Doctor

The blockbuster material movies need a timely reinvention to keep the audience excited about that over-the-top stylized way of movie-making. With his debut movie Kolamavu Kokila, director Nelson Dilipkumar had made it clear that he has a solid grip over humor and the uniqueness of that humor made it a hilarious film. Coming to his new film Doctor starring Sivakarthikeyan, Nelson skillfully mixes the blockbuster hero material and the kind of humor that worked for him in Kolamavu Kokila. Doctor isn’t an extraordinary achievement. But it feels like an entertainer that doesn’t want to feel typical.

Varun is a military doctor who is a bit too nerdy, and his fiancé even decides to call off the wedding because he doesn’t express much. But on the same day when his marriage was called off, his fiancé Padmini’s nephew went missing. Varun decides to help the family in finding her, and they find out about the involvement of a human trafficking racket. What we see in the movie is the efforts of the family under the guidance of Varun to find the missing girl.

Doctor is not a logically consistent movie. But Nelson is not pushing the imagination to make us do a facepalm. He cleverly mixes his trademark humor into almost all situations, and the end product becomes a segment that you will love despite knowing how practically impossible it is. The whole fight inside the metro train is a good example of that. You know how almost impossible it is. Yet the humor in that sequence just makes that scene hilarious. And the placement of black humor is also a factor why this film doesn’t feel so typical. The way Yogi Babu’s character responds to the little girl’s apology towards the end was really unexpected and fun to watch.

There is a greater emphasis on distributing the work among characters. Sivakarthikeyan might be the professor-like mentor figure for the gang. But this isn’t a one-man show. The characters played by Yogi Babu, Deepa Shankar, and Redin Kingsley have significant space in this black comedy. Nelson makes his hero more of a man of ideology rather than showcasing muscle power. Like I already said, Nelson uses humor smartly to keep the scene engaging. It’s not like the film decided to avoid the humor track after the entry of the villain. The cinematography is emphasizing more on the visual richness of the frames. Anirudh’s tracks and background score are perfect for an entertainer of this format.

The usual charmer characteristics are taken away from Sivakarthikeyan here by Nelson, and this gives you a chance to see a subtler version of the actor. And SK manages to pull it off neatly. Sivakarthikeyan is more like a captain here, and the movie offers ample space for other character actors to score. Yogi Babu, in his typical style, is super fun to watch. Redin Kingsley in his loud avatar was also hilarious (I hope he won’t become a Pradeep Kottayam). Deepa Shankar as Preethi handles comedy effortlessly without making her character look eccentric on screen. Vinay as Terry is a convincing villain, but the film doesn’t offer him much space to be that memorable. Priyanka Arul Mohan may not have too much screen time in the movie, but she is not a mere Mezhugu Doll in the story. Raghu and Rajiv of MTV Roadies are also here in pivotal roles.

This was the first movie I saw on the big screen after almost six months, and I would say considering the number of dark thrillers we have seen on OTT platforms, Doctor is definitely a recommendable, fun film. The quirks and tweaks Nelson has given to sequences make it an engaging movie. I hope Nelson won’t compromise too much on his established style in Beast.