Anjaam Pathiraa

I am marvelled at South's ability to churn out quality thrillers one after another. Anjaam Pathira (The Fifth Midnight) is the latest Malayalam film to be a part of this bandwagon.

The story is about a shadowy serial killer who targets Cops!!! After a string of gruesome killings, Kochi Police DCP Catherine (Unnimaya) upon the advice of ACP Anil (Jinu) ropes in criminal psychologist Anwar Hussain (Kunchako) to help them crack the case. Together they begin the hunt for the perpetrator who employs brutal and unique methods for committing the murders.

I have always believed grit is the most vital component of a thriller. The moment you lose the tempo, the story is bound to lose the edge. This is where the movie scores brilliantly. Writer Director Midhun Manuel Thomas renders a taut tale where we come across ghastly crimes, compelling scenes and sharp twists & turns at every crucial juncture. This engaging treatment which doesn't allow the tone to slack off is the movie's strongest asset. Yes there are flaws. There are certain minute details which call for an explanation (the figurine story, the burning incident hypothesis). English dialogues appeared a bit contrived. There are a few cliches which could have been avoided.

But Anjaam Pathira overall remains a riveting tale of suspense where the right elements are combined in apt proportions. There are horrific crimes, startling revelations and a good backstory. One can't help drawing a parallel to the Tamil movie Ratsasan (The Devil). While Ratsasan had a more interesting plot development, Anjaam Pathira's ending is better fleshed out.

You will love it.

Watched 3 times The credit goes to casting, acting,Scripting ,music,Direction,camera and editing equally. Everything was perfect .All together my score 97/100. Everything was perfect This one is not like the other stereotype thrillers. I have 2 request only. Everyone should watch the movie in theaters and please don't try to spoil.

The director that we knew and loved from the Aadu series makes a roaring comeback with Anjaam Pathiraa, a murder mystery thriller that keeps you hooked throughout. Midhun Manuel Thomas deftly combines a haunting background score with smart visuals and an in-form Kunjacko Boban to gradually build suspense and intrigue, delivering the best Malayalam crime thriller I have seen since Memories and Drishyam.

Although there are significant plot holes towards the end, the well written characters and their back stories leave you wanting for more. Loved the subtle homages to Hannibal Lecter and to the Creep series in the second half.

An engaging thriller and surely the first big hit of 2020!

This is definitely a worth watching murder mystery thriller. The thrilling tone is maintained right from the beginning till the end.

At first, some initial scenes may give an impression that the movie would become goofy as it progresses. But it doesn't. It maintains the amount of seriousness and logic one expects out of such movies.

There is absolutely no digression from the main story. No songs. No super star heroism. No melodrama.

The plot is one hell of a one. Keeps us really engaged.

Coming to acting, Kunchacko Boban did his part of a psychologist neatly. Then there is a stellar performance from Unnimaya Gopan. There are other excellent performances which cannot be told without it being spoilers.

Music really elevates the scenes and thrills to another level. The camera work was good even though it could have been made better. The editing was very good.

If there are flaws, they are all minor ones. Even though the story/plot is clearly the winner here, some parts in the beginning of the second act made the plot go slow. But it soon gets compensated as the movie goes forward. It can also be said that the last few scenes had some minor problems with logic. But it doesn't really compromise on the thrills and suspense.

Another minor problem was the character of Sreenath Bhasi. He comes as a young techie. The character is one in which Bhasi has got typecasted. His presence was mainly to give some comic relief. Such a character's presence cannot actually be justified. But it doesn't really affect the whole movie. Just a minor flaw. Maybe they didn't have the confidence to make the film without any comic relief.

The dialogues at some points felt a bit artificial. But for the most part they were good.

All these minor problems are just nitpicking. If you want to see a murder mystery thriller movie with a very good plot, you definitely need to see this.