Ezra

Plot synopsis:
The last person of Malabar Jews residing in Kochi dies. Eyeing on precious antique possessions of the person an antiques seller steals a box with inscriptions and is later sold to Priya Raghuram (Priya Anand). Priya is the wife of Ranjan Mathew (Prithviraj Sukumaran) a nuclear waste management specialist, their's is a love marriage. Being a Marathi-Malayali Priya finds it hard to adjust with the shift from Mumbai to Kerala. On a retail therapy Priya buys the box from the antique shop. Later, paranormal activities are experienced by Ranjan and Priya. Ranjan is an orphan who was living with his mother's brother Fr. Samuel (Vijayaraghavan). Samuel is invited to Ranjan's house. Samuel tell Ranjan that the box from the antique shop is a Dybbuk . Ranjan finds more about the dybbuk from a rabbi David Benyamin (Babu Antony). He tells that dybbuk only possess people without mental stability or children under 3 years. The next day rabbi Benyamin is dead and Ranjan finds that Priya is pregnant and is known that his child is possessed. Ranjan finds more about the dybbuk in his house with the help of rabbi Marques (rabbi Benyamin's son)(Sujith Shankar) They get to know about a story in 1941 Thiru-Kochi. The story revolves around a love between a Jewish boy Abraham Ezra (Sudev Nair) and a low caste Christian girl Rosy (Ann Sheetal). Ezra and Rosy had a serious relationship and Ezra wanted to marry Rosy but in between they had sexual interaction and eventually Rosy gets pregnant. Rosy didn't tell to Ezra that she is pregnant . Ezra tells his father about his relationship with Rosy but he rejects it because of the caste system of Jews. With sorrow Ezra sends a letter to Rosy to tell her that they can't live together. Later Rosy commit suicide and her father get to know about the letter and goes to meet Ezra and his father. But he is killed by them and the villagers try to hit Ezra and they try to kill him. Ezra is taken to the hospital by his father and the doctors confirm that he is brain dead . Ezra's father decides to take revenge to the people of the society. His father purposefully kill him and takes his soul into a dybbuk box. The box is made in a way that the whole society can be destroyed. Dybbuk gets fully powerfully when the last jew in the place dies. The story comes back to Ranjan. Marques want the dybbuk to leave Ranjan and his family. So with the help of A.C.P Shafeer Ahammed (Tovino Thomas) he confirms that Abraham Ezra's story is true. Finally he decides to exorcise. But it is revealed that it is not Priya but Ranjan whom which Ezra possessed. Fr. Samuel tell them that Ranjan as orphan had mental problems in his childhood and though Ranjan is a nuclear waste management specialist , Dybbuk will be easily able to destroy the society. At last Ranjan is exorcissed and the dybbuk is taken to an ocean where Ezra'a body was left according to dybbuk system.

Tags: paranormal

Review:
Hi i watched the whole movie, this film gives the illusion to people who have no understanding of Judaism that jews practice blood sacrifice and magic.
This isn't the issue.The issue is the fact they make the jews look like human sacrificing evil magicians.thinly veiled blood libel c- horror film.
It is indeed a very good attempt to give a horror movie in Malayalam based on Jewish horror legend.
The filming, photography deserves appreciation as it attempts to match with Hollywood style filming of horror movies.But it appears the Director have taken some inspiration from Hollywood movie particularly 'The Possession ( 2012)' directed by Ole Bornedal which deals with the possession of Dybukk over a girl.There are of course scenes that are of pure cinematic portrayal which eludes our logic particularly the reappearance of the antique box from the sea shown in the post credit roll rescued by two youths.
How can a metal box dropped into the sea can all of a sudden reappear at some seashore of Mumbai?It evidently shows the Director's clear cut intention to produce a sequel.On the whole a good horror movie to watch out for..
Ezra is an Indian version of The Possession and has lot of scenes inspired from Hollywood Horrors but still keeps us engaged till climax..
Ezra (2017): Horrors of Indian Cinema are meant only for lame comedy but not for content or scare scenes.True horrors never try to entertain us rather it makes us feel suffocated with nail biting suspense,shocking jump scares.Ezra,a 2017 Malayalam horror film starring Prithviraj and Priya Anand,impressed with its trailer.How is the movie?
Then later Ranjan knowing that the box is not an ordinary box it is a Dybbuk box which contains a malicious spirit of a dead person.The film depicts how he is going to save his wife from this malicious spirit.My review: Ezra has the identical premise of 2012 American blockbuster The Possession.The entire concept of Dybbuku is lifted from the movie.Even the scare scenes are inspired from lot of Hollywood horrors like The conjuring,Sinister,Insidious and Paranormal Activity.Flashback is similar to Prithviraj's earlier blockbuster Ennu Ninte Moideen.Even though if the movie is not original still it keeps our attention till the end.Except a routine ending,movie has good moments and decent jump scares.Prithviraj is brilliant in his role.Priya Anand is adequate.BGM is spooky and elevated the mood of the film.Cinematography is the major pro of the movie.So,Ezra is an Indian version of The Possession and has lot of scenes inspired from Hollywood Horrors but still keeps us engaged till climax.My rating 6.25/10.
Many of us have gone through dozens of movies in the horror genre and know what to expect and what is being added and dished out, more often than not.
Well Ezra did appear to have promise, but as pointed out by other theres a lot of irrelevance, eg the ghost of the girl his wife sees.
Ezra is a much different horror movie.
But in Indian Cinema it has totally driven the horror genre to new directions.It was very dark themed and the background score was totally suiting to the Ghosts scenes and also in the rest of the movie.Prithviraj Sukuraman , Priya Anand and other supporting actors has done a fine justice to there roles.
It will be very difficult to not be impressed with debutante Jay K's horror period drama as it tries to be one of Malayalam industry's defining films of the 21st century.Ranjan (Prithviraj Sukumaran) and Priya (Priya Anand) are a happily married young couple who decide to move from Mumbai to Kochi after the former gets a promotion with transfer from his company.
Ignoring the ominousness surrounding it, she buys it and brings it home without having an iota of hint about the horrors that she and Ranjan are going to be subjected to by the vengeful spirit that it houses...Starting from the opening sequence, director Jay K succeeds in pulling its audience into the story that seems innocuous at first, but slowly starts to pick up, ultimately turning into a fast-paced, intense thriller.
Despite being a popular concept in the Jewish folklore, I'm sure it is going to be something new to the Indian audience.With sufficient doses of jump scares in the first half, the makers perfectly create a base in the film which escalates so quickly in the second half that you will sit in your seat wondering whether you are watching a Malayalam film.
You cannot tell a horror story without getting creative, for which Ezra gets at least 8 out of 10.Cast performance is another thing which propels the film into almost being a triumph.
All in all, the cast need to be lauded for pulling out those intense sequences which may look easy on reel but are, in real, very difficult and toiling.Of course, there are plenty of plot holes in the film on which I have had heated discussions with my friends, but once you accept the fact that you cannot narrate a horror story without taking few cinematic liberties, you will start loving it.
Director Jay has to be lauded for his attempt at opening a window of fresh air into Mollywood and giving us this exceptionally well-told and well-executed horror film without compromising on quality or bending the genre.
It is the visual extravaganza and the new style of horror in a Malayalam film that needs to be highlighted.
One has to just look at the title scene and he/she will understand why Ezra is going to be on the top 10 films lists of 2017.To conclude, if you are looking for a horror film to enjoy with your friends and family so that you can discuss it on the drive back home, watch Ezra.
BOTTOM LINE: Jay K's "Ezra" is an excellent horror film that samples an age-old Jewish myth to narrate a story that incites sheer fear and gives 100% entertainment.
Ezra could be termed as one of the better horror movie in the recent past in molly wood.It is a welcome addition to the list of good horror movies in India.Prithviraj Sukumaran has got a growing ability to choose movies wisely and roles that suit him very well, he is successful in it here also.Though nothing much to comment about his acting in here,it is pretty much good.Other cast members also made a good effort, i thought Tovino Thomas was not needed for that role because it was such an insignificant role which could have filled with any non-mainstream actor, also the lead lady Priya Anand was not that impressive and there was not much of a chemistry between Prithviraj Sukumaran and her which made it difficult for the audiences to sympathize with them in some scenes.There were some clichéd scenes also in this movie which could have easily avoided by the scriptwriter to make it more engaging.+ves ♦ Story ,thrilling scenes ♦ Movie managed to scare and induce tension in audiences ♦ Pretty fast paced screenplay ♦ Camera work ♦ good special effects for an Indian movie -ves ♦ First half was lagging and some scenes were not that impressive ♦ Climax was pretty ordinary and a bit rushed ♦ Some editing work needed and 2 unnecessary songs could have avoidedVerdict:3/5, Pretty good horror movie which is very rare these days..
In this movie, the dubuk is in the spirit of a Jew named Abraham Ezra.
Everyone was clapping for ezra one of my cousin was insisting me cz he hear good response i start watching with him....from the beginning i was confused about the story.....it was familiar to me...after some time it was cleared the story was stolen from 'the possession'my cousin also added that mirror sealing was from 'the mirror'im really disappointed.
Well crafted Horror movie with variety story,direction and cinematography and technical team has done amazing job which makes it never seen Malayalam movie.
"Well crafted Horror movie with variety story,direction and cinematography and technical team has done amazing job which makes it never seen Malayalam movie" My rating- 3.8/5 (Very good)Positives- 1.) Direction and story- Director (jay) took the film to next level and we have never seen this type of horror movies in Mollywood.
Story was variety and the smart part of it is that it was based on the Jewish concepts which are new to us and we may easily believe it while seeing the movie.
This is a good try for a horror movie and we never felt any clichés because its story is something new to us and creating horror in it is something which upcoming directors should learn while making this genre films.2.) Prithviraj ,Priya Anand ,Tovino and Sujith Sankar- For Prithviraj and Priya it wasn't a challenging role but they have done good performance.
Sujith Sankar has done it with ease and i really liked his performance.3.)Cinematography- Cinematography took the film to the Hollywood level and great applause to Sujith Vasudev.
His angles and certain camera technique was unique and never seen in Mollywood horror movies.
His techniques succeeded in creating horror feel.4.)Sound , edits and effects- I liked the sound effects because it also succeeded in giving feel to audience.
[ To get great experience its must watch movie in theater] 5.) Songs and bgscore- I loved all songs and last 2 songs succeeded in giving haunting effect to visuals.
I could see the struggle towards the end in the story line but makers could have improvised it.2.)Prithviraj's ghost appearance- Wasn't scary at all.
Something could have been done to make it scarier to his role.3.) Horror thrills- Even though cinematography and sound effects were giving horror feel the scenes didn't give any jump scares and it went normally.
They should have added a lot of jump scares.Overall- Its a must watch movie in theatres to get the feel and after pulimurgan this movie is one of the best technical perfect film.
Go for it and it will be a treat for you if you are horror fan and if you are not also you will enjoy because it suits all types of audience.My rating- 3.8/5 (very good) for full review go to- Ridinbal movie reviews.
EZRA has taken malayalam horror style to a very different and new level.
EZRA was an outstanding Malayalam Horror film and is one of the best Horror films I have watched yet.
Even though movies sticking to Horror genre are pretty routine in Hollywood and World Cinema,I have always sensed the deficit of quality horror stuff from Indian movie scene particularly down south,which has always sticked onto old-school black magic based template horror films or horror comedies in general.Ashwin Saravanan's Nayanthara starrer 'Maya' (2015) was a revelation as far as Kollywood industry was concerned and overlooked the stereotypical horror clichés found in Tamil movies till then.The humongous response that the movie received was an eye-opener for film-makers down south to experiment with the genre and produce engrossing movies in par with films from the west.To start with,I strongly believe Ezra is the much needed break for horror genre in mollywood,a first time experience for the normal malayali audience that deserves special mention for its visual splendor and grand scale of presentation that will make one go awe reflecting the budget constraints pertinent to a normal Malayalam feature film.Debutant Jay K's genuine effort to make Ezra a memorable film is evident in each frame of the narrative,the result being nevertheless a laudable attempt from mollywood ,a class apart from the typical horror movie stuff that we are used to.A promising talent to lookout for in future,Jay K could succeed in taking advantage of good technical support and neat performances to present a hearty horror thriller that has enough substance to scare you without compromising on the depth of the storyline.The pattern of narration is similar to horror thrillers form the west and presents different stages of demonic possession,namely 'Infestation','Oppression' and 'Possession' convincingly without any notable glitches in the screenplay as such.The concept of 'Dybbuk Box' from Jewish mythology was well incorporated by Jay K and refreshing for the fact that movies surrounding Jewish background aren't common in the Indian sub-continent in particular.The flashback sequences were pretty impressive and convincingly presented.Jumpscares were minimal in the second half but made up by the well-presented backstory and emotional connect of the storyline.A complaint that one can make is that the exorcism portion could have been presented in a more thrilling and detailed manner.Sujith Vasudev's top-notch frames and excellent work by the art direction team deserves applause for giving an avant-garde experience that's totally new to Mollywood.Cuts by national award winning editor Vivek Harshan were pretty good .Backgorund score by Sushin Shyam was top-notch and hiked the thrills and emotional quotient of the narration.The pick among the songs were 'Thambiran' and 'Lailakame'(composed by RahulRaj) of which the former was utilized as a haunting BGM through the second half.Performancewise,Prithviraj was as always pretty impressive with his controlled act as demanded by the storyline.Priya Anand had a meaty role to play which she did with required intensity and perfection.'Maheshinte Pratikaram' fame Sujith Shankar played his part really well.Sudev Nair's performance was fine.Tovino Thomas,Vijayaraghavan,etc gave neat supporting performances.Overall,Ezra is a neat attempt from debutante Jay.K and team that deserves a watch from the big screens..
First of all don't over expect about the horror in this movie.Yes there is horror and some scary scenes but this movie is just horror themed for it's story .The positive thing about this Movie is it's story which really is good,the spoiler which i am not going to talk about and the mind blowing camera work and visuals.Every frame for this movie was so good .i'll giveHorror -7/10 story-9/10 camera and visuals- 10/10 this movie is not a just made for commercial kind of horror movie with large junk of humor.The story really stands out .Don't take kids below 7 for this movie there are some intense scenes here and there(especially towards the END) .privithiraj's performance is very good.Tovino Thomas did his small role very nicely .Babu Antony's performance was stunning although he was a minor characters.There are a few cameos which i am not spoiling for you.
Overall a Great horror Malayalam movie in years.
Many people who suggested this movie said that it was really good, but I understood they have never seen English horror genres.
The director tries to introduce something new to the malayalam audience by using a Jew ghost.
No explanation is given to how the ghost gets out of the box and attacks people without opening it, Or the cringe worthy jump scare that shows and entirely different ghost.If you are going to watch it, be disappointed..
Ezra might not scare you out of the hell, but still it is a very much engaging horror thriller.
After watching Ezra, i can say that it reached those expectations of the audience.
If you see a bunch of Hollywood horror films, Ezra might not scare you out of the hell, but it engages you through out the movie and can even be considered as one of the best horror films ever produced in India.
Lot of scenes were inspired from Hollywood films, but director Jay. K doesn't make us feel so, because instead of copying he has executed those scenes in his own way and some scenes including climax were great and the credit should be given to the director.
Coming to the performances of the entire cast, prithviraj is the soul of the movie and his performance in the climax is outstanding, in which there was a high risk of it becoming a disaster and a comic scene even if there were any minute flaws in acting.....but he acted extremely well at that part and he proves that he is one of the few actors who is not afraid to take risks.
Priya anand is also gud in her role and got a break in Malayalam through her debut film here itself.
Tovino Thomas although has a limited screen space, has an impact in the film...when the face of the actor shown on screen, the kind of whistles and cheers he got from the audience shows that there is a high possibility that he is gonna make it big here in mollywood in the near future itself.
Only misfit i felt about the casting was Sudev Nair who played the title character Abraham Ezra who only appears in the flashback part.
So, watch this movie in theatres itself with your family as i said earlier that although it is a horror thriller, it is enjoyable to all kinds of audience....U wont get disappointed for sure..
It tries to replicate the scenes from the western horror movies its clearly 'inspired' from .
Some scenes are hilarious like the ghostly girl who jump scares priya .
The actual Ghost/Demon in the movie; Ezra is male .
This sticks out like a sore thumb..The scenes in the attic are similar to that in insidious and conjuring.Today's younger audience have already seen all these jump scares before .There are a horde of movies now coming in this genre like Conjuring ,Annabelle, , Insidious etc ....The story initially felt eerily similar to that of manichithrathazhu ,where nakulan returns to his hometown with wife ganga due to a company posting .
But in the 1993 classic the reason of haunting was ganga's psychosis whereas in ezra , it is really supernatural.Prithviraj' plays a nuclear waste management expert( well thats new !) and lives with his wife Priya who is from a malayali family settled in mumbai.
i rate this 4 for sujith vasudev for capturing the best a horror movie can deliver in malayalam .....the rest from the scene where the box was first scene is just copied from the movie titled the possession .....
however they added extra history and masala to the story ...even the climatic scene and everything surrounding the story base is just remade into malayalam ..even the climatic CGI of the ghost entering the box .