Trance : My Review

Anwar Rasheed has returned as a director after a hiatus and he has returned with an excellent team and a powerful film. Trance is a satirical saga about the reality behind miracle workers. The movie showcases bitter truths regarding how religion is used as a powerful business weapon and how blind faith is injected into naive people who gets manipulated by speech.
Fahadh Faasil had grown as an actor over the years delivering solid performances, be it the character role of Shammi from Kumbalangi Nights or his villain stint from the tamil blockbuster Velaikkaaran. Viju Prasad aka Joshua Carlton is one of his best performances till date.
The story begins with the life of Motivational speaker Viju Prasad and focuses on his journey to become Pastor Joshua Carlton. The story by Vincent Vadakkan is powerful and he has rightly struck the chord by choosing a very relevant subject which hasn't been much in the limelight. Trance sheds light on shocking truths about Miracle Workers. Though the movie starts off with the disclaimer that characters are fictitious, viewers are pulled in by the gravity of the universe created by the movie. The screenplay is exceptional with good characterizations except for some goof-ups in the climax and some cinematic clichés towards the end. Though the running time is nearly 170 minutes, Trance wins us over with its great content and making. Talking about performances, Fahadh stands out with his signature performance while Chemban Vinod was wasted. Vinayakan and Sreenath Bhasi had small screen time but both of them delivered solid performances. Nazriya looked natural and did her part well. Gautam Vasudev Menon has his moments as the baddie and does a good job. Dileesh Pothan has a good role and he does his part with ease. Soubin Shahir chips in with a good extended cameo.
Cinematography is a highlight of this film and Amal Neerad leaves his mark. The movie demands a strong visual impact and Amal Neerad succeeds in capturing some amazing visuals. Anwar Rasheed's latest outing will be a feast for serious movie goers while it won't be everyone's cup of tea. But, the universe which Trance creates is quite intense and it engages the viewer entirely. Trance is a well crafted cinema at the end of the day so a few cinematic liberties could be granted and deserves a watch in theatres.
My Rating : 4/5