Evil Eye (2020)

Directed by: Elan Dassani, Rajeev Dassani | 90 minutes | horror | Actors: Sarita Choudhury, Sunita Mani, Bernard White, Omar Maskati, Anjali Bhimani, Nupur Charyalu, Lena Clark, Asad Durrani, Kim Patel, Ramesh Reddy, Pritesh Shah, Kamran Shaikh, Ash Thapliyal, Rachel Cora Wood

The fear of “the evil eye” has been deeply rooted in various belief systems for thousands of years. We already find this form of superstition in the ancient Greeks and Romans, but also in Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and certain movements within Christianity. The evil eye is represented as a look that causes misfortune, injury or even death to people. Special amulets are said to be the main sources of protection against the malicious sense.

‘Evil Eye’ plays loosely with the theme of the evil eye. The film mainly revolves around the mother-daughter relationship between Usha and her daughter Pallavi. The two mainly speak on the phone as they live miles apart geographically. Usha lives with her husband in the Indian capital Delhi, while Pallavi is domiciled in New Orleans, America.

Usha is a traditionally raised Indian woman, with a strong belief in things like reincarnation, birth charts, betrothal and swearing. When Pallavi develops an intimate relationship with wealthy Sandeep and Usha learns about her daughter’s new boyfriend, the concerned mother becomes increasingly convinced that the two didn’t bump into each other by accident. According to her, there is something evil behind the blossoming love; a dark secret linked to an abusive relationship in which Usha was involved in her early years…

‘Evil Eye’ is based on a radio play that mainly consists of telephone conversations and voicemail fragments. This narrative form does not always translate well and naturally to the screen and the film plunges into a minor identity crisis. Do the Dassani brothers want to present us with a melodrama or a thriller with a supernatural tinge? They sometimes don’t seem to know themselves. The more disturbing elements of the story mostly take the form of flashbacks that show glimpses of Usha’s unpleasant childhood experiences.

Artistically speaking, ‘Evil Eye’ could have used a little more spice, gravy and originality, while the final denouement unfolds in a predictable and somewhat uninspired way. The hasty-looking final act also doesn’t suit a film that generously takes the time to introduce the main protagonists and slowly increase the tension. The acting is decent, with Omar Maskati in particular standing out positively. In setting up the complex Sandeep, he navigates between two extremes as skillfully as he is convincing: the mysterious benefactor and the highly flammable, capricious and ultimately even downright infamous villain.

While it’s interesting to see a film that uses non-Western supernatural elements instead of the fairly jaded Christian rites and myths so often featured in thrillers and horror films, the execution isn’t entirely satisfactory. ‘Evil Eye’ swings back and forth between family drama and thriller and never rises to great heights in either respect.