Director Jibu Jacob has already showcased his artistry in narrating light-hearted family entertainers with his debut flick "Vellimoonga" that made big numbers at the Mollywood box office back in 2014.Munthirivallikal Thalirkumbol follows the same simple narrative style and presents a pretty decent cinematic version of the short novel 'Pranayopanishad' written by award winning novelist V.T.James who's well known for his literary works such as 'PurappadintePustakam' and 'Nireeshwaran'.
I had already read the story prior to watching the film and as such I must say Sindhuraj's screenplay has more or less succeeded in penning a breezy screenplay around the simple storyline that could have easily gone astray on the path of adaptation into a full-length feature film.The screenplay has managed to give justice to he characters from the novel that put forward a relevant message about importance of romance in marital life and the impact that it has on the younger generation.
The first 20-25 minutes of the movie was rather dull and aimless,which was luckily made up in the course of the narration.There was no looking back once the main plot was introduced and Jibu succeeded in presenting a clean family entertainer in a realistic manner that make it easily connectable for the majority of the movie going audience.Further it must be noted that no big deal of lag was felt at any point of narration even though the narrative is devoid of any surprise element or twists whatsoever.
On the negative side,few trivial characters,sub plots and lengthy sequences could have been trimmed off for increasing the consistency of the narrative.The similarity of the plot with films like 'Anuraga Karikkin Vellam' didn't turn a stumbling block in enjoying the presentation due to good performance from the cast and neat narration by Jibu.
The actor inside Mohanlal was exploited well by Jibu,the result being a remarkable performance from the legendary actor who won hearts yet again with his million dollar trademark mannerisms.Meena played the character of Mohanlals's wife impressively and the hit combination of Meena and Mohanlal worked out well yet again after the 2013 blockbuster Drishyam.Anoop Menon gave a neat performance alongside Alencier,Kalabhavan Shajon etc who did their job well.Aima Rosmy Sebastian who made an impressive debut with Jacobinte Swargarajyam gave a neat performance.The character played by Suraj Venjaramood was inconsequential and easily avoidable.Sharafudeen couldn't shine in the few minutes of screen-time that he was alloted.
Songs composed by Bijibal and M.Jayachandran were just passable and doesn't qualify for repeated hearing.Background score by Bijibal himself was okayish.Frames by Pramod K. Pillai were good.Sooraj E.S did a neat job with the editing.
Overall,Munthirivallikal Talirkumbol is a simple,feel-good entertainer worth a try from the silver-screen.
Final Verdict::Expectations were naturally high from Munthirivallikal Thalirkumbol,being the immediate release of Mohanlal after box office blockbuster "Pulimurugan" which shattered all the existing box office records by epic proportion.Keeping the expectations upto a good extent,MVT is nevertheless a satisfactory entertainer that offers a delightful watch for the families and those who are longing to see vintage Lalettan on the big screen.Give it a try !
