Memories..A solid thriller....

[ajithsnair123]

Memories came with a certain baggage of expectation.The film featured a lead actor who has been doing some stellar work recently.The film's director Jithu delivered one of the biggest hits of 2012.I wanted to watch the film on the releasing day but couldn't do so.The positive reviews from some reliable sources(on and off FK) led me to the cinemas this morning.


Personally I am not a huge fan of Jithu.Detective though a decent thriller suffered from a shoddy first half and some pacing problems.My Boss was by far the best among Dileep's BO successes.But that film too suffered from a shaky ending and too much running time. So basically my expectations were mixed with fair degree of skepticism.But Memories turned out to be much better what I was expecting.Easily this is Jithu Joseph's best work(so far).In a nutshell this film is 2013's Grandmaster(I mean that in a good way of course)


The story follows a cop called Sam Alex who is a barely functioning alchoholic.Once a brilliant police officer,he takes refuge in alchohol after his wife and daughter are murdered.Meanwhile seemingly random men are murdered brutally by aruthless killer and the Police investigation is pretty much stalled.Sam's superior officer entrusts the investigation to him.Reluctantly Sam begins his investigation unaware that he(and the viewer)is in for some surprises...


Stripping away the decorations this is your standard detective story.But it has been presented convincingly and competitively.Sam is by no means a Superman.He is fragile and vulnerable.Surprisingly he doesn't tansform into an “investigating machine” once the investigation starts.His appearance,mannerisms and lazy swagger screams “DRUNK” at the viewer.I found this portrayal very refreshing.There are no punch dialogues or heroisms.Jithu deserves a pat on the back for making Sam as vulnerable and as human as possible.When I first saw the trailer I was afraid that maybe some family sentiments were thrown in the film for the sake of attracting families.But the scenes involving Sam's family never becomes melodramatic.Overall the direction,screenpaly are top notch.Even the flashback scenes are placed efficiently and they don't feel rushed or overlong.


Going to the acting department Prithviraj is on fire!!The guy is having the best time of his career and this will go down in the books as one of his finest roles.The actress who played his mother is also good and their screen chemistry was pretty good.All other players have come up with decent performances.Meghna Raj and Mia are there for very few scenes and they (especially Mia) doesn't have much meaty roles.Mia's character is actually not needed at all.But as she is easy on the eyes I am not complaining....Also another person who deserves mentioning is the villain.I felt that he was very well cast..


Well all this praise doesn't mean that Memries isnt without faults.Some scenes will generate a sense of “deja vu” among us.The film obviously takes inspiration from many fine thrillers that came before it.But it is not a carbon copy(as far as I know).So In Memories we have solid murder mystery in our hands.The film doesn't break any new grounds like Mumbai Police did but that is hardly a fault.Memories is a smart,taut thriller which is helped by a good screenplay,solid direction and a fine performance by its leading man.

Theatre:Muvattupuzha Maria(Noon Show)
Status:40-50%

My Rating:7/10

PS:Personally I would like to see a sequel to this film..Sam Alex is an interesting character..Hope Jithu too thinks so

[maryland]

thanks...

[Jenny]

thanks bhai ... interesting review!

[Saathan]

thanks bhai... good review... repped

[Kingmaker]

Thanks Macha...Nice Review

[krishnaranni]

thanks bhai

[AnWaR]

superb review bhai...repped..

[Raju]

It's sad few only knows the actor who played Sams mother. She was mother of Dulqer in Neelakaasam and again Prithvis mother in Chocolate. She is wife of Krishnachandran the hero of Rathinirvetham and solid but not so successful singer who scored record score and first rank in BA music from Arts College Trivandum in 86 or so

[Jenny]

It's sad few only knows the actor who played Sams mother. She was mother of Dulqer in Neelakaasam and again Prithvis mother in Chocolate. She is wife of Krishnachandran the hero of Rathinirvetham and solid but not so successful singer who scored record score and first rank in BA music from Arts College Trivandum in 86 or so

Vanitha - chocolateilum prithvide amma aayirunnallo pullikari

[pnikhil007]

Thanks...Repped...