Kerala Crime Files Review: Even though Karikku has made its mark popularising web-series among Malayalis on YouTube, Disney+ Hotstar comes out with its first official series in the language and say what, it is a winning affair at least in most parts. Directed by Ahammed Khabeer and written by Ashiq Aimar, Kerala Crime Files is a gripping police procedural investigative thriller that is devoid of needless distractions and subplots, and keep you guessing till the end. Only that the end makes you say, 'Wait, that's it?' Kerala Crime Files Review: Aju Varghese and Lal's Malayalam Web-Series Impresses Critics.

A murder is discovered in a rundown lodge in Kochi, the deceased happened to be a sex worker. CI Kurien (Lal) tasks the investigation to SI Manoj (Aju Varghese), a recently married cop who hasn't gotten the time to know his bride well. Manoj and his unit find the only identity of the unseen killer - Shiju, Parayil Veedu, Neendakara. While the name turns out to be true, the address fake.

As Manoj and his team investigate into the leads, they discover that the mysterious man has given this fake address everywhere, but none of the witnesses are able to give them clear whereabouts. Each episode deals with each day of investigation, as the police team try to solve the case before the culprit makes his escape.

Watch the Trailer of Kerala Crime Files:

The story of Kerala Crime Files is spread across six episodes, each lasting half an hour. While the episodes do give insights into the personal lives of Manoj and his team and showcasing how their profession is often playing spoilsport into their personal lives, they do not form major subplots as to eat into the series' main USP - the investigation. This also helps Kerala Crime Files keep its narrative tighter and let the focus not waver from the main mystery, and yet allow us to know the protagonists well enough. The interesting bit about the investigation is that the cops keep getting all the good leads, and yet they feel the killer is getting more and more away from them. What's more, they are also clueless if the murderer even knows they are chasing after him.

There are a couple of scenes of forced tension, though, that could have been done better; like when two cops try to convince another sex worker Lathika (Devaki Rajendran) to file a case of assault against a potential suspect, and she denies, only for us to see her arrive at the station to do so the very next scene.

While the show keeps a serious tone throughout - a surprise when your leading man is Aju Varghese - it is not bereft of some good nuggets of humour. The fake address lands itself in a couple of humourous spots for the cops, especially Kurien's reaction when he stumbles upon it at another police station. In the first episode, an autorickshaw driver who provides the identity of the dead woman also lends to some hilarity when he keeps worrying about his image. Also be mindful of the usage of certain cuss words here.

While Kerala Crime Files works to a large extent and has some good twists and turns, I was underwhelmed by the climax. Okay, so the suspense isn't something mind-boggling. Like with the recent (and much gripping) Tamil film Por Thozhil (interestingly both are set around the same time period), the mystery isn't a whodunnit, but rather about catching the right culprit, and of course, why the person did what they did. It is the latter part where Kerala Crime Files stumbles big time. It feels too rushed and the reason too plaintive and even problematic (which is annoying considering the series teases us about the psyche of the killer), and leaves some of the aspects unexplained, like why the killer kept giving the same fake address everywhere. Considering how gripping Kerala Crime Files has been till that point, the finale felt like a major bummer.

Speaking about the performances, Aju Varghese impresses as the dedicated investigative officer, and after his antagonistic turn in Helen, I welcome such serious turns from the usually funny actor (but I also hope he doesn't drop comedy, we need some laughs in these times). Lal's screentime is surprisingly lesser than I expected; while the actor does a good job of what he gets here, a little more screen-presence would have done wonders to his character. Navas Vallikunnu, Zhins Shan and Sanju Sanichen are fabulous as the cops in Manoj's team. Special mention must also be given to Harishankar who plays the receptionist of the rundown lodge where the murder was discovered. While the female characters get little scope here, Aswathy Manoharan felt like a bright spark whenever she appeared on screen. Truly wish the wonderfully talented Devaki Rajendran had more scenes. Jithin Stanislaus' cinematography is also commendable and so is Hesham Abdul Wahab's score.

Final Thoughts

Save for that rushed finale, Kerala Crime Files is an otherwise gripping, suspenseful series with nearly no distractions and good performances from the cast. Do give it a watch, but temper your expectations about its explosive revelation. Kerala Crime Files is streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.

Rating:3.0

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 23, 2023 09:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).