Fireman: A winner for sure... :)

[Ranjithfan]

Fireman is a winner! A great tribute to the whole Fire Brigade.

Theatre: Luxe Cinemas, Chennai.
Status: 95 %
Showtime: 10.10 PM
From the likes of Cochin express and CID Nazeer in the black and white era to the sensational Drishyam, thriller movies have been an integral part of our industry.Malayalam movie audience has never shown reluctance to accept quality, high octane thrillers which are backed by intelligent scripting. At a time when lack of ideas has struck the genre badly, Deepu Karunakaran has come up with a never seen plot and concept- A fire force mission! And how did he respond to the need for a quality script, good technical assistance and honesty inside the budget constraints of our industry? I must say, he did respond well.

Plot: A day long mission led by the fire force team assisted by the Police, Administration and some committed common people to prevent a major disaster in a city.


The movie starts on a slow and calm note giving the audience no clue about the intensity of action which is to follow. Once the mission starts movie gains good pace and momentum which is maintained till the end. Twists and turns come up at regular intervals, keeping the audience anxious. The hardships faced by the firemen, technicalities involved in a fire rescue mission, the importance of quick and efficient decision making in a serious mission and ego clash among departments have all been woven into the movie quite efficiently by Deepu. Most importantly, the movie ends on a high note. So, the base of the movie, the script, is strong.

Technically,the movie is a mixed bag. Background music by Rahul Raj is fine and does help the overall mood of the movie. Frames are fresh and real. And editing is efficient and has played a critical role in keeping the flow of the movie. VFX work is not a complete let down but is surely below par. They look very artificial and affect the overall output negatively. The movie set has been well constructed, making the whole scene look real.

Fireman doesn’t boast of a huge star cast, except for Mammootty. Mammootty as fireman Vijay steals the show with amazing screen presence, dialogue delivery and energy. Vijay is never a challenge to his acting caliber, but is a huge physical challenge to a 60 plus man. Kudos for the effort he put in. Nyla Usha as the ACP is good. Unni Mukundan is okay as Vijay’s assistant though there are one or two scenes where he acts poorly. Salim Kumar looks tired and it was a halfhearted effort from him- A good opportunity wasted. Then there is Siddique,Sreekumar, Harish Peradi, Shivaji Guruvayoor, Sadiq and Prasad who are all good in their respective roles.


Deepu’s direction is nothing special but he deserves applause for taking up a very difficult subject and paying justice to it. Cast and VFX are two areas he should have addressed better. Barring them, his direction is conventional but very good. There would be questions about characterizations too, but I believe that they have not gone over the top and are ways of making the movie more popular. Best part about Deepu’s direction is that he struck the right balance between commercial and realistic aspects- a balance between sense and popularity.

Fireman deserves a good run at the Box office for its plot, scripting and high intense performance from Mammootty. The movie itself is a mission considering the difficulties and dangers involved in the making of it. And this will surely be remembered for its portrayal of a group of heroes who have been ignored by Indian cinema till now. If you are looking for something fresh, thrilling and entertaining, go for it!
Rating-3.5/5.
Verdict:Hit or above.

Note:Please avoid spoilers while writing a review. I was unfortunate to hear a lot of spoilers before watching the movie… L

P.S: This is very personal. Fireman has only a single female character in it, that of Assistant Commissioner of Police. And she is not at all involved in the decision making process. It could have been nice, had the director imparted more substance to the character.
*There could be some loopholes in the script, but they have to be explored by inspired gentlemen.

[wayanadan]

thanxxxxxxxxxxx ranjith fannnnnnnn

[samsha22]

thanks...good review

[abhimallu]

Thanks Bhai

[PunchHaaji]

thanks for the review!!

[ghostrider999]

tHANKS..................

[aneesh mohanan]

Thanks ranjithfan

[PokkiriRaja]

Thanks Yaaar

[Mayavi 369]

Thx Machaaa

[Jaguar]

Thanks Bhai