‘Avarude Raavukal’ falls short of the basic dramatic tension that drives a film forward. Running for two hours and eleven minutes, it fruitlessly tries to draw out a tissue thin thought into a feature film that sloppily lands all over the place.
At a thirty day long acting workshop, renowned director and acting coach Manoj Kuruvila (Mukesh) announces to the participants that when it comes to a film, the story is primary. Everything else, including the director and the actors could rise only up to the levels that the story demands; lofty or low as the case maybe.
Quite ironically, this is precisely what Shanil Mohammeds’ second film after the highly promising debut ‘Philips and the Monkey Pen’, reaffirms. Lacking an appealing story at its core, ‘Avarude Raavukal’ tries hard to be taut and suspenseful, but emits none of the stirring vibes that you would expect of a film as this.
Aashiq (Asif Ali) has travelled all the way from a distant village to Cochin, with dreams of making it big in films. Sidharth (Unni Mukundan) lives with the ‘realization’ that he is sexually attracted to women (!), and feels the need to consult a psychiatrist to get himself treated for the same. Vijay (Vinay Fort), in a fit of anger hits a trainee at the firm, and finds himself suspended from work.
There comes a point when the three meet, and seek refuge at Skobo (Nedumudi Venu), the mystery man’s place. Skobo offers them a place to live and food to eat; no questions asked and no money taken. However, the old man disappears as stealthily as he had turned up, that leaves the three youngsters hunting for answers.
The wait for that exemplary word of advice from the old man is excruciating, and he finally states that one should never give up trying. As constructive and encouraging as it might sound, it takes an immensely long time to reach that point, by which time you have already given up all hopes of seeing the film work.
One could probably sprinkle some glitter over the proceedings and imagine that it’s a long narrative on the dreams of three young men, who have proverbially gone astray and are lured back to their paths by a strange man. The problem is that perspectives are very often subjective, and it’s not easy to look at things this way.
‘Avarude Raavukal’ is a far cry from Shanil Mohammed’s brilliant first film, and the lack of focus that ruins the first half beyond a refurbishment, is quite startling. Of the three sub plots, the one that features Aashiq is probably the sole saving grace, while Sid’s tale comes across as a sour joke and Vijay’s, one that is too desperately sober to be taken seriously.
There is also the very obvious question as to why the film has been titled ‘Avarude Raavukal’. Vijay, in an initial lecture, explains to his trainees that most of their customers are from straight across the world, and that ‘our days’ are ‘their nights’; the only reference to the name that leaves you as perplexed as the timeline that shifts this way and that.
The three young actors are easily outshined by a towering performance by Nedumudi Venu, and it’s the two women actors – Lena and Honey Rose – with mature performances, who come a close second. Sankar Sharma’s musical score seems wedged in at the most mistimed of moments, and Vishnu Narayan’s cinematography strictly upright.
‘Avarude Raavukal’ falls short of the basic dramatic tension that drives a film forward. Running for two hours and eleven minutes, it fruitlessly tries to draw out a tissue thin thought into a feature film that sloppily lands all over the place.
Verdict: Tiresome