India, May 13 -- Jithu Madhavan's Aavesham is a volcanic, unruly beast of a film. It shifts gears, upends any sort of predictions from what can be called a gangster flick, and becomes its beast. At the heart of this unapologetic film about masculinity and the loss of innocence lies the performance of Fahadh Faasil as gangster Ranga. Rowdy, boisterous and eccentric, Ranga owns the room wherever he goes. The actor snatches the film from the very first second he arrives and gives it a thrilling dose of energy and fun.

Fahadh has been terrific in recent years, but nothing can prepare the viewer for the heights he reaches with this eccentric gangster. Aavesham lands mostly because of Fahadh's charismatic performance, but one unavoidable contr...