Genre : All-In-One
Year : 2019
Running time : 2 hour 15 minutes
Director : Madhu C. Narayanan
Cast : Shane Nigam, Soubin Shahir, Anna Ben, Fahadh Faazil, Sreenath Bhasi, Matthew Thomas
Kid rating : PG
Kumbalangi Nights is about 4 brothers – Franky (Thomas), Bobby (Nigam), Boney (Bhasi) and Saji (Shahir) – in Kumbalangi, a small fishing village in Kerala. Their father is no more and their mother has left home. The brothers live in a ramshackle, half-built home on the river banks and get by with odd jobs and fishing. They don’t really get along with each other though, and there are frequent physical and verbal squabbles. However they band together to stand by Bobby when he falls in love with Baby (Anna Ben), and her family, particularly her smarmy brother-in-law (Faasil), is against the match.
I watched Kumbalangi Nights because it came up in my recommendations on Prime, it has a high rating on IMDB, and it stars Fahadh Faasil who was also in Bangalore Days. It is very different from that movie and starts off a tad slow – which builds atmosphere and you get to see what the characters and their lives really are like – but still.
Patience is rewarded though because the film build beautifully with some finely-done, feeling-infused scenes. The pace is easy-going and the film flows from moment to moment naturally, and you begin to care about the characters – not just Bobby who’s trying his best to be with Baby – but all the brothers, each of whom has his own sets of issues to work through. The end is unpredictable and offers a resolution I didn’t see coming.
The acting is fabulous and the setting and the characters feel real. Fantastic writing, and some superb cinematography round off this lovely film. I’m not really familiar with Malayalam music but the film’s music was melodious and pleasing. Kumbalangi Nights is one of those charming, almost lyrical films which you remember long after watching it for it’s spirit and affability and all the good emotions you associate with love and family.
Kidwise: Clean. Some violence shown on screen.
