Lift (2021) Review: All the Tropes and None the Scares

Lift is a horror film directed by Vineeth and starring Amritha Aiyer and Kavin in lead roles. The film is 134 minutes long.

Disney+ Hotstar describes the movie as:

A usual working day turns unusual for Guru and Harini when they get trapped in their haunted office. A patterned game unlocks a mystery and a lift is their only way out.

– Lift review does not contain spoilers –

Lift movie starts like any usual movie. If anything, you wouldn’t think this is a horror movie in the first few minutes. It feels more like a comedy and right off the bat, I find it to be problematic. If you add so much comedy and try to make everything funny then you don’t find it to be as engrossing. Moreover, Guru seems to be quite the annoying brat. When you show your protagonist in a bad light from the first minute, it’s difficult to feel anything for them.

That being said, the office scenes go on for too long; add to that the songs and the romance and fluffy moments, you’re in for a whiplash. Can I also interject here and mention why Harini likes Guru after he destroys her phone? I don’t understand why something like this is still a thing in movies but well.

Anyway, as the horror tropes start off slowly, I liked how Lift movie introduces Snapchat (or Instagram?) filters to give us an inkling that something otherworldly is present in the office. It’s a trope we have seen too well in Host but it’s fun to rewatch regardless. Anyway, as we move on, the horror tropes, keep on piling. Strange feelings, things shifting around, distant sounds – it’s all there. Then they also start playing stupid games to provoke ghosts, like a made-up Ouija board.

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Lift has nothing new or innovative about it. Nothing happens that truly scares us and as the movie progresses, it gets progressively more boring because of the tropes that we see in it. One thing that I’d give the movie though is that it isn’t as cringe as some other horror movies that we have come to watch. Sure, it uses CGI effects that look silly as best, but it has its moments.

Amritha Aiyer and Kavin really pack it in with the horrified employees stuck in their office. That’s a scary thought anyway, but having a ghost for company adds to their predicament.

Summing up: Lift

Lift is a movie over 2 hours that relies solely on the tried-and-tested formulas on horror. It’s not a cringefest but it isn’t an original masterpiece either. It stays in the comforts of movies we’ve watched before. So, if you’re in the mood for a horror that won’t scare you too much but would still be interesting enough, then Lift might just be a good idea.

Lift is streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.

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