One of the most eagerly awaited Xmas release was Lal Jose's "Meow" & though the promotions were rather timid, I had decided to check it out primarily because the project was a collaboration of Lal Jose & Iqbal Kuttipuram. Whenever the duo have joined hands, it has resulted in good projects like "Arabikatha", "Diamond Necklace" & "Vikramadithyan"; so naturally the expectations were pretty high. Unfortunately, it failed to recreate the magic of the earlier projects & cut a sorry figure at the box office.
Based in UAE, Dasthakeer (Soubin Shahir) owned a small supermarket which barely managed to stay afloat; the effects of which created discord in his marital life. It eventually led to his wife, Sulu (Mamta Mohandas) returning to her parents while their children stayed on with their father. Dasthakeer had a bindaas nature in his early days when he was a passionate student leader and a party animal. However, an accident changed his whole outlook towards life & under the influence of the religious leader, Ustad (Salim Kumar) he embraced a much more conservative and devout lifestyle. Around this time, an Azerbaijani maid joined the family and eased the struggles that he faced at home. However, in the process he became much more rigid in resolving the issue with his wife.
Lal Jose's credentials as a film makers needs no introduction as he is undoubtedly one of the finest director in the industry. However, success has been difficult in coming by with his last major box office hit being "Vikramadithyan" in 2014. Well it is likely to remain in the same manner as the script was pretty ordinary & didn't offer anything as such that would make us sit up and take note. Even as the protagonist realizes the flaws of being a fundamentalist, the script fails to give strength to the characterisation of Sulu who though initially shown as a lady wishing to be independent is eventually reduced to someone who is content with a life that had clipped her aspirations. In effect, it continues at the same pace right throughout without much of an impact. On the technical side, Ajmal Sabu's visuals & Justin Varghese's music were fine while Ranjan Abraham's editing could have been a bit more crisper.
Despite the lack luster script, the cast has given decent performances such as Soubin who did justice to his part as the older self. However, the younger version kinda felt pretty artificial while Mamta Mohandas did a decent job in the limited opportunity that was offered to her. However the chemistry between them wasn't quite there apart from maybe in the first scene where they meet. Yasmina Alidodova as the maid was ok along with the kids while it was heartening to see Harisree Yousuf given a credible role to which he has done utmost justice.
Verdict: It failed to recreate the magic that we would expect from a Lal Jose-Kuttipuram combination. the script was pretty average & doesn't offer any scenarios that we are not accustomed to. The presence of the cat or what it was meant to convey didn't make much sense. In short, apart from decent performances, nothing much worthwhile!!!
Rating: 1.75/5
Regards...Ben
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