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Two genres in which Hindi Film Industry has not got many in its kitty are Spine Chilling Thrillers and Murder Mysteries…. There are very few such brave and worth mentioning efforts which come to your mind instantly. Luckily we have seen some good thrillers in the recent times by the young brigade of innovative directors and "The Stoneman Murders" is yet another path breaking and engrossing attempt by the director, Manish Gupta.

The movie is a mix of real life take on the serial killings of 1983 with a touch of fiction added by the writers giving it a more sensational feel. It talks about the horrifying terror on the streets, spread by a brutal killer who used to kill the poor people sleeping on the roadside by crushing their head with a stone, therefore named as Stoneman Murderer. And both the director and the writers come up with a brilliant portrayal of this real life case on the silver screen.

The main merit of the movie is that it straight away starts off with the main topic and sticks to its till the end. There are no deliberately added sub plots, songs or any comic scenes which make it more harsh, bold and impressive. The whole narration revolves around Kay Kay Menon, who is a suspended Police Inspector paying the price for his anger practiced in an interrogation. After his suspension, he is still investigating the Stoneman Case, privately on the instructions of his senior, Vikram Gokhale and also gets assistance by a Hawaldaar played by Virendra Saxena. His colleague inspector, Arbaaz Khan, who is more of an opponent, is also working on the same case creating troubles for KK.

What makes the movie, a path-breaking attempt is the dark & shocking secret behind all the murders committed by the Stoneman. It also shows the ugly side of our rotten system we are all living in. As the search progresses, KK manages to solve the case, but his superiors don't let the secret come out in the open for some good reasons of their own. So the case which was duly solved by him, still remains as an unsolved murder mystery in the police records due to its disgraceful truth. I will not like to disclose the mystery here for my friends as that is main highlight of the movie, but i would surely like to add that the twist has a great shock element in store for the viewers.

One more interesting observation is that despite the fact that the movie is based on some brutal and cruel murders committed by a psychopath; still it does not have any bloody or weird visuals. The director very impressively gives you a clean and sober picture without moving into some trance or blood-shed. Instead he chooses to show the real news paper pictures to show the murders committed by the killer on the roadsides. Among the well shot sequences, capable of making you jump on the edge of your seat is the sub-way sequence, when KK has a scuffle with the killer but he manages to escape, injuring KK badly. The interval sequence also leaves you awestruck, with your jaws open, asking for more.

Performance wise, KK as expected delivers another gem of his career. The complete movie moves more around him and he manages to carry it all with elegance and conviction. Vikram Gokhale is impressive once again and perfectly suits the role. Arbaaz has got few scenes and he does a fine job. Rukhsaar as KK's wife though doesn't get a well defined role, but still gives a sober and sweet performance. Virendra Saxena as KK's associate Hawaldaar is one of the most under-rated character artists we have. I still remember his haunting presentation of a Sikh Freedom Fighter in the Tele-Serial "Tamas" and since then have seen him giving many memorable performances in several movies consistently.

In a murder mystery or a thriller, background music has a very important role to play and this department is handled well by the music director giving ample support to the subject and feel. The movie is majorly shot at nights and still you are not taken into dark visuals and dim lightning. So the Cinematography is perfect keeping the scenes bright with proper lighting and effects.

In all, if you are fan of thrillers and murder mysteries, then this is a treat to watch after the recent "A Wednesday". It was indeed a pity that I watched the movie in an almost empty theater. Attempts like these need to be applauded and encouraged by the viewers. But sadly, the Indian movie lovers still go to the theater looking at the faces on the poster and not due to the subject or theme of the movie. I would also like to thank and congratulate Mr. Bobby Bedi (Kaleidoscope), for backing up such projects in these tough recession times.

So, here is another surprising small movie, simply not to be missed.

The Stoneman Murders is a very thrilling & a compelling movie.Top notch performance from Kay Kay Menon.Such gem are these movies in Indian Cinema but still few know about it.Stoneman murders is based on a true incident that happened in parts of Bombay & then Calcutta.Menon plays the role of a suspended cop who has been given a last chance by his superiors to track down the serial killer who kills his victims by throwing stones.Vikram Gokhale too has given a good performance.Totally thrilling experience & the ending is just so surprising.In short,just too good.Some scenes in the movie are just too good.Specially a scene where Menon has to choose between his moral either to help a dying man or to catch the killer.But i am pretty much sure that this movie will rise in the ranks of many making psychopaths as the new aura of Indian Cinema.

For a long time I thought The Stoneman Murders was a investigative documentary of some sort by NDTV – because I always saw the ads only on the news channels. And the ads only showed some guy shrouded in a blanket, about to smash someone with a big stone. It was only later that I saw Kay Kay Menon and Arbaaz Khan in the promos and realized it was a proper movie.

But the big question about each movie - is it a proper/watchable movie ? Answer - Hell yeah !! It might be small budget and without any catchy item songs (there is one mandatory dance-bar song, but its eminently forgettable) – but it's a very involving and riveting thriller. Of course, it manages to trip itself up when it uncovers the mystery man – it's a time honored Hindi movie tradition (Raaz etc) after all !! But since it's the last 10 minutes of the movie, you can easily skip that part in your mind and remember its engrossing moments.

As the movie title and the trailers announce – its about the gruesome Stoneman (or 'Pattharmaar') serial killings in Bombay in 1983 – whose identity remains a mystery till date. According to google, this is the only serial-killer case in India that was never solved – not even a definitive arrest !! Director Manish Gupta claims that there was no way a crime like this was unsolved – there must have been a massive cover-up afterwards. Now I am not in a position to verify if this is just a publicity gimmick or he actually believes that – but it definitely adds to the enjoyment of the movie.

The Stoneman Murders has Kay Kay Menon playing inspector Sanjay - his now-regular characterization of a man with an inflated self-belief, aggression and a liking for violence (Sarkar, Mumbai Meri Jaan, Life in a Metro, Via Darjeeling and many more). I guess it goes without saying that he does that role pretty well. The movie begins with inspector Sanjay getting suspended from the police force for a accidental custodial death, right when the Stoneman kills his first victim. As the bodies pile up, he gets permission from a sympathetic senior Satam (Vikram Gokhale) to pursue a secret parallel investigation on his own. Sanjay latches on to the thin hope that cracking the case before the police department does, might be his only chance of getting back into the force ... and mobilizes his underground network of informers for clues. But the killer doesn't give himself up easily and that is what the story is all about.

With a perfect accompanying background score that heightens the terse moments and shot mostly at nighttime Mumbai streets, The Stoneman Murders is a very intelligent cat-and-mouse game between the renegade cop and the mystery killer. The director/script-writer have come up with a very realistic & engrossing story – and I cant tell you more about the narrative without giving away some of the mystery. There are scary moments throughout the movie, and there were times I forgot to chew the popcorn in my mouth as I cringed inwardly about the gory death awaiting the pavement-dweller.

However, the director cant match this suspense buildup with the final expose of the Stoneman – and the identity of the killer is rather underwhelming. That spoils what is otherwise a perfect suspense movie. But even with the stinky ending, The Stoneman Murders is entertaining as hell, especially at just 1 hour 40 min runtime and hence deserves a watch

I regularly review movies at http://bombaycinephile.blogspot.com

I'm impressed by the story, the fiction & the theme. But I am equally disappointed with the editing, cinematography & direction.

Starting off with a grueling suspense, it stays till the end. But if you're clever enough, predicting the final revelation wouldn't be hard. Kay Kay Menon is superb as always, while Arbaaz Khan is wasted. Supporting cast is well supportive & as a whole give out good portrayals.

The whole setup, on the other hand is shaky & immature. The makers had had to thoroughly look into it while taking a topic from the past. Huge amounts of anachronisms, makes me wanna rate it a humble 6.9 out of 10 because at the end, it does deliver what is proposes.

BOTTOM LINE: A must watch for info-maniacs because it deals with one of the many unsolved mysteries. Recommended!

Violence/Gore: Critical | Smoking/Drugs: Strong | Alcohol: Mild | Nudity: Strong | Sex/Mouth-Kiss: No | Porn: No

Excellent Movie. Everybody acted very well in the movie. Songs and BGM in the movie were not so good. The movie was so interesting and thrilling. Not even a single scene was boring. The movie was not so lengthy and lagging which was a main highlight of the movie. There were no unwanted scenes and the movie concentrated more on thrilling and investigating scenes that made the movie more interesting and thrilling. The movie was not boring at all. The lead actors rocked the movie by their performance. One of the best thriller movies. Excellent Movie.

This is what a badass Indian serial killer thriller should look like! I had the good fortune of studying Parikh's textbook of forensic medicine( the Indian forensics bible), and watching this movie felt like I was revisiting many of those morbidly gruesome and interesting cases. It is fast paced, no nonsense, dark and clinical in its dealing of the real-life Stoneman cases of Mumbai and Calcutta during the 80s. The director and producer did a fabulous job of meticulously sticking to the bare basics and facts of the story, as well as conjuring up the hauntingly creepy atmosphere of those 80s nights when fear and panic gripped the Indian population of Sion owing to the serial killings. Kay Kay Menon did an outstanding portrayal of a no nonsense, focused cop on the track of the notorious serial killer stalking the poor and the homeless of the Mumbai streets. Never for a moment was I bored with the movie. It was edge of your seat stuff, and I particularly enjoyed the tribal India folklore and motivations behind the killer's psychology and deeds. Really an innovative and captivating angle and take on the story! I highly recommend this little gem to all and sundry.

The film fictionalizes a series of killings in India that remain unsolved to this day.

The film successfully blends two cinematic styles: thriller and horror.

Narratively, it offers surprises aplenty but the ending is a little overblown.

This film is just short of the mark. Primarily, it asks us to sympathizes with a lead character, a heavy handed policeman, who kills a man during an interrogation. He is suspended from the police and the only way back in is for him to privately solve a series of killings in Mumbai. We have a murderer on the trail of a serial murderer...

The Stoneman Murders is an engaging thriller based on the real-life incident of serial killings by a ruthless killer dubbed as the "Stoneman". It takes place in the city of Mumbai, where serial killings are taking place at a rapid pace. Taking its premise from those incidents and referring to media coverage of the case, writer-director Manish Gupta constructs a screenplay that is derived from hard facts where available, and imagination to fill in the gaps.

"The Stoneman Murders" reveals the horrifying secret, like a proper murder mystery should, right at the end. The narrative is linear and non-fussy, the story-telling direct, peppered with some truly chilling moments. The gathering of forensic evidence, the photographs of the corpses, and the sifting that follows is classic detective territory, and the director does a good job of keeping it simple, but keeping it going. Kay Kay Menon takes the film to the heights with his remarkable performance. Arbaaz Khan is good to watch. Vikram Gokhale and Rukhsar are okay. Rest of the cast is average.

On the whole, ʽThe Stoneman Murdersʼ is the finest thriller churned out on Bollywood scene ever. Itʼs an appealing film to watch.

A DECENT ENOUGH CRIME THRILLER THATS PLOT WISE OKAY BUT REALLY WHAT MAKES IT ENGAGING IS KAY KAY MENON'S PERFORMANCE.

IT WAS SOMEWHAT PREDICTABLE TOO.

WHAT IRKED ME MOST WERE SOME OF THE DIALOGUES THAT FELT WEAK.... THE SCREENPLAY COULD'VE BEEN BETTER

ALL IN ALL A ONE TIME WATCHABLR DECENT MYSTERY CRIME DRAMA.

One of the best crime thriller to come outta bollywood. Very atmospheric creepy thriller. Without the star power n without the big budget the movie succeeded in captivating the audiences. Terrific direction by Manish Gupta. Terrific acting by KK Menon n the rest of the cast. Editing by Sanjib Datta is top notch. Srikanth Naroj director of photography did an awesome job with the cinematography. The movie perfectly absorbed the feel of the 80's era, area and the eerie late- night ambiance. The movie succeeded in making the pavements look like black tar unlike the multi- colored jigsaw shaped tiles of today. Details were paid attention to as no modern vehicles were seen on the roads. Despite being a murder mystery, Gupta avoids gore and bloodshed, and makes it visually appealing. There is one amazing erotic scene for front benchers. Awesome ending. Very rare to see this kinda ending in a Bollywood flick. The night scenes were shot very well. It had the atmosphere of chilling dread. Before this flick, ittefaq was my fav Bollywood thriller. Inspite having seen Signpost to murder.

Stoneman is  at its best when it  showcases Gupta's Directorial Skills. He utilizes the night scenes and narrow bylanes wonderfully, crafting shots that are disarmingly beautiful but also serve to establish the chilling emptiness of the area, where screams can travel for miles without being heard.

I saw this movie in theater with my dad when it released. Felt the need to write the review, as just saw a lil bit today on some channel.

Fans of zodiac, memories of murder, bereavement n malevolent shud definitely check this out. Also check The abandoned (2006) directed by Nacho Cerdà. Awesome atmospheric horror film with beautiful n creepy cinematography.

The goods- Story, cinematography, pace, length, Climax, ending scene, Key Key Menon's performance .

The bads- Songs, Background score, could have been made a bit darker, and Arbaz khan and Menon's wife's perfomance (unbearably bad) .

. I had read somewhere about the stoneman Killings, and came to know about this movie today in 2021. I loved the way the writers created a fiction from a real story. They could have removed the songs, chose some better actors and made the movie a bit more dark.. Then I would have gave it 9 star...

The best scene was that he got landline in his safehouse. what about Id proff he provided for connection 🤣🤣🤣🤣.

The Stoneman Murders is a neo-noir crime thriller film directed by Manish Gupta. The film stars Kay Kay Menon, Arbaaz Khan, Late Vikram Gokhale, Rukhsaar Rehman and Virendra Saxena.

Mumbai of 1980s is terrorised by a serial killer who ruthlessly kills pavement dwellers in their sleep. A suspended police officer then decides to step in and conduct an investigation on his own.

When you are directing a murder mystery you should be careful that the viewers shouldn't get any hint to guess the killer and the director successfully achieves in this (although the director gives some very subtle hints about the killer and reason of the murders), the motive of the murder should get cleared only in the end and the director gets success in this also and the murder mystery should make the viewers hooked and the director also gets success in this but some loogical loopholes and some missing dots makes the film little disappointing.

The plot of the film is taken from the murder spree of 1980s in Mumbai (Then Bombay) which was never resolved but in the film the director with the help of cinematic liberty gave the motive behind the murders and also the name of the killer.

The execution of the film is good and most of the time the film will keep you hooked. The acting in the film was good to average with Kay Kay Menon, Vikram Gokhle and Virender Saxena was impressive. Arbaaz Khan was average and Rukhsaar Rehman was disappointing.

Screenplay of the film was gripping and will keep you hooked to know who is the murderer and what is the motive behind the murders. Climax of the film was little disappointing and could've been more crisped.

Overall a good thriller film and should watch once.

Feeling sad for watching this movie 9 years after it's release. Was not aware about this movie at all. Thanks to Amazon Prime, saw it in recommendation in Thriller movie's list. I ended up watching it. First of all, Hats off to the director & actors for making such a fine thriller movie in Bollywood. Till last moment It was very mysterious that who is the murderer & got goosebumps at many moments during the movie. Overall 10 ratings from my side. A must watch movie.

The Stoneman Murders (2009) : Brief Review -

Indeed an efficient thriller, with endurance of low grade stereotype film-making. The Stoneman Murders is based on true events hence makes an intellectual thought at the end but was it really enough to become what it has became? It draws a great thrilling resolution with twists that might shock you unless you're from smart movie buffs school and could predict the murderer by noticing everything from the beginning. Well, for me it was quite predictable and i hope many of the movie buffs will find the murderer before he show up himself. There is no doubt about the writing of the film but Screenplay does some huge bloomers. You can easily point out many scenes were left incomplete, couple of scenes begun with the motive but eneded without even mentioning the motive and most importantly that low grade finale should have been much smarter and clever. The same happens with the execution as many scenes end without clarity and clinical theory. That's where the screenplay writer and Director come at fault for aggravating and defiling a potential strong content of the writer. Acting wise all actors act as if they were not even serious about working in this film or may be like i said Director defiled this thing too. Kay Kay Menon is decent (that's underwhelming for sure), Arbaaz Khan, Vikram Gokhale and Viredra Saxena were better. Everything again comes to the Director for baking the content at half fire and in rotten vessel. He could have made an unforgettable thriller but i don't think he even knew it or cared about it. The low grade treatment and low scale production value immolated a Good Writing which could have achieved a feat. Overall, The Stoneman Murders is damn too ordinary thriller made for ordinary audience so high quality lovers should stay away.

RATING - 6/10*

By - #samthebestest

A good murder, mystery and thriller has finally been released - one that keeps you glued to the screen and your seat. A serial killer walks on the streets of Mumbai, killing those who sleep on the pavement, is just what one needs to keep you seated in your seat and make you wonder what is going to happen next.

Starring Kay Kay Menon, Arbaaz Khan, Rukhsar, Vikram Gokhale, Veerendra Saxena, this is directed by Manish Gupta.

Kay Kay Menon, again has proved his talent and it's his character that really keeps one thinking and interested and Rukshar, as his wife, who starts to think that he is having an affair, is also good. It's also good to see Arbaaz Khan, who has done a good job as a supporting actor. But really it's Kay Kay, who really steals the movie. The director has done a superb job here by managing to keep the audience glued and thinking.

This does have a lot blood and there are moments that can be considered to be scary and therefore, be warned it is not a good idea to watch it with children. On the whole, this is a movie that is worth watching.

This movie is based on the real event which occurred in mumbai in 80s and later in kolkata and the makers of this movie has blended the facts of that event perfectly with fiction to come out with an entertaining story.

The story revolves around Mumbai where few police men are trying to solve the stoneman murders. Kay Kay Manon has played his role well as a policeman. Even Rest of the cast shares a small screen time but their work is good except Arbaz Khan who somehow fails whenever he appears on screen in this movie.

If I were to name Bollywood thrillers that I have come across, I would probably be able to come up with a few names after spending a couple of hours racking my almost zombie brain. But this movie definitely takes first place. This movie is actually so good that it prompted me to post my first ever comment on IMDb. My only regret is having failed to catch this amazing movie in a theater.

All those looking for a good suspense thriller from Bollywood, look no further. This movie is a real gem. No happy endings, surreal family get-togethers, stupid songs, villains who just won't die, crappy romances or any of that jazz that would normally be associated with a movie from this side of the world.

I highly recommend this movie to everyone!!!

Rukhsar's backless scene in The Stoneman Murders is without a doubt one of the greatest contributions to enlightenment and culture of our time. I firmly believe that Rukhsar should have gotten an Oscar for this scene. There aren't too many actresses that would allow her beautiful bare back to be filmed so close-up. I have never seen a better scene in my entire life, and believe me I have seen a lot!!! You just can't put it in words. Just the best of the best. Flawless, perfect! This has got to be one of the top ten scenes ever made (in my opinion). There are very few scenes that can keep me watching over and over again. I just love this scene. INCREDIBLE is the best word I can use for this scene. Everything in it is perfect. Rukhsar performs brilliantly, the direction deserved an Oscar and the editing is superb. Basically it's a scene you have to see, over and over again...for research purposes of course. This scene has everything you could want: compelling acting, brilliant direction, stunning cinematography, and some excellent shots of Rukhsar's beautiful bare back. Rukhsar's backless scene in The Stoneman Murders is one of the most important scenes ever produced!

Its always thrill to watch movies which are based on true events. It due to the events which plausible to us and which are even rationally possible. Frankly, I didn't know about this one until yesterday (october 2019) and it was directed in 2009 which is still great for that time.

Flaws 1. Character representation is nil. Work should have been done on the representation of characters which would have connected audience to the them. 2. Execution of the good script was not upto the mark. It was tedious and would lag sometimes.

Strength 1. As I said earlier this movie as it was based on true events its story was compelling to watch. 2. Cast was well picked and it suited thes story.

Overall it should had done better if little care have been taken in screenplay department and character development.

Thanks&BeHappy

For me movies are all about art, acting & the quality of story. In earlier times there were plays, adaptions of epics on stage, adaptions of succcessful novels also which were all so artistic to watch live. With time & slowly stage plays giving way to movie halls then multiplexes & now even our drawing rooms. The essence of the stage where acting, art & story are still intact. Everybody be it the rich or poor, young or the old wants to spend time watching something good for his / her time. The very fact somebody wants to spend time & money on something it has to be worthy of the art. This is where Stoneman murders scores high, the movie has all the ingredients of a good urban mystrey thriller, it is not slow paced, it moves quickly & mostly shot in the dark streets of Bombay. The movie really transports you to the 1980s, I was in Bombay at that time so I could really feel the real portrayal of the city. Acting of all actors were good, none outclassing the other. Manish Gupta the director has few good movies to his credit, I watched this & Rahasya in both the movies I could see he has a very good editing ability. In many thrillers I have noticed the editing or story gives way & the movie looks a bit flat on the plot. Some of the things look unrealistic but in this everything looks real. It is time we value actors not stars like in stage shows where people used to value the actors. Stars are celebrities they hardly know how to portray realistically on screen.

Stoneman murders is a must watch movie, hope I find few more thrillers like this to watch on free time.

Everything about the movie is good except for the songs that are absolutely unnecessary. KK Menon as usual has done a brilliant job. Arbaaz doesn't have a very significant role so he's kind of bearable.

Very well made film. If you're a fan of murder mysteries then I strongly recommend this one. Fantastic performance by Kay Kay Menon! Based on a true story.