Veeram Movie Review: Fell short of becoming an epic, but worth a watch!
Veeram, the biggest budget Malayalam film made till date had been released last day in Kerala and it was written and directed by versatile director Jayaraj. This flick has been made on a budget of 35 crores and it was produced by Chandrakala Arts. LJ Films had distributed the movie in 80+ screens here in Kerala and this flick has English and Hindi versions as well along with the Malayalam version. Bollywood Actor Kunal Kapoor had played the lead in this movie.
The plot of this flick revolves around the character named Chanthu Chekavar played by Kunal Kapoor. The plot was made by weaving together and adapting William Shakespeare’s great tragedy Macbeth and the story of Chanthu from Northen Ballads in Kerala. Chanthu Chekavar was a warrior who lived in Northern Malabar in Kerala during the 13th Century. The film focuses on the life of Chanthu and how he is affected by the guilt of a crime he had committed. The mental struggles of him and his efforts to overcome those fears and guilt has been portrayed in the movie along with that of his love, lust, and heroism as a warrior. It also shows the life of characters such as Unniyarcha, Kuttimani, and Aromal Chekavar as well and it tells us how those lives connected with that of Chanthu Chekavar in various manners.
Jayaraj had definitely successful in giving some never seen before kind of visuals in Mollywood, like the heroic duels in the first half of the movie. It was shot stunningly well. But we have to say that at many places, the emotional content of the movie not at all touched the heart of the audience. The lag in the narration of this plot had made it worse as well. The screenplay could have been better and the director in him somehow managed to seal the loose ends in the screenplay. The dialogues were too much dramatic at times and that too made it dull.
The towering performance from Kunal Kapoor is the major highlight of this film. He had just given his all for this character and come out with flying colors. Physically and mentally he becomes Chanthu and he lived through the emotions of Chanthu in this flick. Performances that came from others like Shivajith Nambiar, Himarsha, Divina Thakkur, Satheesh Menon etc also were good.
The technical side has been brilliant. Especially, the team who did the CGI works and Sound designing were just wonderful. Costume and art department also did a very good job in the flick. S Kumar’s DOP was excellent and especially, the visuals given by him, in the climax portion was stunning. Jeff Rona composed the music and he had done a sterling job as well.
In total, Veeram is a cinematic experience that could have become an epic one, if the screenplay was a better one. Still, it has moments which are unique and fresh. It is surely a big step taken by Malayalam Cinema to become one of the biggest industries in Indian Cinema. You can book your tickets if you want to watch something big that had come out from Mollywood.
Veeram Trailer:
