Bramayugam Review - An Experimental Thriller that is Barely Captivating!

Ashwin Ram

Bramayugam is a horror drama starring Mammootty and Arjun Ashokan in the lead roles. Written and directed by Rahul Sadasivam.

Premise:

After a mysterious murder of his friend, Arjun Ashokan tries to find a safe shelter in Mammootty’s mansion. What happens when he finds out that the place is haunted forms the remaining story.

Writing/ Direction:

Choosing to deliver a complete black and white toned picture in this modern times is a very gutsy move, the peculiar creative choice by the director has given a whole new dimension to this cinema. There is a thin story, on the lines of the immensely intriguing Hindi film Tumbbad. There are many unique touches in the treatment as well. The issue is with the screenplay, first of all, the content in the paper wasn’t enough due to the lack of layers. With minimal characters and the story taking place inside a single mansion, an engrossing flow is the key factor to hold the audience’s attention, but is never really engaging. There are certain moments that build some curiosity, unfortunately the continuations are weak with hardly any fitting payoffs for the setups. The story buildup is very leisurely done during the entire first half, the anticipation to finish off things well is there, but the writing is never smart and it progresses by putting the pressure solely on the action portions. 

Performances:

In totality, there are only five artists in the entire film and out of which only three actors revolve around the whole runtime. Courageous attempt and a glorious act by the ever-ready to experiment performer Mammootty. Many portions rely on Arjun Ashokan’s acting and he does yet another fabulous job after Romancham, he gets a versatile role in this film too. Supporting actor Siddharth is commanding in his job, especially towards the end, he has given his best with the physically demanding scenes too.

Technicalities:

Undoubtedly the best aspect of the film is its camera work, the vintage black and white colour tone is amazing on the big screen. Powerful music as well that tries the level best to elevate the intended thrill sequences. Many cuts are very impressive but the overall duration could have been way crisper to hold the viewers at least to a small extent.

Bottomline

Solid performances and a technically sound flick that offers an unique experience for sure. But there’s no importance on how interestingly the story can travel forward, very low on the engagement factor makes it just an art film.

Rating - 2.5/ 5