Well, I've been awaiting Jude Anthany Joseph's follow-up to his fantastic homage-of-sorts, yet wholly original nods, to PG Wodehouse as well as Hrishikesh Mukherjee, 'Ohm Shanthi Ohshaana' (OSO).
This movie, imho, though not superior to OSO, was well worth the wait.
The title didn't, & still doesn't, sound apt, imho, but that may just be because I am not as familiar with the Malayalam language as I'd like to be. The tag-line, on the other hand, I'm sure, is could-have-been-better written communication, or phrased that way to mislead audiences & hide spoiler-ish info from them.
1 of the hallmarks of a great screenplay, to me, has always been the playwright's ability to take something clichéed/routine, & make it engaging for the audiences in order to keep the material fresh in spite of swimming in known waters, & (to continue to use that metaphor) suddenly (& pleasantly) display unexpected depth. OSO had that in spades, as do most remakes which are superior to their source material ('The Departed', True grit' & 'Scarface' immediately come to mind, among many more, I'm sure). When viewed through that lens, this movie takes its time to get going.
Anthany Joseph's homage to Lal Jose continues with this, & his self-referential scenarios in the beginning, along with a (partially) 3rd wall breaking titles sequence, to me, felt more stilted than cute of original (to be fair, many audience-members enjoyed it).
It actually took me some time to get into the spirit of the movie, when I gradually began appreciating the consistency of the characterization attributed to all the roles, including the supporting characters. The makers take their own time, peeling layer-upon-layer, though there are diversions aplenty, & quite a bit of ground-reality-yet-in-your-face racism thrown in for good measure, the peeling of layers actually has a few surprises in store, that a thoughtful viewer might see coming from a way off, & yet, manage to evoke much-needed surprise, &, yes, a grudging respect that Jude Anthany Joseph has, yet again, pulled off a memorable piece of work that will stand the test of time.
However, the climax could have been less heavy-handed (don't get me wrong - absolutely love the idea being propagated), the homage paid to Jack Nicholson & Morgan Freeman less obvious (or, more subtle; though, in my own head, I also was seeing snapshots of the more-recent 'Bad moms', in spite of that one being an on-the-nose-yet-inferior work, in comparison to this).
One great thing about the movie, other than the climax, is that it progressively gets genuinely funnier, & that's, a huge feat. Sequences like the one in which 2 fathers are discussing TV channels (won't say more), a group prayer sequence, 1 twist towards the end (a resounding 'ring' of sorts), cars stammer-starting (almost brought down the entire house)...
Initially, the casting of Aparna Balamurali (fantastic in a smaller role in 'Maheshinte Pratheekaaram') in more than one role seemed diverting, but not calling undue attention to that trick-casting, in spite of the available opportunities, is praiseworthy. Casting both Vineeth Sreenivasan & Sreenivasan, as well as Jude Anthany Joseph himself playing caricatures, after a similar role tailor-made to the talents he's chosen to exhibit, after 'Premam' (albeit, with surprises), also, surprisingly, does not call attention to itself much (it does, initially, before he reins it in). The cameos by Lal Jose & Renji Panicker, on the other hand, have the disappointing effect of taking us out of this tale & into another, in spite of the fact that Panicker is a welcome presence even in 1 scene (he was grossly under-used in more sequences in the recent 'Oppam', in spite of his characterization being quite apt). I confess to enjoying the side-quell aspect of this segue.
The period sequences do evoke a certain kind of nostalgia, & Joseph's attention to detail shows up in every frame. It has been his strength, & is going nowhere anytime soon. So looking forward to his next.
In terms of the score though, while both the background score as well as the songs are decent, they're not gonna be as chart-busting as it was in OSO. To me, that was a disappointment. More work could have benefited the music album, but there's a chance that the numbers might grow on one.
The main lead, Rajini Chandy, is perfectly cast, & gives a pitch-perfect performance in each & every frame she's asked to shoulder. Not sure, but since this is her debut, she could not have asked for a better showcase for her amazing acting talents. Here's to hoping she gets more roles worthy of her, & keeps working for a long time. Bhagyalakshmi, who makes an appearance almost halfway into this tale, & becomes a staple thereafter, is simply superb as the tolerant, yet firm foil to the main lead, & this takes on the shape of a buddy-comedy of sorts after her character's entry into this tale, combined with an unorthodox road trip (amazing locations, as usual, & no surprise - this is God's own country we're talking about).
Vijayaraghavan, Lena (I've seen her earlier in 'Airlift', 'Ennum Eppozhum', 'Iyobinte Pushthakam' & '2 countries') & Suraj Venjaramoodu (recently seen in 'Kochchaavu Paulo Ayyappan Coelho' in a fairly standard comedic role, but who was amazing in both 'Perariyaathavar' & 'Action hero Biju') are all good, along with being aptly cast.
Joseph also weaves in subtle political commentary, that one can find if one looks for it, & not otherwise, a la Hrishi-da or PGW, without us getting any kinda whiplash from each of those observations.
Definitely worth 1 viewing at least, with the entire family, at the local cinema. 1 of this year's very best.
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