Director: Akshay Akkineni
Cast: Akshay Oberoi, Parvathy Omanakuttan, Dipannita Sharma, Arunoday Singh and Rajesh Sharma
Horror films aren’t just about scary faces and jumpy background scores. They can be atmospheric, moody and so visually spooky that you can feel the goose flesh on your nape sending an eerie chill down your spine. Of course you have to take it all with a pinch of salt. But it can be exhilarating while it lasts. Pizza 3D is one such surprise. Its original Tamil inspiration with the same name was a better told story. But the Hindi version is slickly made, terrifyingly surreal and served with decent twists and turns. It’s a departure from the usual drivel you see in the name of horror in Hindi films.
Akshay Oberoi plays a regular pizza delivery guy, who’s married to perhaps the hottest aspiring horror novelist ever seen, played by Parvathy Omanakuttan. He doesn’t believe in the supernatural, but is scared of ghosts. She’s just clever and never misses a chance of scaring her husband. Akshay’s character gets spooked when he first witnesses his boss’ wife possessed by a spirit named Anjali. A few days later he lands up at a bungalow to deliver a pizza, only to get trapped inside and haunted by a trio of spirits. While the description may sound all too familiar, the movie is refreshingly fresh. Director Akshay Akkineni’s treatment of his subject is both detailed and full of homage. He resorts to the usual bag of horror movie tricks, but he does so while telling a fascinating tale. Keeping a wry sense of humour and using as much wit and tongue-in-cheek as possible. If he can create something this invigorating in his debut film, then Akshay Akkineni is a talent to watch out for.
The haunting scene in the bungalow is thirty minutes or so or pure terror. If you’re a horror movie aficionado or if you’ve watch your fair share of scary flicks you’ll know when the jump-out-of-the-chair moments are coming. But that doesn’t take away from the wonderfully crafted setting. It’s dark, it’s eerie and it reminds you of the good old days of horror from Hammer. The art director, cinematographer and director can take a bow.
Another aspect that plagues most horror movies the world around is bad acting. It’s very easy to overdo it and make things look campy. Akshay Oberoi though succeeds in keeping things under control. There are moments of hysteria and shouting but it’s all well controlled. Supporting performances from Rajesh Sharma and Parvathy Omanakuttan are up to the mark as well. Thank God the director chooses to make Parvathy’s character disappear in the middle of the film. She’s too pretty to scare anything. But Dipannita Sharma and Arunoday Singh are dread personified. Despite the not-so-good makeup the duo give a frightful intensity to their performances. And the ghost of their daughter Anjali will scare the pants off you.
If you think Pizza 3D is a run-of-the-mill horror flick, think again. The horror is just the tip of a chilly but surprising ice berg. It’s more intelligent than your average Hindi film. The way it pans out and the artful way in which it is presented deserve a standing applause. Finally, the young brigade catch up to Hollywood. James Wan beware. Writer/director Karthik Subbaraj (writer of this film and director of the Tamil original) and director Akshay Akkineni know their horror.
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