What bogs the film down ultimately is its decision to use flashback sequences to explain who Pechi is and why she does her acts of cruelty. Honestly, there is only so much a filmmaker can do with a premise as familiar as the one in Pechi. Like the haunted house, the evil in the jungle subgenre of horror is in dire need of a fresh makeover.

Why not make a feature with the look and feel of a horror film about a group of friends venturing into a supposedly haunted forest to debunk superstitions, only to discover a profound connection to nature and themselves and have a spiritual awakening? In other words, the antithesis of a conventional horror film.

The most disappointing aspect of Pechi is not the fact it is derivative, but rather the lack of scares in the film. It tries every trick in the book to throw curveballs at the characters and scare the audience in the process, including hands protruding from trees, apparitions that pop up from nowhere, and more. However, it becomes so predictable and monotonous after a point. As a result, even the earnest performances start to feel gimmicky. The film makes a last-ditch effort to pull out the rug from beneath, but the sudden shift barely makes an impact.

The most disappointing aspect of Pechi is not the fact it is derivative, but rather the lack of scares in the film. It tries every trick in the book to throw curveballs at the characters and scare the audience in the process, including hands protruding from trees, apparitions that pop up from nowhere, and more. However, it becomes so predictable and monotonous after a point. As a result, even the earnest performances start to feel gimmicky. The film makes a last-ditch effort to pull out the rug from beneath, but the sudden shift barely makes an impact.

Great horror cinema has a way of working up a sense of dread that lingers on for hours after you leave the cinema halls. In Pechi, the mere existence of a sequel-bait climax is scarier than the gobbledygook that its characters spout sometimes and what the goggle-eyed old woman does with her oculus toys.

Cast: Bala Saravanan, Gayathrie Shankar, Seeniammaal, Dev, Preethi Nedumaran, Jana, Natturaja

Director: Ramachandran B

Rating : 2/5