Idiot Review

Movie Plot

A royal family is tricked and forced into killing themselves by their two faithful minions, Sethupathi and Senathipathi, in a tragic tale of betrayal. When Senathipathi persuades Sethupathi to save the life of the family's young son?the only survivor. Their plan, however, takes an unexpected turn.

Years later, Chinnarasu, a Sethupathi ancestor, lives in a village. He is Raasu Gounder's, the village panchayat's incompetent leader, and his patient wife, Parimalam's, neglected son. In defiance of his father's desires, Chinnarasu, who is disliked by him and given less attention than his sisters, plays a kabaddi match. He is thus expelled from his household. Chinnarasu confronts his father while intoxicated and enraged, demanding his fair portion of the family's ancient property. Raasu Gounder, out of anger, gives him the title to the palace where the royal family tragically perished?a location they were strongly advised never to visit.

Chinnarasu has an accident on the way to the palace that causes him to lose his memory and go into a psychotic state.

In the meanwhile, Senathipathi's granddaughter, Sumitha, works as a physician at the psychiatric facility managed by Senathipathi's son. Chinnarasu is taken to the hospital after his accident. He becomes friends with a patient named Burfi while he is in the hospital, and he gradually falls in love with Sumitha. Yet Sumitha only sees him as a harmless yet hallucinatory patient.

Sumitha's father gives her a ring that was formerly her grandfather's. While Sumitha is sleeping, her mother secretly places the ring on her finger. The vengeful ghosts of the royal family that Sumitha's grandpa assisted in slaying haunt her at night. They try to choke her until the ring comes off, releasing her from their hold. The ring is taken from Sumitha's luggage the next day by a malicious female patient's attendant. Nevertheless, Paandi assumes wrongly that the ring is an engagement ring that Sumitha bought for him, and he takes ownership of it. The ring is then taken away by a nurse but is later stolen again and falls into the hands of the woman.

To everyone's surprise, it is discovered that the female patient is a sorceress named Neelagandi. She makes a pact with the vengeful spirits, offering to help them exact retribution on the Sethupathi and Senathipathi lineage. In exchange, she asks for their assistance in raising her deceased beloved through Sumitha's sacrifice on the eve of a lunar eclipse.

Sumitha is abducted by Thiru Don Sekar and his gang and held for ransom. Nevertheless, they accidentally demand a ransom from Paandi and Burfi, who are hiding in Sumitha's vehicle. The gang delivers an unconscious Sumitha to the predetermined spot, but instead of the anticipated ransom, they discover a pile of trash. Sumitha is taken hostage by Neelagandi's ghost army in the meantime, but the kidnappers mistake them for another group of kidnappers hiding in plain sight.

The palace is the meeting point of the routes taken by Neelagandi, the murdered royal family, Paandi, Burfi, and the kidnappers. When the kidnappers realize the ghosts are real, their attempts to flee are hampered. Raasu Gounder and Parimalam visit the palace in the midst of the commotion, saddened by their son's indifference. Sumitha's father simultaneously asks a priest for assistance in rescuing her.

The deceased king joins forces with others to save Sumitha after realizing that Sumitha's father is his long-lost son. The priest sets up a ritual to protect Sumitha, but Burfi interferes because he believes it is Paandi's wedding. However, the priest gives Paandi the ability to battle Neelagandi's demonic forces. Then he tricks Neelagandi into thinking Paandi is her reincarnated ex-lover. In an ironic turn of events, as Neelagandi hugs Paandi, the priest, furious at her betrayal, releases her lover's soul, which leads to Neelagandi's death. As the eclipse comes to a close, Sumitha is successfully saved.

Reviews

Times of India

The filmmaker of "Idiot," Rambhala, makes an unsuccessful attempt at a horror comedy. The movie lacks focus and veers back and forth between satire and comedy of mistakes, creating an annoying and fragmented experience. Rambhala's effort at amusing dialogue from his Lollu Sabha days comes off as overdone and retrograde, which detracts from the tone of the movie.

Beginning as a historical drama with a betrayed royal family, the narrative introduces Chinnarasu and his family in the Veerapandiyan village. While we also get to know Smitha, a psychiatrist in charge of a psychiatric facility, Chinnarasu frequently makes fun of his illiterate father, Rasu Gounder. Chinnarasu and Smitha, who are decedents of the deceived subordinates, are joined by spirits in unbelievable events at Zameen's mansion. But the resulting pandemonium is unfunny and uninteresting.

Another character, Neelakandi, wants to kill Smitha in order to save her lover, although her post-interval introduction does little to advance the plot. The horror comedy from Rambhala makes an effort to parody well-known films, but it fails with stale and badly delivered one-liners. Although Shiva's portrayal of a mentally ill character is somewhat creative, it doesn't greatly advance the plot of the movie.

The movie objectifies spirits and has offensive jokes. It disappoints despite expectations for a well-written and sane character. Shiva carries his character subtly and makes an effort to make the audience laugh, but the weak premise hinders his performance. The performances by Nikki Galrani and Urvashi make the movie watchable to some extent.

The soundtrack has a generic feel to it and occasionally sounds familiar from previous films. The picture suffers from continuity problems throughout, despite the fact that the photography and editing offer value.

"Idiot" is a below-average movie that falls short of exploring the genre's potential through stronger writing. We must wait for a movie in this genre that is more sophisticated.

India Glitz

In "Idiot," Rambala, known for his well-liked parody comedy show "Lollu Sabha," links up with Shiva, a practitioner of deadpan humor. But the movie falls short of expectations. It incorporates a ghost narrative with flashbacks in accordance with Tamil film standards. The tale is about Chinnarasu, who is portrayed by Mirchi Shiva. He is the low-IQ son of the village headman, and the mansion he inherits is rundown. There are kidnappings, odd rituals, and the presence of spirits as the tale develops. Shiva tries to salvage some weakly written passages, but the acting?including that of Nikki Galrani and Akshara Gowda?is lackluster.

Although the theme of people with mental disabilities coping with ghosts adds a distinctive touch, the idea becomes tiresome because the director himself has already explored it in earlier films. Thanks to Screen Scene Entertainment's high production standards, the technical features of the movie are respectable. Fans of Rambala, however, will be let down because "Idiot" lacks the predictable, regular stream of humor.

Cinema Express

The most recent horror-comedy, Idiot, doesn't take itself or its viewers seriously. The designer of Lollu Sabha, Rambhala, seeks a humorous experience but falls short of providing the same level of delicacy. The film repeatedly bombards us with mindless sequences that are placed in a psychiatric facility, making us doubt our own need for therapy. The unpredictability on the screen and the disjointed plot offered little excitement or fun.

Shiva's deadpan humor typically succeeds, but his attempts to play a mentally sick character are unsuccessful. Nikki and Akshara appear out of place in the disorganized story, reflecting our lack of interest. Characters with mental illness are portrayed as perverts who say inappropriate things, which is problematic in how mental asylums are portrayed. Such scenarios are offensive to both the LGBTQIA+ community and people who are suffering from mental illness. It's alarming to witness protests against films having accurate representation while supporting films that make disparaging remarks about people with mental illness face no backlash.