While the general movie-going public are finally coming around to appreciate good cinema, debutante Sajid Yahiya arrives with his big balloon filled with cringe-worthy comedy and swollen action.
Dawood Ibrahim (Jayasurya) is a wannabe policeman trying to make his mark in the world of Kerala police. However, his first posting in a haphazard village situated near the Kerala-Karnataka border shatters all his hopes. Disappointed at his jurisdiction's sorry state, where the highest crime ever committed is the theft of ripe banana clusters, Dawood tries to pull some strings (and add few of his own) to make the village and his police station a better place both for the inhabitants' well-being and to garner some "serious cases" which he can crack and achieve a quick transfer. Brawny he might be, Dawood's master plan backfires as a trio of thieves whom he had ordered to rob the village's primary bank flee with the money, putting him in a pickle.
The film starts with a decent epilogue and enough faint humor to attract an unsuspecting audience. But, as the story moves forward or at least pretends to, the flaws begin to pop up. Not as glaring plot holes or boring sequences, but as colorful, high-octane montages featuring Dawood and his reveries, coupled with loud music which is repeated every five minutes. It would have been easy to follow and perceive had these episodes of highfalutin claptrap been part of the story, but they aren't, and an average viewer soon succumbs to the injuries caused by them. In this regard, the first half is mildly enjoyable as the complexity and idiotic elements are saved for the second. With a bunch of pretentious characters, the film gasps for breath throughout the final 45 minutes and finishes last in this race of one. And by the time, even the audience wants to powder their nose.
The problem is in the execution, which derives most of its characteristics from gaudy and logic-defying non-Malayali South Indian potboilers and 2015's biggest flop, Liju Jose Pallissery's "Double Barrel". The villain is not sufficiently vindictive, and gives in to the hero's flashy entrance and senseless dialogues. Lack of realism and forethought, and abundance of uncontrolled imagination is clear in every single sequence of the film, which counts to around 200, but is originally only 70 due to the trying repetitions. Only Jayasurya manages to keep his calm, but his poorly-written character plays with the film, and exhausts all hope of salvation. It is best to forget that such a film was made, for there is the fear of becoming infected with mania.
A few jokes here and there, mainly delivered by Sunil Sukhada and other less-important players is all there is for a rational viewer. The makers should understand that people nowadays are more objective in their approach at selecting cinema that they want to watch, and no one derives entertainment from a climax showing a Kerala cop getting transferred to another country due to his conveniently outstanding last bout.
BOTTOM LINE: Sajid Yahiya's "IDI" is a shrieking flutter of a genetically modified bird who wants to fly but is unable, and eventually meets its maker. Borrow the DVD from your friend who is a Jayasurya fan.
Can be watched with a typical Indian family? YES
