The first close encounter in Adithyan Chandrashekar’s Pluto happens on a quiet Kerala roadside – a silver-suited being stumbling out of nowhere while a baffled Vicky (Neeraj Madhav) watches his morning routine dissolve into absurdity. The setup promises extraterrestrial mayhem, but the film quickly settles into a gentler groove: not invasion, but inconvenience.
Neeraj Madhav plays the straight man to intergalactic chaos
As Vicky, Madhav has the thankless task of reacting to an alien who communicates through gestures and confused stares. He does it with a weary comic timing that keeps the film from tipping into broad farce. His best moments come when he simply stops trying to make sense of it all – a shrug that speaks louder than any punchline.
Adithyan Chandrashekar keeps the tone loose, maybe too loose
The director, fresh from Enkilum Chandrike, leans on situational humour rather than plot physics. The screenplay by Niyas Muhammed structures the chaos into a linear spiral, but the second half lacks a tightening screw. One specific flaw: the middle section dawdles on village gossip when the sci-fi hook demands escalation.
The sci-fi comedy lands on its feet, barely
The primary genre is science fiction, but Pluto treats space travel as a prop, not a puzzle. The alien’s arrival is played for disorientation rather than wonder, and the village setting – grounded in routine life – contrasts nicely with the visitor’s unfamiliarity.
The comedy depends on character reactions: villagers gawking, children poking, elders muttering about omens. There is no technical exposition, no gadgetry – just a confused visitor and a locality that doesn’t know how to react.
That scene of the first comedic encounter – where Pluto tries to mimic a handshake and ends up causing a small stampede – captures the film’s best trick: making the alien feel less like a threat and more like a very lost tourist.
Aju Varghese and the parade of familiar faces
Aju Varghese plays Tiger Thampi, a local loudmouth whose bluster meets its cosmic match. Aarsha Chandini Baiju’s Meera adds a skeptical female perspective that the story underuses – she gets one sharp retort about men being more alien than anything from outer space. Vineeth Thattil David and Nihal Nizam fill the ensemble with stock types, but their casting signals the film’s intent: a comfort-food comedy where every character is a known quantity.
If this light-touch chaos appeals to you, browse more Malayalam Sci Fi reviews for similar weekend watches.
Who laughs, and who leaves early
The target audience is clear: fans of Malayalam ensemble comedies who want a low-stakes evening. But anyone expecting hard sci-fi or dramatic tension will feel misled. Social media previews have focused on the novelty of an alien in a Kerala village, not on narrative depth – and that honesty is the film’s best marketing.
I suspect the film’s real test is whether you can sit through 129 minutes of gentle chaos without checking your watch. The runtime feels stretched in the middle, but the cast’s goodwill carries it.
Pluto is a watch for those who laughed through Kumari or Mandakini – but only if you switch off your sci-fi brain. For a darker take on identity, try Spider Man review – a very different kind of outsider story.
Pluto lands with a chuckle, not a bang – a light 2.5/5 for its ambition alone.
For a different ensemble comedy, check Apology verdict – another quirky group dynamic worth your time.
Ankit Jaiswal is the Chief Author, covering Indian cinema and OTT releases with honest, no-filler criticism. An SEO strategist by background, he brings a research-driven approach to film writing, cutting through hype to tell you exactly what's worth your time.
