Vishwak Sen’s Cult created curiosity with its promotions. The actor not only plays the lead role but also directs the film. The team promoted it as India’s first slasher film and promised a lot of violence and bloodshed. With Ravi Basrur handling the music, the film created some interest among movie lovers. But does all that violence make it an engaging thriller? Let’s Find Out.
The Story
A young filmmaker goes to a producer with his two friends to narrate a story. The producer feels the story does not have enough violence and asks him to come up with something more brutal. He gives them fake currency notes and sends them to Goa to write a new story.
After realising that they have been cheated, the three friends decide to return to Hyderabad. However, they learn about a birthday party hosted by Elvin (Tarak Ponnappa), the son of Goa’s Home Minister (Murali Sharma). They steal the party passes and enter the pub.
Things take a dark turn when people at the party start getting killed one after another. Who is behind these killings? Why are the people trapped inside the pub being targeted? What is DSP Sankalp Nayak’s (Vishwak Sen) role in the story? To know the answers, you have to watch the film.
What Works
Honestly, there is very little to appreciate in Cult. Ravi Basrur’s background score and the cinematography are among the few technical aspects that deserve some credit. The visuals help create a dark atmosphere, while the background score tries to support the violent scenes.
Vishwak Sen puts effort into his performance, and some of the actors playing the three friends try their best with the material they are given. However, these positives are not enough to save the film.
What Doesn’t
The biggest problem with Cult is that nothing really works. Not even a single scene feels genuinely interesting or thrilling. The film tries to create shock through extreme violence, bloodshed and abusive dialogues, but it forgets that a thriller also needs a strong story and engaging scenes.
At times, the film gives the feeling of Squid Game, with people trapped in a place and facing deadly situations. But unlike that series, Cult fails to offer even one game or situation that creates real tension or makes us curious about what happens next. The scenes keep moving from one violent moment to another without giving the audience a proper reason to feel involved.
The biggest disappointment is the writing. For nearly 40 minutes, Vishwak Sen does not even appear, and the film spends too much time showing confusing events without creating enough interest. The interval tries to provide some clarity, but the confusion continues in the second half. Although the flashback before the climax attempts to explain the reason behind all the violence, it comes too late to make the overall experience satisfying.
The film also relies heavily on abusive dialogues and brutal scenes. Violence alone cannot make a film engaging, and Cult is a clear example of that. There is a difference between making a bold slasher film and simply showing one violent scene after another. The film fails to understand that difference.
Vishwak Sen’s biggest failure here is as a director. If he thought that extreme violence and abusive dialogues would attract audiences to theatres, that was a seriously misguided decision. The film needed better writing, interesting situations and proper thrills. Instead, it offers a frustrating experience with almost nothing to keep the audience engaged.
Final Take
Cult is a big disappointment with too much violence and no real thrills. Weak writing, confusing scenes and abusive dialogues make it a boring watch.
Vishwak Sen fails as a director, and nothing really works in this film.
Rating: 1.5/5
