“Rorschach” is a psychological revenge drama that delivers exactly what it says. A commercial Malayalam film with horror, supernatural, and thriller elements is a rare find. Nissam Basheer accomplishes the impossible by providing the audience with an engaging film full of much-needed twists and turns that keep you glued to your seat until the end. So, without any further ado, let’s explore the ending of “Rorschach” and understand Luke’s obsession with taking revenge.
Spoliers Ahead
What Happens In The Film ‘Rorschach’?
Luke Antony (Mammootty), a UK citizen and a Dubai-based businessman, heads to the police station, covered in blood, to file a missing person’s report. He informs the police that his wife is missing from the scene of the accident. The police and the villagers help him in the search but to no avail. Soon, Luke is approached by Balan, who wants to sell off his deceased son’s bungalow, which Luke purchases without having a second thought. Luke has a mysterious past. His heavily pregnant wife, Sophia, was murdered during a robbery at home, and ever since, Luke has not been in the right mental state. Balan, after selling the home to Luke, takes off with the money but is murdered by his greedy younger son, helped by his brother-in-law Sasankan (Kottayam Nazeer). Seetha (Bindu Panicker), Balan’s widow, is trying to get over the tragedy of their son Dileep’s death. At the same time, Dileep’s widow Sujatha (Grace Antony) is taking care of the cashew factory and its profits and sends half of them to Dileep’s family. Luke slowly starts to show his true colors when he decides to buy Seetha’s shares in the factory, by which he becomes a part owner of the establishment. Another local, Satheeshan (Sharafudeen), is skeptical of Luke’s sudden arrival in the town and strongly believes he is here to get some work done. Local policeman Ashraf (Jagadeesh) starts taking an interest in Luke and his past and digs deep into his life as a businessman in Dubai. This forms the plot of the film.
‘Rorschach’ Ending Explained: Why Is Luke Adamant About Exacting Revenge?
Dileep (Asif Ali) was the robber who had robbed Luke’s home and killed his pregnant wife. With the money, he managed to build a bungalow and start a small business for his wife and mother. Luke returns to his hometown to exact revenge by slowly torturing Dileep’s family. Luke initially buys the house meant for Dileep and Sujatha. Later, he buys up Seetha’s share in the cashew factory and becomes part owner of it. Luke later proposes to marry Sujatha to keep the property intact but starts harassing her at home and shows up at the factory to disturb her.
Luke is constantly haunted by Dileep’s presence. The movie doesn’t make it clear whether Dileep’s presence was a part of his hallucinations because of Luke’s deteriorating mental health or whether the ghost of Dileep existed to harm Luke. Luke goes to the extent of filling Dileep’s final resting place with mud and water and manages to steal the skull away, horrifying Seetha and her kids. Seetha, Dileep’s mother, turns out to be a greedy woman who wants no relationship with Sujatha but doesn’t refuse to take the profits Sujatha shares with Seetha. Seetha eventually reveals her true colors when Ashraf confronts them with the facts and news of Dileep’s stint with the robbery in Dubai. Seetha ends up poisoning Ashraf for blackmailing them. Satheeshan, meanwhile, gets into Ashraf’s home and finds out about Dileep’s past. Before his death, Ashraf had confined to Luke his knowledge of Dileep’s robbery and murder of Luke’s wife, Sophia. Seetha and her son Anil soon confront Luke to kill him. The film concludes with Seetha’s son-in-law confessing that it was Seetha who had murdered Ashraf, and she was arrested for the crime. While Luke also confesses to killing Dileep, Seetha commits suicide inside the lockup. Meanwhile, Satheeshan informs Sujatha of Dileep’s past and the reason behind Luke’s presence in the town. Sujatha abandons Luke and burns down the factory, which was technically earned from the money gained from the robbery.
The story and screenplay by Sameer Abdul are such that they join all the dots by the end of the film, and Luke’s life comes to a full circle. The screenplay, though, has issues conveying the point correctly; the way the climax is written and executed, despite minor setbacks, it can be forgotten. Even though the suspension of disbelief is quite high in this film, it kind of balances out the serious tone of the film. The film does a great job of portraying female characters who stand on their own and have the means to channel their points of view. Seetha might be greedy and patriarchal, but her word is the final word in the family, and nobody would question her actions. Sujatha refuses to slow down after her husband’s death and carries on the business to fend for herself, her family, and her husband’s family. Even after her marriage to Luke, she refuses to bow down to his rules and walks out the moment she sees how controlling he is and his motive behind marrying her. The ending of the film is very similar to Kevin Spacey confessing to his crimes in “Seven,” another cult classic psychological drama by David Fincher, and the story of the film feels very similar to “Thar,” the Netflix Original directed by Raaj Singh Chaudhary.
Conclusion
“Rorschach” is a good watch on the big screen, for it keeps the audience on the hook till the end. The screenplay, direction, story, music (including the background score), and performances stand out for all the right reasons. The makers did not trivialize the importance of showcasing the effects of trauma on a human being, which was performed very well by the lead actor, Mammootty. Even with certain glitches in the screenplay, “Rorschach” is rooted in realism with a mix of horror, supernatural, and psychological elements, making it a must-watch. One of the best portrayals by Mammootty and one of the most well-directed films in the psychological thriller genre.
See more: ‘Rorschach’ Review: A Fine Psychological Revenge Thriller
