Soothrakkaran Malayalam Movie
Inside a family drama, there dwells a crime story with a twist. The gripping premise here is eventually the whodunit factor amidst the highly stereotypic family milieu. 'Soothrakkaran', written and directed by newbie Anil Rraj, lobs innuendos of a crime thriller and quite often the suspense feel is negated by the perfunctory showcase of family relationships. The degree of drama is spruced up by a triangle love story and sentimental aspects. The banality of sequences mars the intended effect that could have been evolved through the investigation of the series of murders.
The director hinges on conventional tools for the treatment and narration to sustain the suspense. But the attempt evokes solely a flickering experience. The mysterious death of Balachandran (Santhosh Keezhattoor) sets the stage for the prelude of suspense. The death of the company accountant deeply affects his friends and business partners-Prabhakaran (Vijayaraghavan) and Sreedharan (Lalu Alex). Once Balachandran's daughter Aswathy (Varsha Bollamma) calls on Prabhakaran's family and she stays with them. Meanwhile, Prabhakaran's younger son Sreekuttan (Niranj Manianpillai Raju) feels a crush on Aswathy.
Meanwhile, Sreedharan's son Aravindan (Gokul Suresh) also falls for her. Madathil Development Society of these two families functions based on corporate social responsibility norm. Krishnakumar (Kailash), elder son of Prabhakaran, runs a private bank. All is going well despite the scheming by a rich man called 'Peppatti' Rajan (Shammi Thilakan) of that village.
But again two murders take place in the same manner where Balachandran was found dead. There is perplexity throughout in placing the incidents and also how to create riveting scenes until the mystery is getting solved. A couple of songs, though one is appealing due to its delicate use of artworks and visualization, sully the core trait of the plot at its nascent stage.
'Soothrakkaran' is a timid attempt to create a family thriller in the space of two close-knit business families. It brags of the 'twist in the tale' factor but the pall of surprise is not carved well enough to be an engaging watch. The bright and splashy visuals by Anil Nair are a valid reason for grabbing your attention, especially in songs.
Gokul Suresh imbibes the real essence of the character to portray it with confidence. 'Phatom' Kurup, played by Padmarajan Ratheesh, shines in appearance only, leaving little impact on the proceedings. Predictability is too high at a point when the two youngsters meet a girl and the waves of dejà vu go on until the digression happens with the death of an important character. But again, things are back to square one where the portrayal of relationships finds room sans any meaning.
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