Nizhal-S0E0

9/10 A judge dealing with PTSD gets to know about a boy who narrated a murder story. Feeling that there might be some connection with the boy's story and his PTSD he investigates the details. The story of the boy turns out to be true but the murder happened more than 20 years ago. The judge decides to find out how the boy knew about the murder. On paper the story sounds simple but as a film I found the film to be very engaging. The making of the film is superb. I really liked the film. The background music was awesome and created an amazing soundscape. There was always a tension on the screen as if a screw is being tightened. Story moves along the line of a psychological horror and has a surreal feel to it. There is a twist towards the end, in fact two twists that really surprised me. The acting was superb by Kunchacko Boban and Nayanthara. Especially Kunchacko Boban , the way he portrayed the subtleties of his character is amazing. If you are in a mood for a slow burn thriller go for it. It is a mix of thriller, romance, slice of life with a dash of horror. I did not expect to enjoy the film as much as did. Would love to see more films like this.

This movie would have been way more impactful had it been atleast half an hour shorter. A good portion of the film has the characters talking to each other in coffee shops with not much going on and I honestly struggled to keep my eyes open. There are several unnecessary conversations in the film that could have been left at the editing table. The only purpose it serves is to bore the viewer. All the main exposition happens in the last 15min or so and when you look back you realise a lot of the slow scenes in the beginning had very little to do with the actual crux of the film. However this is a decent watch and makes you wonder what the heck is going on. I just wished they told it with a sense of urgency.

This movie builds up as if there is a serious story and issue up their sleeve but in reality it is very childish and boring. Technical side is good but story and screenplay is a real let down. There is no thrill in the story and it is a drag for most part. This films making is in exact opposite to the recently released and excellent movie Nayattu. Which had very realistic making with no extra build up and relied on the story to thrill and create seat edge moments. This movie doesn't make any impact to the audience and had a childish story in its core which is real let down. They should have worked on it more and made an interesting as the base to start with.

How does a 7 year old, innocent schoolchild know the specifics of crimes which transpired 25 years ago? Has someone been feeding him these stories? Does his dead father communicate with him? Why does a man wearing a 'batman' like mask befriend the boy? Malayalam movie #Nizhal is supposed to be a whodunit, but the slow pace is a downer. Running time should be reduced by 20 minutes. Cinematography n performances r good. Rating 2.5/5.

The plotline of this thriller is a rather unconventional one; but very enjoyably so. As the movie progresses, the plot thickens with constant twists and turns that'll keep you gripped and guessing till the very end. Since the movie builds up a good amount of suspense, I was worried that the climax of the movie will fail to deliver like most movies that start off strong and end flat. But to my surprise, the climax was rather satisfactory, albeit slightly over the top (no pun intended). On close scrutiny, you'll start noticing that a lot of the nuances in the plotline seem to very conveniently fall in place; however if you choose to overlook these minor practicality issues (which you should in my humble opinion), you are sure to enjoy this oddball thriller. Most of the cast put up a pretty decent performance; however, the performances of Kunchacko Boban as John Baby and Rony David as Rajan were truly exceptional and stood out from the rest. To add to that, great cinematography (albeit with average CGI), great sound design, great direction and a very good pace make this movie a definite WATCH.

Great story. Direction good. Actor's too good. Thriller movie.

Nizhal is a thriller movie currently streaming on Primevideo in orig. Malayalam w/Eng. Subs. It was a lot more engrossing than expected. The film starts on a somewhat eerie note with the sudden sound of a car crash on a forest road waking a (fake looking) frogmouth type of bird. The bird wakes but just blinks. Quite effective, had it been a real bird. Cut to : A judicial magistrate John Baby (Kunchacko Boban) recovering from a bad car accident, resumes his court duties wearing a peculiar Batman type of nose guard while his nose heals. This of course causes a mild flutter in the staid courtroom atmosphere and left me wondering if it was a Batman type fantasy film, which fortunately it is not! The accident has left Baby seeing rain showers when it is not raining at all. His doctor assures him this is a temporary PTSD and will pass. Baby's boss the CJM (Saiju Kurup) is also very supportive. Baby's best friends (Rony David) and his psychologist wife Shalini (Divya Prabha) also reassure and encourage him. Shalini mentions about her patient, a young boy Nitin (Izin Hash) referred by his school as he bizarrely narrates murder incidents and obscure place names which a child of that age should have no inkling about. She arranges for Baby to meet Nitin and his mother Sharmi (Nayanthara). Baby is more than intrigued and starts investigations which indeed turn up a skeleton ...... going back a few decades. No Spoilers, whoever has bothered to read this far can watch or not watch per their inclination. The narrative continues in this vein, sometimes rather scary though this is not a horror or supernatural film even if one is led to believe so for a moment. The locations are realistic, some beautiful old houses showcased, the best scenery of Hogenakkal and overall effective cinematography. The film has its moments of medium suspense though not of the edge of your seat variety, and there are quite a few loose ends such as why Baby is being followed which is not disclosed. The courtroom scenes are quite humorous with a sly satirical dig or two here and there! Kunchacko Boban essays his role well. Nayanthara is okay. The child actor Izan Hash is somewhat stilted but looks cute enough. Saiju Kurup, Rony David, Divya Prabha, Baby's mother (Srilatha), his court clerk Valsala (Jolly Chirayath), his driver, the old man Vishwanathan(Lal) and all the police characters are realistic and effective but their roles are limited. The background music is tacky and soap opera melodramatic style sound effects which take the overall film down a notch or two. The last song in the end frames is good. Overall, very watchable. Despite the flaws I liked Nizhal much better than Kunchacko Boban's superhit Anjaam Pathira. Though his best film till date remains the outstanding Take Off .....

Despite a smooth, flowing and aesthetically pleasing narrative style from debutant director Appu N Bhattathiri and an earnest lead performance from Kunchacko Boban, a simplistic, unsatisfactory climax reduces Nizhal to a below-average watch. Kunchacko Boban stars as a judge who takes interest in a strange case while recovering from a bout of PTSD following an accident. Nayanthara's character comes into his life as a stereotypical single mom who in desperate need of a saviour for her troubled son, In a criminally underwritten role, an actor of Nayanthara's stature is reduced to a one-dimensional caricature and it makes you wonder why she even opted for this movie. What promises to be a psychological thriller loses itself slowly as it delves into the supernatural, due to half-baked and unconvincing writing. While there have been many success stories of murder investigations clubbed with elements of the supernatural (Pretham, Ezra etc), this isn't one. In the new Golden age of Malayalam thrillers of the likes of Anjaam Paathiraa, Operation Java and Drishyam 2, this is just a pale, uninspiring attempt. Not recommended.

The movie from the release of its first look had created an excitement in movie buffs. But the fact is that it couldn't break the expectation level. The first half was very impressive and it seemed to be a new plot. The viewers who moved to the second half with great anxiety were disappointed as the movie ended as a normal film with many questions remaining unanswered. For a film with such a good start deserves better a tail end. But the direction and photography are appreciable. The bgm was nice as it could create a psycho mood. Also the casting is perfect and each and every actor even those who appear only for a single scene have done their part very well...