Mr Fraud may be the first film ever in Malayalam to have a protagonist with out a name. The name, John Cliff, with which the lead character played by Mohanlal makes his entry or Shivaram, the name of an individual Mohanlal’s character impersonates later are not his real names. And, Bhaiji, as he is addressed by his known circles is definitely not a name. Apart from this there is nothing that is novel to this film.
The subject of controversy over ancestral inheritance has surfaced umpteenth number of times in Malayalam films in different sizes and shapes. But this time around it’s the treasure of a royal lineage measured in astronomical scale and which is locked up in cellars, thanks to discovery of priceless treasure troves in the subterranean cellars of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple and the media hype over it.
Now, there are several possibilities with tight security in place protecting and preserving it. Director B Unnikrishnan takes up the most titillating probability – of a high profile and tech savvy burglar planning to whisk away the treasure caskets from the inner vaults. It’s okay to revisit a subject for a cinematic portrayal.
The mission is of great magnitude but Unnikrishnan just falls short of doing full justice to it. The story begins with a robbery which happens in the backstage while the audience has to see what’s happening in front - dance, fusion music and bash. We are allowed to have only a glimpse of how it exploded. That’s all.
Bhaiji or Fraud, as he loves to be called, is a highly intelligent, efficient and affluent looter who streaks past in sleek cars and caravans equipped with new-age gizmos and air screens, is now into his last mission of robbery. But here it looks as if the whole world rolls up and curls around the protagonist to make him go through his situations.
Once he lands in the palace premises things fall in line for him with clock work precision. Then there are long interludes of drama surrounding the controversies emanating form the conflicts among the Royal family members. Even as Bhaiji sails through the humdrum of palace affairs the sequences are loaded with some clever and punch dialogues. As a film that can neither be put under the genre of an action thriller or a suspense drama Mr Fraud is indeed a fare for the Mohanlal fans and Mohanlal fans only.
The punch dialogues serving as leitmotivs through out the film like, "never carry any emotional baggage," or "trusting me is a huge risk," are absolutely meant to make viewers revel. To balance it there are English words forced out of the characters invariably to keep poking the viewers.
A slip is easily detectible in this digital world. So when the fraud impersonates someone the hosts who receive him checks his personal and professional details a simple search for his image is conveniently avoided. Oh, the story has to move ahead, anyway.
The slow pace of the film will put you to stupor unless your are a hardcore Mohanlal fan. If this is all it takes to plan and execute a treasure heist of such a magnitude, it’s better not to watch it. In addition, the Malayalam film is not likely to get rid of its obsession with slow-motion in near future. Of course, there is no other way, we must understand.
The film doesn’t provide exactly the thrill a subject of its merit would be expected to. Yet, there are some near-breathtaking moments of excitement when the serious mission is underway. But somehow it becomes a make believe world where nothing other than what the protagonist intends, happens.
The elaborate and well detailed family tree and the hierarchical legacy gives some kind of weight to the story. But here too the subplots and the plots within the subplots do take away the focus and interest. By the time the mind boggling suspense is revealed the viewer is a bit exhausted to get stunned by it.
Mohanlal is of course a watchable persona as he ever is and never looses his charisma and lights up the screen occasionally with cheerful and wide smiles. Vijay Babu as Bahiji’s Man Friday, Abbas; Sai Kumar as Sajan, DySP, Intelligence; Siddiqe as Rajasekhara Varma; Mia George as Saraswathi, stand out in their performance among the long line-up of star cast.
The fusion songs do justice to the situation and its ambiance. However, the BGM never ebbs and its continuous presence is disturbingly monotonous. Cinematography by Satheesh Kurup is nothing above the ordinary and never brings back the charms of his previous outings like Pranayam. Though the film lacks maturity in dialogues and coherence in script, it does grab the attention.
Rating 2.5/5