Fugitive stories are captivating. Whether it’s Provenzano in Italy or Dawood Ibrahim in the Indian subcontinent, the cinematic potential they offer is immense. Their stories could be gritty, campy, or even pulpy in spirit. Kerala’s most notorious criminal-on-the-run Sukumara Kurup has been a similar enigmatic figure. The mastermind of the […]
Read Time : 3 Minutes
Nedumudi Venu Passes Away Leaving a Giant Void in Malayalam Cinema
Malayalam cinema veteran NedumudiVenu is no more. Not only did he appear in 500+ films but the actor in his three-decade-plus career was synonymous with quality. Be it in supporting parts, in villainous, or in occasional lead roles, the actor managed to leave an indelible stamp – in every film […]
Read Time : 8 Minutes
‘#Home’ review – Malayalam family drama manipulates its way into your heart
Director Rojin Thomas’s Malayalam film #Home is an impressive case study. One that tells the story of a slightly dysfunctional family, the film cleverly masquerades as a neglected father’s tale while slyly guilt-tripping his children. In the early 2000s, Sheela-Jayaram starrer Manasinakkare managed a similar feat but the Sathyan Anthikad […]
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‘Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam’ review – a chatty, inventive take on relationships
Director Don Palathara’s Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam is a film set entirely in a car. No, the vehicle does not become an imposing prop that offers extra dramatic possibilities (not even an allegory) at any point. Palathara’s film, clearly, is no commercial potboiler belonging to the ilk of Titanic, Air Force […]
Read Time : 12 Minutes
‘Malik’ review – An immersive chronicle of survival & rise amid religious polarisation
In a stirring scene in Mahesh Narayanan’s Malik, the leading man Sulaiman alias Ali Ikka (Fahadh Faasil) engages in a quarrel around his father’s burial spot which is now a wasteyard. Badly assaulted by cops, a group of people later dumps him in the very same pile of waste. There […]
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‘Cold Case’ review – Prithviraj-starrer mixes horror and police procedural genres to uneven results
There are bona fide horror films that you watch with a conclusive belief that supernatural entities are real. Then there are police procedurals that unravel a mystery entirely based on science and evidence. In director Tanu Balak’s Cold Case, we witness both scenarios. A single case of a missing woman […]
Read Time : 9 Minutes
‘Aarkkariyam’ review – a mercurial Malayalam drama around a dirty family secret
Nostalgia is a word that contains volumes of drama. It can be twisted to generate gazillion quotes with the finest of metaphors. A favourite would be, “Nostalgia is a beautiful lie dressed up in sepia.” Director Sanu John Varughese’s Aarkkariyam is not necessarily a film that thrives on that emotion. […]
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‘The Great Indian Kitchen’: A Giant Stride Towards Cinema Renaissance in India
“The quickest way to a man’s heart is through his stomach” – Here’s a famous saying that we have been conditioned to believe. Men are supposed to savour all the delicacies in the world. Women are supposed to serve them with love. As compensation, she will make way to his […]
Read Time : 8 Minutes
‘Joji’ review – Dileesh Pothan’s take on Macbeth is a bona fide masterpiece
“Society is a fucker,” declares the title character of Dileesh Pothan’s Joji. If we observe the setup from a distance, society is seldom a direct component in the Panachel family. Here is a film with minimal exposition and no random third party conversations staged at tea shops and rickshaw stands. […]
Read Time : 6 Minutes
‘Varthamanam’ review – Parvathy-starrer is brave in opinions, insipid in execution
The startling side of Sidhartha Siva’s Varthamanam is that for the most part of its runtime, it does not feel like fiction. What the film attempts to portray is a series of stark realities that we see around, watch on television, read in newspapers and follow on social media – […]