Paappan is an excessively long murder mystery thriller that fails to utilize its leading star to the fullest. With so many characters and subplots that stretch the run-time, the first half of the film basically goes nowhere. When some of the plot points and twists are gradually unfurled, we are immediately reminded of another Joshiy film from the '90s. There isn't a whole lot to talk about when it comes to the screenplay treatment - Joshiy's directorial effort is as old-school as it can get - it's just the technicalities that (naturally) show improvement. I feel Jakes Bejoy's score was less impactful this time around, or maybe it's because the script didn't have any powerful, elevating moments for Suresh Gopi.
The film does pick up pace and offers mild thrills in the final 30 minutes, even when certain tropes (from every thriller in the last few decades) are conveniently added. I don't think any of the performances in Paappan are worth a special mention (including SG's), though amongst the lot, Shammi Thilakan does notably well in a post-interval scene. Neeta Pillai gets a lot of screen-time but unfortunately plays an IPS officer who makes routinely silly decisions, running behind every loose end. Gokul Suresh doesn't have much to do except be a typical "pillar of support" for the lead. While Paappan won't bore you to death, it ultimately doesn't fall under the memorable category either.
