Overview
A family's bond is tested when a dark secret emerges, leading to a gripping struggle for survival.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- tense
- intimate
- protective
- late night suspense
- plot twist movie night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as an exceptionally gripping and intelligently constructed crime thriller, especially for its emotional stakes, logical plotting, and Mohanlal’s restrained performance.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Georgekutty constructs a detailed story, complete with corroborating locations and false evidence, to protect Rani and Anju.
The entire household coordinates its behavior to shield Anju after the accidental killing.
The audience follows the family’s cover-up as Geetha Prabhakar and the police investigate the missing man.
The remote hilly Kerala village, cable-TV network, school trip, quarry, and local police form the practical world of the cover-up.
Films like Drishyam, and why
Drishyam 2
family-protection crime thriller built around concealment, police pressure, and escalating suspense
The Invisible Guest
morally complex murder mystery in which ordinary people manipulate evidence and evade investigation
A Separation
slow-building domestic crime thriller centered on a family caught in a dangerous cover-up
The Body
clever, twist-driven suspense drama involving an accidental killing and strategic deception
Movie Details
- Director
- Jeethu Joseph
- Release Date
- 2013-12-19
- Runtime
- 164 min
- Rating
- 7.5 / 10 (235)
Cast
- Mohanlal
- Meena
- Asha Sarath
- Kalabhavan Shajon
- Ansiba Hassan
- Esther Anil
- Siddique
- Roshan Basheer
- Neeraj Madhav
- Aneesh G Menon
Common questions
- What is Drishyam about?
- A devoted Kerala father turns his encyclopedic knowledge of movies into an elaborate defense against a murder investigation threatening his family.
- What is Drishyam like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Drishyam as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Drishyam violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Drishyam as moderate.
- What did critics think of Drishyam?
- Critics broadly praised the film as an exceptionally gripping and intelligently constructed crime thriller, especially for its emotional stakes, logical plotting, and Mohanlal’s restrained performance.
- Which films are like Drishyam?
- Films with a similar feel include Drishyam 2, The Invisible Guest, A Separation, and The Body.
- How long is Drishyam?
- Drishyam runs 164 minutes.
