Helen - Malayalam Movie

 

Helen is a 2019 Indian Malayalam movie about a B.Sc Nursing graduate who attends IELTS coaching classes intended for a job abroad. Directed by Mathukutty Xavier (in his directorial debut) and produced by Vineeth Sreenivasan under the companies Habit of Life, this is based on real life episode. 

Helen (Anna Ben) is working part-time at a restaurant named The Chicken Hub, and lives with her father, Paul (Lal), an insurance agent. He does not like her going abroad.  Unknown to Paul, Helen has a Muslim boyfriend, Azhar, who is in search of a job. One night, while Azhar is riding Helen to her home, they are stopped by police who penalise him for not wearing a helmet and drunken driving, they both are brought to the police station. Paul is summoned to the station. Paul is sad seeing his daughter and does not talk to her despite her several attempts of creating conversation.

The next night after work at the Chicken Hub, Helen's manager Jayashankar unknowingly locks her in the freezer room. At -18 °C, Helen has to survive in the freezing cold and tries everything to keep herself alive. She tries to block the exhaust fan but ends up dislocating her leg. She starts to get frostbite and bleeding through her nose.

Her father is worried that Helen has not reached home. He searches for Helen with his neighbor, they call all her co-workers. Azhar, who was on his way to Chennai half-heartedly, returns and also joins the investigation. They go to the police station to file a complaint but they are greeted by the SI Ratheesh Kumar (Aju Varghese), who they had encountered the previous day. He suspects Azhar. Paul tries to defend him and this causes a feud between the sub-inspector and the search party. He deliberately tries not to help them by not sharing the last tower location of Helen he got from Cyber cell. They suspect the auto drivers in front of the mall who denied the allegation. At this point, they meet a watchman of the mall who says that Helen might not have left the mall because he usually notices her going in and out.

They rush to the Chicken Hub and opens the freezer. In the end, after 5 hours, they find Helen. She is taken to the hospital just before she had the last stage of hypothermia. Then Paul enquires with the watchman  how was he sure about the fact that Helen didn't leave the mall.  He says, Helen smiles at him every time she comes in and out of the mall. He did not see her go out on the day of her missing.

Helen reunites with her father and boyfriend. The doctor says that she is out of danger and she needs physiotherapy later. He continues that its difficult for any common man or woman to survive that cold weather and Helen is a brave girl. When the watchman asks Paul what his daughter's name is, Paul proudly replies, "Helen".

There is a cameo by Vineeth Sreenivasan, as Jail convict. Though a short role - it makes you ponder - about connections and coincidences. How the Police department function. 

The movie lingers with few questions popping up every now and then, even days after you watch it. All the awards it had received are well deserved. Released a year before; Thanks to Pandamic, could watch it.