Phantom

Cast: Mammootty, Innocent, Manoj K Jayan, Malavika
Language: Malayalam
Banner: Aparna Silver Image
Director: Biju Varkey
Producer: Dr Sudhakaran Nair
Story: Dennies Joseph
Screenplay: Dennies Joseph
Dialogue: Dennies Joseph
Music: Deva
Distribution: Swargachithra Release
Year: 2002

The much-awaited Mammootty film Phantom Pailey is in the theatres. Mammooty in fact is playing the title role in Phantom Pailey, in which he is donning the role of a stunt man. Phantom Pailey was one big release which the mega star pinned his hopes.

This Biju Varkey-directed movie is centered on a Kerala-born Bollywood film stuntman on whom life lands a cruel punch. The story, apart from chronicling the life of a stuntman also highlights his best fight ever-- against fate. No two ways about it, debutant Biju Varkey has come out with a decent entertainer. The camera work of the other debutant Biju Viswanathan is eye catching especially the way he has captured the lush green Munnar valley. Keeping Mammooty company will be Nedumudi Venu, Jagathy, Kochi Haneefa, Innocent. Cast opposite Mammooty is the fresh-faced Malavika.

Pailey (Mammootty) has come from Irutupetta, a small village in rural Kerala to Mumbai and made a name for him. He had come originally to Mumbai with the hope of making it big in Bollywood as an actor. But after many failed attempts, he becomes a stuntman who becomes the dupe for big stars. Due to his dare devil stunts he gets the name Phantom Pailey. But one day while shooting a helicopter fight scene, he falls down and gets injured. Pailey understands that once a stuntman gets injured, his career ends, but he is made of different stuff. He decides to take a break and then come back to Mumbai. So he goes to a backward rural village of Kerala-Tamilnadu border, called Pallikara where his younger brother Josekutty, is an officer at the local dam. But Pailey's real ambition is to rejuvenate himself and get his wound healed and then go back to Mumbai.

Soon after his arrival an earthquake and landslide happens in the village and he gets involved in a fight between the locals and outsiders. The villagers are used to these natural calamities and following their complaint, to prevent such frequent earthquakes government puts a court order that quarry work should be stopped immediately.

The contractor who mints money out of the quarry, Annachi (Manivannan) and his people are at loggerheads with the local people who are led by Gandhi Pillai (Nedumudi Venu) and the church priest (Innocent). Josekutty (Nishant Sagar) is a budding artiste and he is in love with Pillai's niece Hema. When Jose goes to Hyderabad for a competition, his elder brother Pailey (Mammootty) comes to get him married to Hema. In no time he wins over the villagers and cross swords with the baddies! Soon Annachi brings a corrupt police officer Sebastin (Manoj K Jayan), who is a sadist and a lawbreaker who is a constant nuisance for the villagers and Pailey is his main target. With the help of Annachi, Sebastin murders Josekutty and then it is pay back time for Phantom Pailey.

Mammootty has done a decent job and even his comedy scenes are enjoyable. Innocent as the priest, Cochin Haneefa, Bindu Panickkar and Lalu Alex are great in comedy scenes. The heroine, Malavika has very little to do with hardly three scenes. Manoj K Jayan as the clean-shaven villain police officer is a revelation. The highlight of the film is the music of Deva.

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