Kasargold movie review: Asif Ali-Sunny Wayne film forgets its narrative due to excessive focus on main characters

Once back on the road, the duo realises that the bag containing the gold has gone missing. Recognising the potential consequences of this lapse, Alby and Nancy, along with their associates, embark on a mission to find the culprits. The remainder of the film follows their journey.

Kasargold begins in an impressive and stylish manner, offering glimpses of the expansive and scary world of gold-smuggling rackets and the first act’s engaging nature sets a good pace.

However, once this initial rush subsides, Kasargold starts to move forward aimlessly with incidents seemingly inserted merely to fill the void, instead of ensuring a natural progression. Once it derails, Kasargold’s script, penned by Mridul Nair and Sajimon Prabhakar, never manages to get back on track and crashes into a pit of tiresomeness, with an end nowhere in sight.

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One significant flaw with the script is its abrupt shifts in tone at entirely unnecessary junctures. There are moments that begin with tension but suddenly shift to comedy for no apparent reason. Even if the intention of the writers was to depict life’s unpredictability, the way these tone transitions occur lacks a natural flow, leaving viewers puzzled.

Another major shortcoming of the narrative, which has had the most impact on the film, is its excessive focus on the central two characters at the expense of all others introduced initially but subsequently forgotten. After the first act, Kasargold seems to transform into a travel vlog of Alby and Faisal, merely chronicling their journeys and actions without focusing on the story.

At the same time, despite introducing a plethora of characters initially, the film abandons them to introduce more new characters, only to neglect them as well; and this cycle continues throughout while primarily spotlighting the central duo. Even Alex (Vinayakan), a suspended and ruthless cop hired by the gold-smuggling syndicate, makes sporadic appearances, to showcase his savagery and swagger, he consistently fades into the background, contributing little to the overall story until the climax.

The narrative also reeks of (un/intentional) glorification of moral policing, a common trope of associating violence exclusively with the Left, and (indirect) labelling of North Kerala as a haven for unlawful activities, with most characters having some connection to the world of crime.

While the way Mridul Nair has envisioned the frames is commendable, his overt fanboying over Asif Ali, which was evident in his debut work B. Tech (2018) too, has proven to be counterproductive in this film. Although Asif portrays the character decently with attention to its eccentricities and subtleties, ensuring that the performance doesn’t go overboard, the complete focus on this aspect makes it exhausting to watch, especially since it offers little else. Nonetheless, Mridul’s snazzy presentation of the characters with impressive intros and some mass moments is noteworthy.

Although Sunny Wayne delivers some impressive moments, his overall performance doesn’t warrant much praise. On the other hand, Vinayakan manages to bring nothing but swagger to the table, primarily due to weak characterisation.

Jebin Jacob’s cinematography stands out as one of the most striking features of Kasargold, consistently exuding style. Manoj Kannoth’s editing and Mashar Hamsa’s costumes are also noteworthy, while Vishnu Vijay has done an outstanding job with background tracks. Collectively, these technical aspects contribute to making it a somewhat engaging viewing experience.

In short, though Kasargold had enough to create a memorable actioner, the film disappoints due to sloppy writing.

Kasargold movie cast: Asif Ali, Vinayakan, Sunny Wayne
Kasargold movie director: Mridul Nair
Kasargold movie rating: 2 stars