Pretham 2 Malayalam Movie
Director Ranjith Shankar's latest outing 'Pretham 2' has the nagging problem of a peripheral approach to the subject. The presence of performing art Mentalism is solely a garnishing tool, rather than becoming a diligently harnessed factor that could be ideally blended with the tale. Even the prequel had the same creative snag while discussing mind-reading, which was presented as a trump card in the movie. Here, it never helps our curiosity attains its wings, and Jayasurya as a mentalist expert is submissive in most parts and becomes active only towards the climax.
The perplexity in framing 'Pretham 2' as a horror-comedy thriller is vivid in the most portions and it bends to the level of crude scary moments laced with poor funny elements. Ranjith Shankar's film harps on the usual settings of a horror thriller but the outcome is all the more disappointing-both in the comic and horror aspects. Surprisingly, the second chapter is a dismal conflation of horror and mentalism.
The second instalment of 'Pretham' franchise recounts the strange experience being faced by five friends in a famous ancestral mansion, Varikkassery Mana. Short film director Thapas Menon, played by Amit Chackalakkal, arrives at the mansion to shoot his new short film featuring four other youngsters. They know each other through a film-based Facebook page, albeit each of them has fake names in the group. Ramanand Kalathingal (Sidharth Siva), an ardent fan of Mohanlal; Jofin (Dane Davis), who admires Mammootty; Niranjana (Sania Iyyappan); and Anu Thankam Paulose (Durga Krishna) act in the short film, which is a dream project of Thapas.
A noted mentalist, John Don Bosco (Jayasurya) is also staying in that mansion for Ayurveda treatment. When the five youngsters witness odd events, they seek the help of John. Like its prequel, 'Pretham 2' is also structured in the same format- the introduction of ghostly experience and then finding out a remedy that is equal to avenging the opponents of the spirit.
Prior to landing on the real conflict, there are frivolous events that might not be appealing for all. Ranjith has enough resources like mentalism in his kitty, but he seems to be inept at combining the spooky milieu with the mentalist's intervention in the tale. Adding to this ineffectiveness, the over-stretched climax clearly takes off the final sheen of 'Pretham 2' conveying only a vague answer to the problems of the ghostly spirit. John with the help of police commissioner Meera Anwar (Muthumani) tries to find a solution and it is rather unconvincing.
Again, Jayasurya appears as an unassuming mentalist with aplomb and the script offers very little space for him to perform. His costumes and mien remain the same from the first part. The jovial mood seems to be a forcefully squeezed element in the screenplay by the director. Apart from stirring up a perfunctory smile, the funny sequences falter in sustaining the consistency. The scary scenes fizzle out owing to the intense permeation of the over-exuberant milieu.
Durga and Sania have a casual presence in 'Pretham 2' and Sidharth Siva is leading the comic track. Vishnu Narayanan's visuals set the apt pace and milieu for the plot. Madhusoodanan Anand's background score too gives the required effect.
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