“Anomie” with Bhavana and Rahman in the lead, is the latest serial killer crime thriller movie with science fiction additions, not common in this part of the world. It marks a fine beginning to the new year, with such innovations leading the way.
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What is the movie about? :: Zaara Philip (Bhavana) is forensic expert who helps the police in their investigations, but has a personal trauma that has kept haunting her, and even made her brother Ziaan Philip (Shebin Benson) psychologically disturbed and feeling suicidal. The death of their parents, which was caused during a celebration while traveling in a car, has been one incident for which Ziaan never really forgave himself. Zaara tries her best to cheer Zian, and provides him psychiatric support through a doctor that she knows. Zian looks better, with his life with a pet cat and the small group of friends who help him. His apartment is also set for his comfort. But things change when he goes missing all of a sudden, that too after a comfortable sitting with his psychologist. He was going to meet up with his sister, and then he was not to be found. Zaara quickly calls his best friend and romantic interest Alby Thomas (Arjun Lal), who finds out that Ziaan was last seen in his friend’s pet shop.
So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Soon, Ziaan’s corpse is found at the same area where his parents died, and people attach this death to grief and resulting suicide. This sends Zaara into further grief, much to the dismay of Alby. The case is handled by Muhammed Jibran (Rahman), Assistant Commissioner of Police, who goes on a hurry to close to case a suicide, just like a recent case, as attempts at suicide have already been made by these victims. But Zaara decides to seek answers independently, as she is sure that her brother would not commit suicide at this point, as he is a lot past that – the same was revealed by his psychiatrist too. Her independent investigation with the support of Alby leads to the understanding that this is no normal case, and much more is behind all of these. There are too many similarities in the previous suicide and this one, despite having no connection between them. Soon, another suicide occurs, and the same procedure seems to be followed. This time, it is a lady teacher who is found dead in a car inside a garage, and she also had a history of mental illness and used to show suicidal tendencies.
And what more is to follow in this world of chaos and deaths that follow? :: Zaara files a complaint and soon, the police are asked to act as soon as possible by the court. Jibran understands the seriousness of the situation, and decides to rise above his past troubles to solve this case. He had kept himself away from such situations before, but not anymore. This particular situation seems more of an emergency than ever, as more victims might have been there, and many more could follow if the serial killer is not stopped in time. Soon, another boy who had posted about death in social media is kidnapped, and Jibran has a lead in the form of Prasad Eashwar (Vishnu Agasthya), who had collected details of psychiatric patients, and is a drug dealer himself. But Zaara takes another path which leads her to a former medical student, Jinsy Paul (Drishya Raghunath) who had died in mysterious circumstances. Now, they question remains how all of these are going to converge as each lead seems relevant.
The defence of Anomie: The Equation of Death :: Here is one crime thriller that has the suspense and twists – with interval punch that changes the mood, as we have the possible suicide to a serial killer leading to unexpected ending. The addition of science fiction elements all of a sudden also changes the mood further. This is surely one of those movies which I would categorize as Ranam-esque – quality written all over it with the feeling of that Prithviraj starrer which was above the usual level, no matter how people accepted it – there is the feeling of emptiness, damaged characters, slow and inevitable violence even though not always shown on screen, with the realization that something bad always going to happen – isolation, numbness, suppressed anger, moral greyness, all getting a role to play. The final shootout has the looks which seems to elevate the budget of the movie itself. Then when more revelations come, there is also the support of some grand visuals which makes a spectacle out of a movie which seemed to start with such low ambitions. It is also a reminder that science can be infinitely evil in its core.
The claws of flaw :: The movie does leave some of its emotions back in the first half, as the mystery takes more of a hold. The emotional depth losses the hold and by the end, we are more wondering about morally grey science fiction elements. The main characters talk too less to each other as the deviations seem to take them apart. As the serial killers are a different kind of psychopaths, the dark side never really gets to be that scary in end. The movie seems to lack the hype that it had deserved, and for the same, do not have that many screens to help its run. The slow beginnings of the movie might not please everyone and the movie seems a little too long for this content. Without that much focus on the same thing again and again, the overall length could have been reduced. The philosophical elements could have also been further explored. In between, there are moments which seemed to be created to make things more convenient and some consistency is lost in the process. The ending could have also meant more.
The performers of the soul :: Bhavana leads the way and excels in the emotional sequences. A lot of this movie had to depend on her and the feelings of the sister character more than the forensic expert and investigator in her. The same has been achieved with ease. This return from her feels like something which that suits her, and to the same, she has done justice. Rahman manages to do the same from another angle, and he also goes through the emotional side well, even though getting some mass in there felt irrelevant, as a flawed cop like that of Memories was better for the situation and the overall mood of the movie. Then we see how he pulls this one off effortlessly, and that requires further mention. Arjun Lal has changed quite a lot from how we had seen him before, and blends in really well. Shebin Benson is really good with the brother elements. Vishnu Agasthya, after that fiery villain of RDX, makes a different appearance with negative shades. Drishya Raghunath’s avatar comes as a big surprise, and in a role in which we would not recognize her, manages to make a long impact in short time. Binu Pappu does his job with ease.
How it finishes :: Anomie does not feel like being present in that many theatres, but the innovation and the science fiction twist make it something beyond the usual investigative thrillers with serial killers all around. There is also the strong aesthetics, and even though slow at times with possibility of a shorter movie with this content, there is that effective narrative, which moves well to the multiple-twisted ending. We had seen superheroes doing well coming out of nowhere with Minnal Murali and that cinematic universe of Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra, but science fiction is a tricky thing to add in Malayalam cinema, but this one has made the scope big and added the same well. It surely has more than what meets the eye, and so is an interesting watch, and I would suggest that you give it a try, as divergence and attempt to create something out of the box requires all the attention. It might still not be a movie for everyone, but we know that there is more than one kind of audience to which this particular flick can cater. A deviation from the usual and a different treatment in the beginning of the year itself – 2026 is surely going to bring a lot more for us, as this is unlike Anjaam Pathiraa and Paappan which lost its way into random revenge and stays focused.
Release date: 6th February 2026
Running time: 135 minutes
Directed by: Riyas Marath
Starring: Rahman, Bhavana, Binu Pappu, Arjun Lal, Shebin Benson, Vishnu Agasthya, Drishya Raghunath
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