Kirkkan Malayalam Movie
Austerity and bizarre approach are the salient features of this investigative thriller, written and directed by Josh. Interestingly, the narrative pattern exudes the feeling that 'Kirkkan' stands on the fringes of lethargy and elegance. Josh has deliberately carved out his own template to place a familiar plot stapled with its mystery sans stepping into the usual threshold of creativity. Thus, the journey of unravelling the mystery behind the death of a girl is hardly through the anticipated terrains. Instead, the suspects converge at the police station and they are repeatedly interrogated by the police officers.
The barrage of questions seeks answers to the mysterious death of Rachel, played by Anarkali Marikkar, from a village in the Central part of Kerala. She was found hanging on a rubber plantation. The premise as well as the settings is devoid of any hues and everything appears to be casual which is unlikely to find in a crime thriller. The natural interrogation episodes are the highlights of the film; perhaps the major factor that fetches freshness into the plot.
The film opens with the narration of his service story by a former Assistant Sub Inspector, Kusumakumar Warrier alias Kukku (Salim Kumar). As he recalls the case of Rachel, the interspersing scenes show how he had narrated the progress of the case to his wife Sethu Lakshmi (Meera Vasudevan) and his only daughter those days. While Rachel's case remain unsolved, Sub Inspector Rajan (Johny Antony), police officers Farsana (Kani Kusruti), Mathan (Maqbool Salman), Kurian (Vijayaraghavan) and Kukku feel the heat as pressure mounts on them from higher officials.
Among them, Mathan loses his temper quite often due to frustration even as Kukku keeps his equanimity during interrogation. Many suspects from the village are queried including Rachel's mother and sister Rabecca. As the series of interrogation goes on what keeps us on tenterhooks is the answer regarding the killer. Josh deftly manages to eschew banal investigation sequences and neatly entwines a social issue that affects many lives. Amid the familiarity of the premise, the bizarre treatment enables the film to sustain its engaging status.
'Kirkkan' embraces a low-key affair in establishing the milieu of the tale and adopting cinematic fripperies within the limited resources. Newcomers impress in certain sequences while the seemingly dramatic demeanours of Maqbool and Kani affect the flow of the tale. The protagonist undergoes the conflict and pain of his consciousness and Salim Kumar brings off the emotions convincingly. The journey to a hackneyed issue is not flawless but the limitations and shortcomings are overshadowed by a director's emphatic narrative style and treatment.