10 UNDERAPPRECIATED MALAYALAM FILMS you must watch

film Adwaitham

Like in the case of every other creative area, diversity in human taste has proved over time to be a very tricky thing with films and their successes. Now you could take any definition of success- its popularity or critical acceptance. Since one man’s trash is another man’s treasure, it shouldn’t be surprising when films applauded by critics, are booed by the masses, and the ones they snub end up breaking commercial records. Yet it somehow seem to always make sense as to why some thrive and some others bomb, except for a handful of films whose destinies seem far too bizarre, especially those ones that fail to get the attention they deserve- from public, or critics, or both, for no apparent reason- blame it on bad timing or lack of promotion or that very enigmatic reason like the one behind sudden unexpected death syndrome. There are also films that were successful at the time of release but were quickly forgotten in comparison to their far inferior counterparts that live on in pop culture. Following is a list of some of the most overlooked, underrated and forgotten films in the history of Malayalam cinema that deserve a far more superior place in our film canon.

10 MALAYALAM MOVIES WITH KIDS AS CENTRAL CHARACTERS worth your time

film 101 Chodyangal

Except a handful of them, films about children somehow don’t seem to get the kind of attention they deserve in Malayalam, be it in terms of production or reception. Maybe we grownups don’t care enough to look at things through a child’s perspective anymore, conveniently forgetting how we were all there once. Or maybe, we’ve always been looking at it the wrong way. However the results of some of the few attempts in Malayalam Cinema at capturing the innocence and unpredictability of childhood cannot be ignored, especially some recent ones that seem especially promising. Following is a list of such Malayalam films featuring kids as central characters, although not always narrated through their perspective.

10 BOOK-TO-MOVIE ADAPTATIONS IN MALAYALAM worth your time

film Akam

Films that are adaptations of literary classics have never been received as well as those ones with original scripts. One major reason is the limitations that one man’s perception puts on the wild imaginings of countless readers that have already constructed the visual language individually in their minds. So it inadvertently has to be something that trumped these divergent visualizations. It only gets trickier when the literary works are more popular, as the success of its film adaptation heavily relies on appeasing a wider imaginative spectrum. Movie adaptations of famous books were a major draw in the Malayalam cinema since the 1950s, and it only grew rampant in the 60s. Although the fad slightly waned by the 70s, a few good adaptions graced us with their ingenuity every once in a while ever since. Following is a list of a handful of such book-to-movie adaptations in the Malayalam language that are worth your time.

25 MALAYALAM MOVIES FROM THE 1980s you don’t want to miss

film Nadodikattu

One of the most sought after decades by filmmakers and film enthusiasts alike, the coveted 1980s were an absolute treat in the Malayalam Cinema. There was no dearth to quality subject matter or their brilliant executions, which is why a major part of the so-called golden era of Malayalam films is proudly placed in here. Following is a list of some of the best films from the 1980s you absolutely don’t want to miss.

12 MALAYALAM MOVIES BASED ON FAMOUS PLAYS

film Kaliyattam

Kerala has a lingering and deep-rooted tradition of theatre, dating back to the aristocratic days of Ashtapadiyattom, Koodiyattom, Krishnanattom and finally Ramanattom that would further evolve into the distinguished Kathakali. However these forms of art that back then catered only to the blue-blooded tastes of the privileged, slowly began to take up the cause of the suppressed and the downtrodden with the advent of our very own renaissance, although in its most primitive form and simpler techniques. It gradually evolved through the ups and downs as strong voices against all social injustices, perfecting the form as it progressed. Then the revolutionary theatre movement called the Kerala People’s Art Club, popularly known as KPAC, came into being, and acceptance of plays as works of art as well as strong medium of expression increased. With the prominence of films as the newest medium of art, many of their plays were successfully adapted to the silver screen, and the trend continues to this day, even if it was a non-KPAC play or a non-Malayalam play. Following is a list of such Malayalam films based on famous plays that you should check out just in case you are a huge fan of the theatre.

10 MALAYALAM THRILLER FILMS that will keep you on the edge till the very end

film Mumbai Police

Thrillers have always been one of the most popular genres in storytelling as there is not another variety that is so naturally and quickly involving. There is a reason as to why Agatha Christie is literally the best selling novelist of all time according to the Guinness Book of World Records, and why she is the most published, only behind Shakespeare and the Bible. Such is the reach of suspense and thriller stories. In movies, Hitchcock, the ‘Master of Suspense’, is still an all time favorite, and is one of the most revered filmmakers who specialized in suspense and thriller films. We have a fair share of thrillers in the Malayalam language as well, and the more recent exploration into the genre shows an increased number of promising films that commit to realistic execution of the same, successfully instilling suspense, anxiety, surprise, excitement and nail-biting anticipation in the viewers. Following is a list of such movies in the thriller genre in Malayalam that are worth your time, be it action, crime, psychological, legal or medical.

5 OF THE BEST POLITICAL SATIRES IN MALAYALAM CINEMA

film Vellimoonga

The role criticisms have had in the evolution of the quintessential Malayali psyche is immensely consequential, and it's difficult to isolate a Malayali from his or her endless concerns for society, commerce, bureaucracy and numerous things under the sun in daily realities of life even if it was only for the sake of a chitchat or an argument. Based on such criticisms, there are a handful of good satires that came into being in the Malayalam language- thanks to veteran satirists like Sreenivasan- including a few of those really sharp ones that penalize our questionable political framework. Following is a list of such piercing political satires that successfully drove home the message without being all sanctimonious about it.

10 ROMANTIC FILMS IN MALAYALAM worth your time

film Annayum Rasoolum

The sheer idea of romance, in general, has never stopped being a part and parcel of Indian Cinema from the time of its very conception, let alone in the Malayalam language. Be it an action thriller, political satire or a murder mystery, romance somehow seemed to always make its way into even the unlikeliest of turfs. The protagonists are always expected to have a love interest, and they are invariably covered in the eventual scripts how much ever fleeting it may be. Romantic comedies are one of the most successful genres, and the sensational records of films of the likes of Thenmavin Kombath, Godfather and Chithram says a lot about their reach (which is why they will be accounted for in another list altogether). Even a complex film like Thoovanathumbikal that deals with a man’s tussle with the lines separating love and lust and his quest thereof is remembered more as a romantic film although it’s so much more than that. Then there are those serious romantic films mostly falling in the drama genre, where love between the lead characters is the main focus. However there always seem to be a level of associated schmaltziness that requires some quality taming for a decent output with these types, call it jinx or occupational hazard (that jaded films like Madanolsavam and Aniyathipravu), but there certainly is a handful of those ones too. Following is a list of some such films that stays clear of the corny and that are totally worth your time if you are a fan of the genre.

10 GREAT INDIE FILMS IN MALAYALAM FROM THE PARALLEL CINEMA MOVEMENT

film Elippathayam

Even after the formula movies of the 1950s gave way to adaptations of popular literary works in the 60s, the look, feel and the general choice of story premise in Malayalam cinema was still badly in need of a revolution, and, thanks to everything influential about the Italian Neorealism, an uprising happened very soon. As an upshot of the 50s’ Parallel cinema movement by movie giants of the likes of Satyajit Ray and Mrinal Sen that was greatly influenced by the Italian Neorealism, Malayalam cinema also underwent a radical makeover, and a new stream of films came into being right from the beginning of the 1970s lead by Adoor Gopalakrishnan, G.Aravaindan, John Abraham and the like. These films were characterized by serious subject matter that took into consideration the sociopolitical situations prevalent at the time, and their realistic depictions strictly devoid of the song and dance routine. The following list sticks to the 1970s and 80s that marked the boom of the parallel cinema, which gradually reduced in number and gave way to their much more canonical middle-stream counterparts.

10 ESSENTIAL FILMS OF THE MALAYALAM NEO NEW WAVE thus far

film 1983

We faltered, and then we learned. At least so it appears from the drastic change- both in quality and earnestness- noticeable in films that are being made since 2010 in the Malayalam language. As opposed to the spell of kitschy products that were churned out in the 2000s, a genus of new experimental cinema is visibly in the making, and not to be misunderstood with the groundbreaking New Wave that uplifted Malayalam Cinema in the 1970s, this new age movement, bidding on smaller themes and unconventional narrative techniques, seems to have taken shape from a willful attempt to stay away from the formulaic Malayalam blueprint that had grown to full-fledged tripe in the 2000s. Like never before, a plethora of films addressing the life and issues of the expat and the urban Malayali also came into being, and a volley of exceedingly unconventional characters took shape in these stories. Although this intentional cry ‘to be different at any cost’ has intermittently created a bunch of cocky unsavory results, there are also some fruitful efforts with popular appeal that stood out in their thematic excellence and alternative executions. Following is a list of ten such new generation films that will give you an introduction to the merits of the Malayalam NEO NEW WAVE. Let’s hope this ‘wave’ takes a really high sweep before it turns to land, or never land all.

15 MALAYALAM MOVIES FROM THE 2000s you don’t want to miss

film Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja

Literally the Dark Ages in the history of Malayalam Cinema, the noughties was an absolute disaster as much with their mindless choices of subjects as with their appalling executions. More often than not they were characterized by a general lack of sensitivity, jarring aesthetics and outlandish productions. It was also a period when the graph of theatregoers drastically plummeted, and quite not unreasonably. An industry that was known to produce gems of the likes of Moonnam Pakkam, Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha and Bharatham brilliantly blurring the difficult lines that separated the egotistical art-house cinema from their popular formulaic counterparts, was reduced to mind numbing idiocy and larger-than-life mockery with absolute disregard for visual imagery, and lasted almost an agonizingly long decade. However amidst the storm of such mass stinkers there were occasional glimmers of hope that kept our faith in the art form from totally dying out a wretched death. Following is a list of such rays of hope that was a saving grace and an exception to the barrage of bad taste that ruled the decade.

7 FANTASY FILMS IN MALAYALAM that are worth seeing

film Njan Gandharvan

For a people that viewed anything slightly deviating from the normal with distrust or sarcasm, creating something that challenged realism altogether remained a dare forever. In cinema, fantasy has never been a successful Malayali staple, although it was tried one too many times, and not entirely without occasional successes. But they never earned the appreciation that films with realistic themes did, maybe owing to the alien nature of its subject matter, or due to a general incompetence in convincingly executing the essential surreal imagery. However this had not completely deterred our filmmakers, who occasionally used fantasy to form the spine of narration as in the form of the apparition of St. Francis in Pranchiettan & the Saint and the comic plot line with the lead ghosts in Ayushkaalam and Pappan Priyapetta Pappan. But to step a few serious paces ahead, the challenge was mostly to stay within the confines of realism and put forward the idea of fantasy unhurriedly and as matter-of-factly as possible. Following is a list of such bold attempts in Malayalam language that were both indigenous enough to involve the audience and effective enough to enchant them, far from the glitz and magnanimity of its Hollywood parallels that had long owned the genre.

10 VISUALLY STUNNING MALAYALAM MOVIES of all time

film Vanaprastham

Inspired by his own inherent obsession with good looks, Man has reserved a considerable judgment based on appearance even when it comes to his own creations. This has formed the basis of art appreciation the world over, even movie critiquing. While there is no dearth of good-looking films in Malayalam in general, there might be a serious scarcity of those ones with quality. There is also a general tendency to assume a visually stunning film to be one with lots of style and absolutely no substance. So the following ten Malayalam films are chosen on the basis of its artistic merit as much as their visual relevance.

12 MALAYALAM MURDER MYSTERY MOVIES totally worth your time

# No Spoilers #

film Mukham

Long before the invention of cinema, mystery stories, and most of all, murder mysteries have been observed to be of high entertainment value as short stories, novels as well as plays. Then movies came, and they started making murder mystery movies that were a hugely popular genre, and that has continued to evolve in setting and style as the time went by. In Malyalam cinema, this genre has had a wide palette of patrons and a wider range of audience to relish it. We have always loved them! Following is a list of some of the greatest murder mystery movies in the Malayalam language that is absolutely worth your time.

20 MALAYALAM MOVIES FROM THE 1990s you don’t want to miss

Still from film Vanaprastham

When the golden years of the 80s came to a close in Malayalam cinema, there wasn’t much anybody assumed could be made to trump the sheer excellence of it’s creativity and inventive oeuvre. But what followed in the 90s was not all that disappointing in the beginning, with its fair share of brilliance that would gradually thin out, but not disappear completely even by the end of it. Hence here is a list of those ones that you certainly don’t want to miss from the decade following the prime. Since Malayali audience has never been prejudiced about studio films and independent films, the list have a mixture of commercial as well as art-house movies from all genres possible.