A half-hearted crime drama

Express News Service

Sebastian PC 524 is the kind of crime drama where you find out the suspense the moment the premise and characters are set up. Thirty minutes in and you know know the killer and his secrets. With the film being this predictable one can only imagine the dullness that engulfs in the remaining 130 minutes.

The Balaji Sayyapureddy directorial hardly focuses on Sebastian’s (Kiran Abbavaram) inefficiencies but chooses to dwell too much on the interaction he has with his dead mother’s (Rohini Molleti) soul, which in turn encourages him to do something unimaginable. There is no insight into Sebastian’s personality or his evolution as a sincere cop.

The leisurely paced narrative which cuts to a series of confusing flashbacks and the superficial secondary characters make Sebastian PC 524 feels like a half-baked meal. It was quite disappointing to see such a film from a promising young actor like Kiran, who proved his mettle with his first two outings.

Balaji Sayyapureddy’s script employs a familiar structure of a man suffering from night blindness and his struggle to make justice win.  Sebastian is a religious police constable in his 20s, who undergoes frequent transfers because of his inability to do justice to the job. He hides the issue in his vision from everyone and this often lands him in trouble.

Films work when a character’s emotions and decisions drive the story. Sebastian PC 524’s story is promising on the base level. Had the director written a racy screenplay that can conceal the suspense and treated the film as a fast-paced thriller, Sebastian PC 524 would have been a wholesome entertainer. But the film ends up being a lost opportunity. 

The second half particularly feels snail-paced without any moments to feel invested. The film turns preachy and melodramatic in the climax, which sticks out like a sore thumb in a suspense drama. Kiran Abbavaram looks the part as the cop and has the flair to play a titular role. He is sincere and his performance is the film’s biggest strength. He emotes effectively during important sequences, special mention to the scene, where he cries inconsolably holding the portrait of his mother.

Srikanth Iyengar and Ravi Teja Nannimala as Ambaram and Niranjan deliver solid performances and infuse humour in an otherwise serious subject. On the whole, Sebastian PC 524 settles for being an average, half-hearted drama, despite having a promising story. Had Balaji Sayyapureddy invested equal efforts in the screenplay, the film would have been a memorable outing.

Sebastian PC 524
Cast: Kiran Abbavaram, Rohini Molleti, Srikanth Iyengar
Director: Balaji Sayyapureddy
Rating: 2.5/5