RIFLE RANGE BOY

Old (2021) Director: M. Night Shyamalan This may not be the best of his movies to watch. After The Sixth Sense (1999)  and Unbreakable (2000), his films have been unremarkable. The dialogue is much to be desired, and the plot may have a few holes here and there. Nevertheless, it stays true to most of Shyamalan's movies that explore the paranormal. It even makes one think. In this offering, one is made aware of the dangers of freebies, the subversive nature of Big Pharma and the triviality of our holding of ill feelings and grudges.  The main protagonists, Guy and Prisca Cappa, are going through a separation. To break the news to their two preteen children, they thought the family could have one final memorable outing together. Prisca is delighted to have found a fantastic bargain for a beach vacation online. Interestingly, as the movie involves Time and ageing, the couple has contrasting occupations - Prisca is a curator in a museum (purveyor of ancient relics), and Guy is an ...

Andhaghaaram (Darkness, Tamil; 2020) Netflix Story and Direction: V. Vignarajan At first look, the storyline suggests that this film will be one with scares and screams. Midway through the movie, you think it is a remake of Hollywood's 'What Lies Beneath'  where the dead communicates with the living to uncover a murder. The thing done differently is that two dead people (spoilers) are communicating with the protagonist. The protagonist, Vinodh, appears to be going into paranoid schizophrenia ever since his best buddy died. He feels guilty as he had gifted his friend a book on the subject of occultism. He thinks his friend was pushed to suicide after delving into the book.  Ever since a rotary phone was installed in his apartment, Vinodh feels like he is being watched. His girlfriend arranges for a therapist.  Another plot is about a blind library clerk, Selvam trying to earn enough money for his kidney transplant. He moonshine as a medium. One of the jobs he manages to se...

  Roh (Soul, Spirit, Malay; 2019) A few years ago, around Kuala Lumpur, a seasoned trekker went on a solo reconnaissance look around to prepare a route for his friends to walk the following day. He wanted to make a quick recce as he could only start it at 6pm. It was still bright, not too dark but not yet twilight. It was 9pm when the family realised that he was uncontactable. A search was initiated. Many experienced hikers and firemen joined the foray. After failing to locate him that night, they deployed the help of Orang Asli master trekkers who were well-versed with the affairs of the wilderness. Scurrying up and down the path using paper markers that were left behind by the missing trekker, they were puzzled why he could not be traced. Then the Orang Asli trekkers summoned their shamans. The experienced man did some salutations to the guardians of the forest, and before they knew it, the lost trekker was found right under their noses along the very same paths that they were sc...

Sixth Sense (1999) Written, Directed and Acted by M. Night Shyamalan During the Mothers' Day celebrations, messages with cheesy words like, "God couldn't be everywhere, so He sent Mums!" are rife. The Divine forces work in mysterious ways they say. Many seemingly impossible incidences happen on a regular basis in our daily lives. People with strong religious convictions are content to assume these are holy interventions sanctioned by The Forces that are carried out by his serfs, godly angels. On the contrary, when the outcome is not quite expected or favourable, the blame is passed on to the ungodly demons and djinns. These energies are said to work on different astral planes than the ones mortal Man are familiar. Clairvoyants are able to harness their perception into this dimension to perceive things which normal humanly sensations cannot appreciate. Medical sciences, however, would label it hallucinations and its practitioner of having delusions. Proponents...