"Cycle" is scriptwriter James Albert's second film. He shot
to fame with his first film "Classmates". The film is directed
by Johny Antony, who has made slapstick comedies "CID Moosa",
"Thuruppu Gulan" and "Inspector Garud".
The film is distinct as far as the oeuvre of Antony is concerned. "Cycle"
is an intriguing and suspenseful film laced with humour and youthful
energy.
"Cycle" is also important for its casting as it marks the
debut of Vineeth Sreenivasan, son of veteran actor Sreenivasan. Vineeth
has already established himself as a playback singer.
The film's story may appear very old, but it is told in such a way
that it connects with Gen Next. Credit should go to Albert, who has
taken a tale from the duo Siddique-Lal era of mimicry and placed it
in the current scenario.
This is a rarity considering that filmmakers still seek to emulate
the 1980s, as if the key to success is just a replication of the decade-old
formulas.
The tale is about two friends, Roy (Vineeth) and Sanju, played by Vinu
Mohan of "Naivedhyam" fame, struggling to make both ends meet
with their low salaries, working respectively as a cashier in a private
finance company and as a salesman in an electronics goods shop.
Roy is a fun guy who does not mind using crooked ways to achieve his
ends. Sanju is quite the opposite. He is a brooding person with a chip
on his shoulder. He is bitter at how life has treated him.
The story has all the vital ingredients like romance, family sentiments,
suspense and action. The female leads, Bhama and Sandhya, do their parts
well, though their characters could have been etched out more sharply.
Vineeth does his best to be like his father. His mannerism and dialogue
delivery are the same as his father's. Vinu Mohan handles a sober role
deftly.
The music by Mejo Joseph, who was first noticed in "Notebook",
is entertaining if not enchanting.
It is surprising that Antony can handle such stuff after being tagged
as a slapstick comedy maker, but credit should go to scriptwriter Albert
who delivered a sound script.
