Action Hero Biju - A grounded and humane cop flick that pleasantly surprises you 

Bharath Vijayakumar 

Ok. So Nivin Pauly is now a star. He dons a cop role. The title is Action Hero Biju. The first few minutes of the film is shown from his POV without disclosing his face. Everything till this point hints at a hero worshiping star vehicle. But Abrid Shine's film is anything but this. Cannot recollect any mainstream film that showed a police officer's life so realistically with a tinge of humour sprinkled throughout.

'A ride with a police officer' is what the starting credits promise. But this isn't the usual ride in a police SUV or a Royal Enfield. It is akin to a ride in a bicycle. A calm ride grounded in reality and a treatment hitherto unseen on big screen with almost none of the cliches of a template cop flick to be seen anywhere.

Action Hero Biju is about how it's titular character Biju (who plays a sub inspector) deals with mostly petty and some serious crimes in his jurisdiction. Unlike a Gowtham Menon police flick (or any police flick for that matter) it does not track a single case nor is it about a single nemesis. The cases that he solves or helps provide respite vary from extra marital affairs, drug trafficking, neighbourhood theft and what not. The very first dispute that he resolves is about a pending salary to an employee of a small concern. Biju starts off calmly and then lets out his shrewd and tempered anger. This episode really sets off the rest of the film. Once a case is resolved things just get over. There is just a thankful nod from the recipient of justice. No overbearing dialogues or not even an additional second is spent after a case is done with.

The humour in the film is of the highest order and painstakingly real. You really crack up when the old drunkard who is brought to the station slaps another accused for raising his voice against Biju. Such instances of brilliant humour shine throughout. There is another episode involving a lost walkie talkie and an unexpected dash of dark humour involving an accidental gunshot.

The film humanises the protagonist and he can only do so much with his limited powers. Even in the scene where Biju delivers a speech in a school he hardly raises his voice to accentuate the message. It is as calm as how you would talk to your neighbour. Most importantly, though this film is about Biju, it isn't only about him. Every character which appears in the film at any point is so well defined. He/She might make an appearance for only a minute but the scenes are so well directed and the performances so real that almost no one seems redundant. You get the feel of having a first hand account of the happenings at the police station. The sync sound greatly helps in achieving this. 

Bottomline:

The duo of Abrid Shine and Nivin Pauly that gave the heartwarming 1983 deliver another winner with Action Hero Biju. A pleasant cop film sounds like an oxymoron. And this is precisely what Abrid Shine has delivered.

Rating:3.25/5

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