'Baby Girl’ movie review: A taut premise, grounded performances, familiar thrills

It is not often that a Malayalam film places an infant at the centre of its narrative, let alone builds an entire thriller around her. ‘Baby Girl,’ directed by Arun Varma, leans into this unusual choice with confidence. The film unfolds around a baby barely a few weeks old (both in the story and in real life) and the chain of lives that intersect with hers after a troubling incident in a hospital. What could have been a gimmick instead becomes the film’s quiet provocation.
Varma, who made his mark with the procedural thriller ‘Garudan,’ starring Biju Menon and Suresh Gopi, returns to territory he clearly understands. Backing him is the writing duo Bobby-Sanjay. They, too, are reuniting after a three-year gap. Their script bears traces of their earlier work, most notably ‘Traffic,’ in its urgency, its ticking-clock structure, and the sense of multiple lives converging under pressure. Yet, ‘Baby Girl’ is not a retread. It chooses a more intimate emotional register but operates within the grammar of a city-bound thriller.

Bobby-Sanjay’s enduring strength has been their ability to anchor high-stakes narratives in personal emotion. And, this film benefits from this instinct. Amid the suspense, there are moments that reflect contemporary anxieties, such as fractured families, personal choices, and generational clashes. However, the film does not turn overtly didactic. The emotional beats often land with sincerity, but the narrative occasionally strains to accommodate too many concerns.

The film is not without its rough edges. The second half, in particular, shows signs of over-structuring, as the screenplay attempts to resolve every thread with neatness. Some stylistic choices, including camera movements intended to heighten urgency, feel distracting than immersive.

Nivin Pauly, as hospital attendant Sanal Mathew, delivers a deliberately understated performance. He resists the temptation to dominate the frame and allows the ensemble to breathe. In a phase marked by back-to-back releases, Nivin seems content here to blend into the narrative rather than bend it around himself. Lijomol stands out with a controlled, emotionally assured performance and navigates a role that occasionally flirts with stereotypes. Sangeeth Prathap sheds his familiar comic image for a more serious turn, while Abhimanyu lends steady support.

Sam CS’s background score plays a significant role in sustaining tension. Importantly, it knows when to pull back. Despite its unevenness, ‘Baby Girl’ remains engaging. It turns out to be a modestly scaled family thriller that holds attention through its premise, performances, and emotional undercurrents. In a landscape currently sparse on such films, it stands as a sincere, if imperfect, attempt to marry suspense with human vulnerability.