1920: Horrors of the Heart review - A terrible film with dull script, bad performances

Imagine it's 3 pm, and you're in a theatre with over 70% occupancy. Everyone is waiting with lots of excitement for the latest Horror film from Bollywood. But, when it starts, you realise that it's just like an extension of daily soaps whose unrealistic, illogical scenes go viral on social media, and for all the wrong reasons. We are talking about the Avika Gor-led 1920: Horrors of the Heart. Avika Gor rose to fame after she played the role of Anandi in the show Balika Vadhu. And, it seems like the actor didn't bother to differentiate between a big-screen film and a TV show. 

3 things you need to know

• Avika Gor's overacting wouldn't end throughout the film. 
• A butler is killed and thrown in the well and he's forgotten, nobody ever questions his disappearance. 
• While 2008's 1920 featured the Hanuman Chalisa, Krishna Bhatt's version depends on Gayathri Mantra and some gangajal. 

Hot Take

You go to watch the film thinking it’s from the makers of Raaz and 1920.  You soon get disappointed, then bored and eventually tired, waiting for the interval and witnessing more disappointments in the second half. You eventually ask, 'why did I do this to myself?'

Does 1920: Horrors of the Heart live up to the hype?

There was a buzz around the movie for a variety of reasons. It comes from Vikram Bhatt, who is known for three out of four films in the Raaz franchise. He was also the director of the first 1920 film, starring Adah Sharma. Moreover, the film is written by Mahesh Bhatt, who also penned the 2002 film Raaz. Another reason why 1920: Horrors of the Heart created a buzz was because it marks the directorial debut of Vikram Bhatt's daughter Krishna Bhatt. Last but not least, this is the first full-fledged Hindi film of Balika Vadhu star Avika Gor. Despite these factors, the film successfully turns itself into a comedy film and fails to offer any chills.

Avika Gor needs to step out of her daily soap zone

Avika Gor plays Meghana, who has a past. A past, where her mother (Barkha Bisht) didn't give her the love she deserved. A mother, who eloped with a rich royal man (Rahul Dev), leaving her behind with her poor father (Danish Pandor). A father, who falls sick and eventually hangs himself to death, leaving behind a diary. A diary that tells her a story about how her mother slow-poisoned him to death. After learning the truth, all Avika can think of is revenge. She ends up at her mother's new home, with a plan to destroy her. The man who helps her do all this is her dead father. 

(Avika Gor as Meghana in 1920: Horrors of The Heart | Image: YouTube)

Laughable screenplay

All of this is more than half of the film, with bad visual effects, terrible and extremely predictable dialogues, and Avika's over-acting. Mind you, nothing ghostly happens yet. What happens is Avika's boyfriend Arjun from Mumbai reaches her and amid all the chaos, they spend a romantic night. This is Irrelevant to the plot, but hey, how can an Indian horror film not have erotic scenes? What happens next is something you wouldn't want in your wildest dreams, Avika’s dead father walks in on her while she's with Arjun. "Yeh hai tumhara badla?" he yells, well, forget chills, this only made everyone in the theatre laugh as if it was a screening of Bhool Bhulaiyaa, Stree, and Roohi all combined. 

(Screengrab of 1920: Horrors of the Heart film | Image: YouTube)

Bad performances

Avika brings her Sasural Simar Ka and Balika Vadhu roles combined on the big screen, with her over-dramatic dialogues and equally bad expressions. It surely worked for her in the TV industry, but the film needed much more. The background music of the film is no less than the music featured in Ekta Kapoor's serials after every dramatic scene. It's Avika and only Avika throughout the film. There are also others, who don't have much to contribute. The mother is guilty (or is she?), Rahul Dev is too nice to be doing anything but smile, and their daughter Aditi - too happy-go-lucky teen to be ignored. (Ketaki Kulkarni). 

(Screengrab of 1920: Horrors of the Heart film | Image: YouTube)

While all this happens, the ghost only chills. Literally, chills on the bed, listening to others talk and laughs at their misery. The film also stars actor Amit Behl, who has done over 100 Indian daily soaps and films, in the role of a half-dead tantrik, who easily dies with some drops of gangajal. Throughout, the movie makes no sense. It seems like Krishna Bhatt was either too laid back about her debut film or extremely overconfident about it. The fact that this was okayed by Vikram Bhatt and Mahesh Bhatt is more horrifying than the film itself.

Watch it or skip it?

Well, what do you think? A film, which was supposed to be a horror show, gives zero chills, zero jump scares with terrible acting from every person in the film. Still, want to watch it?

The bottomline

Yet again, another Indian horror film disappoints. Vikram Bhatt fails to pass on his directorial skills to his daughter. It's a film that doesn’t merit a watch at all.

(Rating: 0.5/5)