2013 gave us a lot to cherish as far as Malayalam movies were concerned. There were many sparkling individual performances , fantastic scripts that held our attention throughout and brilliant narrations by the directors. There were also many memorable movie scenes – ones which we are definitely going to revisit a lot in coming years. Here are my favorite movie moments of 2013
**SPOILER ALERT** – If you haven’t watched the below movies yet, I would recommend that you come back and read after watching them as most of the scenes involve important twists and turns from these movies
**SPOILER ALERT** – If you haven’t watched the below movies yet, I would recommend that you come back and read after watching them as most of the scenes involve important twists and turns from these movies
1) MEMORIES – The Thrilling Climatic Sequence
To have that thrilling moment at the end of your movie which makes sure the audience stand up and clap for you as they leave the theaters- It would be something that every director wish for . Jeethu Joseph achieved this rare feat for his 2 movies in a row in 2013. The scene in Memories especially where Prithviraj calls the name of his colleague, distracts the killer ,takes the fish jar in a flash and pulls the trigger through it is one of the most brilliantly acted, stylishly executed and adrenaline pumping moments of the year.
2) DRISHYAM – The final meeting between Georgekutty and Prabhakar
Thanks Jeethu Joseph for giving us that old Mohanlal back ! When was the last time I saw this man in such terrific form and watched a completely satisfied Mohanlal movie. Udayanaanu Tharam or even before that – I don’t remember! Its no wonder that Drishyam is continuing to make waves across the state. Its his trademark subtlety which separates Mohanlal from other great actors and it was seen in abundance in Drishyam. Especially brilliant is his acting in the final few scenes of the movie when he tells Meena that the secret where the body is buried will go with him to the grave and when he walks away from the police station revealing the big secret to us. Between these two scenes was my favorite sequence from the movie when Mohanlal reveals the truth to the boy’s parents and where both he and Siddique matched step by step in bringing tears to our eyes.
3) MUMBAI POLICE – That stunning revelation which hit you like bricks
Big Kudos for Bobby-Sanjay for creating a bold script that defied all the norms of a Malayalam movie hero and even big kudos to Prithviraj . When the actor used the same courage with which he spoke his mind openly in interviews to portray a character that many other heroes would have hesitated to step into, a lot of his haters and critics realized that its time to turn to his fans. The final moments of the movie where Antony Moses found that the murderer whom he was searching for was none other than himself and the reason behind his actions are results of exceptional script-writing and Bobby-Sanjay are growing in stature with their every other release.
4) LEFT RIGHT LEFT- When Vattu Jayan refuses to apologize to Kaitheri Sahadevan’s men
‘Ente Veedinte chuvarilu orupaadu perude padamonumilla.. oraalude padame ullu.. Ente Thanthede.. Mappu Jayan parayoola..Azhi enkil Azhi.. Kayar enkil Kayar’
Left Right Left had many exceptional scenes but nothing bowled me over completely than this sequence. With a never before seen scorching screen presence, fantastic voice modulation and brilliant change of facial expressions, Indrajith easily made it the finest acting moment of his career and Vattu Jayan his best performance ever. I sincerely hope that ‘Vattu Jayan’ lands this talented actor leading roles in big projects which he really deserves.
5) KUNJANANTHANTE KADA- When Kunjananthan requests the people to clear away the road for his injured son
‘Ante mon marathinmennu veenittu chora varnu vandiyilundu.. asupathrikku pokaana… Onnu Vittu tharanam’
Kunjananthante Kada definitely did not match up to Salim Ahmed’s beautiful debut movie – Adaminte Makan Abu. Mammootty had a mixed year as apart from Immanuel and Kunjanathante Kada, others like Daivathinte Swantham Cleetus , Silence and Kadal Kadannoru Mathukutty were disappointments. But he almost made up for all these with just a single scene in Kunjananthante Kada when his voice trembled on-screen as he requested the people who have blocked the road to make way for his injured son.For those few seconds, the man who was speaking on the road stopped his speech, Resul Pookutty paused any sound in the background and as he always does when he emotes on screen , once again Mammooty just held us spellbound.
6) ARTIST – When Gayathri walks away from her relationship at the end.
“Ullil murivettathu enikkum koodi anennorkuka.. karanam sneham matram pora namuku jeevikkaneppozhum…Chilappozhokke samayakumbol murivelkendavarku vedanichu thanne theeranam.. Athaanu jeevitham”.
A great ending to a fabulous movie .Despite a top-notch performance by Fahad as the blind artist, the movie belonged to Ann Augustine who gave one of the finest performances by a young leading heroine in recent years.Whether its the troubles she goes through to meet the ends for her family or the extreme endurance with she sticks in her relationship despite the fact that it has given her only pain, Ann Augustine was intensely expressive and natural throughout. The closing scene where she walks away saying good bye to Michael is going to stay with me for some time
7) PHILIPS AND THE MONKEY PEN- The little surprise at the end
Just as you thought you were about to finish watching a cute fantasy movie, Rojin Thomas and Shanil Muhammed had a surprise in store for us at the end when Jayasurya smiled after turning away from his son revealing to us it was Ryan’s dad who was behind all the magic of the Monkey Pen. As you were leaving the theaters, now you knew that this little movie had messages both for the kids to try and succeed on their own and for parents to guide their kids in the right path without being over stringent.
8) ROMANS- When Shibu tries to console Akash after the latter’s touching speech in the church
‘Athrakku mandanaanoda Njan. Nee vilikku ayaale. Aa magickarane.Ee perunnalinu ayalku oru paripaadi pidichu kodukkaam’.
That’s one scene for which I laughed the most in 2013. By the end of 2013, a lot of people would have forgot about this fine entertainer that released during the beginning of the year. Romans never drew huge critical acclaim but it did attract huge crowd to the theaters and the reasons were the fantastic chemistry that Biju Menon and Kunchakko Boban shared and some well written hilarious situations. Biju Menon in particular just rocked in the movie and in the scene above , he was just outstanding as he made you laugh out loud despite delivering his lines in a serious tone !
9) THIRA Climax
‘Trust me Naveen , I have done this before’
From the moment Dhyan gets in the building where the girls were held disguising as one of their men to when Shobana finally saves all the girls by setting the van on fire , Vineeth Sreenivasan took you on a breathtaking ride during the final portions of Thira. Despite opening to rave reviews , it was disappointing to see Thira ending as nothing above average in the boxoffice. Now we only have ourselves to blame if the director goes back to the ‘Thattathin Marayathu’ type movies.
