Ullozhukku

Based on a true incident, ‘Ullozhukku’ is set in Kuttanad, Kerala, an area prone to flooding during monsoons. When a beloved son in a Christian family dies, the family is forced to wait for the waters to recede before he can be buried.  As they wait together, Leelamma, the mother, and Anju, her daughter-in-law, come to terms with the consequences of a dishonestly arranged marriage.  Director/writer Christo Tomy creates a visual world in the flood waters that mirrors the lives of these two women, sympathetically  played by Parvathy Thiruvothu and Urvashi, in a wonderful and emotional performance.

Manjummel Boys

Based on an actual event, ‘Manjummel Boys’ is a harrowing tale of foolishness, loyality and courage. Ten young men belong to a club in Manjummel, a location in the Kochi region of Kerela. They hire a driver and take off on holiday to Kodaikanal, a hill station in Tamil Nadu known for its granite cliffs. Once there they make the fatal mistake of wanting to visit Gana Cave, as it was the setting of  Kamel Haasen’s film ‘Gunaa’. Drinking and a little on the rowdy side, the boys decide to explore more restricted areas of the cave against the advice of a seasoned tour guide.  Tragedy strikes when one of them steps into a 900 foot pit and is swallowed up by the darkness. Written and directed by Chidambaram, the movie has a ensemble cast headed by Soubin Shahir and Sreenath Bhasi. The tense survival thriller became the highest-grossing Malayalam film in 2024. Catch it on Disney+Hotstar/Hulu.

The Goat Life

‘The Goat Life’ is inspired by the plight of immigrant laborers who seek work in the Gulf countries. Writer/director Blessy introduces us to Najeeb Muhammed, a Malayalam man, newly married but not able to earn a good enough living for his family. He  mortgages his house to pay for a visa and travel to Saudi Arabia with the promise of good pay in an office job. Traveling with his friend Hakim, they arrive in Saudi on a Friday when business’ are closed. They can neither communicate or understand Arabic. After hours in the airport, not finding anyone to help them, a local Arab man mistakenly assumes they have come to work for him. He takes their passports, loads them into the back of a pick-up truck and takes them on a long journey into the desert. Najeeb and Hakim are separated, and Najeeb finds himself on a desert goat farm, forced to work herding goats, isolated, abused and used as a slave.  Prithvirfaj Sukumaran as Najeeb was widely praised for his once-in-a-lifetime performance. Sunil K. S.’s cinematography captures the desolate, vast and lonely nature of the desert and the lush beauty and serenity of Kerela.  Music by A. R. Rahman.
You can watch ‘The Goat Life’ on Netflix.