‘Swarna Kaduva’ mixes a lot of familiar elements including the story line, the conventional movie making, Biju Menon’s characterization, the comic flavor et al. However, in spite of these familiarities, the movie stands its own and manages to stay afloat in an engaging manner. It might not be a stellar experience but one might actually like the movie depending on your mood and the company you are with.
The trailer of the movie itself had given a gist of the story and as expected we have Rini Iype Matummel (Biju Menon) working for the gold merchant who is also a film producer Lolappan (Innocent). Rini is seen to do all the dirty works of Lolappan including finding women for Lolappan. Things take a turn when Lolappan hits a drunk Tamil labourer and accidently kills him. Rini’s characterization in the movie is impressive. There is a light heartedness mixed with a shrewdness and greedy temperament that Rini has.
The movie has a lot of satire and effectively uses humour. Babu Janardhanan’s script is known for their contemporary relevance and this one is no different. The film does take a dig at certain affluent people in our society who are implied to have made money illicitly. ‘Swarna Kaduva’ swings to a good pace initially but the climax lacks the expected punch because of the lack of novelty.
Biju Menon is supported well by his side kick Joju (Hareesh Perumana) whose role is not relegated to just the usual ribaldry of a man Friday. Ineya packs a punch in the movie. She plays Lovely and the romance interspersed in the narrative is again not the ordinary kind. Poojitha, Sudheer Karamana, Suresh Krishna et al have made their presence felt. Rateesh Vega’s music is passable and the technicalities are neat and conventional. Director Jos Thomaas has done a conventional work neatly though we have nothing new to say about his technique. Babu Janardhanan’s script keeps the movie breezy.
Biju Menon had been commanding a slew of followers with his avid comic timing and a humour filled choice of movie that has people flocking to the theatre. ‘Swarna Kaduva’ joins the band wagon. Though not as spectacular as say ‘Vellimoonga’, this one is a neat entertainer and does a convincing act.
