BOTTOM LINE
Total Disconnect
OUR RATING
1.75/5
CENSOR
1h 39m, UA.
What Is the Film About?
Doctor Joe (Vinay Rai) receives an emergency call about a meeting when he is on a family outing at a beach. The phone call says there is a rapid spread of a virus in the city and that is Corona. For weeks, Joe does not come home to save lives but only to get infected later. He gives up fighting in the hospital. His daughter, Anna (Haniya Nafis) has the urge to talk to her father for one last time and that lands her and her mother, Susan (Nayanthara) in unexpected trouble.
Performances
The movie is predominantly the story of three characters – Nayanthara, Haniya Nafis, and Sathyaraj. Vinay Rai and Anupam Kher were seen in cameo roles. Nayanthara as always comes up with a stunning performance as a distressed wife and mother. It is a character always in confusion, pain, and shock and she portrayed it perfectly.
The way she lost the extra kilos to look pale in the portions of distress portrays her dedication even after enjoying the position of a Superstar with no competition. The performance gets even better in the second half of the film.
Haniya Nafis makes her debut in the character of a teenage girl who badly misses her father. She is a definite find for her excellent performance. Sathyaraj plays a worried father and he is okay in the role which gets repetitive beyond a point. Vinay Rai is decent enough in the role of a doctor and father. Anupam Kher is good as always as a Church Father and also adds ‘weight’ to the character.
Analysis
Ashwin Saravanan the director of Connect previously directed Taapsee’s Game Over. The movie has a interesting concept but the director faltered in giving it an interesting narration. Connect that comes three years later suffers the same problem.
He tried to mix horror in the backdrop of a Corona Lockdown. The Lockdown acts novel factor in the story because the suffering family is a doctor and their remedial options are limited due to Lockdown rules. But then, it is not effectively used.
The Doctor’s angle is left hanging with no logical end. The thread of doctors saving many lives and falling prey to the same virus is not effectively used to stir emotions in the audience. After a Pandemic, that is a relatable thread to everyone after consuming many such stories on News Channels.
Connect is plainly about a girl possessed by a ghost and how the ghost is ridden out of her body. Due to the Lockdown, the Exorcism to get rid of the ghost is performed online. There is an effort to find out the name of the Ghost and we naturally expect some flashback to the Ghost but that is not explored. The father angle is also not given a logical conclusion at the end.
Connect is a 100 Minutes film with no interval. With such taut screen time, one would expect a logical and gripping narration. But once the premise of the Lockdown and the ghost is set, the good things about the movie ends. Everything happens predictably with no suspense or thrill. The only good thing about the movie is the fine performance and very few startling surprises (like ghosts stunning the audience from weird angles). Such thrills are what we have seen in numerous films over the years. A good Sound design mostly enhances the effect of such thrills.
Devoid of thrills and a proper logical story, the movie bores even for 100 minutes. Further, the Christian angle of Ghosts and exorcism does not work with everyone. Bad Telugu dubbing makes things much worse. That said, Connect is a soul-less horror story that lacks any thrills or substantial logic. Except for a couple of fine performances, you would not miss much if you miss the film.
Music and Other Departments?
Ashwin Sarvanan gets a nice cast and gives a decent backdrop to a routine horror story. But the process of weaving a convincing story with the right amount of novelty and thrills got completely missed. Technically, the movie is slick and compact. The movie predominantly happens in three indoor locations. There is a grey tint used in the cinematography as like in the case of most horror films. The Sound Design is excellent and is the best of the lot. The runtime of 100 minutes is slick but still feels longer due to bad writing. The Telugu dialogues are too bookish in many places.
Highlights?
Nayanthara’s Performance
Sound Design
Some Thrills
Drawbacks?
Poor Writing
Boring and Predictable Scenes
Lack of Logic
No Proper closure
Climax
Did I Enjoy It?
No
Will You Recommend It?
No, wait for the OTT
Connect Telugu Movie Review by M9News
