Moothon Analysis

Moothon

Written & Directed by: Geethu Mohandas

Cinematography: Rajeev Ravi

Starring: Nivin Pauly, Shashank Arora, Roshan Matthew, Sobhita Dhulipala

Premiered at Toronto International Film Festival 2019

This film is unbelievably real, each and every department helps in making the world more authentic. Nivin Pauly feels like a person who has been born and brought up there - he doesn't at all look like an actor who is playing that part. I'm baffled - I have no clue how they manage to shoot stuff like this, Liar's Dice was still understandable because it had less cast. It totally feels like you are thrown into this world, with the handheld shots, the lighting, the production design and how they manage to shoot in real locations with these many actors. The dialogue and the writing too, just compliment the world and the setting - they by themselves don't try to stand out. The characters are also portrayed with honesty, you can label them with whatever names you want to - but they have a sense of reality in them.

The costumes, hair and make up added so much for the authenticity of the world. Even simple things like Sobhita Dhulipala's bangles, Nivin Pauly's eyeliner, the clothes that people wear - at no where does it feel like these are actors and a film is being shot. I feel like if they can shoot this, then they can absolutely shoot anything that could be written. For me this film is about the setting and the world, more than the plot and the characters because I felt that the plot was too much to focus on and digest, the flashback slightly felt like a backstory. Having recently watched There Will Be Blood, I wonder if having a mute character is a cop-off to explore visual filmmaking - I'm not complaining for this particular film, but I'm just slightly confused about why film studies, critics and judges want films to be unlike real life - because real life is often filled with dialogues. Yes, I agree that if you narrate the story entirely on voice over, it's a lazy thing you're doing - but why force visual filmmaking too? Although in this film, he being mute somehow conveys his helplessness, innocence and makes us empathize with him.