Neru

No story, no suspense, just plain.

Expected a stronger and more engaging plot from Jeetu Joseph. Disappointed.

The crime was done and culprit was found in the first ten minutes. Then the seen too many times case where the hero first does not show interest and everyone else requests him to take the case. Hero accepts and then a very ordinary court proceedings follow. No real challenges faced by the hero. Overhyped obstacles. Villain is rich and has employed a Supreme Court advocate. No display of high intelligence from hero. No mass dialogues nor anything engaging.

A mediocre movie made on an interesting topic!

Neru, an emotional court room drama is an absolute masterpiece directed and written by Jeethu Joseph elevated with Mohanlals And Siddiques amazing acting. The story follows the path of Sara a blind girl who is the victim of rape who's role is magnificently done by Anaswara Rajan. She seeks the help Of Vijayamohan, an underconfident lawyer who hasnt been practiced in a long time, this role is fantastically done by Mohanlal. As a malayali seeing Lalettan back at his subtle acting is just mesmerizing. This is proof that directors play an important role when it comes to shaping an actor. Vijayamohan Is Opposed By Rajashekar, a renowned lawyer who has been the enemy of Vijayamohan. This role is brilliantly played by Siddique. Rest of the movie you have to see othwrwise it would be a spoiler. I wouldn't say this is a theatre experiece movie but the film crew managea to hook our eyes to the screen with taking it off. I never felt bored even for a second thats how captivating the entire movie is. Although taking in Jeethu Josephs other works like Drishyam thos movie didnt quite reaxh to its level, it did deliver some goosebumps but i felt that the story was written in favour of Vijayamohan. So, its an average movie elevated with Mohanlals Comeback to Real cinema.

Even with a predictable storyline Jeethu Joseph's mastery of scriptwriting with Shanthi Mayadevi's knowledge as an advocate makes this engaging and effective. Jeethu Joseph has always been a better writer than a director and there are a lot of instances in the movie that clearly shows that aspect. Some of the smaller characters' acting was not very good, the music was overused a lot and there were a few things that could've been trimmed out. But when it works, the film works great. Even though, it's not something very novel, Mohanlal saying some dialogues did make me clap hard, knowing that I'm sitting in a packed theatre with a lot of families. Anaswara and Siddique were brilliant in their roles and Mohanlal has done a role that is subtle, vulnerable and serious in a very effective way after a long time. Despite the film using easy ways to tell a lot of things, despite the plot being nothing new, it being not new makes more of a case of how it is still so important in every aspect, due to which I was very satisfied by the end of the movie.

*** Neru Malayalam Movie Review ***

Directed by Jeethu Joseph starring Mohanlal in the lead..

Also starring Siddique , Anaswara Rajan , Jagadeesh.

*** Drishyam combo struck for a six.***

Although it's mentioned that the movie is a courtroom drama, when it's directed by Jeetu Joseph we could expect the suspense and here too he kept that thrilling mood on.

The courtroom sequences which was nearly 80 percent of the movie was well captured. The moment of what's next in a courtroom will happen is well established and that what makes Jeetu Joseph a brilliant craftsman.

Performance wise Anaswara Rajan had given her career best performance.

Siddique's performance was like at one moment a feel of hatred was developed as the life which he gave to the character was phenomenal.

Last but not the least the Complete Actor Mohanlal, needless to say, this man effortlessly performs and wins the heart of the audience. How his potential can be used effectively, when that realisation happens we would have en number of classics from this legend and Jeetu Joseph knows to exploit him well

A little mass moment from this courtroom drama thereby not spoiling it's core was clap worthy..

The topic is social relevant and it's execution was clap worthy

Overall Neru ends the Mollywood industry 2023 at a good note & giving a hope that Mollywood 2024 will be full of blockbusters.

The same team had done Drishyam 10 years ago, which has become a milestone movie, not just in Malayalam but across Indian movie industry. Any movie they do now will be compared to that movie.

There are some common elements, but Neru is a totally different movie, both the theme and the mood of the movie. This is emotionally more draining than Drishyam, while it does not have the sheer audacity and shock value that Drishyam had

The best part of the movie is the script. After 10 minutes or so, the movie just hooks you in, and you can't look away even for a minute, till the very last scene in the climax, which will most probably leave you teary eyed.

Performances are top notch. Special mentions to Sidhique and Jagadish. Two actors who were doing Tier 2 comedy movies 30 years ago, but their acting careers are on a totally high trajectory.

But this movie is carried by Mohanlal and then Anaswara Rajan. Yes, Mohanlal is one of the greatest actors in India and his performance is expected, but Anaswara matches him best for best. Their scene together in the first half and then in the climax will leave you spell bound

On the flip side, don't expect any out of the world movie making techniques. Technically the movie is just passable, but that is a typical Jeethu Joseph style. He let the script and performances take centre stage. The Cameraman, editor and music director just do their job in the back ground

Last but not the least, spare a thought for the genius of Jeethu. Making one edge of the seat thriller like Drishyam is impossible for 9/10 writer directors. But he has now done 4 movies at that level (Drishyam 1 & 2, Memorie and Neru). Hats off man, and hope you outdo yourself in your next one.