‘Once Upon a Time in Kochi’ movie review: A forgettable ‘comedy thriller’ that is neither funny nor thrilling

Some films inadvertently throw up scenes or an exchange of dialogues that can mislead us about our expectations from the film. Early on in Nadirshah’s Once Upon a Time in Kochi, we hear the voice of Jaffer Idukki making a typical cinematic narration of the dark underbelly of a city, only to be cut short by the policeman questioning him — “Are you a writer to give such an elaborate description? Once Upon a Time in Kochi Director: Nadirshah Cast: Arjun Ashokan, Devika Sanjay, Mubin M.Rafi, Shine Tom Chacko Storyline: A police officer, who is on hot pursuit of a drug cartel, goes missing setting off a city-wide hunt Runtime: 141 minutes Nadirshah, who made a string of mildly entertaining films with problematic messages, attempts a slightly different track here. The love story at the centre of it seems to be written half-heartedly; the one slightly interesting part is the police officer’s ‘pennu kaanal’ scene where his investigator’s instincts kick in, mistaking talcum powder for cocaine. Once Upon a Time in Kochi is a rather forgettable attempt at creating a ‘comedy thriller’ given how none of its attempts at being funny or thrilling manage to work.