Love review: Director RP Bala’s thriller is far-fetched from reality and simply falls flat

Director RP Bala’s Love, which happens to be the Tamil remake of a Malayalam film with the same name, begins on a promising note only to disappoint us in the end.

The film, supposed to be a thriller, offers no thrills whatsoever and struggles to retain your attention.

RP Bala’s Love is a faithful reproduction of the Malayalam version which featured Rajisha Vijayan and Shine Tom Chacko in the lead.

However, the difference between both versions lies in the intensity they offer.

Synopsis

Divya (Vani Bhojan) meets Ajay (Bharath), a prospective alliance, and chooses to wed him despite her father’s warning that he might not be an ideal match since he lost everything in business. 

The fact that Ajay tells Divya that they need to postpone the decision to have a child till the time he sets things right does not help matters.

A year or two into the marriage, the relationship between the couple sours. They are constantly at loggerheads.

One day, Divya finds out that she is in the initial stages of pregnancy. She calls her husband from the clinic but does not get a response. On returning home, she finds soiled plates lying outside the sink and Ajay drinking and playing video games. She loses her cool and confronts him.

Tempers flare up on both sides and one thing leads to another. The verbal altercation between Divya and Ajay soon turns physical, resulting in Ajay smashing Divya’s head against a piece of glass.

She dies and Ajay, who is in a drunken stupor, is stunned at the sudden unexpected development. He drags her body to the bathroom and begins to wonder what to do next.

Also Read: ‘Aachar & Co.’ review: A simple coming-of-age tale set in 1960s

Not upto the mark

The Tamil version of Love is neither as emphatic nor as convincing as its Malayalam counterpart when it comes to highlighting the issue of domestic violence.

While Love‘s motive in looking to highlight the issue of domestic violence is laudable, the fact that the story is presented from a feminist’s point of view cannot be denied.

As a result, all the significant male characters in the movie are made to come across as monsters.

For instance, the three main male characters in the film.

Ajay (played by Bharath) is a loser, a cheat, and a man with a violent temper. However, his wife Divya is an accomplished, talented individual who, despite being the daughter of an exceptionally rich businessman, does not want to run her dad’s concern but to prove herself.

That’s not all. Despite Divya being a more accomplished person than Ajay and the fact that she could have got a match with a much better social standing than Ajay, she agrees to marry him.

It’s almost like she takes pity on him and does him a favour by marrying him.

Next, take a look at Vivek Prasanna’s character. He appears as a dear friend of the protagonist Ajay in the film and dons a character that is again portrayed as a loser in business.

His character wants to commit suicide; he drinks, pukes, and acts irresponsibly. What’s more, he suspects his wife of having an affair and intends to kill the man with whom he thinks she is having an affair.

The third character played by Daniel Pope, is again shown as a person being disloyal to his wife, who, on the other hand, is shown as a responsible person. 

That Vivek Prasanna and Daniel Pope’s characters go on to become imaginary characters at a later point in the film is another issue.

Also Read: ‘Die No Sirs’ Tamil movie review: A refreshing gangster tale

Negatives

There seems to be a sly attempt at demonising all men in the film Love.

For instance, this dialogue that Vivek Prasanna utters. He justifies Ajay’s killing of his wife saying, “Is there a man who does not want to kill his wife?”

This is nothing but a sad attempt to generalise and paint all men as potential wife-beaters waiting for an opportunity to indulge in domestic violence.

Further, Love’s story is hard to relate to and far-fetched from reality. The flick also leaves several questions unanswered and makes the message the film is looking to send across unclear.

Final take

Well, these are some of the reasons why you don’t find Love interesting and in a way, feel relieved when it ends.

(Views expressed here are personal.)