2018 wasn’t a very good year for Malayalam cinema considering the potential of the actors and technicians currently working in the industry. Most of the theatrical hits were passable entertainers except a few. However, there were some gems like Sudani from Nigeria and Ee.Ma.Yau released this year. Unfortunately, superstar movies couldn’t excite or surprise us like they did in past years. Take a look at the best Malayalam movies of 2018.
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1. Sudani from Nigeria
Sudani from Nigeria, written by Muhsin Parari and directed by debutant Zackaria, which proved language is no barrier to express true heart feelings. It tells how a Nigerian footballer changes the life of Majeed, our protagonist. Brilliant performances delivered by each and every actors, especially Soubin Shahir, Samuel Abiola Robinson, Savithri Sreedharan and K. T. C. Abdullah and heart melting music by Rex Vijayan took the movie to the next level.
2. Ee.Ma.Yau
Ee.Ma.Yau, written by PF Mathews and directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery, is one movie that helped Malayalam cinema to achieve several accolades globally. With minimal budget and star cast, the talented crew of the movie again proved that content is the king. The story of the movie revolves around the death and funeral of an old man. Chemban Vinod Jose won the award for best actor at 49th International Film Festival of India for his gripping performance. Lijo won several awards including Kerala state awards for the movie.
3. Joseph
Joseph, starring immensely talented Joju George in the title role, is one of the surprise hits of the year. The movie, released with no marketing gimmicks and less pre-release hype, managed to draw the audience to the movie halls, thanks to the highly positive WOM. Written by Shahi Kabir and directed by M. Padmakumar, the investigation thriller tells the story of a retired police officer.
4. Varathan
Fahadh Faasil starrer Varathan is one of a few movies released this year that could satisfy audiences of all types. The survival thriller, Suhas-Sharfu and directed by Amal Neerad, tells the story of a husband and wife, Aby and Priya, who returned to Kerala after losing their job in Dubai. The stylish presentation by the director and powerful performances by Fahadh, Aishwarya Lekshmi and Sharaf U Dheen are the several factors that made the movie an unforgettable one.
5. Lilli
Lilli, made by a crew of newbies, is obviously a movie that should be praised wholeheartedly. Unfortunately, the thriller couldn’t taste success at the box office. Exceptional performance by Samyuktha Menon of Theevandi fame in the movie is truly appreciable. Written and directed by debutant Prasobh Vijayan, the movie showcases the struggles faced by a pregnant woman who got kidnapped by 3 men.
6. Koode
Anjali Menon didn’t disappointed us this time as well with the well-crafted family movie Koode, which is a remake of Marathi movie Happy Journey. It is one of the movies released this year that deserves repeated watch. The fantasy movie describes how Jenny played by Nazriya Nazim becomes a guiding light to Joshua, played by Prithviraj, to live the life. Without any noisy forced unwanted scenes, the movie can be watched in a relaxed mood.
7. Bhyanakam
Bhyanakam is a movie that explored the talent of writer turned actor Renji Panicker as an actor. He played the role of a postman who slowly becomes the messenger of death during the World War II period in the movie which is based on Takazhy Sivasankara Pillai’s epic Malayalam novel Kayar. The beautifully made movie is the sixth movie in the Navarasa series by master craftsman Jayaraj. It won three national awards for direction, screenplay and cinematography.
8. Carbon
Carbon tells the story of Sibi, a typical Malayali youth who wants to make some quick money. The beautiful frames by K. U. Mohanan, substantial script and making by cinematographer turned director Venu and, obvoisly, the brilliant performance delivered by Fahadh Faasil as Siby are some factors that made this movie an exceptional one. We can find the brilliance of Venu as a director with the fine blending of entertainment factors to the core story.
9. Njan Prakashan
With Njan Prakashan, the Sreenivasan – Sathyan Anthikkad team brings us back a beautiful feel good family entertainer. Fahadh Faasil’s effortless performance as Prakashan and newbie Devika Sanjay’s cool performance and, obviously, Sreenivasan’s witty script are the major highlights of this typical Sathyan Anthikkad style movie. We can see ourselves in the screen at many instances in it, like any other Sreenivasan movies
