A cinematic recreation of a horrific event — one that touched an entire population in one way or another — confronts the filmmaker with possibilities and pitfalls in equal measure. images from Kerala witnessed unprecedented rains and floods in 2018 So fresh in memory, that the film would be easily dismissed if the entertainment weren’t authentic enough. Still, that familiarity and the emotion attached to it makes the screenwriter’s job easier because he or she just needs to create characters with a basic backstory to fit these situations.
In 2018, director and screenwriter Jude Anthony Joseph sticks in this way. He spends the opening half of the film introducing us to a set of characters who are expected to be at the center of the action when the flood comes. When the script pays a little extra attention to Anoop (Tovino Thomas), who has lied about his health condition to quit military service because he is scared, we know he will take a brave turn in times of crisis, but It still remains a well written character.
2018 (Malayalam)
Director: Jude Anthony Joseph
Cast: Tovino Thomas, Vineeth Sreenivasan, Aparna Balamurali, Kalaiyarasan, Kunchacko Boban, Lal, Naren, Tanvi Ram, Shashiwada, Gautami Nair
Duration: 150 minutes
Storyline: Follows a group of characters whose lives are changed forever when they are caught in the unprecedented floods that hit Kerala in 2018
A similar case occurs when a proud man rejects a proposal for his daughter from a fisherman family, and shows disdain for their traditional work. We know this man will learn a lesson when fishermen arrive with their boats to rescue his family from the flood. Despite all this, most of these scenes work and leave an emotional impact. Again, fresh-as-yesterday memories of familiarity and harrowing days accentuate the emotion.
As the action shifts to the long half dealing solely with the floods, the focus is placed almost entirely on one village, which stands as a microcosm for Kerala and how it has united over the floods. Overcome. At some places, one feels that the filmmaker takes the emotional and dramatic lyrics beyond normal limits, especially in the extended scenes of a family with a child with special needs trapped in neck-deep water. But the flood scenes are buoyed by their technical excellence, which is a feat given the limited budgets in Malayalam cinema. It succeeds at times in making us feel as if we are trapped in one of those houses with water waiting to burst. These scenes are so effective that for those who have actually gone through such situations, it can be painful to re-live it.
While the fisherman who became the savior is rightly placed at the center of the film, 2018 bypasses the efforts of the government machinery during those days, just like how Ashiq Abu done with virus How Kerala overcame the menace of Nipah virus.
Jude Anthony Joseph 2018 It reminds of the days when everyone in Kerala, irrespective of their religion, caste or their political leanings, came together to help those in trouble. Its humanitarian message and the context of its release somehow elevates the importance of this film, making it worthy of the tagline… ‘The Real Kerala Story’.
2018 Currently playing in theaters