Churuli

One thing's for sure - Lijo Jose Pellissery isn't the kind of filmmaker interested in spoon-feeding the audience. His films are doused in metaphors and allegories, and Churuli is no different. Would you call it a thinking viewer's film? Nope. Because there is a deliberate attempt for the proceedings to stop making sense beyond a point. It all harks back to the mythical plot that the film opens with - the story of a monk who's misled into an unending spiral by a fey creature. LJP mounts the film in a fantastic forested landscape - Madhu Neelakantan's frames are a total feast for the eyes, punctuated occasionally by Sreerag Saji's minimalist score. Renganaath Ravee's sound design also deserves special mention.

The film's absurdity begins the moment a jeep crosses a derelict bridge carrying the two (undercover cop) protagonists played by Vinay Forrt and Chemban Vinod. The initially friendly residents of Churuli, all of a sudden, turn hostile and begin hurling abuses at each other. Heck, if this film was given to the Censors, they would have had a tough time beeping out words from almost every dialogue. I had a jolly time reading (and observing) the PG-13 English subtitles of every cuss word mentioned in the film. Jokes aside, the foul-mouthed nature of Churuli's residents stands out as yet another metaphor for lawlessness. Anything goes, from an old lady suddenly coming at you with an axe to celestial bodies flying across the sky at night to randomly shooting someone's ear off only for him to joke about it - it's chaotic the way only LJP movies can get!

Yet, when you think the quirkiness can't advance any further, the climax of Churuli is even more bonkers. It treads that thin line between science fiction and over-the-top fantasy, not giving itself entirely into either. If you feel dazed and confused about what you have just watched, you may not be the only one. But come to think of it, LJP already gave you the short synopsis in the first place. It's you, the viewer, who was simply taken for a ride. I liked Churuli for the most part - it has the director's stamp in almost every department. Given the nature of the film, I wouldn't vouch for anyone else to feel what I felt watching it. At the very least, it's not calculative; it's not predictable (at all).

From the opening narration of a fictional folk tale and a casual mention in one of the initial scenes about a couple of Americans being taken by aliens, Churuli sets its base for an absurd and abstract atmospheric film. That's exactly what the film is until the end, with its foul-mouthed bas**** of the Churuli village living unhinged. Is it a village isolated and observed as a free-living cult by the couple of aliens who appears a couple of times? Is the constant deja vu for many characters because of a time loop? Does the "Madan" change its host from time to time? Who knows. It's not about finding the answer, it's the journey through all that, the experience that counts here.

Didn't think the profanity is as bad as everyone makes it to be. Nor did I think the movie wants to confuse everyone either. Only because the people are so conditioned to have a story with all answers in it, people are confused, if only people stop trying to find a definite answer and find the experience of different possibilities, it would be much more entertaining and less confusing.

As I didn't understand so many things, one dialogue from 'Tenet' was always coming to my mind - "Don't try to understand it, feel it." I'm sure there'll be many like me who will think what actually happened in the climax or in the entire movie.

The basic plot of this film is nothing but the short story which was presented beautifully at the beginning. 'Churuli' means spiral or labyrinth, Lijo successfully justified the title of the movie.

Technical dept and sound designing are always great in a LJP film. The conclusion of the movie is confusing, I didn't find any hidden meaning if there was any. Now, after finishing the movie, except the ending which reminded me of 'Hot Fuzz', I didn't find the necessity of any of the characters or the moments. I think I've to revisit it again & again to understand it fully. So, I can't say if the movie is good or bad, I'll just say if you like these confusing executions you'll like it too.

Available on Sony LIV.

© MandalBros.

N. B. I feel the movie BORING in the midway. Now, you can say I'm not ready for this kind of High Level Cinema, maybe YES. 🤷‍♂️

This is an absurd movie. Its full of madness. It does not clearly explain the events that occur. The director wants us to come up with theories, he doesnt want to express his idea. I think he is the only one who knows what he meant. In my opinion, if the director fails to explain his ideas with clarity, the movie is a failure. But one thing that was great about this movie was its cinematography. That was fascinating.

The flick creates its intensity afters 10 mins and it prolongs the momentum until Soubin appear. Well trimming the rest, the movie is riveting to the core, Chemban and Vinay are annoyingly intriguing, Jaffar is exceptionally a subtle hard nut to crack. Lijos urge to showcase himself as daring and ultra liberal is ostensibly evident by juxtaposing profanity in every dialogue. However, the story, screenplay, setting, casting and score totally creates the ambience to keep one's eyes glued till the end. On the whole the movie is an eccentric, magical but yet leaves one numb.