This is an open letter to Ram Gopal Varma the director of Phoonk . Why is it that
A filmmaker of his stature has to propagate superstitions that is the domain of sadhhus & maulas . why after building up a narration where superstition is pitched opposite science why does the former win . in his many interviews he has admitted that he never believed in such superstitious things , so why does he end it such a way , isn’t he contradicting himself as an individual or an individual & filmmaker .I hope this film influences the already influenced minds of many middle & lower class people living in small town India especially who would rather go to an ojha than a doctor fore a psychological problem within the family. As an audience I did feel that he had certain moral obligations that a filmmaker has & felt that it should be pointed out .
However as far as the film is concerned after the convincing Sarkar Raj we once again see the genius narrator in RGv creeping back slowly . here he focuses on a happy family . the father is an atheist while the others are not . but the rigid non-belief is shaken when strange things start happening in the house & with their daughter who starts acting strange These strange things forces the well educated father to question his scientific & moral beliefs . what is happening with the daughter , is it an outside force that has captured her via Black Magic or an psychological disorder that the doctors say . it is with this question of science v/s superstition tht ramu manages to engage the viewer .
No , the film is not scary at all like bhoot , in fact the movie is a script related film which makes u think rather than have prop that makes u fear . yes there are a few scary moments in the movie but frankly it didn’t matter even if they didn’t have them . what spoils the movie is when RGv decides to have a tacky Harry potter kind of a climax with spiders & bees .i seems forced in the movie .
If u talk about performances , most of the actors including talented people like Zakir , Aswini(seems like she was shooting for the k soaps & this film simaltaneously as the effects show on her acting) & Amruta are over the top , Hamming , melodramatic respectively . the lead actor has on expressions throughout . while there are many times the actors including the leads make funny faces a thing that is mandatory for a rgv film that nobody acts but keeps the audience reminded a camera has captured the images . only Lillete Dubey & Yashpal Sharma are the ones who stand out in this with their performances .
Cinematography is good & in sync with the mood except for ramus habit of slowly letting the camera linger in a few scenes .Editing is slick while songs are never really that good in recent Rgv movies , but they don’t block the narrative .
Concluding it phoonk will not scare u but will make u think – its ur choice .u make sure that u choose the right path using the brain along with the heart .
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