Joji Analysis

 Joji (2021)

Directed by: Dileesh Pothan
Written by: Syam Puskaran
Starring; Fahadh Faasil

The most unique aspect of this film is the tonality that it arrives at. The pristine production design, whether it's the flooring of the house, the color palettes they've chosen and the lighting is one aspect. The performances, the music and the editing, all of these come together to arrive at the tone of the film. Fahadh Faasil's strength is bringing in a sense of unpredictability without breaking character, which seems almost impossible until he pulls it off. The casting choice of Bincy was terrific, the deadpan look on her face - that adds a lot to the tone of the film. The writing is terrific as usual, the dialogue is naturalistic and snappy at the same time. Take the scene where Jomon serves two extra eggs to the priest - he takes the curry vessel with him inside (which he could've kept aside as well) and that is later used to convey by a helper that the priest has left. Using natural elements in the scene to tell story, and explore character is a brilliant way to achieve seamless writing. 

Usually the lush landscapes and the greenery in Kerala, they use these locations to arrive at a slice of life tone and the beauty of Dileesh Pothan is that - he uses such locations and bends genre. I personally wouldn't have used such bright locations to tell a story like this - especially the scene where Joji kills Jomon. Perhaps they used it to create a suddenness in the scene. Or maybe it's just subverting norms. I enjoyed the tone of the film the most, I can totally see myself watching a long format show with this tone, if it is consistent throughout.