Psychological noir thriller!

Level Cross (Malayalam; 2024)
Director: Arfaz Ayub

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt27328373/

Thanks, SD, again, for the recommendation. 

This time around, it is a mind-bending psychological noir thriller quite atypical of what is often seen in most Indian movies. Minus the psychedelic multiple eye-catching costumes, ornaments and landscape, we land ourselves in a monochromatic desert-like location. It is set in a God-forsaken train crossing quite far from human civilisation. The gate at the crossing is manned by a single individual who stays in his quarters just by its side. There is no human contact for miles and miles away. His only conversation with the outside world is the phone call announcing the passing of the next train. Conversations on the telephone can only be made one way. The only excitement around there was the sound of the speeding train.

One day, he finds a pretty unconscious woman in the form of Amala Paul stranded near the crossing, apparently after falling off a moving train. So starts a human interaction for this gatekeeper in years. He carries the lady to his quarters. She comes around to narrate her sob story. She used to be a psychiatrist who fell in love with her patient. After marriage, she found him to be a cocaine-snorting abusive husband who had killed his first wife. According to her, she jumped off the train to escape her husband's tyranny.

The sympathetic guard promises to protect her. When a call announces the next train, the lady forbids him from asking someone to help her reach civilisation.

The lady then discovers, while cleaning the quarters, some newspaper clippings of a mass murderer and another railway ID card with the guard's name but a different face. The lady puts two and two together and concludes that the guard is the mass murderer and has assumed the name of the real guard that he must have killed. She suddenly starts seeing him from the angle that she could be his next victim.  

femme fatale in red hue?

The following day, as the lady sets off to fetch water from a distant well, the husband appears at the doorstep, inquiring about his missing wife. He provides a contradictory account of the earlier story. The wife is the one suffering from mental illness, exhibiting violent behaviour and battling drug addiction. He is simply taking her to another town for treatment. 

The guard tries to get rid of the husband but fails. The husband sees his wife's garment.

Next is a three-way showdown to determine who will come out on top. It was 'game theory' on full display. Who is telling the truth, and who are the mad killer(s)?

This tense, high-strung thriller is reminiscent of a western film where life is cheap, or a scene in 'The Deer Hunter’ where American prisoners are forced to play Russian roulette. A good film, sans masala, draws the audience to the edge of their seats.

P.S. The movie was shot in Tunisia, hence the desert-like background in the movie, not Rajasthan.

Best film quote:  "God doesn't care about us anymore!"

Yet we talk about the film!

Kasaba (Circle, കസബ, 2016, Malayalam)
Screenplay, Director: Nithin Renji Panicker

It was probably after the release of this movie that many ardent Malayalam viewers and actors started voicing their concerns about the presence of misogyny in Mollywood. Despite the loud opposition and charges filed against the moviemakers, with the Malayalam Movie Association getting involved, it broke the record for the most widely viewed Malayalam movie teaser. Talk about the Streisand effect!

The seed of dissatisfaction was sowed against the senior actor Mammotty by many actors, especially Parvathy Thiruvadu, who was cyberbullied by trolls and Mammotty fans. Police reports flew, but she stood her ground. She went on to be the voice against misogyny in the Kerala film industry. A collective known as Women in Cinema Collective came to the forefront, opposing misogynistic dialogues for the betterment of society. They questioned why a highly respected actor like Mammotty should be so low as to partake in movies that denigrate women and their presence in society. 

This is a masala movie, much like a spaghetti western, and does not need many grey cells to follow. Rajan Zachariah is a police officer handpicked by the IGP to investigate the death of an inspector, the IGP's son and his fiancée. Even though the deaths were reported as Maoist killings, the IGP suspects foul play. 

Rajan can be labelled as a rogue cop. He walks around with a chip on his shoulder and cares two hoots about following rules. He makes his own rules and thinks he is an honest cop because he brings in the bad guys. His flirting and sexist jokes are part of his remuneration for getting his job well done.

One scene of this nature sparked controversy. As Rajan is walking haughtily, puffing his cigarette without a care in the world across a non-smoking corridor, he is rebuked by a more senior female officer. Rajan is told off for not saluting her and for lighting up in a non-smoking area. What he did afterwards was utterly out of order! He apologised unconditionally for not saluting a higher officer, extinguished his cigarette, and placed the cigarette bud in her hand, asking her to dispose of it. She retaliated by uttering, "f@#k you!" to which Rajan lifted up by her belt at her hip, saying, "Sure, and you'll be running around me for a week!" (paraphrasing from subtitles).

Soon after that film, a case appeared of an actress sexually assaulted. The rebel yell reached a disturbing pitch that compelled the government the other day to set up the Hema Commission to look into this issue. After many delays, with Covid and other political pressures, its report is out, and it is pretty damning, at least to the doyens of the industry.

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The twists of life

Manorathangal (Minescapes, Malayalam; 2024)

An anthology based on stories by MT Vasudevan Nair

After the release of the Hema committee report, the murmur, which started in 2019, is heard once again. More new victims of the Malayalam film industry are voicing their bad experiences out in the open. The report results from the Government's investigations into the alleged rise of sexual misconduct, exploitation and #MeToo complaints against big players of Mollywood.

The report's contents paint badly for the safety and working environment for the fairer sex. The report paints a picture of Mollywood as run by a mafia of senior directors, producers, and male actors who call the shots and decide which actress gets chosen and who gets the boot. To make it to the cast, the new actresses would have to endure much humiliation, denigration, and assault. The report prompted many Malayalam Movie Association chief members to resign to clear their names.

On one hand, civil societies assert that India is still not a safe place for ladies to work. This becomes more relevant now after the gruesome rape and murder of the Calcutta on-call doctor. Others are quick to add all these are not specific to Kerala or India alone. Patriarchy and power play are spread worldwide. Sudden retaliation by the public is politically motivated, ignited by self-interested parties out to create mayhem in India. Now that Malayalam movies are becoming more popular than other regional productions, people are bound to be jealous.

This collection of stories was written by Kerala's most influential storyteller, MT Vasudevan Nair. Most of the narration talks about nostalgia and how the test of time changes one's perception of reality. The picture of truth fed to us as children is a smokescreen. Time and tide change everything; hence, it is no use being haughty about what we have or being frustrated with things we do not.

The nine snippets in this collection are acted by many brilliant who's who in Malayalam cinema—Mohanlal, Mammooty, Siddique, Fahad Fazil, and more. This offering also sees the return of two famous actresses, Madhu and Nadia, after a hiatus. It talks about loneliness in a foreign country, loneliness in marriage, secret lives that adults have, love in the countryside, the hassle of having a family heirloom and how the family members vulture over it, how our values change with time and education and many more.  

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I need informed consent!

Golam (Sphere, Malayalam, 2024)

Director: Shamjad.

This is an exciting whodunnit that fans of Agatha Christie would love. The only thing is that the story is not told in an investigative manner. True, it starts off as a perplexing case where a high-flying entrepreneur is found dead in the office washroom. When the inspector tries to write it up as an unfortunate accidental death, the young investigating just-out police-college ASP, Sandeep Krishna, is cocksure that he smells homicide.  

The ASP finds it difficult to understand how the victim could slip and fall to get a fatal head injury on a dry floor. Forensics do not discover any toxins or foul play. 

The initial interview with the office staff, CCTV, and good old police work failed to go anywhere. The only thing unusual is a box of tranquilisers in one of the staff's handbags. She claims she has insomnia.

An interview with the doctor who prescribed the tranquillisers shows that all the workers in the office suffer from some kind of ailment one way or another - miscarriage, alopecia, deteriorating eyesight, memory loss and others. After looking at their cases, the doctor proposed they could be guinea pigs for the Pharma company they work for. In collaboration with their US partner, the Pharma company developed a virus. At the same time, they were creating an antidote. The good doctor suspects that the workers were fed with vaccine-laced drinks. Skin sampling is done to gauge their response to the vaccine when they fingerprint themselves and report to work. The fingerprint has an adequate DNA sample for the scientists to analyse their response to teh virus, codenamed Red Virus.

The ASP came up with a complicated plan how all the ~14 workers could have devised a devious plan to kill off their boss for vengeance, dodging the CCTV camera, locking the boss in the washroom, fuming the washroom with CO₂ gas, drowning his COPD-diseased lung, falling and succumbing to hypoxia. A clever plot! 

What happens next is the clincher. The protractor is apprehended, but instead, the ASP goes on a witch hunt against the Pharmaceutical company. He goes solo, in commando gear, to infiltrate their high-security plant in the interior to expose the company's shenanigans. The filmmakers decide to end the movie, paving the way for a sequel.

The building where yellow fever experiments were

conducted to prove that it is not transmitted using 

infected clothing (fomites). Camp Lazear.

The story of avoiding infections is the story of mankind. As in HG Wells 'The War of the Worlds', the only thing that protects the human species from total annihilation is their protection against common pathogens, not modern weapons. In the process of developing this immunity, many have to sacrifice. The story of Yellow Fever in the 1900s comes to mind.

Yellow Fever was a pressing problem in southern tropical areas of the USA. Although it was common in Cuba, periodically, epidemics broke out in the US. It was thought it was brought by bad air, poor sanitation or infected bodily fluids. It is said that a Confederate Officer tried to assassinate Lincoln by sending him old, dirty garments of patients who died of Yellow Fever, hoping that he would die of Yellow Fever. He obviously did not.

Dr Carlos Finlay of Cuba toyed with the idea that Yellow Fever was spread by mosquitoes, but he was laughed at. In 1900, Dr Walter Reed of the US Army introduced the idea of controlled studies. By using human volunteers who were willing to endure being bitten by mosquitoes for science, he proved that Yellow Fever was transmitted by certain mosquitoes. An army personnel, Jesse Lazear, died from Yellow Fever after contracting the hemorrhagic form of the disease. 

Now, would anybody make such a sacrifice in this age and time? Is it even legal? The Pharma is more than willing to conduct these experiments for us, all in the name of saving mankind. The reason, however, which is not even printed in the fine print, is that of monetary gains. Sure, they would pay off their guinea pigs handsomely. This is, however, just a drop in the ocean for these conglomerates. It would hardly jolt them.

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The undercurrents beneath the surface

Ullozhuku (Undercurrent, Malayalam; 2024)
Director: Christo Tomy

An old Tamil proverb goes, ‘Tell a thousand lies to make one marriage happen.’ In Indian society and most Eastern cultures, a person is highly encouraged to get married once he or she is of marriageable age. 

Before Bharat Matrimony and Shaadi.com came into the picture, the services of marriage brokers were often summoned. Like St Jude Thaddeus, the patron of the impossible and lost causes, the broker, armed with various biodata including age, educational status, skin fairness chart, horoscope, Varna, and juicy family scandals that needed to be suppressed, would come the most appropriate match. 

Like in game theory, both sides may have their bag of worms but would find it appropriate to keep them buried. After all, they would see the bigger picture. A married person reaches a certain elevated status in society. Even funeral rituals are slightly different for the unmarried.

With time, all these societal norms have changed. In matters of the heart, with urbanisation and girls coming out of their homes for jobs and education, romance took the wedding brokers out of a job. 

Coming from a Catholic family, the family flipped when they discovered their beloved daughter, Anju, was in love with Rajeev, a Hindu boy. They quickly get her married to Leelamma’s son, Thomaskutty. Soon after the marriage, Thomas becomes chronically ill with a brain condition. 

Frustrated living in a loveless marriage caring for her bedridden husband, she rekindles her liaison with her former lover. Under the guise of collecting her husband’s medicine from the hospital, she spends quality tryst-filled times with Rajeev. 

Thomas soon dies, but Anju discovers that she is pregnant. Leelamma finds out that she is involved in an affair. 

The crux of the rest of the story is how Anju tries to leave her mother-in-law to be with Rajeev. Contrary to what Anju had been made to understand, Thomas had been known to be sick even before the wedding, but Anju’s mother concealed this from her. 

A poignant drama depicting the relationship of a mother-in-law with her daughter-in-law. As a lady, Leelalamma feels that she has had a raw deal from God despite doing her part of her bargain to God. She thinks that God is jealous of her being happy. All her moments are short-lived. How she had to cut short her big dreams at 19 when she was drawn into matrimony. Then, she lost her husband and her sick adult son with an intractable disease. 

Against the wet background of a flood-ravaged village in Kuttanad, Kerala, amidst the rising and ebbing of floodwaters and pouring rain, the story tells the tale of undercurrents that the ladies had to endure to conform to society and fulfil their duties as daughters, wives, mothers, and God-fearing people. 

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A rescue mission that almost never happened!

Manjummel Boys (Malayalam/ Tamil; 2024)

Director: Chidambaram

I was intrigued by this movie after reading two articles. The first detailed a legal dispute between Ilaiyaraaja's side and the producer. The dispute arose when the producer used Ilaiyaraaja's song composition as a background without obtaining permission. This incident added an exciting layer to the movie's production. The second article discussed the Tamil Nadu Home Secretary's directive to the Kodaikanal Police to investigate police brutality against complainants, which also played a role in the movie's plot.

This is a gripping tale of a rescue mission that took place in 2006. A group of young men from Majummel, Kochi, embarked on a trip to Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu, a popular tourist destination. While exploring, the men made a fateful decision to venture into a restricted area. Tragically, one of them fell into a seemingly bottomless pit. The story unfolds as the remaining men, faced with a group of apathetic officials who had essentially given up on their friend, embark on a daring mission to rescue him. 

This survival thriller is based on actual events. The cave the young men entered has a long and checked history. It was first described in 1821 by a British officer who christened it 'Devil Kitchen'. It caught people's attention when it was featured in 1991 Kamalhaasan's hit movie, 'Guna'. Since Guna, a mental patient in the film, used this cave as his hideout, it came to be referred to as 'Guna's Cave'. A catchy song from the movie, 'Kanmani Anbodan,' is used liberally in this movie and has become a bone of contention with Illayaraaja's camp.

As many as 16 victims have plunged into the pit in Guna's Cave, but none have been rescued. Even a Central Minister's relative had fallen into this hole. All the available resources could not rescue or not so much excavate his remains.

Roots of Guna Caves ©Shutterstock 

So, when the Majummel Boys ran to the Kodaikanal Police for help, the police were not too enthusiastic in carrying out rescue missions, looking at the cave's track record. In fact, they were beaten up, accusing them of trying to cover up a murder. The fire and forest departments were not helpful either. No officials dared to go in hoisted on ropes with so many urban legends floating around. Long story short, the boys and the local people hawked on the police and rescue teams. One of the Manjummel Boys, Kuttan (Suji David), volunteered to go in. After many tense moments, the victim (Subhash) was found alive and rescued. Kuttan went on to receive a State award for bravery. Subhash remains the only person rescued after plunging into the hole in Guna Caves.

This movie is a visual treat, with stunning cinematography that captures the beauty and danger of the cave. The camera work effectively conveys the tension and fear experienced by the characters, adding to the overall suspense of the film.

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google.com, pub-8936739298367050, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0

Our past controls the present?

Bhoothakaalam (The Past / Ghost Time, Malayalam; 2022)

Director: Rahul Sadasivan

There is a little wordplay with the title. With the prefix ’Bhooth’, one may wonder whether it is a horror movie. When one starts watching the film, one would wonder whether it is about the ghost of the past. That is what it is all about—how the ghost of the past comes haunting if it is not exorcised head-on. The ugly demonic head of the past has a self-defeating habit of repeating itself, making one go through the malady repeatedly.

No one will take kindly to others’ advice on how one’s life should be lived. No one will be flattered when told his head should be checked. That is what it is. Individuals should take a step back, access their mental health occasionally, and take preventive measures or make amends. Be the change. Change comes with realisation and from the inside. No one can make the horse drink water. The horse must first feel thirsty. The need to change comes from within.

Viewers wonder whether it is a horror film or if there is a more prosaic explanation for all the weird happenings around the house.

Is the recently departed grandmother’s soul returning with a vengeance to express her dissatisfaction? Is the house displaying poltergeist activities? Why do tenants after tenants die in the same house? Is the mother’s overt depression or the son’s indulgence in intoxicants the culprit?

The family had gone a lot. The son lost his father at a young age. He grew up without a father figure. The mother had to struggle with her unsatisfying teaching job at a nursery and later caring for her stroke-stricken paraplegic mother.

The son carries a heavy cloud of resentment after being forced to do medicine, which he had to quit and failing to secure a job with his pharmacy degree. He smokes heavily and drinks himself drunk frequently. His relationship with his girlfriend could be much better. When funny things start happening in the house, he flips. Soon enough, even his mother sees the abnormal activities in the house.

In a very clever manner of storytelling and filmmaking, the director takes us through a roller coaster ride to keep us guessing whether the whole point of the movie is to impress the viewers on the need to treat mental illness correctly or whether there is such a thing as ghosts?!

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Slavery never disappeared?

Aadujeevitham (Goat Days / Goat Life, Malayalam,2024)
Director: Jessy

By the end of the 20th Century, many of Kerala's male population worked in the Gulf Countries. Poverty and unemployment were the push factors for the 'Gulf Boom' in the 1970s and 1980s. Business was booming on the other side of the Arabian Sea, and petroleum was hitting record levels. Soon, sob stories started appearing about the abuse and pathetic living conditions amongst the Kerala Gulf diaspora. 

In 2008, a Malayali writer, Benyamin, narrated the trials and tribulations of Najeeb Muhammad, a Malayali guest worker stranded in Riyadh airport. Not knowing Arab, Najeeb innocently followed an Arab man he assumed was his employer. His initial contract was for him to work as a cashier in a supermarket. Instead, he ended up herding hundreds of goats in the middle of the desert. He had no living quarters, time off, food, or pay. For more than two years, he had not seen any living soul except for his 'owner' and the owner's brother. He was scrutinised and beaten up every time they did something they did not like or tried to escape. In simple terms, he was a bonded slave. He had no dignity and lived with the goats. He was denied water to wash himself and even a change of clothes.

Before and after pictures.

The Malayalam true story became a bestseller and was translated into eight languages. It is currently in its 130th edition. Of course, it was banned in the Gulf States as it depicted Arabs as barbaric. Of course, an Arab also helped him to safety when Najeeb finally found the courage (and a friend) to escape.

Now, before jumping the gun and condemning Islamic clerics for never openly condemning slavery, one should remember that all Muslim countries, in accordance with the UN Charter, ban slavery in any form. All ancient belief systems have accepted the presence of slaves in their societies. It is common knowledge that slaves were given free status when they converted to the religion of the ruler or invading army. People are people everywhere; they want to dominate others. 

Author Benyamin and Najeeb

When the British banned the transatlantic slave trade, it was done under a different name. As the French benefitted immensely from the slave-intensive sugarcane plantations in the Caribbean, Napoleon even legalised slavery there. It ended with the Haitian slave revolt and their declaration of Independence in 1804. In the USA, the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution effectively ended slavery in 1865.

Even in this age and time, we hear of maids enduring slave-like living conditions in both first-world and third-world nations. A sliver of hope suddenly convinces us that humanity has not died. We pacify ourselves; we all love our fellow humans, only to be slapped with gruesome stories of abused maids. Surprisingly, we treat our pets with more dignity. 

(P.S. I think the filmmakers were trying to make Prithviraj, the main actor, do a Tom Hank role—as in 'Cast Away'—to emphasise the desolation and hopelessness of being stuck in the vast desert. Unfortunately, it did not turn out as such. The director thought it was necessary to include song numbers to drive home the point of what a good time he had back home with his wife. I do not think it worked here. By the way, Najeeb would not have left if it was all hunky dory back home.)

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