Phone Bhoot review: How stupid do you think the audience is?

2/5

In order to get a business concept, a ghost (Katrina Kaif) contacts two inept ghostbusters (Ishaan Khatter and Siddhant Chaturvedi). However, as the spooky ghost discloses her strategy, their tactics start to fail.

In one of the scenes, which you might have also seen in the trailer for Phone Bhoot, Katrina Kaif's character is seen teaching Sheeba Chadda's character how to pronounce "moksha." The term technically means freedom, which even I desired while watching the non-comedy, non-horror flick. How stupid do you think the audiences are while watching anything in the horror-comedy genre? When the film was officially announced, the makers called it "the comedy of horrors." I am horrified by myself that I didn't laugh or even cover my eyes while watching the two hours and 17 minutes long movie, Phone Bhoot.

The film starts with Ishaan Khatter (Gullu) and Siddhant Chaturvedi's (Major) characters living in a flat that is designed as per horror themes. They have a huge figurine of Rakha, a devilish movie character with whom they communicate with a lot of feelings. Gullu is a Tamilian, and Major is a Punjabi, so of course the stereotyping kicks in. Khatter is seen drinking filter coffee and Chaturvedi, a long glass of cold lassi. They are shown drinking these drinks over and over again, which has an unneeded symbolic meaning that comes up during the climax scene.

They start seeing dead people after getting electric shocks, leaving a "bhatakti aatma" named Ragini (Kaif) surprised. She comes into the picture with the nonsensical business proposal of turning them into ghostbusters. Ha ha, they are so stupid that they didn't think of it themselves. Thus starts their hunt for ghosts by introducing a hotline number named Phone Bhoot.

The film is only filled with pop culture references that try to hype these two actors as modern-day Amar and Prem from Andaz Apna Apna. Their silly talks just stay silly and will leave you stone-faced throughout the film. When there are two male characters, one of them has to be a "tharki," while the other is a sane-minded person. Otherwise, how's it even friendship, right? They try hard to be among the iconic duos of the world only to zero down and be an ignition of cringe-fest.

From Gully Boy to Mirzapur to even Fukrey, Excel Entertainment made sure to use all of their iconic characters in the film. The thought is great, but the execution failed. The references have been well placed to make Hindi cinema fans fawn over them. But it will only leave you wondering what the film's purpose even was. Unfortunately, Ghostbusters could have been anything else to pay tribute to pop culture. Kaif, who is famous for her endorsement of a soft drink brand, does well in the film. However, there's no sense of enjoyment in watching that moment.

There's even a sequence where the cast starts talking about astras and buttons; you know where it's going! They made sure they kept up with every meme in Bollywood, maybe to get a reaction from the audience like, "I see what you did there." Well, if you are well-versed in it, you will know, but I ended up shrugging them off, as it just doesn't fit the bill.

The film also has Jackie Shroff, who even pays tribute to himself by playing his debut film's song on a flute. The actor just seems to be an extension of his Bhoot Unkle (2006) character and doesn't try to be scary but tries very hard to be funny.

Ravi Shankaran and Jasvinder Singh Bath have penned the script for Phone Bhoot, directed by Gurmmeet Singh. Well, a team's efforts have gone entirely in vain, as getting all the meme-worthy material in the script got lost in translation to the screen.

Katrina Kaif, who plays a ghost named Ragini in the film, does a decent job with what has been written for her. To be honest, the performances of the actors will leave you unimpressed at some point because the bizarre script overwhelms everything. If she is a ghost, she has a back story, and knowing about it won't even make you feel intrigued.

Siddhant Chaturvedi and Ishaan Khatter shoulder the film entirely, but the latter does a better job. While watching both of them, one can see that comedy is a tough nut to crack, and maybe Chaturvedi needs to imbibe it gradually. The actor has done a great job in dramatic roles, but he doesn't have it in him yet to tickle the funny bone.

On the other hand, Khatter is so expressive that it makes him far more of an entertainer, even with a shallow script in hand. I hope there's more from him in the near future. However, this film might be in the same league as Vaah! Life Ho Toh Aisi! was for Shahid Kapoor.

Phone Bhoot has two major songs, Kinna Sona and Kaali Teri Gutt, both picturized on the lead characters. But the last one doesn't fit and makes you want the movie to get to its climax even more.

Given the success of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 and Stree (2018), the horror-comedy genre is one that has a lot of meat on it right now. But it's not everyone's cup of tea to make people laugh and scared along with an interesting story. Phone Bhoot fails in every way, even though it pays homage to Hindi film pop culture from frame to frame.

The audience is not that stupid, and it doesn't deserve this level of stupidity in the name of entertainment. Not to forget, an overdose of horror comedy is a major buzzkill, and it should be otherwise.