Rorschach Movie Review: A cerebral, unique experiment

In a recent interview, Mammootty had spoken about how Malayalam cinema is always known for its experiments, and he pointed out the example of the State award winning ‘Aavasavyuham’, a fascinating genre-bender. Well, the megastar’s latest film ‘Rorschach’ is one such interesting fusion of genres. Mammootty deserves huge respect for his unending passion to shoulder such projects time and again.

‘Rorschach’, directed by Nisam Basheer, is completely in contrast to the filmmaker’s previous film ‘Kettyolaanu Ente Malakha’ (also his debut). It begins with Luke Antony (Mammootty) filing a missing complaint in a police station about his wife. The mystery element begins from there. Minutes into the film, one can understand that Luke is in this quaint, remote village for something else. He buys a house there and begins his trail. From here, the narrative sprangs quite a few spoilers, which is best experienced without knowing as much as possible.

Sameer Abdul’s story is something that has been successfully explored several times in world cinema. But it his wonderfully written screenplay that keeps the viewer interested all through the runtime. Nisam Basheer, rightfully, opts for a dark treatment. Literally, everything is dark in the film. The visuals, the humour, the characters and their motives.

Mammootty is terrific in his portrayal of a distraught, revenge-obsessed man. It is an absolute treat to watch him switch shades, particularly the grey portions. Despite being a star of such stature, Mammootty doesn’t show any qualms in portraying an immoral character. This is also a film that doesn’t celebrate the star. He doesn’t get a proper introduction shot. The film’s opening scene has him casually walking (without any slo-mo, or background music) towards a police station. There is no pointless mass moments. Though couple of action scenes seemed forced, it’s effective with some smart choreographed.

Mammootty is ably supported by a brilliant ensemble. Bindu Panicker gets the role of her lifetime and she proves her range as a performer. Kottayam Nazeer and Jagadish also show what showcase their true potential. Grace Antony, Sharafudheen and Sanju Sivaram also impress.

‘Rorschach’ is one of the most technically sound films to have come out of Malayalam cinema in recent times. Right from its absorbing cinematography and atmospheric sound design, everything is top-notch. Midhun Mukundan’s stellar music is one of the film’s major highlights. The choice to use English tracks is so refreshing and makes this film stand apart from the template Malayalam thrillers.

Overall, ‘Rorschach’ is a great theatrical watch if you’re in the mood to watch something ‘unique’ and ‘gripping’.