Bramayugam movie review: A terrific and terrifying Mammootty leads Malayalam’s ‘horror cinema peaked here’ moment | Movie-review News
“When you step by way of the gateway of this mana (a Namboodiri mansion), it itself turns into the river, plains, and mountain,” the servant (Sidharth Bharathan) tells the uninvited visitor, Thevan (Arjun Ashokan). Initially, Thevan interprets it as an expression of the mansion’s vastness. Nevertheless, he quickly realises it’s a warning: as soon as inside, there’s no approach out.
Bramayugam, Rahul Sadasivan’s third directorial endeavour, unfolds within the mentioned mana, however not a glittering one. As an alternative, it resembles the ghost of its former opulence, now in ruins. It’s untidy. Nature has reclaimed elements of it, with vegetation creeping up the partitions and plenty of roof tiles damaged. The construction screams, “guests not allowed”. But for Thevan, who’s attempting to flee his destiny and survive, this mana is the one ray of hope. As he enters, Thevan is “welcomed” by the patriarch of the mana, Kodumon Potty (Mammootty), an aged man who looks as if a shadow of his former prosperous self. Upon studying that Thevan hails from the Panan neighborhood, who made a dwelling by singing for the Kings, Potty requests a tune. Impressed by his singing, Potty insists that Thevan keep, providing the consolation of steady music. Initially hesitant, Thevan accepts, viewing Potty as a beneficiant man who, regardless of his lowered caste, welcomes him. However as soon as he begins dwelling there, Thevan realises that the mansion hides many secrets and techniques, with Potty because the enigmatic guardian. As talked about earlier, escape just isn’t an possibility for Thevan. So, what can he do?
Set in South Malabar within the seventeenth century, Bramayugam delves into mythology to supply an excellent tackle the politics of energy and the numerous function caste performs. It may be seen as a high-stakes recreation of cube too. Inside the mana, inhabited solely by Potty and the servant, Thevan realises he and the servant are mere pawns on the sport board. They assume they will affect outcomes by way of luck to discover a approach out. However Potty, who has management over the cube, is aware of script “destiny”. Akin to the historic struggles of Bahujans, who had been typically denied management over their lives, right here too, a Brahmin holds sway over all the things, treating others as expendable pawns to be discarded as soon as he loses enjoyable in taking part in with their lives.
The horizons of the film are expanded by Rahul’s adept use of mythology, whereby darkish magic and the idea of Chaathan come into play, making a horrifying environment. Believed to be born to Lord Shiva and a Pulaya lady, Chaathan is worshipped to achieve unparalleled energy. Right here, the Pottys are depicted because the Brahmin household blessed by Goddess Varahi with Chaathan. Nevertheless, the Pottys exploit Chaathan, resulting in extreme repercussions. As Chaathan features management over his future, he mirrors his former masters by exploiting others to claim his energy. With this, the movie brilliantly exhibits how immense energy can blind individuals. In immediately’s socio-political context, this theme features relevance because the traditionally oppressed teams proceed to be exploited by these in positions of authority.
Bramayugam additionally illustrates how caste performs a serious function in energy dynamics and the way inheritance of energy turns into widespread greed. The servant, later revealed to be a descendant of the Potty household, makes an attempt to dethrone Chaathan to ascend to energy, regardless of Thevan’s makes an attempt to dissuade him, warning that he too will turn out to be like Chaathan. Nevertheless, the servant pays no heed.
Pinpointing Bramayugam’s best energy proves difficult resulting from its multifaceted excellence. However since we have to begin someplace, Rahul Sadasivan’s world-building deserves a standing ovation. With meticulous consideration to element, Rahul has created a much more dreary environment right here than in Bhoothakaalam, enabling Bramayugam to be dubbed as Malayalam’s “horror cinema peaked right here” second. Jotish Shankar’s skilled artwork route and Rahul’s profound understanding of the world he created, which is harking back to the sharp ones in A Vincent’s Sreekrishnaparunthu (1984) and Santosh Sivan’s Anandabhadram (2005) although they don’t share similarities per se, guarantee an distinctive viewer expertise. The choice to current the world in black and white enhances the eerie environment whereas including depth to the characters, reflecting their complexities. Noteworthy are the moments of crafted delusion. Not like typical Malayalam horror movies, Bramayugam displays uniqueness by creating components from scratch, avoiding clichés and conventional techniques, together with within the depiction of the Yakshi (feminine ghost performed by Amalda Liz).
Rahul’s writing, mixed with TD Ramakrishnan’s dialogues, is exceptionally authentic and successfully captures the nuances of the world with out extreme rationalization. Nevertheless, the movie falls in need of totally capitalising on its excessive factors, typically chopping abruptly at these moments, which can detract from the general viewing expertise. Nonetheless, regardless of the problem of that includes solely three central characters and two supporting ones, Rahul’s punctilious script and visible finesse compensate for the film’s minor shortcomings.
Beforehand, one in all his smiles in Bheeshma Parvam (2022) had garnered a lot reward for its unprecedented sense of monstrosity. For these impressed by that, Bramayugam is bound to depart you breathless as, in the direction of the tip, as soon as Mammootty begins emanating absolute evil, he offers some of the infamous smiles ever seen, utterly encapsulating the essence of the character. Whereas he has constantly displayed brilliance in portraying gray characters, with Baskara Pattelar in Vidheyan (1994) and Kuttan in Puzhu (2022) being prime examples, Mammootty surpasses himself in Bramayugam, exuding darkness like by no means earlier than. Even at this age and stage in his profession, he doesn’t maintain again in even essentially the most disturbing scenes within the movie, going all in and extracting one of the best from himself to raise the film. His sharp and measured dialogue supply, together with the malevolence he exudes by way of refined glances and smirks, additional enhances the brilliance of Bramayugam. Because of his stellar efficiency, Potty can definitely be a part of the ranks of characters like Kumaran Thampi (Mohanlal) in Sreekrishnaparunthu and Digambaran (Manoj Ok Sivan) in Anandabhadram, who’re the embodiment of evil.
Arjun Ashokan shines right here as Thevan. Whereas his dialogue supply could seem considerably subdued and infrequently tedious, his expertly conveyed physique language and refined bodily nuances of the character greater than compensate for it. Sidharth Bharathan additionally impresses along with his multifaceted efficiency, skillfully capturing the assorted dimensions of the character.
Shehnad Jalal’s cinematography is a standout function of Bramayugam, successfully capturing its depth even with out color. Notably in the direction of the tip, because the characters are affected by delusions and really feel the mana transferring and/or closing in on them, the photographs are crafted with brilliance, evoking a palpable sense of horror. Shafique Mohamed Ali’s modifying additionally helps viewers totally grasp the ethos of the world and its dread. S George’s make-up for Mammootty is commendable and sharp, whereas Ronex Xavier excels with that for different characters. Jayadevan Chakkadath’s sound design immerses viewers in Bramayugam. Though the movie fails to leverage silences correctly and infrequently overdoes the background music and sound results, Christo Xavier’s music is as good as it may be, permitting the spirit of the age of insanity to rise from inside and sail above audiences.
Bramayugam film solid: Mammootty, Arjun Ashokan, Sidharth Bharathan, Amalda Liz, Manikandan R Achari
Bramayugam film director: Rahul Sadasivan
Bramayugam film ranking: 3.5 stars
