MERCURY FILM REVIEW
Mercury Review - A Prabhudeva Silent Thriller That Makes You Scream Out Loud
Director: Karthik Subbaraj
Cast: Prabhudeva, Remya Nambeesan, Sananth Reddy
The Indian cinema has kept us entertained for a century now by bringing various genres before us. Be it comedy, romance, thriller, crime, mystery and even horror, we have had a taste of all. But one genre, which amazed us was the ‘silent genre’, which the filmmakers embarked upon with the movie ‘Raja Harishchandra’ in 1913Produced and directed by Dadasaheb Phalke Since talkie movies majorly rely upon the dialogues that keep the audiences entertained, silent movies had to work harder. With no dialogue, the silent movies had nothing to rely upon except for their strong storyline, visuals and music. These factors are exactly what director Karthik Subbaraja has used for ‘Mercury’, a silent thriller that will send chills down your spine. The story revolves around a group of five friends, maimed by mercury poisoning in the past, who go out to celebrate an occasion. All drunk during the joyride, they end up in an accident that changes their lives forever. The role of Prabhudeva is integral where he manages to thrill and scare the audiences with a sinister look.
Since this is a silent film, one would think that the filmmaker would not have had much to do with. But Subbaraja manages to use a strong weapon at his disposal, that is, the use of music and sound design. The sound design by Kunal Rajan and background score by Santosh Narayanan effectively make up for the lack of dialogues. The music is heavy and intriguing enough that it will keep you on the edge of your seat as well as brings complete justice to the thriller genre of the film. Apart from the brilliant use of the background music, cinematographer S. Tirru has made fantastic use of the lights by creating a toxic green hue in the factory scenes, which in itself speaks for the fact that the factory was behind the mercury poisoning in the surrounding areas.
Most of the film is structured as an intense cat and mouse chase that keeps the audiences glued to their seats. One is always awaiting what happens in the next scene, such are twists and thrills spread across in the narrative.
All in all, the filmmaker has done a commendable job by using these 108 minutes to create a thrilling plot for the audience. Kudos to Karthik Subbaraj for trying out this experiment in the silent genre.
Director: Karthik Subbaraj
Cast: Prabhudeva, Remya Nambeesan, Sananth Reddy
The Indian cinema has kept us entertained for a century now by bringing various genres before us. Be it comedy, romance, thriller, crime, mystery and even horror, we have had a taste of all. But one genre, which amazed us was the ‘silent genre’, which the filmmakers embarked upon with the movie ‘Raja Harishchandra’ in 1913Produced and directed by Dadasaheb Phalke Since talkie movies majorly rely upon the dialogues that keep the audiences entertained, silent movies had to work harder. With no dialogue, the silent movies had nothing to rely upon except for their strong storyline, visuals and music. These factors are exactly what director Karthik Subbaraja has used for ‘Mercury’, a silent thriller that will send chills down your spine. The story revolves around a group of five friends, maimed by mercury poisoning in the past, who go out to celebrate an occasion. All drunk during the joyride, they end up in an accident that changes their lives forever. The role of Prabhudeva is integral where he manages to thrill and scare the audiences with a sinister look.
Since this is a silent film, one would think that the filmmaker would not have had much to do with. But Subbaraja manages to use a strong weapon at his disposal, that is, the use of music and sound design. The sound design by Kunal Rajan and background score by Santosh Narayanan effectively make up for the lack of dialogues. The music is heavy and intriguing enough that it will keep you on the edge of your seat as well as brings complete justice to the thriller genre of the film. Apart from the brilliant use of the background music, cinematographer S. Tirru has made fantastic use of the lights by creating a toxic green hue in the factory scenes, which in itself speaks for the fact that the factory was behind the mercury poisoning in the surrounding areas.
Most of the film is structured as an intense cat and mouse chase that keeps the audiences glued to their seats. One is always awaiting what happens in the next scene, such are twists and thrills spread across in the narrative.
All in all, the filmmaker has done a commendable job by using these 108 minutes to create a thrilling plot for the audience. Kudos to Karthik Subbaraj for trying out this experiment in the silent genre.
Those interested in watching ‘Mercury’ can check it out on ZEE5 and immerse themselves in this silent movie.
So, have you seen the film? What did you think of it? Let me know your view on Mercury in the comments.
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