I remembered this line I had read somewhere as I watched Logout: phones are getting smarter, while the people are getting dumber. The hotwords today are ‘social media’ ‘influencer’- but as Babil’s character says at one point ‘content banate banate main khud content ban gaya (While creating content, I became content myself)’- and there couldn’t be a better way to sum up the medium. (Also read: Makers of Logout reveal how they got ‘mild-mannered’ Babil Khan to rage, scream on camera: 'Lage thode se takes isme')
Logout movie review: Babil Khan stars in this tech thriller.
Logout, directed by Aamir Golani, revolves around Pratyush Dua (Babil), who is waiting for his follower count to hit 10 million so that he bags a lucrative brand deal. One night, as he is out partying, his phone gets stolen. He receives a call from a fan who initially seems helpful. But as the story progresses, it becomes darker, intense- and you have to watch the film for the rest.
Clocking in a runtime of less than two hours, Logout had the potential to be even crisper. The inclusion of an internet meme as Pratyush’s ringtone feels jarring and unnecessary, as the film’s point is already clear without the forced humor of the ‘Paani pila dijiye’ viral meme. However, the film quickly finds its footing, and the filmmakers’ intentions become evident.
Babil, meanwhile, understands his role as a social media influencer pretty well and is able to emote the frustrations at the smallest of things: the urge to stay away from dance trends, unlike his competitors, even as his team lures him via the ‘10 million followers’ dream. Individuality is hard to maintain in a world where people want to emulate what worked for others. Logout is even a commentary on the lengths people go for social media clout and likes- from adopting a pet, to endorsing what they otherwise hate in real life. (But then, the latter’s been the case with movie stars, too)
Logout, written by Biswapati Sarkar, works as a suspense drama, but loses itself as it starts running around in circles. You cannot stretch a rubber band beyond a point, or it snaps. Pratyush being held hostage just because someone gets access to his phone- damn interesting for the first hour. But the rest of it seems repetitive.
Logout isn’t a film from which one expects top-notch VFX, but when it isn’t good, it is glaring. The VFX mouse resembles little more than a remote-controlled toy mouse.
What Logout gets on point is the sheer helplessness we feel when something happens to our smartphones- that mini heart attack we all get when we can’t feel our smartphones in our pockets is too relatable a feeling. The film's finale is bound to strike a chord with most people. Overall, Logout is a good weekend watch, with a relatable story and protagonist.
Rishabh Suri is an Assistant Editor, film critic, and professional overthinker of plot points. He writes for HT City, keeping pace with an industry where news cycles expire long before the popcorn gets cold.
He completed his graduation in English Honours from Kirori Mal College, followed by a Master’s degree in English Literature-effectively training his brain to over-analyse classic texts before applying those exact same skills to 3-hour Bollywood blockbusters. He got into the profession when he had barely graduated from college and has been at HT ever since.
At HT, Rishabh reviews films with a simple rule: skip the dense academic jargon and get straight to the point. Beyond reviews, as Assistant Editor, he helps navigate the broader circus of showbiz, tracking everything from OTT shifts to sudden box office panics.
In a beat driven by loud PR machinery and carefully scripted answers, Rishabh prefers cutting through the noise to focus on how stories get made and why trends shift.
When he isn’t writing against a deadline, he is usually sitting in a dark theater, compulsively memorising dialogues. For Rishabh, analysing movies isn't just a day job- it’s a habit he couldn't turn off even if he tried.Read More
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