Debutant director AM Sidhique’s LLB, which strangely stands for Life Line of Bachelors, starts off in a college setting. In the opening scene, we see election results getting announced and the winners breaking into a typical campus dance number. One might think these portions have some significance in the narrative, but no, they are just a means to introduce us to the campus and the vibrant life there. How dated does that sound? This film is in fact an assortment of such age-old ideas, both in writing and direction.
LLB initially begins like a youthful entertainer centered around three college students, Sibi, Salman and Sanju. Sibi (Sreenath Bhasi) and Salman (Vishak Nair) are two Kasaragod natives who reach Kozhikode to study law. We follow their carefree lives and attempt to find a new place to move in before they are joined by Sanju (Aswath Lal), another newcomer in their course. The first half is cliché-ridden with a song almost every 15 minutes to capture the ‘fun’ student days. Meanwhile, Sibi also has a love-at-first-sight moment, which blossoms into a romantic relationship at the blink of an eye.
LLB is directed by AM Sidhique, a cop in real life. Naturally, it’s just a matter of time before we get to the crime part. Just a few minutes into the second half itself we realise that LLB is essentially a crime story that masquerades as a campus entertainer. Truth be told, the film does have a decent plot but is marred by a bland, predictable screenplay and how it is executed. The shoddy performances don’t help it either, turning it into a tiring watch.
Sreenath Bhasi is an excellent actor, who has proven his mettle in the past. But one can clearly see that he was only half interested in doing this film. Except during the climax when he breaks down, there is a clear lack of earnesty in his performance as he largely resorts to sleepwalking through the role. It is hard to believe that this is the same actor who was brilliant in films like Trance, Kumbalangi Nights and Virus. Equally mediocre in LLB is Vishak Nair, who basically repeats his Romeo act from Anandam and Chunkzz. It is actually Aswath Lal, noted for his role in Hridayam, who gets the meatiest part in the film, and he grabs the opportunity with both hands. Unlike the others, there is a sincerity in his performance and showcases his true potential.
The makers of LLB seem to have been too benevolent with the casting as several first-time actors are given a chance, but to make things worse, almost all of them are terribly amateur. It’s also funny that most actors who are supposed to play college-going students look way too old. It’s hard to make out if they are really students or their guardians. Perhaps it was done deliberately to take a jibe at how some troublemakers still roam around the college even after their courses are over. If you think the bad performances are over, wait till Anoop Menon makes an entry towards the film’s end.
LLB runs for just around 122 minutes, but it takes forever to reach its conclusion. As a final act of salvage, the film dishes out a poignant ending by killing one of the main leads to donate his organs, but by then, we are so emotionally detached that none of it hardly makes any difference.
Film: LLB: Life Line of Bachelors
Cast: Sreenath Bhasi, Vishak Nair, Aswath Lal
Director: AM Sidhique
Rating: 1.5/5