Abraham Ozler review: Jayaram makes a perfect comeback in this medical investigative thriller

Director Midhun Manuel Thomas has a history of turning his failures into stepping stones.

Nobody would even think of making a second part of a movie that wasn’t a box-office hit. But Midhun Manuel Thomas directed Aadu 2 (2017), the sequel to Aadu (2015), an utter flop.

Aadu 2 became a huge success and then, he changed his track to investigative films. His psycho-thriller Anjam Paathira (2020) was a box-office success.

At the end of 2023, he scripted Suresh Gopi’s Garudan, which was a hit. He also wrote the script for the horror movie Phoenix, which received a good response.

Following this, Midhun Manuel Thomas’ Abraham Ozler received good hype as it is headlined by Jayaram, who returned to Malayalam cinema after a long gap.

Abraham Ozler is a medical investigative thriller that revolves around doctors, hospitals, murders, and investigations — thus proving a perfect comeback for Jayaram. Read on to know why:

Synopsis

The film starts with the early life of Abraham Ozler (Jayaram) who led a good family life. But a tragedy turns his life upside down.

The camera pans to the present day when Abraham Ozler is seen as an insomniac and suffers from hallucinations.

But he is an investigation officer. He doesn’t wear a police uniform and sports a beard.

Ozler takes up the investigation of a murder case inside a hospital. Later, similar murders are reported in different locations.

At this point, the audience would feel that the story is similar to that of Anjam Paathira. But here, there is no psycho killer. However, there are valid reasons for the killings to take place.

Abraham Ozler’s findings during the investigation prove that he is a shrewd police officer. Here, he reminds us of Prithviraj Sukumaran in Jeethu Joseph’s Memories (2013) and Mohanlal’s Villain (2017).

However, only certain traits like a tired investigator are common in these films.

Ozler makes some observations and findings in the first half. One might think there is nothing in the second half.

However, the second half has a backstory that happened in the late 80s in Kozhikode Medical College.

Also, Mammootty surprises everyone with his cameo. He plays a crucial role.

Related: Rumours of Mammootty’s extended cameo in ‘Abraham Ozler’ 

Multiple plotlines

Midhun Manuel Thomas seems to have invested ample time in the script. He delivers the first and second halves of the movie brilliantly.

The people who get killed have a common relation. As the investigation goes on, it unveils the wraps on a story of love, jealousy, and revenge.

Revenge is an important factor that works in many films, especially thrillers, and here too, it works.

The evil actions of incompetent people turn into revenge. The culprit in the movie decides to take revenge after many years.

A re-watch would be suggested for those who want to connect the dots in the film as it has many revelations and findings.

Medical terms used in the flick may not be familiar to all, but they play a crucial role in the story.

“Devil’s Alternative” is a keyword used in the movie and the director smartly switches the saint into a devil here. The real saint in the movie takes the “Devil’s Alternative”, which forms the main highlight of the film.

The twists and the placing of characters help the movie. These are elevated by Midhun Mukundan’s background music. He earlier composed the music for Mammootty’s Rorschach (2022).

Performances

Abraham Ozler is a perfect comeback for Jayaram, who is popular among the family audience. His role as an investigator with a beard is new to Malayali audiences, and the ace actor nails it.

Arjun Ashokan’s Vineeth has an important role in the Malayalam movie. He is responsible for the tragedy in Ozler’s life and the climax scene with an open ending gives us hope for a sequel.

Senthil Rajamani as sub-inspector Sijo accompanies Ozler all the time. The actor delivers a subtle performance.

Anaswara Rajan, as Suja, plays a key role in the flashback story. She wins our hearts again like in Neru.

Jagadeesh, as Xavi Punoos, does justice to his role.

Kumarakom Raghunath is good.

The actors who appear as young doctors deserve appreciation.

Finally, Mammootty’s extended cameo is a highlight of the movie and he pulls it off with ease.

Cinematographer Theni Eswar captures hospitals and night scenes with great intensity.

Final take

Abraham Ozler is an engaging investigative medical thriller with good twists and turns. It also has an engaging plot that gives equal importance to every character.

(Views expressed here are personal.)