RATING: 2
MOVIE: Dobaara-See Your Evil
CAST: Huma Qureshi, Saqib Saleem, Adil Hussain, Lisa Ray and Madalina Bellariu among others
DIRECTOR: Prawaal Raman
GENRE: Bollywood horror
Till date, Bollywood could hardly impress with a horror movie that would actually make the audience scream out or for that matter, feel really scared. The industry's latest attempt at the genre is Dobaara: See Your Evil (Dobara: See Your Evil), but unfortunately, that too is not good enough to have a lasting impact.
STORYLINE
An official adaptation of 2013 Hollywood movie Oculus, the story of Dobaara: See Your Evil revolves around a possessed mirror that is responsible for many brutal and strange deaths. Parents of Natasha (Huma Qureshi) and Kabir (Saqib Saleem) are also victims of the same evil mirror.
While the movie starts showing the characters of Huma and Saqib as adults, the theme of Dobaara rests on an old tragic episode that keeps getting unfolding as the film proceeds. Natasha believes that the mirror is possessed by an evil spirit, which killed her parents, played by Adil Hussain and Lisa Ray. But Kabir wants to appear practical, and so he initially rejects his sister's claims.
Nevertheless, after their parents were killed by the spirit, Natasha and Kabir had promised each other to destroy the mirror after they grow up. Hence, the two team up again to finish the task, and face the evil power face-to-face. Whether they are able to destroy the mirror or they face a similar fate like other victims of the spirit, makes the crux of the story.
PERFORMANCES
Saqib and Huma have the maximum screen time in the movie, and the two have done a good job. There is not much scope for them to show their acting skills as such, but they showcased fear on their faces in certain sequences in a quite realistic manner.
Adil played the part of a man controlled by the spirit well, and one scene in which he is seen dancing alone wearing a weird costume is quite spooky. Lisa too did justice to her role. Madalina Bellariu portrays the evil spirit in the movie, and she certainly is a gorgeous looking ghost.
Abhishek Singh and Rysa Saujani portrayed the childhood of Kabir and Natasha. The two kids have done a good job. The movie also features Rhea Chakraborty, but she has very little to do with the plot.
POSITIVES
Directed by Prawaal Raman, Dobaara: See Your Evil has a plot that was never tried in Bollywood before. The movie does not show many scary faces or bloodshed, but the fast treatment of the movie keeps you glued to the seat.
NEGATIVES
The movie lacks the required horror quotient. C'mon, you can't expect to make the audience jump from their seats showing a pale-faced lady with white eyeballs anymore. There are not many surprise elements that will actually make your heart numb for a second. Also, the movie gets a little confusing at times when the characters are shown confused between reality and imagination. You too will scratch your head thinking what exactly is happening.
VERDICT
Dobaara: See Your Evil has a unique plot as far as Bollywood is concerned but it does not really suit the horror genre. Forget about jumping off the seat, your girlfriend might not even bother to hold your hand in the scariest scene of the film.
