For those who have watched American comedy film The Hangover directed by Todd Phillips and are still in its hangover, Honeybee will give only a quick fix.
Seemingly inspired by the Hollywood flick, Honeybee directed by debutant Lal Jr, son of actor-director Lal, is all about booze, drugs, expletives and third rate jokes. Many recent Mollywood films are made of ‘liquor and blood’ and some argue that movies are reflection of society. True or not, some new age movies have been glorifying binge drinking and expletive dialogues and of course, raking in moolah too. Though bereft of a strong story line, Honeybee is a damn fun, provided you shed your commonsense before stepping into the theatre.
The wafer-thin plot revolves around some freaky youths in Fort Kochi, Sebastian or Seban (Asif Ali), Angel (Bhavana), Fernando (Baburaj), Abu (Sreenath Bhasi), Ambross(Balu) and his sister Sara(Archana Kavi) who are members of a local dance troupe. They eat, drink and merry together, but when the time comes for separation, as custom suggests, cupid strikes the protagonist who is flying high on spirit 24x7.
After discovering their love at an odd time, Angel and Seban elope with the help of their friends. And there begins the unending chasing sequences and the clichéd hunt for the missing bride by father Michael (Lal) and his ruthless brothers.
Some serious escapades and absurd laughter, all are on the run and finally, all is well that ends well. Love never fails at least on the silver screen.
The acrobatic chase and run of Asif Ali that begins with Traffic, continue in this film too. Being a typecast may not help him reach anywhere.
Bhavana is eye candy, though nothing much to do in terms of acting. Performances of Baburaj and new comedy revelation Sreenath Bhasi add the much-needed humour quotient to take the otherwise monotonous story to a new level. They come up with impressive one-liners when the time demands. Bhasi makes rather crony dialogues brilliant.
The exuberant moments of the film come from the silliest wits by Bhasi and Baburaj. Lal and Suresh Krishna (one of the brothers of Michael) perfectly fit into their roles. It’s an average music by Deepak Dev. This is not the first time Fort Kochi is used as a crucial backdrop of a film.
Lal Jr, though got much hype, fails to impress. He tries to reach out to his target audience- the youth, but has to go a long way to carve a niche for himself in the field.
His father is credited for unleashing the legacy of blunt comedy, but Lal Jr better should bank on better craft than mindless comic capers. Mind you, Honeybee’s hangover will not last long more than two hours.
The verdict: Old Honeybee in a new bottle.