Oru Kaatil Oru Paykappal

Story : Sara has a recurring dream of a flying sailboat. But she has no idea what it means to her. When she meets Ajith, an ex-mariner, who is staying at the homestay she runs to make his own boat, her dream starts getting clearer by the day.

Review: Vijayakumar Prabhakaran is no stranger to Malayalam cinema. We've seen him portray many earthy and dark characters. We've come to associate him with gang-wars and violence. But in 'Oru Kaattil Oru Paykappal', as his debut as a director, he tells the tale of a realistic romance edging on fantasy. The film also packs in some breathtaking visuals of the backwaters and some soul-soothing music.

Sara is a cheerful, young, girl helping her mother run Freddy's Paradise, the family owned homestay in the backwaters of Alappuzha. Ajith, an ex-mariner, is their new tenant who comes hoping to build his own sailboat.

Said in the backdrop of the great Kerala floods of 2018 in Alappuzha, 'Oru Kaattil Oru Paykappal' is an ambient story. The director creates a rich and dense ambience of romance around the story he wishes to tell. Jomon Thomas who cranks the camera for 'Oru Kaatil Oru Paykappal', mesmerizes with his visuals. He captures the essence and beauty of the landscape and that also aides the narrative by a large extent. Bijibal's music is not a beat less or more. His style of minimalism works best for the narrative subtly lending it depth and character. Suraj Venjarammood, who portrays the straight-faced Thankachan has his own romance brewing, which the director manages to convey with a commendable subtlety. And Suraj is in his personal best element portraying just the right sentiment for the role. Sree Lakshmy as Girija matches his pace.

Mythili, as Sara, is quite child-like. Her wide-eyed stares are repeatedly used to for no effect. Shine Tom Chacko plays Ajith, the lead conveying very little in his mannerisms. And just like that, notwithstanding the ambience, 'Oru Kaattil Oru Paykappal' fails to emote through its characters. The film even spends too much time creating the ambience to tell the story, leaving too much unsaid. And then the film rushes to tell the story towards the end.

'Oru Kaattil Oru Paykappal' tries to be what 'Maheshinte Prathikaram' was to Idukki and 'Angamaly Diaries' was to Angamaly. To a certain extent it does manage to be that to Alappuzha. However, the love story gets a little lost between the folds of the ambient embellishments. But, 'Oru Kaattil Oru Paykappal' is still a visual treat trying to tell you a delicate story of love, hope and survival.