French Viplavam Review: A slapstick comedy that offers occasional laughs

Sunny Wayne starrer French Viplavam has hit screened today. The movie is directed by debutant Maju KB and scripted jointly by Anwar Ali, Shajeer Sha and Shajeer Jaleel. It had some interesting pre-release promos. Let’s see how the movie pans out to be.

French Viplavam has an interesting storyline centered around the fun incidents that occur in a village following the anti-liquor policy that was imposed by the AK Antony government in 1996. So one fine day, country liquor is banned in the state and how the villagers cope up with that is the basic thread. Laced around this is the protagonist’s romance track.

French Viplavam is made as a slapstick comedy with a bunch of caricaturish characters. Sunny Wayne plays the role of Sathyan, a lazy youngster who spends his time by hanging around with his gang of friends. Lal plays the other major role in the movie. The tiff between Sathyan and Lal’s character takes the plot forward. The makers have succeeded in successfully establishing a 90s setup. The narrative also provides the occasional laughs but what it lacks is the consistency. There are several loose ends and the purpose for some characters, like the one Chemban Vinod played, are questionable.

While Lal goes over-the-top at most occasions, Sunny Wayne looked good in parts. Newcomer Arya Salim, who has been paired with Sunny manages to makes an impression. The actors who played the three friends have also done their parts well. On the technical side, Pappinu’s cinematography is unique with many well staged long shots. Prashanth Pillai has composed the music and edits are done by Deepu Joseph.

Overall, French Viplavam is a commendable attempt in making a slapstick comedy. An experimental film that has its share of genuine moments.