Malik | Movie Insert's Review | Fahadh Faasil, Nimisha Sajayan | MOVIE INSERT

  

A short descriptor of Malik wouldbe a Malayalam Nayakan. Like Mani Ratnam's 1987 classic, this film is alsoa sprawling story of crime and punishment, spanning generations and decadesfrom 1965 to 2018. The sea plays a pivotal role. Nayakan is set in Mumbai, Malik is set in Ramadappaly. a fictional coastal village in Kerala, in both films the vast waters provide thebackdrop for smuggling and romance, and in both the protagonists are criminals who lead lawless lives, but also have a strong moral center. Velu Naicker and Suleiman Malik are benevolentmonarchs of the area they operate in and protect. But their lives are tainted by violence and loss. They age as we watch and both areeventually laid low by tragedy and time. At the end of Nayakan when Velu'sgrandson asks him 'are you good or bad'? he says 'I don't know', I suspect that if the question was put toSuleiman, his reply would be the same. Malik begins with a virtuoso13 minute plus continuous shot. The sequence is dazzling in terms of craft, dexterityand ambition, the stitching is just seamless. But director Mahesh Narayananand DoP Sanu John Varghese aren't merely strutting their technical prowess. The opening establishes Suleiman's world, his contradictory life as a devout Muslim  and a law breaker. His authority has a Godfather,who the poor and voiceless turned to, his fraught relationships with his family, it alsoestablishes the overarching themes of Malik. Religion, power, charity, morality, politics andpoliticians, who ultimately poison everything. The film then runs for a daunting2 hours and 30 minutes, but the length doesn't weigh down the storytelling. Mahesh who multitasks as director, writer, editor andsecond unit camera operator structures Malik like a novel. The story begins in contemporary times, three flashbacks by different narrators bring us upto speed on what created the current circumstances. Multiple narrators enable us to see multiple points of view. The cast of characters is vast and I will admit,it took me some time to find my bearings. But Mahesh doesn't lose grip on the narrative,like the conductor of a grand symphony orchestra, he masterfully alternates rhythms and dramaticbeats, creating an aching soaring saga. When we first meet Suleiman, he is a lion in winter,his face seems hollowed out by sorrow, his shoulders are hunched under the burden ofwhat he has done and what he has endured. When his wife reminds him thatthere is danger in going out, he says 'I have quit all my ungodly work,whom should i be afraid of now'? and yet there is a certain majesty about him,the power he exudes is palpable. This formidable spirit is in place even when Suleiman is a petty smuggler in the 1980's, his career in crime begins with bringing in colognesand selling them for 15 rupees a bottle, he gives it away cheap, becausehe doesn't know what it actually costs. But even as Suleiman is breaking the law, he's helping toclean up the garbage around the masjid in Ramadappaly and ultimately construct a school. Like Vijay in Deewar, Suleiman's criminalityfractures his relationship with his mother, but even she has a moment of pridewhen the school is built. Suleiman is a nation builder and a humanist, he marries aChristian girl Roseline, but he doesn't ask her to convert. Throughout his tumultuous life he resists parochialdefinitions of Islam, insisting that the school and mosque also serve the Christiancommunity of Ramadappaly. Suleiman's life and actions are rooted in his faith,which looms large over the film. A key sequence is set against the Urus festival. Religion and rituals both Christian and Muslimanchor the film and give the plot gravitas. The Malik in the title refers to Suleiman, but also perhaps to a higher power. Suleiman's closest friend and partnerin crime is Roseline's brother David. In one of the best scenes in the film, both sit under this looming statue of Jesus Christ,which is looking towards the mosque. but ultimately religion becomes a wedge, the Muslims and Christians of Ramadappaly areplayed against each other by police and politicians. Poverty, illiteracy, the desperate desire fora better life make them susceptible and the relationships of a lifetime devolve into shrillconversations about our people and their people. The ending also suggest that these not so sacred gamesplayed out in the name of God, continue to prevail. This vast saga is anchored by really strong performances,Vinay Forrt as David, Joju George as the collector Anwar, Sanal Aman as David's son Freddie,Dileesh Pothan as the politician Aboobacker and Jalaja as Suleiman's mother are all stellar. Nimisha Sajayan is terrific as Roseline, an educated woman who's capable of strength and strategy. She makes a formidable sparring partnerfor Fahad Faasil, who plays Suleiman. This is the kind of role that actors perhaps dream of, the chance to play the lifetime of a character,from a sprightly 21 year old, to a senior citizen. Fahad hits the right notes for eachstage of Suleiman's life. His belligerent youth, the sweetnessof his passion for Roseline, the fatigue of his failure to stem the tide of violence andcommunalism and his sad longing to make amends. Fahad combines delicate melancholy withmajesty and becomes in every way a Malik. The tragic interplay of religion and violenceis enhanced by Sushin Shyam's music, which is mournful and haunting,especially the gorgeous Theerame. Mahesh tips his hat to the classics of this genre, one sequence that cuts between a funeral and violenceechoes the iconic cross-cutting of The Godfather. But Malik is much more than an imitation, Mahesh has created a memorable portraitof the power of religion to save and scar. You can watch the film on Amazon Prime Video.