RIFLE RANGE BOY

The Black Phone (2021) Director: Scott Derrickson It was in the mid-70s that innocence was lost. Before this time, life on Earth was a peaceful one. Children could wander about without fear of being abducted. Ladies could go out unaccompanied. They would not end up as tomorrow's headline. And road rage was not a thing yet and be assured that Mat Rempit would not crash into your car in the dead of night, unannounced, as you scramble back home, following all the road rules, after a long day at the office. It used to be serial killers, looneys, and UFOs only attacked America. Well, other nations have caught up too. The world is no longer a safe place. Mad people are everywhere, in every society. It is just a question of how competent the arm of the law is in that locality. With more money at their disposal, time and manpower can be put aside for that purpose. If day-to-day living is in peril, they just have to accept victims as collateral damage of changing times. It is said that ener...

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...