Tag Archives: Sajin Cherukayil

ED

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Vampire Owl: Are we going to see Enforcement Directorate here too?

Vampire Bat: No, not for us who deals with blood.

Vampire Owl: So, this move is not about them?

Vampire Bat: No, this seems to mean extra decent.

Vampire Owl: It could also be extremely dangerous.

Vampire Bat: Nobody is more dangerous than a vampire at the darkest of nights.

Vampire Owl: I have heard werewolves saying the same on full moon nights.

Vampire Bat: The moon is no long visible in our realm.

Vampire Owl: There is the device invented by Dr. Frankenstein which can bring it forward.

Vampire Bat: Mr. Frankenstein knows nothing about moon or even Earth.

[Gets a marble cake and three cups of Kodaikanal tea].

What is the movie about? :: Binu Das (Suraj Venjaramoodu) is a young man who takes care of his father’s shop and is liked by everyone due to his pleasant appearance, willingness to help and joyful nature. He is someone who is considered extra decent by everyone in the apartment, and his opinion is highly valued. But after being attacked by a security guard, he ends up in coma at the nearby hospital. On waking up, he cannot remember anything and is soon diagnosed as having retrograded amnesia, not able to remember anything in his immediate past. He tries to pick up the pieces, but people feel like strangers to him – he keeps a diary so that he can study the reality that surrounds his blank slate of a mind. Police Inspector Shibu (Alexander Prasanth) feels that there is something about this particular case as the old security guard claims that he attacked Binu just because he wished to go to prison as nobody was there to look after him, but after questioning the family, nothing strange could be discovered.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: The family consisting of his father Manoj Das (Sudheer Karamana), mother Lakshmi Das (Vinaya Prasad), sister Nishima Das (Grace Antony) and brother-in-law Sanju (Shyam Mohan) are in the hospital, but are seen with a strange feeling, and leaves the place. Neelima (Dilna Ramakrishnan) from the neighbourhood who is determined to marry him takes care of him while the family meets Dr. Ajmal Khan (Rafi) who lives in the next flat instead of going to Dr. Rupesh (Sajin Cherukayil) who has been trying hard to bring the memories of Binu back to normal and make him the same as he used to be. The family tells Ajmal that Binu should not get his memory back as he used to be a psychotic person. He used to trouble the family so much that they wished that he was dead. This surprises Ajmal who always considered him to be a sweet person. Now it is to be seen if his memories come back and if would become a big terror or a good man – it is also to be seen what they family will do.

The defence of ED: Extra Decent :: This is one movie that intends to go divergent with its idea. The use of black humour is to be appreciated, and the ability of the movie to remain serious and funny at the same time is to be appreciated – yet, we have that entertaining mood here. With Suraj Venjaramood at the helm, there is no surprise about how well the movie gets elevated. There has always been promise for a lot, and some of it has been delivered. This is that kind of a movie which takes the psycho-mode to a different stage, and adds humour to keep it more interesting. The traumatic past which keeps creeping in and the sudden change of situation with the twist keeps the whole thing interesting – there is more than one twist to go. The contrast of seriousness and humour works quite well for most of the time. This is at a time when having psychos point to serial killers like in Forensic, Anjaam Pathiraa and others, but this time it gets funny like in the case of Maranamass which took the serial killer mode with happiness.

The claws of flaw :: The movie had a lot of scope, but does not hold on to all of them. It repels the scope to go to chaos comedy like Sahasam, Adi Kapyare Kootamani or Kunjiramayanam, but some of it could have added to the overall humour. The movie’s ups and downs do not help the totality, and sometimes it does stretch a little too much, and the scenes feels like repetition at times. The story could have had funny elements added here and there to make it more interesting rather than stretching itself. Some of the characters seem to be there for the sake of being there, and the ending surely does struggle. The ending needed to be more satisfactory, even though the focus seems to be in bringing a sequel into play if there is some scope for it. There is that potential which we feel as the movie gets close to the end, but not sure that it was utilized. So many opportunities were there for the movie to diverge, but it chooses the easiest one, which might be safe, but not having that much of an impact.

The performers of the soul :: Suraj Venjaramoodu’s brilliance has a firm hold of this movie, and due to the same, we feel this movie to be more than just a random movie with comedy – the dark humour just gets to another level with his performance. He has those multiple levels of transformations which keeps us interested. His entry into madness and beyond becomes surprise classic dark humour. Sudheer Karamana and Vinayaprasad shines as the tensed parents, while Grace Antony has a memorable stay as the sister, and Premalu star Shyam Mohan’s brother-in-law also has his moments. Vineeth Thattil David and Rafi add to fun nicely as support. Dilna Ramakrishnan makes a notable appearance here, and we hope to see her around in bigger roles in the industry. Sajin Cherukayil also makes an impact in appearance that happens at times, while Alexander Prasanth though with a smaller appearance has some of the funniest moments in the film that happens very early and sets up the mood.

How it finishes :: The movie does remind us of movies like Tholvi F C and Falimy with one dysfunctional family and a main character who has more problems than ever. With family relationships and status in the society being twists, the central idea remains the same, even though the divergence is more with this one. The ending was still going to need more, and the same is not served here. That extra dose is not here to be taken, but this movie remains such an enjoyable flick, especially with the lead and support going so strong. This is the kind of movie that will always have something in it for a future watch too, as some moments will return on television with those comedy sequences. As this one is on Amazon Prime Video, many people might have already watched this one, even though some might have still missed the flick due to people not knowing that much about the release. The hype was just not there even when it released and had faced tough competition. We can only hope that it will gain more from the OTT.

Release date: 20th December 2024
Running time: 124 minutes
Directed by: Aamir Pallikkal
Starring: Suraj Venjaramoodu, Grace Antony, Shyam Mohan, Sudheer Karamana, Vinaya Prasad, Rafi, Vineeth Thattil David, Alexander Prasanth, Sajin Cherukayil, Shaju Sreedhar, Saji Venjaramoodu, Rakesh Ushar, Dilna Ramakrishnan, Suryakiran, Priya Sreejith, Sincy Anil

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Sahasam

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Vampire Owl: I remember watching the song from this movie.

Vampire Bat: Well, that song was a big hit for this Onam.

Vampire Owl: It was more than just a hit indeed, that one earned an entry into hearts.

Vampire Bat: It served Onam like no other song did before.

Vampire Owl: The Onam song was surely like no other.

Vampire Bat: There is surely the feeling of fun with this one.

Vampire Owl: We could have watched this in the theatre instead of Amazon Prime Video.

Vampire Bat: Well, I only knew about the song, not the movie release.

Vampire Owl: Well, that might be the biggest Onam song impact in a long time.

Vampire Bat: With social media at the peak, this was surely going to be.

[Gets a chicken pizza and three cups of Kandy tea].

What is the movie about? :: Jeevan (Ramzan Muhammed) has been in love with Sera (Gouri G Kishan) for a long time, but her family has planned to get her married to Rony (Jeeva Joseph), a wealthy and powerful businessman. On the night of her engagement party, Jeevan comes to visit her with his best friends Pappan (Hari Sivaram) and Sam (Shabareesh Varma) disguised as members of the event management team, only to be discovered by the family members. They almost manage to run away with Sera, only to mess up things at the last moment, and the engagement happens smoothly. At the same time, police informer only known by the name Wolf (Babu Antony) manages to help the government in getting into the notorious Mumbai gangster Victor’s (Yog Japee) hideout and seize his drugs, only to find out that the computer expert Sanjeev (Krishna) has managed to convert Victor’s cash into cryptocurrency. But before he gives the password to Wolf who had planned all of these, he is blackmailed by an unknown figure and he has heart attack and dies, leaving nobody with the password.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Now, Wolf will have to travel to Cochin to find the new head of the IT company where Sanjeev was working, and as the password is in his official laptop, the IT firm might find a way to open it. As Gayathri (Tessa Joseph) takes over as the new head of the firm, the stakes are now higher than ever. Meanwhile, Sera’s relatives send Babeesh (Baiju Santhosh) to deal with Jeevan and make sure that he does not come for his love again, and with him is Preman (Bhagath Manuel) who has seen the face of one of the people who came to the house for Sera. But they feel that Pappan might be Babeesh’s long-lost brother from childhood due to his similarities with an old photo they had, and change the plan to taking him home. Meanwhile, the police inspector Rajeev Nambiar (Narain) is forced to chase both Wolf and Victor to Kochi all the way from Mumbai. But his bigger priorities are taking credit for others’ achievements and always suspecting his wife Isha (Varsha Ramesh). Meanwhile Sam fights with Satheesh (Sajin Cherukayil) for the attention of Priya (Jayasree Sivadaas), and all these come together with unexpected links leading to chaos.

The defence of Sahasam :: Chaos comedy is not the kind of genre which is easy to create an impact, and neither is the use of silliness in the right manner. There might not have been any movie like Adi Kapyare Koottamani and Kunjiramayanam that could achieve the same in last few years, not considering those older classics. This one rather has the situation as more serious, with deaths, gangsters and underworld dealings involved, and the same has been done with the funny side being incredibly active. Just like the other movies of this category, it is the working humour that raises the level of the movie, and the energy adds to the same. The team that the movie has assembled with the veterans and newcomers is really good. The way in which the movie keeps its central romance going with an active emotional side going, and makes everything come together with some classic connections, is worth mentioning, and it seems to be some special skill taking over, as it leaves no loose ends, even for this kind of a movie which is usually allowed to do the same in its genre of confusions and comical complications.

Positives and negatives :: The movie might feel a little bit too long while dealing with this kind of a topic, but as it moves forward further, we just like that length more than anything else – the fun seems to get into us. Yet, some characters might not have been required here, and at times, it also comes up with scenes that feel extra. But it never losses our interest, and it is where this one becomes a classic complicated collection. The songs, especially the Onam mood song had set the mood for the film, and one wonders why it did not become a bigger success at the box-office. The movie’s use of nostalgia comes out of nowhere, like Babu Antony’s old-style moments, Narain talking about four the people and Krishna looking at that much celebrated song of the past with him in it as youth. Even though there are deaths and seriousness is present, we do not feel that kind of a dark tension, and the anxiety that we feel for the characters is rather different. We feel that the movie could even have sequels, and even spin-offs with some of these characters, who stay with us even when not the main characters.

The performers of the soul :: The movie has strong pillars on the two veteran actors Babu Antony and Narain, and this time, they are into humour, and the latter is almost completely into the same – they keep the world interesting with their presence, moments and even nostalgia. Ramzan-Gouri romantic side does work well too, and the music nicely supports the same. Baiju Santhosh, Shabareesh Varma, Hari Sivaram and Bhagath Manuel make a fine combination of humour here, and the silliness associated with their character is very much enjoyable. A surprisingly great addition is that of Varsha Ramesh, who adds to the humour and the overall proceedings really well, and her scenes with Shabareesh and Narain, both brings some classic fun. Return of Tessa Joseph adds another layer of nostalgia here, as she was one actress who was around only with a short career. Sajin Cherukayil also scores with humour while Jayasree Sivadaas adds on. Yog Japee makes a fine villain too. When all of these performers come together in the final moments, it is indeed a lot of fun.

How it finishes :: The movie has some of the best comic moments in the last few years, and there is a certain amount of skill in how this movie uses its moments, and even adds some nostalgia to it. The director’s previous venture Twenty One Grams was also a fine adventure, a serious one then – this time, the journey is on a different path, but it surely works well. This comedy of errors is surely a lot better than most of those so-called comedy works with even bigger stars, and this is the one movie that makes everyone feels good with its humour and those pieces coming together to make us satisfied by the end. The Onam mood itself is clearly felt in the movie, as it is indeed like a celebration to be done in the theatre. Even though not that much known during its release, with its coming to Amazon Prime Video, this will be a much talked about film for days to come. Some movies depend of superstars and hype, but this one clearly focuses on the entertainment quotient with the right cast, and performers who do not keep hailing as superstars – this absence of such overrated cast makes this an even better flick.

Release date: 8th August 2025
Running time: 144 minutes
Directed by: Bibin Krishna
Starring: Narain, Babu Antony, Gouri G Kishan, Varsha Ramesh, Ramzan Muhammed, Jayasree Sivadaas, Baiju Santhosh, Shabareesh Varma, Hari Sivaram, Bhagath Manuel, Yog Japee, Jeeva Joseph, Ann Jameela Salim, Abhimanyu Shammy Tilakan, Sajin Cherukayil, Tessa Joseph, Vineeth Thattil David, Lishoy, Krishna, Jayakrishnan, Major Ravi, Karthik

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<<< Click here to go to the previous South Indian film review.

<<< Click here to go to the previous Malayalam film review.

<<< Click here to go to the biggest movie of the year.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Kannur Squad

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Vampire Owl: We have taken a little too much of time to watch this one.

Vampire Bat: Well, as people say, better late than never.

Vampire Owl: I have heard that this is among the best of the year.

Vampire Bat: We have all heard a lot about this movie in a positive manner.

Vampire Owl: I hope it is not from some fan boys.

Vampire Bat: We do not talk to the human fan boys anymore.

Vampire Owl: It could be a vampire fan boy, like the Vampire Penguin.

Vampire Bat: None of the vampires are fans of any human.

Vampire Owl: I am sure that there are exceptions.

Vampire Bat: This movie itself is an exceptional one.

[Gets a Kadai chicken pizza and three cups of cardamom tea].

What is the movie about? :: ASI George Martin (Mammootty) and his team of CPO Jayakumar P. Vasu a.k.a. Jayan (Rony David Raj), CPO Jose Skaria (Azees Nedumangad) and CPO Muhammed Shafi T A (Shabareesh Varma), popularly known as Kannur Squad go on a search for some political goons in the forests of border area between Kerala and Karnataka, only to find a partially decayed body hanging from a tree. Even though the first idea is to leave it as a suicide, George is not ready to leave it behind. His idea is that this not a random suicide. They are able to find the culprit with ease, but is struck by the allegation against Jayan for working with sand mafia, seemingly ending the Kannur Squad with a certain amount of unexpected dishonour. But when an NRI businessman from Kasaragod named Abdul Wahab (Manoj K U) is murdered with no clue to be found, the police officers are forced to bring them back, as the other team of Kannur Squad is on a mission in North India.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Krishnalal T K IPS (Vijayaraghavan) finally agrees to have them investigate the case in ten days as SP Manu Needhi Cholan IPS (Kishore) also supports them after reading about them. By tracing the calls, they get to Riyas (Deepak Parambol) who had supplied the sim cards on his name. They understand his role in the robbery and murder, while also figuring out that there is involvement from people outside Kerala. But the other people involved could not be found out as they seem to have reached safe havens in the north of India. Farha (Afsana Lakshmi), Wahab’s daughter who was brutally beaten up and sexually assaulted, provides them with better details of what happens during the night and one of the assailants in revealed to be Ameer Shah (Arjun Radhakrishnan) who gave his name before strangling her father in front of her. Kannur Squad also gets an image of Ameer from social media and the search leads them to Mumbai. But it is still to be found if the investigation can be finished in ten days.

The defence of Kannur Squad :: The movie goes through an interesting set of proceedings from the beginning itself, and some fine music supports the same at all times. There is no moment in the movie which is not interesting, and we become part of the whole thing as the journey proceeds from one place to the other, from one end of the nation to the other. All of the performers seem to be perfectly chosen for their respective roles, including those who do not speak Malayalam – the choice of cast is one of the best things about this particular movie. There are moments that we remember, and some of them are there to stay for a longer period of time. As the fans of the mass masala avoids this movie, we can watch this one in peace, and hope for more of similar films to come. The emotional side do appeal to us, even though there is no overdose of emotions to make melodrama come forward. The movie focuses on the essential, and not the exaggerated, and it is the beauty of the world that has been created here – you feel that the police universe here is real, and not the unreal chaos that we see in Bollywood. Among the best of realistic police works, Kannur Squad is here to stay.

Positives and negatives :: The movie could have surely had more interesting moments in between in relation to the villains and their journey, but we have the police officers’ journeys nicely documented through some fine visuals. The determination of the righteous police officers and the difficulties that they come across on the way can be seen in a realistic manner rather than in the exaggerated ways which are often preferred by industries like Bollywood. A little bit of mass moments is added only in the end, but that would also be limited to suit the realistic nature of the film. The ending nicely finishes all things well. Maybe, they could have added some moments from back home by the end, but they have done well without it. The idea of the squad itself is inspired by a real-life police team of the same name, which makes the investigation even more interesting. The real-life police officers who investigated similar cases were also contacted. The shooting locations also stay close to the incidents and the journey feels very much real.

The performers of the soul :: Mammootty leads another fine team of police officers, and he does the job with ease, as he has always done, whether it was about brutal power as shown in Christopher or something classic in nature. His character would remain an iconic one here to be remembered for long, along with the squad itself. Rony David Raj plays another fine police officer here, as he continues the good form in similar roles. It is also nice to see Azees Nedumangad in a serious role, and he does his police role incredibly well – coming out of the usual in Star Magic, he has been doing so well in films these days. The team from that show of Flowers will have our attention at all times. Shabareesh Varma makes the next police officer really well, and blends into the team nicely. Kishore’s police role is also notable, while Vijayaraghavan plays the veteran police officer job with ease. Sunny Wayne and Shine Tom Chacko has small cameos to add to it. The women do not have much to do in this film, but the notable performance here is from Afsana Lakshmi who surely has a bright future in front of her. The villains led by Arjun Radhakrishnan and Dhruvan leave a mark with their remorseless and brutal presence with villainy.

How it finishes :: When talking about police investigations which keep close to a realistic mode, Operation Java is the only other film that seems to bring some comparison as relevant. Related to Mammootty and his team of policemen, that would be Unda that would call for the comparison. The visuals keep us going as much as the controlled emotional side and procedure of investigation. The movie’s journey to one of the highest grossers in Malayalam movie industry is very much justified, and as 2018 and RDX: Robert Dony Xavier have already done so well, the year has been a fine one. As we welcome the new year, we look forward with hope for an even better 2024. As of now, I wish you a very happy new year, and hopefully, this will be the one grand year to look out for. Maybe we are hoping for no reason, but that is what we do for every new year. Then we also wish to watch more movies which will stay with us for long.

Release date: 17th November 2023 (Hotstar); 28th September 2023 (Theatre)
Running time: 161 minutes
Directed by: Roby Varghese Raj
Starring: Mammootty, Rony David Raj, Azees Nedumangad, Shabareesh Varma, Kishore, Vijayaraghavan, Sunny Wayne, Arjun Radhakrishnan, Dhruvan, Sarath Sabha, Afsana Lakshmi, Manoj K U, Resh Lamba, Nalneesh Neel, Ankith Madhav, Sivadas Kannur, Mullai Arasi, Sajin Cherukayil, Shebin Benson, S P Sreekumar, Manohar Pandey, Susmita Sur, Saraswat Pandey, Gibin Gopinath, Benzi Mathews, Seju K Eapan, Anoop Trivedi, Avinash Pandey, Catherine Maria

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<<< Click here to go to the previous thriller review.

<<< Click here to go to the previous realistic thriller review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Nalla Nilavulla Rathri

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Vampire Owl: So, do we finally get a slasher in Malayalam?

Vampire Bat: I don’t see a reason why we should not.

Vampire Owl: This is the season when slasher horror has been struggling.

Vampire Bat: That is in Hollywood which has gone weaker in content.

Vampire Owl: We have always required the best of all genres.

Vampire Bat: After all, slasher horror is closer to reality than any other genre.

Vampire Owl: Especially the categories like romance which is far away from truth.

Vampire Bat: And we also have the realization that there is no true feel-good.

Vampire Owl: I can suggest a few feel-bad movies.

Vampire Bat: We just have to live among humans to get the feel-bad.

[Gets some paneer momos and three cups of Darjeeling tea].

What is the movie about? :: Rajeev (Nithin George) and Peter (Rony David) are partners in an organic farming business in the hilly terrain of Idukki. The two have been good friends and collegemates, and two more old friends Dominic (Jinu Joseph) and Joshi (Binu Pappu) join, only two begin a rift between them with a certain ideology conflicting with the need to make profit. The four friends remain a group of two within the team. Kurien (Baburaj) is their old friend who used to be a senior at college, and is into real estate business which has left him in need for a lot of money. The moneylender is all prepared to make a move on his property. The old friends meet on an unexpected day, and decides to work together, along with Kurien’s relative, Paul (Sajin Cherukayil), as if to expand the business, for which Kurien will provide the land. Kurien intends to sell them the land in Shivamogga, which he had brought with a small amount, and through the process, he intends to make them believe that he is doing them a favour. He assures them that this land will help them better.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: As the location is deep into Karnataka, and some help with the language and locals is required, they call another old friend Irumban (Chemban Vinod Jose) who is now living in Mysore and has a certain influence in the area. Both Peter and Rajeev are not happy with this deal, as new plot would mean them losing control over the land which was originally under their names. Dominic understands that there is something about Kurien, and this deal will profit him more than anyone else. As Peter’s daughter needs a surgery soon, he is also reluctant to leave his home. But as the tension builds between them, the four partners decide to go with Kurien and Paul and see the area and make a decision. They also call Aneesh (Ganapathi S Poduval) as their driver, and are soon joined by Irumban at the mansion which is located at the centre of the 200 plus acres of land in the middle of nowhere. But soon they understand that they are not alone, and that someone is stalking them, with Rajeev being murdered. Who could be after them? What would anyone have to do in an area where nobody lives?

The defence of Nalla Nilavulla Rathri :: It is always good to see slasher horror getting something to do in the Malayalam film industry. There are some moments of brilliance in relation to genre, and this has worked differently from the Hollywood slashers. The movie still in the Hollywood style, with the possibility of a sequel kept alive with the open ending. The camera angles and the visuals add nicely to the quality of the film. The chosen setting for the adventure is really good in the middle of nowhere, and the darkness nicely adds to the suspense as safety is never guaranteed for the characters here. The evil human nature to get hold of what is desired is shown here from the beginning itself, and the final moments are also reflections of the same. The inherent evil in man comes out during different moments of the film, as for most people, success and money at the cost of others is the key. Most of the characters never really seem to deserve any sympathy, as they are not straight-forward or righteous in any manner.

The claws of flaw :: As a slasher, the movie could have achieved more, and a better backdrop for the sequence of violent events was also possible. The transformation into a slasher in the form of home invasion thriller often feels complicated as the struggle gets more intense. With this case, the script often makes way for too much of swearing words which could have been avoided – it seems to be a fashion to use these during our times. A bigger and better ending could have also been nice, and some of the action sequences have a little more than required. Slashers can actually use different kind of endings rather than the usual horror. There is some dragging effect which can be seen here, and the struggle towards the end does not help. The predictability factor is also present around here. Those who are looking for serial killers like in Forensic, Anjaam Paathira, John Luther, Twenty One Grams and Paappan might be disappointed.

The performers of the soul :: The movie does not focus on any one character or put the spotlight on anyone who plays any role. Baburaj and Chemban Vinod Jose are the biggest names in the movie, and manages to carry the movie on their shoulders. Chemban surely has that menacing strength which adds to the dark side of the movie. Nithin George of Luca fame and Rony David of Aanandam fame plays the two characters with whom we would feel some sympathy. Binu Pappu plays a solid role among the friends, as we have seen him do earlier in Thallumaala with ease. Jinu Joseph’s negative side is something which we have seen since Iyobinte Pusthakam and he continues to do the same. Sai Kumar’s role is something with power as much as a certain amount of mystery about his nameless character that stays. Ganapathi makes a quick, interesting appearance when least expected. Sajin Cherukayil adds a certain amount of humour around here, but it is also not that much. The female characters do not have much to add to this film – they just come, show their faces and leave as fast as they can.

How it finishes :: Nalla Nilavulla Rathri is the first movie from Sandra Thomas Productions which separated from Friday Film House. This has brought some more spark into the horror genre in the form of a slasher inception. At a time when horror struggles to make an impact, the slasher element can nicely support the process. The movie is progress towards the variety which Malayalam movie industry required in a separate field. There should be no question about the industry’s ability to frighten its audience with blood and gore even more than the usual scares right out darkness and the elements of nature. This can be considered as a positive step towards brining back horror with all its possibilities – with or without the presence of the supernatural. We can always have more than one simple horror film with a ghost wandering around. A supernatural slasher addition can always do wonders to a new generation of scary movies.

Release date: 30th August 2023 (Amazon Prime Video); 30th June 2023 (Theatre)
Running time: 126 minutes
Directed by: Murphy Devasy
Starring: Baburaj, Chemban Vinod Jose, Jinu Joseph, Rony David, Binu Pappu, Nithin George, Sai Kumar, Ganapathi S Poduval, Sajin Cherukayil, Shravan Satya

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Thanneermathan Dinangal

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What is the movie about? :: Jason (Mathew Thomas) is a student in plus one humanities, who manages to get to science stream as one of the students in the class wished to escape from the baffling science, thus exchanging their places. He joins the science batch, but doesn’t really manage to pick up the pace, even though he is able to get into the school cricket team as a medium pace bowler and play frequently in tournaments. Despite being branded as the studious boy in the early stages as he came from a reputed central syllabus school, he soon proved to be below average or sometimes even worse in his studies. He finds some new friends who are like him, and also falls in love with Keerthy (Anaswara Rajan), a girl from the same class, a relationship which stays one-sided, much to his dismay, as he hopes to make some progress in it. There is another girl named Steffy (Gopika Ramesh), but he feels that Keerthy is his true love.

So, what happens with the events to follow? :: But this is the least of his problems as he has problems with another student from the nearby class room. Still, the biggest of his problems is something else, the new Malayalam teacher who comes in the place of the teacher on leave – Ravi Padmanabhan (Vineeth Sreenivasan) is the new teacher whom everyone loves. He keeps teaching in an interesting manner, with stories and even stops other teachers from punishing students. He gets a heroic image in the eyes of the students, and is appreciated by the Principal who considers Ravi to be of the same wavelength as he is. Jason feels that he is a fraud as Ravi doesn’t teach much in the class, and everything that he does is more or less attention-seeking. Keerthy as well as his best friends admires Ravi too, and he has a cold war against the new teacher who seems to have a prejudice against him too. How will his school life progress now?

The defence of Thannermathan Dinangal :: It can be seen that Thannermathan Dinangal doesn’t deviate from its focus at any moment, and this focus is the main things that leads to its success. The movie feels realistic and funny throughout its run, and it also does come up with some nostalgia. We remember how June did the same effectively some time back, and here we are there again. It feels close to life with ease, and the kids of the school are all too good – we notice most of them and we remember them with ease, as they keep coming up with something to memorize. The music is really good, and the song “Ee Jaathikka Thottam, Ee Jaathi Ninte Nottam” stands out with ease, not just with the lyrics and music, but with what we see on the screen with the two youngsters doing a fantastic job. It is one song which can go on to become the song of the year along with a few others.

The claws of flaw :: Some parts of the movie does go a little too much, especially with Vineeth’s teacher character. There is the feeling that this kind of teacher is rather unrealistic, and we are immediately reaching for our dose of willing suspension of disbelief, but in a realistic movie, it is not that easy to use and work on our imagination. The movie could have also shortened the time spent outside the school, and some of the outside characters make less or no impact at all. There are also those extra moments which could have been added, as we look back to our school days. But considered the movies like Oru Adaar Love dealing with plus two life, we understand how difficult it is to come up with a movie like Thannermathan Dinangal – it is even more difficult to have these work for all kinds of audience, and as it seems to be achieved, there is no more searching through the flaws.

The performers of the soul :: Mathew Thomas of the Kumbalangi Nights fame plays the main character in this movie, and he excels as the protagonist. His expressions and dialogues are all too good, and he keeps on impressing us throughout he movie with realistic performance. There is no moment when you feel that he is not living through that school kid. There is the certainty of a lot more coming up as far as this youngster is concerned. We remember him having played a perfect role in his previous movie, and we are always ready to wait for his next movie. Anaswara Rajan of Udaharanam Sujatha fame plays the female lead, and after the recently released Evidey, she has another role in uniform, this time in plus two. She is also natural with her performance here, and the emotional moments are also handled with a certain amount of maturity.

Further performers of the soul :: Then you see Vineeth Sreenivasan doing the teacher character in style – the character might look a little bit strange, but he gives life and energy to that one in an admirable way. We don’t see him in movies that often these days, and we always need a little bit of him at regular intervals – this movie has him back. We had Aravindante Athidhikal last year with the feel-good, and here he has the humour in his hands. Irshad plays the principal of the school nicely. Nisha Sarangh of Uppum Mulakum fame is left to do nothing much here. All the kids here also come up with impressive performances, especially the one who played the main characters’ best friend and the one who has a problem with our protagonist. The watermelon juice from the shop outside the gates of the school and the nutmeg garden contributes as characters in a special way – we see them, and we remember them later, like William Wordsworth would, with the daffodils.

How it finishes :: This kind of a feeling was earlier achieved only with something like Philips and the Monkey Pen, but that was with smaller kids – June had gone beyond the school days as it progressed. Thannermathan Dinangal comes up with the journey that everyone can enjoy, which is the reason why it is still running with housefull shows, something which bigger superstar movies struggle to achieve. It has been a difficult job to find tickets for this movie during this weekend too, and we can be certain that the movie is here to stay. If after watching this movie, you feel the need to go back to your school again, there is no real surprise about it. Thannermathan Dinangal is not a movie of one generation, but of more than one, and you avoid the use of mobile phones, and change the drinks – you get back to the eighties or nineties with ease – well, after all, the 1990s kids nostalgia which have been circulating on the internet has been clearly applicable to the 1980s kids! This one is universal too! I leave you with this beautiful song from the movie.

Release date: 26th July 2019
Running time: 136 minutes
Directed by: Girish AD
Starring: Mathew Thomas, Anaswara Rajan, Vineeth Sreenivasan, Sajin Cherukayil, Irshad, Nisha Sarangh, Kichu Tellus, Shabareesh Varma, Gopika Ramesh

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@ Cemetery Watch
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