Oppam is not the kind of movie that you expect from Priyadarshan Mohanlal team. The movie is a thriller which tells us the story of a visually impaired Jayaraman trying to save the life of a girl from a psychopath killer while trying to prove himself innocent for a murder he had not committed. Even though he is blind he tracks the killer with his intelligence and with the help of his other heightened senses of smell, sound and touch. There are lot of secrets which slowly unfolds through the course of the film. After Drishyam, this is the Mohanlal movie I was waiting for. I really liked the performance of all the characters. But I was little disappointed with the role given to Renji Panicker. I expected more of him in the film. But Mohanlal played the role with such perfection, proving once again that he is one of the finest actors of our country.This movie is a must watch.

Heard good things about the movie & so i went to check it out myself and i was not disappointed.

The film is written & directed by veteran director Priyadarshan and is a thriller where lead role is played by Mohanlal.The story revolves around murder of a retired judge, a blind man (Mohanlal) & its aftermath.

If you have seen the trailer & thought it was lame just wait after you see this movie, cause then you will understand that it was made so intentionally.The movie outright surprises with good camera work, Songs, sory progression ... the works, you name it & its there.

Its a strong comeback by the director after a couple of lemons. Mohanlal succeeds in making the audience feel the pain & struggle he is in & the director succeeds in making you stay at the edge of your seat.

A great movie & no doubt one of the best movies of the year !!!!

There's a reason why comedy lovers revere Priyadarshan. Not because he makes films that make us laugh, but because he hits the right chords with his comedy and slapstick, adding humor to the ordinary Indian's life story. Being contemporary with his stories was his trademark, which began to spiral down in the previous decade; and with this crime thriller, it shows no sign of resurgence even as we enter the second half of one of Malayalam cinema's greatest decades.

Jayaraman (Mohanlal) is a lower-class middle-aged man employed as an elevator operator at a city high rise in Kerala. His only disability is also his biggest strength: blindness. What people cannot see, he can sense it from his other senses. He also works as a helper for a number of households in the building, including that of Justice Krishnamoorthy (Nedumudi Venu),who considers Jayaraman as his only loyal confidant. Although Jayaraman has his own set of familial problems and is hugely in debt, the altruistic maverick in him cares more for other people and their needs. However, he has no idea that his genteel attitude is going to cause him trouble as Krishnamoorthy informs him about a psychopath who might be out to take his blood for vengeance...

The story is pretty straightforward as Jayaraman dons the cap of an investigator and tries to connect the dots to save his mentor's life. The opening montage is cringe-worthy as it is climaxed by a closeup of the producer of the film, to become one of the most obnoxious brandings in a film in a while. The editing is crude as you will see still photographs of random things like a Levi's store banner or the sky in between sequences that are not stitched well. Priyadarshan has employed an amateur approach at both directing his partially talented cast and writing the story, so as to forcibly create humor and thrills. Unfortunately, the sequences which were intended to supply these elements look like an unsupervised Junior KG classroom where all you can see is kids blaring out their throats.

Art direction is not really a parameter to judge a Malayalam film for, but one cannot unsee the absurd fabrications included in this film. A guy falls on the roof of a hatchback from an upper floor of a building and the whole windshield is covered with liquid that looks more like spicy Chicken curry than blood. While one can still ignore this, how a poor, indebted lift operator can afford Wildcraft merchandise is beyond me.

There are three songs in the first 40 minutes, picturised on the blind protagonist where he sings and dances like Mick Jagger. We are made to assume that these chops has made Devayani (Vimala Raman),a kin of Krishnamoorthy, fall for him as she quickly changes character from a no-nonsense, maritally abused woman to a selfie-loving, bed-warming, lover-girl who is ready to get it on with this exceptionally talented lift operator who moonlights as an investigator. Her transitioning portrayal is one of the most awkward instances in the film. Mohanlal is below average, but fans may want to try him out here as he employs the safe and tried- and-tested method of playing a blind man who uses his eyebrows more than his hands. The forced humor brought in by the highly untalented extras and supporting actors will cause panic in the room, as you will gasp for novelty in the film which has only two people who act like they know what they are doing: Anusree and Samuthirakani. And the latter does not even speak ten words in total.

Policemen interrogating potential criminal in front of other people, characters doing a surprise and showcasing their Karate skills, and the villain using sound synthesizers to produce two different voices (for the time when he threatens and for other when he is threatened) are some of the superficial issues with the film. Glaring plot holes and unappealing cinematic mistakes that will make every informed viewer uncomfortable is what costs the film from getting a pat on the back. Instead, it should get a beating on the back for concocting a recipe that is so jaded it reeks of vomit. Throw in a little sentimentality and you think the audience will roar with applause, but that cannot happen because this is 2016 and most of the viewers bring their brains to the movies.

It's like Priyadarshan watched Visaraanai (2015) and The Shining (1980) and wrote the script of the film while he was taking forty winks, thus, forgetting to add any trace of character development. So many problems with the film, it cannot and does not hold water. One of the most anticipated Malayalam films of 2016, it was expected that Priyadarshan would deliver a hit after his 2014 debacle, Aamayum Muyalum. However, with this one standing as a testament, it's unlikely the director can create any more wonders. Can't fathom how this is the 3rd highest grossing Malayalam film ever.

BOTTOM LINE: Priayadarshan's "Oppam" is a cardboard platform where dumb characters play dumb charades in order to win the recipe I mentioned above. Watch Pulimurugan instead, and skim through this when it airs on TV in 2017.

Can be watched with a typical Indian family? YES