Mili (2022) User Reviews

Very Good Survival Film

[AJ_McAninch · 7/10 · 30 December 2022]

The negatives out of the way first: there is much that is predictable and stereotypical in certain characters' behavior and plot outcomes. And the opening sequence begins with an ant, when there is a far more impressive creature in the story we are invited to care about.

All that said, even though we know this is a remake and the star is the producer's granddaughter; even though we know it would take far more time and healing for her recovery, that all slips over to the side in light of Kapoor's superb performance. Because that is this film's success: a smart woman, also a nurse, who keeps thinking of viable ways to survive in an increasingly impossible situation. And even tries to save her little patient trapped with her as well. She has both Courage and Compassion that make us want her to survive. I enjoyed this movie. 7.5 Recommended.

Janhvi is on the right track!

[SoumikBanerjee1996 · 7/10 · 31 December 2022]

Survival thrillers are a rarity in any film industry, let alone Bollywood, but there have been quite a few initiatives in the past few years, and I must say, regardless of their successes or failures, I'm glad that they at least attempted to venture into this relatively uncharted territory.

Coming back to 'Mili,' it's an official remake of 2019's Malayalam film 'Helen', which starred Anna Ben (which I haven't seen yet, so I have no way of comparing the two). This appears to be a reasonably competent thriller if I evaluate it strictly on its own merits.

In addition to delivering the expected ingredients of suspense and despair, it also captured the essence of a father-daughter relationship that blossomed into something wholehearted. In addition, everyone's performances were also very commendable. Particularly Janhvi Kapoor.

She may need a dozen opportunities for improvisation, but one cannot deny her willingness to take on unconventional roles that will force her to grow as an actress. She still has a long way to go, but one thing is for certain, she is indeed on the right course.

Janhvi is excellent in this tense survival drama

[madanmarwah · 7/10 · 2 January 2023]

Among movies there is a genre which is best described as " survival drama" where the protagonist is trapped in a situation and getting free becomes a life threatening challenge due to adverse circumstances. Earlier there was a movie called " Trapped " where the hero gets locked in the top floor of a high-rise apartment. Another movie " The Martian" had the main character marooned on Mars. In this movie a 24 year old girl gets inadvertently locked in a room freezer of a eatery in a mall overnight while her loved ones and police keep hunting for her all the town. Here the enemy or antagonist for her is the extremely low temperature of around minus eighteen degrees to which she is exposed to for some hours.

Director Mathukutty Xavier makes the best of a screenplay which is different in nature in the sense that a major chunk of the scenes are restricted to the freezer room. The focus is on the physical suffering of Mili due to adverse conditions and scenes of her struggle to survive make for riveting viewing. All symptoms of hypothermia like shivering, confusion, fumbling hands are shown realistically. Janhvi Kapoor has acted superbly as the suffering girl who keeps her wits intact as she struggles to get the freezer to stop. She is helped by the realistic depiction of effects of hypothermia which makes it believable. Manoj Pahwa is good as the father and there are some heartwarming scenes of banter between father and daughter. Sunny Kaushal does the boyfriend's role well. Music of AR Rehman is pleasant to hear. There are a few minor flaws but they can be overlooked.

Survival Instinct is the theme!

[UmeshAditya · 7/10 · 31 December 2022]

Survival Instinct is the theme of the movie! Story of a girl who gets accidentally locked in a freezer for 5 hours. Unique storyline with good execution. Ignore the initial 45 mins though!

My ratings 6.5/10!

Survival Instinct is the theme of the movie! Story of a girl who gets accidentally locked in a freezer for 5 hours. Unique storyline with good execution. Ignore the initial 45 mins though! My ratings 6.5/10!

Survival Instinct is the theme of the movie! Story of a girl who gets accidentally locked in a freezer for 5 hours. Unique storyline with good execution. Ignore the initial 45 mins though! My ratings 6.5/10!

A sincere survival thriller !!

[shubhabhatia · 7/10 · 14 January 2023]

Mili is the official Hindi remake of the original Malayalam film titled 'Helen', both directed by Mathukutty Xavier.

The plot involves Mili, just a girl-next-door who is educated and wants to earn well for her family. Just before she is finally set to leave for Canada, her life takes a turn when she gets accidentally trapped in a walk-in freezer late at night while everyone is searching for her.

Although this trap situation reminded me of a Hollywood film P2 where the lead actress gets stuck in the parking lot with a psychopath, yet Mili was quite different as it shows a more "realistic situation of negligence" not involving any kidnap or ransom, just the regular people doing regular jobs. This was the best thing about the film.

The film does not miss any chance to show the typical mindset of the people about almost everything. You will enjoy this aspect throughout the movie.

Then ofcourse the survival techniques that Mili uses are impressive. She used every possible way to keep herself alive, recalling the learnings from her nursing practice, her father's words and the resources available in that single room. It therefore speaks of a very strong message that "Whatever we learn in life surely helps us at some point of time"

With the relatable characters, sincere performances by the entire cast; especially Janhvi since she led the film, right play of sequences, this movie convincingly speaks of courage, willpower, love, hope and trust.

The end was no doubt predictable that the lead would survive but it is a positive aspect because the film is about survival.

DEFINITELY RECOMMENDED!!

She definitely worked hard for this challenging role

[Biswas_ · 9/10 · 10 November 2022]

I haven't seen the original but from reports it seems its a frame to frame remake of Helen .

Mili is about a girl named Mili who gets trapped in large refrigerator and battles her life out to survive as her loved ones search for her.

It's like you are searching for your spectacles all around your house without realising it's in your pocket (or prolly you are wearing it only lol).

Before going to other points , i have to admit this is Jahnvi's best performance till date. It's very hard to do a role like this and the director has brought the best out of her . Not only does she excels in her scenes with her father, but also her pain is captured brilliantly in the fridge. Very few are watching this in theatres but once it comes on ott, people will realise how good Jahnvi was in this film and is probably one of the few nepo actresses trying out some really challenging roles from helicopter pilot to this. What you can't deny is so far she has done films where women have meaty character rather than just be a showpiece like how other young actresses are made to do.

The father daughter scenes are terrific. Jahnvi scolding her father for smoking ciggerate like as if she is his mother is really nice to watch. Manoj Pahwa is a gem of an actor . He excels in emotional scenes.

Sunny Kaushal has a decent role here but is basically a side character nothing else.

That cruel inspector, the actor who played the role was terrific! His job was to instill hatred in us and did it with ease and conviction. The casting i have to admit has been spot on.

The only one place i found it to be rather weird and illogical is the final part where Manoj gets hold of her unconscious daughter in the fridge and dude ! Instead of rushing her to the hospital, he just sits there in the cold fridge crying over her body and trying to wake her up!! Dude she's alive or dead, just take her to the hospital asap. I think only after a good 3 mins he realised this and that's weird melodrama.

Songs were really good thanks to AR sir.

Just because it's a remake you can't bash it. I know Bollywood is making too many remakes but then keeping that aside , just analyse the product. This review of mine is a remake only review as i havent seen the original and all i can say, it's a satisfying product. Also, it would be unfair to compare this to Trapped, the latter was survival only film and of much higher quality.

Pretty cool

[TheNamelessCzar · 7/10 · 12 March 2023]

This was definitely not your typical Bollywood movie. I expected song and dance, and I got something completely different. I was pleasantly surprised by the originality. There were plot holes all over the place, and characters acted nonsensically and unrealistically at times. However, the storyline itself is not bad. The lead actress does a credible job although the writers have her doing some pretty dumb things at times. Nevertheless, I was happy that the movie did not follow the old, worn out Indian movie formula and struck new ground with creativity. The first half was better than the second, but overall this was a solid watch.

Really A good film in indians flims industry.

[aponkhokon · 9/10 · 14 November 2022]

A wonderful movie. True movie lovers should watch this movie. This movie is free from the nekamo pana acting that Janhvi Kapoor's other movies have. She acted very natural. Young Mili is abducted and finds herself trapped in a freezer with no way out, and every ticking second lowers her chances of survival. Principal photography took place from August to November 2021 in Mumbai and Dehradun. The film's music was composed by A. R. Rahman with lyrics written by Javed Akhtar. It was distributed by Zee Studios and released theatrically on 4 November 2022. The film received mixed reviews from critics, with praise for Kapoor's performance.

Watchable... but that's it

[halfprincex · 6/10 · 21 August 2023]

Janhvi did what she could (and what was in her abilities) to save the slow and uninteresting plot of the movie. At no point were any of the other cast memorable and did not prove useful in any way until the very end. The movie is watchable, but that's due to Janhvi.

Although there were some sweet moments of Janhvi's character, particularly in the latter half of the movie. Those were touching but I wish the other characters were developed more.

The sound track sounded good (AR Rehman ofc) but the lyrics were written by a 9 year old. It seemed like mostly everything in the movie was carelessly chosen.

Unrealistic and annoying - good performances though

[anthony_fernandes80 · 1/10 · 6 January 2023]

The movie tests your patience as it is unrealistic, and hence annoying.

Everything happens just when it shouldn't, like it happens on TV spas and movies from the 90s. She will stop clanging the second someone moves away - people look everywhere except where they should look.

Two things that worked were Jahnvi Kapoor's acting and most of the acting performances and A. R. Rehman's background music and a couple of songs (Raahi, though it did remind me of Tu Hain from Mohenjo Daaro).

As for thee rest of the film, it tests your patience! In this day and age, nobody else has a phone when the lead actor's phone dies. Really?! And when they finally do find her in the freezer, no one wants to take her out. They just sit around her, including the cops. That is the first thing they should have done - take her out of the damn freezer! LMAO!

The movie flopped and after watching it, I know why!

Mili

[puranjanbasak · 9/10 · 1 January 2023]

Mili is a drama thriller film directed by mathukutty xavier. It is the official remake of the malayalam film 'helen' directed by the same director.

Jhanvi kapoor has improved a lot since her dhadak days. She has understood the assignment and she knew that only facial expressions were not enough to emote, she definitely did a fine job with her body language as well. Though she needs to work more upon her dialogue delivery, its still a work in progress. She should take more challenging roles like this. Manoj pahwa does some outstanding work here. As mili's father, he shows the anguish and fear of losing his child brilliantly. He is a veteran, who got the space here and just nailed it. Sunny kaushal did not have much to do, his was mostly of a reaction role. The other supporting characters were good. Anurag arora will definitely challenge you with your patience.

The cinematography is brilliant. The freezer scenes are exquisite. The contrast between the outer world and that confined space was brilliantly built up through the camera distance from the character. There was no space in the freezer for mili, close up shots, zoomed in shots were the majority. The sound mixing too is brilliant. You get literally startled in some sequences, when the sound suddenly kicks in. The scene where sound fades out from the freezer, to the employee chamber, to the shop door was a good one.

There is some visual storytelling as well. In the opening sequence, an ant is followed by the camera. What happens with it is literally the plot of the movie, and the ending too is the same ant one. The songs are quite good, not AR's best but 'jeena hoga' and 'tu hai rahi' are really melodious.

There is a brilliant cameo by jackie shroff. The film also talks about the caste differences that is still a major talking point in north india and also the subtle misogyny about a girl working late night shifts. Also, the different shades of police force is also beautifully dealt with.

The screenplay is smooth and seldom lets its viewers off the hook. The emotional core of mili and her father is set up wonderfully and that is one of the major reasons why we connect with it. The character of sameer could have been written better, his love with mili was half baked.

A pretty good remake with some really good performances with an impeccable sound design. Should watch this!!

Slow Burner - MAC Reviews

[iamahmar08 · 6/10 · 17 January 2023]

A slow burner starring Jhanvi Kapoor & Sunny Kaushal mainly, which gets to the point after 40-45 minutes.

+ves : Jhanvi's acting performance which makes it a good movie to watch. Symbolism used in the film by the director especially through that mouse was something unique which looks great according to the context of the movie.

-ves : Extremely poor screenplay which makes you feel bored while waiting for the main series of events. It takes about 45-50 minutes to reach to its main plot, in a 2hrs movie, its really poor. Some over the top & illogical acts or events were also there in the movie. Considering modern age cinema, Director should definitely look into these categories.

However, if you have nothing to watch, you could go for this one. If you have that kind of patience to offer than you could give it a try.

BIG SHOUTOUT TO JHANVI KAPOOR!!!

Something just does not add up

[amkomr · 5/10 · 2 January 2023]

Why didn't they go and check the cctv footage from the mall interior? Especially the one from Doon's kitchen. Why didn't mili cover herself with cardboard and tape herself. Jhanvi kapoor has improved her acting but she still ain't at alia bhatt levels. Manoj Pahwa was good as usual and so was the actor in corrupt sub inspector's role. The parts where they were showing jhanvi could be better by adding mirage like creations/delusions of her mind. It was boring to watch her suffer inside. More interesting were the developments happening outside to find her. 5/10 is just for the freshness of the movie.

Survival Thriller with feel good Family - Bollywood drama

[rudraduttsisodiya · 7/10 · 3 March 2023]

Bollywood do have few survival thrillers, if anyone watched Rajkumar Rao's Trapped, then you will feel this one a mere dissatisfaction. But its not just survival, though the main theme is that but they have added a lots of Bollywood elements to it and emotions. Don't expect a thriller because the story is simple but the acting and drama is really fun to watch. Every actor is fun to watch and how story builds up is interesting but lacks depth in the survival theme. The movie would have been a whole different movie if it focused on the survival angle but it covers also the unnecessary parts which makes the film boring. The start was slow and didn't added much to the story, so were some middle parts, felt parts like when Jackie Shroff appears and illogical delays made by police overexaggerated. In India, I don't think police would take such extensive actions if someone is missing for just 4-5 hours. Jhanvi acted well, I came to see her and she didn't disappointed, but her character could have been smarter then what was portrayed.

Janhvi Kapoor is impressive in this survival thriller.

[chand-suhas · 6/10 · 23 March 2023]

I haven't seen Helen yet so I watched Mili with an open mind. For a survival thriller, it doesn't waste much time in introducing the characters. Mili (Janhvi Kapoor) is working at a food joint as a part timer to help her father. She is friendly and is liked by all. One fateful night, she gets accidentally locked in the freezer by her ignorant manager. With time running, how she survives the cold while her loved ones try their best to find her forms rest of the story.

Jahnvi comes up with an impressive yet honest performance in pulling this role of Mili as much have to do with her fighting the cold, suffering the frost bites. She brings the character alive in the first act, especially bonding with her father. The nasty police officer's character is exaggerated but it doesn't take away the impact. The scenes involving a struggling Mili trying to protect the rat was well done. The special cameo at the right time does the trick too.

Definitely worth a watch.

Why so much hate in the name of bollywood.

[manishguptavg · 9/10 · 6 November 2022]

This movie contains a simple and short story of a surviving girl being trapped in a cold storage. I was not a fan of Jahnvi, but his acting in this movie makes me believe that anything is possible with hardwork. From now on I hope that Bollywood will produce movie with great story, not a non-sense and stupid movies trying to cry in the name of society, which is far from reality.

A nice try. Everyone does their job perfect. A simple story can make you connected due to its powerful performance and the emotions which is what a normal human being feels.

I gave this movie 9 out of 10 stars.

Watch in theatre if you can afford or wait till OTT release, but you should watch this masterpiece atleast once.

And everyone, kindly don't hate such movies which contains a good story. Bollywood already got their lessons.

Always, Bollywood try to spend their budget on promotions and lead actors and making of big budget film with zero emotions and a negative story but from now on the left-wing propaganda seems to leftover from Bollywood.

Even if any Bollywood films strats to propogate their left agenda then that will surely end of this industry.

Good Watch

[ketanjrsharma · 8/10 · 30 December 2022]

I have not watched the movie Helen so the story line was new for me. But yes as usual the end was expected and was not a surprise.

For a normal viewer it would be a good watch but for a person who watch good amount of Hollywood, Bollywood and South Indian Movies it will be okay types and not great.

Jahnavi has acted normally and not sure why people called her expressionless. She has done the climax scene very well and overall also she has acted good.

Storyline and plot is simple and I would suggest folks to watch is once at 1.5x if needed. People who like comparing Hollywood / Bollywood / Tollywood / Sandlewood can go and watch what they want instead of comparisons. :)

An ordinary fare which lacks originality and logic

[Peter_Young · 5/10 · 20 January 2023]

Another survival thriller, and not a very good one at that. First, the movie drags on for far too long, and it takes a lot of time until the film's main plot element comes to the fore. The big problem, however, is that much of what happens once the girl is stuck in the freezer lacks credibility and is amazingly cliché and predictable. There's no logic in freezers having no safety devices or inside door handles, especially inside malls. Even what happens out of it is poorly handled. How come no one thought to check the control room which would immediately whether she's left the restaurant. Everything Mili does in terms of decision making feels slow and not suitable for such a high-strung situation. That she doesn't keep herself in constant movement (for most of it she just sits rested) nor try to check the walls in due time and find an existing tunnel does not make any sense either. Above all, that she spends so much time inside it and is still in her senses, and she is, doesn't ring true for a minute. One can think of so many things she could have done to break the fans other than try to strike it with a stick or throw packages of frozen meat at them (like the ladder, for one).

Mili is watchable nonetheless, but another fault is the editing - the movement back and forth between the freezer and the girl's family looking for her is most exhausting. The film could have been shortened in a way that would have made the entire project much more effective and worth a watch. I think the sub-genre of survival films has become (like any other successful sub-genre) repetitive and this film just follows the same tropes without offering anything original. More than anything, Jahnvi Kapoor, who is pretty, is quite okay but honestly just isn't good enough this time. Not going to do what everyone else already does and compare her to her mother (and I've done this before so why do it again), and not going to say she isn't a good actress because she did well in other films, but here the lack of experience shows and she struggles a lot with the proceedings. Since in many ways this is a one-woman show, it required an actress so charismatic and expressive that many of its flaws would have been forgiven. Overall, Mili is, again, a watchable film which is overlong, predictable and not good enough. Many things could have been done to improve it.

Awesome...MUST WATCH

[Amber_Agrahari · 8/10 · 30 December 2022]

Just a awesome movie ... a one time watch survival movie with some heartwarming moments...good screenplay and writing The movie is fairly engaging as a survival thriller, but far less impactful, socially insightful than the original film Helen and all the better for it is the only new detail in the Hindi version is a bunch of pleasant songs and a background score by AR Rahman.

At the last *SPOLILER ALERT*

After Mili gets trapped in a freezer in the restaurant and her whereabouts are unknown for several hours, Niranjan and Sameer set out to look for her. Satish's obnoxiousness is both an example of police excesses as well as a ploy to stretch out Mili's plight.

MUST WATCH.

MOVIE DEVOID OF REALITY

[anamalli · 3/10 · 30 December 2022]

This is the usual movie filmed around an expressionless actor Jahnvi kapoor Compare her with her mother Sri Devi. Audience can easily guess what is next and also the end result. Same formula, similar love story, motherless child brought up by single father. Best part of the movie has been shot in the freezer room of the fast food restaurant. Effectively the movie can be compressed to 20 % or even less.

Usually there are a plethora of safety devices for a deep freeze chamber which can be used in such situations. In emergency there are instructions within the freezer chamber for escape. The door lock can easily be opened without a key as one would do it from inside the house of main door. I would not recommend this movie. It is waste of time and money. There are much better choices on Netflix.

Blockbuster True Based Movie Must Watch In Theatres

[MehdiRizvi-7867 · 10/10 · 7 November 2022]

Performed well enough to pass the scene without any faults.

Mili has powerful support from the technical team. The background score and cinematography are both superb. Also, the make-up work on Janhvi looks effective. A. R. Rahman does it again. His "Jeena Hoga" hardly appears for 2-3 minutes in the entire film but still leaves an impact on you. The other two songs aren't that good, but they're decent stuff. After so many good things like this, all Mili lacks is soul. I called it a "cold" film for the same reason: the characters don't have an emotional touch. Even if Mili is locked up and is unable to stand tall, you don't feel anything about her. All you do is get frightened sometimes or feel the tension. What about feeling sentimental about the lead character, or, for that matter, all the supporting characters?

Mathukutty Xavier makes so many basic mistakes in the direction, while Ritesh Shah's screenplay makes up for it. I don't know why, but it seems that it has become propaganda to show a bad cop in the film. And at the same time, somebody else from the team would do his work honestly, or some criminal would have more humanity than the cop. Mili has these lame conflicts. Why would Sameer rush away in a hurry on a bike when he could have easily gone up in the room to use a mobile? Why did Mili's father start crying in the freezer room instead of taking her out ASAP? Mr. Xavier couldn't handle these basic details, taking Mili even more than what it deserved. Overall, a good attempt to present a new kind of survival thriller dropped to an average level, saved by Janhvi's dedicated act.

Incredible First Half and Gripping Second Half

[riodeepabhatia · 10/10 · 7 November 2022]

Mili is absolutely superb! The first half is incredibly sweet with several light-hearted moments. Janhvi and her dad's relationship is shown brilliantly well. Janhvi's chemistry with her boyfriend Sunny is fantastic too.

The second half is the exact opposite- gripping, thrilling and goosebump inducing. You feel so much pity for Janhvi's character, you want to get up from your seat and help her and give her hints. The colder the room gets, the colder you feel. Her acting is so incredible that you start feeling like you are freezing (not exaggerating at all!).

The direction is absolutely fantabulous. You feel like crying in a few scenes, thinking about Janhvi's mother Sridevi ji and how she probably wouldn't be able to watch Janhvi in that state (albeit fictitious). But I'm sure she would be ecstatic at all the raving reviews her daughter is getting. I'm sure she's smiling from heaven.

Janhvi will be remembered for this film forever.

Mouse did a great acting

[aliemenent · 3/10 · 5 January 2023]

I recently watched this predictable, nonsensical, thrilling Indian love and emotional story, and I must say that it left me feeling underwhelmed. The plot was thin and unoriginal, and the characters were one-dimensional and poorly developed.

However, I will give the movie three stars, not because of its overall quality, but because of the excellent acting by the mouse. Despite the lack of substance in the rest of the film, the mouse was a bright spot and really brought the character to life.

In conclusion, this movie deserves one star for its predictable and nonsensical plot, but I am giving it three stars only because of the exceptional acting by the mouse.

Ignore the Negative Reviews - its actually a Wonderful movie

[ranjanadubey-35137 · 9/10 · 5 January 2023]

Movie is Very simple and Awesome People are always Comparing Jhanvi with Sridevi

But She is Perfect in her own way and She has proved that she can do any role

Go for it

Highly Recommended.

Always people say that movie is a remake So what

Its the act carried by the one who is playing the role And Jhanvi has become my favourite and she has improved a lot since her debut

She is wonderful and Will Become a Huge sensation one Day

The supporting cast of the film is also very good And Sunny Kaushal also Nailed his character

Go watch this movie and U will definitely love it .....

Thankk you.......

Waste of time

[sarvatmalik · 1/10 · 1 January 2023]

These kind of freezers in retail store, you would freeze to death within 30 minutes. I had experience working in a retail store, for only 5 minutes without gloves you're hands wouldn't be able to hold anything. Totally unrealistic and waste of time. Thanks God I was watching online and was able to skip some parts. I was expecting a good thriller type of movie but unfortunately this movie is so bad , I finished it within half hour after skipping unnecessary details. Acting was ok.........I wouldn't recommend this movie at all, I haven't watched original Helen so can't compare it to original but it was so boring.