Memorable Dialogue: ”How can you protect other children when you can’t even protect your own?” policeman Panday’s wife asks him after his daughter is almost abducted, which proves to be the pivotal moment that forces him to take the case seriously.
Sex and Skin: Not in this one.
Our Take: There are a lot of really good ideas at play in Sector 36 as it pertains to India’s class system, its gender politics, and rampant police corruption. India isn’t exactly known for its safety, especially for girls and women, and the film tries hard to showcase how the confluence of events and the systems in place could lead to such an outcome. The main murder being investigated in the film is that of a young girl sold into prostitution, whom the killer was infatuated with and felt entitled to even after she rebuked his advances. As it is based on true events, this is not a new concept — this is unfortunately the reality for women everywhere — and the film subtly reminds us of this reality.
The cinematography by Saurabh Goswami is beautiful and haunting. Goswami chooses very interesting shots to depict characters’ inner thoughts and feelings: one of the first images of Prem shows his split personality via a mirror image in the glass. Vikrant Massey’s performance as Prem is up to the task, as he utilizes lots of little tics that make him an unsettling presence.
However, Sector 36 falls short when trying to explore the killer Prem’s psyche — there’s no real answer for the brutal acts committed. Prem is the hired help at a wealthy business man’s home, and in his free time he runs a scheme of kidnapping children, dismembering them, and scattering their remains throughout the village. Only one flashback tries to explain his actions, but it only provides a surface-level answer to why he committed these crimes.
The writing is also clunky, evidenced by a long and drawn out confession scene that isn’t as gripping or revealing as the filmmakers believe it to be. What is supposed to provide a window into the killer’s mind doesn’t wind up giving any more insight than we had before. That, on top of a two hour runtime that often feels much longer, makes it hard to stay engaged in material that could have been the basis for an investigation into the dark side of masculinity and the world’s gender inequalities.
Our Call: SKIP IT. Despite good performances and filmmaking, the writing doesn’t deliver.
Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Paste Magazine, Teen Vogue, Vulture and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.
