Chaaver Review… great intentions but tedious execution

Year: 2023
Genre: Social Justice, Crime, Thriller
Cast: Kunchacko Boban, Arjun Ashokan, Manoj K.U., Sajin Gopu, Anuroop, Antony Varghese, Sangita Madhavan Nair, Deepak Parambol, Joy Mathew
Director: Tinu Pappachan
Writer: Joy Mathew
Cinematographer: Jinto George

Summary: After brutally murdering an unknown man, four contract killers are on the run as they gradually discover that their mission wasn’t what it seemed to be

Overall Rating: Water     
Chaaver had good intentions and a great message to pass along, but the tedious storytelling sadly punctured the beauty of this film
 ~Yours To Explore~

Delicious
—One thing that Chaaver is extremely rich in is symbols!
From the opening scene that zoomed in on a mouse getting ready to eat a roach but is run over by a car, we had an illustration of the destruction of evil desires/ego
Pablo Neruda’s poem shown in the beginning and end was a significant reminder to expose the atrocities around us rather than focusing on nice stories
—It was encouraging to see the theme of loyalty present across characters whether it was the hired goons being loyal to their party, Musthafa (Manoj K.U.) looking after Arun (Arjun Ashokan), or Sooraj (Arun’s friend) standing up for Arun
—The photography added a plus to the storytelling with engaging camera movements and placements that were as curious as we were. 
Additionally, the night scenes were visually appealing, reinforcing the intimidating aura when the killers were in distress
—It was quite interesting that these four men came from different faiths: Ashokan (Kunchacko Boban) was Hindu, Asif (Sajin Gopu) & Musthafa were Muslim, while Thomas (Anuroop) was Catholic.
Without being a spoiler, when you understand the intent of their murder, it kinda makes sense why they were selected

Bland
—The storytelling was regrettably slooow and unengaging😭
The movie only got a boost toward the last 20 minutes during the confrontation, this was obviously too late.
The scene sequences seemed detached: one moment we were introduced to Ashokan and his partners and another one we were taken to Arun and his mom who appeared cold toward each other.
The lack of a parallel plot made the scenario redundant and the long scenes (e.g. funeral scene and the confrontation at the end) impaired the beauty of this film
—The everpresent ominous score made it look as if something gripping was going to happen but nope, we only saw Ashokan and his partners driving and driving in their car😔
—As Chaaver carried an important message, inspirational and thought-provoking dialogues could have been crafted to make it memorable

Joy Mathew has a tendency to make his scenarios tedious as he did with ‘Uncle’, so sad that we witnessed the same pattern with Chaaver…


Viewers’ Guide
Language Violence Intimacy none

Trailer

Available on
(Audio: Malayalam; English Subtitles: Yes)