Shaji Kailas’ brand of cinema has been a favourite for those cine-goers who celebrated the larger-than-life heroes taking centre stage with lengthy, pompous monologues, heavily choreographed action sequences and unwarranted camera angles and shots. But success has been long overdue for the director who has delivered some of the biggest blockbusters in Malayalam cinema.
After a series of misfires at the box office — despite KaduvaandKappa that celebrated alpha male heroes being declared hits — the director is back at the marquee with Hunt, headlined by Bhavana, with whom he is collaborating after the 2005 release, Chinthamani Kolacase.
Shaji has added supernatural horror to his oeuvre with the movie scripted by Nikhil Anand. Bhavana plays Dr Keerthi, a postgraduate student specialising in forensic medicine. A bold and outspoken individual, Keerthi is left with too much on her plate when the corpse of a woman (Aditi Ravi) is recovered from a river stuffed in a concrete-filled bin. Soon she starts feeling someone’s presence around her, forcing her to get involved in finding the identity of the woman and the circumstances that led to her murder.
Hunt (Malayalam)
For a change, the director has gone for a woman protagonist this time and there is enough meat in the initial scenes to keep the audience interested in the narrative, thanks to the pace of the scenes and the build-up to the situations.
Bhavana in a scene from ‘Hunt’ | Photo Credit: @GOODWILLENTERTAINMENTS/YouTube
But that’s all you get; the script gradually loses grip and the viewers’ interest soon fizzles out. That too despite the introduction of a bevvy of characters and attempts to create an eerie ambience with a thumping soundscape. At no point does the viewer feel invested in the characters or the situations.
Bhavana does her part well, and so do the other actors — Chandunath, Anu Mohan, Suresh Kumar, Nandu, Ajmal Ameer, Rahul Madhav, Dain Davis etc. But there are no major takeaways from the film; be it in terms of scenes or performances. One gets less and less invested as the story progresses. The plot feels underwhelming, especially when the motive behind the woman’s disappearance is revealed.
With the inclusion of elements such as parapsychology, spirit and props to make it a horror thriller, the script could have had so many layers to give us a gripping narrative. That does not happen and even the attempts at creating an exciting climax fall flat. The film might be a one-time watch for those who prefer horror thrillers, but don’t expect it to blow your mind.
Hunt is currently running in theatres
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