Identity Movie Review: Tovino Thomas-Trisha thriller banks on multiple disorders to leave the audience in despair

Cast: Tovino Thomas, Trisha Krishnan, Vinay Rai, Shammi Tilakan and Mandira Bedi

Rating: 2/5 stars

Talented Malayalam actor Tovino Thomas impresses as a multitasking hero in dubbed movie 'Identity' but the convoluted story lacks enough meat and almost reads like a medical journal. Hero has a disturbed childhood, suffers from a psychological disorder, and demands perfection in every aspect. Trisha impresses in a few moments due to her ill-conceived role as a witness. She also suffers from a peculiar disorder, face blindness, where she can’t remember a person by his face instantly, but only after a few seconds. With all these complications, the screenplay loses its sheen and the second half is more convenient and heroic, unlike a regular Malayalam film. A Karnataka police officer (Vinay Rai), arrives in Kerala with a witness (Trisha) and stays in the next flat to Tovino Thomas who lives with his family. When Tovino does a better sketch of a cycle thief, Ajay requests him to help them find a killer from the descriptions given by witness Trisha but she can’t get the features of the killer right and the drawing goes wrong. It is learned that Trisha has facial blindness and she can’t remember a face seen from a distance.

The film initially covers Tovino's childhood. Later, a girl finds a mobile phone in the women’s changing room of a boutique and is shocked that the mobile is in recording mode. When they create a ruckus, the shop owner chases a guy. Later, it is known that the shop owner is the rogue who collects information about the girls he recorded on the phone and then blackmails and rapes them. One day, his den is burnt down by a man, while Trisha watches the killer from a distance. When she complains, Trisha is taken under the ‘witness’ protection program and Ajay is appointed to protect her and catch the culprit with her support. Will Tovino Thomas and Ajay be able to nab the killer or there is another twist in the story?

Tovino Thomas comes up with a restrained performance and has a strong motive to mislead the investigation, while Trisha plays a journalist who wants to expose the brain behind the rape of girls and cyber fraudsters who threaten to put their nude videos online. While Ajay Rai plays a cop with grey shades and has his moments, Mandira Bedi dons a dark role.

Directors Akhil Paul and Ahas Khan pick a fairly interesting plot and uncomplicated but their intention to keep the audience guessing truly goes for a toss. Once the motives of the principal characters are fairly established it has a good chance to keep the audience engaged, but the director takes the ‘cinematic’ route and mars the show. Some kind of disorders for the main characters and their detailed explanations, take the sting off his investigative thriller.