12 'O' Clock Movie Review : A bleak psychological thriller
12 'o' Clock rotates around a little youngster Gauri who starts getting damaged with terrifying bad dreams and occurrences of creepy sleepwalking. What follows to removeChief: Ram Gopal VarmaEssayist: Ram Gopal VarmaStars: Mithun Chakraborty, Makrand Deshpande, Dalip Tahil | See full cast and group
REVIEW//
: The initial scenes state that random individuals are getting killed in Mumbai and there is some serial killer behind these heinous crimes. With no ties between the murders, soon enough the focus shifts to a college girl Gauri (Krishna Gautam), who has suddenly become aloof and gone quiet. Gauri starts having these nightmares and even starts sleepwalking, but her family members are unaware of these incidents. However, the recent changes in her behaviour grab everyone's attention, especially her loved ones and a nosy neighbour. Are these symptoms of pre-exam stress? Or there is something else that is bothering this little girl forms the crux of the story.
With reasonably good actors and a story that had the material to turn into something remarkable, director-writer Ram Gopal Varma presents a half-baked broth of some under-developed characters and the not-so-convincing subplots (for instance, the equation between Gauri and her boyfriend, and that of Francis (Manav Kaul) and his wife (Flora Saini) – is confusing). In the first half one gets bored trying to figure out what is wrong with the lead character. Eventually, the latter part keeps you hooked especially when the new characters—Mithun Chakraborty as a psychiatrist, Debholay, and Manav Kaul as encounter specialist, Francis Desouza—are introduced. Overall, it’s a half-hearted effort from RGV who has previously directed horror films such as ‘Bhoot’, ‘Phoonk’ and ‘Vastu Shastra’.
Barring a scene, where you see Gauri abruptly waking up in the middle of the night and in the subsequent part where she turns her neck, the rest of it just fails to send shivers down your spine. With no major jump scares, the film gets tedious and the duration (112 minutes) seems never-ending. However, the background score by MM Keeravani (of Baahubali fame) and Amol Rathod’s cinematography is impactful in giving some spine-chilling moments that will surely keep one at the edge of their seats.
Coming to the performances, debutante Krishna Gautam is convincing as Gauri but lacks conviction as a possessed teenager. Mithun Chakraborty and Manav Kaul help in pushing the narrative forward. Makrand Deshpande as Gauri’s worried and helpless father gives a decent performance, too. Though his act was a bit off in the emotional scenes, especially when he is seen shedding tears on screen.
If you get spooked easily, you may not mind this one. However, as a psychological thriller that's focussed on ‘one’s believes in supernatural activities only when they have faced themselves’, ’12 ‘o' Clock’ fails to hold your attention for too long and ends up being a bit of a drag
12 'O' Clock Movie : A bleak psychological thriller
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