Stephen

For the reviewers who talk about unknown, amateurish actors, compare that to the seasoned cast of thug life. They could not avoid the oncoming disaster.

Songs were nice and so were the main actors. Story stalled around 2/3rd of the movie but resumed soon enough.

The twists and turns made it worth the roughly 2 hour long movie.

Mithun Balaji directs this OTT-released dark thriller, presenting an exceptionally well-crafted screenplay. The film's experimental narrative is anchored by Gomathi Shankar's tremendous, applause-worthy performance as Stephan Jebaraj (a role he co-wrote with Balaji). The palpable dedication and commitment from the entire team make this a mandatory watch.

When it comes to serial-killer films in Tamil cinema, the mission has almost always been moralistic. These stories tend to warn us that our own misplaced actions can create a monster who returns to collect his dues, or that society's apathy breeds a wounded soul who goes on a murderous spree to deliver a twisted "lesson". Netflix's latest original Tamil film, Stephen, attempts exactly that: to unravel what goes on inside such an unsettling psyche. The film begins with the titular character strolling into a police station and callously confessing to nine murders, casually dropping a body count the way others make small talk. From there, the narrative sharpens into a whydunit rather than a whodunit, slicing backwards through events as it tries to probe the killer's motivations.

Stephen Jebaraj's (Gomathi Shankar) confession should have made this case dead on arrival, an open-and-shut file in a dusty police cabinet. He calmly admits to killing nine women with the ease of a man ordering tea while the entire police force is frantically hunting for the perpetrator. But just when the investigation seems ready for burial, the court orders a sanity assessment, forcing the authorities to exhume a far more troubling question: not "who", not even "how", but "why". And in the world of psychological thrillers, the "why" is always the sharpest angle.

Within the first ten minutes, the film is already in motion, locking its three primary characters, Stephen, Michael (Michael Thangadurai), and Seema (Smruthi Venkat), into a narrative triangle sharp enough to cut through the film's tension. A chilling prison psychological session between Stephen and Dr Seema even momentarily transports us back to episode three of Netflix's Adolescence. While Owen Cooper's portrayal of an unpredictable, nerve-fraying teenager in Adolescence shook audiences to their core, Gomathi Shankar comes close here; no small feat, considering he's playing an adult whose crimes are far more cold-blooded.

The narrative oscillates between timelines, slipping from Seema's probing interrogations to fragments of Stephen's childhood and upbringing. The makers have clearly chosen not to spoon-feed the audience, and that restraint pays off when the final act lands with a clean, psychological stab. Despite the frequent jumps between the past and the present, the writing holds it together with a steady hand, ensuring the viewing experience never becomes a messy crime scene. Yet, the screenplay does take a few convenient shortcuts, making some red herrings look a little too pink from the start. Take the early stretch where Stephen films his victims auditioning before murdering them. Among the many women, one delivers a line he clearly doesn't anticipate. And at that very moment, you know she's going to resurface, classic subterfuge, almost waving at us from the shadows. While this doesn't derail the overall experience, it does slightly blunt the otherwise sharp and clever writing the film takes pride in. Additionally, the narrative also proceeds step by step, like any other investigative thriller, except that here the chronology seems too pre-planned. Yes, investigators think of another angle only if one theory fails. But with all doubts arising only after the previous ones proved incorrect, it kills the thrill of uncertainty, which is key to any serial killer film.

With the film's focus quite literally revolving around Stephen, the protagonist's performance becomes the one factor that determines whether the film cuts deep or barely grazes the skin. Gomathi Shankar portrays paranoia, guilt, emotional baggage, doubt, and a host of festering inner conflicts with the finesse which is not expected in a newbie. In a scene, his late parents come back alive as voices in his head, rendering him vulnerable and powerless long after their demise. His portrayal of paranoia and doubt here underlines how a dysfunctional upbringing and unresolved trauma can rewire a human brain, making him a product of forces beyond his control.

The makers also repeatedly return to the metaphor of a Ferris wheel, a symbol that initially seems simple: no one stays permanently at the top or bottom; life is a relentless rotation of highs and lows. But just when we think we've decoded its meaning, the final act delivers a 360-degree pivot that flips our understanding and lands a twist slicker than a knife slicing a throat. The film seems to hit its climax with fifteen minutes still left on the clock, leaving us wondering what more there is to say. On one hand, that leftover time is used to dangle the bait of a sequel, a move that, in the moment, sparks more indifference than intrigue. But on the other hand, there's an unexpected unravelling that forces us to reassess everything we've watched over the past one hour and forty-five minutes. The ending achieves a sly, meta quality: just as Stephen the psychopath expertly gaslights his investigators, the film quietly manipulates us too. It's a twisty, cerebral payoff - rewarding for the audience, redeeming for the film.

If anything, Stephen is a film best experienced without spoilers, even though the "who" is never in question. And if you're still searching for what Stephen ultimately wants to say, Dr Seema sums it up with disarming clarity: "Oru thani patta manithan edukara mudivum, avanoda choice-um dhaan avana nallavana illa kettavana nu theermanikudhu." In the end, the film shows that a man can fool the world but never the voice inside his own head.

At first the Movie is a decent One Time Watch. So don't tag it as Masterpiece as per trend of Malayalam industry.

Story is based on a psychological killer. The guy who acted as a Stephen Character, absolutely stolen the whole movie. He deserves more movies like this. His psycho acting totally looks realistic. I would rate 10 out of 10 for his acting. But the story of the movie is as usual as other thriller movies and investigation is as common as typical Malayalam thriller movie. Though, story does not feel boring. I have watched this only because it is released on a trusty platform for stories like Netflix. So if you love to watch psychological thriller, then you can surely try this once.

It is a physiological thriller film. The storyline is good and engaging, but the casting is not very impressive. The doctor character is portrayed well, and that character works.

However, if this strong story had been given to a better actor, the film would have received much more attention.

The direction is not that remarkable.

It feels very much like a low-budget movie in many scenes.