Trance is a 2020 Indian Malayalam-language drama film directed and produced by Anwar Rasheed and written by Vincent Vadakkan. It features Fahadh Faasil in the lead role, while Nazriya Nazim, Soubin Shahir, Vinayakan, Chemban Vinod Jose, Dileesh Pothan and Gautham Menon plays supporting roles. Amal Neerad was the cinematographer and newcomer Jackson Vijayan composed the film's songs, background score was by Vijayan and Sushin Shyam.[1] The plot follows the life events of motivational speaker Viju Prasad.
Filming began in July 2017 and was completed in September 2019. The film was released in Kerala on 20 February 2020
Despondent motivational trainer Viju Prasad (Fahadh Faasil) is hired by a corporate duo to become a pastor and a miracle-worker of sorts. However, his stunt on live TV puts their entire operation under the scanner. The story then follows Viju/Joshua Carlton as he encounters and deals with his shifting perception of vividly animated characters like Esther (Nazriya Nazim) and Thomas (Vinayakan) as he tries to fix a rapidly coagulating mess of events and redeem his new identity.
Cast
Fahadh Faasil as Viju Prasad / Pastor Joshua Carlton
Nazriya Nazim as Esther Lopez
Gautham Menon as Solomon
Soubin Shahir as Mathaai
Vinayakan as Thomaskutty
Chemban Vinod Jose as Isaac
Dileesh Pothan as Avarachan
Sreenath Bhasi as Kunjan
Jinu Joseph as Doctor
Srinda Arhaan
Aswathi Menon as Kavitha
Arjun Ashokan as Paul
Joju George as News Reader (Cameo)
Dharmajan Bolgatty
Arushi Mudgal
Unnimaya Prasad
Arjun Ratan (Cameo)
Anu K Aniyan (Cameo)
Jeevan Stephan as News Reader (Cameo)
Production
Development
In a March 2016 interview, Fahadh Faasil revealed that he would be acting in Anwar Rasheed's next directorial and its subject is fresh that has never been attempted in Malayalam cinema.[3][4] Trance was officially announced with a title poster in June 2017.[5] The film was produced by Rasheed himself. The film marks the debut of Vincent Vadakkan as screenwriter. Rasheed was earlier supposed to direct a short in 5 Sundarikal (2013) based on the screenplay by Vadakkan. But it did not work out as he did not got the right cast. Later, Vadakkan narrated the story of Trance, but then he was not ready to produce the film because of its high production cost. Rasheed had Fahadh in mind for the lead role then itself. Later, Fahadh happened to hear the story from Vadakkan and insisted Rasheed to reconsider the project. By then, the storyline had changed and bankability of Fahadh had also grown and Rasheed was confident in producing the film.[6]
Filming
Filming began in July 2017.[7] A week-long first schedule of filming was completed in December 2017 in Mumbai.[8] For the first time in Malayalam cinema, Bolt High Speed Cinebot cameras were used to shoot some scenes in the film.[9] The film is shot with sync sound. The film was shot mainly in coastal Kanyakumari, across various locations in India and Dubai, and the climax was shot in Amsterdam. In July 2019, it as reported that Trance is expected to cost close to ₹20 crore when it completes production.[10] Amal Neerad was the cinematographer and Resul Pookutty was the film's sound designer.[11][12] Filming was completed on 1 September 2019
Release
Its release was postponed multiple times. The film was initially scheduled to be released on 22 March 2019.[14] Then there were plans to release the film during Eid al-Fitr (June) but was later shifted to Onam (September) due to pending visual effects work.[10] Release date was again scheduled for 20 December 2019 before postponing to February 2020 due to delay in post-production work.[15] Then it was scheduled to 14 February 2020 on Valentine's Day.[2] But the regional Central Board of Film Certification in Thiruvananthapuram referred the film to a revising committee in Mumbai since Rasheed was not willing to cut a 8-minute long sequence that could hurt religious sentiments.[16] The film was released in Kerala on 20 February 2020.[17] On 15 February 2020, the film was leaked on the website Tamil Rockers a week ahead of its release.[18]
Critical reception
Goutham V. S. of The Indian Express rated 3.5 in 5 and said "The abstract style of filmmaking, and the narrative structure that visualises the complex layers of the protagonist’s psyche is bound to make Trance a trendsetter in the Malayalam film industry ... Fahadh steals the limelight by portraying a character that is hysteric and disturbing at the same time". He also praised the "vivid visualisation, colour tones and the brilliant use of sounds" and cinematography and background score.[19] Critic from Sify also rated 3.5 in 5, describing the film "bold and thrilling", writing "Trance is a genuine and brave attempt that is gripping from start to finish ... Anwar has packaged the movie deliciously, adding lots of emotions, in an honest way. With top notch visuals, music and sound the viewer is in for a grand experience ... But in a way, this film belongs to Fahadh Faasil, who is absolutely brilliant".[20] Prem Udayabhanu from Malayala Manorama gave 3.5 in 5, stating that "it is psychedelic and vibrant, flamboyant and gripping ... Trance is magical, hysterical and depressing and you need to transcend the mundane line of cinematic offerings to relish it". He praised the sound design, background score and cinematography.[21]
Rating 3.5 out of 5, Sajin Shrijith of The New Indian Express said: "If you are into films with a slightly eccentric touch, you may find yourself overwhelmed by the overall audio-visual experience ... Anwar Rasheed, cinematographer Amal Neerad, editor Praveen Prabhakar, and composers Sushin Shyam-Jackson Vijayan keep us hooked by delivering a film that feels part-dream, part-nightmare. However, post-interval, you begin to sense Trance losing some of the potency established in the first half".[22] Cris from The News Minute also gave 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote that "Fahadh delivers a great performance ... Anwar's filmmaking keeps you engaged the entire first half during which a captivating story begins to unfold. The last half does not keep up to the first, scenes that you enjoyed earlier becoming stretched, almost like you took a pill yourself and everything seems to take too long. But it doesn't let you down, with some excellent performances coming from a very promising cast".[23]
Sanjith Sidhardhan of The Times of India awarded 3.5 out of 5 stars and stated: "Fahadh as a subdued Viju and the flamboyant Joshua is the maniacal energy that drives the film ... Director Anwar gets the first half absolutely right in its pacing and content. However, the second half of the script, by Vincent Vadakkan, loses steam with the plot then almost reflecting Joshua's mindset in those scenes. The makers seem to have chosen style over substance in the latter half". He praised the cinematography and background score.[24] Rating 2.5 in 5, Nirmal Jovial from The Week wrote that "Trance is definitely a bold attempt for its theme, as far as Malayalam cinema is concerned. But it fails to do justice to the theme it explores with its weak script that becomes so cluttered and confused towards the third act", but praised the cinematography.
Filming began in July 2017 and was completed in September 2019. The film was released in Kerala on 20 February 2020
Despondent motivational trainer Viju Prasad (Fahadh Faasil) is hired by a corporate duo to become a pastor and a miracle-worker of sorts. However, his stunt on live TV puts their entire operation under the scanner. The story then follows Viju/Joshua Carlton as he encounters and deals with his shifting perception of vividly animated characters like Esther (Nazriya Nazim) and Thomas (Vinayakan) as he tries to fix a rapidly coagulating mess of events and redeem his new identity.
Cast
Fahadh Faasil as Viju Prasad / Pastor Joshua Carlton
Nazriya Nazim as Esther Lopez
Gautham Menon as Solomon
Soubin Shahir as Mathaai
Vinayakan as Thomaskutty
Chemban Vinod Jose as Isaac
Dileesh Pothan as Avarachan
Sreenath Bhasi as Kunjan
Jinu Joseph as Doctor
Srinda Arhaan
Aswathi Menon as Kavitha
Arjun Ashokan as Paul
Joju George as News Reader (Cameo)
Dharmajan Bolgatty
Arushi Mudgal
Unnimaya Prasad
Arjun Ratan (Cameo)
Anu K Aniyan (Cameo)
Jeevan Stephan as News Reader (Cameo)
Production
Development
In a March 2016 interview, Fahadh Faasil revealed that he would be acting in Anwar Rasheed's next directorial and its subject is fresh that has never been attempted in Malayalam cinema.[3][4] Trance was officially announced with a title poster in June 2017.[5] The film was produced by Rasheed himself. The film marks the debut of Vincent Vadakkan as screenwriter. Rasheed was earlier supposed to direct a short in 5 Sundarikal (2013) based on the screenplay by Vadakkan. But it did not work out as he did not got the right cast. Later, Vadakkan narrated the story of Trance, but then he was not ready to produce the film because of its high production cost. Rasheed had Fahadh in mind for the lead role then itself. Later, Fahadh happened to hear the story from Vadakkan and insisted Rasheed to reconsider the project. By then, the storyline had changed and bankability of Fahadh had also grown and Rasheed was confident in producing the film.[6]
Filming
Filming began in July 2017.[7] A week-long first schedule of filming was completed in December 2017 in Mumbai.[8] For the first time in Malayalam cinema, Bolt High Speed Cinebot cameras were used to shoot some scenes in the film.[9] The film is shot with sync sound. The film was shot mainly in coastal Kanyakumari, across various locations in India and Dubai, and the climax was shot in Amsterdam. In July 2019, it as reported that Trance is expected to cost close to ₹20 crore when it completes production.[10] Amal Neerad was the cinematographer and Resul Pookutty was the film's sound designer.[11][12] Filming was completed on 1 September 2019
Release
Its release was postponed multiple times. The film was initially scheduled to be released on 22 March 2019.[14] Then there were plans to release the film during Eid al-Fitr (June) but was later shifted to Onam (September) due to pending visual effects work.[10] Release date was again scheduled for 20 December 2019 before postponing to February 2020 due to delay in post-production work.[15] Then it was scheduled to 14 February 2020 on Valentine's Day.[2] But the regional Central Board of Film Certification in Thiruvananthapuram referred the film to a revising committee in Mumbai since Rasheed was not willing to cut a 8-minute long sequence that could hurt religious sentiments.[16] The film was released in Kerala on 20 February 2020.[17] On 15 February 2020, the film was leaked on the website Tamil Rockers a week ahead of its release.[18]
Critical reception
Goutham V. S. of The Indian Express rated 3.5 in 5 and said "The abstract style of filmmaking, and the narrative structure that visualises the complex layers of the protagonist’s psyche is bound to make Trance a trendsetter in the Malayalam film industry ... Fahadh steals the limelight by portraying a character that is hysteric and disturbing at the same time". He also praised the "vivid visualisation, colour tones and the brilliant use of sounds" and cinematography and background score.[19] Critic from Sify also rated 3.5 in 5, describing the film "bold and thrilling", writing "Trance is a genuine and brave attempt that is gripping from start to finish ... Anwar has packaged the movie deliciously, adding lots of emotions, in an honest way. With top notch visuals, music and sound the viewer is in for a grand experience ... But in a way, this film belongs to Fahadh Faasil, who is absolutely brilliant".[20] Prem Udayabhanu from Malayala Manorama gave 3.5 in 5, stating that "it is psychedelic and vibrant, flamboyant and gripping ... Trance is magical, hysterical and depressing and you need to transcend the mundane line of cinematic offerings to relish it". He praised the sound design, background score and cinematography.[21]
Rating 3.5 out of 5, Sajin Shrijith of The New Indian Express said: "If you are into films with a slightly eccentric touch, you may find yourself overwhelmed by the overall audio-visual experience ... Anwar Rasheed, cinematographer Amal Neerad, editor Praveen Prabhakar, and composers Sushin Shyam-Jackson Vijayan keep us hooked by delivering a film that feels part-dream, part-nightmare. However, post-interval, you begin to sense Trance losing some of the potency established in the first half".[22] Cris from The News Minute also gave 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote that "Fahadh delivers a great performance ... Anwar's filmmaking keeps you engaged the entire first half during which a captivating story begins to unfold. The last half does not keep up to the first, scenes that you enjoyed earlier becoming stretched, almost like you took a pill yourself and everything seems to take too long. But it doesn't let you down, with some excellent performances coming from a very promising cast".[23]
Sanjith Sidhardhan of The Times of India awarded 3.5 out of 5 stars and stated: "Fahadh as a subdued Viju and the flamboyant Joshua is the maniacal energy that drives the film ... Director Anwar gets the first half absolutely right in its pacing and content. However, the second half of the script, by Vincent Vadakkan, loses steam with the plot then almost reflecting Joshua's mindset in those scenes. The makers seem to have chosen style over substance in the latter half". He praised the cinematography and background score.[24] Rating 2.5 in 5, Nirmal Jovial from The Week wrote that "Trance is definitely a bold attempt for its theme, as far as Malayalam cinema is concerned. But it fails to do justice to the theme it explores with its weak script that becomes so cluttered and confused towards the third act", but praised the cinematography.
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