Sometimes, the most impressive thing in the cinema is not part of the visual effect, but a stationary camera arrested the conversation between two people within 90 minutes. The new film Don Pallathara Santthoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam (A.K.A. The pleasant mystery) is a miracle that seems more challenging to solve than CGI’s sequence of actions or creation.
Because when filmmakers think about making movies driven by conversations:
Usually, the tendency to really get really caught up in the beauty. Of what they might assume which is a brilliant language. But that looks perfect for the creator may not look so for the audience.
And when there is an additional risk demanding the audience’s attention for 90 minutes straight, without interruption, it requires careful planning and 100% commitment from actors.
Fortunately, the Don Pallathara film knows what to say and when. It also knows when to stop. It doesn’t have an unnecessary flab. In a crunchy runtime, he managed to say a lot about the dynamics of women, among others, without testing our patience.
Do you know how they say 99% of what. We are worried about actually doesn’t happen? When the film starts in the res, the couple contemplates 1%. Maria (Rima Kallingal), a film journalist, tell her girlfriend Joinhu (Jitin Puthanchery) about pregnancy concerns. Both are uncertain.
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They don’t have a backup plan in the worst scenario.
This is a tense situation, and he can’t stand the fact that he seems indifferent. Jithu was also worried, but he didn’t express it too much. He didn’t see it, but we could. He is called a child, but this can be said. About many men, regardless of age.
He complained that the “wrong game” made a worse problem. They do not use contraception because both of them are under the idea that they sleep together during the right time biologically and that nature will not mess it up later. At present, the couple cannot imagine having a baby and take care of him.
Of course, there is also a problem. Their relationship is still wise. The prospect tells their parents and getting married seems so far away. In addition, he is an actor. Who aspires is currently unemployed. Will he find a job? And what happened later? Can he do post-graduation after becoming a mother? Many questions.
Everything – time pauses between dialogue, overlapping them, long pauses after the fight, resuming the conversation – authentic sound and resembling real-life conversations.
We approach feelings in the car with them. Maybe we will find an atmosphere of anxiety – induce if we are in a car with them.
But as a viewer, I found the strangely soothing experience.
Because how often do we get a movie that doesn’t try to turn our attention by editing fast and with a strange camera angle? The static camera approach here makes sense because the position shift can spread tension. Not every day do we see a film that follows this approach and still attracts our attention.
When the third character enters their car briefly, we feel the inconvenience that naturally comes with the intrusion of a private room for the couple until then.
Another great aspect of this film is not eating any side when exploring the nature of relations of men. When Joint said something that sounded like he repeated something he saw in the ‘progressive’ post on social media, he called his bull.
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As an experiment, Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam might not look new for foreign film lovers exposed to a variety of Take-aquands in all languages, but don’t use a comparison to discuss the film, at least to imitate this viewer, not trying to imitate something that comes before. Appear with sincere intentions; Never approached one-take feel like a gimmick.
Told me of interaction fluidity achieved through several exercises with the improvised input of the two actors.
What we see in this film is, if I remember correctly, achieved in fifth. Until now, I have watched it three times, and it still made me wonder how they pulled it.