'And The Oscar Goes To' is about pursuing your dreams and passion.
The film directed by Salim Ahamed, sees Tovino Thomas playing the role of a struggling filmmaker. And we have seen many such stories like Udayananu Tharam and Monsoon Mangoes. But then, the filmmaker here is focused and becomes successful and success seems to have come too early.
Isaak Ebrahim (Tovino Thomas) is born at a hospital adjacent to a theater. The sound from the theater is apparently the beginning of life for movie lover Isaak. And the inspiring movies include one like Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha, Vidheyan, Manichithrathzhu.
Isaak is a man of few words and is inspired by people around him. In a scene, Isaak sits at a tea shop and while the owner boasts that many directors like Sathyan Anthikad and Priyadarshan have sat at his shop and went on to become directors, Isaak chooses to remain silent. Before leaving he tells the man, “I know you simply blabbered about other directors but you don't have to do that in my case. You can confidently say that director Isaak Ebrahim had tea from your shop.”
But the filmmaker's struggle does not end with filmmaking part. It involves taking the film to the big screen and showing to audience. And more than that, it is about how Isaak takes his film to the Academy and the effort behind it.
Salim Ahamed made his directorial debut with 'Adaminte Makan Abu'. He won the National Award for it as the Best Feature Film and it also won top honours at 2011 Kerala state awards.
It needs to be mentioned that Salim Ahamed’s debut film ‘Adaminte Makan Abu’ was chosen as India’s official entry for the best foreign film category in the 84th Academy Awards.
So joining the dotted lines, it seems evident that he has taken inspiration from his own life.
There are two aspects about the movie. One is the filmmaking process and the other is keeping the art away from real life. While the former signifies that money is an integral part in the art business, the later signifies that humanity defines art.
The biggest strength of 'And The Oscar Goes To' lies within the team. The actors -- Siddique, Anu Sithara, Salim Kumar, Appani Sarath, Nikki Hulowski, Sreenivasan - everyone manages to create an impression. And Tovino Thomas carries a major portion on his shoulders. With a controlled performance, Tovino is as convincing as a struggling director.
In a scene, the actor is seen craving for food but he is in a predicament in which he can't have food. His character is one who doesn't show his emotions openly. Only Tovino, with his pleasing persona, can manage to take up the restrained role so well.
The visuals by Madhu Ambat is a treat to watch. The top shots, the use of lights (especially in the scene between Tovino and Siddhique where he confesses that he's been starving) and the changing colour tones deserves a special mention. The score by Bijibal and Resul Pookutty's sounding gels well with the mood.
Certain scenes are depicted as naturally as it could be like the one where Isaak sits at Prince's (Siddhique) house and eats and when he visits Moidikka's (Salim Kumar) house. The pace of the movie beomes a problem times with too much melodrama in the second half. But then, like it's said in the movie, a film has it's own pace and life.
