As we come out of the movie, we would feel the title refers to the actor director-combination. Mohan lal - Sathyan Anthikad combo has always churned out memorable movies. This one is not one of their best outings but delivers most of what the 'brand' promises.Mohan lal as usual has given a superlative performance. His impeccable comic timing, screen presence exuding grace and charm, we malayaalees are indeed lucky to have him. Though the story revolves around Manju Warrier's character, her role doesn't have enough meaty situations to bring out her best.Sathyan Anthikad's world is full of 'basically good' people. There are no evil characters. Flawed, yes. But never outright evil. So it was kind of surprising to see the buildup given for THE villain. I even had a couple of names in my head as to who would play that role. But then who am I kidding! The villain is given a name and just looms in the background as the epitome of all evil and never shows up. Don't get me wrong. I am not complaining. It did sync well with the general feel of the movie.The turn of events seem a lot contrived and the characters very much clichéd and not that well written. But Lalettan's histrionics and the general feel goodness makes it worth a watch.

Disclaimer - I am a big fan of Mohanlal-Sathyan Anthikad collaborations. But Ennum Eppozhum while not unbearable, was dull and never really rises above a certain level of amusing mediocrity.Here are a few of the trite and antiquated characters, plot devices and plot developments used in Ennum Eppozhum: 1) The bumbling sidekick (played by the awful Jacob Gregory. This sidekick used to be played by Jagathi or Jagadish back in the good old days) who feeds off the hero and gets beaten up all the time.2) The battle of the sexes - Lal and Manju Warrier hate each other in the beginning but obviously reconcile as the film nears its end.3) Generation gap - Mohanlal is an old school journalist struggling with the diktats of his authoritarian new generation female boss.4) The neighbors with a heart of gold - Innocent plays a role that he has done a billion times before this film. His conflict with Mohanlal's character is supposed to evoke laughter but it is mostly banal.The clichés that I have listed above are not problematic by themselves. But they have now been done to death. The actors who used to carry these clichés off very well now seem jaded. The new generation of actors are simply not talented enough to rise above these clichés.Mohanlal is overweight and sleepwalks through his role. Manju Warrier was too wooden.There are many films of the 90s which were clichéd. But those films had writers who could write clever and witty dialog and flesh out characters that evoked sympathy. Unfortunately there are no such writers working in Malayalam cinema anymore.

The movies without any specific plot or story worth mentioning belong to two 'categories' mainly - The lack of a story is compensated by entertaining sequences, good dialogues and noteworthy performances for some while the movies in the other category meanders along aimlessly with only 'boredom and frustration' being the end result :) Ennum Eppozhum comfortably fits into the second category with nothing noteworthy to mention about and is made even worse by its set of 'un- inspiring' and 'cliché' sequences. The last 10-15 minutes offer the only 'watchable and happening moments' of the movie and neither Mohanlal nor Manju Warrier come up with anything outstanding to compensate for the lackluster story line or dialogues. In fact Mohanlal looks totally disinterested and 'out of place' for most of the movie and just about bursts into life towards the end !!! Yet another addition to the ever growing list of 'we've seen it all family hit' movies from Sathyan Anthikad :)

Veteran director Sathyan Anthikkad's attempt at being one more up on actress Manju Warrier's hot comeback trail is effective, while being lightweight, in spite of skirting over many themes that could have taken this into heavy, dark territory. Now, as to whether that is an (actually, many) opportunity lost, or a director firmly in grasp of his medium, ensuring he covers everything with a deft/light touch, is something I am unable to make my mind up on. And that's not a bad thing, because I do remember being entertained for most of its running time, and is that not what most audiences, as well as film- makers want?For one whose life is not littered with achievements (character- wise, in this one), Mohanlal has to be playing one of the most self- assured characters ever rendered on the screen. A person who's egotistic to the point of being more than just narcissistic, who lives his own life by a few simple pointers he has laid out for himself, his character doesn't have an arc, as in a redemptive one, that makers are usually prone to inflict on mainstream, as well as Indie audiences, though, to be fair, that chances of that happening in an Indie production are less. He simply does not change, and is unapologetic about whatever he does, not even being PC when it has to do with treating those he considers as beneath himself, or lesser in stature than him. There are always 2 ways of looking at this. One, is to laud those behind the scenes in not compromising on bringing realistic characters to the screen, no matter how they might be perceived, or two, to be extremely critical of the makers for perpetrating stereotypes. I've found myself on both sides of the fence on this issue, and firmly believe that movies that make one think, instead of being a statement-of-fact make us belong to one or the other camps. On this one, in spite of its many mis-steps, which I will come to in a bit, I believe the makers were well-aware of what they were showcasing, and did so unapologetically.Manju Warrier looks better than she did in 'How old are you', and it seems like she's firmly on the road to get in as much good work as possible, considering the time she has lost in the industry. Not a bad thing. Between this and her earlier work post-comeback, this is more accessible, and more mature, and has fewer mis-steps than the previous one did. She also gets a chance to meta-refer her life, keeping the identity of her ex outta the frame for the running time.Mohanlal, on the other hand, has done a lot of trash between his last blockbuster, 'Drishyam', and this one. This falls into the realm of a comeback of sorts for him as well, and he has a firm grasp of the character, and for all its flaws, makes it his own, and endears himself to the audience in each and every frame he's in. Her characterization though, leaves a lot to be desired, and is not well-etched, when it comes to work. Also, it does not help to have a realistic kinda case and the laughable, falling-flat-at-humor denouement doesn't help her character, and blame for that should firmly be laid elsewhere, not at her feet.In spite of the fact that the classical dance-sequences seemed shoehorned-in, they're welcome, since it's been a while since I've seen it done well ('Sagarasangamam' always comes to mind, since the ones in this have been picturized as beautifully). If they were not shoehorned-in, they might have created more impact, but I'm not complaining.The underlying humor in each sequence, especially featuring Mohanlal, seems organic enough, and evokes the needed laughter, while keeping us engaged in the lightweight plot.One of the best things in the movie is how supporting characters remain in-character throughout, without allowing certain events bring about a sea-change in them, as they're wont to, in most mainstream productions that do not require thinking minds. Also, the female lead characters, and supporting ones, are perhaps given more to do than the lead male protagonist, and are all achievers in their own right. Given that, it is a testament to Mohanlal's performance, in spite of his character not having a typical-redeeming arc, that he manages to make his character endear himself to the audience (not sure if it is just to the males in the audience though) in spite of being surrounded by giants, in terms of standing tall in life.The background score is mostly OK, with the other departments chiming in to support the narrative. 1/2 songs are also pleasant- sounding, but do interrupt the overall flow. Not complaining hard, though. The in- car driving sequences in front of projected moving horizons are unnecessary, and call attention to the low budget/visualization capabilities of the makers, and along with some shoddy production design and location-work, divert from the movie- watching experience, and could have been done better, especially in this day and age, on digital, using real-locations. Sigh.So, what makes up for everything that could've been better? The finale. It's pitch-perfect, esp. since there are quite a few things going on by then, and any kind of a logical conclusion may have juxtaposed itself in a slipshod way, the way life is wont to do, with another ongoing thread. In fact, this is one of the problems with the flick, where nothing much happens in the first half, and too much happens post-interval. However, the ending kinda caps it off in a way that left me with no complaints. All in all, a movie worth your time, effort and dough, in spite of all things that could've been written/rendered better. A lightweight, easy watch, though you might not remember it when it comes to compiling this year's best.