‘Alamara’ states plainly that all those that are involved in the film deserved a material much better than this. Which is why, despite an impressive line up of a cast and crew, ‘Alamara’ barely rises above the fascinating concept at its core.
Mithun Manuel Thomas’ ‘Alamara’ is a film that is dragged down by some sloppy writing and routine execution. With almost zilch inventive fun moments, ‘Alamara’ strikes a low in both style and substance.
An almirah, gifted by the bride’s parents wreaks havoc in the lives of a freshly wedded couple Arun (Sunny Wayne) and Swathi (Aditi Ravi). With their respective parents adding to the ever escalating tension, Arun and Swathi realize pretty early in their married lives, that wedlock could indeed turn out to have a bolt that isn’t easily unfastened.
This certainly isn’t the first film that dwells on how egos ruin relationships beyond repair, and it certainly won’t be last either. What makes the ‘Alamara’ stand all wobbly though is the shaky foot pieces that make up its script. Shifting between the mundane and at best vaguely amusing, here is a screenplay that leaves a lot to be desired.
There are films where a sub plot miraculously saves the day, and unfortunately, ‘Alamara’ does not fall into the said category. The subplot that involves some real estate dealings also seem a bit too inspired, and fizzle out eventually, as if suggesting that the makers weren’t really sure of they wanted to carry it on any further.
The main plot, is again one that places the almirah in a cloistered room, with plenty of chaos and cacophony for company. With characters piling up dime a dozen, the proceedings get increasingly wary as time progresses, and there soon comes a point when you realize that this could as well be the best that it could get.
The promise that it initially seems to hold to be a droll pot-boiler is not one that holds for long, and the half formed sketch of the script does nothing much to retrieve the film from the dumps. Every now and then comes a moment, where it seems that the film is finally making an effort, but which is further followed by more disillusionments.
It could probably be pardoned that this is a film that is pretty low on surprises, but when it falls short of some good mirth, one isn’t amused. There are very few gags in ‘Alamara’ that could tickle your laughter nerve and that isn’t a good sign for a film that should have been probably banking on its ability to make people cackle.
‘Alamara’ proves yet again that it simply isn’t enough to have an amusing idea that one expects to evolve into a terrifically entertaining film. Very often it so happens that the idea remains, and all that is magnificently built around it does not do ample justice to the central thought that it had all stemmed up from.
Aditi Ravi emerges the life saver, with a commendable performance that puts almost everybody else’s in the shade. In sharp contrast, Sunny Wayne makes do with pretty much the same expression irrespective of the circumstances that his character is sailing through. There are however a few creditable performances from the likes of Manikandan, Saiju Kurup and Seema G Nair.
‘Alamara’ states plainly that all those that are involved in the film deserved a material much better than this. Which is why, despite an impressive line up of a cast and crew, ‘Alamara’ barely rises above the fascinating concept at its core.
Verdict: Average