Writer: Siti Munawirah Mustaffa

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Being the second local Tamil film to be released under FINAS' Compulsory Screening Scheme, one could not help but wonder: Should I watch it? Tamil films in India may have flourished; leaving those in Malaysia far behind, but perhaps it wouldn't hurt to give "Adutha Kattam" a chance.

Under the direction of Murali Krishnan Munian, the film centres on a female lead, Rekha (Malar Meni Perumal), a heartbroken housewife who decides to drive back to her mother's house late at night when her husband did not turn up for their wedding anniversary. A series of horrifying events soon follow as she reaches out of town, with her phone battery dead and her car having a break down right in the middle of nowhere.

Like any other horror films, the story plays a lot with camera and effects that admittedly do work. The downside lies on the fact that there's nothing absolutely new to make this film a total stand out. While it lacks a strong plot, the sudden appearance of a ghost does have the capability to bring a shocking effect onto those who are faint-hearted enough.

The one major distraction would be the background music, which, at times are deemed unnecessary.

The casts provide a decent performance despite still being fairly green in the industry. In the reviewer's honesty, they act much better than many of the local stars that crowd the scene. Though Malar Meni Perumal seems to need a little bit more work, she does have some potential to grow as an actress.

If there's one thing the reviewer notices about the dialogues, it's that they're simply not lame. Well, not lame enough as compared to almost all Malay films.

In spite of being Murali's debut work (an experimental one, too), it's actually not a bad first attempt. With a lot of technical improvement here and there, the next film should be good to go. If there's one thing the production truly needs for their next work, it's better camera lighting.

Cinema Online, 10 December 2012