Munnariyippu is an investigation thriller directed by Cinematographer turned director Venu. Venu is turning into direction after a long interval of 15 years.Munnariyippu stars Mammootty and Aparna Gopinath in the lead roles. Munnariyippu is penned by director Venu and scripted by new wave script-writer R Unni. Venu also handled cinematography for the movie and is edited by Bina. Music for the movie is composed by Bijibal. Director Ranjith Produced the movie under the banner of Gold Coin Motion Pictures.
First of all let's just say there are no obvious good guys or bad guys in this movie – just people. Well rounded, interesting characters who are all involved in one way or the other to the main storyline of the film. The story follows a freelance writer/journalist named Anjali Arakkal (Aparna), who is ambitious and intelligent. She makes her living being a ghost writer for people who don't particularly have the skills to write for themselves and though this pays the bills, Anjali wants to make it big as a writer.
In her quest to do so, she meets a journalistic giant who entrusts upon her the job of ghost writing the auto biography of a friend of his – the Superintendent of a jail (Nedumudi) who is about to retire. Though not thrilled with the job she takes it and it is while she is in prison meeting with him that she meets an unassuming enigma of a prisoner named CK Raghavan (Mammootty).
Raghavan is a simple but captivating fellow who is in for a double homicide, which he says he never committed. Though he had the chance to leave, Raghavan has chosen to not opt for parole and is happy in the prison.
Obviously Anjali's attention turns to him, and she writes a feature based on the translation of various musings of Raghavan. This feature gets her noticed on a national level and soon she is offered a book deal by a major literary agency for Raghavan's story.
The plot then follows a mysterious Raghavan who never reveals his truths, a frustrated Anjali, her friends, corporate competition and third parties all gunning for the story behind the man with all the secrets.
Mammootty is at his best. Mammootty lived CK Raghavan. When we go out of the theatre we take a part of CK with us. The mannerisms and dialogue delivery of Mammootty made the character more alive. Aparna Gopinath is one of the best thing about the movie. Anjali is very strong and independent. Well, the role of Anjali was taken to the next level by Aparna.
Then we have the huge array of veterans and a delightful cameo by Prithviraj, all complimenting the tone and vibe of the film. In fact, the performances of many being so good is another reason why you are pulled in to multiple directions if you try to figure out where the story is headed. There simply are no weak links in the cast.
This a grown up movie. That does not mean it is artsy or does not have commercial value but just the opposite. Munnariyippu reminds us all what film making is all about and does so exactly because it does not rely on cheap applause or shortcuts.
Munnariyippu once again establish the truth that the script is the back bone of the movie. The film does not fails to engage the audience from the very beginning to the very end. Venu did a fantastic job as a director and cinematographer. The frames are simply brilliant and intriguing. R Unni is one of the best script writers in the new wave of Malayalam cinema. Well, he keeps his legacy. Munnariyippu can be counted as one of his best scripts till date. The dialogues are strong, deep and incredibly simple!
FINAL VERDICT: Munnariyippu is a feast for the movie lovers! This is one of a kind movie and will be a cult movie for sure. Munnariyippu is one of the best movie which resets the belief that good cinema exists. Munnariyippu is a must watch for movie lovers. For fans it's a chance to see their favorite star in an entirely different avatar.
((Review Inspired from Muyals.com's and Chithramala's review of the same movie.))