Movie : Orma Maathram
Director : Madhu Kaithapram
Music : Kaithapram Viswanathan
Cast : Dileep, Priyanka Nair
In Orma Maathram, award winning director Madhu Kaithapram has evidently tried to make things look ‘seriously offbeat’. But it ends up as a half-baked and pretentious attempt that fails to keep the viewer engaged in the proceedings.
Ajayan (Dileep) is an idealistic man working as a clerk in a lawyer’s office. He lives in an old street, with his wife Safiya (Priyanka Nair) and their son, Deepu. The story begins with the couple confused about having another kid before the lady deciding to go for an abortion. Then there is a bomb blast where the kid is lost and a fatal eye disease that is affecting Ajayan’s vision.
The main problem with the film is perhaps that the script writer C V Balakrishnan and director Madhu Kaithapram (whose has earlier directed Ekantham and Madhyavenal) is perhaps not sure where the focus should be. As a result, the story moves along aimlessly for most of the time, at a disturbingly slow pace.
There are a few characters like the Jewish couple who runs an antique shop and a girl named Catherine (Dhanya Mary), who is eternally waiting for someone. Also, there are actors like Salim Kumar and Harisree Asokan, who appear in inconsequential roles.
With a fractured script that never really connects with the viewer, the film looks melodramatic and even, amateurish. M J Radhakrishnan’s camera and Kaithapram Viswanathan’s music doesn’t help much either.
Dileep tries to look serious with stubble, kurtas and a demure face. But then, there’s nothing much in the film that demands him to perform well. Priyanka Nair, who shot into fame with films like Veyil (in Tamil) and Vilapangalkkappuram, fails to impress. The lead couple has no chemistry whatsoever and the emotions are often, mechanical.
Orma Maathram has been modeled in the famous art house formula in Malayalam, but ends up a dismal attempt. When powerful films which are really engrossing are being made in various languages, it is a pity that certain filmmakers in Maalayalam are still hanging on to the thoroughly outdated ‘arty’ format. Why waste time on such boring efforts?