Emraan Hashmi’s horror flick Dybbuk is low on horror quotient. Directed and written by Jay K, the film released today, October 29, on Amazon Prime Video.

Amazon Prime Video dropped the new horror film, Dybbuk, on October 29. Directed by Jay K, the horror-thriller is the official remake of the 2017 Malayalam film, Ezra, which starred Prithviraj Sukumaran and Priya Anand in the lead roles. Dybbuk stars Emraan Hashmi and Nikita Dutta in lead.

Nikita’s Mahi, who is still overcoming a miscarriage, decides to decorate her house, which is an old villa, with a heritage theme. She visits the local antique shop and chooses to buy an old wine cabinet, which is actually a dybbuk. Of all the beautiful artefacts at the antique shop, not sure why Mahi would choose the uninspiring and dull dybbuk box. That, in itself, is a mystery, which was not solved in the film.

In Jewish folklore, a disembodied human spirit, due to his past sins, wanders restlessly until it possesses the body of a living person. Belief in such spirits was especially prevalent in 16th and 17th-century Eastern Europe. Dybbuk comes from the Hebrew word dibbuq which means the act of sticking. Reading about Jewish folklore intrigues fans of horror films but the Emraan Hashmi-starrer fails to get its viewers hooked.

The story of Dybbuk is low on horror, hackneyed with done-to-death jolts. The film is predictable with many twists that one has seen before in Hollywood horror films. Well, the audience, who love watching horror flicks, could start ticking boxes, while watching Dybbuk. Creepy maid – check, ghost crawling under the blanket – check, and, of course, flying humans – check.

The cast includes Emraan Hashmi, Nikita Dutta, Manav Kaul and Denzil Smith in pivotal roles. Emraan, who has been part of numerous horror films, was well-versed in his role. Nikita, as Mahi, was mostly seen staring in the film. We would have loved to see more of her. Manav Kaul, who is a brilliant actor, tried hard to convince us as the rabbi.

If only our Internet speed and response time was as fast as the dybbuk, which greets its victims with instant chaos around, breaking mirrors and swinging wooden toys! If you have some time to spare this weekend, you can opt for this horror film, which might help you get some sleep. The dissatisfied soul of the dybbuk box will definitely leave the audience dissatisfied.

Hum Do Hamare Do released on Disney+Hotstar today, October 29. Rajkummar Rao, Kriti Sanon, Ratna Pathak Shah and Paresh Rawal have delivered an incredible performance in the film.

Are blood relations so important in the institution of marriage? Or are you allowed to create your own family in this society? Hum Do Hamare Do, which was released on Disney+Hotstar today, October 29, is the perfect family drama to answer that question. The Rajkummar Rao and Kriti Sanon-starrer has loads of funny moments, however, the ending seems very unoriginal. The best thing about the film is the acting, and not the script. Without giving away the story, here’s our review of Hum Do Hamare Do.

Dhruv, played by Rajkummar, is a successful entrepreneur, who falls madly in love with freelance vlogger Anya, played by Kriti Sanon. In keeping with the true tradition of Bollywood rom coms, love blossoms and the couple start dating. However, there is a catch. Anya wants to marry a guy who comes from a good family and will adopt a dog. Lovestruck Dhruv, also an orphan, will go to any extent to make that work, even getting a fake family for himself. Here, the story really starts. How to get this non-existent family?

After meeting an amusing matchmaker Shaadiram and perusing through multiple middle-aged candidates, Dhruv remembers his caretaker from childhood. Paresh Rawal’s character Purushottam Mishra ran a dhaba where little Dhruv worked as a waiter. Purushottam is madly in love with Ratna Pathak Shah’s character Dipti Kashyap and the elderly couple’s backstory makes for an interesting plot in itself. Hence, a kinship is declared with the spry middle-aged couple and all is good till secrets come spilling out.

Hum Do Humare Do, however, has a very patchy script. Since the genre of the film was not something we haven’t seen earlier, the perfect script could have made it a blockbuster. Unfortunately, it was very patchy and unimaginative. The ending is quite predictable. Things even get a little monotonous towards the end. There is not a single dialogue that would stick. Even the comedy is bland, with Paresh Rawal and his impeccable comic timing, you can’t help but laugh.

We also have an unfunny caper in Aparshakti Khurana who is always at the beck and call of his best friend Dhruv. It would have been interesting to give him some more lines. The sloppy script doesn’t do justice to the performances of our lead actors. They have been largely wasted in their roles. It almost seems like director Abhishek Jain was in a hurry to wrap up the film and jam in a happy ending.

But, the performances take the film to another level. Our male lead Rajkummar Rao is a poorly written protagonist with inexplicable impulses and poor decision-making skills. Even so, he manages to win hearts with his performance as a love-struck man in parts and as a super boss at work in others. Once again, he has proved why he is beyond the box office. Kriti Sanon’s acting is also noteworthy. She is charming and confident in her role. She even injects some life into the film. The duo’s chemistry is simply amazing.

Paresh Rawal is simply the best here and you would agree. His comic timing is impressive and the way he delivers dialogues makes the film an interesting watch. When Paresh is on the screen, he steals the show. His character is an old man who regrets not getting to marry his childhood sweetheart, Ratna’s Dipti. The scene where he desperately proposes to Dipti after getting drunk in public is simply hilarious. Ditto for Ratna Pathak Shah, who perfectly fits in her role as a mother to a stranger. The way she shrugs off Purushottam is truly savage. These two are the reason why we should have more veteran actors in movies these days.

So, what’s our verdict?

Apart from the script, what lacks in Hum Do Hamare Do is the base. The story is good but what would have made it more interesting is if the makers hadn’t just focussed on the love story of the characters. Rajkummar’s Dhruv turned rags to riches in a minute but we wanted to know how? Also, nothing is shown about Kriti’s professional or social life. All she is reduced to is a local lover. If you are a Bollywood buff, you might have already guessed the ending.

Vicky Kaushal plays the lead role in Shoojit Sircar’s Sardar Udham. The film is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

It isn’t easy making a biopic or a film inspired by true events. Well, Shoojit Sircar refuses to call Sardar Udham a biopic and it’s obvious why. Sardar Udham’s name might not evoke an immediate memory, as opposed to a Bhagat Singh. And there is very little information about his life and events leading to his martyrdom. Udham wasn’t a mainstream name in the revolutionary fight leading up to Independence, but he was responsible for the one event that changed the course of history as we know it. Sardar Udham assassinated Michael O’Dwyer, who was Punjab’s Lieutenant Governor when the Jallianwala Bagh massacre occurred in Amritsar, on 13 April 1919.

Sardar Udham has Vicky Kaushal play the lead role and take on one of the most complex and challenging roles of his career. The film oscillates between the present and past, giving us flashbacks of what led Udham on his path of vengeance. The Jallianwala Bagh incident serves as a catalyst in Udham’s journey to England where he acts on his instinct and shoots O’Dwyer point-blank. But Shoojit’s movie is not about this stand-alone incident. In fact, the first hour or so of the film introduces us to Udham, his friends, the early influences in his life. There is also a cameo by Amol Parashar who plays Bhagat Singh, perhaps the only other name apart from O’Dwyer that’s etched in our history pages.

Udham’s journey in the pre-Independence days, leading up to his imprisonment, hearing and then death by hanging is all chronicled from a single point of view – his mind. The first hour of the film opens the floodgates to what it must have been like to be so angry, frustrated and obsessed with rage to follow one’s instincts, travel across the sea, use every possible help to seek the ultimate revenge.

Avik Mukhopadhyay’s cinematography has a lasting impression as it captures everything from the claustrophobic cells to the snow-capped landscapes of the former USSR. Camera work is one of the strongest assets of Sardar Udham. Also, technically, this is perhaps Shoojit’s most ambitious film and that reflects in every department be it background score, set design or costume. Much attention is paid to detail in creating the era, Shoojit’s team has taken the effort to also understand body language, the walk, tonality of characters and also cast some amazing talents who play important members in the British force – namely Shaun Scott who plays Michael O’Dwyer and Stephen Hogan as Detective Inspector John Swain. None of the supporting cast feel like extras on a film and everyone has a purpose and a reason to be in the film.

However, even though the film has technical finesse, it has several hiccups in the way it builds its narrative. Not wanting to be jingoistic or resort to chest-thumping, Shoojit underplays his lead character to such an extent that at times his efforts feel underwhelming. He might not be a Bhagat Singh delivering fiery speeches, yet there is something amiss about Udham, especially in the first half as we are introduced to him. The pace and long-drawn scenes (there is one with Vicky walking endlessly through miles of icy fields) do very little to hold your attention.

The big massacre scene, which sends shivers down your spine, is saved for the very end as we come closer to Udham’s unravelling. Vicky looks the part and there is immense mental homework, deep-diving into the mindset of this character that seems to have helped him in some really tough scenes. But, eventually, the film wears you down with its lack of pace and long-drawn scenes that sometimes seem to go nowhere.

Sardar Udham’s run-time does very little to keep you captivated. Especially for the OTT format, pace and run-time are factors that play a very important role in your overall experience.

Sardar Udham deserves a watch for Vicky’s efforts and Shoojit’s vision in creating a canvas that tells the story of one of India’s most underplayed revolutionary heroes.