- Date of Release: 10 February 2017
- Genre: Horror, Thriller
- Language: Malayalam
- Watch On: Disney + Hotstar
Ezra
Introduction
Ok so another grand weekend awaits us and we are just a day away. Along with a set of new releases, there is a Hindi film Dybbuk releasing which is a remake of a Malayalam horror film Ezra. So in order to provide a clean comparison, I decided to watch Ezra on Hotstar which had released way back in 2017. Does it scare the daylights out of you, stay tuned.
Story & Screenplay
Ezra follows the story of a couple who shift from Mumbai to Kochi where strange incidents begin to take place at their home. This is all you need to know as anything else might act as a spoiler. The story is not very novel but there are enough elements to keep you invested. The screenplay may not really give you jump scares nor would it scare the living daylights out of you. But the proceedings are still independently interesting to keep you invested. While the first half unfolds like a routine horror(although quite watchable), the second half is interesting with the introduction of the religious angle. This is the soul reason why this movie works as this does bring an assemblance of freshness to the drama. The twists and turns in the second half will keep you invested and the twist in the pre-climax is a good one that I did not predict. The end is slightly underwhelming but you need to keep in mind how much the audience has evolved after the OTT space being introduced. So this may have worked well 4 years ago but might seem slightly outdated today. Overall a good horror watch, considering the time it had released in.
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues are quite well written and stay true to its subject. The music is average and could have been better, the BGM seemed slightly on the louder side. Director Jayk has done a pretty good job here, successfully creating an atmosphere of intrigue along with the religious elements.
Performances
The performances are pretty good. Sudev Nair is pretty impressive, so is Bharat Dhabolkar. Tovino Thomas as Shafeer is good in an underwritten role. Sujith Shanker as Markes is outstanding and some of his glances do send a shiver down your spine. Priya Anand as Priya is wonderfully restrained here and does an extremely good job. And the ever reliable Prithviraj Sukumaran as Ranjan has many emotions to play with and he does a splendid job!
Conclusion
Ezra is a different attempt to the horror genre in India. Available on Hotstar.