Sookshmadarshini Movie Review: An exciting, twisted, friendly neighbourhood story
Sookshmadarshini Movie Review: Critics Rating: 4.0 stars, click to give your rating/review,MC successfully keeps the audience engaged, guessing and on the edge of their seats with this dark t
Critic's Rating: 4.0/5
Story: Manuel’s mother goes missing from their house twice, because of her Alzheimer’s, and neighbour Priyadarshini pokes around to find out if the elderly lady might actually be trying to escape from her son
Review: Sookshmadarshini will come as a surprise to those expecting a comedy from the bubbly lead actors, Basil Joseph and Nazriya; and writer-director MC successfully keeps the audience engaged, guessing and on the edge of their seats with this dark thriller.
Manuel (Basil) moves with his seemingly ailing mother to their house in a close-knit neighbourhood, and while he seems the epitome of a gentlemanly young guy, their neighbour Priyadarshini (Nazriya) isn’t so sure. When Manuel’s mother goes missing a couple of times, leaving the neighbours concerned, nosey Priya ropes in the help of a couple of women from the area to try and find out what Manuel had done to his mother and what else he might be hiding. Amidst the incident with the missing mother and a sister who arrives from New Zealand for a too quick visit, Manuel is constantly hatching plans with his uncle and cousin to hide or get rid of something.
The film keeps us guessing throughout the first half about what the trio might be up to. When this continues into the second half, this begins to lag a bit, but just as the excitement begins to wane, the story is infused with a fresh twist which continues to a satisfying climax.
Basil and Nazriya are inspired choices for their respective roles, because we never know quite what to expect. Basil is excellent as Manuel, though sometimes, there is a comedic baggage that he cannot shake off, but that is more a problem of audience perception, because the actor wisely doesn’t go for slapstick, even though he could have sometimes.
Writers Libin TB and Athul Ramachandran have cleverly deconstructed a situation and rebuilt it into a cinematic plot from a very novel perspective, which is basically about attitudes and acceptance. One drawback that can be pointed out is with the characterisation. Why is Priyadarshini’s character so invested in the problem of Manuel’s mother, to an almost annoying extent? Her skepticism could have been explained as some cute character trait from the beginning. Of course, Nazriya brings her easy charm, combined with an admirable maturity to the role.
All the other actors, Kottayam Ramesh, Aathira Rajeev, Manohari Joy, and particularly Sidharth Bharathan, who brings an understated comedic energy to his role, make great contributions to the intricate layers of the film.
A special mention to Christo Xavier’s music, which sets the tone of the film perfectly. The audience reactions to each scene are built by the music. Sharan Velayudhan Nair’s camerawork, particularly in his focus on Priya and the setting of the story, captures the mood perfectly, and Chaman Chakko’s cuts keep the pace exciting.
Here is a film where all the elements, the writing, direction, acting, music and more, come together in sync to make for an exciting thriller. This is an entertainer that will appeal to theatre audiences.
Review: Sookshmadarshini will come as a surprise to those expecting a comedy from the bubbly lead actors, Basil Joseph and Nazriya; and writer-director MC successfully keeps the audience engaged, guessing and on the edge of their seats with this dark thriller.
Manuel (Basil) moves with his seemingly ailing mother to their house in a close-knit neighbourhood, and while he seems the epitome of a gentlemanly young guy, their neighbour Priyadarshini (Nazriya) isn’t so sure. When Manuel’s mother goes missing a couple of times, leaving the neighbours concerned, nosey Priya ropes in the help of a couple of women from the area to try and find out what Manuel had done to his mother and what else he might be hiding. Amidst the incident with the missing mother and a sister who arrives from New Zealand for a too quick visit, Manuel is constantly hatching plans with his uncle and cousin to hide or get rid of something.
The film keeps us guessing throughout the first half about what the trio might be up to. When this continues into the second half, this begins to lag a bit, but just as the excitement begins to wane, the story is infused with a fresh twist which continues to a satisfying climax.
Basil and Nazriya are inspired choices for their respective roles, because we never know quite what to expect. Basil is excellent as Manuel, though sometimes, there is a comedic baggage that he cannot shake off, but that is more a problem of audience perception, because the actor wisely doesn’t go for slapstick, even though he could have sometimes.
Writers Libin TB and Athul Ramachandran have cleverly deconstructed a situation and rebuilt it into a cinematic plot from a very novel perspective, which is basically about attitudes and acceptance. One drawback that can be pointed out is with the characterisation. Why is Priyadarshini’s character so invested in the problem of Manuel’s mother, to an almost annoying extent? Her skepticism could have been explained as some cute character trait from the beginning. Of course, Nazriya brings her easy charm, combined with an admirable maturity to the role.
All the other actors, Kottayam Ramesh, Aathira Rajeev, Manohari Joy, and particularly Sidharth Bharathan, who brings an understated comedic energy to his role, make great contributions to the intricate layers of the film.
A special mention to Christo Xavier’s music, which sets the tone of the film perfectly. The audience reactions to each scene are built by the music. Sharan Velayudhan Nair’s camerawork, particularly in his focus on Priya and the setting of the story, captures the mood perfectly, and Chaman Chakko’s cuts keep the pace exciting.
Here is a film where all the elements, the writing, direction, acting, music and more, come together in sync to make for an exciting thriller. This is an entertainer that will appeal to theatre audiences.
