- Date of Release: 19 December 2024
- Genre: Action
- Language: Malayalam
- Watch On: Theatres Only
Rifle Club
Introduction
In a scene in the new Malayalam film Rifle Club, one of the characters exclaims that Great Guns Do Not Have Owners, They Only Have Successors. This made me believe that every character of this mad mad universe is actually a ‘gun’ who is awaiting its turn to be put to use. In a wacky scene at about the halfway mark, a character remarks to an outsider that he is a son of a gun (based on his atrocious antics after being shot), only for the question to be passed to another outsider who arrives at that moment, identifying himself as being ‘That Gun’ (read : his father). These are the kind of crazy anecdotes that formulates the Rifle Club wherein characters essentially form the fabric of the drama that might resemble The Wild Wild West, but is that of the Wild Wild Western Ghats as claimed by one of the characters. Clearly, there are no rules to this universe, no character arcs with respect to the emotional core of the characters – just pure unadulterated fun with respect to guns and more!
Story & Screenplay
Rifle Club can also be termed as a coming of age drama with respect to one of the characters of the film. In a way, a lot of the meta humour is explored through the character of Shahjahan (Vineeth Kumar), an actor by profession who is asked to ‘man-up’ in order to break his onscreen image of a lover boy. He is the new romantic superstar of the Malayalam Film Industry but he is urged to transform into an action-hero like his peers, with the example cited of Mammootty who similarly had transformed himself into an ‘ugly-hunter’ for the IV Sasi film Mrigaya. And while he enrolls himself in the Rifle Club, he is witness to a spree of characters who essentially form the fabric of the drama here.
The theme of the drama is in a way merged with its characters too – you are introduced to the character of Avaran (Dileesh Pothan), the secretary of the club that who emphasizes on the hunting capabilities of an individual citing that one must have a ‘hunting mind’. He is often favoured by Lonappan (Vijayaraghavan) over his own son Godjo (Vishnu Agasthya), much to the dismay of the latter. Yet, the world of hyper-masculinity doesn’t restrict itself to the men of the universe – it is rightfully extended to the women of the household who aren’t restricted to being kitchens while being gun-toting maniacs themselves. Itti (Vani Vishwanath) is the sharpest amongst them all even while being lamented by her ex-husband Dr. Lazer (Suresh Krishna) of being a part of the club but no longer their family, the two other characters of Sicily (Unnimaya Prasad) and Kunjamol (Darshana Rajendran), at a later point begin competing during shootouts while referencing themselves as warring sisters-in-law in a hilarious scene that transpires during a shootout. Clearly, the motto is why should boys have a lot of fun!
The conflict of the Rifle Club is simplistic – almost transforming into a single location survival drama, even while linking itself to the lines of Amaran who exclaims that the animals of the forest area are valued on how they taste. At the center of things, you are introduced to the Tiger of the film, a powerful Mangalorean guns dealer Dayanand (Anurag Kashyap), who would stop at nothing to avenge the deaths of his two sons – one, a womanizer who hilariously meets his fate according to his ‘trashy’ nature, and the other, who hilariously signs the warrant of his own death during a procedure. In fact, much of the humour in the film emerges from the hilarious interval block wherein the latter enters the club with a spree of bullets, only for the principal characters to remain unflinched before shooting him in the gut. The placement of the interval block was hilarious particularly because Dayanand’s son expected to fight a ‘man’, a thread of patriarchy connecting his brother, before Itti pointing a gun downwards, forcing him to look down and come to terms with his fate. Ahhh hilarious!
The second hour really is the merging of all the eccentric themes of the film that results in a shootout. In a scene, you see Lonappan let off a sinister smile almost symbolizing the anticipation of this event for a very long time. In another, when a character inquires whether Amaran has any children, he replies in a single word, ‘Loading’, another line symbolic of the humour while acting as a reminder that all characters are essentially guns. It is here also that the setting of the drama in the year 1991 holds a bar of importance – you see the character of Dayanand flaunting boxers featuring the flag of America. Incidently, this was the year of globalization that allowed India to be a force to reckon with on the global stage. Here, India can be equated to the gun-toting family, with the obvious nemesis being the America-ridden Dayanand, in a face-off that is adrenaline pumping, and hilarious to witness. Just like its climax, that absolutely hits it out of the park, thereby ensuring that the drama ends on such a high. In a way, this is representative of the Malayalam Film Industry that has been ballistic in 2024, at the behest of other industries that have well…..struggled (some relatively, some directly).
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues are quirky and laced with bouts of humour that will often tickle your funny bone. It helps that this universe has no rules, thereby allowing even room for humour which is kinky in the narrative. In a scene, a character asks Shahjahan whether he enjoys kissing onscreen, only to retort that who wouldn’t enjoy. In another scene, you are witness to an old lady telling the young eloped couple on not to waste time eating. These are hilarious bouts of humour that are interspersed in the narrative, rather effectively. The music and BGM is pulsating, almost allowing the viewers to feel the vibes of this universe that is wacky and ridiculously crazy. The cinematography comprises of frames that definitely contributes to the wacky aesthetics of the drama, while positioning them to also extract bouts of humour and elation. So when a nameless character is shot through his Adam’s Apple, you applaud and cheer while wearing a sly smile on your face, almost being of the opinion that, ‘Yeah, I Knew That’. The duality of this scene is worth mentioning through the frames. The editing is crisp and sharp while keeping the length of the drama in check and retaining its eccentric essence. Director Aashiq Abu delivers a year-end banger to cherish, mostly staying committed to this world and grounding the drama in its wacky reality. Again the point of staying focused to the fabric of the drama needs to be highlighted, wherein the attempt is never to get into the psyche of the characters, but just create an eccentric world for the characters to participate and have fun in. The direction is splendid here and makes for a terrific watch.
Performances
The performances are outstanding by the ensemble cast who are in top form here. Yes, there are no arcs to boast of but every character makes its presence felt through some incredible performances. Natesh Hegde as Pedro, Navani Devanand as Nadiya, Senna Hegde as Chittappan Prasant Murali as Joshiy and Ramzan Muhammed as Ali have a solid screen presence while balancing their performances with frequent boys of eccentricities. Ponnamma Babu as Shoshama is hilarious in that one scene wherein you see the unexpected side of her, forcing me to let out a laugh. Hanumankind as Bheera is a laugh riot with his antics and he definitely manages to tickle your funny bone. Unnimaya Prasad as Sicily, Darshana Rajendran as Kunjumol and Surabhi Lakshmi as Susan are wonderful to witness and each of them leave a lasting impression while being true to their wacky characters and character traits.
Suresh Krishna as Dr Lazer has his moments to shine. The only little arc that you witness is in the character of Vineeth Kumar who shines as Shahjahan while having a strong screen presence. The veteran Vijayaraghavan as Lonappan has a quiet little swag to his character and he manages to perform phenomenally. Vishnu Agasthya as Godjo is a delight to watch in a character who is treated like the black sheep of the family. Vani Vishwanath as Itti is unabashed and unapologetic and probably needs a spin-off movie of her own for the amount of swag that she brings into her character. Anurag Kashyap is making waves with his acting stint, and it is so much fun to witness him having a ball onscreen. As Dayanand, he is terrific to witness while extracting punching bouts of humour through his incredible performance. Dileesh Pothan as Avaran is outstanding to the core, and he manages to hit it out of the park here with his eccentric act.
Conclusion
Rifle Club is a year-end banger from the Malayalam Film Industry that makes for a hilariously eccentric watch with several bouts of violence. Available in a theatre near you and Highly Recommended!
