burn – Movies of the Soul

Vampire Owl: We are the true people of the dark and stays further in darkness.

Vampire Bat: Darkness has been our ally for many centuries.

Vampire Owl: There is no light that has taken away our darkness.

Vampire Bat: We have traditionally been against the spreading of light.

Vampire Owl: Light has created more scope for evil as humans can see in it.

Vampire Bat: Yet, humans are blind to goodness and honesty.

Vampire Owl: These had ceased to be considered qualities of humans long ago.

Vampire Bat: Well, evil has always been easy to find among humans.

Vampire Owl: There is a famous quote attributed to Dr. Frankenstein related to the same.

Vampire Bat: Mr. Frankenstein has no quotes relevant to us. We should only refer to Uncle Dracula for interesting and useful quotes.

[Gets a chicken curry puffs and three cups of Yercaud tea].

What is the movie about? :: Vignesh (Ajay Karthi) is a rationalist who tries to live life in his way, just arrived in Chennai from Bangalore for a few months for his work. Despite his family’s attempt to interfere, he decides not to stay with his uncle living in the city, and looks for a place to live near his office, even though he can also take the work from home option if necessary. While facing many problems due to his bachelor status, high rent and temporary nature of stay, he comes across a two-storied house offered at an unusually low rent by an elderly landlord who lives in the ground floor, Karunakaran (K. Bhagyaraj). Despite the owner’s warnings that the house has a terrible reputation due to three youngsters committing suicide there, Vignesh decides to take the option, believing in his faith in rationalism over everything else. There he also meets Karunakaran’s young daughter Priyadharshini (Anchana Nethrun) who does not show an interest in talking to him, and the father also shows no interest in introducing her as he is only bothered about having someone stay in the house for some time.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: While Karunkaran finds this three-month stay of Vignesh as an option to have people believe that there is no problem with the house, as different people had run away from the rented upper floor complaining about ghosts or some terrifying presence which haunted them. The whole neighborhood had considered the area to be a haunted one, but Karunakaran assures him that he had seen no ghosts there despite being always around, and still tells him that he can leave – the rationalist in Vignesh still decides to stay and even opt for more of work from home option. But soon Vignesh experiences sleep paralysis, terrible hallucinations and bizarre apparitions, and comes to know that one tenant there had killed the other two and set himself on fire, as he see burned people and moving shadows all around. The television gets switched on by itself and keeps playing the same song and the same books keep falling down the shelf and more follows. Now, he wonders if he remains sane, but further feels that he might in grave danger – can he escape from this terror?

The defence of Dark :: The movie focuses the most on psychological tension, and the same also helps in adding further to the overall red herrings, which finally ends in that effective twist. There is also no meaningless romance or humour added here that would have devastated the mood as we consider the fact that the movie is based on mood rather than anything else. The background score and some quick appearances of scary visuals keep us going, and keep the genre going with its classic values. The movie never really extends its stay either as less than two hours make its existence right within the time-period in which we have the attention. The premise was too good, and the first scene had really caught our attention, followed by a second level of terror, making us wonder how well the world can be determined from there. We can feel the possible eternity of horror with the early shock and scares being provided. There is that feeling when something terrifying is to jump out of darkness and create that memorable experience.

The claws of flaw :: The movie could have been more direct and the confusion that it creates in between blurring reality and thoughts, and connecting them with horror, does not work that well at all times. It often gets down to the familiar haunted-house formulas with the random strange noises, forced nightmare sequences and a tragic past which does not use the best advantage. The pace keeps varying, with some moments feeling rather strange, and often not suitable to go through the flow otherwise. The police investigation is also not given that much of a focus despite that being the source of information about the past. One still keeps wondering why a perfect closure was not given for the tale, and the ghost just seems to have been unleashed and left so to act too strange, even though there were many direct methods for the creature to unleash itself and do its work. A few better moments from the distant past could have also served well. This kind of movies should have always had the power of a detailed past, but the same is not served here – the twist also comes in a little too smooth manner.

The performers of the soul :: Ajay Karthi has us going through the horrifying journey with him, as he carries the full weight of the film. He shows a certain amount of physical and mental deterioration from the confident rationalist to a man caught in a supernatural web from where escape seems almost impossible – the change from a confident professional young man into an insomniac pushed to the edge of hopelessness and sanity is shown naturally. The pain of going from one extreme to the other is nicely reflected through his performance. Anchana Nethrun brings the surprise here, as she becomes the centre of a tragedy as much as going through the core of horror. Her performance shows some vulnerability and a certain amount of melancholy as the tragic history of the house slowly comes to light. The emotions work strongly whenever she is around, as the abiding sadness keeps creeping in. At the same time, Bhagyaraj brings the strength of a veteran older generation to the horror narrative, while serving on the realistic side. Natarajan Subramaniam brings the feeling of enquiry to the same.

How it finishes :: This happened to a surprise good horror that came out of nowhere, as we did not even know about the release of such a movie – yet, it falls short of where it should have reached in the end. The movie feels ambitious and could have been something like Demonte Colony with sequels as an expansion could serve really well, or at least move on the Pechi mode. The strong and emotional performances along with the quick shocks in the darkness almost got it there, but in the end, had it limited in scope. The pace problems with some predictability, and the limits of setting, without that much focus on the psychological side by the end, has us asking for more. The scary side surely had some fine initial push, especially with those moments in the beginning. With better focus on the world and by spreading the evil, this can still gain more through some well-made sequels. The attempt at divergence and experimentation that comes though are to be appreciated here, and other movie industries also need more attempts at horror.

Release date: 3 July 2026
Running time: 110 minutes
Directed by: Kalyan K Jegan
Starring: Ajay Karthi, Anchana Nethrun, Natarajan Subramanian, K Bhagyaraj

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Vampire Owl: I was always sure that the Northern Witches were involved.

Vampire Bat: Now you think that they really use some board for their magic.

Vampire Owl: It is black magic and they have so many similar things.

Vampire Bat: I am sure that this not one of them – they do not even have a carroms board.

Vampire Owl: I am sure that the truth is just hidden.

Vampire Bat: Hidden truths are often half the lies.

Vampire Owl: Something which is partial truth cannot be a lie.

Vampire Bat: It applies both ways, right?

Vampire Owl: Dr. Frankenstein has applied it only on one side.

Vampire Bat: Mr. Frankenstein has no idea about any of these.

[Gets a chilli paneer dosa and three cups of Yercaud tea].

What is the movie about? :: Emily (Madison Iseman) has been trying to recover from her drug addiction for some time, and after falling in love with Christian (Aaron Dominguez) who had just ended his long-time relationship with Brooke (Melanie Jarnson), she has been helping Christian’s opening of a restaurant in the French Quarter of New Orleans. While picking mushrooms for the restaurant in the forest, Emily comes across a spirit board. It was just recently been stolen from a local museum, and had landed there due to a fight between the thieves. At a dinner party preceding the grand opening meant for close friends, Emily shows the board to Brooke, who is an antiquities expert and she seems to be very much interested in it. She finds out that it predates the Ouija board and is meant to connect with ancient evil that might even predate many civilizations. According to her, it is something which could be helpful as much as cause terror, with immense possibilities hiding within the board.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Emily discovers a pendulum made out of a human finger bone within the board. Emily who tries to communicate to the spirit board finds help in locating her lost engagement ring. But when this is fulfilled, Christian’s friend who is at the kitchen, Richie (Charlie Tahan), is killed in a strange incident in which his hand is caught in a meat slicer after slipping. Christian who searches in the internet understand that there have been many board-related killings in the past and also sees in the news that the board was stolen. He suggests handing it over to authorities, but Emily feels that she maybe a suspect due to her former indulgence in drug business as a customer. But things get worse as Emily feels like arms groping her from underneath the bed and also further groping and pulling her into the tub while taking a shower. She sees an ancient witch named Naga Soth (Antonia Desplat) coming in her nightmares and taking her back to past. Now it is to be seen how the couple would deal with it.

The defence of Witchboard :: There are not many movies that have had such a good-looking cast which also performs so well. It is not alien to slasher movies, but this one brings that feeling so well, as performance also supports the same. There are many memorable moments in the movie from that first unleashing of the horror as if in a Final Destination movie, pulling of the leading lady underneath the bed, taking her right out of the shower into deep water, her first full possession on the bed and the twisting of bodies and time periods. Also, we never see any supporting lady being so good like Melanie Jarnson while Madison Iseman leads like no other scream queen has done in quite some time. There seems to be nice visuals at work here, and the scary side is also nicely helped on with the support of what is on the screen. The gothic horror power with the supernatural atmosphere, dark imagery and black magic elements maintains the spookiness throughout its existence. The entertainment value has its strength throughout the run too. When the past is also used with quality, there is always something interesting about what comes from history.

The claws of flaw :: The movie misses an opportunity to make it grand, as the stage was set for something that goes so much more with the distance. A number of its major scenes could have made even grander in scope, and spectacles could have made this movie something classic. The drug addiction recovery, possession, ancestral witch tale, past lives and so many things are here to be taken, but the arrangement could have better and connection to make this one a movie to be remembered for long. This makes it easier for the movie to lose its direction. The opportunity for scares is also not taking completely, as there were so many chances of taking the horror to another level. Some of the motives of characters are also unclear at times, and a few characters just seem to be present for the sake of being there, and sometimes when we need some characters, they are not there at all to be seen. The romantic side is also not strengthened enough, and some elements surely go unexplored. The length of the movie could have been even lesser, as it wanders off a little too much as we look into it.

The performers of the soul :: Madison Iseman plays the leading role, and she does that as the scream queen that we had always wished for. She shines through the helplessness and terror of the girl trying to save herself and also the one possessed, from taken from under the bed and abducted from the shower to being possessed and unleashing ancient evil. She is certainly capable of carrying the situations of horror, and one would hope to see her around in more of similar movies. Meanwhile, Melanie Jarnson who plays the second lady lead also does a memorable job, and both combine to become the best-looking leading ladies in a slasher movie in a long time. Antonia Desplat as Naga Soth makes a perfect witch, and one which we would remember with horror, generating fear out of nowhere. Jamie Campbell Bower makes a strong antagonist, and brings further terror into the situation successfully. Aaron Dominguez is also in the lead, and does his job well. David La Haye makes another strong figure in between.

How it finishes :: Witchboard, even though supposed to be a remake, makes itself felt in style. There is the supernatural nicely made into a fine form through witches and a past which is nicely connected with the present as the world keeps moving on either way. If you enjoy horror that is visually strong and sometimes gruesome, and would not mind some chaos coming out of nowhere with the support of unexpected events, this would be the movie for you. It surely has beautiful locations as much as it has beautiful people, with charming world being built not only in the present, but also in the past. This is that kind of a remake which after watched do not feel like that much similar with the movies which are called the originals, even after reading about it and the plot itself. Well, we all need another version of Oujia, with possibilities of sequels, as this one has left us with hope to see another movie in the franchise. This spirit board has as much a chance to have at least one sequel as many others from The Conjuring, The Nun and Annabelle to Sinister and Insidious – you will know the same. The world of movies with horror other than random haunting of houses needs to be there, after all.

Release date: 26th July 2024
Running time: 112 minutes
Directed by: Chuck Russell
Starring: Madison Iseman, Aaron Dominguez, Melanie Jarnson, Charlie Tahan, Antonia Desplat, Jamie Campbell Bower