It takes a big round of thought before you criticize movies based on sensitive issues, for the readers may mistake it as your opinion on the issue. Pada talks about a real incident, maybe in strong political inclination.
Kunchacko Boban, Dileesh Pothan, Vinayakan, and Joju George play the four-member gang(Pada) who takes hostage of Palakkad district collector to invite attention to the recently amended tribal land laws.
The performances are earnest. You could sense it. More than how good they perform, it is evident how deeply everyone believes and respects the whole idea. Prakash Raj looks and speaks bureaucratic, polished.
Sameer Thahir cans it through the crowd and even in the hostage camp, devoid of any dullness. Vishnu Vijay keeps it simple, with the same score throughout. This makes it easier to dictate what the film wants to. But the score overpowers the dialogues at many places. The pacing is fine, but the film could have used more cuts.
Overall, Pada is a political statement. More than the cinematic arrestment it should have been, the makers want you to be empathetic towards the issue.
Review by© Gautham Ravichandran