Villain (2017) User Reviews

A Theme That Was Already Feasted Upon ; An Impatient Crime Thriller

[CobertNeede · 5/10 · 27 October 2017]

A Tragic Backstory. Check. A Step By Step Crime Investigation. Check. ASnitch Within the team. Check. A final clash with the villain. Check.

Villain was a complete mess from the beginning. To be honest, i lost track of what was happening in between. Too much use of neo-noir transitions, particularly unnerving lighting effects and almost no use of the superb cinematography surrounding this dull film. Villain is a throwback to the 90's crime investigative thrillers wave in the Mollywood industry, then again it fails in that. Villain's execution and style may differ from the mainstream but the ignorant use of special effects and transitions spoil the fun. It is a theme that has already been feasted upon by the Mollywood industry and we sure don't want to burst ourselves.

Villain had a strong base to build, it was engrossing, thrilling but lacked the essential substance to go forward. The story-line wasn't a line at all, it was a messed up mix of emotions, unneeded close ups and a whole lot chunk of unnecessary dialogues. Although the criticism on dialogues isn't fair ; it might be the only plus point that i may be able to point out. Villain's lack of substance left us with doubt whether to sympathize with the characters or not ; leaving us almost no individual performances that we really cared for.

The acting line up was sensational. Vishal had a conclusive performance while the same could not be said to Hansika. With bad dubbing process ( which is kind of a improvement ) and unnecessary English dialogues to fill that space, the sound editing team really needed to run this again.

Mohanlal's performance was yet again, exceptional. It is one of the few cases where the character that a certain actor gets corresponds with their age and the casting was beautifully done. Siddiqe, Aju Varghese, Chemban Vinod all delivered a sub par performance while the only odd man standing out would be and is only Mohanlal. To be honest without the stardom and On screen presence of Mohanlal, Villain would sure have been a bloating mess.

The cinematography might be the only one thing that i really cared for in the film. It was the only plus point that stayed true to the screen at all times. Kudos to Manoj Paramahamsa for that.

Overall, with a few out of the box scenes, Villain is an OK watch but then again so is all the recent releases.

+ Watch out for the ' philosophical ' punch lines. + Cinematography + Lead Acting

• Weak Story - Terrible on screen execution of certain characters. - A pale and shallow theme. - Poor editing and visual effects considering the budget. - The dialogue - "Nothing is white or black, everything is grey"

(WAT THE HECK DOES THAT MEAN ??)

My Rating - 5.7 / 10.0

Mohanlal elevates an otherwise generic, done-to-death saga of revenge! [+52%]

[arungeorge13 · 5/10 · 28 October 2017]

'Villain', written and directed by Unnikrishnan B, had been in the news (ever since Mohanlal shared the movie's first-look poster featuring himself in a salt & pepper avatar on his Facebook page, to be precise) for a number of reasons: (#1) It's the first film in India to be completely shot in 8K resolution (Manoj Paramahamsa and N.K Ekambaram wield the camera), (#2) It's the first Malayalam film where color-grading was done during filming itself, (#3) The record amounts it earned in terms of overseas distribution, music and satellite rights, and lastly, (#4) The massive star-cast (comprising the likes of Manju Warrier, Vishal, Hansika, Srikanth, and a horde of popular Malayalam talents on board).

The writer/director chooses to narrate the story of ADGP Mathew Manjooran (Mohanlal) by mounting a reasonably large canvas with a wide array of characters, attempting a rather subtle mishmash of genres (crime/drama/thriller/family) well within his comfort zone (we saw Lal-Unnikrishnan duo churn out 'Grandmaster' five years ago, which was quite alright). The story primarily alternates between Mathew's past and present: Mathew has suffered a personal tragedy due to which he has been away from duty for nearly seven months, and when he eventually returns to work, he surprises everyone by opting for voluntary retirement and decides to go on a 'journey of healing'. On the other end, a trio of murders have taken place in the city of Trivandrum and the police-force look up to Mathew for his expertise in cracking the case.

There isn't a whole lot of novelty in the storyline or its presentation to boast of. The basic concept is in fact, rehashed from plenty of other films in the cop-thriller genre. The police procedural bits are undoubtedly the best; the delightful strewing of clues and red- herrings in the first half manage to keep the viewer sufficiently engaged (even though not on the edge of their seats). However, the audience soon realizes that Unnikrishnan isn't exactly interested in building mystery around the identity of the antagonist (which usually arrives in the form of a twisted-reveal at the end), but to break shells on the traditional notions of 'hero' and 'villain' through philosophical exchanges and slight overdose of sentimentality.

The genre-thrills are practically absent in the latter half and predictability begins to play spoilsport. What drives an investigative thriller forward, even with the antagonist-reveal coming in quite early, is how the protagonist pieces together the whole ordeal and when things start to make sense, without logic having to take a beating. 'Villain' unfortunately comes well short of fulfilling those expectations and struts along in a strictly straight-forward fashion. Certain characters needed better writing: Shakthivel (Vishal) is pivotal to the narrative but the reasons for his actions are explained in quick flashback montages with voiceovers - not even close to making the viewer discern the vehemence of his transformation (from doctor to psychopathic killer); Shreya (Hansika) the girlfriend of Shakthivel - their relationship would have made quite an exciting story but isn't fully explored into; Felix (Srikanth), a drug-lord who seeks redemption against Mathew (for his earlier exploits), appears more like a one- note cardboard wrongdoer.

Mohanlal proves why he is still the undisputed acting champion of India, with a bravura act that is tremendously restrained from start to finish. Even though Mathew quotes philosophy (and Shakespeare) a tad too often, which sounds excruciating after a point (especially during the moderately prolonged climactic 'talkathon' between himself and Shakthivel), it always helps that Mohanlal is the one delivering these lines. The way he emotes in the hospital scenes is a vivid lesson for aspiring performers - simply breathtaking!

Manju Warrier, in a poorly written character (of Mathew's wife Neelima), does a great job with respect to what the script offers her. When Mohanlal and Manju Warrier (two of the most bankable actors of Malayalam filmdom) share the silver-screen, the chemistry is by- default electric, even when their lines let them down. 'Villain' is a botched effort no doubt, but the ensemble (Siddique, Ranji Panicker, Raashi Khanna and Chemban Vinod to name a few) makes us buy into the proceedings to an extent.

Music (by 4 Musics) is serviceable for all it's worth - we will be forgetting most tracks as soon as radio stations surrender their fixation on them. Background score by Sushin Shyam complements the film's vibe perfectly. Stunts by Peter Hein are just about adequate, without being overly 'massy'. Editing (by Shameer Mohammed) could have been tauter (chiefly in the second half). 'Villain' could easily be regarded as one of Unnikrishnan's better films but that just isn't enough for it to be deemed a compelling fare on the whole.

Verdict: Plenty of reasons to give it a miss, but one magic word pretty much outdoes it all - Mohanlal!

Pretty decent!

[Vibijithnair · 6/10 · 7 January 2018]

Film director B.Unni has been here for very long time and yet he hasn't delivered a film which could satiate my hunger for good films(grandmaster is exception though). Same could be say about villain. I was skeptical after watching film trailer and to horror reports published on first day were mixed mostly. The biggest let down in this crime thriller is definitely its screenplay because film has close to zero thrill element and many loose end which all was juxtaposed together and made it look engaging by just one man Mohanlal. Could be say that it is his best performance since oppam however you could see character had some similarity with grandmaster's chandrasekhar like being nonchalant and calming, however director added more mystery and philosophy element to the Mathew manjooran. Acting wise its a one man show Lal and only actor who came closer to him was Manju. Most other actors had nothing to perform especially two new ladies Hansika and Raashi. I am not quite sure about what to say about vishal. Other supporting characters were as usual good.

Songs were fine so does the bgm. Technical side were pretty good except some logic defying actions.

On negative side: Script Some glibly written characters

Positive: Mohanlal Bgm Some scenes has its moments

People who are expecting drishyam, mumbai police, memories or even grandmaster might be get disappointed because it's less of an investigating thriller and more of emotional story which will caught your attention just here and there. In the end I quote"revenge is a disease". Give it a try if you are a die hard fan of actor Mohanlal.

Wasted presence of Mohanlal !

[CIDMoosa · 7/10 · 7 June 2018]

For a movie that has created so much hype right from its initial making stages, Villain is a botched effort of a psychological thriller. No novelty in presentation , no mystery around the killer and an overall lack of substance - amidst all the reasons to skip this flick, it is the towering presence of Mohanlal and his timeless acting prowess that makes the movie a onetime watch. 'Acting his Age' is a beaten to death critique of our two superstars, but this film character (not black or white, but grey, as the movie itself speaks!) corresponds to the lead actors age and charisma wonderfully. Showing amazing restraint in his bravura act of a broken down cop, Lal emotes so well in the hospital scenes and in his overall non-heroic cop avatar. Some scenes in the hospital bed have shades of Lal's Sathyanathan character from Sadayam movie (1992), the whole lot of mental trauma bringing out the dare to commit the unthinkable. The absence of mass element and the way he has underplayed the character (something for which I rate him better than Kamal Hassan) is sure a promise of many more realistic acts expected from this gifted man, a-la his best performances during the 90's.

A Crime Thriller with Emotional touch

[pkrajagopal · 6/10 · 1 November 2017]

" Villain" has succeeded to fulfill the expectations of the people. In the beginning, one wonders, why the police officer has availed long leave only to join duties, which turned out to be the last day of his career. Later on one realize, because of being in police force, he lost his wife and daughter, there by losing the precious family life. He himself was witness to the horrible sufferings of his wife, the heart- rending hospital scenes of which will haunt the viewers for long.

Villain belongs to Mohanlal, his role as the police officer stands tall because of his brilliance.His look in the movie with white beard,his attire and the body language,clearly is a reflection of his mental sufferings.This is being reflected on his face each time he appears on the screen. He is a terrible loser but he does not allow those things come in the way of the task he has undertaken.Manju Warrier shines in her role, as Neelima, even though she has a cameo role to play.She has brilliantly played her role with ease,which was worth watching. Vinod Jose as Iqbal has been a success, his success story,undoubtedly was his natural acting.

The strong relationship & bonding,involving husband-wife and their daughter has been beautifully crafted in this movie. It was heart- breaking to watch the relationship being broken due to unfortunate circumstances.

The events that unfolds after the murder,with the hapless police failing to make the breakthrough and approaching the retired police officer for his assistance to solve the mystery murder and Mathew Manjuran the impeccable ex-police officer agreeing to the proposal,came much to the liking of the viewers. The climax scene unravels some bitter truths,much to the surprise of the viewers.

Villain has been decorated with powerful dialogues, not often been heard in other movies. There has been many dialogues in English,which has been incorporated at the right place, well suiting to the situation. But the back ground score, on a few occasions,piercing our ears,leaving dialogues inaudible.

The film also brings to the fore the message that villains are not born, but being made, and there hides a hero in every villain and vice verse.

It is a crime thriller worth to watch. But one can not leave aside the emotional aspect of the movie which goes deep in to hearts of viewers for which Director B.Unnikrishnan deserves accolades.

One has to go and watch this movie. Villain has the stuff which viewers never dislike.

5 Stars for Mohanlal's stellar performance, 1 star for cinematography.

[akhil027 · 6/10 · 11 March 2021]

Villain is such a huge disappointment. It had so much potential even though the storyline was something we've seen before. There were some cliche breaking too. A hero who walks away from his revenge is may be something never happened before in Malayalam movies.

The poorly written screenplay is the real villain in this movie. The first half was decent. B Unnikrishnan shifted to top gear all of sudden. The writing was so impatient. How Mathew(Mohanlal) finds out about the murderer is too convenient. Then there are the songs. I don't know what's with Unnikrishnan and bad rock songs. I guess you know about "Aaranu Nee" from Grandmaster. He could've easily shown she's part of a band without using a whole song. The rest of the songs just increases the duration and serves no purpose. Kandittum Kanditum was good though.

Mohanlal's performance stands out. That was casting done well. His physique, the grey beard suits a veteran police officer who's been through a lot. Mathew Manjooran is one of the most underrated performance in Malayalam cinema. Watch Villain for that reason alone.

Capsule Review: Villain

[nairtejas · 3/10 · 1 January 2018]

The intentions of Villain as a film are wise but the shoddy execution makes it look overtly pretentious. Director B. Unnikrishnan directs Mohanlal as this rugged, smart law enforcement officer who is forced to come out of his voluntary retirement to solve a case that seems ordinarily stupid. The setup is very lukewarm at first, supported by Raashi Khanna's tasteless performance. One is supposed to get hooked into such crime thrillers at the beginning itself but instead here we are cringing over Mohanlal's snobbish character. The power in the film is introduced when we enter the protagonist's past and realize how the writers have messed up the plot by trying to look smart and psychological. Villain aspires to show you the evil side of human beings but it succeeds only in showing the ugly acting of Vishal, who graces the screen like the plague. Short-lived characters played by Manju Warrier and Hansika Motwani hardly help as the plot, trying to look intellectual, goes down the hill in the second half. The aim of the film is to show that every hero has a villain and vice versa, but I'm not really convinced. Villain is easily the most disappointing films of 2017. TN.

A well crafted Class Emotional Thriller

[abijitsanakanrj · 9/10 · 28 October 2017]

Villain is a movie which is very well crafted experimented and well produced movie Which never make u boor for even a second... Unnikrishnan did lots of homework for this movie... It's a movie which deserves a place in best thriller movie Indian cinema ever seen because there's no twist suspense then also its engaging ... B Unnikrishnan took 2 years to make this script... He needs a great applause and salute for this masterpiece. Outstanding visuals, mesmerizing BGM, marvelous direction. Movie wins 100% in class and emotional thriller genre. It's never a Mass Masala heroic content movie, If U expect it U will surely get disappointed but there's superb mass fight scenes which suits the situation.

Coming to acting Why Mohanlal is called complete actor without thinking much we can say he is no.1 actor of Indian cinema. Mass emotional scenes he did with ease The scene which he laugh and cries is too emotional to handle and we will say wow for that acting Hats of to him His eyes have so many meaning-full expressions... Amazing

Coming to Manju there's only one lady actress in Mtown This movie underlines it Hospital scenes Manju is outstanding. The feel and love between Manju and Ettan will haunt u after leaving theater and make u cry in many scenes. Vishal perfect casting did his role outstandingly. Vishals role will have special place in heart. Super social message in movie am not saying much because its to experience in theater.

Climax scenes are awesome And last scene is emotional with Ettans dialogue.

Each and every dialogues is so amazing and marvelous in movie most interesting is interaction between Ettan and Vishal.

Atlast Who is villain? U can decide !

After the Prithviraj Movie 'Memories", the movie which haunt me a lot and Sam Alex character it will be villain and Mathew Manjooran role ! After watching Villain, Mathew Manjooran Will definitely have a special emotional place in your heart !!!

Just Go For It...!!!

"An Average movie, it's not worth all the hype, it kind of looked like an incomplete movie"

[vishnu-dileep08 · 6/10 · 12 November 2017]

Summary (no spoilers)

This movie is based on a killer who teases the entire police department with his flawless crimes and gets chased by a retired cop whose past influences the killers future with the cat and mouse game getting out of hand.

My Review (no spoilers)

There was nothing wrong in the directing or acting in this movie but it was the writing. I felt the script was incomplete. They just rushed thru to finish the movie with the most lame ending ever. One outstanding acting was of Manju Warrier where her role was done to perfection no wonder she is called the lady superstar of Malayalam movie industry. Mohanlal was the other one with his perfect acting, explosive action and mind blowing dialogues kept the viewers pinned to the screen. I felt Vishal, Hansika and Raashi were all underutilized for their respective roles in this movie. I liked one song from this movie named "Kandittum Kandittum" it would be in my head for a while. I think Mohanlal and Vishal needed a good BGM for their roles too. Overall had a promising start but went downhill later on.

My Recommendation

Yes, I would say to watch out for Mohanlal and Manju Warriers acting combo.

My Rating

6/10

Another wastage

[midhunsree-47136 · 1/10 · 27 June 2020]

Villain movie directed by B.unnikrishnan was totally a wasted one.Even Mohanlal can't save this one.The makers announced that this one was a emotional thriller... But u can't see any emotion or thrill elements in this movie..

An emotional black shade thriller.

[danyojohny · 8/10 · 17 December 2018]

The movie is a well crafted emotional dark shade thriller. The movie gives a true and good social message to the today's crimeful society.

Villain- An OK story that failed to create an IMPACT

[ashish065 · 6/10 · 14 November 2017]

Villain is a nice title that promotes the movie very much. A lot of expectation was put on the movie. Especially when we see the amount of promotion done for the movie and the hype that it created, one would expect it to be the next "Pulimurugan". But it's not up to the mark. It's a average to above average movie at best. The story was good but somehow it did not have the impact that it was meant to have.Possibly because it tried so hard to mix Family Emotional Drama with crime investigation. Credit should be given to the Direction, Camera and acting. Mohanlal as usual has done a great job. The other Actors Manju, Vishal and Hansika have also performed well. Villain is a one time watchable movie with a predictable story-line which failed to make an impact.

Villan - A big letdown

[mythoughtsneverdie · 2/10 · 26 December 2017]

Villan is a flop show from beginning till the very end. There is not even a single element that keeps you engaging in this movie. Mohanlal does his part well as usual. Sadly, his one-man show was not enough to make any impact. The director categorized this film as an 'emotional dark thriller'. I would classify this as a utterly boring movie with a senseless script. The director tried to make the film more emotional by portraying extensive scenes between Mohanlal and Manju. Sorry to say, it didn't work at all. Coming to the cast, Vishal and Hansika looks completely clueless; Rashi looks gorgeous, but has very little to offer. The film ensemble a a very talented cast, but the script and story let everything down. In short, Villan is 2:30 hrs of (ZERO entertainment + verbal torture + boring + no thrills + Mohanlal).

Tries to bee too many things at the same time

[Jithindurden · 5/10 · 25 December 2017]

The good part of the film reminds of one of B Unnikrishnan and Mohanlal's previous collaboration that worked like Grandmaster and the bad parts reminds of their atrocious collaboration in Mr Fraud. The cinematographer and the actors have done their jobs really well here but the script constantly tries to be something bigger. By trying to include too many social issues and philosophy the film loses its grip on the whole. The plot gets convoluted with too many character arcs which are not smoothly dealt with. The production design has to be the worst part where you understand that the makers have learned nothing from Mr Fraud. Yet the film has its moments, the cinematography and the music creates an atmosphere that keeps the film alive and Mohanlal is always great.

i liked this villain ; Lalettan gave me absolute pleasure!

[joyalbrightt · 9/10 · 27 October 2017]

this movie is more focused on emotional & family are than a investigative or action mode movie. in this movie ,there is no scenes just for a mass impact,people expect for mass dialogues more may get disappointed,in this movie many dialogues are very good,all are in categories emotional,philosophical touch Mohanlal; lalettans performance is top notch :) <3, one of his best character,good presentation and expressions <3 <3 <3 , Siddique ikka role is good, Hansika has nothing to perform, Vishal scenes are less,climax portions ;his performance is nice.

editing is weak in some area,some songs are not needed, mixing of investigative scenes and family scenes; some time seems unnecessary,but very well made it,especially scenes between Manju Warrier and Lalettan has no drawbacks- just looked perfect to me!!

direction- Unnikrishnan Bhaskaran Pillai improved a lot from his last outing,but still need to grow ,he didn't utilize well on vishal or any south actors that much.

cinematography is very good ! background score worked well fit in some scenes, for some scenes, it didn't give needed impact to the scenes.

if u your looking or going to theater with the expectation to see mass action movie or complete thriller movie, i will not recommend it, if u looking for good movie experience ,villain is for you!!!

this movie is emotional,thrilling,action filled investigative family movie !!

Disappointing

[sanjusupercool1 · 5/10 · 16 December 2017]

I wanted to see this movie from the moment i heard the cast involved and then i saw the creative talent involved and i got more hyped for it. When i left the theatre, i was greatly dissapointed . Villain is a mess.The tones are really conflicting . It quickly changes from a crime thriller to a sad story about an unfortunate couple and then goes back to the crime thriller part . The acting though is amazing by all the actors. This movie feels like it has two great movie combined into one big mess . Anyway overall no recommendation for it.

Everything is Grey: a complex tale of good and evil

[krishnaprabharajeev · 9/10 · 2 June 2019]

Sitting in his armchair, ADGP Mathew Manjooraan looks at his colleague Sreenivas as if he's not there in front of him and utters," there's nothing more unnatural than a man taking away the life of another man." As Mohanlal delivers this line, there's a shine, a diamond like glow in his eyes, pupils, exactly, that immediately reminds you that one of the finest actors India has ever produced is in his elements. I watched this film again, which some people hate and some people love to watch again and again two days ago and, I must confess, Its politics touched me ever more deeply and meaningfully in that repeated watch. One of the major motifs of the campaign in the bygone parliament election was the politics of manslaughter. Killing those who are not on your side- ideologically, religiously or whatever- kills what democracy stands for. In the long history of revolutions across the world, there were definite contexts when the oppressed had decided to take arms against the oppressor as acts of sheer necessity, not of choice. But these sporadic acts of tragic necessity do not fit in with any paradigm of democracy which is anchored in an unconditional friendship to the other. Villain truly endorses this democratic virtue. I cannot remember any other protagonist of a mass, popular film who makes such an emphatic statement against violence. He says," revenge is a sickness....it eats up the one who carries it within."

Going through the reviews of the film-- most of them are inane and insensitive-, I have found a general strain of disapproval of the film's lack of investigative thrills and gimmicks. I think the writer/ Director, Unnikrishnan- who has proved his craft in investigative thrillers earlier- has purposefully resorted to another line of treatment. He has laid lesser emphasis on the generic pace, twists and thrills of the film and stressed more on the politics of violence and the notion of the superhero as one-man judiciary valorised by, say, Shankar films. Dr.Sakthivel in the film has all the qualities of a Shankar protagonist who declares, " our country badly needs a dictator, someone like me." And Manjooran responds to him:" there's nothing more foolish than worshiping a dictator." For me, that marks the film's core political moment. The film thwarts all the binaries of popular cinema: good/ bad, hero/ villain, black/ white. Manjooran categorically says, "nothing is white, nothing is black, everything is grey." This statement grinds to dust the sense of self righteousness on which we build our ego; we, as self righteous, self validating individuals, always tend to rationalise and categorise every perception into black and white; the complex business of life is ludicrously reduced to binaries. But, in life, the black always seeps into the white turning it grey.

In the end, Manjooran justifies mercy killing his wife. But, throughout the narrative, it's evident that he's guilt-ridden, weighed down by the memories of his sinful act. In fact Manjooran 's investigative hunt for Sakthivel is in fact his search for redemption. His long conversation with Sakthivel is nothing but, in the language of psychoanalysis, "talking cure:" he talks it out with him and tells himthat both of them are two sides of the same coin. This is a richly layered film that's surely going to be watched more and more and discussed more and more as years go by. A big salute to Unnikrishnan for this class-act. And, surely, this one is Mohanlal's best in the last decade. With that mysterious shine in his eyes, he reminds us that he is stillthe finest actor in India.

Mohanlal's performance in the film is not good

[arun_mr · 1 January 2018]

There is nothing exciting or stable suspense about it. There is constant struggle to connect unwanted killings. One such prophetic story and a script writer believe in the effort to make this effort. The movie remembers the memories, with the Grand Master too. Do not expect a suspense thriller. View as a normal picture and enjoy it. The film is based on the emotional sequencements following the tragedy of a police officer. Romantic scenes that come with unnecessary time are very boring, Asha Sugarakalam, the scenes in the movie Gladiator, which have been reminiscent of a lot of English movies, are reminiscent of all the cinemas. The shortcomings of cinematography are merely a result of the acting debut of Mohanlal,