Valatty review: Roshan Mathew, Soubin Shahir’s dog tale gets bogged down by a predictable take

2.5/5

Story: Golden Retriever Tomy and Cocker Spaniel Amalu are forced to run away from home after their pet parents disapprove of their relationship, as they belong to ‘religious’ and breed differences. What awaits them in the outside world is a difficult life, made all the more challenging with teams from the Animal Birth Control programme on the prowl for stray dogs. But a few furry companions they meet along the way give them hope.

Review: It wouldn’t be fair to judge debutant filmmaker Devan’s movie Valatty: Tale of Tails with the same yardstick as the usual movies. It is an experimental venture, probably the first feature film in the country to tell a story from the perspective of dogs, using real-life animals. While the team, which has spent over three years to train the dogs from scratch and complete the film, deserves a pat on the back for their efforts, Valatty isn’t a film that tugs at your heartstrings – even if you are a sucker for canine movies. The simple tale and the approach could be the reasons for this.

Also read: Valatty director Devan: We had to devise new tricks to get various reactions from the dogs 

The makers haven’t quite treated this as a straightforward tale that would appeal to children. There’s bloodshed and mauling, shown to explain how the upbringing of a dog can lead to more aggression. That probably takes away the innocence in the tale that was present in the first half of the film, which followed a Golden Retriever (voiced by Roshan Mathew) and a Cocker Spaniel (Raveena Ravi) as they run away from their homes in a posh neighbourhood and find themselves in the company of Karidas (Soubin Shahir) and his pet parent (Rohini), in a coastal area.

Also read: Valatty director Devan: Had Soubin Shahir and Ranjini Haridas in mind even while I was scripting 

The portions of the film, which showcases the tale of a Rottweiler (Sunny Wayne) and how it was literally shaped for dog fights, was probably aimed at showing human cruelty as well as building up the antagonist. What it does is that it sidetracks the earlier story and takes the entire plot to a darker terrain that is too predictable for adults and might come off as less endearing to the children too. The movie also lacked energy and purpose. Say, a film like 101 Dalmations benefited greatly from its antagonist Cruella de Vil, but the only thing the audience will care about in Valatty is what happens to Amalu, once she gets to the supposed dog pound. The villains and their purpose are just distractions that barely register and add any suspense.

Devan, who has also scripted the tale, in a runtime of less than two hours has tried his best to squeeze in several plights experienced by animals who are abandoned due to reasons such as old age and find themselves on the streets. It sheds light on the stray dog menace, albeit in a way that doesn’t help its cause with themes such as illegal experimentation. That said, there are some emotional moments such as how Karidas’ pet parent reacts when he’s in danger and the bonding between the dogs that will resonate with people who have pets and others too.

Among the voice cast of the film, Soubin stands out as Karidas, infusing the much-needed zest to the film with his quirky lines. Roshan as Tomy also does his bit, but somehow the character is written in a way that his heroism is often overshadowed by the other canines. There’s also a slew of cameos – as humans and canine voices – but none really make a mark.

Though the movie is predictable, the team must be lauded for getting the canine actors to mirror the same reaction as that of humans who would have done the roles. Maybe, that’s also why the plot keeps spinning in circles rather than going straight to one’s heart like some dog films.

Verdict: Strapped with a predictable tale, Valatty gets caught between being a feel-good movie and a serious take on human cruelty on animals. This only serves it to bog down the dog tale.