Solo Malayalam Movie
Solo, the bi-lingual anthology film from Bollywood filmmaker Bejoy Nambiar, is not an experiment gone wrong per se, but is littered with bizarre moments which are either embarrassing or enlightening, depending on the sensibility of the viewer.
Starring Dulquer Salmaan in four different roles, 'Solo' sounds like a misleading title for Nambiar's film. But, it is essentially about different avatars of one supreme entity, clearly revealed as Lord Shiva. Shiva's status as a demigod in Indian mythology, is translated on screen through the committed all-round performance from Dulquer. He totally nails this four-fold interpretation of Shiva, with the basic constants of extreme rage and extreme love transcending the character, story and its all-encompassing hero. Granted, he is again asked to show swagger, aggression and passion- traits right up his alley- but his own little improvisations make the star a treat to watch.
Nambiar's eye for visual splendour and ear for gorgeous music are what Solo majorly thrives from. The story, on the contrary, plots an inconsistent graph. The first-half is a below-par attempt at crowdpleasing entertainment and style. The second-half, on the other hand, produces the best and worst of the pack one after the other, and the audience can only wonder why they are placed so. The segments in question are of heroes Shiva and Rudra. The story of Shiva- hands-down the peak point of Solo- owns an aesthetic quality and storytelling ingenuity that far surpass the other creations from the director. It is where the viewers are most engrossed, thanks to the emotional subtlety and intensity firmly rooting said short narrative.
Its effect doesn't last long, courtesy of the unintentional comedy that follows in Rudra's story. It is freakishly sentimental, strangely written and inappropriately unraveled, resulting in a portion that will be enjoyed for all the wrong reasons.
Solo is unapologetically melodramatic. Understandable, since Malayali and Tamil moviegoers are generally immune to such a cinematic tone. Yet, its quest for a profound exchange of ideas is bogged down by a script that is more concerned about fan service and preposterous plot twists.
You can see a superb film lurking somewhere underneath Solo. Nambiar fails to bring that film out into the spotlight, content with the inconsistency of his concept instead. It is this complacency which makes Solo- for all the Gods it alludes to- excruciatingly powerless and impersonal.
OTHER REVIEWS
Kiran & Allan