Ragini MMS 2 is a better attempt than its prequel and is worth a dekko, says Bikash Mohapatra.
An over-excited director (Parvin Dabas) asks his lead actress (Sunny Leone) to get ready for the party.
The latter refuses, saying she needs to visit the mental asylum.
"Why?" he asks.
"Research, obviously," she responds.
The director is left stunned.
“Yeh porno ek dum se Rituporno kaise ban gayi? (How did this porn star suddenly become a method actor?),” he wonders.
Therein lies the gist of the movie.
Anyone who watches Ragini MMS 2 with the 'expected' expectations might be stunned as well. Okay, let's tone it down a bit and say he will be disappointed.
For if Ragini MMS (2011) was about two-and-a-half love-making scenes, its sequel has just one, a forced one at that. But that's just about it.
However, for anyone who intends to get spooked and is on the lookout for a decent horror flick, this one ain't bad.
In fact the sequel is better than the prequel. And saying this is no exaggeration.
Yes, it is heavily borrowed. But then, which B-Town flick movie isn’t?
Ragini MMS 2 has a much better story, a couple of foot-tapping numbers, few good performances and is quite well structured.
More importantly, the film’s leading lady (Leone) is in top form. Again, this isn’t an exaggeration.
Be it dancing, taking pot shots at her own self or emoting (yes, you heard it right), Leone has definitely made some progress. The oomph factor is, and will always be,
The sequel takes off from the earlier movie. But there are two tracks nonetheless.
The first has a whacko director wants to shoot a ‘horrex’ (horror + sex) movie in the haunted house whose last victim was Ragini (Kainaaz Motivala in a cameo).
He sets off with his crew to the place and strange things start happening thereafter.
There’s a parallel track featuring a psychiatrist (Divya Dutta) who likes taking on weird cases. The two tracks palpably meet in an elaborate climax scene.
Besides, there’s the brief back story of the chitkin (witch). To his credit the director, Bhushan Patel, has amalgamated the tracks quite well.
There are a few really spooky scenes. The one where Sunny meets Ragini in the asylum, the shooting scene where Sandhya Mridul is turned upside down, the pre-interval scene, the one where the assistant director (Anita Hassanandani) meets her end and the climax are all quite well shot.
On the flip side there is the forced romantic track between Sunny and the writer (Saahil Prem), complete with a song.
Also forced into the narrative is the much hyped lip-lock between Sunny and Sandhya, a totally unnecessary scene this.
As regards the performances, Sunny puts in a much improved effort; Sandhya Mridul is impressive as usual while Dutta passes muster. Karan Mehra, who plays the television star, is delectable.
However, Dabas is a big disappointment. It is disappointing to see a decent actor like him taking up such a character.
To sum up Ragini MMS 2 is a better attempt than its prequel and is worth a dekko.
Rediff Rating:
