A Familiar Revenge Tale with Moments of Survival and Suspense
Here, the hues of red rightly blend with the theme as well as the brutal deeds of the protagonist. 'Rudhiram' is a revenge drama that quite often reminds you of certain foreign survival thrillers. Still, this Jisho Lon Antony-directed flick is able to salvage its own pride with a justifiable flashback that always lingers on as an answer to the hero's revenge mode rampage. The survival part of the movie is a tad riveting but the way the captive tries to get rid of her confinement lacks a full sense of belief. The initial scene shows Swathi Narendran, played by Aparna Balamurali, is being trapped in a room by her masked captor, who tortures her brutally. Her survival in the bungalow situated in a high-range village and the simmering vendetta by a man form the crux of the movie.
As expected, the film, written by the director and Joseph Kiran George, leaves hints to a back story from where the answers can be drawn. Though the format is hardly afresh, the reason for the hero's revenge gives the much-needed spur to the film in the climax. With the introduction of Dr Mathew Rosy, played by Raj B Shetty, who is an amiable and compassionate physician in a primary health centre, the director deliberately tries to create a befuddled milieu before revealing the real plot. Swathi is the sole daughter of Dr Narendran (Ramesh Varma) and she is being confined to a room with her pet dog Piku by the captor who has certain motives behind it.
The mysterious house with its serene surrounding is a stark contrast to the atrocities of the protagonist. The sadistic deeds of the man go to the next level when he traps the Panchayat Member, played by Kumaradas, in another room of his house. Meanwhile, Swathi meticulously plans her escape from the room by using a rat and those sequences are a tad far-fetched. Aparna Murali gives a convincing performance, though not exemplary, as she could exquisitely give vent to the pangs of the captive. In fact, her desperate attempts to gain freedom from the clutches of the monster evoke sympathy from viewers. The protagonist in 'Rudhiram' has shades of a psychopath even as he has his own reasons for his callous behaviour.
Dr Mathew Rosy is from Mangalore and he keeps a close rapport with his patients especially with those from poor background. Raj B Shetty is perfectly apt for the character with his not-so-perfect Malayalam diction. The tale offers ample room for him to exploit the volatile emotions of the character. 'Rudhiram' has interspersing scenes of the house and hospital in its most parts till the conflict sets in. The director highlights the issues of sexuality and pedophilia in the film which has the tagline: 'The axe forgets but the tree remembers.' To an extent, this proverb blends well with the theme of the movie despite a refinement is absent in the whole process.
Visuals by Sajad Kaakku are simply appealing to the story's premise and they lend a striking balance and depth to the narration. Despite its trite settings, the attempt by Jisho Lon Antony is noticeable while toying with a familiar template. It can be seen both as a survival and revenge drama that manages to gain some brownie points with a reasonable climax.
