After writing the critically acclaimed Malayalam mystery drama ‘Balan: The Boy’, Jithu Madhavan crossed borders to make his Tamil directorial debut with a dark comedy crime thriller starring Suriya (DSP Inbaraj), Nazriya Nazim (Maya) and Naslen (Eswaran). The ‘Aavesham’ director brings comedy into the world of the crime thriller, walks a tonal tightrope, and pulls it off masterfully.
Madhavan has a signature style of refusing to reveal his characters’ backstories, and he does the same in ‘Scene’. When Lal’s character Stephen is about to narrate how he and Inbaraj, played by Suriya, became close, he is cut off midway in the most comedic and natural way. Madhavan presents only a small glimpse of Inbaraj’s life before his personality changed into what it is now. ‘Scene’ is a gallery of quirky and eccentric characters, who are also highly useful and perfectly placed in the flow of the story.
Suriya plays an eccentric police officer who decides to retire at the peak of his career. If ‘Karuppu’ showed Suriya as a deity and ‘Vishwanath & Sons’ portrayed him as an ideal man, ‘Scene’ presents him as an intelligent officer who is humanly flawed. Madhavan doesn’t celebrate his hero with a mass entrance where he flexes money or muscles, and in this case, the power of the uniform. Instead, he shows the imperfections, fears, and flaws of his hero while flaunting Inbaraj’s adaptive nature and intelligence. Suriya’s screen presence is undeniable, and he handles the action sequences with a smile on his face. With ‘Scene’, he proves that he can handle comedy and thriller with utmost grace. From dialogue delivery to quirky actions, Suriya makes Inbaraj a pleasure to watch.
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Nazriya, who usually gets typecast as a bubbly personality, shows that she can blend her signature charm with action sequences without losing the relatable nature of her character. She has already proven that she can perform serious roles through ‘Trance’ and ‘Sookshmadarshini’, and ‘Scene’ brings back the charming Nazriya we knew before. Her natural dialogue delivery, coupled with expressive facial features, is always a treat to watch.
Naslen makes a strong debut in Tamil cinema with his performance as ‘Eeshwaran’. The Naslen who charmed us with his sweet and innocent acts in ‘Premalu’ and ‘Lokah’ proves that he is a versatile actor who can pull off a psychotic character as well. Madhavan is nothing like ‘American Psycho’ or any other psycho we have met on-screen, who kills to enjoy the fear of their prey. Madhavan’s psycho revels in the act of killing and keeps fine-tuning his skills. Eeshwaran is not a villain who flexes his muscles and acts fearless. He is an intelligent villain who expresses fear when faced with such situations. However, he is also a quick thinker, highly confident in his skills, meticulous, and on par with the hero in intelligence.
One of the standout scenes is the face-off between Inbaraj and Eeshwaran. The fear and thrill in Eeshwaran’s eyes, portrayed perfectly by Naslen, capture the cat-and-mouse game between the hero and the villain. When Eeshwaran finally decodes Inbaraj’s secret and Nazriya’s character, Maya, becomes a target, the audience is left with anxiety.
Lal deserves special appreciation for his comedic acting and dialogue delivery as Stephen, the head of the Crime Branch. In some instances, his character becomes a bit absurdist but doesn’t go overboard. The supporting cast carries the movie well together. While an experienced actor like Anandaraj supports the movie with his years of experience, the new actors do an exceptional job, creating the feeling that we have seen them in many movies. The special cameo appearances of Tovino and Jyotika are indeed a highlight of the movie.
Vineeth Augustian’s cinematography keeps the film’s visual tone light rather than dark, in keeping with its comedic spirit. The close-ups are used effectively to underline the importance of key moments, and the climax plays a little with light and darkness during the fight scene. Edited by Ajmal Sabu, the film runs for 2 hours 27 minutes.
Sushin Shyam’s music never disappoints. From the haunting nursery rhyme ‘Thaakkol’ in ‘Balan: The Boy’ to the eccentric, electronic-fused, vintage vibe of ‘Raasaadhi Raasan’, his music placement is top-notch. The song placed in the final part of the movie reveals the personality of Eeshwaran. Sushin’s composition supports the movie and even hints at the story and personalities of the characters. The jaunty soundtrack placed against otherwise unnerving scenes is the perfect portrayal of dark comedy.
The movie does get slightly flimsy and chaotic in places, but it never goes overboard with absurdity.
Overall, the movie is a must-watch if you love comedy crime thrillers and want to laugh and watch something refreshing from the usual formula. However, if you expect an intense investigation with only a sprinkle of comedy, ‘Scene’ is not the movie to spend your money on.
