55. Bhaagamathie; movie review

BHAAGAMATHIE
Cert 15
138 mins
BBFC advice: Contains strong violence, horror

Folk often ask how Mrs W and I manage to pack in our heavy schedule without ever falling asleep during the movies.
Well, I have to confess that by nearly quarter to midnight on Saturday night we had already slipped in a fair few zzzs despite sitting in front of a movie at Ilford Cineworld.
Nodding dogs were prompted by a Tamil horror film which could have been so much punchier if it had been cut by 30 minutes,
But, in common with far too many pictures,  G. Ashok's movie goes over the same ground so much that it lulls its audience into dreamland.
It stars Anushka Shetty as a civil servant who is held in a haunted house while she is interrogated over the suspected corruption of her politician boss (Jayaram).
If, dear reader, you require a further explanation of the use of the derelict property, you will be disappointed.
The fact is that it is initially explained very sketchily but what left us really perplexed was why the officials insisted on sticking with it when they were presented with evidence of weird goings-on.
Oh, and why their prisoner seems to have the run of the place etc etc.
Indian horrors are rare but tend to be well-executed but, sadly, Bhaagamathie is just plain daft - prompting me to jump only once very early in the film.
Murli Sharma's character, a senior police officer, baffles as he seems to be 20 minutes behind the plot and insists on adhering to plan A when it is clearly coming apart.
Meanwhile, Asha Sharath plays a detective who takes over the investigation and is again prepared to put officers' in peril for no obvious reason.
Indeed, there really isn't much substance to Bhaagamathie than people being thrown around a spooky old house by supernatural forces.
And even its conclusion doesn't enlighten the audience as much as it should.
Admittedly, we might have gleaned more from it had we not been so jaded but to paraphrase Barry Norman, it is the director's fault if the audience falls asleep, not theirs.

Reasons to watch: a rare Indian horror movie
Reasons to avoid: far too many plot holes

Laughs: none
Jumps: one
Vomit: yes
Nudity: none
Overall rating: 4.5/10

Director quote - G. Ashok: "It's neither a biopic or nor a period drama with fantasy elements. It's a thriller, though I wouldn't confine it to just one genre. There are a lot of other exciting factors too in the screenplay."

The big question - If you drop off at the movies is it your fault or the director's?

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