Psycho
Ratings: 3.5/5
Duration: 02 Hrs 14 Mins
Director: Mysskin
Genre: Psychological. Thriller
Release Date: 24th January 2020 (India)
Star Cast: Udhayanidhi Stalin, Aditi Rao Hydari, Nithya Menen, Rajkumar
Plot: Psycho follows the story of a psychopath serial killer Anguli (Rajkumar) who kills only women. Dahini (Aditi Rao Hydari), a leading radio jockey, gets kidnapped by this serial killer. But as he senses calmness on her face, it unsettles him. Moreover, she also issues him a challenge saying that visually challenged Gautham (Udhayanidhi Stalin) who is in love with her, tracks her down and rescues her.
Meanwhile, Gautham with the help of former IPS officer Kamala Das (Nithya Menen) tries to crack the case. Will Gautham rescue Dahini by nabbing the psychopath despite his shortcomings forms the crux of the story.
Review: Psycho, the psychological thriller is full of twists, turns, suspense and is every bit dark and disturbing. In Mysskin’s pre-release interviews, he has said that after coming across the redemptive story of Angulimala in Buddhism, he got inspired to make Psycho. He shows the cruelty of Anguli’s acts with the splatter of blood, headless corpse displayed in public, and the pain of the victims’ families. And then, he makes the audience visualize and find it in themselves to empathize with the killer. From a conventional serial killer film, this is where Psycho differs.
Mysskin relayed more on visuals than dialogues to convey his story and debutant cameraman Tanveer Mir does a good job in it. The jump scares work extremely well because of the violence and the disturbing visuals, hence categorized under the most violent film.
Additionally, Ilayaraja’s music and his use of silence is a major highlight and has added to the mood of the film.
When it comes to performances, debutant Rajkumar brilliantly played Angulimaali, his presence on the screen would instantly send chills down the spine. Aditi Rao Hydari as the soft-spoken RJ is aptly cast as she has expressed her vulnerability with her helpless expression flawlessly. Nithya Menen, as the rude ex-cop plays her part well; her dialogue delivery and expressions are spot-on too. Whereas, Udhayanidhi Stalin’s character Gautham is quite underwritten yet decent in a challenging role with visual impairment. The only issue was the slightly underdeveloped romance between Udhayanidhi and Aditi.
Mysskin calls this film as a tribute to Alfred Hitchcock, and he justifies it. The violence is intense, but necessary hence, Psycho is not advisable to watch for someone who is averse to blood or violence in general. Overall, Psycho is a compelling and suspenseful film that would give the audience a fantastic cinematic experience.
