Director: Mahesh Narayanan
Cast: Fahadh Faasil, Roshan Mathew, Darshana Rajendran
Language: Malayalam
Spoilers ahead.
There comes a scene in C U Soon that shows the true nature of one’s online life vs real life. And what better way to show it than on all forms of screens – from mobile phones to computers to CCTV cameras. A software engineer hacks into a young woman’s Facebook page to get a sense of what she is up to and reality hits him. The reality on her Facebook page is different from the one he sees in her personal messages. The girl is abused and assaulted, and the proof is in front of him as he looks at private videos sent from an abused daughter as a cry of help to her mother. The otherwise insensitive and selfish hacker thaws a bit. He even cries for this stranger who might marry his cousin. Mahesh Narayanan’s C U Soon, streaming in Amazon Prime, is filled with such moments that makes us sit back and wonder how dependent we have become on technology. And having it all unfold on screens only makes it more real and relatable now, especially in the COVID-19 era.
Now for some context. Jimmy Kurian (Roshan Mathew) who lives in Abu Dhabi matches with Anumol Sebastian (Darshana Rajendran) in Dubai on a dating platform. Romance kicks off almost immediately and the first few mins of the film is all about how this relationship blossoms on the screen. Literally in this case. The two never meet but we soon find out Anu is in an abusive household (or is she?). A smitten Jimmy proposes to Anu in a conference call and there are happy tears all around. But does he really know Anu? Enter Kevin Thomas played by Fahadh Faasil, a cyber security expert and Jimmy’s cousin, who digs into Anu’s life. The first time the couple meet is when an abused Anu pleads with Jimmy to rescue her. But all is not well when Anu suddenly vanishes from Jimmy’s home. Is she a femme fatale or a victim of domestic abuse? Do we really know someone from their online profile, or do they have secrets that do not find a space in the superficial online world? C U Soon with its fantastic editing and out-of-the-box storytelling pulls us deep into the world of online dating, social media background checks, video chats and more from the word go.
Mahesh Narayanan proves his prowess as a master storyteller by using the unusual yet extremely relatable medium to tell his story. C U Soon was shot completely on iPhones during a lockdown and has its share of close-ups and master cuts. The cast sets the film apart with some top notch acting. Roshan Mathew as the impulsive Jimmy Kurian transitions easily from a Romeo to a terror-struck lover whose partner goes missing. Fahadh Faasil effortlessly pulls off the role of a brash and brusque Kevin Thomas who shows moments of humanity but also brings some calm into an otherwise tense situation. Darshana Rajendran plays her coy yet sure role naturally. The film keeps us guessing throughout about her motives and Darshana portrays this uncertainty in an entirely relatable fashion.
The nifty editing and cinematography (virtual and traditional) bring to us on a platter a world where everyone flits between screens. As the mystery gets some clarity, we also see instances of privacy invasion and how ‘easy’ it seems for someone to delve deep into another’s life. Of course, we do sense some loopholes and scenes which are underdeveloped. But C U Soon is a reiteration that good films can still be made during a lockdown with limited resources but with unlimited creativity and imagination.
Rating: 3/5
