The joy of watching a horror flick is best when you are in a near-empty dark hall; an eerie background score with a few jump-out-of-your-seat moments should do the trick and you may enjoy even a mediocre film (even that is rare). Expectations may soar a little higher if it’s in 3D. 
This, I state from the viewpoint of a horror buff. I’m one. Evidently then, I was waiting for this week’s supposedly hot and haunted ‘Pizza’, a remake of
the Tamil movie of the same name also remade in Kannada and Bengali. The trailers looked promising and made me hope for a movie which could probably re-define the genre but I was yet again disappointed; this time, to the point of feeling disturbed, irritated and conned.
Kunal (Akshay Oberoi, who made a disastrous debut with Rajshri Productions four years
back), a pizza delivery boy is married to a struggling horror novelist Nikita (Former Miss India Parvathy Omanukuttan). The two have no savings and manage to survive somehow all thanks to some insurance. Something else is in store for them when Kunal turns up to deliver a pizza at the house of a pregnant woman (Dipannita Sharma). Supposedly, the woman was axed to death by her over-suspicious drunk husband (Arunoday Singh) who then killed himself and their daughter. After being traumatized in the mansion, Kunal escapes only to know that his wife is missing.
Debutante Director Akshay Akkineni could have taken the essence of the original plot and made it a nail-biting chilling experience; the entire episode of Kunal trapped in the haunted house is very well-directed and had it been just that, ‘Pizza’ would have been a memorable experience. Instead, he stays true to the Tamil money-spinner and messes it. He keeps it short but the entire impact of the movie is diluted because of the twist in the climax; an anti-climax for fans of the genre. It does end with some hope for a sequel but you doubt if that might turn out to be a mockery as well. Yes; mockery it is. Akkineni seems to tease us since we walk into the hall to watch a horror film and what we get isn’t one. The twist isn’t really intelligent even otherwise and there are loopholes in the script. ‘Pizza’ begins lazily, gets interesting and quite creepy; ten minutes after the intermission, you start bearing it till it slowly becomes unbearable. It isn’t a song-less film but that isn’t the problem here. Background score is okay but should be better to heighten the tension when there is horror involved. 3D wasn’t needed; there are hardly any scares.
Akshay Oberoi does a fine job in most parts; though he needs to work on his expressions, he manages to look frightened and traumatized when the scene demands it. Parvathy Omanakuttan, who like her co-star made an unnoticed debut, too acts confidently here. Dipannita Sharma and Arunoday Singh have nothing much to do; their make-up is chalky and not scary. The supporting cast is okay.
Watch it or not: Can be watched only for the episode when the guy is trapped in the haunted house; even there, most of the scenes are in the trailer. ‘Pizza’ is a huge disappointment for fans of the horror genre. It isn’t horror; a con film literally which also cons the audience.
At the Box-Office: Under-promoted but with UTV attached to it, ‘Pizza’ should recover money due to the smartly-made trailer. Remake rights were bought at 1.5 crore which was the budget for the original film. This and the other two releases of the week – ‘Hate Story 2’ and ‘Amit Sahni Ki List’ will manage to mint just some money till Salman Khan kicks off everyone with next week’s mega EID bonanza- ‘Kick’. Expect records to be shattered and this year hasn’t seen much of it so far.
My Verdict
My Rating
The plot is thin… thin crust without cheese burst; the topping is soggy. This week’s ‘Pizza’ is cold, stale… and definitely not haunted!
