Bhatt Brothers hottest film, which does exactly what you
expect: plays out familiar erotic-horror-thriller ingredients on new, or
almost-new faces. And that’s the secret to keep us watching, at least some of
the way, because we want to know: will this be a new face that will grow, or
no?
There is no overdose of creaking doors, ghost in the mirror,
girl with a lantern, screams of a bhatakti aatma, spooky sound of a laughing
child - you know, the works! From that viewpoint, the buildup is sensibly okay.
In fact the first appearance of a ghost is totally unanticipated and in that
aspect, first time director Karan Darra gets a good tick against the box.
But, the movie is slow, and there is too much of 'khamoshi'
right through the course of this two hour film. With just three and a half
characters in there (if you are wondering about the half then well, it is that
of an achchi aatma who basically fills in for a mumbo-jumbo tantrik that makes
for a prototypical appearance in a Vikram Bhatt film). Anyhow, the focus is not
on this half character but the three principal characters where again, two of
them fill in the frames for most part of it.
Ali Fazal and Sapna Pabbi are the only faces who are truly
seen in the movie and it is due to this very reason that despite the shoot in
South Africa (standing in for Kashmir) and quite a few outdoor shots as well,
there is a peculiar kind of claustrophobia that occupies the frames. That when
a tuneful song appears after every 20-25 minutes. That when a sensual scene
pops up after every 20-25 minutes.
Now even Murder 3 had a similar set where the movie was
focused on just three characters. But, it was a thriller where one kept guessing
what would come next and there were some genuine chills in place. Also, the narrative
was unquestionably unique. In case of Khamoshiyan, the story continues to
oscillate due to which the interest level varies as well.
For starters, it is tough to understand the motivation
behind actors to behave the way they do. Any regular guy would pack his bags
and move for the exit on his first encounter with the ghost. But Ali Fazal -
and he doesn't even for any 'herogiri' - continues to hang on even after a
chilly mid-night encounter. Then later it is pretty obvious that all is not
well with the storytelling by Sapna Pabbi, what with mystery all around, and
yet he hangs on. Even the girl in question makes some really dubious moves, as
she narrates in her back story which just doesn't convince - well at least the
starting point when she got trapped.
As for Gurmeet Choudhary, who makes a 'dead appearance' in
his very first shot, has a restricted play in the movie and while his motives
have a direction, they seem reasonably underexposed. What really makes him
think the way he does? Well, these are some examples that perhaps continued on
in the script but never came on screen. What does he do with the trapped souls?
Well, that remains a question too.
Still, and as said previously, the build up to the interval
point is O.K. and there are some good moments intermingled in the second half.
As a matter of fact the pre-climax does play on well once Ali Fazal is all by
himself to free the trapped souls. But, if only the climax would have played
much more strongly, the impact would have been far better.
Overall, it is worthy to watch once for a music and little
horror pleasure.
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