Dheeran movie review: Rajesh Madhavan's film teleports us to the ‘80s and ‘90s, for all the wrong reasons

Indian Express

a day ago

Dheeran movie review: There are some movies that effortlessly take us back to the '80s and '90s, right? These films offer the perpetually tired adults of today a nostalgic trip to a bygone era when life seemed easier. This journey might even bring calm to the chaos or help us forget the pains of our many wounds, at least momentarily. Screenwriter Devadath Shaji's debut directorial venture, Dheeran, starring Rajesh Madhavan in the titular role, is one such movie that teleports us back to the '80s and '90s — or even the '70s or before — but only because of its lack of narrative and technical quality, making us feel we're watching a film that should have been made and forgotten decades ago.
Revolving around a Malayattoor-born man named Eldhose, alias Dheeran (the brave one), who has recently joined the gang of mafia boss–cum–attar seller Abu (Vineeth) in Erode, the movie follows his quest to eliminate another powerful gangster, Saravanan (Srikrishna Dayal), at the behest of his new master, and the troubles he lands in after an unsuccessful assassination attempt. Things take an even bigger turn when some of his friends and relatives arrive in Erode searching for him, unaware of the chaos he has caused.
Despite starting off decently, offering a few moments that pique interest, Dheeran doesn't take long to lose momentum due to Devadath Shaji's uninspired and directionless writing. Soon after Dheeran appears on screen, the film cuts abruptly from Erode to Malayattoor without properly introducing or establishing him. Although Eldhose himself is the hot topic and the thread connecting everyone's conversations in his village too, the script is so shallow that it fails completely in its attempt to establish the central character through the choral narrative technique employed. Thus, we are left with only fragmented and disjointed recollections of Dheeran and half-cooked glimpses of characters such as the panchayat member Abbas (Jagadish), local mechanic Aravindakshan (Manoj K Jayan), Kunjon (Ashokan), Joppan (Sudheesh) and Dixon (Abhiram Radhakrishnan).
Although Devadath tries to pull off a Manjummel Boys-style flashback, cutting to Dheeran's childhood to juxtapose a key incident there with the present-day narrative and anchor it emotionally, this backfires spectacularly due to the lack of depth in the writing and the director's inability to flesh out the characters. As a result, not only do the characters fail to resonate emotionally, it's impossible to care even slightly about these people or the predicaments they're in. Meanwhile, the frequent jump cuts to different junctures in the past, wherein we are shown just mildly interesting incidents involving characters we don't actually care about, only make Dheeran an even more tedious watch.
What adds to the film's woes is that none of the supposed jokes or situational humour land effectively, rendering the unfolding scenes even more bland. A story like this, which feeds on chaos and chain reactions, needs either comedy or thrills to keep audiences engaged. Devadath's inability to deliver either casts a long shadow over the film and leaves it thoroughly underwhelming. While the situations created for humour are outdated, the half-baked 'comedic' dialogues only occasionally manage to evoke laughs.
From the beginning, every line that Dixon delivers relates to his job as a 'ganamela' singer, and the same is true for Joppan, a part-time thief and full-time brewer of illicit arrack. Since Devadath uses such same tactics repeatedly for laughs, these quickly grow repetitive, and the absence of organic humour further drags the film down. Even though characters like Aravindakshan and Kunjon sometimes get funny lines, the only way we can understand that these were intended to evoke laughter is because of the setting and the way these actors deliver them; without which these dialogues would have sounded too bizarre to comprehend.
Even more deplorable is the situation with Saravanan. Though introduced as a force to be reckoned with, one who won't think twice before even killing anyone, once Dheeran is in peril, Devadath makes the antagonist take actions that feel far too convenient for the writer-director. Ultimately, Saravanan ends up as little more than a comedic caricature; unfortunately, not by design.
Though the film had enough potential to deliver a decently funny and thrilling ride in the second half, Dheeran makes it loud and clear that Devadath stepped into direction far too soon. He has, almost literally, tossed every opportunity out the window, as if determined to show people 'how not to make a movie.' Even the staging and choreography of the action sequences — something nearly every film manages at least competently these days — are so sloppy, amateurish and uninteresting that it's hard to believe this movie was ever intended for theatrical release or profit. The only way this could interest anyone is if they watch it as a 'so-bad-it's-good' experience.
Towards the end, in a Quentin Tarantino–esque style, Devadath gets Abu make a 'mass' reentry against the backdrop of the Christian devotional song 'Akkarakku Yathra Cheyyum'. As an idea, it sounds super cool. But the execution is basically a microcosm of the entire movie: a missed opportunity, poorly handled.
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Dheeran also made me truly understand the concept of 'acting is reacting', because every time one actor delivered a poor performance here, their co-star responded with something even worse, as if locked in a contest of shoddy acting. The most disappointing of all was Rajesh Madhavan, whose performance felt as though he himself wasn't sure how he ended up in the role but was stuck and had no choice but to go through with it. It was also painful to see veterans like Jagadish and Ashokan struggling to remain even halfway decent, trying desperately to keep the movie from total collapse. But even their efforts end up inconsequential. Among all these poor performances, the only solace comes from Aswathy Manoharan and Arun Cherukavil, who play their supporting roles with some conviction.
Mujeeb Majeed's music and original background score are the only other aspects of the film that deserve some commendation, as they manage to save Dheeran from being an absolute train wreck.
Dheeran movie cast: Rajesh Madhavan, Aswathy Manoharan, Jagadish, Manoj K Jayan, Ashokan, Sudheesh, Vineeth
Dheeran movie director: Devadath Shaji
Dheeran movie rating: 1.5 stars
Anandu Suresh is a Senior sub-editor at Indian Express Online. He specialises in Malayalam cinema, but doesn't limit himself to it and explores various aspects of the art form. He also pens a column titled Cinema Anatomy, where he delves extensively into the diverse layers and dimensions of cinema, aiming to uncover deeper meanings and foster continuous discourse. Anandu previously worked with The New Indian Express' news desk in Hyderabad, Telangana. You can follow him on Twitter @anandu_suresh_ and write (or send movie recommendations) to him at [e-mail]. ... Read More