Troll: Portraying the dark side of trolling

In Bangladesh, social media has become a place for everyone and everything. What was meant to be a platform for social interaction and entertainment became something more than it is, and everyone has found their place in it. Beside all the good that occurs through the power of social media lies its dark side, where thousands of people enjoy the so-called "dark humour." This humour consists of online sexual harassment, bullying, and several other things that can weigh much heavier on the people who are being made fun of. 

Watch the trailer of "Troll" here 

In the movie 'Troll,' Sanjoy Somadar depicts the dark side of internet trolling, which regularly takes place on social media. The film starts with a case of multiple murder mysteries that the police are tirelessly trying to prevent. The bodies of the victims showed that they had been killed brutally. The protagonist, Apurba, is a source for the police, while also being the one behind these ruthless murders. He hunts down the ones who made troll videos of his beloved little sister, who killed herself after getting viral because of cyber sexual harassment. The story also follows a famous actress becoming the victim of blackmailing and constant cyberbullying on social media. 

The film seemed nothing extraordinary compared to the other Bangladeshi films we are familiar with, except for the story itself. As I was watching the movie, there were a few times the sound got cut, which I believe something the editor should be aware of. I also found inconsistencies in the flow of the storyline. The inclusion of comedy during profound moments and the rapid escalation of scenes are worth noting. If the transitions were smoother, I would not have any complaints about it.  Moreover, I found the background score to be inconsistent as well. The sudden change of music was not as soothing as an audience would like to hear. 

Apurba and Shatabdi Wadud were quite right in their respective characters, but I believe Tasnia Farin, who played the famous actress, could have done a better job. I have more complaints about the extras as they seemed very inexperienced in their acting. As far as the directing is concerned, it was all right most of the time. I know the camera's shaking creates suspense and makes the shot more spontaneous, yet it was overdone by the director. As a result, rather than creating more suspense, it made it blander. Another part where I was disappointed was the killing shots. The scenes were not shown on camera, which is understandable, yet it could have been more realistic. The shots that were shown on film seemed distinguishably fake to me. This is something where the director should focus more on, especially for thrillers like this.

Throughout the movie, it gave us hints that it is a psycho-thriller, which I am not sure if it were. Based on the foreign psycho-thrillers I have seen, the killer does not usually have a clear motive to kill. That is why the murderers are called psychos. But in this case, the killer had an exact motive for his killings. So, I would appreciate it if the readers comment on this and share their views in this regard because I remain unconvinced. 

All in all, 'Troll' is a movie that portrays a serious issue that is happening around us and something we all should be aware of. It is good to see filmmakers now making films on these social issues that need resolving and that too, with a strong storyline. Although my final verdict would be that the movie could have been made a lot better as there still lies a lot of room for improvement.