Christopher (2023) [Hindi-Malayalam]

Christopher is a 2023 Indian Malayalam-language vigilante action film directed by B. Unnikrishnan and written by Udaykrishna starring Mammootty in the titular role, with an ensemble cast of Vinay Rai, R. Sarathkumar, Amala Paul, Aishwarya Lakshmi, Sneha, Aditi Ravi, Shine Tom Chacko, Deepak Parambol and Siddique. The cinematography is handled by Faiz Siddik and the music is composed by Justin Varghese.Principal photography began on 10 July 2022 with a pooja function. Christopher was released in theatres on 9 February 2023 and received mixed reviews from critics and audiences but was a commercial success.

A maverick, vigilante cop who is forced to misbehave the limits of law when the system fails. It weaves across past and present whilesolving the motives and moral bruises that shape his actions. This story is about a high ranking, efficient and honest police officer named ADGP Christopher Antony IPS who uses vigilantism as a tool for safeguarding women and other innocent and helpless people and bringing justice to them in brutal crimes against them. Princy Alexander of Onmanorama wrote “Unnikrishnan and Udayakrishna’s previous work ‘Aarattu’, which featured Mohanlal in the lead, had not really gone down well with the audience, but this time, they have managed to pull off a pretty decent entertainer. Christopher’s entry along with a BGM reminds you of Sethurama Iyer’s style from the CBI series. The music by Justin Varghese complements the movie in many places, though at times, the background score seemed unnecessary. The performances by the other actors were also quite impressive.”

The past year has felt like bliss for anyone who remains invested in Mammootty’s continuing potential for brilliance and has lamented the number of formulaic, over-the-top, men-centric, regressive, anti-women films crowding his filmography in Christopher the past three decades. The back-to-back release of Ratheena’s Puzhu, Nisam Basheer’s Rorschach and Lijo Jose Pellissery’s Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam held out the hope that at long last, the Big M has fully committed himself to original thinkers making out-of-the-box cinema. The hope shone bright even though women artistes who look young enough to be his daughters were cast as wife and sister to the male lead in each of these films too. The hope came from their themes and under-statedness.

Like the primary character in Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam who wakes from a slumber to enter a whole new reality, this week serves as a wake-up call for optimists among Mammukka-gazers. How else does one describe the new film Christopher?