'Maa' review: Kajol's horror film is ineffective and predictable
What's the story
The horror-thriller film Maa, directed by Vishal Furia (Chhorii), is an ambitious project that sadly never gets off the ground. It falls prey to the clichés of the genre, fails to break any new ground, and embarrassingly relies on run-of-the-mill techniques to capture your interest. Bollywood is terribly starved for good horror movies, and Maa does nothing to alter that ill-reputation.
Plot
Can a mother's love triumph over a demon?
Maa traces the lives of Ambika (Kajol) and her daughter, Shweta (Kherin Sharma). After the mysterious death of her husband, Shuvankar (Indraneil Sengupta), Ambika and Shweta visit his ancestral manor in Chandarpur, West Bengal, but soon get pulled into a bizarre mystery. The village is ravaged by a demon, who soon abducts Shweta and threatens to kill Ambika. Will the mother-daughter duo survive?
#1
What works: The production design and cinematography stand out
Furia has repeatedly demonstrated his penchant for striking visual and production design. He plays elegantly with colors—this is particularly evident in the song Kali Shakti that plays just before the climax. Additionally, though the movie isn't scary, some scenes caught me off guard and reminded me of Chhorii's well-executed horror. Minutes of deafening silence are followed by unexpected and startling jump scares.
#2
Kajol does justice to her part
Kajol delivers a spirited performance and makes the movie watchable in parts. With a better script and striking dialogues, she could have worked wonders here; nonetheless, she does her best to salvage the material. Her scenes with Sharma are particularly beautiful; they feel organic, and you sympathize with the mother-daughter duo as they rebuild their lives after Shuvankar's demise.
#3
Negatives: The predictability mars the movie, and how!
When there are only a few supporting characters and one of them behaves extremely mysteriously, it's no rocket science to predict the final villain. Furia revels in his repetitive, jaded ideas, and the entire movie plays out like a mish-mash of Chhorii and Shaitaan. Maa and Shaitaan share their cinematic universe, but that doesn't mean they should feel like a replica of each other!
#4
Nobody gets a memorable role
Everyone suffers from an underdeveloped arc. Characters come and go randomly; you won't remember anyone except Ambika and sarpanch Joydev (Ronit Roy), and the film creaks under the weight of too many ideas. Even with Ambika, we know nothing about her life before tragedy struck her. Dibyendu Bhattacharya is wasted in his brief role, and nearly all characters exist just because they have to.
#5
Feels repetitive and extremely exhausting
The movie keeps throwing repetitive themes, dialogues, and scenes at you, making you wonder: Will this film ever limp toward progress? The project is extremely proud of its visual effects, so it ensures that you watch its ghosts over and over again, but powdered faces seldom do horror make! If you are hardly scared, how will your heart beat for the characters?
#6
We struggle to connect with the characters
The stakes are always high, numerous girls have been abducted, and Shweta might be killed, but despite all these looming horrors, we remain at a distance. Horror must always have a large beating heart; alas, Maa has none. The lack of emotional depth runs Maa into the ground; some outlandish sequences take you out of the movie, and the editing feels patchy.
Verdict
Can entirely skip the movie; 2/5 stars
Maa's storyline is weirdly stuck in a labyrinth for the most part; it is a scattershot drama that does not know what to do with the talent and resources at its disposal. It is creepy in parts, but always remains on shaky ground, and Furia's themes get rapidly diluted as the movie progresses. The real demon here? The weak, sparkless writing. 2/5 stars.