Minnal Murali - going batty

 

Minnal Murali

Malayalam, 2021

directed by Basil Joseph

Stars Tovino Thomas, Guru Somasundaram, Femina George, Aju Varghese, Shelly Kishore

Mohan's Measure ⭐⭐⭐

There is new genre I learned about as I researched this film, "New Wave Malayalam."  It speaks to us of interesting new genres and plots that Mollywood is experimenting with..  Minnal Murali certainly fits in this category, offering a predictable superhero story with a twist of the ordinary.

A superhero story, of course, is all about good versus evil, and the predictable action sequences this involves.  But, what makes this movie so fascinating is the slow growth to getting there.  Indeed, most of it is a character study, understanding what it is that makes the two opposing sides the way they are, and how they deal with their unusual powers in the process.

Credit to the director for keeping away from Western stereotype.  There is no glamor to either hero or villain, no damsels in distress for the hero to save, no tall buildings for anyone to leap over or destroy.  There is only the simple villages of Kerala, with their unique sense for offering both good and bad in people and in life, but hoping for the best despite it all.