Entirely about Malayalam Movies

When I first watched it, I was, of course, riding on the adrenaline high of having finally watched it, so I immediately agreed that this was a great third part. But, after a few days, I started thinking, 'What was really so shocking?' The twist wasn’t as grand. Maybe dealing with the emotional impact? Sure, but it isn’t very believable or satisfying.

And even after re-watching on OTT, I continued with the same belief that the following is true: NAH. This was HORRIBLE. And that’s when my brain decided to analyse everything that went wrong with Drishyam 3: The Past Never Stays Silent (more like it should’ve stayed quiet.) 

Note: This is not to insult any of the actors who worked on this film. This is just to point out how weak and flimsy the third part of a well-known franchise has become. If you disagree, you need not read forward. Cinema is a place for discussion, not abuse.

I FINALLY WATCHED THE MOVIE, AND NEEDLESS TO SAY, yeah, no, this was not it. This was clearly made as a continuation to D4 (which, btw, I DID NOT EXPECT TO AGREE WITH AT FIRST, AND I STILL DON'T). The character consistency is completely butchered, and many things do not make sense as to what was established in the past two films. 

Let me list it:

Georgekutty harming Anju? When it is shown as "See how dangerous he can be?" And how does it show that he is afraid of himself more? The foundational thesis of the entire Drishyam saga is built on one unshakeable pillar: Georgekutty will do absolutely anything to protect his family from harm. His brilliance does not come from malice or a love for the game; it comes from a desperate, primal instinct to shield his daughters from a system that would crush them. 

Having Georgekutty actively assault his own traumatised daughter (even as a hyper-convoluted "strategy" to misdirect the police) destroys the complete idea of his justification. Georgekutty’s genius lies in manipulating external variables (if too technical, it means that Georgekutty never manipulates anything inside his family) (clocks, bus tickets, cable TV logs, forgotten skeletons, and systemic loopholes).

The moment he turns his "tactical" violence inward against the very person he spent a decade protecting, he stops being a protective father and becomes a psychopath. That is not the character we see in the first two films. Anju is already established as suffering from severe PTSD and epilepsy due to the original trauma. For Georgekutty to intentionally trigger or compound that trauma via physical staging? DRISHYAM 2 GK WOULD BE HORRIFIED.

So, many things are suddenly so confusing and incomplete here! Lalettan (Mohanlal)'s performance is the only thing I'll feel commendable…ish. The character consistency for Georgekutty is completely butchered, and as much as they'd like to follow D1 and D2, D3 definitely feels way more different from 1 and 2. (I mean, Jeethu Joseph did say so, but like, DAMN, BRO). 

After some scenes, I genuinely did not believe that I was watching Drishyam at all. It felt completely different! (Do not get me started on the Kalyan Jewellers ad. DO NOT. I KNOW IT IS IN THODUPUZHA NOW.) 

IRONICALLY, the only consistent guy was Sahadevan because whatever he does is something we're sure he would do anyway. One problem is that his eyes are COMICALLY red in every scene, and apparently it was to make him "more intimidating"?

Fact: Sahadevan was more terrifying in Drishyam 1, because he was a constable with a vendetta against Georgekutty, than in Drishyam 3, as this is a drunken guy who smokes in every scene we see him.

Yet the redness in his eyes is blamed due to his drinking?? when in every scene we see him, he is smoking (honestly, if Sahadevan dies offscreen due to a lung disease, I won't be surprised) I feel even Drishyam 1 Sahadevan would laugh at this guy.

and Geetha and Prabhakar.

DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED.

LISTEN, IF GEETHA OR PRABHAKAR WERE NOT THERE IN DRISHYAM 3 AND THERE WAS A VALID REASON FOR IT, I would've accepted it. BUT THEY ARE HERE. AGAIN. (Georgekutty literally gave you the remains; leave this guy alone, I beg you.) And Geetha Prabhakar, one of the most effective, powerful and sophisticated female antagonists in this franchise, is reduced to a catatonic, depressed lady in a MASSAGE CHAIR?!

I'M NOT KIDDING. A MASSAGE CHAIR.

And Prabhakar says that he was doing all of the shittier parts of the plan for Geetha. SHE MOVED THE GOALPOST, MY GUY. SHE SAYS SHE WANTS ANJU (which is Geetha) TO GET THERAPY, COUPLES' THERAPY. PUH-LEASE.

Prabhakar's character regression is insane here, considering he was the only emotionally intelligent guy in 1 AND 2, AND NOW HE'S A CARTOONISH VILLAIN WHO DECIDES TO HIRE SAHADEVAN OF ALL PEOPLE AND BUY OFF A GUY NAMED AVIRA (wtf is that name?!) AND TAMPER WITH A GIRL'S FILE TO WEAPONISE HER PTSD AGAINST HER TO MAKE IT SEEM THAT SHE HAD A SEXUAL AVERSION SYNDROME (which, btw, does not make people violent; it makes people frigid because it comes from near-attempted sexual trauma or abuse). WHICH, OH WAIT, YOUR DEAD SON'S TRIED ON ANJU AND ANU, SO THAT SOMETHING-SOMETHING WOULD PROVE THAT SHE HAD ACTUALLY KILLED VARUN AND THAT IT WASN'T SELF-DEFENCE, AND WHEN I TELL YOU I WAS OUTRAGED, IT IS A SHEER UNDERSTATEMENT.

Prabhakar tried cosplaying his wife (surprisingly for him, the only person to ALMOST catch GK twice) and Georgekutty and failed miserably, delivering cringe-ass dialogues like "If we win, you can enjoy the fruit, Bastin". WHAT FRUIT? NO, SERIOUSLY.

Also this dialogue:

"Bastin, I know Sahadevan more than you do." NO, YOU DON'T. STOP ACTING LIKE A HYPOCRITE. YOU'RE NOT WIRED FOR IT.

You only know Sahadevan by proxy due to Geetha's investigation. And those 2 yrs of your "plan".

PRABHAKAR, YOU DIDN'T EVEN CONSULT YOUR WIFE.

YOU LEFT HER CATATONIC IN AMERICA, AND YOU EXPECT HER TO BE HAPPY WITH WHAT YOU DID?!

Georgekutty surrenders on his own terms, and at this point, if he even kills Prabhakar, I won't have a problem. HE HAS BEEN SAYING IT SINCE D1! LEAVE HIS FAMILY ALONE! BUT NO, THESE IDIOTS THINK THEY WILL PROPERLY CATCH HIM THIS TIME!

I did not think I was going to agree with Thomas Bastin for this one, but damn Thomas was so right yet so dumb. Why does Thomas Bastin (an IGP), by the way, repeatedly put himself in situations where he should've gone, "Nope, this is a clear case of my reputation in pieces"? Absolutely not. "HE SOMEHOW AGREES????

THE BIGGEST PROBLEM WITH THE "PLAN" OF PRABHAKAR IS THAT IT HAS SEVEN MOVING PARTS ON WOBBLING SUPPORT, AND IT'S UNETHICAL AND WORSE THAN D2, AND IT DOESN'T HAVE ANY GUARANTEE TO WORK!

Also, the biggest issue here is a lack of a proper antagonist. Sometimes it feels like it's Sahadevan (who, by the way, was NOT NEEDED AND WAS WAY MORE INTIMIDATING IN DRISHYAM 1), and sometimes it's Prabhakar (who was NOT AT ALL CONVINCING AND NARRATIVELY IT MADE ZERO SENSE!). Because he was not wired that way!!! The thing here is nobody else has actually written to reach Georgekutty's genius OTHER THAN GEETHA PRABHAKAR HERSELF.

Geetha Prabhakar conveniently developing depression also doesn't make sense at all! Now, I'm not someone who would comment on depression or grief, since I'm someone who has not gone through both of them. But Geetha was ALSO GRIEVING IN DRISHYAM 2! HER MAIN thing is action. She is hyper-reactive by nature; it makes no sense for her to suddenly crumble into passivity. That is not her, and it's an insult to the character from the past two movies.

It's like a purposeful sidelining. Prabhakar Sir, if you're scared of losing your wife, you stay with her. You don't do…this.

GEETHA WAS THE ONE WHO REACHED GEORGEKUTTY'S LEVEL OF GENIUS, NOT PRABHAKAR OR EVEN BASTIN. SHE WAS MORE COMPETENT THAN BOTH IN D1 ITSELF.

(Ok, maybe I can stop the glazing now.)

There were already discrepancies in Georgekutty's character from the start!

1) You're telling me, after Drishyam 2, when it was revealed that the house was bugged, Georgekutty STILL CHOSE TO STAY IN THE HOUSE AND EVEN RENOVATE IT? Georgekutty, a man of crystal-clear planning and forward-thinking, didn't think, What if the house is still bugged?

2) "At home, Georgekutty and Rani search for a suitable marriage proposal for their daughter Anju through the marriage broker Mathayi. However, each promising alliance is repeatedly disrupted by anonymous interference. Georgekutty later traces the calls with assistance from retired police officer Suresh Babu and identifies the callers as Rajan and his wife Shanthi. Rajan, previously suspended for assisting Georgekutty, had suffered severe personal and financial consequences, including his daughter’s educational disruption and a suicide attempt that left her unable to speak. Feeling abandoned after Georgekutty failed to recognise his situation, Rajan develops resentment toward him. "

And that is where you lost me. You think Georgekutty wouldn't IMMEDIATELY MAKE A BACKGROUND CHECK OF THE PEOPLE HE MEETS OR WHO ARE IN HIS CLOSE CIRCLE?! ABSOLUTELY NOT. I'm 100% sure Georgekutty would know the consequences of such a risky mission and actively try to assist people, not make more enemies. I know Georgekutty is but a human; naturally I understand, but that is not how his character is written. I even calculated his character to be 52 in the first movie itself! Either Georgekutty should've checked Rajan's situation or RANI. RANI SHOULD'VE POINTED IT OUT, PEOPLE!

3) Literally, the Avira subplot could've been easily solved if anyone loyal to Georgekutty did a basic background check. Literally, one was okay. Georgekutty didn't have to, even. ANU COULD'VE! She's going to study cybersecurity at the University of Singapore anyway. 

4) Instead of getting Anju married, send her and Anu abroad! Put the university subplot early here. Post Drishyam 2, this should've been put into motion, and Prabhakar's plan would've failed right there. If Anju and Anu George are citizens of Canada, they don't have to come back since India doesn't have dual citizenship anyway.

5) In Drishyam 1, when Geetha Prabhakar enquires about Georgekutty, SI Suresh Babu says this: "Despite being a fourth-grade dropout, he has learnt Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi and even English fluently by watching cinema." But in Drishyam 3, when it comes to talking with an international producer regarding the offer for his movie, he seems to be struggling to even speak in English. HEH?! [In hindsight: I should've differentiated between fluency, and knowing the language, but you get the point.]