Sookshmadarshini

The story revolves around the nosy Priyadarshini, played to perfection by Nazriya. She is sure that there is more to her neighbour Manuel (Basil Joseph excelling in the role of a despicable villain with his usual ease), and his mother who purportedly has Alzheimer's. Priya is sure she has nothing of the sort and there is foul play afoot; and we have "Rear Window" with all the neighborhood women joining in the action.

An enjoyable movie if you don't think about its plausibility!

Two people are travelling in a train. One person puts up a large package on the luggage rack. The other guy asks: "What's in the package?" The first guy replies:"That's a MacGuffin - a device used to catch lions in the Scottish highlands." The second person says: "But there are no lions in the Scottish highlands!" The first person replies: "Well, then there's no MacGuffin!"

This story is one of Alfred Hitchcock's favourites. He uses it to highlight the plot devices in his movies, which have no relevance to the tale other than to push the action forward: once the tale is up and running, the MacGuffin is forgotten. Hitchcock is a self-confessed fan of the device, and he has used it in many of his celebrated movies - 'The 39 Steps', 'Notorious', 'The Foreign Correspondent', etc. Such is his mastery of the medium that the audience don't care.

That the director of the Malayalam suspense movie "Sookshmadarshini" (Microscope) is a Hitchcock fan, I have no doubt. He has created a movie of nail-biting suspense - a literal edge-of-the-seat thriller - with a MacGuffin to end all MacGuffins. Once the movie is on track, the audience will scarce notice what the original premise was. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, though its concept was so patently silly.

MC directs Nazriya - Basil starrer "Sookshmadarshini" that is the story of Priya (Nazriya), a smart and curious homemaker and her new neighbor, Manuel (Basil Joseph) who seems to have something to hide. Ever since Manuel and his ailing mother (Manohari Joy) come back to their old house in her neighborhood, Priya feels something is not right and with the help of her neighborhood friends - Sulu (Akhila Bhargavan) and Asma (Pooja Mohanraj) - tries to find out what is happening with Manuel's life as he takes more than a keen interest in Stephy (Merin Philip), a single mother in the same neighborhood. 

Is Manuel actually hiding something? Is Priya overcurious as blamed by her husband, Antony (Deepak Parambol)? Is everything normal with Manuel, Priya and their respective families? All of these are answered over a 147 minute narrative that keeps you invested throughout - thanks to MC's firm grip over the narrative and an engaging (though not fully logical) script by Athul Ramachandran and Libin T B. 

Hidden under all the jokes and entertainment is a very socially relevant point that exposes the patriarchal and regressive mindset of Malayalees and the honor killings that happen in families in this part of the world. The goriness of Dr John's (Sidharth Bharathan) actions are also skillfully camouflaged with comic dialogues and situations. While the scriptwriters should be appreciated for where they take the narrative, there is no denying logic issues in the script - why would Manuel serve the meat of monitor lizard to his friends, how did Diana (Manuel's sister) deliver that voice message to Priya? - these are questions that remain unanswered. 

Skillful editing by Chaman Chacko, good cinematography by Sharan Velayudhan Nair, engaging OST by Christo Xavier are other positives. The talented supporting cast delivers, Basil seems to be playing an extension of his character in "Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya he" in terms of mannerisms but is good nevertheless. Nazriya makes a good comeback in a role that is tailor made for her though she looks a little jaded compared to Ohm Shanti Oshana, Bangalore days and Koode. 

To sum up, "Sookshmadarshini" engages and entertains you throughout and the moolah that it has raked in from theatres is proof enough. I go with 3.5 stars out of 5.