Mohanlal as the drunken lawyer Sivaraman in Hallo simply rocks! Rafi & Mecartin, the kings of comedy along with Mohanlal for the first time have given a clean family entertainer that works big time. What makes the film tick is that the comedy combination is perfect- they want the audience to have a nice laugh and go home happy. Mohanlal the one-man entertainment troupe carries the film on his broad shoulders. The director duo has packaged it using the star’s image and their slapstick script to create a laugh riot.
Sivaraman (Mohanlal), is a lazy, laid back advocate who is always drunk and spends more time in bars, than in courts! His constant companion in his drinking bouts is Chandy Kunju (Jagathy Sreekumar), who also bails him out of difficult situations. One day after a drunken fight with three rowdies in police list- Vadakancherry Vakkan (Spadikam George), Pattambi Ravi ( Kireekadan Jose), and Batherry Bapu (Bheeman Reghu), they become his bodyguards and constant companions.
Sivaraman became an alcoholic because the girl he loved Priya (Samvrutha) was murdered by hired killers arranged by his father (Janardanan) and his younger brother a cop (Ganesh Kumar) ! Still he lives with his family who are now regretting the incident. One day he gets a call on his mobile from Parvathy (Parvathy Melton), a girl in distress who pleads with him to save her life.
The phone call alters Sivaraman’s life, as he tries to save Parvathy, a rich Marwadi heiress, whose father Bada Bhai (Madhu) runs a successful banking business, along with his brothers and other relatives. Somebody in the joint family wants to bump off Parvathy in the squabble for wealth. Under certain circumstances Sivaraman is forced to take Parvathy home pretending that she is his wife, as he tries to save her from her greedy relatives like Mahesh Bhai (Siddique), Dinu Bhai (Riza Bava), family lawyer Thomas (Jagadeesh) and others.
Parvathy develops a soft corner which turns to love for Sivaraman. The drunken advocate using his brains and the muscle power and cunningness of his friends, help Parvathy and her dad to unravel the mystery behind her kidnapping and also the murder of her friend Praveen who initially helps her and later turns her abductor. All’s well that ends well!
Rafi Mecartin has taken bits and shreds from various sources to stitch together this 2 hour 22 minutes of fun and entertainment. The duo has borrowed the plot of David Ellis’s Cellular (2004) and mixed it well with their own Punjabi House, Tenkasi Pattanam and scenes from various Bollywood films to come out with this comedy mixture. There is nothing new in the film or presentation, as the second half drags after a racy first half. The murder mystery is solved by the hero in a long drawn out dialogue drama instead of presenting it in a visually appealing and logical way of investigation.
These are but minor warts in a film, which is thoroughly enjoyable due to its star cast of actors who have great comedy timing- Mohanlal, Jagathy, Salim Kumar and the new guy Sooraj Venjaranmoodu. Their bickering and bonding makes it a scream. Is there a better actor in Indian Cinema who can play a comic drunkard as good as Mohanlal? Clearly he is at home playing this type of character and the film is unthinkable without him. A tall, svelte Parvathy Melton looks fresh and charming. The comedy tracks of Jagathy, Salim Kumar are funny.
Technically the film is ok, with Bobban’s set designs ( the toddy shop set), Sanjiv Shankar’s camera and Don Max’s editing all which enriches the entertainer. Songs by Alex Paul are just average. On the whole Hallo is a feel good slapstick entertainer, that makes you forget all your worries. Have fun!
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