Midhun Manuel’s new Malayalam film, Alamara released today. Written by John Manthrickal and produced by Full on Studios, the film stars Sunny Wayne and Aditi Ravi in lead roles. The film also marks the second collaboration of Midhun Manuel-Sunny Wayne after the 2016 hit Ann Mariya Kalippilaanu and the debut of Aditi Ravi as the female lead. She had earlier made a guest appearance in Angry Babies and Beware Of Dogs.
Alamara revolves around the marriage relationship between Arun, a banker from Bangalore, and his wife Swati and an ‘alamara’ (cupboard)—a marriage gift they receive from Swati’s parents. The rest of the film deals with issues and fights happening due to this ‘alamara’. Though the story seems predictable to hear, Midhun Manuel has succeeded in showing the egos and insecurities of a married couple and their parents.
The first half of the film was average with few funny moments and good one-liners. It’s the supporting cast that dominated the film in the first half. Renji Panicker and Seema G Nair as Sunny Wayne’s parents steal the limelight though the former irritates few times. Same goes for Saiju Kurup, Aju Varghese and Sudhi Koppa as Sunny’s friends. They have provided maximum entertainment within the first hour along with Manikandan Achari of Kammatipaadam fame, who’s so good at delivering one-liners. Special mention should go to the Avarude Ravukal maker Shanil Muhammed, who was excellent as the bank manager.
However, the second half provided the lead actors to show their acting skills. Sunny Wayne continued his terrific form from Ann Mariya Kalippilanu as the young actor was convincing as the clueless husband. Aditi Ravi looks gorgeous and did a commendable job as Sunny’s wife as well.
The makers smartly used the popular guest faces of recent Malayalam blockbusters, Action Hero Biju, Maheshinte Prathikaram and Premam to provide the entertainment quotient and they were successful as well.
Alamara also marks the seventh sub-title outing of Vivek Ranjit in 2017. Not to forget out of the six 2017 releases so far, four films have been clean hits at rest of India markets and overseas as well; Jomonte Suviseshangal, Ezra, Oru Mexican Aparatha and Angamaly Diaries.
On the flip side, Alamara failed to showcase the emotional connect with the audience, especially in the pre-climax portions. Also, the house robbery scene in the second half is hard to digest. Veteran actor Indrans is wasted in a small role. Sonu Anna Jacob’s (Sunny Wayne’s sister) bank exam result and her marriage, which were highlighted as the main issues in the first half were unanswered in the film.
On the whole, Midhun Manuel’s Alamara is safe to open. A decent entertainer!
