Good Day movie review: A wobbly yet interesting redemption story of a man with fleeting ideas

Good Day plot

Santhakumar is a garment factory worker at Tiruppur. After getting his delayed salary on hand, and sending some money back home, Santhakumar gets intoxicated. In a drunken stupor, he gets into trouble for various notoriety, from landing up on the doorstep of his school crush, to picking up a fight with his houseowner. But the night becomes one that he cannot forget.

Good Day review

In modern world, it is rarity that humans leave their guards down and act free of inhibitions. But for Santhakumar, his dependence on alcohol does the job for him, as we see him unravelling more of a person that he is through a sequence overnight, that ranges from a hilarious gatecrashing into his crush Krishnaveni (Mynaa Nandini), to that of being a crucial help in aiding the police solve a case.

It is very early on; we get a sample of who Santhakumar is. A man who stood against sexual harassment for some of his female co-workers by the hands of his superior. And he is put into place when his boss delays to credit his salary. Santhakumar was also once ardent student of history, and when the job market failed him to pursue his favourite subject any longer, the only way he knows to show his academic identity is by writing it on his birthday cake, and having a night to celebrate it.

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The film too doesn’t want you to like its protagonist right away, as we see him a man with terrible flaws, and not the kind one would want around. His intoxicated self picks up fight with the houseowner, and Santhakumar seems to draw distant for better half of the film. And in a sudden shift of gear, Good Day much in contrast of the title (when the movie takes place overnight), makes Santhakumar a crucial link in solving a crime. There are little stretches where the slice-of-life drama works, including the hilarious stretch between Krishnaveni, her husband and Santhakumar. But a few portions especially that of an encounter with an auto driver (Kaali Venkat) and police station scenes.

It is with a genuine heart the film travels with. It may come across for saying profound ideas of purpose of human life and redemption, but it doesn’t make much effort to gain calibre in presenting the ideas as strong as it wants to talk. Or more to say, often gets too indulgent in portions that may not contribute.

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Santhakumar, in his drunken adventure, witnesses the funeral of a young woman, roams on the streets of the town clad in khaki uniform and a policeman's walkie-talkie, and even attempts suicide. Prithiviraj makes sure the character comes to life, and in turn the movie, which gets shouldered majorly on one actor. But that doesn’t get to be enough for the film which feels to be going on a path threaded by randomness.

Good Day verdict

Good Day is an average yet novel attempt on a man on his path to redemption. Much like the process, the day, or rather one night is not enough for a change. The film scratches the surface of interesting pockets of ideas and leaves it there, for further exploration.