While I droop a little, lend a hand to hold my numb head after watching 'Mosayile Kuthirameenukal', and go “Whatever happened to good old simple storytelling”, what's more disappointing is that I did see a plot somewhere amidst the chaos, which was incompetently handled.
The movie credits in the beginning roll out in the background of underwater sequences, which is great, and a screechy Hindi song, which is sadly unbearable. Cut scene to an old ancestral house in Pambadi, Kottayam. Alex Kurien (Asif Ali) is the fourteenth prodigal son of a wealthy man, Kuriachchan (Nedumudi Venu). After dispute, death, and desolation, Alex becomes the lone man of his palatial house. He moves out and moves into another palatial house in Kochi. So it beats me why he could not hire a lawyer for himself when he was arrested over fake currency issues, instead of planning elaborate escapades from the prison.
Somehow his escape coincides with that of Akbar Ali (Sunny Wayne). There is a story waiting to be told there, between all of Ali's sprinting that lands them both in Lakshadweep. Now what happens there is the story, apparently, but it wears you out by the time you're in scenic Lakshadweep.
There are notions, even ideas if you will, in the movie, however sporadic. But the execution of it is so flawed it knocks you out cold. Almost literally.
Let's start from the basics — most of the dialogues are left to the imagination of the audience, for the background score soars high right when your ears are perked up to hear what they are saying. The BGM is omnipresent, blurring out all conversations, and what's worse, you get this vague idea that instead of the original BGM, it's the audio gag reel that's playing out. After a pleasant innings with Amen and 5 Sundarikal among others, music director Prashant Pillai disappoints.
And when you get to Lakshadweep finally, whoa! You're done with almost three-quarters of the movie. But more importantly, the movie gets better owing to good cinematography by Abhinandan Ramanujam. When you hit rock bottom where story is concerned, you almost wish the people in the movie would either shush or disappear leaving behind just the picturesque locales.
One another interesting thing about the movie is the language 'Mahl' spoken in Lakshadweep. It sounds like a combination of Malayalam and Tamil, which is beautifully handled by Jijoy (Salman), Ali's friend, and by the artist who has lent voice to Isa (Swati Reddy). Jijoy needs a special mention for having played his part superbly, adding the nuances of language and expressions, making Salman's monologue about the selfish world and the swordfish feel like a fable being retold.
The movie lacks the punch to a large extent. It has come up with a theme that is interesting, and we're made to look at certain religious customs in ways we have never before. Some of the shots in the jail was aimed to tickle your funny bone, but sadly not even a chuckle escapes. It could have been a warm albeit kitschy story of love set in a perfect background; but it disappoints. It's not fair to say the lead actors have done a convincing job when the story/concept in itself just doesn't do it for you.
The title of the movie gains momentum once the story is nearing its end, and debutant director Ajith Pillai tries to compensate for a two hour long story-telling with a 15 minute fast-paced climax. If only things were so easy.
Rating: 1.5/5