Film review: 'Darr @ The Mall' a lackluster attempt at raising a scare

Film: Darr @ The Mall 
Cast: Jimmy Sheirgill, Nushrat Bharucha,  Arif Zakaria
Director: Pawan Kriplani
Rating:  *1/2

What's it about

Amityville comes visiting Bollywood in this lackluster attempt at raising a scare. 

Between a song titled Pinacolada and some ear shattering background score (screeching and screaming) there is a lot to be scared of in this mall. 

Vishnu (Jimmy) is a security supervisor at Amity Mall which obviously is haunted as the title suggests. 

But the director wants to surprise us and show that horror can be intelligent too, hence the karmic connection of the mall with Vishnu's past. 

As we hear more supernatural mumbo jumbo and witness bizarre happenings, it's evident that the film is heavily borrowed and inspired from several Hollwyood horror flicks. 

What's hot 

A few scenes right at the beginning are interesting, not scary, but the treatment is different from the regular fare we have come to digest. 

Jimmy gets into the skin of his character and is believable even in the most ridiculous scenes. 

What's not 

The script is so sketchy that you might get a migraine following it. There are several twists and turns in the second half that just don't connect the dots. 

We wish if filmmakers had to reference Hollywood films they would do it effectively. 

With films like Insidious and Conjuring doing so well at domestic box-office, the audience needs quality when it comes to horror. 

The age-old trick of a creaking door or a sobbing child doesn't work anymore. Even though the editing is tight, certain scenes and sub-plots were unnecessary. 

What to do 

With a weak plot and shoddy execution Darr @ The Mall fails to raise a scare.