BOTTOM LINE
Odd Penis Jokes Bring the Laughs
RATING
2.5/5
CENSOR
2 Hours
What Is the Film About?
Chaos ensues at a house when an elderly man dies with an erection. To ensure him a dignified death and avoid public embarrassment, both his sons Saami and Durai plan to make his final rites a low-key affair while concealing the news to their near and dear. Yet, the situation spirals out of control when curious, unexpected visitors gather and suspect something fishy in the household.
Performances
Vaibhav’s strengths – particularly his poker-faced, understated humour – turn out to be a major advantage with Perusu, where he is funny and still doesn’t go overboard in establishing the various dimensions of the character in unusual situations. The film’s unexpected takeaway is the performance by Vaibhav’s real-life brother Sunil Reddy, who holds his own with a strong screen presence.
Niharika NM, Chandini Tamilarasan and Nakkalites Dhanam share impressive on-screen camaraderie while tackling many edgy situations. The regulars – from Bala Saravanan to Munishkanth to Redin Kingsley, VTV Ganesh, and Swaminathan – rely on their familiar dialogue delivery and timing to deliver the goods. Karunakaran fares slightly better in comparison without trying too hard.
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Analysis
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The death of a pivotal character in a film always sets up a strong foundation for a story to expose the true intentions of the supposed well-wishers around him, even as they grieve and try to ensure him a dignified farewell. Perusu is essentially a funeral/dark comedy about a ‘touchy’ issue – the death of a man during an erection and a family’s vain effort to prevent a public nuisance.
Funeral comedies aren’t the easiest genres to pull off – one can’t afford to trivialise the sentimentality around the death and yet weave in scenarios that integrate humour into the story organically. Perusu could’ve been conveniently crass but achieves this delicate balance through smartly written situational comedy, where the core emotion isn’t diluted.
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The film begins with a sequence where a bunch of elderly men ‘cancel’ a youngster for misbehaving with women bathing near a lake. The latter is keen on settling scores with the oldie. As the old man returns home, the family is caught between grieving his death while being awkward about his ‘boner’ in an unusual situation. The one-liner premise lends itself to a decently engaging fare.
Writer and director Ilango Ram knows the limitations of his story, not making a messiah out of the dead man, while introducing flawed, oddball characters into his world gradually. The film also says a thing or two about the conservatism within the middle-class society, commenting on the hypocrisy between the ‘moral principles’ they swear by and the dubious lives they ultimately lead.
The sons of the elderly man, although well-intentioned, are as different as chalk and cheese. While Saami, a headmaster by profession, is the average middle-class man trying to shoulder family responsibilities, Durai is the more happy-go-lucky yet wayward son who’s close to his father. When the homebound tricks to control his father’s erection fail, they resort to external help.
The in-flow of characters becomes frequent over time – the nosy neighbour is in the know that all’s not well in the house. The sons head to a doctor next, take the help of a priest to ‘control’ matters, and request an auto driver to not let the ‘cat’ out of the bag. When hiding the death news seems next to impossible, the family employs stranger tactics, confronting a barrage of questions from visitors.
While the self-aware tone of the film works in its favour in the first hour, the narrative (while still being tolerable) loses its fizz considerably later, slipping into an obvious pattern. As the film progresses, the director teases you with the curiosity around the deceased man’s private life, innate desires and how the idea of a ‘cultured family’ probably limited him from being his true self.
The entry of an unexpected ‘woman’ in the final act (who supposedly was in an affair with him) seals the deal, helping the film gain its mojo after a brief lull. By the end, everyone in Perusu is committed to bidding the elderly man a fitting goodbye, regardless of the drama around his death. The film’s semi-realistic, semi-slapstick approach surprisingly yields convincing results.
Perusu is a cheeky take on the funeral comedy genre; it revels in its mischievous premise, which is executed with flair and backed by decent performances.
Music and Other Departments?
Composer KS Sundaramurthy leaves little to the imagination of the viewer with a straightforward yet workable background score while Arun Raj’s songs are likely to work better in the context of the film (than for standalone listening). Sathya Thilakam’s neat cinematography offers no scope for complaint, while a sharper second half could’ve done wonders for the film. The greed to extend every story into a two-hour outing limits its potential. However, for a film dealing with an uneasy territory and still delivering the goods, Perusu deserves praise.
Highlights?
Unusually hilarious premise
Solid performances
Quirky characterisation
Drawbacks?
Screenplay loses track in the second hour
Feels stretched at times
Did I Enjoy It?
Yes
Will You Recommend It?
If you don’t mind funeral comedies with an ‘adult’ flavour
Perusu Netflix Movie Review by M9
