Written & Directed by Vipin Radhakrishnan
The idea of a woman planning to abort her child and going to Velankanni to gamble on that decision is nice but the way it was told didn’t quite work for me.
I loved the voice-over narration throughout the film but I don’t know what that story meant or how it contributed to the film. But hey, maybe I didn’t pay enough attention since I had to keep reading the subtitles.
I liked how the “Blessed are you among women” neon hoardings are shown/used in scenes linking to the characters Maria and the other woman.
The character arcs in the film consist of these characters undergoing a small change in the end: Maria decides against aborting the child, Rex learns not to be a pervert, the other woman becomes a prostitute. But I wasn’t able to empathize with any of the arcs or characters. I also thought that these characters were all a bit flat and didn’t have more to them. Rex is a cab driver but we don’t see him driving cabs except when he’s driving Maria around. We don’t know what it is that he really seeks for. Is he feeling lonely? lost? desperate? I can only assume. I wish he had more to him. Everything about him seems like it’s been planted on him without any reason just for the sake of visual glamour. He drinks everyday but why? Maybe he’s a drinker and when he drinks he can be a little rude and sexually active. But is it only because of that? I know it’s confusing. I know I am confusing. I am confused about these characters.
I don’t understand the character of this other woman with the kid. The film and the message it tries to convey itself I think is a little preachy and it’s very flat.
It’s a simple film but I couldn’t be affected by any part of it. I was detached.
mightythunderandrain 