2018 is just round the corner, and looking back, here is a carefully picked out bunch of films that made a resounding impression during the former cinematic year. Picking the top five favourites from an expansive lot is quite a daunting task without doubt, and there are bound to be a few misses whichever way you look at it. And yet, here is the year-end list – the A-List of Five Spectacular Malayalam Films of 2018 – that comprises of five cinematic gems, not in any particular order, that made it to the screen in 2018.
2018 is just round the corner, and looking back, here is a carefully picked out bunch of films that made a resounding impression during the former cinematic year. Picking the top five favourites from an expansive lot is quite a daunting task without doubt, and there are bound to be a few misses whichever way you look at it. And yet, here is the year-end list – the A-List of Five Spectacular Malayalam Films of 2018 – that comprises of five cinematic gems, not in any particular order, that made it to the screen in 2018.
Ee Ma Yau
It has come to a point when every Lijo Jose Pellissery film is automatically equated with excellence in craft and 2018 was no exception. Lijo laid out fresh designs of iventiveness in his latest film ‘Ee Ma Yau’ that stunned audiences across the world. Playing out like a haunting dirge, with ‘Ee.Ma.Yau’ Lijo Jose Pellissery surpasses himself, asserts once and for all that he’s a master craftsman who sees his dough even in a theme that is as stiff and unmalleable as a corpse (pun intended), and thereby astutely crafts a chimerical ode to mortality. Hauling a perfect family portrait off the walls, Lijo smashes it on the floor, leaving us horrified beside a blue, lifeless body that grows colder by the minute, a bunch of riotous, bawling mourners and glimpses of nothing less than what looks like hell opening up above, as streaks of lightning intermittently part the dark skies.
Read the Ee Ma Yau Review!
Sudani from Nigeria
I have never perhaps been as moved by a Malayalam film in recent times, as by Zakariya Mohammed’s ‘Sudani from Nigeria’ the surprise winner of 2018, that silently arrived and swept away a million viewer hearts. Heartbreaking, hilarious and hopeful by turns, ‘Sudani from Nigeria’ is a glorious triumph whichever way you look at it, be it the exemplary performances, the proficient scripting or the competent direction.
Read the Sudani from Nigeria Review!
Varathan
Amal Neerad’s take on ‘Straw Dogs’ would be a perennial favourite for the dread that it had sown in our minds, for the impeccable artistry of the film maker in adapting it to the local milieu and the astounding performances from the leading cast. Amal Neerad’s uncompromising portrait of disillusionment and of a paradise lost and forcefully regained is a searing piece that simply slices right through you. ‘Varathan’ is a slow burning tour-de-force that is dark and disturbing by turns and a foreboding cinematic experience that is impossible to shake away, let alone forget.
Read the Varathan Review!
Joseph
The year- ender that sprung a surprise on us was M Padmakumar’s ‘Joseph’, that would be remembered for long for the actor that Joju George is, and belongs to the category of films, where an actor towers over everything else around with an astounding performance that overwhelms. Even as controversies regarding the authenticity of its claims raged on, ‘Joseph’ was viewed and applauded for the cinematic techniques that it so blatantly flaunted. Tracing the contours of a man who has lost everything in life, ‘Joseph’ is a film that holds within, a pertinent note that certainly deserves an afterthought.
Read the Joseph Review!
Captain
Perhaps one of the best biographies that had ever made it to the screen in Malayalam, Prajesh Sen’s ‘Captain’, shines the spotlight on the life and unfortunate demise of an incredible footballer, who wore unrivalled accomplishments on his sleeve. A glorious tribute to a player who eventually got worn out grappling with personal demons, Sen’s malleable biopic is a perceptive portrayal of the player, and more importantly, the man that V P Sathyan was.
Read the Captain Review!