Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

A pretty straightforward film about an eccentric man's relentless pursuit of his sexual fantasy - which is to make love to a woman while an elephant holds her in his tusks. Biju Menon, who was once thought of as a worthy successor to Mamooty and now boasts of reasonable box office clout plays the eccentric Christian man. He is supported by veterans like Vijayaraghavan (who plays his Nair Hindu sidekick) and Jagadish. Apart from providing amusing vignettes from the life of our eccentric hero, the film attempts to ridicule religion, moralists and prohibition activists in Kerala.The problem with provocative films made by Indian filmmakers is that they are always bound to come across as lame compared to similar films from other countries. The truth is that our films lack the gumption to denounce the institutions that control the way we live, with honesty and clarity. So we get meandering and spiritless films like Leela (and Udta Punjab) which are mildly amusing. But in truth, they underscore why we have no freedom of speech in this country because the makers seem to be pulling their punches.I have never been a fan of Renjith the director - he always seems to have one eye on pleasing the audience even when he's making a dark film like Leela. The film is based on a short story by Unni R (who wrote the blockbuster film Charlie).

Leela, the title of the movie and name of one of its central characters obviously has a special scent of carnality around it. However the movie is not completely about what its title suggests. Besides it is also about the present society's hypocrisy, lifestyle and unhealthy trends toward cultural degradation. Our central character Kuttiyappan himself becomes a satire on the modern society. The queerness with his behavior, place of living and mannerisms tell us a lot about the present society. Leela will be Ranjith's first movie to use extensive symbolism. (Also because it is based on a literary piece) We know that cellphone is no more a material. It has become something on which people have invested a huge bundle of their secrets, cares and worries. So this gadget is a unique thing of this century. People find it really hard to separate themselves from it. Whenever it beeps, vibrates or rings they jump on it. Almost always people are busy with this gadget that it has become another organ of human body. Kuttiyappan mocks this that he fixes his cellphone near to his hand. Kuttiyappan's mentioning of Dinkan with other Gods is a perfect mockery on the educated boastful atheists. Dinkan, an abandoned character from a children's comic is now adopted by young atheists as their symbol. However the philosophy of atheism which had always gone to criticize organized religions became part of yet another religion through the adoption of Dinkan as their symbol.Sex has become a ritual. Something that has lost its meaning because of the importance given to body over heart or love. That is the reason why Kuttiyappan is asking the girl to light a lamp before starting what the girl thought for which she came there. The first thing he asks to this girl is to imagine that he 'is her father'. This alludes to the present situation where women feel no security at their own families. He also asks her to cry over his death. Later he comes to know about the poor conditions of the girl. It brings him to some of the fundamental questions regarding morality and survival.His search for elephant is his search for women who have fallen preys to men's sexual fantasies, who have become yet another product that has huge selling value. Marlin Manroe, the most celebrated Hollywood actress is their representative for men's voyeuristic fantasies. On his search for elephants Kuttiyappan meets an environmental activist who rubs some intoxicant in his hand. What could be his worries? About trees being cut down, deforestation and climate change? A cigarette lamp hangs in front of Kuttiyappan's jeep's mirror suggesting the society's addiction to smoking and drugs.When somebody is dead Kuttiyappan goes to attend his funeral. Later he tells us that it was not from drinking alcohol that the person died but from excessive consuming of unhygienic food. This can also extend to fast and junk food culture. Every society has a tendency to forget its past. This easy oblivion is that society's clever escape from its fake moral consciousness. This is what Kuttiyappan wants to mock through the old women whom he takes to roundabouts.Finally he decides to do something against at least a single injustice. Kuttiyappan derives his inspiration from none other than Mahatma Gandhi under whose statue we read: 'first they mock you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win'. Not so late Kuttiyappan's dead aunt, a woman who might have gone through the oppressive rule of the patriarchy comes in the guise of an angel (an ugly looking angel). She represents a past generation of women who went through the same kind of sexual and domestic torture as that is presently experienced by their later generation… The determined Kuttiyappan pauses his symbolic fight with the society for some time and decides to do some act that will wash out sins of his and that of the entire patriarchy he represents. Hence next we meet Kuttiyappan in a government hospital. The untidy atmosphere of the place tell us a lot about our health systems. Pilla (an aged householder) follows Kuttiyappan hoping that he will get a chance to have a sexual relationship outside marriage. He also hopes that he will get a young girl to satiate his sexual desires. Dasappappi follows Kuttiyappan in the hope of arranging somebody for Kuttiyappan and if possible, to find somebody new to his dirty business… An old woman Kuttiyappan meets on his way to find an elephant sings a children's song about an elephant; another allusion to objectification of women. It is very interesting to note that Leela's character does not utter a single word in the movie. She has been silenced from the very moment she was misused. The fact that she is silent throughout the movie tells us a lot about the intensity of her suffering. After hearing Leela's suffering we notice Pillechan becoming more and more worried about his daughter who is of Leela's age. He is now far from his fantasies of enjoying a young body. Pillechan who represents old men having their sexual fantasies about young girls is touched by his conscience for the first time after hearing Leela's story. Injustices done to women by men go beyond all limits and transcend little foils from the part of women. Thus, Leela, representative of phallocentric cruelty, gives her consent to the animal (to whom she is objectified) to take her life realizing that a woman is never safe in the hands of men. The final image of Leela is of her dead body carried in Kuttiyappan's aunt's lap which cannot help but recall us of Pietà, the famous sculpture by Michelangelo depicting the Virgin Mary supporting the body of the dead Christ. This movie is a noticeable attempt that will help viewers watch and appreciate films of literary merit.

Kuttiyappan is rich and eccentric. The film begins with him riding a horse to go home after drinking so that cops cannot breathalyse him. His elderly woman caretaker has to climb a ladder every day to deliver his bed coffee through a window. He prays to Gandhi and observes Marilyn Monroe's death anniversary by wearing black. He buys a girl for sex, but makes her cry by pretending to be the corpse of her father. He felicitates retired sex-workers by taking them out in a procession. Dark humour like these is strewn all over this complex, rather difficult to understand film.There are other quirky men in the film. There is Pillechan, who plays Sancho Panza to Kuttiyappan's Don Quixote, as they go in search of a tusker. There is a very efficient pimp, who is always dressed in white. The men are almost always boozing. The film reeks of liquor. The "Leela" of the film appears only in the second half and utters just a single word. There are other women in the film, who are gladly willing to be prostitutes.The film delivers a visual overload and there are plenty of symbols: of Christianity, sexuality, communism etc. There is an angel and of course, the most important symbol of all – the elephant. Making sense of what the elephant stands for is central to the understanding of this film.Leela is a dark and depressing film, but paradoxically shot against the lush backdrop of Kottayam. It demands application of your gray cells to make sense of it. I got the feeling that the director and writer are deliberately challenging the viewers. Even the title "Leela" is a pun. I was able to work out what the elephant represents. It is something that you need to do it yourself.

I can't still believe Ranjith directed this movie. Ranjith is an acclaimed Malayalam movie director known for his gripping story lines and situation comedies. Since he's focusing on the aforementioned fields, he doesn't give much attention to the cinematography and realism. But this movie is an anomaly to Ranjith's style of direction. A dare attempt, indeed. He focused on the cinematography enormously this time, endorsing Prashanth Ravindran is trustworthy. Apparently dark blue shade seems blended well in certain nerve-cracking scenes in the move. It interleaves dark-humor and eerie dream-like sequences. Obviously Ranjith's aim is not to entertain people from his usual style this time. But to pursue what he is passionate about at the time being. That's why he doesn't give a damn about how big the crowd is. I couldn't see any tag-lines or catchphrases in the poster with the title 'Lee-La' in a curvy font. Also no trailer and no marketing. That's why I'm emphasizing this is not for everyone in Kerala. This is not a family movie either. Leela is for those who are supposed to watch it.It's based on a short-story by Unni. He might have shared a vital role while preparing the screenplay. Almost all events in the movie revolve around "Kuttiyappan" the main character, portrayed by Biju Menon. Kuttiyappan is a carefree middle-aged man who is jobless. His father was very rich and after his departure, Kuttiyappan got inherited all his properties. He lives in Kottayam, a district in Kerala. The film itself starts with a showcase of various locations in Kottayam by pencil-sketches along with a folk song. Kuttiyappan is pretty much interested in having a sexual relationship with women since he was younger. He's an impulsive alcohol addict with an eccentric personality. He doesn't like to do things in an ordered way. He's a pragmatic supporter of having a change from the usual. This is what makes the film unpredictable and dark-comedy oriented.There are many occasions throughout the movie where Kuttiyappan's eerie decisions made the situation awkward. Travelling on a horse at nights, constructing a ladder to his balcony for taking food from his servant, Knocking on the door of his beloved friend "Pillechan" (portrayed by Vijayaraghavan) at midnight for a casual conversation , etc are a few among them. Pillechan is henpecked guy who is ready to come with Kuttiyappan anytime for an anything. He also has a pimp friend (Indrans). Kuttiyappan connects to prostitutes by this guy. This film manifests a different angle towards prostitution. The title Leela itself could be a symbolism for prostitution. Kuttiyappan never actually has sexual intercourse with these women. He talks to them spontaneously, having a thought of make them happy. He studies the background of the prostitutes before he invites them for prostitution. Mostly he gives them the money the demanded without having sex with them and the pimp knows that. Before the intermission we'll get a vague idea about his personality. The second half consists of many emotional stimuli with the assistance of his eerie experiences. He started thinking about having a life partner and he has had a weird dream once. In the dream he was having a physical relationship with a young woman, thrusting her against the trunk of an elephant! He wanted to portray such an event with his future life partner in real life. He's in search of such a woman in the second half.I'm not delving into the details of second half. But I assure you it will give you a weird feeling that you never had before. It's like a mixture of all emotions mainly happiness, fear, anger and sadness. The success of an artist belongs to this part. He's trying to stimulate your emotional spectra, wanting you to realize how you would respond to that. It's analogous to communicating though emotions. That helps you discover the concealed part of your subconscious mind. All actors performed naturally and their Kottayam accent was spot on! My words aren't enough to express my gratitude towards Ranjith and Team for making this happen. Hardly I've seen a dare attempt like this in Malayalam film industry. This movie will always be a remark in Malayalam movie industry. And I'm so proud of the growth our industry. Couple of excellent movies released lately. Keep up the passion and dedication. We're all here to support you, Ranjith. Peace.