13B: Fear Has a New Address

Yes, finally a thriller! There is definitely a scarcity of movies belonging to this genre. Whether it be your Abbas-Mastan flicks or other supernatural suspense such as Raaz, 1920, and Bhoot, I'll be there! 13B is a great edge-of-the-seat thriller that keeps you as engrossed as the ladies in the film are with the TV serials. The film revolves around a mysterious TV show that mirrors and reveals what will happen in the protagonist's family's life that day. Everything is great--lighting, sound, etc. The plot is fascinating and the unraveling of the story behind the TV serial's characters is eye-popping! The violent flashbacks and disturbed characters leaves the viewers horrified! Madhavan, as always, has given a sincere and outstanding performance! You feel terrified with him. Good watch.

With 13B, Indian film-makers take another tiny step towards exploring new ideas on screen. Gone are the days of those silly and childish horror movies served to us a few decades back. Moving ahead in that direction, 13B can be termed as a good attempt by the director Vikram Kumar who tries to give something new and out of the box in the genre of fast paced thrillers with good suspense.

But like the recent Raaz-2, 13B is also a good thriller and not a complete horror movie as publicized in the media campaign by the producers. Yes, it takes the idea of spirits coming through a TV from THE RING, but the similarity ends here only and the movie takes a completely different path as it proceeds further. The story is about a family coming to their new house, with an address of 13B and within days they start experiencing mysterious and strange events. The women of the house, who are addicted to the afternoon TV serials, catch on to a new daily soap called "Sab Khairiyat" which has just started on a channel. Surprisingly, the happenings in the serial are exactly similar to what they are living in their real life. And as the incidents start becoming violent and bloody, there arise serious problems in the family.

The movie starts off as a cold water kept on the fire for boiling. The first half only raises the temperature to a certain limit which results in just a mild hot water. The viewer keeps waiting for something fast to happen but he is served the hot dish only after the intermission. In sharp contrast to its first half, post interval the temperature starts rising with a great speed and as you reach the climax the water is boiling hot as a red hot iron. The well written sequences unfold the secret in an impressive way, handled well by the director towards the end.

Though there are several loopholes in the script regarding the suspense but they don't strike you at once since the second half has many disclosures being made at a very brisk pace. In the first half, the writer takes too much time to come on to the main topic and that deprives the movie to be called as a complete entertainer. The Storyline has a good suspense but the spirits roaming in the house are not scary enough as expected from the promos. The movie should have been edited more severely (by at least 15-20 min) which would have resulted in a far better product for the viewers.

I still wonder about one thing in bollywood, which is regarding its passion for the songs. After so many new & fresh minds now working for the industry, why they all still stick to the idea of adding a few songs in a movie. And that too in a thriller, horror or murder mystery. Ideally these genre of movies should be strictly made as song less ventures to generate the desired impact on the viewer. But I think it will still take a long time for us to get away with this old passion of ours.

On merit basis there are three major assets of the movie. The first one is the Solid Background music and fabulous sound design. In fact in the titles only you get the feeling that some good sound effects are here on the cards. The second merit is the outstanding Camera-work which is visible in each frame and scene. The creative visuals enhance the experience of this thriller to a great extent, especially the scenes with the blind man and his dog, sequences related to the old black & white television and scenes at the mental asylum. The third worth mentioning plus point is the superb act by Madhavan, which he can easily rate as his best work till date in Hindi Cinema. He acts better in the tense scenes involving encounter with the spirits.

Among the other actors, Neetu Chandra is fine and she looks exactly like a lady next door with the right home wears. Deepak Dobriyal excels in his performance and impresses. Poonam Dhillon is wasted and so is Sachin Khedekar who doesn't suit the role he is given.

In short, 13B can be rated as good attempt by its team but it could have been much better with a lot of editing and without the unnecessary songs. Fans of thriller cum horror movies should feel about 65-75% satisfaction after watching 13B.

Unfortunately watched it in 2020. So definitely couldn't relate to it as someone watched it much earlier would be able to. A good thriller. First half is slow. Movie picks up from the second half. I'd say don't switch over from the first half actually the movie starts in the second half. R Madhavan acting skills are great. He looks not only convincing but keeps you glued to the movie. Watch it if you have a taste for horror movies.

One chilling fact of nature that has stayed with me for years was the notion we will take for granted the importance of oxygen until there is a lack of it. We never really pay heed to something that is in our lives everyday, and therefore is relatively ignored. As such, our dependency on technology has grown to such extent that, without it, mankind would quickly crumble as a civilization.

A breed of horror has arisen prominently in the new millennium that exploits this very idea, and in rather creative ways: What if basic living was suddenly turned against us? When there is no place like home, do you really own it? Or does it own you? When I watched this film through I couldn't help but realize I witnessed a subtler adaptation of Mikael Håfström's "1408". But this was certainly not a bad thing. Oh no, not at all. 13B expands past 1408's borders quite brilliantly. With it, blending in the elements of The Ring, Final Destination, and Poltergeist (with a sprinkling of quirky humor) to a delectable mix of "that inanimate object has the ability to kill you in 150 ways" paranormal paranoia. The majority of the dialog is Hindi but coherency isn't an issue for 13B, as the tone-sensitive visuals tell the tale just as effectively. The acting and score also carries the plot well.

I had a few minor qualms with 13B. The dialog at times seemed unnatural, almost forced. Camera movement was also a problem. Some scenes had the camera volatile to enhance suspense but for me it did the opposite.

13B is a fine example of intellectual horror. It does not force feed the suspense, but allows the viewer to build their own overtime as the protagonist becomes aware of the unnatural forces manipulating his and his family's mentality to the breaking point.

Horror genre over recent years has undergone a massive transformation. No longer it is a straight forward plot meant to scare the living daylights. These days one gets to witness the horror neatly blended with suspense to generate that extra twist and keep the audience in nail- biting mode. Hey, the genre manages to stay alive innit?

Clearly the director has taken inspiration from Poltergiest (ghost- directed by Steven Spielberg) and blends in Japanese horror flick formula's into it. Indeed the effort and the execution deserves a standing ovation and it wouldn't be exaggeration to state that 13B would put RGV to shame. Seriously, Phoonk seems to be child's play in comparison.

The mid-80's era is portrayed brilliantly. The settings are perfect and do take note of the Doordarshan's B&W intro. Nostalgia indeed!

Ж Madhavan:: "BOLLYWOOD!" - this guy is screaming on the top of voice and can somebody at least take notice this time around? He is a consistent and a brilliant performer. 13B has two lead actors - Madhavan and the telly, rest everyone goes out of focus.

Ж Deepak Dobriayl: Now this guy is to watch out for. Every time I see him he doesn't cease to surprise me. Be it Omkara, Shaurya, Dilli-6 or 13B - he manages to successfully pull-off a range of roles/ characters with nothing short of perfection.

Ж Neetu Chandra & Sachin Khedekar:: Neatly compliments to the plot.

Ж Poonam Dhillon:: She needed a better comeback vehicle. Her counterpart in the plot, Suhasini Mulay seemed elegant in comparison.

Ж Dritiman Chatterjee:: Why was he there? Beats me!

Ж Others do their parts as per the demands of the storyline.

What deserves a special mention, even though the telly leads the storyline by a few minutes, it still manages to create an edge-of-seat excitement. And yes, the shock value is immense. A few holes in the plot can be safely ignored.

Verdict:: Go for it!