Review of Karma

Bollywood director M.R. Shahjahan  seems to be living in the 70s and 80s when movies like Karma were accepted for a while. In fact, it seems to be highly ‘inspired’ by the film 1980s film ‘Kudrat’. The plot is hackneyed and extremely predictable and it seems like there is nothing that can surprise the audience in the movie.

The plot starts off with Anna (Alma Saraci) and Vik (Carlucci Weyant) being married and Anna  insisting that Vik settle his issues with his estranged father in India Ranvir (Vijayendra Ghatge). On arriving in India, Anna experiences strange visions and a feeling of déjà vu in the surroundings though she has never been to that place or for that matter to the country before. After a while of pondering, (not for the audience who has already guessed a case of rebirth) they deduce that she is a reincarnation of Linda (Claudia Ciesla) who lived in the same place and was killed. The story continues with Linda haunting Anna and motivating her to solve the crime.

The use of elements to create a ‘horror movie’ experience is clichéd and manages to bore the audience completely than incite any fear. The killer’s identity is known to the audience way before the mystery is solved as it is very obvious. Many parts of the story are not made too clear either for example, the reason behind the father-son estrangement.

The actors’ performances are just mediocre. Claudia Ciesla doesn’t seem to have much of a future in Bollywood due to her lack of acting ability or any screen presence and yes boys, the film comes without her much talked about topless scene. Carlucci Weyant carries the same expression throughout the movie and Vijayendra Ghatge seems uninterested. Only Alma Saraci is worth mentioning as she is quite chilling as the spirit. The editing and cinematography are the best parts of the movie and the way past and present times are shown is impressive.

A really dull film, I wouldn’t really recommend it. It’s one of those movies whose story you already know and would watch for the way it has been presented but that is again not impressive and you will only waste your time.