There are a few recent detective movies in Malayalam, which prove the moviemaker is smarter and cleverer than the detective in the lead. These movies are, apparently, made (or far-stretched) to perplex the viewers with its "never expected" twists, however irrational or over-blown the twists are. You can call them self-congratulatory attempts. Or if you have been to the cinemas and through the ordeal, you can even call them sadistic.
Thankfully, the movie on review comes as a relief in the genre of investigative movies. When the above-said movies are forcing us to master the "guess game", Ayur Rekha, directed by George Manuel Manu, offers a much better viewing pleasure, but we have to conveniently forget a couple of pathetically visualized songs and, of course, an over-acting Mukesh.
This is a murder mystery, based on a much-admired story "Rekhakalil illathathu'' written by KK Sudhakaran. It develops the lead to the murder in the first half and the investigation in to it, in the second. The climax, as it should be, is surprising as well as thought-provoking.
Sreenivasan plays Jacob George, a DSP who was never able to investigate any of the cases as he is more engaged in office works than on field. He is now investigating the death of Dr. Aparna Venugopalan, an attractive young lady, a spoilt daughter of a wealthier man who owned a prestigious hospital in the city. A bold woman, she now seeks divorce from his husband, Dr. Venugopalan (Sai Kumar), who lives with their 10-year-old son, Arun. Aparna, who has the habit of rearing his lovers, has got a row behind her including Thripprayar Madhavan ,a struggling music director-cum-singer, who lives in a rented house near Aparna's bungalow.
The day Dr. Aparna found dead was a special one for her as it was the same day she granted divorce to his husband in exchange of her son: it was the day she was trying to offer herself to Adv. Anand, who helped her to regain her son, and for much more reasons it was special to her. The initial investigations by the police pointed it as a suicide due to over-consumption of pethadin, which Aparna used to get a good sleep. But an anonymous e-mail received at the Police Headquarters, suggested it as a murder. Deputy Superintendent of Police Jacob George immediately draws his interest into the case and starts to re-investigate the case. What happens thereafter is the crux of the story.
The film opens with one of the worst picturized song, but the film take off from this note in a slow measured pace to make a safe pass till interval, mostly in lighter veins...Jagathy as Thankappan Pillai, the MD of Paramount Pharmaceuticals, holds the first half together with his acute timing of comedy and maneuvers which Lekshmi Sharma as Dr Aparna also does well in a modern role. But with the arrival of Sreenivasan in the later half, the film develops seriousness and gives the air of a better done cinema.
Sreenivasan as usual makes a convincing easy walk through the role as the investigating officer, while the others in the cast including Indrajith, Jyothirmayi, Salimkumar, Niyas, Saikumar,Master Midhun and co also render good performances in supporting roles. Anandakuttan behind the camera and P C Mohanan in editing supports Manu in his endeavor to make a decent film. The film has two songs by Sabeesh George which neither does any thing useful to the narrative. But it is the taut screenplay by Dennis Joseph that works for the film, even though at times it tends to be a little over-dramatic.
The film speaks about the many lighter emotional issues about betrayal and obsession and even a very daringly different climax. But the directorial lag is felt in many sequences even though G M Manu just manages to make them engrossing. Anyway, even as the film is not a great work, it is also not bad either
