- Date of Release: 5 May 2023
- Genre: Drama, Thriller
- Language: Malayalam
- Watch On: Theatres Only
2018
Introduction
As they say, you need to manifest things for them to come true. And yesterday was one of the most beautiful evenings that came out of nowhere. With that, I did get a chance to attend the special screening of the Malayalam film 2018 which was arranged by Film Companion(A Huge Shoutout!!). And it was a special feeling of experiencing a film with the cast and crew of 2018 under one roof! I was previously disappointed on not getting tickets for the Sunday show of the film 2018. But seldom did I know that greater things were in store.
Last weekend has been quite a talking point primarily restricted to two films – The Kerala Story and ‘2018’, two films which are polar opposites of each other. If you do look closely, the themes of the two films are different as well. While one strictly does rely on creating sensationalism and eyeballs by dividing the society, the other is about humanity coming together in probably the most difficult times and creating a feeling of togetherness! It is upto you on which side you would choose to tread!
It was in 2005(when I was a young kid) when Mumbai was privy to one of the most devastating downpours in history. I remember my mother had a very hard time returning home from work. It was a near impossible situation to literally walk through the floods but she did receive help from total strangers. 26th July 2005 was that one day when the people of Mumbai rose up to the occasion by helping one another irrespective of their caste, creed or gender. There have been so many instances wherein natural calamities have brought people closer to each other, where hate was a forgotten word.
One such instance did happen in Kerala in the year 2018(almost thrice as worse as the Mumbai floods) when humanity decided to show up against the brutal force of nature. On a side note, nature does provide several warnings on not to be taken for granted and I hope humanity does learn from it. And on this 2018 tragedy, there was a film made titled ‘2018’ which is in many ways The ‘Real’ Kerala Story. With a stellar cast and a glowing word of mouth, I did have high hopes from 2018, does it live upto its expectations….lets find out.
Story & Screenplay
Based on true events, 2018 follows the story of a group of people from different walks of life who come together to help humanity during the devastating 2018 floods of Kerala. Given that this is a recent incident, the scars in the minds of the people of the state would still be fresh. Keeping that in mind, the story is frightening yet it brings with it a lot of hope in what is a true representation of unity and universal brotherhood. The screenplay standing at about 150 minutes does make for one of the most impactful pieces of writing in recent times which does take the viewers on a roller coaster of emotions.
The drama does open with a line which states that ‘Calamity Is Just A Piece Of News, Until You Witness It'(paraphrased). This single line sets the ball rolling for the rest of the drama beautifully. You are tactfully introduced to all the principal characters one by one and the equations that they share with each other. Within this introductory space, the writers deftly touch upon the politics of the land while providing a social commentary. In a scene, you are privy to some fishermen who are supposedly lost in the sea. There is rain in the surroundings and barely are the fishermen rescued. On the other hand across the state border, you see a village where there is a scarcity of water which is such a contrast to the previous scene. Also, there are hints of social commentary sprinkled featuring an almost dilapidated school where the tiles of the roof are falling off, a sign of things to follow on a larger scale.
The ability of the writing is such that it does keep you invested in the drama primarily due to the character traits which are on display. Also there is attention to detail in many scenes with the patter of rain being a prominent character in every scene. The sound slowly elevates as the drama unfolds thus preparing the viewers for the worst. This, while the drama is cleverly knit through a common thread. The proceedings are interesting and engrossing given the world building of the drama which does act as a lull before the storm. But the real conflict does kick in after the halfway mark when the intensity of the floods and rains increases, thus giving rise to a survival thriller laced with heartwarming and tragic moments.
The writers do well in keeping the religion angle absolutely away from the proceedings. The emotions are allowed to flow(no pun intended) instead of manipulating them by showing visuals of people from different faiths helping one another. The people do help one another but they are always viewed from the point of view of humanity. Instead, there are visual symbols of a tall chapel which was once overlooking a village, now being submerged in deep waters – a timely reminder that even God can’t save humanity if humans choose to exploit nature. Yet, in a brilliantly moving scene, you see a protagonist looking eye to eye with the statue of the Christ(given how high the water levels were), signifying that God is prevalent in each one of us, provided we choose to look within. Even the gentle politics of the land is reduced to ashes and means nothing as compared to the larger tragedy which is in store.
There are several heartwarming moments that are a part of the narrative. And the emotions are so strong here that you tend to overlook some of the convenient plot points or character transformations that happen in a jiffy. The motive of the writing was to address the topic of unity even in testing times where strangers choose to turn into angels. And this results in several scenes that are goosebumps worthy. The events are stray but in every event(some unrelated to each other) are laced with sensitivity and coated with a heartwarming paint that does leave a warm tingling feeling within you. Yet, the writers do not shy away from raising the stakes which is a timely reminder to the viewers that this is a tragedy afterall. The final act is heart searing and almost shattering to the point that the drama does linger on long after it has ended! Overall, the screenplay does take a generic survival template but packs in all the right kind of emotions to make for a brilliantly impactful film.
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues are conversational yet they make for a solid impact. The music is brilliant featuring a soothingly melancholic soundtrack. But the unsung hero of the film is its BGM and the siund design which is outstanding. The decibels of rain are slowly increased over the course of the drama that does make for such a holistic theatrical experience.
The cinematography is outstanding and the several underwater shots do give a sense of claustrophobia. Even frames involving rain and the floods are poetic and beautifully captured. The editing is razor sharp here. To give you a perspective, the entire film is filled with events which may or may not be interlinked to one another. Yet when you do watch the film, it doesn’t seem to be disjointed in any way. Director Jude Anthany Joseph does a spectacular job in crafting this survival thriller with utmost sensitivity and technical brilliance. The fact that I was completely immersed(no pun intended) in its narrative meant that the direction does deserve distinction marks!
Performances
The performances are brilliant by the ensemble cast. Rony David as Cleetus, Vinitha Koshy and Shebin Benson as Nahas have their moments to shine. Aparna Balamurali as Ann is first rate as is Siddique as her father. Kunchacko Boban as Shaji and Sshivada as his wife are well restrained in a job well done. Kalaiyarasan as Sethupathi has such a heartwarming character arc and he is wonderful to watch. Vineeth Sreenivasan as Rameshan and Gauthami Nair as Anu are sincere and earnest with some lovely character traits to play with.
Indrans as Bhasi and Jaffer Idukki as Aravindan are seasoned actors and they perform their roles to perfection. Hari Krishnan as Alex and Aju Varghese as Koshy are heartwarming additions to the cast. Narain as Winston and Lal as Mathachan are superb and have so much resilience to their character. Likewise Sudheesh as Varghese is excellent to watch particularly in events leading up to the final act.
Tanvi Ram as Manju is wonderful with the expressions that she does bring to the table with respect to her character. Asif Ali as Nixon is heartwarming and does a brilliant job here. His set pieces were thrilling yet laced with sincerity. Tovino Thomas as Anoop is such an earnest and affable character that almost transforms into a superhero. And he does such a smashing job in each and every scene. The intensity of his character was brilliant to watch in an overall excellent job done.
Conclusion
2018 is a heartfelt ode to humanity and universal brotherhood that comes with my highest recommendation. This is more like the India that I know and have grown in! Needless to say, this is The ‘Real’ Kerala Story which will make love win all over again! Available in a theatre near you and Highly Highly Recommended!