2018 Movie Review

Introduction

'2018' is an important movie that tries to tell the tale of Kerala's worst catastrophe on television. The movie has generated a lot of buzz and ended up being the biggest hit in Malayalam. It is also available in Telugu dubbing.

Plot Cast

The star cast of the movie includes Tovino Thomas, Vineeth Sreenivasan, Aparna Balamurali, Kunchacko Boban, Kalaiyarasan, Lal, Narein, Tanvi Ram, Sshivada, and Gauthami Nair.

Plot Story

Anup, an ex-soldier, leaves the military because he fears death. While Koshy (Aju Varghese) operates a tourist taxi, Mathachan (Lal) and his son Winston (Narain) make their income by fishing. When Ramesh (Vineeth Srinivasan), an IT worker in Dubai, experiences problems with his wife in India, Sethupathi (Kalayirasan) from Tamil Nadu volunteers to drive a truck carrying explosives to Kerala. Kerala was devastated by floods in 2018, and the narrative focuses on the protagonist's challenges and how the disaster affects the local population. How did they make it through this terrible catastrophe? All of the solutions are in the film.

Positive Points

'2018' is one of the few films that can captivate audiences and take them on a trip with the characters. Although there are no significant twists or turns in the tale, it is fantastic because of the well-developed characters and narration. Director Jude Anthany Joseph presents a heartfelt plot. While the characters may be complicated for viewers to understand in the first half, the second half makes the director's goals plain. He tells the tale with interest, and his pleasant portrayal of emotions makes the audience feel the events as they transpire on television.

Tovino Thomas should be commended for agreeing to the script while not being the main character. His character journey is well-planned, from fear of dying to becoming a courageous guy who struggles against obstacles to save multiple people. Lal, who plays Mathachan, performs remarkably as a fisherman who makes a tremendous effort to assist thousands of people in surviving the catastrophic floods. While everyone else in the cast performs a good job in their roles, Narain and Kalayirasan stand out with their individual performances. The film's outstanding camera work, background score, and compelling tale create a tense atmosphere, particularly in the picture's second half. They contribute substantially to the movie and keep the audience on the edges of their seats.

Negative Points

One problem with '2018' is that it does not show much of what the government and the media were up to during the problematic Kerala floods in 2018. Although the director's primary goal is to advance humanity above all else, he should have also emphasized the government's and media's contributions to the situation. Aparna Balamurali, a well-known character in the movie, needs more screen time. She should have appeared in more sequences, according to the director.

Viewers may need clarification as the director concentrates more on the people and their problems than on the central plot in the film's first half. Viewers may be dissatisfied with some of the characters because they do not have a big impact on the plot, including Tanvi Ram and Gauthami Nair. Although the movie has several shortcomings, they are minor because of the spectators' strong emotions, making them forget about everything else and riveted to the screen. The director might have increased the suspense in the narrative by including more sequences involving the dam's deterioration.

Review

It takes time for '2018' to get underway, so it is already dusk after 30 minutes. The director introduces us to several short tracks narrated by a familiar personality. Usually, it would have been uninteresting, but the actors were there, and the threat of danger hanging over them piqued our curiosity about what would happen to them. The individual songs are then packed with more commonplace material, such as a love story involving an ex-military officer and a teacher, a rich girl-poor boy tale, a husband attempting to reconnect with his divorced wife, etc.

Every short part of the more extended narrative is predictable. However, everything remains in place because they are all impacted by the more serious flood hazard. In traditional Malayalam drama movie fashion, the suspense in the several tracks builds gradually and crescendos around the halfway point. When nature hits in the second half and throws everyone out of their rhythm, the actual action takes place. In the second half, the survival drama is compellingly done. Each character encounters a challenge, and the story of how they overcome it is compelling. The intriguing thing about this narrative is how realistic it attempts to be without being absurd. There are elevations, but they do not seem heroic in the "cinematic" sense of the word; instead, they seem commonplace.

Jude Anthany Joseph deserves praise for producing a believable tale that depicts people's concerns and their decision to defend one another in the face of a natural disaster. His screenplay is solid, especially in the second half, where he captures the characters' feelings. The movie is a technical marvel, thanks to the outstanding work of the production design team, cinematographer Akhil George, and composer Nobin Paul. Chaman Chakko's editing is passable, but he might have improved '2018' by cutting a few sequences from the early half. High production standards and spectacular visual effects create an engaging atmosphere. Additionally, the Telegu dubbing is fairly decent.

Conclusion

Overall, '2018' is a well-made movie that engages viewers and elicits strong feelings. The film's highlights include Tovino Thomas, Lal, and Narain's superb performances, outstanding score, and cinematography. The movie includes numerous high sequences that will keep audiences emotionally invested, except for a few ignorable shortcomings, making this movie a must watch.