Review: ‘Help’ is just another lackadaisical horror story

Spicezee Bureau

The makers of ‘Help’ chose the right date – Friday the 13th for this horror-thriller flick but deviated from their main purpose for the film hardly scares. Directed by debutant Rajeev Manoj Virani, the film is loosely made and even badly marketed. It is surprising that in this age of extensive publicity, the promos and posters of this Bobby Deol-Mugdha Godse starrer has hardly been seen anywhere. The look of the film is at times Hollywood-inspired, otherwise it is just another of the many lackadaisical horror stories. The film establishes in the beginning that all’s not well in the married life of Vic (Bobby Deol) and Pia (Mugdha Godse), who suspects her husband. But the marital discord angle disappears as the film turns ghastly. After a mild heart attack of father-in-law, Vic and wife Pia go to Mauritius. Things appear lovely when Pia reveals her pregnancy and then a mushy and romantic number comes in. But the sinister is just waiting to happen. Pia claims to have seen her long dead twin sister around the house. Vic ignores her initially but after a series of deaths in the family, he starts believing her and tries to get under the skin of the matter. Several layers of truth unfold involving Pia, her father and mother as the suspicion shifts from one character to the other. At the end, like clichéd Indian movies, the hero saves the heroine’s life and peace gets restored. The first half of the film is confusing but the film picks pace in the second half. The cinematography is good and some of the sequences are definitely engrossing. But the film lacks the spine-chilling quality. Bobby Deol looks old and his performance is just average. And honestly, Mugdha looks scarier than the ghost without make-up at some places. Her bikini scene is also not very outstanding. The background score gets too loud at times and songs are redundant. Watch it at your own risk! Rating: Two silent cheers