Star movie review: Despite its strong ending, Domin D’Silva takes a drawn-out, convoluted path to reach there

2.5/5

Story: Around the same time a star in the solar system is set to enter its supernova phase, Ardra, a teacher and mother of four, seems disturbed, lost and disconnected from her family. Grown listening to folk tales and superstitions, she yearns to return to her roots. Finally, her family decides to go to her ancestral home but this only further fuels their anxieties. Is there a rational explanation for what Ardra is going through? – that’s what Domin D’Silva’s Star is about.

Review: Some movies start off with a fantastic idea. This is often the climax and the rest of the plot is built to reach this stage in the film. Then there are other movies like The Great Indian Kitchen where the filmmaker deliberately makes the audience experience the grind of the character’s lives to reflect what they are trying to convey. Domin D’Silva’s Star is a mix of both – but doesn’t quite achieve either purpose effectively.

The movie, which released in theatres on October 29, starts with astrophysicists speculating about the fate of a star, which is at its supernova stage. Around this time, Ardra (Sheelu Abraham), a mother of four children, seems to be disturbed and disconnected. She has phases of anxiety, insecurity, anger, frustration and long periods where she shuts herself from everyone including her husband Roy (Joju George). Every now and then, she says she wants to return to her ancestral home, a place riddled with superstitions, rituals and people who believe in myths and folklore. Unable to understand what his wife is going through, Roy decides to take a trip with his family to her place, but this only exacerbates Ardra’s condition. Does what Ardra is going through a rational explanation or does it have a connection with the deity that is believed to reside at her place?

True to its tagline, Domin’s movie attempts to burst myths. The explanation given to Ardra’s condition and several incidents throughout the movie mirroring what she is going through is eye-opening. However, how the filmmaker arrives at it is convoluted. The chilling ambience created, even though the characters stress what Ardra goes through is hell, seems rather unnecessary especially in several scenes that don't involve her. While the ending justifies the sense of curiosity of what is disturbing the protagonist, it does feel drawn-out. A particular scene about a deity appearing in the middle of a ritual to ward off the spirit could have been intended as a meta-layer to show that there is nothing wrong with the person, it feels out of place with respect to the denouement.

The present phase of Ardra required her to be adrift most of the time. However, Sheelu doesn’t quite nail the part where Ardra was a delight to be with for her kids. Joju George doesn’t have too much to do in the movie and Prithviraj Sukumaran plays a cameo of a doctor who helps make sense of things for the family.

The movie’s music by M Jayachandran and Ranjin Raj along with its cinematography by Tharun Bhaskaran elevate the film, almost making it worth going to the theatres. However, the pace of storytelling is a letdown. The songs, though good to listen, further draw out the movie, which could have been a good 20 minutes short. 

Verdict: The core concept of Star is good and worth telling in a society where women’s health issues aren’t given precedence. However, the mode of storytelling takes away from this idea and its impact. Even Joju’s performance and Prithviraj’s cameo doesn’t quite save Star from fading.