Phoonk

RGV and producer Azam Khan had promised a reward of 5 lacs to anyone who sees the movie alone in the theater. I wonder how can someone live in such a big misconception. Did they not watch the movie themselves?

It is a below average movie where you feel like laughing in the first half at the strange camera angles and sounds and ear-piercing laughter Ramu used in a failed attempt to induce horror. And I had thought this is not from the factory, therefore RGV would have directed it well.

The clichéd demonic possession, exorcism, and black magic remind you of Bhoot and Exorcist. The only good part was the kid Ahsaas Chhanna's acting.

I saw this movie and it seems completely absurd. Some concept taken from Hollywood movie exorcist, while main concept being a girl is under spell of black magic. And finally at the end of movie, Indian black magic women becomes some mutant from Hollywood movie X-men, throwing peoples in air by powers of her hand. This whole concept appears to be ridiculously crazy. To any horror movie fans, an advice, just completely avoid this movie.

Even in this modern age, renowned directors like this one makes movies that what we all consider superstitious and that only old and illiterate peoples in India believe. To make it worse, this movie gives justification in stupid way as to why we should believe in "Kaala Jadu" Black Magic. Although, I believe Black magic in scientific way, but this doesn't means all the rubbish beliefs among illiterates have some basis. In one shot the main actor is talking to a guy who cures peoples suffering from possession, He tell him "I don't believe in God" to which that guy gives a weird explanation as to why we should believe in black magic. He starts by telling him if he takes some medicine for headache,why does he believe in that headache pill.For this question our main actor has no answer. I was in complete disbelief while watching this as to how low this movie can go down further.

After seeing the trailers, I was expecting much more than what I actually saw. The story line was pretty predictable and that is something you would never expect from a decent horror movie. The actors were good considering most of them were newcomers, but they would have done better with a good story line. Overall an average movie. I would rate Darna Mana Hai and Bhoot higher than Phoonk. It's sad to see that we don't see any decent horror movies in Bollywood and they tend to mess up the ones which they try to remake from a decent Hollywood movie. Though horror movies do appeal to Indian audiences, I feel they get disappointed every time they watch a Bollywood horror movie

Its a proved fact now that there is only one person in Indian Cinema who can give you much better "Horror movies" than the "Ramsay" kind of cinema made some decades back. Gone are the days when "Horror" meant just Ugly Faces & some Skin show incorporated deliberately. At present viewers are more interested in seeing genuine Horror movies based on original themes. Here RGV comes back with a topic he is best at other than his underworld plot.

More than 15 years ago, when I saw "Raat", I felt relieved that at least one person is there in Bollywood who knows his work and also understands the "Horror" genre. But then RGV took long time to make his second in the series, "Bhoot". And now he is back with same kind of sparks in "Phoonk". Though "Phoonk" is quite repetitive in treatment but it works due to its novel subject of "Black Magic" and brilliant performances from a new lead pair.

The movie has its moments to enjoy, but you may also feel less supplied to you in respect to info about the subject. The explanatory factor is missing in the script and it only stresses at showing the results of the Magic Spell on the victim. The climax where in a "Learned Person" comes to rescue the family is same as you have seen earlier in "Raat" & "Bhoot".

In "Raat" there was Om Puri, Rekha played the role in "Bhoot" and there is "Zakhir Hussain" in "Phoonk" giving the top most performance of his career. He plays the role of a crippled Tantrik and he has acted superbly. Not once the viewer can think that he is acting as he looks so real in his get up and act. Thats the reason he is seen in almost all RGV films and its time others in the industry also use this talented artist more often.

The lead pair, Sudeep & Amruta Khanvilkar both impress with their top rate performances. Sudeep is surely a great discovery. He has some resemblance to Javed Jaffery but has acted like an experienced performer. Baby Ahsaas Channa makes an impact as the main sufferer. Ashwini Kalsekar as the culprit manages to give you shocks but also crosses the border in certain scenes. The actress playing Sudeep's mother gives the required mystic touch to the movie. The project is a collective & commendable effort by the whole team.

One observation, I would sadly like to mention here. I think Indian Audiences come to see "Horror Movies" in the theater not to enjoy the theme and subject, but only to scream and shout intentionally. Moreover during the whole movie you can hear laughters and giggles in the cinema. May be this is another way of enjoying a "Horror Flick", but certainly not as it should be. I hope the subject of Horror needs a silent and intense watch and I fear "Horror" is not taken as another form of "Comedy" by our dear viewers.

Though you may feel similarities with RGVs earlier flicks at times but still the movie is worth a watch if you love this genre of cinema.

The movie is reasonably good in Indian standards, with a few of blushes, which Shri RGV, as he is known and portrayed, was expected to be eradicated.

For an atheist hero, not to believe in supernatural forces even when his daughter defied gravity is beyond pardon, a blush on sensibility.

The fate of the ghost buster Zakir Hussain at the end of the movie is equally left unanswered and thus obnoxious.

The central characters blended well with the movie but the maid was expected to react better and so was the driver who was famous before as young Amitabh Bachchan, the Indian icon, in Agnipath shouting "maine jaala diya" (i burned it all), as did Seema Biswas in RGV's Bhooth. The Witch and the Witchdoctor were the best of the lot and they played the role of their lifetime. The spookiness was mostly in aggravated background score, which hummed more than it really scared.

Considering its a RGV production, I rated it 6, as he was expected to fare better.

I went for a Sarkar and came back with something in between Aag and Darna Maana Hai.

Sorry RGV, you ought to be more careful next time in hiring right people for editing notes, before heading for it.