| The story is usually about a petty sub-inspector of police single-handedly taking on the vicious nexus of politician, liquor mafia, high-ranking police officers and street goons. So what do we have here? An old, honest head constable Ayyappan (Thilakan), dismissed from service because he stretched his ideals too far, wants his son Sanjeev (Pritviraj) to become a police officer. Our hero is made of sterner stuff. He is cast in the mould of superstar Suresh Gopi, who has the guts to take on the corrupt system to fulfil his father's wish. The story starts with the hero being chased by the city police in the crowded centre of Kochi. His crime: he needs a verification certificate from Police Commissioner Mukundan to appear for the sub-inspector test, but the commissioner has vowed not to let Sanjeev become a sub inspector. The reason: he has old scores to settle with Sanjeev's father, who had exposed the commissioner's corrupt ways. This is sure to sound hackneyed, but the director makes it look surprisingly good on the big screen. The story becomes even more predictable after Sanjeev gets the certificate and becomes a sub inspector. He deals with the corrupt with an iron fist; sings love songs with his sweetheart on the beaches, and mouths bombastic dialogue about the society's weak morality. Prithviraj impresses as Sanjeev Kumar. His stylistic performance looks attractive. The only point he should be careful about is his dialogue delivery because his voice seems to tear off ... |
