Leelai

My review : Leelai

Debutant writer , director, Andrew Louis’ “Leelai” is a breezy romantic comedy on the lines of yesteryear Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan movies. It strictly follows the template of the Hollywood romcoms but comes across as a whiff of fresh air for Tamil cinema where sickle & sexism rules. Though predictable the screenplay is fresh & realistic with enjoyable casual dialogues adding on to the delight. And most importantly the cast & their neat portrayal make the movie a lot enjoyable.

Here the hero is not a saint , he has his flaws , does a lot of dissocial activities but yet he is genuine & unpretentious. Shiv Pandit in this role of Karthik gets his lip sync absolutely perfect for the starters. His expressions , the way he conveys myriad of emotions , his charm , he must be the next one to claim the chair vacated by Arvinth Sami & Madhavan. Not one do you feel that he is not a native for he has absolutely ingrained into the character he plays.

Heroine Karunai Malar starts of as an opinionated , feministic , paranoid college girl who undergoes a personality change of sorts after she falls in love with the stranger. Manasi Parekh who enacts Malar is first class. Like Karthik she also gets her lip sync correct all the time. She lives the role of the urban Tamil Christian software engineer flawlessly. She may not have earth-shattering looks but manages to captivate the audience with her alluring simplicity.

Suhasini Raju gets a good role as a common friend of both the protagonist. She is talented  & has utilised the opportunity very well. Sad such talented people are not getting noticed.

Shanthanam does his sexist routine in the name of comedy. He redeems himself in the parts where he comes as the friend of Malar & colleague of Karthik.

Huge pillar of strength for this movie is it’s songs , music composed by Satish Chakravarthy. “Oru kili oru kili ” is a soothing romantic number while “Jillendru Oru kalavaram” is an enjoyable melody. “Ponmalai pozhuthu” is another pleasant melody. Not only songs , Satish has done a neat job in his background score as well though heavily inspired by the Hollywood romcoms.

Velraj’s cinematography has neatly captured the interiors of the IT company that the lead pair work in. Songs are picturized very tastefully.

On the whole, Andrew Louis has neatly packaged the movie with correct dose of romance &  comedy with a touch of melodrama (thankfully not overdone though had scope for it) , stylishly shot & told.

Bottomline: Love (the) game

3.5/5

Rowdy Rathore

My review : Rowdy Rathore

“Rowdy Rathore” is a clear indication that B-grade is the new Bollywood grade. The trend started off with “Dabaang” , followed suit by many south remakes like “Bodygaurd” , “Singham” & so on. Seeing his contemporaries falling back on to the ever-bankable masala formula , Akshay Kumar tries his hand at the same with this remake of Telugu movie “Vikramarkudu”. It is actually going back to the basics as far as Akshay is concerned for he started off with these kinda movies , changed his track post “” to comedies . Currently following string of flops he has taken recourse in the current trend of remaking south Indian movies, especially considering the success these movies are.

“Vikramarkudu ” was a very crass & crude Telugu masala with extra spice which when was remade in Tamil as “Siruthai” , the crassness & crudity was a bit watered-down , though for Tamil standards it was a bit too much. This Hindi version of the same story is the most refined of the three (despite  Prabhu Deva’s direction..!) with not even 50 % of masala of the original but for Bollywood standards it is one of the most inane movies in recent times.

That the audience would lap it up like they did some of the recent blockbusters in Hindi doesn’t necessarily means that it is a good movie. Movie has male chauvinism, larger than life fight sequences, coarse dance sequences with garish of costumes, uncouth language & ridiculous love plot. Old (older looking) hero & overweight heroine rounds up the misery for the viewer.

Akshay Kumar looks jaded & a far cry from what Ravi Teja & even Karthi managed with this role. His comical scenes irritates while his serious ones make you laugh out loud. Sonakshi Sinha looks heavy & needs a lot to do to reduce her weight as well to develop her acting skills. Nasser is as dependable as ever.

Music is heavily inspired from south songs as does the background score.

Santhosh Thundiyil is the cinematographer , has done his part well.

Prabhu Deva after string of flops in Tamil , has done his second movie in Hindi following his successful remake of “Pokiri” as “Wanted”. He has added his signature elements here & there in the narration, except for that nothing much to write about.

On the whole, “Rowdy Rathore” is an unabashed masala movie without any pretentions. You would either get entertained or would end up with a severe Migraine.

Bottomline: Don’t angry me..!

2.5/5

Ishtam

My review : Ishtam

“Istham” is a remake of the Telugu movie “Yemaindi Ee Vela”. Original didn’t do well in Andhra. One wonder what made the producers to remake it in Tamil. Directed by debutant director Prem Nizar , “Ishtam”  stars Vimal & Nisha Agarwal in lead roles.

The movie tries the explore how  hasty decisions in the name of love might affect not only  the couple concerned but also the family of origin of them both too. The main protagonists of the movie seem to have brought straight from the 80’s era. The “hero of the movie” is a male chauvinist who foul mouths women whenever he gets chance, mistreats an unknown girl for no reason whom he marries after a cheesy romance & dumps her for no valid reason. The “Heroine of the movie” is a gullible small town girl who has come to the city to work , falls prey to the “hero’s” dirty talk & after being foul-mouthed , thrown out of the house & further foul-mouthed , still yearns for re-union with that same scumbag.

Movie is such an insensitive one where there is no role for subtleness or refinement in the treatment of the plot. It is myopic in its vision & strongly opinionated (falsely at that) in its execution which would leave a bad taste for the viewers.

Vimal doesn’t suit in this role of a suave , English spewing , city bred , “IIT” educated , software engineer. He should have worked out on his dialogue delivery at the least which is very pathetic in this movie or best must have tried someone to dub for him. Nisha Agarwal looks pretty & manages to scrap though as far as acting is concerned too. Shanthanam doesn’t do much other then mouthing double meaning dialogues & taking dig at women in every other dialogue of his. Time has come for him to think differently or he would follow suit Vivek & Vadivelu way sooner.

Songs are not that impressive from Thaman.

Shekar Joseph’s camera seems to have developed a special liking for exploring the female anatomy than capturing the wholesome picture.

On the whole, “Istham ” is a movie which is neither modern in its content or its thinking only ends up irritating the viewers no end.

Bottomline : Narrow-minded

2/5

Manam Kothi Paravai

My review : Manam Kothi Paravai 

“Manam Kothi Paravai” is a movie with a message or two.

Message 1 , to Ezhil. Sir, it is time for you to hang your boots. You have lost all your stocks. Follow the footsteps of Vikraman , Rajakumaran & the like who have gracefully stopped torturing the audience after they realized it (“Chennai Kadhal” & ”Kadhalukaga” respectively). In these hard times with petrol rises & all , people are already furious. Why do you want to test their patience further by attempting movies like these. Confusion seems to the predominant  mood of yours when you were making this movie. Still I am not clear whether this is a comedy movie or a serious movie or a serious movie made in a comical manner...!!??

Mesaage 2 , to Shivakarthikeyan. I’ll start with your own famous phrase “ Nalla thane poitu irundhichu” (your Solomon Papaiya mimicry style..:P) Sarcasm , comical timing , humour sense...These are your (only) assets. Why try things that you can’t. When you try doing serious scenes actually audience get confused whether you are really serious or you are spoofing around. Kindly try to create a space for you with what comes naturally to you first & then you can experiment. You have a good number of admirers already , don’t alienate them by attempting such ludicrous roles.

Message 3 , to the producers of the movie (Ezhil is one among them..!). I still can’t make out what made you people invest your (?hard-earned) money in such an out-dated & hackneyed script. If you people have so much of money to invest , there are numerous talent out there with fresh ideas  struggling for investors.

Message 4, to Iman. Yes agreed , your folk song in “Myna” was huge hit. But how long are you going to reprise the same type of songs in your movies time & again.

Message 5 , to Singam Puli & co. Guys comedy is not spitting out rhyming words or being stupid on screen. Already your director has written your role in a stupid manner , why do you people want to make it look more moronic by your silly acts on screen. Sorry , you people were pathetic & not even one person in the audience was laughing at your puerility .

Message 6, to Athmiya. Find the person who mis-guided you to change your career & take up acting. Sorry , your are not good at it. Kindly opt for a career change ASAP for you don't seem to have any future in movies , atleast in Tamil.

Message 7 , to readers of this review. “Manam Kothi Paravai” is an out-dated movie with the makers themselves not sure whether it needs to be taken seriously or not.

Skip is the one word message as a bottomline.

1.5/5

Thadayara Thakka

My review : Thadayara Thakka

Magizh Thirumeni’s debut “Mundhinam Partheney ” was a very good attempt at deciphering the contemporary  romance of the current generation. It was sad that such a decent attempt failed to grab attention of the moviegoers. Unperturbed by the setback Magizh is back with his second feature film “Thadayara Thakka ”. One of the most underrated talent in Tamil Cinema Arun Vijay is the protagonist . It is certain  that he would get his due after this movie.

“Thadayara Thakka” is a slick , stylish & intelligent action thriller without any shoddy moment. Be it the breezy romance , aesthetically shot action sequences or the underlay of tension that one can feel throughout the narration , Magizh scores big. It is very rare these days to see an action movie with as few logical blunders as this one. Action sequences blend beautifully within the narration. Last time we witnessed such an artistically shot action sequences was in “Naan Mahan Alla”  . No wonder stunt choreographer for both these flicks is Anal Arasu.

Movie has a very well etched out characters that grow on the viewers as the movie progresses. That partly has to do with the screenplay of the movie which is very lucid & smooth. Except for few minutes here & there in the second half , pace if almost maintained throughout. There are lots of “edge of the seat “ moments intelligently built-in into the narration. The suspense & the revelation too are done in a graded manner. The final twist in the tale is just an example of the intelligent writer in Magizh.

Arun Vijay is as solid as ever. Rarely does he disappoint. His physique is apt for the role he plays. In such a heavy duty action movie like this he has underplayed his part well which actually magnifies the impact of his character towards the end. Mamtha Mohandas too has a very sweet role although brief one. She is adorable especially in those scenes in which she tries to seduce Arun & her outburst after that with her co-worker.

Vamsi Krishna & Maha Gandhi looks the part. Rakul Preet Singh does decent job in a very significant role with respect to the story & aids in the twist in the tale. Murugadas reprises his “Aadukalam” act one more time & he is a talent to look out for.

Thaman’s background score amply help the narration while none of the two songs make any impact.

Sukumar’s cinematography has a big role in the movie looking suave & stylish. The stunt choreographer, cinematographer as well as the director have collaborated well in presenting the stunt sequences in such an elegant & tasteful manner.

On the whole , “Thadayara Thakka” is two out of two for Magizh Thirumeni & surely this time he would get the recognition as well as the box-office success that he missed out in his former.

Bottomline : Brawny &  brainy

3.5/5 

Kalakalappu @ Masala Cafe

My review : Kalakalappu @ Masala Cafe

Regression is returning to an earlier phase of development or functioning to avoid the conflicts and tensions associated with one's present level of development. After string of flops as an actor , Sunder.C has tried to go back to what he used to do with a better flair & success , direction but sadly he has regressed to his old “Ullathai Allitha” days. Not only he has regressed to his heydays, anyone who has to watch this movie & enjoy should themselves regress to their pre-school age for them to make any sense of the happening of this movie. Juvenile is the term that aptly describes “Kalakalapu @ Masala Cafe”.

The initial title reels with its old fashioned background score prime the viewers the tedious journey that they are about to embark. Nowadays college students do a better job when it comes to intelligent yet witty humour for their college culturals. Sunder.c who actually did a decent job in his last year directorial venture “Nagaram” which had an engrossing story with good humour from Vadivelu to boost , has done a below par job in writing as well direction. Movie is very tacky both technically as well as making.

One wonder who are the target audience for such an infantile effort for even toddlers of the present age are intelligent enough to notice the puerility of the movie. Sunder.C is a better writer & director than this. Except for couple of scenes involving Santhanam , rest of the movie makes one irritable forget about anything remotely close to being humorous.

Vimal with his monotonous dialogue delivery tests one’s patience with his irritatingly naive characterisation. Shiva doesn’t tickle the funny bones except for one or two timing dialogues. Anjali is loud while Oviya has nothing much to do. Others in the cast Ilavarasu , John Vijay , Subbu ,Manobala are all typecast in hackneyed roles. As said earlier Santhanam does spruce up the proceedings in the second half a bit but the fun is too brief to rave about.

Vijay Ebenezer’s music is nothing to write about while U.K.SenthilKumar’s cinematography is old fashioned. Praveen-Srikanth have tried comic effects in their editing which are interesting to start with but after a point one think it might have a bit overdone.

On the whole, Sunder.C’s return to direction is a move in good direction but he should update himself of the intelligence & the expectations of the current crop of movie goers before he starts his next venture for this one is bad example of a comedy movie.

Bottomline : infantile

2/5

Vazhakku En 18/9

“Vazhakku en 18/9” is a tight slap on the moral values of the present-day society where money, power, treachery & voyeurism rules the roost. There is no place for truth, honesty , love or innocence. Balaji Sakthivel’s third movie after his brilliant “Kadhal” & high-quality “Kaloori” , “Vazhakku en 18/9” is a gem among all the neo-realistic movies that grace Tamil cinema these days. The effortless ease with which Balaji is able to engage in the social commentary in each of his movies is staggering.

 Balaji , known for the raw emotions that he is able to bring in to the narration , does it one more time. The tension, the pain, the anguish, the anger..... are some of the emotions which every one of us who watch the movie will surely go through the last half an hour of it. Though justice delivered partially, when the viewers vacate the theatre they do so with heavy heart. It does bring in shame, sorrow, and guilt in most of us who introspect on the state of the society we are part of & contribute to.

 The narration is effortless in an uncomplicated flashback mode , easy to follow. Balaji has kept it as straightforward as possible. The dialogues are simple yet at the same time hard-hitting at appropriate places. He has the knack for casting unknown people in suitable roles who end up etched in one’s memory for a long time. Here Chinnasamy as Chinnasamy & Muthuraman as Inspector are those memorable ones and both these actors have done a tremendous work.

 All the four in the lead Sri, Manisha yadav ,Urmila Mahantha & Mithun Murali have done promising work. Sri is brilliant as the innocent Velusamy who stays innocent throughout the movie (not like your routine innocent hero who turns gutsy & vigilante all of a sudden in the climax). Manisha Yadav as a naive middle class girl who falls for the temptations of the contemporary societal peer-culture is good with all her emotions & lip-sync. Urmila Mahantha’s eye are so expressive they do all the acting . She hardly gets to mouth 3 or 4 lines in the whole movie but her emotive eyes do the rest. Mithun as a cool & suave spoilt rich kid who effortlessly changes his emotions like a chameleon is another promising find.

 All the other supporting cast , be it the boss of Velu or the Rosy akka or the one who does the mother’s role of Jothi , have done a tremendous job.

 R.Prasanna’s background score is adequate, supports the narration to some extent. But movie of this stature do deserves a better background score.

 Vijay Milton’s captures director’s vision onto the screen in a simple yet striking manner. Movie is crisp, runs for under two hours.

Though couple scenes do drag a bit & in couple of instances amateurishness rears its head, overall “Vazhakku En 18/9” is a brilliant piece of work. One of the best movie in recent times, it deserves more than a solitary watch & all the encouragement possible. One can be proud that movies like these do get made in Tamil now & then.

 Bottomline : Outstanding

 4.5/5