Despite 100 years of Indian cinema horror is sadly one of the most overlooked genres in Bollywood with most films on offer consisting of whatever forgetful or ridiculous plot line the Bhatts (during the 70s and 80s it used to be the Ramsays who were associated with the genre) have cooked up that week. Prawaal Raman's Dobaara: See Your Evil, an official remake of Mike Flanagan's acclaimed Oculus, is not any better than those. Incidentally, the film is part of a three-picture deal between Relativity Media, B&U Television Network, and Balaji Telefilms, which also includes remakes of the films The Best Of Me and 3 Days To Kill along with Oculus.
Dobaara: See Your Evil is set in England and as the story goes Natasha Alex Merchant(Huma Qureshi) and Kabir Alex Merchant(Saqib Saleem ) are siblings who live a separated life due to a tragedy that has happened in the past. She recalls her childhood with her family with her father Alex Merchant (Adil Hussain) and her mother Lisa (Lisa Ray) and their pet Rambo. Things are hunky-dory till the father brings home a mirror which is said to be haunted. One fine day in a rage of fear, Adil shoots Lisa and in turn Saqib shoots Adil. Natasha strongly believes that it is the mirror which was responsible for all happenings. The brother-sister duo reunite after a decade to destroy the haunted mirror but the mirror is well prepared in advance and knows how to protect itself.
The film is ineptly executed and the purpose of making the film remains unfathomable. The film is set in England, and has not a single Indian reference point that connects it with our experiences. No social or cultural adaptation has been attempted.
Dobaara: See Your Evil does have an interesting first half however it is not at all scary as projected in the trailer. The performances by the lead actors make the film interesting however the film lacks engaging narration in some aspects. Some of the interesting episodes have been badly presented. One couldn't initially make out if Alex Merchant was possessed or schizophrenic. The post interval episodes convince you that the film is a psychological thriller.
The second half of the film too has been loosely executed and will leave the audience confused. Many of the interesting episodes have been clearly ignored and the major plot has been sidelined. The performances by the lead actors drive the film completely. The pre-climax events make the film interesting and the climax is completely predictable.
Writer-director Prawaal Raman fails to make Dobaara: See Your Evil into an interesting horror film as the film lacks scary content. In fact, Dobaara: See Your Evil can be called a thriller instead of a horror film. The story of the film is interesting and well written but Raman's screenplay looks loose while his dialogues are okay. Cinematography by Anuj Dhawan is a major asset of the film. Editing by Hakeem Azeez and Nipun Gupta is decent. Arko Pravo Mukherjee's music is okay. Baxkground score by Avedis Ohanian and Aditya Trivedi is effective but the decibel levels of the background score needed to checked at several places.
Performance wise Adil Hussain has been exceptional in the film, almost flawless. Lisa Ray has been decent and apt for the role. Saqib Salem is impressive. Huma Qureshi is just about average. Madalina Bellariu is convincing as the spirit of the mirror, Anna. All the other actors do as required.
On the whole, Dobaara: See Your Evil is dull, exhausting and just forgettable.
