Movie Name: Maradona
Cast: Tovino Thomas, Leona Lishoy, Chemban Vinod Jose
Director: Vishnu Narayn
If you thought Tovino starrer Maradona was something related to the football legend, you are treading the wrong path.
And in case Mayaanadhi's Mathan is still endearing you, it's time to let go of that as well.
Tovino Thomas' Maradona will make you hate him as he dons the role of an anti-hero who is not reluctant to play dirty tricks as the loony shades of his goon life unravels.
Maradona is a tale of a hardcore goon taking refugee in a cousin's apartment in Bengaluru after an accident. Maradona does not think twice to assault a man in front of his crying little child and thinks of frying a pet pigeon for food. Womanizing is another favourite pastime of our man -- just for the heck of it.
The audience is exposed to the real side of Maradona after some minutes. We are exposed to Mardona and his best friend Sudhi, played by Tito Wilson, who are on the run after thrashing up a politician's son as part of a 'quotation.'
Locked up in a flat all alone for a couple of days, Maradona starts making friends with all those who are in the vicinity from the flat's balcony.
Maradona has only a dog for company in the flat and he strikes a friendship with an old man and a home nurse in the opposite flat, played by Sharanya R Nair.
The entire movie shifts between altering sequences from the past and present. At one point, Maradona himself gets confused on his affection for Asha, the home nurse.
Though mainly carried by Tovino himself, the plot gives ample scope for some other characters too. Chemban Vinod as Martin who is in hot pursuit of Maradona, the old cheerful man in the opposite flat, the politician's son Aravind, played by Shalu Rahim, have all enacted their roles with finesse.
The music by Sushin Shyam is enjoyable.
The director does deserves applause for his craft, considering that this is his debut movie.
The heroine charms us with her portrayal of the character that gradually sows the seeds of repentance in Maradona.
While Tovino's Machiavellian avatar keeps us hooked to the movie, it also paints his innocent side at times.
The director somehow forcibly stretches the plot to weave in the hero's transformation, which somehow doesn't strike a right chord.
Action sequences towards the end also seem contrived. The key drag of the movie is the forceful infusion of too much of goodness at one go.
The camera pans between hilly terrains and smokey interiors of estranged factories as well as the serene shades of modern apartments, but that could at best be termed average.
