User Reviews

Aarkkariyam (transl. Who Knows) is a Biju Menon show through and through. A shaky, half-baked script with not enough depth is held together and made watchable purely due to his compelling performance as an ageing patriarch.

Sharaf U Deen and Parvathy star as a down-on-their-luck couple who relocate from Mumbai to Kerala due to their financial woes. The trials and tribulations they face as they try to sell off their ancestral property forms the rest of the story.

While the first half is a fun, aesthetically pleasing watch with enough intrigue, the second half reduces to a damp squib due to poor writing, leading up to a mediocre conclusion.

Much like Manju Warrier in the Priest, Parvathy's role is barely noticeable and criminally under-written. More screen time for Biju Menon and a tighter, edgier screenplay could have made this interesting premise into a thrill ride.

Watch it for a top performance from Biju Menon. He plays an aged man with grace and nuance, nailing the mannerisms, body language and even the tonality of a stereotypical 'Pala achayan'.

The movie overall, however, is very average.

Very realistic & crisp story with great performances.

What if Georgekutty in Drishyam was forced to hide the crime from his family too? This is, in pop culture terms, the question put forward by Aarkkariyam, directed by reputed cinematographer Sanu John Varghese (in his debut), starring Biju Menon, Sharafudheen, and Parvathy Thiruvothu. But it doesn't directly get to this point at the start of the film. Aarkkariyam is essentially a drama that unfurls at an unhurried pace, slowly establishing characters, their relationships, and texture. It remains so entirely, even with that somewhat shocking reveal mid-way. The acoustic guitar score reinstates this in the second half. Writers Rajesh Ravi and Arun Janardanan (alongside Sanu) place the story in contemporary, pandemic times. While the pandemic is what drives certain decisions in the film, it never accelerates the pace or pushes it into thriller territory.

The thrills, if any, are relegated to the characters' inner psyches. Aarkkariyam becomes a study of sorts in the latter half, delving deeper into the characters of Ittyavira (Biju Menon) and Roy (Sharafudheen), with Sherly (Parvathy) becoming slightly less significant as she is unaware of said twisty revelation. What I liked is how the film doesn't turn overly melodramatic (or spiritual) at any point - the emotional transitions are subtle. The cast really elevates the okayish script - Biju Menon rises to the occasion as Ittyavira portraying the right body language of a septuagenarian while Sharafudheen handles the curious scenes with ease. Parvathy is effective but as mentioned, her character occupies a lesser space as the film progresses to its climax.

The character Roy juggles between Malayalam, Hindi, and English (prominently in the first half) - probably in an attempt to picture him as a longtime resident of Mumbai - but the English lines especially come off as jarring. Were these dialogues in English integral to the plot or the character in any way? Not so sure. The locales (just like in Joji) and aesthetics are a definite plus - the house, the tall rubber trees all around, the pond, even the dogs eagerly waiting for leftovers every night - all of it sticks. It's a notable debut indeed, and I'll watch out for Sanu's next!

Good make over and good performance of Biju Menon. Parvathy and Sharafudin also acted well. All characters are real and emotions are connectable.

Good shocker punch at interval.

But the movie is super slow and at times tests patients It also doesn't have much to offer story wise.

Aarkkariyam (2021) : Brief Review -

A solemn take on compassion and eternal salvation before eternity. Latest offering from Malayalam Cinema, Aarkkariyam is like a slow poison. It may work on some people strongly but some might find it mild. The main reason behind this is the improper use of leniency. With more virile theories behind the compassion would have worked better for sure. Shirley and Roy in the middle of an impending Covid lock-down and a personal financial crisis, leave their Mumbai home for Shirley's home in Pala where her father Ittyavira stays. Roy soon finds that her home is not what he thought it is. One secret which was hidden deep down by Ittyavira for years is revealed by him to Roy and it makes Roy restless. That's where the actual content begins and sadly it comes too late. The film opens its first card of the main story at the interval point. Can you believe it? Almost after 55-56 minutes we get to know where the film is heading to. The film is powered by incredible performance of the actors. There is a reason to say this. You see, mostly we judge the acting level according to dialogue delivery and expressions but here in this film the actors have more silent scenes than talking ones. It gives them liberty to behave naturally on screen and their presence fulfills the all the requirements of good acting. Biju Menon, Parvathy Thiruvothu and Samharafudeen all three have given fabulous performances. Aarkkariyam is more like an art film, a realistic drama so expectedly the screenplay and cinematography are curved towards the artistic zone. Sanu John Varghese's attempt to leave the audience with an ideal thought of inner burden and mistaken guilt is very much convincing. The only problem with it is, it takes too much time for that and slow pace feels annoying sometimes. Nevertheless, it's an effective sip of a slow poison.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

It is the solid attention to details and the lack of spoon-feeding that impressed me in Aarkkariyam (Who Knows), a slow-burning drama with a hint of mystery thrown midway. Biju Menon one-ups (as he seems to be doing after every other film) as he shines in a character at least two decades more than his real age, playing a father to a daughter who he loves to the moon and back. Both Sharafudheen and Parvathy play their parts really well, and together the performances enhance the overall appeal, not to mention the vivid shots. 7 stars.

Personal Recommendation.. Go for it.. Detailed genuine drama.

A good movie with some incredible perfomances.

Aarkkariyam was a slow paced realistic movie, The major highlight of this movie was the role of Ittiyavara played by Biju Menon. He just nailed it. Parvathy and Sharaf-U-Dheen also gives an impressive performance. Cinematography and Music are nice, But it would have been more better if the writing had been improved. That would have made the film even clearer.

Who Knows??

Just God Knows It All.

What a mind-blowing movie ! Hats off to the director for bringing in so many details in the movie ! Awesome direction ! It's a simple plot with lots of details ! Words cannot express ! Excellent acting by all the cast members. Biju Menon was outstanding ! I am really glad Sharaf U Dheen was chosen for this awesome role. He nailed it. And as always Parvathy was great.

I haven't seen a Malayalam movie since NAYATTU so gave AARKARIYAM a go

It's a total slowburn with a decent plot that was glued together with a brilliant performance from Biju menon, Sharf U Dheen and Parvathy Thriuvothu

Now the plot...to me it felt a little bit stretched and I personally felt the duration could've been less coz many other reviews mentioned that it was very detailed and all so the duration wasn't a negative but to me i felt that it could've wrapped itself up in 90mins only becoz the plot didn't have enough to take it up to that 120min marks and not coz I have anything against lengthy movies...my fav genre is drama so length isn't the problem.

Bijumenons makeover,his attitude,body language,his shaky tone everything was excellent and similar to that of a common old aged malayali chachan😄

Glad with the roles Sharaf U Dheen has been recently going with idk if I am using the right word but his performance was very controlled and very suited for the character he played even though Biju Menon's performance is the highlight of the movie my focus was heavily on Roychan(Sharaf) after the intermission because of the way he carried out that characters emotions afterwards.

Parvathy portrayed her character well but was overshadowed or almost non existant in the second half becoz of the focus shifts to Chachan And Roychan.

The scores at first were plessing but felt forced and repetative as the movie progressed coz it was forced into almost all those scenes without dialogues maybe to kill the silence.

The plot also shifts into intentionally or unintentionally into a thriller mood but lies flat and doesnt carry that gracefully.

The multiple usage of the title as part of the dialogue was nothing new...felt common and that's completely fine.

The storyline is set on the backdrop of the pandemic and so some of the events included showed how it affected the characters in the movie.

Also the plate beating scenes from the janata curfew was also included felt funny and in a way mocking that task.

If it was not and just an inclusion of a piece of reality then also it was funny.

The mumbai scenese were nostalgic especially coz of the dialogue exchange between Sharaf and SaijuKurup(oh forgot about him...he also had a supporting role in this movie that he portrayed very elegantly) becoz it was a Hindi Malayalam dialect...idk how common it's between North Indian malayalees but it was pure nostalgia for me coz me and some of my friends and alsowhen at home too while living in north used to exchange dialogues this way(not commonly) but we did.

When the movie concluded it was clear that one man's sin and the burden he carried for years has now been eased.

While the other guy now has to carry that feeling of guilt,secret and burden to his grave.

Okay so AARKARIYAM overall is a slowburn mystery drama with a bit of humor lingering around and a plot that's unnecessarily stretched imo.

GO for it if you are into slowburn dramas and strong performances.

A 6.8/10 from me.

A wonderfully crafted plot, amazing characters and superb acting, Biju Menon stands out and is well supported by others in a slow but intriguing plot ! Absolutely superb....

This movie is extremely slow but still it has thrilling elements and good performance from actors make it worth watching.

Good acting, location, script, direction and everything except the story line.

This is how you stretch a 5 minute short movie to a long 2 hours unbearably slow paced movie. If you are patient enough to wait 2 long hours for the real story to be unfolded at the last minutes, then go for it. Here is an example of how they drag the story, hero goes to a petrol bunk and fill full tank while we watch the reading going from 0 till full tank.

Certainly one of the pleasant movies to watch from among the currently released ones.

Kudos to the director and script writer.

I. Not a script written for an actor to show off.

II. A good blend of different emotions intertwines storyline.

If you are expecting a thriller film, this is not the film for you! Aarkkariyam is a Crime Drama film! Executed in a well manner! Yes in this movie you may feel a slight lag, it was a really big drawback of the film! Though the film has an engaging storyline, there are some places that is unwanted! If the editor would have thought and edited those unwanted portions, this film would be a perfect crime drama film! Yes there is a twist! But yet this film is not meant for the people who are expecting the movie to be a thriller film! Acting, cinematography and music was a very big plus for the film! A decent crime drama film! Available in prime.

Subtle, surprising and beautiful.

It's a Complete Slow pace realistic Drama with some mystery.

Don't think it will work for the normal audience.

As always Biju menon and Parvathy Thiruvothu lived in the film with the best output from sharfuddin so far.

The story of the film is needing the slow pace.

Well, the technical side is beautiful .

Go watch it. It's worth watchable.

Shirley(Parvathy Thiruvothu) and Roy(Sharafuddin), a married couple, move to her hometown in Kerala ahead of a nationwide lockdown. They face several challenges and try to overcome their personal issues.

The usual style in crime films - add some twists, there should be a villain who makes everything so tense, and finally the hero overcomes it. Or, solve a murder case, find the culprit.

But in this film - there's a cliche break, the conflict is shown in a very subtle way, there's no villain, and everything goes in a very slow pace. When you hear about the pacing being slow, you may consider not to watch the film, if you do that - you're doing a mistake. Because, here the slow-pace won't bring any lag. Not just the slow-pace, nothing tense is shown on the screen, but still you would feel engaged - How?, This film proves that tension, unsolvable-like conflict, fast pacing - all these are not necessary to make a viewer feel engaged. The question "How?" Is still here in the context, it is done by showcasing the mental state and the internal conflict of the character. In such scenes, Usually a loud and high-toned background music will be used, but here the director chose low-toned music which are not loud at all, by doing this the overall slow-pace, natural and realistic mood of the film was protected.

This film will be well-worth of your time, a different but good experience, a crime-drama which will not increase your heartbeat but something which may keep you engaged.

But good acting ..everybody done good acting. But dragging story boring..

"Arkariyam" is a well told story of Roy who goes through an emotional shock due to a secret revealed to him by his father in law.

Sharafudeen, Parvathy and Biju menon plays the main characters in this film.

Parvathy as usual was terrific, played a big role in bridging the viewer in this film, acting as the film's soul.

Biju menon was brilliant in portraying 70+ yrs old man. He was just amazing. Well emoted character that is the main pillar of this film.

Sharafudheen has come a long way from the comic character in Premam to the antagonist in crime film Anjaam Pathira and now in Arkariyaam, he was exceptional in emoting certain sequences which very well could've gone over board if not careful. Proud to witness the growth of an actor in front of our eyes.

Sanu John Varughese, the eminent cinematographer who wrote n directed this film did a good job in not only making this film but showing off his phone number :P.

Aarkkariyam is a film where the characters express deep thought for a long time. It is not a plot-driven film so much as a meditative one about how human being behave in a particular way under some circumstances. The film revolves around a middle-class family and the real issues they can face especially during lockdown.

There are vast stretches of the film where nothing happens. That may turn off some viewers, but true cinema fans would see it as a means to encourage the audience to reflect on what the characters are going through.

The editing by Mahesh Narayanan, which maintains a feeling of coherence to the events, is also remarkable. For example, a character acts in a specific manner early in the film and we only learn why afterwards.

Beautiful, unexpected Slow POISON. Stand out position by Biju Menon, Parvathy and Sharfuddin. Really Good. Just like Drishyam 1.

Overall feel good movie, as usual brilliance of malayalam movie bit slow but good to watch, all actors done their part,l well, Bijumenon top class.

I watched this movie expecting a decent drama but boy, this was slow as heck. The first half of the movie was kind of setting it's premise for the revealing but it felt too slow and boring. After the twist, I expected the movie to get some pace but it followed the same boringly slow pattern.

Actors were good, cinematography was good but the soundtrack was too repetitive and might have contributed to the boringness of the movie overall.

There was no tension through out the movie and apart from the first twist or reveal, nothing was surprising enough to keep me as a viewer engaged. The movie failed to build up a tension which could have saved the movie literally.

In few words, a nice concept spoiler by boring screenplay and lazy directing.