Ragini MMS Movie Review

If a couple of kissing sequences coupled with a good looking girl strutting around in shorts excites the voyeur in you, then 'Ragini MMS' may just fit the bill. However if you are hunting for some 'real stuff' that a MMS is typically made of along with some shockingly scary moments then well, 'Ragini MMS' doesn't quite go the whole hog.

For a young couple, a run down bungalow in a Godforsaken place is a weekend hangout for an extended scene of 'action'. While for the girl (Kainaz Motivala) it is sheer love (with a dose of lust), for the boy (Raj Kumar Yadav), it is neither love nor lust but sheer business as he intends to cut a video of his act and sell it in the porn market. However weird things start happening to them with a spirit lurking in the background that results in terrifying times for the couple.

Viraan jungle, ek tooti haveli aur usme ek bhatakti aatma - the ingredients are the kind that are pretty much seeing an expiry date even on television. In such a scenario that one factor that works most for 'Ragini MMS' is technology. Not just it intrigues the audience due to its different texture; it also makes for an interesting movie watching experience as over 80% of the film is shot with static cameras. So instead, one gets to see standard shots that are taken by half a dozen cameras placed in different parts of the bungalow.

This innovation extends to the scenes, dialogues and acts as well since there isn't anything filmy about the entire affair. Both Kainaz as well as Raj Kumar are plain natural and completely uninhibited which makes one truly feel that they are not acting and merely happening to be in front of a camera that is capturing them in their moments. Moreover, due to this being a 'real affair', most of Raj Kumar's dialogues are expletives filled with no beeps whatsoever.

Yes, there are a few moments of genuine 'edge of the seat drama', especially the ones when the spirit starts attacking Raj Kumar and scares the daylight out of him. However the scare and the haunt factor doesn't quite go the whole hog. Also, it only starts becoming routine with entire chain of events leading to Kainaz's attempt at escaping becoming repetitive.

While one is still fine with letting go off the motive behind all the killings (since Ragini MMS was never meant to be a structured story and was always supposed to tell a tale as captured on camera), the climax seems abrupt and doesn't make any explanations either.

If one goes by what unfolds on screen, the film is very high on concept, technology as well as execution. However if only the written material would have been more convincing with the culmination being batter, 'Ragini MMS' may just have managed to become Bollywood's own 'Paranormal Activity'. As it turns out, the film is a reasonably engaging affair. However as the end credits start rolling, one does tend to exclaim that it could have been a lot better.

Rating: **1/2 

Public Review