The Bhootnii Movie Review: A Horror-Comedy With Star Power, But Struggles To Deliver Consistently Fun Moments
Sanjay Dutt's lightness of touch as Baba is the biggest strength of the film.
Bhootnii is a horror-comedy with a star-studded cast of Sanjay Dutt, Mouni Roy, Sunny Singh, and Palak Tiwari. Directed by Sidhaant Sachdev, the film tries to ride the success of films like Stree by mixing terror with humor and quirky characters.Unfortunately, although the concept is excellent, the execution is not always so.
Storyline
Based on a fictional college where the strange ritual of a "Virgin Tree pooja" is observed, the film is the tale of Shantanu (Sunny Singh), a lovesick boy who makes a Valentine's Day prayer for real love. His wish is granted in a strange way as he receives a ghost named Mohabbat (Mouni Roy) in his life. Sanjay Dutt is Baba, a ghost hunter hired to clean up the supernatural mess. While friends walk through this surreal event, they uncover secrets and grapple with a spunky being with her own agenda.
Positive Points
Sanjay Dutt's lightness of touch as Baba is the biggest strength of the film. His sense of timing adds much-needed zing to the movie. The supporting actors Aasif Khan and Nickunj Sharma also contribute to the comedy with rapid one-liners. Mouni Roy, essaying the ghost of the title, delivers a convincing performance and is stunning in each frame. Fantasy world is imaginative, and the film never shies away from making light of its genre, even joking about Mouni's popular Naagin character.
Negative Points
Though a enjoyable one, The Bhootnii is also a pacing nightmare. The first half in particular is sluggish and can try the patience of the audience. Some of the jokes fall flat and the humor becomes forced in some situations. Action scenes, till the climax, become melodramatic and drag on for an inordinate amount of time. Sunny Singh's dramatic moments feel melodramatic too at times and water down the emotional intensity of the story.
Overall: The Bhootnii is a horror comedy that does its best but ends up somewhere in between—it's not really scary and not always funny. Although the movie has some enjoyable moments and solid performances, it doesn't have the tight script and imagination to make it worth remembering. A one-time viewing at best, it's worth seeing for a lazy afternoon with nothing better to do.
