'Demonte Colony' review: Cast and crew can definitely be proud of what they have achieved from the film

Film: Demonte Colony

Cast: Arulnithi

Director: R. Ajay Gnanamuthu

At a time when silly horror comedies are becoming the staple food of Tamil cinema, here comes a film that does justice to its genre. The ghost doesn’t step out of the movie screen nor does it make you squirm in your seats. It only manages to keep you seated for the entire running time without complaints and that’s more than enough as the makers’ intention is not far from this outcome.

'Demonte Colony' has four lead actors out of which three actors have sizable dialogues. Arulnithi, being the Tamil film hero, gets the best role. Within the limited time, writer – director R. Ajay Gnanamuthu sketches every character to its brim. The first couple of minutes tell us that these four men have nothing great to be proud of. They are hapless Chennai city men. One of them is a wannabe filmmaker who stumbles upon an old house which has been untouched for decades – Demonte Colony. This wannabe filmmaker has an agenda of his own. He takes his friends to the dilapidated house on a drunken night. Unfortunately, that’s the first of their mistakes.

There’s no female lead, no glamorous flashback, no hideous outfits – these are some of the reasons that make this film watchable. Though there’s plentiful inspiration running in the forms of American films like ‘1408’ and ‘The Sixth Sense’, I’ll give some points to Ajay Gnanamuthu for fitting them into this screenplay. John Cusack in ‘1408’ was the only person to walk into the doors of psychological despair but in 'Demonte Colony' two other friends along with Arulnithi are scared of every move they make in their room after they’ve made the big mistake.

Camera work, unlike the recent horror films, is slow. It takes its own time to settle on an object. Before we are officially introduced to the ghost on-screen, we know exactly what’s going to happen. In some cases, the guesswork turns out to be true, whereas in some cases, the director has a trick up his sleeve.

There are not many screams or a numbing sense of putrid humor spread over the course of two hours, hence, halfway into the film we know we are dealing with a ghost of a certain caliber. Also, because a major chunk of the film unfolds in a single night, a somber atmosphere trickles into the narrative.

The hapless Chennai city men may not be proud of themselves in the film but its cast and crew can definitely be proud of what they have achieved through this film.

Rating: 3/5