Solo is a film which was highly expected for a variety of reasons. The young heartthrob DQ as well as the highly acclaimed director Bejoy Nambiar can make any cinema lover go crazy. But such a anthology made within the confines of Nambiar's imagination could not succeed as it thought it would. First of all, SOLO is a anthology, not a series of short films cramped into a film ; Although one could argue whether the film has a specific connection to each story or not.
The film is based on the four forms of Lord Shiva, specifically Fire, Water, Earth and Wind. Dulquer plays four different characters that correspond with the theme presented with it (ie. Fire - Rage). Shiva, Shekhar, Trilok and Rudra respectively. Although it dwells into the forms of Shiva, it does not have any sort of connection to the original content other than the feature that it is merely pointing out the theme that is going to play out in the movie.
The movie begins with the segment of Water ie. Shekhar. Although i could not thoroughly enjoy Shekhar's character, i loved the way the segment ended with a very depressing note that differentiates other films from this. Shekar's character was thoroughly experimented on, which i could not say for other characters. I believe that we spent more time with Shekhar than the other three, helping us to cope with the character's behavior very much. With a depressing and a rather unexpected ending Shekhar's performance was satisfying till the end.
Trilok might be the character that blew away the all three. Trilok was open, calm , mysterious and of course ,badass. Trilok is associated with Wind and of course Trilok swept us away. Trilok was a moody and the love interest of Trilok did not receive much screen time and we were left to wonder whether this would turn into another tale of karma. But no. Director Bejoy takes us to a short moody revenge thriller that encapsulates us into the character ; loving him, yet knowing nothing about him. Trilok was the dark horse of SOLO.
Of the four segments, i could say Shiva's was the best. Not only for visual reasons but for the fact that Shiva evoked a sense of mystery and rage around the character that DQ has never presented before. Shiva does not have single dialogue except one which i think the director was specifically panning out to that moment. Shiva is associated with Fire and I expected a lot of fire works in this and i wasn't wrong. Visually and aesthetically impressive segment was brought alive with some magnificent performances too and i could single-handedly say that SOLO might be Dulquer Salman's best performance till date. The segment ended with wild ride that puts revenge and emotional connections forward.
The last segment was Earth and revolved around the character Rudra, a military officer. Rudra was the least welcomed character of the lot. It didn't have any major development and it just hovered around waiting to pop the cap. And when it did, it ended in disappointment. I was all in to witness Rudra but it left me wondering whether the Director specifically wanted it to be humorous or it was creepily misunderstood. Incest is not a common theme for the malayali audience and just be prepared for a unbelievably believable climax. Although i'm all in praise for the final short which summed up everything, Rudra was a character that need a lot of push and screen time to entice us.
SOLO is also a film which would thrill cinema lovers and regular film analysts but it would not pan out to the wider demographic as it could not bring a sensation of life into the whole picture, thus would fail to satisfy normal viewers.
Overall, SOLO is a film that is strictly a one-time watch and which copulates us with their own world with their own rules. Experimentation is high in this one and go with mild expectations and you will be more than satisfied.
Shekhar - 7.4 Trilok - 7.8 Shiva - 8.5 Rudra - 7.0
Overall - 7.5 / 10
