Stree Movie Review: Stree Is A Laughter Riot With The Perfect Dose Of Spine Chilling Horror Which Leaves You Wanting For More!

‘Puja ke agle chaar raat,woh shikar pe ayegi, purusho ko uthayegi aur phir sirf kapde milenge unke’ these haunting and warning words form the crux of the film, the appearance of the dreadful ‘Stree’. The film basically revolves around the town of Chanderi which is haunted by the frightening spirit ‘Stree’ who attacks all the men of the town leaving behind only their clothes and the only way to avert her terror is by writing the words ‘Oh Stree Kal Ana’ on your walls. In the middle of all this terrifying incidents is caught up the lovable Vicky (Rajkummar Rao) who is somewhat of a maestro in the art of tailoring along with his friends Bittu (Aparshakti Khurana) and Jana (Abhishekh Banerjee), who soon falls head over heels in love with a mysterious girl (Shraddha Kapoor) who seems to have some secret of her own. Bollywood has had a poor track record of some meaningful horror flicks but this horror comedy lives up to the expectations with its right dose of comedy and horror blended in an exceptional way. Director Amar Kaushik has done a splendid job with the story which keeps the comedy slick but without tampering with the spine chilling share of horror. 

Talking about the performances, Rajkummar Rao breathes life into this horror comedy flick. Shedding his intense roles and stepping into the shoes of a commercial hero, the actor has an unrivalled comic timing and is absolutely at his entertaining and endearing best. Rajkummar Rao as Vicky, the amiable boy who loves to stitch for the whole town, loves like a passionate companion and ultimately braces the responsibility of saving the entire town from the terror of Stree will inevitably make you fall in love with him. Shraddha Kapoor looks beautiful but fails to create a strong impression.  Not much to offer in the first half, her character exuberate a strength post interval but does not leave a strong mark. Instead, Aparshakti Khurana and Abhishekh Banerjee manage to captivate with their amusing and side splitting performances. But if there is one person who really steals the show in most of the scenes, it is Pankaj Tripathi. He is simply a visual delight with his humorous one liner and witty dialogues. 

Based on a ‘ridiculously true phenomenon’ Stree does not hamper its esscence of being an entertaining horror comedy. At one point, there is also a hidden symbolism of womanhood in the film amidst the chaotic comedy of errors and the terrifying horror.  The rustic simplicity of the location, characters and incidents weaved out by the director only adds to the charm of the film. There are some slap sticking hilarious dialogues and a sense of intrigue in the film which will leave you wanting for more, the cinematography by Amalendu Chaudhury is exceptional and adds to the eerie and macabre setting of the plotline. Speaking about the soundtrack while the songs like ‘Milegi’ sung by Mika Singh and ‘Nazar Na Lag Jaye’ sung by Ash King and Sachin-Jigar impresses due to their catchy and rhythmic tone as well as the perfect blending with the storyline, songs like ‘Kamariya’ sung by Astha Gill and Divya Kumar and ‘Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe’ sung by Nikita Gandhi and Badshaah fail to create a profound impact and look badly misplaced. 

The only major flaw which was quite profound is the ambiguous climax which does not give a sound expression or justification to the whole scenario. But overall Stree is an entertainer at its best and deserves applaud for its attempt to bring a new dimension to this challenging genre of horror comedy.