Vishwaroopam

My review: Vishwaroopam

Amidst all the controversy when one watch Kamalhassan's magnum opus "Vishwaroopam" one can't but wonder what the hoopla is all about. Why the hell Muslims in India should get upset by portrayal of Afghani terrorists being hunt down by a Tamil Muslim RAW officer. On the contrary like every one the Muslim populace will also hail the manner in which one among them is shown as a dutiful, courageous yet religious all the same. One can't but help doubt the real intentions of all those who get upset by the portrayal of the Afghani terrorists in the movie. 

Movie deals with how people get brainwashed into terrorism and the disastrous fall out of the same,  socio-political problems due to it. It also traces the story of a team of RAW officers trying to spoil a terrorist operation which could have disastrous consequences. Neither the story nor the characters in the movie have anything to do with maligning the Tamil Muslims. 

Kamalhassan seem to have done a lots of research before embarking on the making of this movie. The authentic portrayal of life on the edge of people in the interiors of Afghanistan is very moving. Where the regular game for the kids is mime shooting, toys are the ammunition and guns, where a growing kid's future plan is predecided by the terrorist father as that of becoming a terrorist, where no one knows when will the end would come. One telling and well researched scene is when a suicide bomber is shown to a person with subnormal intelligence. It is  a well known fact that among most of those who are recruited as suicide bombers almost all have low IQ, areemotionally unstable and easily indoctrinated. Well done, director and writer Kamalhassan.

Kamalhassan, the technician has had a field day. This is technically by far the most superior movie that has come out of India, on par with any international product. Technical team consisting of the director Kamalhassan, cinematographer Sanu George Varghese, Editor Mahesh Narayanan and the production team, take a bow. Technical brilliance at many places reiterate the fact that Kamalhassan is not only an actor par excellence, he is a world class technician too. The action scenes are made with minute attention to details thus creating a big impact on the viewers. Visual effects are brilliant. 

Kamalhassan, the actor has not been challenged by the writer-director Kamalhassan. This role he could play even in half sleep. Initially as an effeminate Kathak dancer he tickles the audience with his brilliant body language and voice modulation. Later as the Kashmiri youth who is getting training with the al-Qaeda he has completely changed himself physically into a fit young terrorism trainee. And finally as the dashing RAW officer he wows the audience with his style and elegance. The one scene where he transforms into his real self is a WOW scene that brings down the roof with his fans going bonkers. 

Finally coming on to Kamalhassan, the writer, he has taken up a challenging subject and has been honest to it. If only he had made the screenplay a bit more racy and exciting, there would have not been any scope to complain. Screenplay lags throughout the movie, scenes are long drawn out, as a result of which what could have a taut thriller, fails to be it. To make the matters worse, the background score is abysmal. It is non-existent in most parts (the songs fill in the gaps in the background) and fails to enhance the thrill and tension of the crucial scenes. Even an average background score could have infused a little more excitement. Shankar-Ehsan-Loy are the music directors but don't know whether they did the background score. 

Brilliant, witty and thought provoking lines make up the dialogue department, written by Kamalhassan. 

Among others in the cast Pooja Kumar is earnest in her effort but one can't but get reminded of Asin's Andal of Dasavatharam, equally screechy and at times irritating. Andrea and Sekhar Kapur don't have much work to do. Rahul Bose is menacing as Omar.

On the whole, "Vishwaroopam" is the most technically advanced movie from India till date, screenplay could have been a bit more exciting. 

Bottomline: Worth the money for its technical brilliance.

3.5/5

Annayum Rasoolum

My review: Annayum Rasoolum

"Annayum Rasoolum" is one of the best romantic flicks in recent times from India. Rajeev Ravi who is famous for his cinematography for movies like "Gangs of Wasseypur" and "Dev D" has made a dream directorial debut with this one. Fahad Fazil and Andrea Jeremiah have lived as Rasool and Anna onscreen. Rajeev Ravi has captured the lifestyle, cultural symbols, religious landscape and mores of Fort Cochin  in a telling manner.

Movie traces the love story of Rasool, a Muslim taxi driver and Anna, a Christian sales girl, their romance, travails, escapades and agonies. Movie moves at a laid back pace which works for it. Ten minutes into the movie, the viewers are transported to Fort Cochin- Vypin area and  start being part of the lives of the people shown onscreen. That is in itself a huge achievement for the director.  If the pace was faster one wonders whether the same level of impact would have been there. Kudos for the director for not compromising on that account.

The emotional connection that is created in the beginning stays throughout the movie, be it joy, sorrow, agony or merriment. Script is flawless, each character and incident are neatly woven to take the story forward. Santhosh Echikkanam has written the screenplay and story is by Rajeev Ravi, Sethunath and Santhosh Echikkanam. 

Casting is apt for the movie. This is career best effort from Fahan Fazil, who is making it a habit of choosing roles and script sensibly and wisely. His portrayal of Rasool is as authentic it can get. He has gotten into the skin of the character. His appearance, body language, dialogue delivery, all represent a care-free young man from Fort Cochin and his way of romancing. It is a pleasure to watch him emote on screen. 

Andrea Jeremiah manages to stand up to Fahad. Though she doesn't have much dialogues  she emotes her way into the hearts of the viewers. Her use of body language and facial expression is too good and carries the role of Anna on her shoulder with aplomb. 

Sunny Wayne is the narrator of the story who is one among the three friends of the protagonist along with Soubin Shahir and  Shine Tom Chako. All these three have done brilliant jobs. Movie has five directors in supporting roles, Ranjit, Ashiq Abu, Balachandran, Joy Mathew and M.G.Sasi. 

Initially one wonders why Rajeev who himself is a fabulous cinematographer has given the job to Madhu Neelakantan. When you watch the movie the answer is evident. The cinematography is awesome. Madhu has not only captured the nature's bounty in all its glory, the human emotions, dark and dirty alleys and the antique architectures of Fort Cochin are also shot excellently. Many visuals are still in one's subjective mind space like  beautiful paintings.

Movie doesn't have much dialogues. Rajeev has banked on the visuals and the background score along with the actors' emotional capability to move the story. And luckily all these three areas have helped him superbly. It is career best effort from the music director K, known for his musical scores in Tamil movies. Background score is the backbone of the movie considering the paucity of dialogues. He has been able to fill in the places where the emotional atmosphere of the scenes get elevated by his musical score. Remix of  "Kannu rendu kannu" and "Kando kando" are first class melodious numbers from K.

"Annayum Rasoolum" is the movie to watch if you an eternal romantic.  This is the movie for you if you are game for a leisurely stroll along the streets and alleys of Fort Cochin, getting to know the people, culture and the love story of Anna and Rasool all along within a period of three hours. 

On the whole, "Annayum Rasoolum" is a poetic portrayal of  contemporary love, is a must watch. Don't miss it. 

Bottomline: Best romantic flick in recent times...!

4/5

Les Miserables

My review: Les Miserables

Based on the Victor Hugo's French novel of the same name, musical "Les Miserables" boasts of some of the best talents in Hollywood who have made it a worthy movie watching experience. Directed by Tom Hooper with musical score by Claude-Michel Schonberg, if one has patience to sit through two hours and thirty odd minutes can savor the wonderful music and songs. Since it is a musical it might not be everyone's cup of tea and one must be forewarned  before venturing to watch it. 

Movie's story is faithful to the novel and is adapted from the British stage musical. It traces the life of Jean Viljean who is on the run after breaking the parole in the backdrop of the political turmoil in the France around the time of French revolution. 

Movie boasts of not only scintillating music and songs, the acting is top class. Hugh Jackman is fabulous as the lead protagonist  of the story, Jean Viljean. He has been nominated for many awards including the academy awards for this role, rightly so. He is closely followed by Anne Hathaway who is proving timing and  again that she is an actress with substance. Rusell Crowe make up the dynamic trio of heavy duty actors. He has done his part pretty well. 

Amanda Seyford has a brief role, has acquainted herself well. Most of the other actors are cast from the stage musical and they have transformed effortlessly from stage to screen. 

Another fabulous part of the movie is its production design. The team has done a wonderful job in recreating the France of the early 19th century. Danny Cohen, the cinematographer has shot the movie wonderfully well. 

"Les Miserables" is the type of movie one can watch in a lazy Sunday afternoon when one has loads of time to kill. If you are a kind who gets impatient with recurrent songs in a movie, then it is a strong NO for you. Nonetheless it is a critically acclaimed movie with good music and fabulous acting, hence give it a try once.

Bottomline: Too long for comfort

3/5

Samar

My review: Samar

"Samar" has a good interesting storyline marred by a poor screenplay. What could have been a taut thriller is neither taut nor thrilling. But it is a huge step forward for the writer-director Thiru from his offensively misogynistic debut "Theeratha Vilayattu Pillai". And for Vishal too it is step in right direction from all those mindless mass masala craps of his.

"Samar" traces the life Sakthi, a trekker from Ooty who gets wooed to Bangkok on the pretext of a letter from his estranged girl-friend only to get embroiled in a cat and mouse game which breaks him down, almost.    It is a quite engaging story with lots of potential for many goose-fleshy scenes but sadly they are few and far in between. The tiring screenplay water downs the impact the story would have made.

Movie suffers from poor characterization of almost all the lead players. Except for the protagonist to some extent, rest including both the heroines and especially villains, the characterization are shallow and bordering on bizarrness.

Vishal is sincere in his effort. It is an underplayed role which he has done with aplomb. Trisha in a substantial role after a long time in Tamil cinema is good. Sunaina has nothing much to do. Sad to see talented actress like her struggling to find foothold in Tamil industry. J.D. Chakravarthy and Manoj Bajpai irritate with their quasi-villainous, quasi-comical, full blown bizarre act.

In Yuvan's music "Azhago azhagu" and "Vellai mayil" are testimony to his talent when it comes to melodies. Dharan has done the background score which is pretty average.

Richard M.Nathan has done a fabulous work as the cinematographer of the movie. His work actually elevates the gloss and richness of the movie.

On the whole, "Samar" is a movie with all the good intentions but execution leaves it hard and dry in the end. Nonetheless worth a watch for its different storyline and good visuals.

Bottomline: Lacks a punch..!

2.5/5

Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasaiya

My review: Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasaiya

Master storyteller K.Bhagyaraj's "Indru Poi Nalai Vaa" is one of the all time classics in Tamil cinema. Remaking it is not a easy joke for each and every characters, scenes and dialogues of the original are all memorable and fresh in mind even though it was made more than three decades ago. Shanthanam and Rama. Narayanan have tried to remake the classic with debutant K.S.Manikandan at the helm with this "Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasaiya" (KLTA). 

First half is almost scene by scene remake with some cosmetic changes here and there while in the second half the makers have taken lot of liberties before finally getting back to the original story line. Though the movie entertain in parts one is always conscious of the original which prevents it from enjoying   it wholeheartedly. At many instances one can't but feel for the original cast which included  K.Bhagyaraj, Pazhaniswamy, Ramli, Kallapetti Singaram and Gandhimathi who has got replaced by the likes of pathetic non-actor Srinivasan, loud Kovai Sarala, passable Sethu and VTV Ganesh. 

Shanthanam to a great extent keeps the movie afloat ( he has made it a habit of saving many mediocre movies in the recent past) with his perfectly timed comical one-liners. It is heartening to note that the crassness which is seen a lot in his comedy off late is bit lesser this time, still he manages to make the audience laugh. Single-handedly he has taken care of what the movie promises to deliver, fun. One can't but get infuriated wondering what this hype is all about "Powerstar" Srinivasan. He doesn't seem to be wee bit knowledgeable about what is acting. He has some bizarre reactions, non-existent body language and pathetic dialogue delivery still people go crazy when he appears on screen, maddening. 

Sethu tries his best to emote and he does succeeds to some extent. Vishaka Singh is ravishing and she emotes well too. Though she is just a showpiece in the first half she has a lot of scope for showcasing her talent in the second half. Kovai Sarala is loud, VTV Ganesh doesn't have much to do and rest of the cast are pretty average. Simbu comes in a dignified cameo.

In Thaman's music "Hey unnathan" and "Naan sollurappa" are good foot-tapping numbers while "Love letter" is a cute "gana" number which is an ear-worm. Background score is average. Balasubramaniem is the cinematographer, has shot the movie conventionally.

Remaking  one of the most entertaining movies in Tamil cinema is not a joke and it clearly shows on screen. Inexperience of Manigandan shows especially in the second half when he tries to take a detour from the original but fails to sustain it before conveniently taking recourse to the original. May be if only they have tried someone with a flair for acting other than Srinivasan, movie might have had more credibility. On the contrary it ends up not taking itself seriously enough.

Though the movie is entertaining in parts one can't but get a feeling of watching "Lollu Sabha". Irrespective of how it fares in the box-office, KLTA is yet another example of why classics should best left untouched.

Bottomline: Shanthanam's one man show.

2.5/5 

Seethamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu

My review: Seethamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu

Srikanth Addala's second movie "Seethamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu" after his successful and critically acclaimed "Kotha Bagaru logam" is a story of two brothers, how their different personalities clash and the same gets resolved. Starring Venkatesh and Mahesh Babu in the lead, the movie generated lot of buzz before its release. However the end product just fails to live up to the humongous expectations.It is a strictly okayish movie at best.

Srikanth who has written the story and screenplay seem to have been heavily inspired by numerous such family tear-jerkers of the yore. Movie is outlandish, playing out straight from the 70's and 80's. It is still a puzzle why this movie needed superstars like Venkatesh and Mahesh Babu in it. Especially Venkatesh is sidelined, doesn't have much to do. 

It is clear that Srikanth wanted to make a movie for the Sankaranthi season and his target audience is clear, family and ladies. But we are currently in 2013 and I seriously doubt whether there are people who can muster enough patience and sit through the entirety of such movies which is more like a condensed television serial.  

Mahesh Babu has a more substantial role and he has done his part well. As said earlier Venkatesh doesn't have much scope. It is really bamboozling why in most of the Telugu movies heroine are portrayed with borderline intelligence with bizzare childish mannerisms. This one too Samantha to a great extent and Anjali to a lesser degree try to be too cute to comfort, often repulsive. Veterans like Prakash Raj, Jayasudha, Rohini Hattangadi, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Tenikella Bharani, Rao Ramesh do their parts well.

Mickey J Meyers songs are soothing to the ears. K.V.Guhan has shot the movie pleasantly.

Touted to be the wholesome family entertainer for the festive season, somehow one gets a feeling to artificiality or superficiality while watching the movie. 

Bottomline: For patient viewing..! 

2.5/5

Alex Pandian

My review: Alex Pandian

When one thought that it can't get worse than "Saguni" for Karthi and "Maapillai" for Suraaj, here comes "Alex Pandian" to make them look better..! Packed with crass filthy comedy, over the top action sequences, umpteen annoying punch dialogues, very loose and logic-less screenplay, "Alex Pandian" will sure make you squirm in the seat. 

In these days when even well established stars like Rajnikanth and Vijay are forced to change their tracks from doing mindless illogical commercial movies, it is quiet alarming to see a greenhorn like Karthi not learning both from the mistakes of others and also of himself ( "Siruthai" & "Saguni"). It is baffling to say the least when one tries to decipher the cognitive abilities of the makers of this inane product. They must have been caught in a time-warp. 

Suraaj who gave enjoyable action-comedies like "Thalainagaram", "Marudhamalai" & "Padikathavan"  fails this time in both action as well as comedy. Actually the action  and comical sequences compete with one another in annoying the audience.

First half he has fully depended on Shanthanam and his comical abilities but sadly his crass double-meaning comedy is getting stale. As nothing much happens in the first half one start to get itchy straight away. Second half is even worse. The kidnap episode is protracted and goes on and on. Nothing interesting happens and Manobala comes in to irritate further. After a point of time it gets way too exasperating to stay in the theater. 

The climax is one of the most hilarious one seen in Tamil movies where the Chief secretary and the Commissioner of police try to shoot the Chief minister even without a knowledge that the secretariat is under CCTV surveillance, LOL. Movie not only showcases dumbest of villains, daughter of Chief minister is no better. She instantly falls in love with a ruffian who kidnapped her just because he saves her from bee-sting by rolling with her along the slope...! SIGH..! Legendary stuff these !

Movie boasts of loads of promising and renowned actors, but almost all of them are uniformly wasted. Karthi leads the pack in a role he has been doing right from his first movie, one after another. Wondering doesn't he himself get bored of doing the same for the past  5 years. Anushka has nothing to do, throw back to her earlier days in Telugu where she would  just do couple of songs without much scope for acting. Shantanam's comedy as said earlier is getting repetitive bordering on nauseating. Many talented veterans like Visu, Pratap Pothen, Renuka, Suman are all used shabbily. Sanusha looks ravishing, makes up the sister-trio of Shanthanam along with Nikitha ( gorgeous) and Akanksha Puri ( not that promising).

All the songs of Devi Sri Prasad are aural assault while his background score is noisy and tedious. Saravanan is the cinematographer he has shot the action sequences well where the four-wheelers fly all over. Technically the movie is average.

On the whole, "Alex Pandian" is a wake-up call for Karthi but with movies with name like "Biriyani" and "All in all Azhaguraja" lined-up, future look bleak for this once promising youngster.

Bottomline: Death sentence !

2/5

The Impossible

My review: The Impossible 

Long over due finally we get to see a disaster drama based on the 2004 Tsunami. Juan Antonio Bayona's "The Impossible" scripted by Sergio G. Sanchez strictly follows the template of a disaster drama with a feel-good ending. At times it gets too mushy with contrived feel-goodness where the artificiality rakes in which waters down the overall good that the movie manages to achieve.

Movie has one of the most chilling and realistic visualization of the Tsunami and its aftermath. Also it captures the shock, agony and nightmares of the victims in actuality. It is a ode to the numerous kindhearted human beings across the globe during those challenging times who saved many lives. Also it beautifully captures the powerlessness of the humans in front of larger power of the nature and how much of a humbling experience it would lead to.

Apart from the visual effects and emotional connectivity that the movie has with the viewers, acting is top notch. Tom Holland as the eldest son of the family Lucas is brilliant. It is his first feature film but he has done a sterling job ala a veteran. He is closely followed by Naomi Watts who brings in her experience to the forefront in a challenging role. She effortlessly brings on screen the mental and physical agony of her character which worsens as the movie progresses. Superlative effort from her indeed. Ewan McGregor is okay, he doesn't have much of a screen space.

Oscar Faura's cinematography is awesome with great deal of help from the visual effects and CG department. Fernando Velazquez's background score lends support to the movie in enhancing its emotional reach.

If only the makers steered away from unnecessary forced in feel-goodedness and titillation ( a case of poor direction or inattention to details or voyeuristic sojourn on the part of the makers, Naomi is shown wearing a bikini underneath her top when the Tsunami strikes but a while later shown with a torn top with nothing underneath which do get highlighted dramatically..!!!  )

If one can overlook these blips, "The Impossible" is a movie one can watch in theater for its visual effects and the celebration of the spirit of human nature above all these disasters. 

Bottomline: Over-rated

3/5