Sunny review: Jayasurya-starrer is a poignant film about mental health

It takes a lot of guts for a mainstream actor like Jayasurya to have no qualms about doing a project like Sunny, which is nearly a single-character movie, as his 100^th film. If not for anything, Jayasurya deserves praise solely for the intent behind doing Sunny, which is an impactful film on the importance of taking mental health seriously. Ranjith Sankar’s film, set amid the pandemic, is centred on how isolation can take a toll on you. 

Jayasurya plays Sunny, who has just returned to Kerala from Dubai. On the way to the hotel where he must spend the next two weeks in quarantine, he burns his passport, making us wonder if all’s well with him. He checks into the luxury suite of the hotel and soon starts drowning himself in alcohol. As we get to spend more time with Sunny, we get to learn about his problems – from his marriage on the verge of a divorce to owing a lot of money to his business partner. To top it all off, the isolation drives him crazy and takes a toll on his mental health. He starts developing suicidal thoughts and the rest of the story is about how he battles his inner demons and emerges a reformed man.

As the world continues to limp back to normalcy amid the fear surrounding the coronavirus pandemic, it is slightly uneasy to sit through Sunny as it puts the spotlight on the fear of isolation. But then it’s also an important film on the need to take mental health seriously, and why it’s extremely normal to ask for help. The film takes its time to make us invest in Sunny’s story, and the short running time works in its favour, keeping it engaging. In terms of story, nothing groundbreaking happens in the movie, but some simple stories can leave a lasting impact when told in the way they’re supposed to, and Sunny is the best example of this. 

Sunny works more as a psychological drama cum thriller, and it leaves its intended impact with just a single character. It deals with the subject of mental health very sensitively, and kudos to the team for not glorifying someone’s drinking problem. Jayasurya is brilliant and effective in bringing out the helplessness of his character and how he deals with his mental health. It’s a moving performance because it isn’t easy to understand what’s going on in someone’s mind and portray it convincingly.

Sunny is being streamed on Amazon Prime Video