The much awaited magnum opus of LJP hit the screens on the eve of Republic Day & from whatever I have heard, the opinions has been rather mixed. Well obviously everyone perceives each movie according to their own taste & hence it is important that other's opinion are taken with a pinch of salt before you have actually seen it. So did the LJP magic work this time around??? Since this was his first collaboration with Lalettan, the pre-release expectations had touched stratospheric levels.
As LJP had said in the promotions, the movie is set in a fictional space & time where the protagonist, Malaikottai Vaaliban (Lalettan) is an invincible wrestler whose feats of valour & strength had travelled far and wide. He moved from place to place in search of new challenges in the company of his foster father, Ayyanar (Hareesh Peradi) & brother, Chinnapayyan (Manoj Moses). One such duel saw him prevail over Chamathakan (Danish Sait), who swore to have his revenge at any cost & that essentially is what this movie is about.
Before even talking about the script & screenplay, it is imperative to mention that from a technical perspective this is undoubtedly one of the finest crafted Malayalam movie that I had watched. Kudos to Madhu Neelakandan, for the exquisite frames, be it in bright light or in the dark, in the narrow corridors or in the vast expanse of land; it was an absolute treat to the eyes. Equally brilliant was the sound department, Gokul Das's art direction & the work done by the costume team. Prashant Pillai's music was unique as it was in sync with the mood of the movie and elevated the impact of Vikram Mor's well choreographed (for most parts) action sequences. In short, it would be surprising if Madhu & few others doesn't get recognized on a National level for their efforts.
Coming to the story, it has that typical LJP touch whereby his vision manages to create that larger than life aura for Vaaliban, the choice of colour gradients depending on the mood & the nod to spaghetti Western, Samurai flicks including ones back home such as "Sholay", "Baasha" etc. Even as all of these makes it a grand spectacle on the screen, it fails to engage the audience in terms of the storyline except for the initial interest generated with the introduction of the protagonist. It was surprising that someone as accomplished as P.S Rafeeque came with an underwhelming screenplay which lacked cohesiveness for most parts such as the Portuguese caricatures to name one instance. However, it starts to come together in the last 30-45 mins whereby it draws our attention to the series of events that unfold rather hurriedly culminating in a climax that literally set the stage for a sequel (somewhere along the lines of "Brahmastra").
As Vaaliban, Lalettan was impressive as he made the character believable both in terms of what the warrior goes through mentally despite the accomplishments, body language and the agility that the role demanded. His voice modulation in some of the intense scenes were also top notch. Danish Sait was a pleasant surprise as the scheming antagonist whose laughs reminiscent of 'Joker' was haunting. Hareesh Peradi deserves praise while Manoj Moses, Sonalee Kulkarni (as Rangarani), Katha Nandi (as Jamanthi) & Manikandan Achari did their parts well.
Verdict: There is no doubt that it is a visual spectacle & deserves to be watched once on the big screen just for that. However, there is no denying that the screenplay failed to keep us invested in it except towards the very end. In short, falls well short of expectations & if at all, you intend to watch it; please do so in theatres coz you are unlikely to enjoy it as much on the OTT!!!
Rating: 3/5
Regards...Ben
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