Kaalo

Horror genre no longer carry the stigma of a B-grade outing delivering ample skin show under the hoods (yup, read that Ramsays). Thanks to continuous patronage from industry stalwarts like Ramgopal Varma and Vikram Bhatt who elevated the genre to a different level. Over period of time the horror genre has developed a substantial fan-base in India and movies like "Kaalo" precisely caters to this niche audience.

Using darkness is a standard scare tactic in any horror/ slasher movie. The USP of "Kaalo" is the ability to send the shiver down the spine in the broad daylight (the term "scaring the living daylights was never so apt!). This in itself deserves a big kudos!!

The characterisation of "Kaalo" bears resemblance to quite a few. The underground movements are akin to "Screamers". The flight and swoop is inspired from "Jeepers Creepers". In close-up it bears similarity to "Darth Maul" (hey, no complaints!!). Introducing "Kaalo" to the audience seemed rushed. And yes, the weapon used by "Kaalo" is quite unique.

The sepia tone neatly blends into the deserted sandy backgrounds of Rajasthan. Camera work is one of the important tool in horror movie and in the case of "Kaalo" the DOP has done a fine job. Background score is kept at optimum level not loud or jarring. The CGI adequate considering the budgetary constraints. The editing gives a slick feel to the movie though there was scope to calibrate it at few places. And yes, attempting Indiana Jones to recover the cap and the ball of wool when your pants are on fire was silly.

The only major shortcoming I found was the lack of depth in the characters. For instance the protagonist barely has an introduction. The honeymoon couple & the photo shoot couple hardly strikes a chord with the audience. Same with the priest and the rest of the star-cast. Coen Brothers/ Guy Ritchie/ Tarantino have displayed histrionics in this regard and our very own Ramgopal Varma/ Vishal Bharadwaj/ Anurag Kashyap have pushed the envelope.

Performance wise Swini Khara was good. Its good to see the "Cheeni Kum" girl after a long gap. I consider Aditya Shrivatsava to be a powerhouse of talent and found the potential was not tapped. Aditya Lakhia was okay'ish. The Laloo accent conductor linger in the head for a while. Paital as usual was dependable.

Lack of publicity made "Kaalo" get lost in incognito (sad!). Nonetheless a definite watch for a horror enthusiast! Looking forward to your next outing Mr. Wilson Louis.

PS: Its "Bombay to Goa" on the road to hell!!

The purpose of a horror movie is to scare you.and this film, absolutely serves the purpose. I watched it multiple times and as a kid growing up around urban legends, it was the only movie I was scared of watching.still the thrill to is , Awesome!

I was 10 first watching the movie I was a brave boy , as my parents went out to work.the movie was broadcasted on TV. I actually didn't know that it was a horror film. I just saw the main character, I knew as Avijit.

Yes, I agree there were scenes inappropriate for children.but I didn't get it until I was sixteen. Then it was only fear. Boy! I had nightmares!

Now at 21 it's just an nostalgia.but still I hope there will be movies made which actually serves the purpose they say .

Rather then cheap entertainment.

Amazing movie which catch your focus on screen. Indian version of jeepers creepers 2 with different and impressing plotline.

Its an Absolute Idiotic and Mix version of TREMORS (1990) and JEEPERS-CREEPERS-II (2003). its reminds me all the sequences of Old legends TREMORS .. and JEEPERS-CREEPERS-II. I cant believe that this movie is so awfully copied from those 2 graceful numbers.. most poor thing about movie is its story plot.. i mean, that so called desert witch kept on killing each and every person on bus. but its was clearly mentioned in beginning narration in this movie that witches used to sacrifice the young and kid girls for being immortal. but again they are showing that she is keeping on killing everybody.. such a pathetic direction, obviously when anybody try to copy two different kind of movies and want to make one movie out of them.. then how can it be done.. And if we talk about special effects ..then this director should see, what was the grade of special effects in TREMORS back in 1990 and then he should think that he is working or coping them in 2010.. ands still awful. 2nd thing i wanna say about make up of that witch, he should see the make up of that Creeper back in 2003 and what he did in 2010. a very disappointing. i don know how this movie got awards in SOUTH Africa HORROR FEST . 1 out of 10 by me.

Kaalo presents a unique look in the horror genre due to it being one the few horror movies in the 2000s to be shot entirely in the daylight. This can seem like a minor and overglorified thing to critics and audiences alike, but from the perspective of a 2000s kid, this was the stuff of nightmare. The human psyche associates only the night with fear of the unknown. From childhood, the darkness of the night was the only source of paranormal fear in our lives, However this movie broke this boundary fantastically with the haunting occuring in broad daylight. This broke our perception of the paranormal itself, which according to this move, could attack us in the day, and countinously haunt a moving location instead of just remaining in a place such as an abandoned home. Absolutely phenomenal movie, and in my opinion one the best horror ever produced by indian cinema.