Rehana Maryam Noor: Saviour complex may not always come as a saving grace

Bangladeshi films from the earlier days had made their way into the industry quite successfully and effortlessly. Modern Bangladeshi films, however, have had their fair share of ups and downs.

In-between mainstream and contemporary cinematography, an engrossing storyline and pitch-perfect acting, such movies have sometimes managed to get elevated to newer heights. They have allowed the audience to sit and enjoy the entire film.

Like so, 'Rehana Maryam Noor', written and directed by Abdullah Mohammad Saad, is not any ordinary film, even though the plot is pretty predictable.

In the first 20 minutes of watching the film, you can create an outline of the story yourself. But there's a catch, and it is only revealed during the last leg of the film.

Especially considering the remarkable performance delivered by Azmeri Haque Badhon as the protagonist character 'Rehana', you can easily get indulged and hope dearly for a plot twist.

SPOILER ALERT

The story revolves around Rehana, a medical college teacher, seeking justice on behalf of one of her students who has fallen victim to sexual harassment in the hands of one of the professors.

Rehana is a strong, independent female lead in the film, who is also the sole-earner for her family as well as being a single mother. Most importantly, she is both honest and ethical at her job as a medical college teacher, but only as per her perspective.

As a character, Rehana cannot be categorised as one of those women who will stand back when they see something wrong happening, even if it is not affecting her directly.

Rehana possesses the sort of adamant willpower to go above and beyond in order to bring justice to anyone who is wronged; even if it means jeopardizing herself in the process.

From the very beginning of the movie, Rehana's character is quite inspiring. Being the sole bread earner for her family, she balances both her career and personal life simultaneously.

Although in the film it was somewhat indicated that she is too occupied with work-related issues to spare a minute for her daughter. However, considering the main plot of the film, it is natural and expected of a character like Rehana to become obsessed about speaking out for the greater good and thinking of nothing else for a while.

If we have to analyse Rehana's character in the perspective of the film, she is quite complex and difficult to study. It is clear that she speaks up and seeks justice where needed.

Perhaps Abdullah Mohammad Saad, the director of Rehana Maryam Noor, wanted the audience to openly interpret the film's angle in terms of why Rehana is driven by the idea of justice, even when it is not her place to seek it.

On the contrary, the conflict in the plot seemed to be the grim and dull premise of the film, even though the plot was becoming more interesting with each passing minute. Fortunately, this cold setting made the audience more eager to know what will happen in the next sequence.

However, one noticeable flaw in the story was its duration. If it were stretched a bit more, the audience could have had more content and clarity. Instead, the film ended abruptly, leaving a large part of the plot to the imagination of the viewers.

When it comes to acting, Afia Jahin Jaima, the little girl who played the role of Rehana's daughter, Emu, stole the show with her excellent acting skills. It is commendable how she managed to stay in character even during long shots.

It is needless to mention how good Badhon's performance was. As a member of the audience, her performance made me believe that the story did not need to end in a thought-provoking way as it had touched all the aspects of a perfect plotline.

Rehana Maryam Noor is definitely worth the watch considering the success of the film globally. The highly anticipated film premieres on Friday (12 November) at STAR Cineplex.