How often have we come across two movies helmed by the same director being released on the same day? Well that particular distinction fell upon Akhil Anilkumar who directed the "Geethu Unchained" segment in the impressive "Freedom Fight" & also called the shots in "Archana 31 Not Out". Unlike the former, the latter was released in theatres & dealt with the challenges that an educated financially independent female who took care of her family had to face coz of the uncertainty in her marital prospects.
The primary problem that both Geethu (Rajisha) in "Freedom Fight" & Archana (Aishwarya Lekshmi) faced was the indecisiveness in their lives as to when they will be tying the knot. Just like most parents, they were anxious (though not as overbearing as Geethu's) about her future especially since almost 30 proposals had failed to materialise for various reasons. However, the 31st proposal brought joy to her family as both the parties decided to solemnize the marriage.
Apart from helming the project, Akhil had also penned the script which focused yet again on women & the freedom to lead their lives on their terms. The first half builds up the story in an engaging & humorous manner that throws light on her personal & professional life as well as the people that she comes across on a regular basis. After the wedding is fixed, it tries to emulate the vibe generated in "Thinkalazhcha Nishchayam" & does succeed to a certain extent. However, when an incident exposes the vulnerabilities of the protagonist; that's when it falters big time as it meanders along aimlessly for a significant amount of time. Despite a couple of interesting segments including the climax, there was a substantial lag in between & makes one feel that it was way longer than 105 mins.
As the protagonist, Aishwarya was impressive while most of the other artists did their parts aptly. At the same time there were quite a few that were wasted such as Indrans (it was a character that certainly had potential), Ramesh Pisharody and Renjit Nair. On the technical side, Joyal Joji's visuals were fine while Maathan & Rajat Prakash created some interesting tracks.
Verdict: There is no doubt that Akhil has the makings of a fine director which he showcased in both his projects. Over here, despite a promising start & a commendable climax; he fails to capture our attention in the latter half. In short, it could have been way better with a smarter screenplay!!!
Rating: 2/5
Regards...Ben
No comments:
Post a Comment