Arshaly Jose
An unrecognisable Sunny Wayne as a rubber tapper in the hills of central Kerala is the most familiar face in Appan. With no big names attached, director Maju with his co-writer R Jayakumar manages to pack a disturbing story of generational trauma in a toxic family set exclusively in a middle-class home.
It's difficult to claim one Lijo Jose Pellissery film to be “his best” since each work in his filmography bursts with a sense of whimsy and realism. But one can call Churuli his most confusing (in the best way) film yet, which is a delightful concoction of science fiction, mysticism and surrealism.
Saudi Vellaka, the sweetest film on this list rewrites the popular adage — Justice delayed isn’t justice denied, it is injustice, to both parties involved and makes an earnest plea for quicker resolution of cases.
Bhoothakaalam in Malayalam means 'past' as well as 'time of spirits', both of which fittingly describe this film. It is a psychological horror thriller where the ghosts of the past are just as visceral as the ghosts in the haunted home.
When a film is titled ‘The Arbit Documentation of An Amphibian Hunt: Aavasavyuham’, it generates curiosity. This Best Film winner in the Kerala State Awards by writer-director Krishand is as experimental as it can get.
In Puzhu, Superstar Mammootty plays (rather becomes) Kuttan, a bigoted upper-caste single dad with OCD. We have seen the actor essay fathers who go to extreme lengths for their children multiple times and we forget all of that when we see Kuttan, with military precision, churn out punishments and play recorded happy moments with his late wife.
In Kaanekkaane, a grey-haired Paul (Suraj Venjaramoodu, who carries the loneliness in his eyes) after a year-long self-imposed exile after the death of his daughter Sherin (Shruthi Ramachandran), visits his son-in-law Allen (Tovino Thomas) and his new wife (Aishwarya Lekshmi) for his grandson, Kuttu’s birthday.