« Back to article

Print this article

Review: Romans is just an average comic caper

Paresh C Palicha says Romans is a senseless comedy worth watching for Biju Menon and Kunchacko Boban.

It is said that the luck of a film star is fickle; it can change any Friday depending on the fate of his new release at the box-office. So, he has to make hay while the sun is shining as they say. Who better to know this than Biju Menon? He is having a good run these days and his pairing with Kunchacko Boban has been doing well recently.

Director Boban Samuel tries to reap the rewards of this in his new venture Romans, a low-brow comedy that doesn't require the viewer to think or use his brain.

Written by Y V Rajesh Romans can best be described as a gag-a-thon where the audience is made to chuckle or laugh every few moments without really bothering about the story (for nearly three hours at that).

The thin thread that holds this film together is that the two leads are petty criminals who have escaped from police custody and have to act as priests of a long closed church in a hill station on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border.

The

village is filled with characters who are supposed to be humorous. The church is haunted and no priest has survived there for the past many years.

Kunchacko Boban as the hero has a back story justifying his turning to a life of crime. He even has a romance in the past that is complicating his life now. If you are curious about the significance of the title, it is because the two priests with powers to perform miracles have come directly from Rome so they are called Romans.

Biju Menon is the spine of this venture as a dim-witted pickpocket saying all the wrong things at the wrong time thereby inducing some mirth. The trouble is that he does this too often and viewers tend to get bored with the act. Kunchacko Boban gives a sober performance being the support for Biju Menon even though his character graph is very inconsistent. Lalu Alex in a weird get-up leads the supporting cast without anything worthwhile to do.

On the whole, Romans is just an average comic caper that does not make any sense if you want to take something back from the film.

Rediff Review: