Hisss is a 2010 Bollywood film that was shot simultaneously in English and Hindi. The film is drawn from ancient legends of the Naga, which is a god that take the form of a snake, particularly the King Cobra. There have been several previous Indian films that cover this topic of a snake god that can shape-shift into human form. The Indian films primarily deal with the Nagi, or female.
In this iteration of the Nagi film, the female will assume human form when her lover has been captured. She extracts her revenge on anyone evil during her quest to find her captured mate. George States (Jeff Doucette) is dying of cancer. He has learned of the powers of the Nagi and wants to exchange her mate for the Nagmani, which is a pearl that grows in the hood of a cobra. States takes several jungle guides into an area where the Nagi is believed to reside. States forces his jungle guides to capture the snake and provide security while he awaits the arrival of the Nagi.
Vinkram Gupta (Irrfan Khan) is a police investigator whose wife, Maya (Divya Dutta) has miscarried their child. He is tasked with investigating a number of mysterious deaths which appear to be the work of a giant snake. Gupta spends a great deal of time dispelling the mythology that has crept into his investigation, looking for a scientific explanation. His research leads him to the same place the Nagi has discovered, the compound where States has imprisoned (and tortured) her mate. Gupta’s purity will determine his fate in a showdown with the supernatural.
Jennifer Chambers Lynch created the screenplay for Hisss, which she also directed. Her characters are poorly developed and one-dimensional. The story itself lacks coherence, often skipping around without fully establishing context. This creates confusion for viewers who are forced to try and fill in the blanks in the story line. The dialogue was decent, but often not very credible. The concept was actually decent. It could have potential with a completely reworked script that includes more character-driven qualities and much tighter direction.
The acting was poor for many reasons, but primarily tied to the writing and direction, as well. The George States character was completely hideous and one-dimensional. It made Doucette look like a moron, even though his performance wasn’t bad. Khan delivered a strong performance in spite of the script issues. I also enjoyed Mallika Sherawat as the Nagi. While she didn’t have much to say, she looked good in the process. Her skin scenes almost earned this film an extra star. But I can’t go that far. I also enjoyed what little I saw of Dutta. <
Hisss is a film that relies heavily on special effects. If the effects had been well done, this film might have earned another star. In fact, strong special effects might have catapulted this film into a mild recommendation. However, the effects were laughable. The shape shifting transformations were horrible to witness. There were a couple of scenes with the Nagi wearing fake fangs that looked like a B-film. The CGI could have been impressive, but looked twenty years old to me. I was sorely disappointed with the effects. I can understand filming on a budget, but to undertake a project that relies on the special effects without spending the money to get it right is unforgivable. The effects took away from this film rather than enhancing it.
I actually believed I would enjoy Hisss. I was wrong. I have seen worse films, but this one had potential to be good. That is even worse. The lack of cohesion to tie the scenes together, the choppy storyline, the weak dialogue and the lack of character development were bad enough. Throw in the horrible special effects and I can’t give much weight to the strong performances. You can’t polish a turd. The acting in this film was a coat of polish on a stinker. This film should not have been made unless they were going to do it right. What a waste of a decent concept. 2/10.
