Ludo is a 2015 Bengali Indian horror film directed by Qaushiq Mukherjee and Nikon from a screenplay written by Mukherjee, based on a storyline they both devised; it stars Kamalika Banerjee, Joyraj Bhattacharya and Soumendra Bhattacharya.
Reviews:
“It follows the classic slasher formula of kids trying to get laid, and instead ending up in pieces all over the place, but it does it in a way that deceptively sidesteps the audience’s expectations, and perhaps offers a bit of a bait and switch.” Twitch
“Ludo has things to say about India’s still-repressed culture, and its attempts at tying sex into the horror are noticeable even if they’re not all that understandable. One monster devours someone’s innards only to be seen in the next scene smoking a post-cannibalistic cigarette. It’s not very subtle, but it’s also not very conclusive.” Film School Rejects
“Unfortunately, rather than the gritty, authentic almost guerrilla-like filmmaking it could have been, Ludo comes across as amateurish dreck, akin to a cheap, gore-soaked heavy metal video where everyone staggers around in a fit of the hysterics, screaming, covered in blood whilst spouting portentous dialogue about ancient curses and oh, the pain…” Cinapse
“While Ludo might be a tonal jumble of mismatching stories, there’s some stellar gore here, and a bonkers approach to filmmaking. This is meant as a compliment, but the overall tone is that of a former music video director, who loves playing around with frantic, high-octane intensity.” We Got This Covered
“There’s a lot of promise in Ludo that gradually dissolves when the horror elements kick in. By the end, after we’ve seen guts consumed and other hideous acts occur under the mall’s roof, I wasn’t sure what was trying to be said other than “look at how crazy this shit is!” There’s an edginess to their film trying to find balance with the message, but the two never cohesively mesh.” Bloody Disgusting
“It’s not until the actual Ludo board gets pulled out that the movie takes an immediate detour into the realm of “completely incomprehensible,” never to return. The film becomes a scattershot of scenes that pretend to be about something, but the logic connecting them is either completely absent or, more likely, poorly communicated.” Letterboxd
“There is a lot of sporadic gore, and it’s well done, but the narrative was mishandled and the film felt like style over substance, but not a triumph thereof. As such it was watchable but ultimately too shallow to be 1) a substantial horror vehicle and 2) a good film.” Taliesin Meets the Vampires
Main cast:
- Kamalika Banerjee
- Joyraj Bhattacharya
- Soumendra Bhattacharya
- Ananya Biswas
- Ranodeep Bose
- Murari Mukherjee
- Rii
- Subholina Sen
- Tillotama Shome
