A string of heavy duty one-liners giving the audience an unrealistic adrenaline rush, thrilling BGMs, maniac villains. at a time when the industry has seen all of those cop movie cliches, Abrid Shine presents the life of Biju, an ordinary cop, in his second directorial venture. We can’t call the film a story; it’s more of a series of day-to-day incidents in the life of a policeman, with sufficient flair and strong performances.
Biju Paulose is a cool cop who twirls his moustache when needed and uses his brains to deal with all sorts of miscreants. Like every policeman, he too has to deal with an assorted array of cases ranging from that of exhibitionists to murder suspects on the loose. His feats have even earned him the respect of some of the gangs in the city. The regular cases and petitions that come his way and the entertaining moments arising from them are all woven together to form a realistic movie.
The film tries to give us a glimpse into the lives of policemen, not just as officers, but as ordinary humans. The timeline of the movie stretches over a few months to show how the protagonist also juggles his wedding preparations, pre-marital sugary phone calls, and even a few moments of banter with culprits.
Brief appearances in the movie include that of Suraj Venjaramoodu in one of his best performances ever, Jude Anthany Joseph, Devi Ajith, Meghanathan and Rohini, all of whom have done ample justice to their screen time. Alex J Pulickal’s cinematography is decent and Jerry Amaldev’s old school music is refreshing. Premam-fame Rakesh Murugeshan’s background score is passable.
A couple of potholes in the film’s track occasionally make it a bumpy ride. The lack of a strong storyline gives it a documentary feel at times, which are at times saved by Joju’s clever lines. While Nivin mostly owns the film, his cop act does come across as a bit cartoonish, particularly the intro sequence.