Leave your brains outside and enjoy this film’, This is the most common thing we tend hear before we enter a cinema hall to watch a mass entertainer. Does that mean we have to tolerate everything shown in the name of ‘masala’ ? Aaraattu by B. Unnikrishnan is nothing but a brainless fan service film solely aimed at hardcore Mohanlal fans.
Udayakrishna the writer of Aarattu uses his special power to recreate another old wine in an extra old bottle from his own past films. It seemed like the writer effortlessly incorporated all Mohanlal dialogues as references in order to reduce his burden as a dialogue writer. Aarattu in the first half is stuffed with the star mouthing his cult punchlines only to get us all irritated after a period. It’s Ok to pack with such references but what if it dominates other factors ? Udayakrishna makes sure the film never takes off at any point and establishes his intentions from the first frame itself. Aarattu is reminiscent of Lalettan’s old feudal lord heroic stories with all those expected clichés. There’s literally nothing that happens in the first half except the hero’s few cheap tricks and some flat comedies. Things start to fall in place post interval but it looks like Udayakrishna who was in a trance state accidendently mixes up his script with Mammukka’s Masterpiece thus you get to experience the same shit as twist once again. Thanks to the extraordinary fresh flashback sequence it took me back to the golden era (80s & 90s) of malayalam cinema. B. Unnikrishnan who ventured into the masala genre should’ve done a cross check about the authenticity of the script.
The only factor that kept Aaraattu on track is the presence of Mohanlal-the star. We all once adored the mass hero in him, with all those punchy lines and butt-kicking actions Mohanlal defined our childhood. We all missed those vintage aura for a while and Unnikrishnan somehow to a few extent manages to bring back his form. But the star eventually fades out as the script doesn’t elevate him neither as a hero nor as an actor. The fight sequences are exquisitely shot, escorted by Rahul Raj’s pulsating score. The songs including the title track ‘Thalayude Vilayattu’ blend rightly with the film’s atmosphere. But all those things don’t fill enough to keep the momentum of this highly unstable mediocre fanfare.
Labelling the films as an ‘Unrealistic Joyride’ doesn’t give the makers any authority to mock the audience with all those unwanted shits. We’ve experienced how Karthik Subbaraj and Prithviraj Sukumaran made an indelible impression with their favourite stars. B. Unnikrishnan and writer Udayakrishna should’ve done more homework rather than coming with a pretentious juvenile artwork.
Review By © Rahul Babu