Movie: Kammati Paadam
Direction: Rajeev Ravi
Cast: Dulquer Salman, Vinay Forrt, Shine Tom Chacko, Vinayakan
Music: K, John P Varkey, Vinayakan
Cinematographer: Madhu Neelakantan
Editor: Ajithkumar
Genre: Drama, Action
Rating: ∗∗∗½
What is it about: It’s a Malayalam crime drama, which revolves around two childhood friends, who grew up together making the phrase “Partners in Crime” come alive. Krishnan (Dulquer Salman) returns to his hometown “Kammatipaadam” in search of his best friend Ganga (Vinayakan) after he receives a call from him. The film is directed by Rajeev Ravi.
Why it’s disappointing: The only factor which works quite negative towards this film is its length. Which is a tiring 177 minutes.
What to watch out for: The film builds on a great premise of childhood friendship which blossoms in to hard hitting criminals. Small town kids fascinated with the locals dominating with their power, grow up to be one. Director Rajeev Ravi played well with this subject in a most interesting way.
The film has an exceptional cast and that should be appreciated more than anything else. Every character, even the tiniest one had its importance.
Dulquer obviously stands strong with his strong screen presence, whether he’s a young lad or the mature salt ‘n’ pepper avatar. As Krishnan, he gave a great performance which follows on the lines of “Kali”. Definitely the younger generation of Malayalam film industry is taking their cinema places. Dulquer is one among them and excels time after time.
The surprise package of the film was the duo Manikandan (Balan) & Vinayakan (Ganga). Exceptional actors and fantastic performers. They took “Kammatipaadam” to the next level. And they conquered the screen space from the lead Dulquer. They had a natural flavour which was essential to the characters.
The ladies of the flick Shaun Romy & Amalda Liz had little to do, but with the time given they gave a commendable performance.
The cinematography was top notch by Madhu Neelakanthan. And the music by “K”, John Varkey and Vinayakan complimented the film. The action in the film was tastefully choreographed keeping it simple and to the point.
Verdict: Rajeev Ravi presented a fine crime-drama, which ponders the nuances of the boys from small town and the factors fascinating them growing up. It was precisely captured with great performances. Definitely worth a watch.
