Antakshari Movie Review: Slow-Paced Thriller That Shines Occasionally

Star Cast: Saiju Kurup, Vijay Babu, Binu Pappu, Sudhi Koppa, Priyanka Nair, Sabareesh Varma, Kottayam Ramesh, Jenny Pallath

Director: Vipin Das

Antakshari is a joyful game of songs everyone has played at least once in their lifetime. In this SonyLiv movie Antakshari, the game is of both the main lead, a cop, and the antagonist, a traumatized child-turned-psycho. The film touches upon several anti-social elements and emotions which are connected to a Royal Enfield, unlike any other thrillers Mollywood has produced.

What's Yay:

Performances of the cast
A few scenes
Background score
Story
Runtime

What's Nay:

Slow narration
Several Subplots
Sloppy screenplay

Plot

The story takes place in Kedaram Police Station jurisdiction where Circle Inspector Das is a fan of the game Antakshari. He is shown as a happy-go-lucky cop who leads a peaceful life with his wife and only daughter. One day, a psychopath attacks his daughter in broad daylight in front of his wife, almost strangling her to death. How the cop connects the dots to the mysterious man and his history is what forms the crux of Antakshari.

Script & Direction

The story of Antakshari has a good potential to become an engrossing psycho-thriller subject given the right treatment. However, the director failed to pack a punch with this subject albeit with a few chilling scenes sewn here and there in the story. The director has touched upon a few issues like child molestation, poor-privileged discrimination and man-woman exploitation while designing Ananthan's character, giving the viewers an idea of the antagonist's childhood. The movie shines in a few aspects with strong, thrilling scenes.

Performances

The entire cast lived through their roles and credit goes to the filmmaker who set the tone for the same. Artists who appeared for a minimal runtime too have performed naturally within their scope. The climax scenes are emotional. Both actors who were the protagonist (Das) and antagonist (Ananthan), delivered an interesting episode during the final face-off.

Technical Aspects

The film's cinematography blends in right with the narrative. The visuals compliment the movie's theme and tone. The sound designer's job is commendable.

Music

The music rendered by Ankit Menon stands out. The background score of the film is contrasting for a thriller but there's nothing to complain about. For Antakshari, that is where the beauty lies.

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Verdict

The film however has several loose ends and characters that weren't necessary. There were many subplots that are left unaddressed- be it the goon who smuggles Cannabis or the girl who plays dumb, the aspiring young guitarist, his mother and her second husband for example. Trimming a few scenes, a racy narration would have made Antakshari a hit song. Watch if you are a fan of Malayalam thrillers for you don't want to miss out on a few aspects of this film.