Recently watching a so called "ghost" movie Oculus, made me go deep into certain issues though the element 'Ghost' had no profound meaning in it.
It is just about a possessed mirror that traps its victims through illusions, making you believe what is not true and fooling your brain. Maybe reading several psychology articles would enlighten us all here in this context. There was no information given as to how and why it is possessed. Its just one mirror that loves killing people.
Though I must admit, the director and the producer have put a lot of thought into it as the whole story sways between flashback and present.Thus, we end up starring at the screen totally perplexed as we have just failed to distinguish what as already happened and what is happening at present. As to me, yea, spending money and time to travel to a nearby mall filled with inimical urban atmosphere just to watch a ghost movie with no ghost in it was too fatiguing. That too, when the sad news of twin bombs blasting in the Central Railway station and our city being under threat left us all astonished, I didn't expect to see such a crowd in that arena.
Finally, here comes the story line: Actually, its the same that you would find in any other ghost stories (as well as the one we all have known from 'The Conjuring') A family (parents and two kids) shifts to a new home where they experience the so called paranormal activity and then finally the people there lose their minds and they all terribly die. Its always a strategy that people follow or rather a rule that it is always the ghost that should win and a part two of the story suddenly stands in front of you before you know it. (Maybe a few movies like Conjuring comes under the exception but this movie comes under the rule) However you find a slight twist here, as the ghost is not really in the house or a part of it (like the cellar) but it is a mirror that this family would have purchased! And its a mirror, obviously it should screw people with only illusions. Yes, it drives the parents mad and they die but somehow the kids alone escape and they make a promise that they would come back and kill it. (like its gonna happen). When they grow up and come back to accomplish their goal, they somehow manage to get caught in its trap again. (like I said, the ghost must win to prove its awesomeness).
Leaving that behind and coming back to reality, it would make most of us wonder if we are living in an illusion created by our brain. The life that we life is just made up by ourselves and the quality of it reflects on the way we look at ourselves. Maybe you can change by slightly tuning your thoughts. Yes, the effect it gives doesn't equal 'Shutter island'or 'Inception' where we actually pin ourselves in a room to discuss about certain intricate issues. When you don't find yourself feeling as eerie as you are supposed to while watching a horror movie, this is what most of us would think of.
And finally, I wouldn't say it was a complete waste of time but can prefer it in case you don't want to watch any other thing but need a slight distraction to take load off of shoulders for a while.
