Help Review

Help Lacks Zing; Set To Bow Down in Days To Unfurl!

Strictly speaking, what western Hollywood flicks follow, the Indian films pertaining to the same genre also seems to follow the same trusted path?

Aatma/bhoot usually haunts you and takes revenge for the wrong done to him/her.

They spit venom, breathes fire, possess the victim' s body, and scare the hell out of the victims and starts eliminating them one by one.

But enter the brave protagonist and the same attributes of these spirits seems like dilly- dallying him or in other words, loose its terror punch.

The spirits get eliminated by the hero and just like any other horror fanfare; all is well that ends well.

Most of the horror movies follow the same path and even this week' s release Help is no different.

Let' s scrutinize!

Help also follows the same path of story telling except for some interesting twist but again it would have its share of followers and disapprovers.

It' s a pity to note that the screenplay which is built on an engrossing concept gets repetitive and damn slow at places.

Though the basic rules for any kind of horror movies are that it shall scare you at the right places but, except for some jhatkas, the film lacks the fizz factor of fear.

In simple words, the chills are missing and help might not get help as far as viewing percentage of viewers goes.

Let' s provide you a sneak peek of the basic story line as quoted by Taran Adarsh, one of the major film critics of our generations.

"Vic [Bobby Deol] and Pia [Mugdha Godse] are going through a difficult time in their marriage and in the midst of these troubled times they have to rush to Mauritius to take care of Pia' s ailing father. On landing in Mauritius and going back to Pia' s old family home, Pia is confronted by her distant past."

"Little do they know that there' s something in this house. When Pia finds out that she is pregnant, this vicious spirit possesses Pia and starts killing people close to her. Now Vic must race against time to save his pregnant wife, who seems to be possessed by the spirit of her twin sister Dia, who died when they were both 5 years old."

"With the help of a parapsychologist, Aditya [Shreyas Talpade], Vic discovers the dark and terrifying truth behind Pia' s family history and breaks the curse that has been put on them."

Though the first sequences raises the bar tempting to you to get Goosebumps in the coming reels, the hype surrounding the same gets fizzed out quick, leaving you dissatisfied.

Off late, the content has become the king at the box-office and that' s what is missing in this new horror film. It' s the lack of a powerful script that keeps you unglued to the screen, giving you some fits in parts. Plane Boring!

Despite of all its loopholes kept aside, director Rajeev Virani has handled the subject with ease with some sequences really turning out well. His execution of the whole subject is totally stylish.

The writing part is not good with only some portions sounding as okay and others evoke with a mixed bag feeling of ' been-there-done-that' kind of emotions.

Songs in horror movies contributes a lot but in this case, its strictly okay thing.

However, the cinematography (Dhimant Vyas) is top-notch.

Talking of the performances from the leads of Help, Bobby Deol pitches in a sincere effort. Mugdha Godse seems to be improving with every film she does.

Shreyas Talpade does judgment with his convincing portrayal of the psychiatrist.

Final Word? Help is just another run of the mills horror movie which has nothing new to offer.

Though the makers have chosen Friday the 13th as a marketing strategy position their product in sync with their choice of offering, but the lack of meat in the story derails the same and how!

From the box office point of view, the flick has got a strong rival in Peepli Live which is believed to have got rave reviews. Also the Ramzaan month is not considered as a good time for movies to release.

Thus, unless movies have got riveting content, they are only to get empty plexes, mostly.

Rating: **1/2 (Average)

Verdict: Help will see itself running for covers.

Movie Review by: Md. Waliur Rahman.

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