Jyothirmayi, the familiarity stands out in this mediocre film

Amal Neerad is one of the few Malayalam filmmakers today who has a distinctive narrative style. With his wonderful sense of aesthetics, skillful image compositions, effective use of minimal dialogues and, above all, incredible ability to create adrenaline-pumping moments, Amal has successfully built a loyal fan base for his works. His latest film Bougainvillea also has everything you would expect from it. But… do they have the right proportions? Not really. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the film is somewhere in the middle of all the famous Amal Neerad touches.

After exploring the landscape of Idukki beautifully Iyobinte Pusthakam And Varathanthe director takes us back to the mountains. The cold and foggy backdrop is an ideal but often recurring setting for mystery thrillers. For a large part Bougainvilleas In the first half, the narrative moves at a leisurely pace as the focus is on capturing every little detail about the protagonist Reethu and her lokam. These include her fixation on bougainvillea paintings, sudden outbursts, hallucinations and a warm bond with her housekeeper.

Things get heated when Reethu, a clinically diagnosed amnesiac with memory problems, becomes involved in a high-profile case involving the disappearance of several young women. After the wonderfully designed Kishkindha Kaandam (KK), this is the second film in recent memory to feature a main character with amnesia.

There is an element of mystery in both films and as viewers we are faced with the difficult situation of whether to trust their versions or not. Much like KK’s Appu Pilla, Reethu tries with all her might to piece together her fragmented memories, but something stops her from painting a complete picture, and that leads to a fascinating interval deadlock.