The way Sajimol talks to the Saint in the movie Enthada Saji is casual and funny. Writer-director Godfy Xavier Babu somewhat succeeds in building a Pranchiyettan-like texture to their conversation. But beyond the single-girl chatting with Punyalan concept, the writing of this movie struggles to find solid conflicts. With the second half becoming way too simple and generic, Enthada Saji could have been a harmless entertainer but ended up being a harmless dud.
Our title character Sajimol is single, and one of her engagements got called off at the last minute. This reputation has ruined her prospect of a suitable alliance. At one point, when she visited the church, something divine happened, and Saint Rocky appeared in front of her. The bonding between the two and how it helps Saji in tackling her set of issues is what we see in Enthada Saji.
As I said, the casual and witty conversation obviously gives the film this lighthearted attire. But the lack of a good conflict exposes the script’s cluelessness. In the interval point, you will think that Saji’s insecurity in expressing her love to Roy will make the plot interesting. But as soon as the second half begins, the film ignores that track completely and goes after a new and not-so-compelling track of a missing Saint. The execution of the second half has no charm, and both the audience and the script somewhere forget about the romantic track in the film.
Nivetha Thomas, as the title character Saji, has the charm and wit one expects. The character could have been annoying if the pitch had been slightly higher. But Nivetha managed to keep the character away from that danger zone. Kunchako Boban as Saint Rocky was fine in his extended cameo-like role. With that beard and looks, Jayasurya also works as Roy, Saji’s long-time secret crush. Senthil Krishna, Siddhartha Shiva, Arya, Prem Prakash, Benny P Nairambalam, Prayaga Martin, etc., are the other names in the cast.
By talking about Pranchiyettan and the Saint, Godfy acknowledges the inspiration at the film’s beginning. But his writing is running after various ideas at various points rather than creating one compelling story. The biblical puzzle idea looked interesting on paper. But when it came to the execution, the spoonfed nature of the writing, along with convenient twists, made it look too amateur. Jithu Damodar’s cinematography is interested mainly in the beauty shots. The music was on the average side.
Clocking at around 2 hours of runtime, I was never bored watching Enthada Saji. But the screenplay was so weak in the second half that the movie kind of fades away immediately after you leave the theater. This might work as a relaxed afternoon watch on OTT, where you have more control over the film’s tempo.
With the second half becoming way too simple and generic, Enthada Saji could have been a harmless entertainer but ended up being a harmless dud.
Green: Recommended Content
Orange: The In-Between Ones
Red: Not Recommended
