Kali

Siddharth cannot manage his anger. He loses control over the smallest thing and treats it as a matter of temperament. He and Anjali, his classmate at university, married against their families' wishes. For years she has been waiting for the same thing: that one day he will change. During a long drive something happens on a deserted highway, and it stops being a question of temperament. Sameer Thahir directs. Dulquer Salmaan plays Siddharth and Sai Pallavi plays Anjali, with Chemban Vinod Jose, Vinayakan and Soubin Shahir in support. The structure splits in two. The first half is romantic and everyday; the second turns into a thriller taking place across one night and changes the tone entirely. The idea is the cost of anger. The film does not vindicate Siddharth or present him as a likeable rebel; Anjali's view sits at the moral centre. The photography is its strength. Sameer Thahir began his career as a cinematographer, and the night highway passages are shot almost entirely on available light. Sai Pallavi was newly known in Malayalam cinema at the time, and the part consolidated her as an actor. Who it is for: viewers who like Malayalam thrillers and narratives that switch genre. Who it is not for: the first half is slow, the switch is abrupt, and the menace in the second half falls into formula in places.