Pizza Movie Review: If Only The Topping Was Balanced

When the twist in the tale is revealed, Pizza brings you on the edge of the seat, well literally, and you can't help but nod in approval at the innovation that is demonstrated in this story which turns out to be more than just a horror affair. However, the writer and the director eat more than what they can chew here. They bring on another twist in the tale, hence diluting the overall build up that had been superb till this point. Now if not for this last scene, the film would have been such a recommended affair.

Not that there are no loose points for the rest of the film's duration. A '13 B' kind of lift sequence at the very beginning doesn't really make much of an impact. For a horror tale, the film takes way too long to come to the point, what with quite some time spent on the story of a married couple Akshay Oberoi and Parvathy Omanakuttan. Also, the film gets repetitive and even boring in the middle of the second half. Not just that as the transition between quite a few scenes does seem abrupt in this half of the film, though one has to admit that it ties well in the end.

However, the kind of stranglehold required for a film belonging to this genre is missing. Director Akshay Akkineni knows the technique well and never falls prey to clichés. However he had little in the plot to play around with due to which even at a 100 odd minutes duration, the film comes across as a stretch intermittently.

As said earlier, it is the 'story behind the story' towards the pre-climax that salvages the show in a big way. It is well spun and you do nod in approval at the back story of it all. Really, it isn't something that one can see coming at all. However, the last scene is needless as it tries to make the movie smarter than what it is.

As for the actors, Akshay does well as the boy in trouble and is better than his mushy self in Rajshri's Isi Life Mein with which he had made his debut. He plays his part really well. Parvathy is a revelation and is confidence personified. Moreover, she is also believable in practically every scene she appears. Arunoday Singh and Dipannita Sharma as Mr. and Mrs. Ghost, as they are credited in the film, are clearly having fun in their brief parts. Rajesh Sharma as Akshay's employer is decent though in a meaty role like this, he could have been much better going by his standards.

Same was expected from the film too which starts off with a bang when it comes to truly innovative opening credits. Now if only the film would have been taken a balanced approach in being innovative and also included better episodes in the middle of the second half, it could have covered a greater distance.

Joginder Tuteja tweets@tutejajoginder