If there ever was a film, I know that I would have loved watching on the big screen with an audience, it would be Minnal Murali. An out and out entertainer, it was created to be cheered and clapped and laughed along with… a good old-school breezy entertainer. Minnal Murali, written by Arun Anirudhan and Justin Mathew, is director Basil Joseph's third film after the super successful Kunjiramayanam and Godha.
The film has something preposterous and surreal, set in as ordinary a milieu as you can imagine. A regular little bustling village in Kerala where everyone knows everyone and the goings-on in each household is no secret. AND is everyone’s business. The Basil Joseph film keeps things light and engaging.
The story really begins on a happy night during Christmas time when, during the revelry, lightning strikes twice, turning two polar opposites into forces with superhuman powers. One of them, our very affable hero, Jaison, a tailor, mildly obsessed with a better life for himself in America. Played with his usual charm but surprising restraint by Tovino Thomas.
The other - Shibu (a nuanced wonderful portrayal by Guru Somasundaram), a derelict teashop help, whose own crazed lost childhood crush seems the fulcrum of his existence. Both yearn for dignity and respect from the villagers around. Both are treated like abject losers.
Jaison seems very befuddled with his powers at first. Using it only to settle one petty score with the father of the girl who jilts him. And then seems to forget all about it. Shibu on the other hand seems to have more fun, exploring his sudden powers, getting a bit giddy over it too… The twist and turns that happen parallelly in both their lives and how these powers change each of them till the ultimate face-off is the story of Minnal Murali.
The director had mentioned that the inspiration for this film was My Dear Kuttichathan and you can feel its spirit right through.
It has a host of excellently portrayed characters, each adding their own flavour to this deceptively simple movie with a generous lashing of superheroes. It all has the feel of the very relatable ‘80s Malayalam cinema.
The chaayakada, the lusted after scandalous neighbourhood girl who returns, a loser hero, local gossip, an all-important bus stand, dumb cops… the usual tropes. Yet there is an exuberance to the whole film that tries hard to localise this superhero without caricaturing it. It does succeed. Justice is served.
The village is filled with interesting characters - a senior policeman (Baiju) with an ego bigger than 70mm, the hero's abusive brother-in-law (Aju Varghese), a mysterious woman (Shelly Kishore) who intrigues everyone with the scandal that surrounds her, a martial arts expert named Bruce Lee Biji (Femina George) who also runs a travel agency, the hero’s philosopher and guide to superheroes the school going Josemone (Vasisht) and others - all of who add to the entertainment.
One does get the feeling though that the all-important brash humour, hyped-up energy, and operatic craziness of superheroism, was downplayed in favour of something a bit more serious – almost like the addictive umami of fast food being replaced by vegan gourmet. Not a bad thing if it’s all done well.
So, still, there are some nice local touches like the masks chosen by the superpowers to, well, mask their identities initially, the wit, interesting music… and an attractive new diversity worn lightly.
The main drawback in this film seems to be at the end, where though the characters progress in their own trajectories taking the audience along with them… we don’t really get the enormity of the final showdown. Shibu’s mental breakdown from a benign half-wit to a demonic beast we actually empathise with.
The backstory of our hero is not that seamless either. Hence the emotional showdown between the hero and the villain - appears forced and contrived. The heroism is more just pageantry. Much of the film disappears into the black holes of the literal furnace.
That said, there is nothing necessarily absurd in the film. It has a bumbling, old world mood about it that never relents even during the rather well done visual effects scenes. It stays true to the feel it was inspired by and comes across as an honest effort created solely to be a heightened, believable, feel-good drama.
The movie is an attempt at something new whilst keeping it relevant to Kerala. In that, it did succeed. Is it a masterpiece? No. But wow is it entertaining! Finally, Malayalam cinema got its own feel-good Christmas film.
Minnal Murali will begin streaming on Netflix on 24th December.
(Sangita Nambiar is a writer, actor, and deep-sea diving enthusiast. You can connect on Twitter: @Sanginamby)
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