ENDHIRAN – THE ROBOT: TRAILER REVIEW

‘Chitty- The Robot; Speed 1 Terrahertz; Memory -1 Gigabyte. Programmed to be 100 times intelligent and talented than a normal human being. Knows all the languages on the face of earth.’ The most powerful robot ever made by man and we will be introduced to this wonder on September 3rd, the day Endhiran hits screens.

The movie is more than a month away, but the excitement is already palpable. Two years of tight secrecy has finally relented. The music is out and so is the trailer. The excitement that it has created is greater than what is generated by the actual release of most movies. That is the stature

Endhiran

of the men associated with this mega venture. No doubt, all of you will now have the list of names involved in Endhiran by heart. But, really, it is hard for one to resist the temptation to roll out those names once again. After all, it is only rarely that there is a chance to dwell on these names at length, especially in connection with the same movie. So, here they are; Superstar, Shankar, Rahman, Kalanithi Maran, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and many more names that you will be hearing of in the next month or so. If anyone says that a bigger team than this exists in Indian cinema at present, then seriously, he’s got to be kidding. Because (pardon the cliché) ‘it does not get bigger than this’.

Sun Pictures started its promotional activities yesterday with the release of the trailer through TV. But, it has not reached its full fledged stage yet and that is why most of you might not have got a chance to get the first feel of what is in store. Well, don’t get upset because you can always scramble to Youtube to get your fill of Superstar and we too are here to provide you with every small detail that the biggest Indian movie ever divulges as it treads along towards D day. So, here goes the trailer review of Endhiran – The Robot. It is only rarely that a film becomes so huge that even its trailer demands or deserves a review. This is one such occasion and we hope that there are many more in future.

Now, the review. Well, what do you expect from a Shankar film? One word – grandeur. One look at Endhiran’s trailer and you will know that Shankar has gone many levels above all that he has done till now. If you thought that Sivaji was the pinnacle of ebullience, then you have to see the Endhiran trailer to believe that it was not. Such seems to be the scale of the film. But, we will have to wait to see the entire product to know exactly how and where the 150+ crores were spent. The one thing that the trailer definitely tells us is that much of that has definitely gone into visual effects. What we will get to see in the movie seems to be special effects and computer graphics that have never before been envisaged. There have been some good CG applications in Indian cinema over the years, like what we saw in Sarvvam last year. But, Endhiran is in a different league altogether. If you want to compare the standards of graphics that seem to be present in the movie, then it is films like Terminator and Matrix that you have to look at.

The story of Endhiran is definitely one that has never been tried in Indian cinema before because of the sheer technological expertise and costs that it would necessitate. Tamil cinema will be certainly proud that one of its directors has taken this step that would expedite the evolution of Indian cinema to the next level. But, for those who regularly watch English films, the plot might sound a tad familiar; but we are just guessing at this point of time. From what the trailer offers, it is all about Rajinikanth (the scientist) who constructs the world’s most powerful robot (again Rajinikanth), something that even Honda could not do, which can do almost everything that a human being can, in a much better way. But, what happens when the robot forgets the rules that were laid down by Issac Asimov to be followed by all robots and humanoids (so faithfully done by Arnold Schwarzenegger throughout the Terminator franchise); all mayhem is set loose as the uncontrollable robot runs riot. Who can stop him? This is our guess of the plot.

Most English movies choose New York as the stage for all big disasters and monsters to attack. The big city has been used for its instant familiarity all over the world and also perhaps for its suspension bridges and proximity to water bodies which make excellent settings for heart stopping action. Well, Shankar seems to have taken up Chennai as the stage for Robot to strike and from the few fleeting glimpses we think that some of the major landmarks in the city might feature as backdrops of action sequences. We are quite certain about some action atop the Guindy flyover. The only regret is that the colossal ‘Secretariat’ structure could not be ready in time for Shankar to think of a pulsating action sequence involving the structure. There also seem to be some absolutely delightful and colorful sets (in metallic theme, apt for Robots) that have been constructed by Sabu Cyril.

The action, the visual effects, the art; all this makes the film big. But, what makes it huge? What gives a producer enough confidence to say yes to a budget of 150 crores? There is only one answer – Superstar. You have to see it to believe it. Never has he looked as young as this in the recallable past. Never has he looked as dashing and stylish as he does now. As wine gets better with age, Superstar’s style only seems to get better every time he appears on screen. There seem to be dozens of get ups and styles that he has donned in the movie; especially for the Robot character. Are they all good? What a question! The only real question is which one of them is best. All Superstar fans (we guess that everyone is), get ready for an absolute treat. There is no doubt; he is still the undisputed King of style. And, in the, midst of all the excitement one forgets that this is the first movie in more than 25 years that will have two Superstars on screen at the same time. Do we need a bigger reason to celebrate?

There seems to be no end to what one can talk about this movie, just after watching a one minute trailer. Yes, we have not yet talked about Rahman or Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and a lot of other things. But, one guesses that the next month or so will be there just for that and much more. So, go watch the trailer as soon as you can, get the first feel of the biggest Indian movie ever (bet you, this one is international in its standards) and keep coming back because the countdown has begun and you don’t want to miss any of the action. Endhiran – The Robot will soon take you by storm.

ENDHIRAN MOVIE REVIEW

Starring: Rajinikanth, Aishwarya Rai, Karunas, Santhanam.

Direction: Shankar

Music: AR Rahman

Production: Sun Pictures

With a bevy of machine guns in hand; all triggers locked, Superstar delivers a resounding punch line; ‘Happy Diwali folks’. Yes, it was Diwali, minutes before the start of the first show here in Chennai with crackers going off in thousands, flowers flying around and people going delirious with excitement. This is Diwali; no matter even if

Endhiran

the real one is still a month away, Superstar has arrived!

Well, let us get down to the task. There is nothing much to reveal about the plot of Endhiran; one supposes. Thousands of speculations, predictions and of course, a mad frenzy about the trailer has given a rough idea about the plot. Endhiran is about Dr. Vaseegaran and Chitty, his creation- the robot with a 1 Zettabyte memory and a speed of 1 Terrabyte. From then on it is a ‘Chitty showcase’, of action, dance, emotions, fun and frolic. Watch Endhiran for the experience.

The foremost thing about any Superstar film is Superstar himself. He is the air the film breathes, right from the first frame. The biggest entertainer that India has produced, weaves magic on screen; even a nonchalant saunter on screen makes theatres erupt in celebration. Watching Endhiran one feels no doubt whatsoever that no one other than Rajnikanth could have pulled off this character. It is destiny that brought Endhiran to Superstar after travelling all through Kollywood and Bollywood. He delivers a tour de force performance – he owns the film. Be it as the workaholic scientist, the obedient Chitty or the destructive Chitty (‘upgraded version – Chitty 2.0’), he scores; exuding brilliance and charisma in every frame. Yes, there are the trademark styles and mannerisms, but Rajnikanth transcends style and goes one better with Endhiran. His restraint while playing the scientist, the frustration that he shows while his scientific endeavours go wrong, underscore the fact that he is a brilliant actor who has been bogged down by commercial demands and compulsions. But, the focal point of the performance is definitely the robot. Chitty, the innocent child like robot is cute and loveable and dashing once romance starts flowing through his veins – wires. And, it is when the destroyer arrives that we see the Rajni in all his splendour. There seems to be absolutely no one who can come even close when playing a devilish destroyer. The outrageous and maniacal laugh as he proclaims his invincibility is a masterpiece – a throwback to the heydays of Rajnikanth the villain. The decades have not dimmed his brilliance and charisma one bit. And, the effort he has put into Endhiran shows in all frames; be it the fights or dance sequences; the desire to excel still burns bright. Aishwarya Rai looks ethereal as always. Though it is a bit difficult to still accept her as a college student, she delivers when it matters. Not the usual Shankar heroine (songs and dance only stuff) here, she is almost the fulcrum of the story.

Scripting wise, Endhiran does have its flaws, which is a bit disappointing. The first half is a smooth and jolly ride as the cute Chitty takes centre stage. A couple of fights set the tone for the fans to go overboard with excitement, a few lighter moment most of which are enjoyable and two songs make it a relatively light hearted affair. Shankar’s ability to write commercial Tamil cinema elements (hero rescuing damsel in distress, witty one liners etc.) into a sci-fi script is commendable. That stops Endhiran from being a pure sci-fi flick, making it apt for all class audiences. Beginning of the second half is however not an apt extrapolation of the expectations raised in the first half. Though too much does not go wrong, there are portions which one feels could have been tighter. Some sequences, especially the ‘Ranguski’ part, are dragged along for more than a reasonable length. A couple of songs follow each other in quick succession which dampens things a bit. But, if you are willing to be patient through these minor glitches, the rest of the second half is racy, action packed and intelligent.

Action, as all might now, has been the talking point of Endhiran with world famous visual effects supervisors doing the job. The sequences have been conceived by Shankar (as shown in the titles) and do not lack in awe and magnificence. Be it on the train, on the truck or the highway – action is taken to a new plane in Endhiran. As expected, logic does fly out of the window now and then, but then, what is a Superstar film if there is no suspension of belief.

As expected, technical aspects of Endhiran are top notch. Special effects are world class (except a few occasions here and there) as they have been done by the best in the business, Stan Winston Studios and Industrial Light and Magic. The sheer effort that has gone into the CGI work is humungous, be it Rajni running along the side of a train or doing a Michael Jackson jive; everything looks as original as it can get. Camera by Ratnavelu captures what Shankar has envisioned, and translates it effectively on screen. Make up, by Banu, is exceptional and has made Superstar look even more stylish than he usually does. Re-recording does not look like the work done by an Oscar winner, especially in the final portions, but still manages to impress. Rahman’s songs which are already a rage sit well on the film, adding to the entertainment quotient. Dialogues by Shankar, Sujatha and Karki are sharp, using proper technical terminology well balanced with Tamil lines. Sabu Cyril shows his class once again, be it with the sophisticated labs or grand songs. His work stands out in particular in the ‘Irumbile Oru Idhayam and ‘Arima Arima’ songs. Anthony is as deft as ever with the scissors, adding to the tempo of the film.

Hats off to Shankar for the vision and the effort! He has taken Tamil cinema to a new plane on technical terms, showing that nothing is impossible. The sets, effects, sound, style are all amazing and good enough to rub shoulders with Hollywood counterparts, give or take a few points. But, the basic story is still a desi love triangle! That is where Shankar has shown his skills; making state of the art film merge with our regional cinema tastes. His genuine desire to take Indian cinema to greater heights reflects throughout the movie. But, it is not just Shankar who has this vision, Superstar too shares it with him. The man whom we have known for total style and charisma has shown that he is game for something new that does not fit in to the conventional Superstar mould. Even after years of stardom he genuinely wants to bring in and be part of change that will take Indian cinema to higher levels.

Overall, Endhiran is a ‘robotic, hypnotic, supersonic, Superstar’ experience, the first of its kind in Tamil cinema and the only one of its kind for a long time to come. It is going to take a Herculean effort to equal or better Endhiran within the confines of Tamil cinema. Let’s hope the day comes soon. For now, an ovation to the Endhiran team, Sun Pictures and Kalanithi Maran for showing faith in Shankar’s vision and to Hansraj Saxena for masterful execution of the project. If not for the faith, confidence and vision of these men, Shankar’s ten year dream would still have been just a dream.

Do Indian cinema a favour, watch Endhiran; let a 100 other Shankars feel bold enough to dream.

Verdict: Indian cinema’s pinnacle of evolution – ‘Robot sapiens’

Dabangg Movie Review,

Starring: Salman Khan, Arbaaz Khan, Sonu Sood, Sonakshi Sinha, Dimple Kapadia, Vinod Khanna

Direction: Abhinav SIngh Kashyap

Music: Sajid- Wajid

Production: Arbaaz Khan

Dabangg (Fearless) has been in the news for quite a while now. After Wanted, Salman Khan is in desperate need of a hit as his earlier two movies failed to set the box office on fire. With a newcomer as director, a debutant heroine and a star studded support cast, Salman went all out toDabangg promote the movie in major cities. There was only one question on everyone's mind. Will this movie wow the audience?

Dabangg is a usual story of good prevailing over evil. Salman, the shady cop, never knows fear. He confronts everyone upfront and is never shy to mouth his words before anyone superior too. ACTION. He has a step-brother and a step-father whom he hates and a mother he loves most. SENTIMENT. He falls in love with Rajo (Sonakshi Sinha) instantly and goes all out to woo her. ROMANCE. He makes the evil politician – villain pay the price for his bad deeds. REVENGE. Sounds familiar? But the movie is a compelling watch... in every sense. Why? Because, Salman Khan is the hero. The ‘Atta Khatta Dabangg hero’ will be the most talked about personality in weeks to come.

Chulbul Pandey lives with Pandeyji (Vinod Khanna as step father), Makhkhi (Arbaaz Khan as step brother) and Ma (Dimple Kapadia). He is full of surprises. For some he is a corrupt police officer who makes money from politicians and bad guys. For others, he is the fearless cop who never thinks twice to wipe out bad guys. Chulbul hates his step father and so does he. Only person he cares for is his mother. Arbaaz is the naive brother whose only aim in life is to marry his girlfriend Nirmala. He falls in love with Rajo. The scene where he falls in love at first sight is one of the best scenes of the movie. Moving on, there is of course the corrupt politician Chedi Singh who locks horns with Chulbul given the slightest chance. He kills his mother, spoils his stepfather's business and poisons Makhkhi's mind to turn against Chulbul. What happens in the end? The director is in no mood to surprise us here.

Abhinav Singh, the director, must be praised here for his street smart direction. He certainly does not have a worthy story on hand but the screenplay and the graph he has sketched for Salman has worked wonders. He certainly has learnt a lesson or two from his brother Anurag Kashyap. The dialogues need to be mentioned specifically. If not for the wit and humor, the film would have been classified "just another Salman Khan movie". The audience just loved whenever Salman packs a punch with his dialogue.

Sometimes, it makes one wonder if Salman is a cop or a showroom model with his perfectly-fit shirts and trousers. The best part of a magic trick is that we know we will be fooled but still we wouldn't want to know how. This movie is like that. We are here to get entertained. Logic? Maybe next time please. Because this is Salman's movie. This man is ‘bulbul by heart and Dabangg by mind’. He is the perfect cop Bollywood has seen for quite sometime now. He is brash, bold, funny, witty and emotional but above all, he is lovable. Lovable not only for Salman fans but for everyone.

Salman's screen presence in this movie makes him tower above everyone. When we are treading on a path of subtle and offbeat movies, Dabangg laughs out loud at subtlety. Be it his romance with Rajo, his roguish stunts or his confrontations with the bad, every slide in the movie screams Salman. He looks every bit suave and debonair as his creased shirts and trousers.

Sonakshi Sinha (daughter of Shatrughan Sinha) makes a noteworthy debut as Rajo. Though her scope is limited, she makes her presence felt. Arbaaz as the brother has done a decent job. Vinod Khanna and Dimple Kapadia show why they are still sought after veteran actors. Their remarkably subdued acting is indeed a treat to watch. Anupam Kher and Om Puri have been wasted in miniscule roles as usual. Sonu Sood, as the antagonist, has shone in his character. One feels this talented guy deserves more than just villain roles.

Abhinav has been neatly assisted by slick cinematography, editing and a wonderful music score. The crowd erupts every time there is a song sequence. The background score is also very effective. Overall, Dabangg escapes from the usual with a larger than life hero and neat direction. It is a Salman Khan movie right from the first frame. Never one to disappoint masses, Salman and Arbaaz have delivered a Super-hit which Bollywood was yearning for a while. Celebrate Eid Salman Ishtyle!

Verdict: A perfect holiday entertainer for the masses.

Bale Pandiya Movie Review

Star-casts: Siddarth, Piaa Bajpai, Vivek, Jaya Prakash, John Vijay, Pradeep Rawat, Shamsundar Arsani and others

Music: Devan Ekambaram

Higher hypes and publicities made good waves of expectations prior to release. Designer Siddarth’s debut directorial ‘Bale Pandiya’ boasts of a blend of new thread of storyline set backdrops of usual plot of goodie-baddie conflict.

Siddarth’s treatment of script is quite enjoyable as he brings the film with right mix of action and comedy.

The story of Bale Pandiya goes this way….

Pandiya (Vishnu) finds the best contract killer AKP (Amar) and pleads to assassinate him. First shocked with a crazy approach, AKP and his henchmen ask him to pull out reasons for his drastic decisions. Thus starts his flashback of unlucky misadventures from his birth, which even makes these contract killers quite dumbfounded. On the other end, AKP is on his mission of kidnapping Vaishnavi (Piaa), which turns to be a failure as unlucky Pandiya is besides them. Soon after a point, AKP assures Pandiya about fulfilling his needs and assigns him as a human bomber at the venue of All India Police Conference. Indeed, he offers him a debit card with value of Rs.25Lakhs with the expiry date on 10th of next month (Day to end his life).

Pandiya starts enjoying his life as he carelessly swipes his card letting his family cross its hurdles and then comes across Vaishnavi. They fall in love and Pandiya feels like paradise coming down on Earth, but it’s already Date 10.

Filled with hopes of canceling the assignment, Pandiya takes Vaishnavi to the house of AKP unaware that he and his henchmen are mysteriously killed.

The first half (80mins) keeps going with jolliness as it just carries the establishment of characters. The title song ‘Bale Pandiya’ itself reveals of the protagonist’s character. Certain sequences like ‘Traffic Signal’, ‘First Love Failure’, and Vivek’s arrival at airport are enjoyable. Piaa Bajpai takes on a good screen presence and her costuming is done well. Vishnu has improvised a lot from his previous and his stunts are really appreciable. But, he could yet more spend more efforts on emoting to best. Amar as AKP picks your interest and flashback involving his help for Vishnu is sure to astonish the audiences. Gibran’s look is quite ludicrous and looks like comedy-villain in Old Tamil films. Vivek’s satirical liners like Rs. 1 for Rice and Rs.2 for using Public Toilet wins him applause and not to miss Englishmen introduced Mobile Phone and Tamilians introduced Missed Call.

Post-intermission, there are some lagging sequences as the story turns to be an usual conflict between two politicians and hero’s run of saving his girl from the clutches of baddies. John Vijay is average and Jayaprakash as grey-shaded politician is good.

Cell phone sequence in ambulance and tracing it faintly reminiscences of Rajnikanth’s blindfolded act in ‘Priya’. The stunt sequence during second half has been choreographed neatly. The film could have been well narrated even with a duration of 2hrs (trimming 10 mins each hour of original duration 140mins).

Devan Ekambaram’s musical score is extraordinary and the songs have been pictured well. Especially the song ‘Sirikiren’ and Kangale Kamalayam’ are visual treats.

‘Bale Pandiya’ offers a decent entertainment for its viewers. Stressed out of heavy work, looking better way to chill, walk in with popcorns, sit back and relax.

What works: Screenplay, entertaining factors, comedy, Music, Camera

What doesn’t work: Few logics missing, lengthy duration but bearable, emotionless romance

Verdict: Watch it once

Sindhu Samaveli Movie Review

Director Samy is man who made a name for himself touching controversial themes and talking about forbidden relationships. Be it ‘Uyir’ or ‘Mirugam’, Samy was right there evoking mixed response from film-buffs for the content.

Typical to his style is ‘Sindhu Samaveli’. This film too is set in a sensitive theme - that of a girl caught between her husband and her father-in-law. Thankfully the director has not made the script crude and chose to play it down.

A 'fearing' theme it is, but Samy seems to have made it look commercial with catchy cinematography, host of songs and some comedy. The fact that it features all newcomers manages to sustain some interest. Sundar C Babu’s music and camera by Utpal comes to his rescue.

Anbu (Harish) is student in a village school. His mother is a teacher and father Veerasami (Ghajini) works in the army and is posted in Assam. It’s romance for him as he falls in love with Sundari (Anakha), who is elder to him but studies in the same class.

Situation forces his father to return to village after he opts for voluntary retirement, injured in a terrorist attack. His sorrow is doubled when his wife dies of snake bite. Anbu now takes up the task of fulfilling his mom's dream to become a teacher.

He with the permission of his family marries Sundari and lives happily with her for a month before leaving the village for teacher training. Alone at home, Sundari takes care of her father-in-law. But she is forced to enter into a ‘relationship’ with Veerasami. What happens when Anbu comes to know of it forms the crux.

Both Harish and Ghajini do their part well. The complex emotions have been brought out well onscreen by them. But walking away with applause is Anakha. She is right there delivering her best.

The movie principally revolves around three characters and few scenes are exaggerated, testing our patience. The eyesore is also the filmmaker overplaying the relationship at places. In parts, Samy delivers a better job.

Neeyum Naanum - Movie Review

Cast: Sanjeev, Sethna, Sampath, Manobala, Singamuthu

Direction: Solairaja

Music: K Sathya

Director Solairaja, who made many a popular serial on small screen, has tested waters in the tinsel town with a film that speaks about the egos, friendship and camaraderie among children.

Set in the backdrop of a dance competition between students, the movie harps about the innocence of children, their agony and frustration.

Though Solairaja has tried his hand at such an interesting theme, what the movie lacks is the way the director has executed it. It sounds clichéd and predictable at many places.

Sanjeev of ‘Kulir 100 Degree’ plays the lead role while debutant Chetna is cast as his ladylove. The film boasts of star cast that includes Sampath Kumar, Master Rinson, Master Sachin, Singamuthu, Nellai Siva and Manobala among others.

The movie begins in a school campus where Surya (Sanjeev) comes to join as aerobics instructor. The school is owned by Sampath (Sampath Kumar), the chairman of a group of educational institutions, and an influential man in town.

Surya develops affinity with Diya (Chetna), a relative of Sampath who is also a dance teacher there. Meanwhile, a poor boy Karthick (Rinson) manages to get admission in the school thanks to Surya.

An intelligent boy, he incurs the wrath of Siddharth (Sachin), son of chairman of the school who studies in the same class. Karthik's mother falls sick and he needs Rs. Five lakh to do surgery for her. Comes a dance contest carrying cash award of Rs 10 lakh which Karthik wants to do. Siddharth comes in between and poses hurdles.

Eventually with Surya's help Karthik gets admitted to another school. Surya, Karthi and others take it as challenge and prepare themselves for the competition. Meanwhile Diya walks out from the house to be with Surya. It’s finals between Siddharth and Karthik and the best wins.

The movie boasts of enough dance sequences. There are some fun elements in the form of children getting ready for dance contests. Sanjeev looks cool and suave while Chetna is okay. Sampathraj as usual does his job well. All the kids have played well.

Music by Sriram Vijay is good especially the theme music. Premshankar's cinematography is breezy. All said ‘Neeyum Nanum’ is like watching a dance contest on a television channel which impresses you in parts.

Vilai Movie Review

Director Kamaraj has tried his hand at serving a strong message in ‘Vilai’, which is about innocent women being exploited and pushed to flesh trade. Thankfully the film maker doesn’t stretch for effort here showing the dark sides, but he has tried to narrate a sequence of events to convey the theme.

The movie has some familiar names like Saravanan, Udhayathara and ‘Nadodigal’ fame Barani. What begins as a docu-drama suddenly changes gears to become a routine clichéd affair. The intention of the director seems to be right, but he falters at its execution. Events unfold at quick pace and at places defy logic, taking away all sheen.

Nandhu (Barani) and his sister Vandhana (Reethu Soni) live at Melur village with their parents. They quarrel with each other. Unable to tolerate it, their father arranges for Vandhana’s wedding. Her brother however wants her to continue studies as she is a topper.

Vandhana comes with Nandhu to Chennai. She gets kidnapped by a call taxi driver and Nandhu begins his search only to come to know that she has been kidnapped by a gang running flesh trade. Now Nandhu takes the help of Assistant Commissioner of Police Shanmugavel (Saravanan), who had a bad past and had his young daughter kidnapped a few years ago.

He along with Nandhu goes on search and succeeds in finding her in the custody of a Mirchi Maya (Fathima), a dreaded woman don who runs prostitution houses in Andhra Pradesh. But there awaits a surprise for Shanmugavel. Also how Vandhana is saved is the rest.

Saravanan reminds one of Vijayakanth. He replicates the ‘Captain’ in his walk and mannerisms. Barani plays a desperate brother, while Reethu Soni as Vandhana is cute. The rest of the cast includes ‘Yogi’ Devaraj, Chandru and Amarasigamani among others.

The content was there to give a riveting film. But Kamaraj seems to have achieved only in parts. On the whole, the movie doesn’t work wonders. However the director deserves pat for taking a relevant issue and discussing it.

Banner: SB Film Productions

Cast: Bharani, Saravanan, Bhanuchandar, Gemini Balaji, Chanthru, Udhayathara, Reethu, Madhumitha, Fathima

Direction: G. Kamaraj

Music: D.Imman

Naan Mahan Alla Movie Review

Banner: Studio Green

Cast: Karthi, Kajal Agarwal

Direction: Suseendran

Production: K E Gnanavel Raja

Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja

Expectations were literally bigger than before as Susindran and Karthi joined hands together. These personalities share a common history of success in film industry and together they have outmatched their previous films now. ‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ top notches on every arenas as it holds a powerful theme and technicians glistering at their best. The film creates a lump in your throats with its serious subject and you’ll walk out of theatres with an intense emotion.

What starts as a passable entertainer turns into a gripping crime-thriller during second half. Hats off to entire team as they deserve praises for their earnest efforts and brilliancies.

The film focalizes on the increasing crimes in Chennai and how it disturbs the lives of innocuous people leading a peaceful life.

Jeeva (Karthi) has a picture perfect life with caring parents (Jayaprakash, ‘Eeram’ fame Lakshmi), affectionate sister (Priya of ‘Singam’ fame) and supportive friends. His life is filled with absolute happiness when Priya (Kajal Agarwal) comes across his life. Marked by abrupt transitions, Jeeva’s life undergoes a wild change as the dark-crude side of Chennai has other plans for him. The emotions and perplexities are now on hi s playing cards. Jeeva is now forced to handle the situations, in a way he never expected. On the pragmatic contexts, the film touches the increasing crime rates in Metropolitan City of Chennai.

Karthi showcases ne plus ultra performance and gets under the skin of his characterization. It’s a relief for those, who felt his role was incisively exaggerated in ‘Paiyya’. What is sure to surprise you is the fact that it doesn’t boast of any stunts till the climax. For the first 100minutes, the film strides with spanking narration of fun, frolic and romance. However, Susindran makes sure that audiences are provided with a clue right on the prologue about what this film is all about. The point of conjunction by involving Karthi’s character has been well designed by the filmmaker.

The most highlighting attribute of this film is the crisp and crystal-clear narration. Susindran makes sure the audiences are not dragged back and forth with fluctuating tempos. The 130mins of drama keeps you adhered to screens.

Karthi excels with his charismatic appeal and deserves special mention for his stunning performance in action sequences. Even his hilarious mannerisms during first half are enjoyable. Kajal Agarwal looks bubbly, cherubic and shares a great chemistry with Karthi. Jayaprakash continues striking gold at his performance level while Lakshmi deserves same praises for her acting. 4 youngsters (one of them looks identical as younger boy, who played Suriya’s role in ‘Nandha’) are excellent on their part.

Technically, Yuvan Shankar Raja’s musical score is the biggest asset as his Midas touch on background score enhances the visuals canned by Mathi. The cinematographer has completely changed his pattern from ‘Paiyya’ and emblazons the screens with different touch. Kasi Viswanathan’s editing is sleek and neat.

Stunts choreographed by Anal Arasu are far beyond excellence. The action sequences moves you to the edge of seats. It’s nice and realistic to see the baddies being more dominant than an ordinary guy in these stunts.

As on whole, ‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ isn’t just an entertaining film, but a hardcore reality that has been prevailing amongst the people in contemporaneous city of Chennai.

We wish Susindran to keep his thumbs up and producers are sure to take a cake walk. It’s yet another precious stud in Karthi’s career.

What works: Almost everything, the plot and screenplay, performances, technical panoramas

What doesn’t work: Missing a duet song ‘Oru Maalai Neram’ from Yuvan’s bank

Verdict: Just outstanding. Must watch it

Banner: Studio Green Films, Cloud Nine Productions

Production: K.E. Gnanavel Raja, Dayanidhi Azhagiri

Direction: Susindran

Actors: Karthi, Kajal Agarwal, Jaya Prakash and others

Dialogues: Bhaskar Sakthi

Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja

Camera: Mathi

Editing: Kasi Viswanathan

Lyrics: Na. Muthukumar, Yuga Bharathy, Francis

Stunt: Anal Arasu

Art: Rajeevan

Choreography: Sabeena Khan, Baba Bhaskar

INIDHU INIDHU MOVIE PREVIEW

Sekhar Kammula is one of the gifted directors of our times and most of his movies have gone on to become super hits. Inidhu Inidhu is a remake of his 2007 blockbuster hit Happy Days which was shot with lesser known debutant actors and in a shoe string budget. The movie went on to rake in money and rewrite box office history of Telugu films reiterating Kammula’s stature.

Inidhu Inidhu, produced by Prakash Raj’s Duet Movies, is a feel-good flick that revolves around the lives of a group of college friends. K V Guhan wields the baton and tries to replicate the directorial prowess of Kammula in Inidhu Inidhu. This is Guhan’s first movie as a director, who had earlier associated with Prakash Raj as a cinematographer in his Mozhi. So impressed was Prakash with his work, he invited Guhan to direct Inidhu Inidhu, for which he seemed to have obliged.

The way Prakash Raj acquired the Tamil rights of

Inidhu Inidhu

Happy Days is interesting as well. After getting besotted by the songs of the then-unreleased Happy Days played by his driver in his car, Prakash inquired about the movie. During his next trip to Hyderabad, he met with the producers, saw the movie and struck a deal and later acquired the Tamil rights even before it was released in Telugu. After the movie became a runaway success, Prakash was approached many times by Tamil producers asking for the rights and willing to pay astronomical sums. Prakash never parted with the rights and here we have Inidhu Inidhu.

According to the scope of the movie, it’s supposed to have been shot almost entirely in a college. Kammula shot Happy Days in his own college (Chaitanya Bharathi Institute of Technology). However, the college location Guhan selected for Inidhu Inidhu is as yet unknown.

Mickey G Meyer, who scored music for Happy Days is retained for the Tamil version too. His famously popular numbers should give the movie the required push.

Happy Days also starred Tamannah but sadly Prakash seems to have done away with her and opted for a debutant instead. The movie was also earlier dubbed and released in Kerala owing to the huge popularity Telugu films enjoy in Mallu land on par with Tamil movies.

The movie rides so much on all these positive aspects and the fact that it comes from the Prakash Raj’s Duet Movies stable, known for producing sensible movies scales up the expectation levels. It’s also widely expected that Prakash will get his business right this time too.

Starring: Adith Narayan, Vimal Saran, Reshmi, Bennas, Sonia, Gia Umar.

Direction: K.V. Guhan

Music: Mickey. J. Meyer

Production: Prakash Raj

Vamsam Movie Review

Starring: Arulnidhi, Sunaina, Ganja Karuppu

Direction: Pandiraj

Music: Taj Noor

Production: M K Thamizharasu

The brouhaha associated with Vamsam has been on the high for two reasons. Primarily, it is due to director Pandiraj who had earned well deserved recognition in his very first venture Pasanga and hence his audiences are eagerly looking forward to his second project. Secondarily, the scion of the first family of Tamil Nadu, M K Arulnidhi enters the world of glitterati as hero and naturally the curiosity levels are at an all time high to assess the young man. Besides these two factors, the voluble promos in the media have also spiced up the proceedings.

Vamsam

At the outset, in Vamsam, Pandiraj has attempted to record the life styles, the culture, traditions of a community called Devar in the interior Tamil Nadu. There are 11 sects belonging to this community who are well known for a particular trait; one for rendering unequivocal justice, one for revenge, one for adventure sports etc.

Kishore belongs to the tribe which excels in rekla, silambam and other such games and always comes up trumps in any activity that he is involved in. Jayaprakash on the other hand belongs to the sect which avenges any form of humiliation. Not withstanding Kishore’s triumphs, he kills him mixing poison in his liquor. Jayaprakash’s intentions are to completely erase the clan of Kishore. However Kishore’s wife, who was pregnant during the time of her husband’s death, decides to raise her offspring away from the habits of her husband which brought him his untimely end. Fortunately for her, Jayaprakash spares her son.

Arulnidhi, son of Kishore is a very timid boy, a post graduate in Botany who minds his business. Unable to manage a cow (Asin), he sells it to Sunaina’s family but Asin runs back to Arulnidhi’s house. This leads to interesting interactions between the couple which ultimately blossom into love. Asin plays the messenger of love between the couple and the reason for their frequent meetings.

Meanwhile, Sunaina’s father who belongs to the clan of giving out justices, hands out a verdict in favor of Jayaprakash’s servant who was ill treated by him. Irked by the disgrace Jayaprakash kills him. Upset by this, Sunaina throws a pail of dung over Jayaprakash’s face in open street which is the pinnacle of ignominy for a person in the community. This triggers the series of revenge episodes in a relay fashion and where it all leads and ends form the rest of Vamsam.

In the department of performances, a deglamorized Sunaina takes the cake revealing that she can deliver any type of role. Although Arulnidhi fits the role of a docile, educated boy, he has a long way to go. The sequences where the couple in love talk in botanical terms is something new to Tamil cinema in recent times and would be enjoyable for Botany students. Ganja Karuppu and Arulnidhi take care of comedy department which are enjoyable. Kishore delivers a neatly crafted performance and so is Jayaprakash.

The screen play does tend to get wobbly at times and meanders here and there making it to difficult to connect with the film. Although there are incidents of killing, they have not been depicted grotesquely. The Thiruvizha scenes stand out in their native grandeur and the camerawork by Mahesh Muthusamy is laudable. The explanation about killing during Thiruvizha times is something new.

Music director Taj Noor; an erstwhile assistant of A R Rahman, shows potential especially in the pada pada pattampoochi number. He is efficient and sure to go places with the right kind of opportunity.

Pandiraj is successful in showcasing the life of a community in its various facets which could be interesting to some. He has fused realism and cinematic elements in the right proportion and has sliced his way through the path less trodden with considerable aplomb this time also.

Verdict – Illustrious lineage!

Velayudham Movie Preview

Remakes have always been safe bets for Vijay and director M Raja. With the former having a track record of films like ‘Kadhalukku Mariyadhai’, ‘Ninaithen Vandhai’, ‘Priyamanavale’ and ‘Pokkiri’, the latter has carved a niche for himself doing remakes from ‘Jayam’ to ‘Santosh Subramaniam’.

And now, both have come together for ‘Velayudham’, which too is said to be a remake of a Telugu hit, titled ‘Aazad’. Produced by Aascar V Ravichandran, the film that was launched amidst much fanfare has two heroines- Genelia and Hansika Motwani.

Says Raja, “This is my first film with a big actor like Vijay. He suits to the role well. The movie is about an ordinary youngster who transforms as a catalyst to reform the society. I am hopeful ‘Velayudham’ will work big time with the audience.”

“Vijay plays an enterprising youngster while Genelia is doing the role of a journalist,” the director says and adds: “Hansika Motwani and Saranya Mohan are also doing crucial characters. Comedy will be taken care of by Santhanam and Sathyan.”

The plot is interesting. Genelia reports that a superhero is saving the city and circumstances lead Vijay to accidentally save the city from the impostors, making him the accidental superhero!

Vijay’s costumes in the movie seem to be inspired from a popular game title. Though nothing is known how long he’d be wearing the costumes, the first look given by the makers suggest Vijay’s up to something big!

Saying Priyan’s cinematography will be a highlight and Vijay Antony has come out with catchy songs, Raja continues: “On the whole, ‘Velayudham’ will be a wholesome treat to not just Vijay fans, but for every movie-goer.”

On his part, Vijay says, “Working for a big banner like Aascar gives me immense proud. Raja is known for his knack to deliver blockbusters without a break. ‘Velayudham’ is a nice story. Hopefully our combination should rock.”

Cast: Vijay, Genelia, Hansika Motwani, Saranya MohanDirection: ‘Jayam’ RajaProduction: Aascar RavichandranMusic: Vijay Antony

THILLALANGADI MOVIE REVIEW

To start off with, it’s yet another remake from the duo Raja-Ravi as their previous films of the same kind proved to be black horses at box office. Obviously, their previous films’ original versions were top-class entertainers while ‘Kick’ was just a passable show and doubtlessly its replication reproduces the same results.

Let’s not get along with comparisons and hitting straight onto the point of verdict, ‘Thillalangadi’ is an average entertainer that is 170mins of show time. However, the narrative aspects with enjoyable and gripping moments make it worth watching.

Jeyam Ravi’s experimental role in ‘Peranmai’ won him incredible laurels and this imitation job does land him on appreciative grounds. Raja’s ethical traits continue in this film as every shot goes the same way on narration and technical aspects.

The film opens in Malaysia with Nisha (Thamannah) unwillingly accepts to meet Krishna Kumar (Shaam), whom their parents want to them married. What starts as a conversation turns into unexpected twist as they share a commonality with the same person. Uh! The story shifts to flashback as Nisha shares about acerbate past life with her ex-boyfriend Krishna (Ravi). His very nature of being rigidly unique of wanting ‘Kick’ and ‘Risk’ in very acts makes her annoyed. Krishna’s attribute of hop-skipping jobs very often splits them up. When it’s his turn to uncover about a person, who has been making him restless, Krishna Kumar reveals that his mission is about hunting down a vicious thief in Chennai, who has flown down to Malaysia now. For a greater surprise, the smartest thief is none other than the same Krishna.

Guess what’s gonna happen next? The second half is all about the hide-and-seek games laced with humor, romance and unconditional sentiments with reasons behind Krishna’s new avatar.

Ravi as a cool chap-later- a challenging man attempts to score bigger over screen space. Of course, at few parts, he entertains the audiences with his funny liners and mannerisms. But he has to change his dancing style. Thamannah looks cherubic at places, but her overactive mannerisms make it quite odder. The prototyped costumes turn comical after certain extent. Vadivelu with his comedy oriented parts keeps the first half going with right momentum while Santhanam has been wasted. Prabhu’s performance is at his best while Suhasini doesn’t appear for more than 3 scenes. She has to choose some good roles as she deserves yet more challenging roles. Mansoor Ali Khan as a risible cop often troubled by Vadivelu tickles funny bones. Shaam need special mention for his astounding performance and it’s really appreciable if he chooses for certain roles to get himself over the top.

The songs aren’t really convincing as Yuvan Shankar Raja loses his best standards. Even the background score doesn’t enhances the visual quality and raciness in screenplay. Thanks to Thaman’s original background score as it has been reestablished finely over here. Cinematography is average and so is editing.

If there could be few reasons to mention about Raja – it is his casting of actors and dialogues. Of course, the basic plot, screenplay has its credits for Surendar Reddy. If Raja had trimmed the duration in second half, the film would have been yet more entertaining.

What works: Shaam, last 30mins and climax, Vadivelu

What doesn’t work: Longer duration, Music, Camera, performances…

Verdict: Passable show

Banner: Sun Pictures, Jeyam Company

Production: Editor Mohan, Kalanidhi Maaran

Direction: Jeyam Raja

Star-casts: Jeyam Ravi, Thamannah, Shyam, Vadivelu, Santhanam, Mansoor Ali Khan, Prabhu, Livingstone, Thyagu, Sathyan, Mayilsamy, Deepu, Suhasini, Nalini, Lakshmi, Latha Rao, Chandra Lakshman, John Vijay, Balaji, Jayaprakash and Raja

Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja

Lyrics: Vaali, Na.Muthukumar, Vivega

Cinematography: Rajashekar

Art: Milan

Action: Rocky Rajesh

Naan Mahaan Alla Preview

Naan Mahaan Alla - Will be stylish as well as realistic

Karthi is one of the hottest stars of this year with three consecutive hit films. This year he had the first super hit ‘Paiyaa’ publicising his ability. ‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ is his fourth film. The title has reused taken an old Rajinikanth film released in 1984. That had Rajini and Radha and this new film has Karthi and Kajal Agarwal. The similarities end there. The story of Karthi’s ‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ has no resemblance to the super star film. While that was a story of lawyer who becomes the nemesis of the villains, the new film is all about a wishful romantic.

‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ directed by Suseendran of ‘Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu’ fame. This is a different film for the director as his first film was set in a village backdrop and ‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ is a city-centric flick. This film is produced by K.E Gnanavel Rajan of Studio Green Films in collaboration with S.R. Prakash Babu and S.R. Prabhu. Studio Green is the banner which gave riveting films like ‘Sillunu Oru Kadhal’ and ‘Paruthi Veeran’.

The heart of the film is about the bonding of a serious father and a romantic son, laced with the criminal backdrops of Chennai. Karthi plays the role of Jeeva, a typical middle-class Chennai youngster with a devil-may-care attitude, who is drawn into the world of crime and criminals after a particular incident changes his life. Jayaprakash after his superb performances in ‘Pasanga’ and ‘Naadodigal’, plays the role of Karthi’s father.

The hottie in Telugu after the blockbuster ‘Magadheera’, Kajal Agarwal is the heroine of the film. In Tamil, she was last seen in Saran’s ‘Modhi Vilayadu’. Her character in ‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ is cute and bubbly, something on the lines of what Asin played in ‘Ghajini’, says the director.

This film will be an extension of Karthi’s image in ‘Paiyaa’. According to the director Suseendran Karthi’s role in this film is almost the same as senior Karthik’s role in Mani Ratnam's ‘Mouna Raagam’. This film will showcase another romantic side of Karthi ala Paiyaa, sources say.

A combination that made ‘Paiyaa’ a success, music director Yuvan Shankar Raja and cinematographer Mathi are back together in this film. Songwriters are Na. Muthukumar, Yugabharathy and Francis while Bhaskar Sakthi has penned dialogues. Rajeevan is in charge of the art department.

Director Suseendran assures that ‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ contains 100% entertainment factors with the right mix of comedy, romance, action and sentiments. Karthi had said,” When director Suseendran was narrating the first half of the story I was laughing. I asked him whether I would be suitable for the role of an ordinary middle income youth. He said I will fit the role. For the first time I rehearsed for this film. I rehearsed for one week.”

Now that the film is taken over by Dhayanidhi Alagiri’s Cloud Nine Movies, it will leave no stone unturned to reach the masses in every nook and corner.

‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ will be stylish as well as realistic. The film which started in September 2009 has been scheduled for release in August 2010.

Irumbu Kottai Murattu Singam – Tamil Movie Review

Directed by: SimbudevanProduced by: Kalpathi S AgoramStarring: Lawrence Raghavendra, Sandhya, Lakshmi Rai, Padmapriya, NassarMusic by: G. V. Prakash KumarCinematography: AzhagappanEditing by: Raja MohamedStudio: AGS Film EntertainmentRelease date(s): May 7th, 2010Budget $3 million

Tamil Cinema is growing really fast and testimonial to that is ‘Irumbu Kottai Murattu Singam’ (IKMS) directed by ‘humour-in-blood director’ Chimbudeven. Produced by AGS Entertainment, makers of family entertainers like ‘Thirittu Payale’, ‘Santosh Subramaniam’ etc, and forthcoming movies like ‘Madharasapattinam’ and ‘Bale Pandiya’, the producers have not compromised in the quality of film making. Exquisite sets, classy costumes, AGS entertainment has made a gem of a movie that would be talked about for a long time to come.

Hollywood is a kingpin in the cowboy genre, with a lot of heroes in fact carving a niche for themselves including Gregory Peck, Clint Eastwood and a host of other cowboy heroes. ‘IKMS’ is an inspired movie of one such page from the big book of cowboy history. Firstly, credit and two thumbs up to director Chimbudeven to make such a movie that needs a lot of effort and specially attention to detail. He has brought out a wholesome entertainer.

Starting the movie with the narration from the director himself about the evolution of cowboy culture in the world, he gives examples of different cowboys in different countries with conclusion of the narration with cowboys in India, in particular south India. Here is introduced Jayashankarapuram, (the director’s tribute to Tamil cinema’s most popular cowboy Jayashankar) a village that has a lot of cowboys (even cow woman) and horses! Jayashankarapuram is in the clutches of the villain Nasser as Kelaku Kattai (the director’s tribute to evergreen cowboy of the world Clint ‘EASTWOOD’!) who lives in the Irumbu Kottai or ‘Iron Fort’ in US Apuram. Kelaku Kattai also dictates terms on five other villages. He is a wicked man, mind you! With only one eye and the other being a dummy!

In between all this, hero Larencce as ‘Singamuthu’ is introduced as a helper. He is good at heart and has adopted four children in his village ‘Sholaypuram’. Due to unforeseen circumstances he is ordered to hang till death and this is where a group of people save him from the hangman’s platform. Larencce is saved by this group headed by Mouli who is Bilagiri James. His men are Ilavarasu, Ramesh Kannah and Vaiyapuri who want to save their village from Kelaku Kattai. They find Singamuthu similar in appearance to Singam, the brave Marshall who is not to be seen for sometime A deal is negotiated with Larencce who is taken to Jayashankarapuram as Singam.

Larencce is shown as the same brave Marshall Singam who is faster than his shadow. He is as fast as lightning when it comes to shooting the gun. So the new Singam gets accustomed to all the antics of the original Singam. In the village, veteran actors Manorama as Keluthi Amma and Delhi Ganesh as Paandu are introduced to Larencce. At this juncture Padmapriya is introduced as Bali who instantly finds a soft corner for the hero.

Lets leave the hero’s village now and go to the Villain’s camp at Irumbu Kottai. Nasser is always in the company of his close aides Lakshmi Rai as ‘Pakki’ and seasoned Telugu actor Sai Kumar as ‘Ulakkai’. Ulakkai is the right hand of the villain who goes by the order of his boss. In between the hero’s and the villain’s camp is a Red Indian village where the tribals are pure vegetarians. With the introduction of this village in the movie, MS Bhasker as Aathirikesa the leader of the tribal group, his father Senthil, and his beautiful daughter Sandhya as Thumbi are also introduced. The funniest character in the movie Sams as Lee the translator of the tribal language is also introduced in this point. The Red Indians are pivotal in the story of the movie. It is for you to find out at the theatre!

The gist of the story: The villagers at Jayashankarapuram find a map that is hidden in their ‘MGR Timesquare’. But it is only one half they have. They have to find the other half to hunt for treasure that is preserved and hidden somewhere far away. But the villain, Nasser has other plans. He negotiates a deal of freeing prisoners in exchange of the treasure. Does the Marshall Singam along with Sai Kumar, Lakshmi Rai, Vaiyapurai, Ilavarasu, MS Bhasker and Sams find the treasure? The answer awaits your presence in this not-to-be-missed entertainer!

Larencce as the hero has flaunted his natural style. The man oozes with confidence for having bagged such a coveted cowboy role. But the real hero of this movie is director Chimbu Deven. He has developed a screenplay that is not dragging, not boring and most importantly highly entertaining. He has proved it yet again; he is a director who thinks out-of-the-box! The narration is highly innovative. Sample this – The village priest also wears a cowboy hat, suggesting him to be a cowboy priest! Many more funny things for you to see at the theatre including websites for their village heroes! Translator of the tribal Sams as Lee and his translations are really funny and give the audience a healthy laugh.

Chimbu Deven makes the audience not just giggle but laugh out loudly at most times of the movie. The director has also chosen his team very carefully. The cinematographer Azhagappan has done a tremendous job of handling his camera. The adventure scenes, the horse chase sequences and even picturing the songs are truly appreciable. At this juncture, one would be in awe of the sets that have been designed to get the feel of the cowboy film. Be it the guns in the movie, the Jayashankarapuram village, the Irumbu Kottai, the imaginary mountains (help of computer graphics) or the treasure caves, art director Muthuraj receives full marks for his extraordinary art direction. He has crafted a true cowboy village and the visuals will transport you to that world.

Equally receiving praise is costume designer Sai, who has got the right clothes to suit the story. Every character in the movie gets a hat! The Red Indians and their costumes are designed well! Make up for the actors, especially the rotten teeth of Sai Kumar and the empty eye of Nasser is significantly noticeable by Nehru.

The pace of the movie is thoroughly enjoyable. Songs are not at awry places and the screenplay does not have a lag, especially handling a few flashback scenes in the middle that talk about the original Singam. Editing has been immaculate. Editor Raja Mohammed, the national award winning editor for Paruthi Veeran, has done an amazing job.

Moving to the music, with a dancer like Larencce as the hero, G V Prakash has done a good job composing a few peppy numbers. Re-recording in the movie is appreciable. Choreography in a few songs is admirable. Larencce as the choreographer for ‘Nenjam Nenjam’ along with dance masters Sridhar and Siva Shankar for the other songs receive appreciation.

The movie scores marks in almost all departments. Minuses exist but not in large numbers. Heroines Padmapriya, Lakshmi Rai and Sandhya could have been used effectively. The background music by G V Prakash is heavily inspired by adventure classic ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’.

Comedy forms the basis of the movie. Chimbudevan has evoked laughter many a time and like his all his movies, the absence of vulgarity makes this a family entertainer. Cowboy hats, horses and the shelling guns, ‘IKMS’ succeeds in entertaining you effortlessly! Kudos to the ‘IKMS’ team! Just like the movie’s tag line ‘Vecha Kuri Thappadhu Mamae!, You have hit the bulls eye at the Box Office!

Kutti Pisasu – Tamil Movie Review

Starcast: Geetika, Sangeetha, Ramya Krishnan, Nassar,Director: Rama NarayananMusic: Deva

Draw the children to theatres, elders would automatically follow them. Cashing in on this ’success formula’, Rama Narayanan has bounced back with ‘Kutti Pisasu’, a film that has loads and loads of elements that could woo kids.

The Tamil Film Producers Council president, who has directed and produced this movie, has banked heavily on an ‘Ambulimama’ kind of story and dished out it in an ‘Avatar’ package, that is, technically sleek and superior.

For, computer graphics has got every reason to claim credit if the film becomes a hit. From beginning till the end, the veteran in children’s and Godly movies has used CG to the maximum possible extent.

Coming to the story, it is as usual the good defeating the evil after all troubles. The film opens with Kinathadi Kaali (Ramya Krishnan) establishing her prowess with a couple of sequences, including reducing a screen scorcher (Nasser) to a pale shadow.

Cut to the present, you have Priya (Keethika), the intelligent daughter of a couple (Ramji and Sangeetha), who treats her like the apple of their eyes. And soon, she is possessed by the spirit of Savithri (Kaveri) who is ditched by her fiancé Nanjappan (Riyaz Khan).

With the help of Kinathadi Kaali, it is the now the turn of Savithri and her brother Karuppu (Ganja Karuppu) to take revenge. How they punish Nanjappan and his sorcerer friend Mandiramoorthy (by joining hands with computer graphics) is the rest of the story.

Young girl Keethika has a meaty role to play and she does it with ease. Ramya Krishnan repeats her ‘Amman’ act while Ramji and Sangeetha have little to do apart from caring for the child. Nasser, Ganja Karuppu and Riyaz Khan are just adequate. Delhi Ganesh is also there.

Songs by Deva come as speed-breakers in this film dominated by things like a yellow car, a miniature villain etc. If you are ready to go back to your childhood days to listen a typical ‘grandma tale’, ‘Kutti Pisasu’ could be a right choice.

Guru Sishyan – Tamil Movie Review

Banner: Cinema ParadiseProduction: Shakthi ChidambaramDirection: Shakthi ChidambaramStar-casts: Sathyaraj, Sundar C, Hema Malini, Santhanam, Saranya, Raj Kapoor, Ravi Khale and othersMusic: Dheena

Sakthi Chidambaram has never strained himself over delivering a film that has a serious conceptualization. All his films have been about masala potboilers with fun, frolic, glamorous quotients, couple of duets in foreign beaches, a death leading to family rivalry and a flashback proving of someone’s innocence.

Shakthi Chidambaram’s previous films ‘Kovai Brothers’, ‘English Karan’, ‘Sandai’ had at least three of these elements. Now, the filmmaker blends everything together and thusly offering a cliched masala drama that caters for the tastes of C centres.

Set in backdrops of Rajapalayam, the film is about a bigwig Guru Moorthy (Sathyaraj), fondly adored as ‘Kaalu’ meaning leg (reason behind this nickname is revealed by Sathyaraj himself during the beginning with accordance to ‘Thala’ Ultimate Star Ajith Kumar). He leads a rich life by financing money for the people in entire town. Then enters Eeeti (Sundar C), who is ready to do anything for money (similar to his characterization in Sandai), who wins over the heart of Guru with his sincerity. Guru turns wildly villainous when he comes across Mahalakshmi (Saranya), who’s leading a pathetic life along with her family as he keeps devastating her livelihood. The flashback reveals that Mahalakshmi and Guru were happy married couple, who later fell split-up due to their difference of opinions of getting Guru’s sister married, which indeed resulted in her suicide.

When things get harsher with Guru, Eeeti reveals the secret that he’s none other than the younger brother of Mahalakshmi.

Now, he vows to unite both his sister and her husband while Guru challenges him about not joining hands with her again.

What forms next is a series of sequences that reminiscences Rajnikanth’s ‘Annamalai’ with a predictable climax and another flashback unraveling the mystery behind the death of Guru’s sister.

Sathyaraj looks old and he could’ve done this film without a wig. He must stop underplaying his roles and go for something more challenging in terms of characterization and script. Sundar C sleepwalks through the same role while Hema Malini is nothing but a mere glam-doll. It would be better if she sheds down her weight. Santhanam doesn’t get more scope for his comedy tracks. Barring climax portion, where he dresses up like ‘Thillana Mohanambal’ Padmini, nothing is appreciative. The Tiger’s entry into the marriage hall and its funny encounters with the characters are yet another additional plus.

Technically, the film doesn’t live up to the expectations as either cinematography or musical score by Dheena is commendable.

Finally, ‘Guru Shishyan’ turns to be a little disappointment as there were more expectations from this terrific combo Sakthi-Sundar C-Sathyaraj. The film is just for the single screen and down south audiences while the elite groups may not find the right entertainment with this film.

Goripalayam – Tamil Movie Review

Star Cast: Vikranth, Poongodi, Michael Rayappan.Other Cast : Nanda Periswamy, Harish, Raghuvaran, Singam Puli, Mayilsami, IlavarasuDirector : Rasu MathuravanMusic Director : Michael Rayappan

The casts are Vikranth, Harish, Ramakrishnan, Prakash, Raguvannan. its all about the rustic village of Goripalayam, the movie traces the story of four youngsters who do the regular indiscretions of youth that threatens to derail their lives. The stills and trailers have suggested that the movie will have its fair amount.

of violence and action, which has become a bit stereotypical of Madurai-based films in recent years. Also, the theme of youngsters losing their way in life because of the sense of euphoria and power that wielding a weapon gives them seems to be resurfacing at uneasily regular intervals in Kollywood these days.

In this context, it is difficult to find anything novel in Goripalayam prior to its release. But, that it just what we know about the movie. Director Rasu Madhuravan has revealed very little about his film. Looking at his debut film Mayandi Kudumbathar, we know that he does have an eye for portraying family relations and sentiments in an effective manner. We can definitely look forward to some strong emotional moments on screen in Goripalayam. That apart, the director is confident that the presentation of a theme that does not lose relevance is good enough to override the common occurrence of films of the same nature.

Music for Goripalayam has been scored by Sabesh Murali. The film does not boast of any big stars. But familiar faces Vikranth (Vijay’s cousin) and Rama Krishna (Kunkuma poovum Konjum Puravum fame) are part of the lead cast while all others are new faces. Will Goripalayam be able to replicate the run of some of its successful ‘Madurai based’ predecessors? Let’s wait and watch.

Angadi Theru - Market realities

The 'Veyil' man Vasanthabalan's focus is now on sales boys and sales girls at stores in T Nagar's Ranganathan Street. For that, he is ready with yet another film that is close to reality, aptly titled 'Angadi Theru'. The film has Mahesh in the lead, pairing with Anjali of 'Kattradhu Thamizh' fame. This Ayngaran International Production venture is the story of a sales girl and a sales boy of a popular textile store. The director had even erected a realistic set that resembles Ranganathan Street with the help of art director GK. The audio was done by both G V Prakash and Vijay Antony. Prakash is working with the director for the second time after a successful debut in 'Veyil'. The song 'Aval Appadi Ondrum Azhagillai...' from 'Angadi Theru' has already topped the charts. Na Muthukumar, who has penned the lyrics, says it is his best song ever, and remains close to his heart. "I consider this film an important one in my career. Vasanthabalan has shaped up 'Angadi Theru' in an engaging and engrossing manner. He took extra efforts for even small things," says heroine Anjali. Vasanthabalan says, "Usually, in cinema, the camera is always on the buyer. What about the seller? What is his life like? What drives him? These are some of the questions I seek to answer." He adds: "My film is about a particular street rife with the din and bustle of humans. Even after the whole world sleeps, this one's awake - the shops are cleaned and stocks replenished. And, there is everything is for sale, including human beings." Popular writer Jayamohan has written the dialogues for the film, which has Sneha in a cameo. Vasanthabalan says, "Yes, it is a small role, yet an important one." 'Angadi Theru' is scheduled to hit screens on March 26. 'Veyil' was much acclaimed by the critics and the public and went on to be screened in prestigious film festivals. We hope this venture of Vasanthabalan too lives up to the blazing standard set by 'Veyil'.

Sura - Big fish attracting the mass and class

The day is closer than expected. A land mark in Ilaya Thalapathi Vijay’s career will be achieved on April 23 with the release of ‘Sura’ which is the 50th film of the actor. ‘Sura’ is produced by Sangili Murugan under the banner of Murugan Cine Arts for Sun pictures. Vijay’s first big hit ‘Kadhalukku Mariyadhai’ which established him as a profitable actor hero was also produced by Sangili Murugan. ‘Sura’ is one of the most anticipated films of this summer for both the fans of Vijay and the trade. For Vijay fans any release of their hero is a cause for celebration. This time even they wait with bated breath to ensure a success because Vijay’s recent films did not create a flutter the box office. For the trade ‘Paiyaa’ success has to be repeated to repose faith in the people box office. The 50th film of Vijay ‘Sura’ is said to be a remake of Mohanlal’s 2007 hit Malayalam film ‘Chotta Mumbai’ directed by Anwar Rasheed. ‘Chotta Mumbai’ was set in the backdrop of Fort Kochi and Mattancherry area and tells the story of a few easygoing young fishermen who are into anything for making money. But have their own personalities, and they even show emotion. In Tamil according to the script, Vijay’s character is named as Sura, a fisherman. Some sources say Vijay’s character is molded some what similar to that of MGR in Padagotti and Meenava Nanban. Vijay also touches his political plans mildly in ‘Sura’. In ‘Sura’ Vijay plays a young man who wants to change the society. Unlike the other youth of today Vijay doesn’t shy away from taking responsibilities upfront in order to good to his society. He even tries politics to achieve his ambitions. But even that disappoints Vijay and the he fights the enemies single handedly much like a Shark. The by line of Vijay’s character is 'Samadhanama poga naan pura illadaa...Sura' which, if roughly translated, means 'I am not a dove to prefer peace, I am a shark". The film is expected to have Vijay fans on a high for long time. The star value of the film is pretty high. Vijay is teaming up with the hottest Kollywood babe Tamannah for the first time. Vijay fans will not be disappointed as he utters enough punch dialogues to outline his future moves on and off screen. Tamannah will consolidate her position in the top league after ‘Paiyaa’. Vadivelu takes care of the comedy and the comic portions are expected to rock as it did in ‘Pokkiri’ and ‘Villu’ for a Vijay film. The film was extensively shot tin the coastal areas of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The beauty of Pudhucherry, Cuddalore, Thoothukudi and Kochi coastlines will be visual treats. But some songs were shot overseas keeping with the tradition of Kollywood. The lead team went to New Zealand countryside for a song. The film is also raved by insiders for the action scenes. Excellent camera work by N K Ekambaram and M S Prabhu. Several scenes in ‘Sura’ involved risky shots and they will be visual treats for action lovers. Fight master is Kanal Kannan and stuntmen from Bangkok are said to have executed some hair raising action scenes. The songs are already on air. Music is by Mani Sharma. ‘Sura’ has 6 songs and they cater to each and every category of the audience. All songs except one are penned by Kabilan. Na. Muthukumar has written one song. The songs are peppy and fit for the super hero image of Vijay. ‘Sura’ is directed by S.P. Rajkumar, who was the writer of Vijay’s only film with Sivaji Ganesan ‘Oncemore’ and so he exactly knows what is expected of Vijay. Rajkumar is an experienced director having directed a couple of comedy ‘En Purushan Kuzhandhai Madhiri’ and ‘Ponmanam’ and the recent ‘Azhagarmalai’. Sun Pictures will release ‘Sura’ and that has already ensured success. ‘Sura’ will be releasing big worldwide in over 400 screens.

Muskurake Dekh Zara - Stale remake of hit Tamil ‘Youth’

What is it all about?

It’s hard to believe that Anurag Kashyap who advocates changes in Bollywood cinema can write such an amateurish film. Even worse, he just needed to give the Tamil hit ‘Youth’ which was inspired by the Telugu earner ‘Chiru Navvutho’ some element which could have inspired the Hindi speaking heart but he seems to be uninspired by this movie on the funda of love and friendship and he tries to just sign the muster by completing the film anyhow.

The Story….of course

‘Muskurake Dekh Zara’ is a story of a young 'boy man' named Vivek. It's a story of simple emotions and disappointments of love and life. Vivek (Gashmeer Mahajani) has an 'upright' attitude, and ability to put people in their place and add lightness into moody and mundane situations not only when he interacts with his life's love Preeti (Twinkle Patel) but also when he encounters and jests with the simple, funny and harmless folks - like the eccentric live in DLT (Duniya Lal Tripati), the 'badnaseeb' hotel manager Khaatkar , the curious curio shop owner Elton, the heroine's eternally inebriated Chaacha who feels that one's 'spirit' can be derived only from downing spirits. The film's lighter moments beautifully intersperse with the hero's portrayal of a character of depth. An incident of embarrassment drives Vivek from his hometown to Mumbai where he falls in love with Preeti. His leadership qualities and unusual understanding of situations makes his friends look up to him. It is his wonderful ability to reason that wins him the love of Preeti and finally put the villain Prakash Raj at bay. With presence and not prejudice of the mind, Vivek deals with life's various and varied situations as they happen to him. What to look out for? New introduction Gashmeer Mahajani shows promise. Hiten Paintal Production values are fair. The movie has a mature theme its about ideologies regarding love and friendship between a boy and a girl where the heroine tries to make the hero understand that friendship and love are different and the hero saying that one can be in love with a girl even after she is marrying another person.

What not? The theme is matured but handled immaturely and suffers from editing jerks, unwanted songs and unconvincing comedy coming in between. The writer Anurag Kashyap seems not at all interested and he just wants to complete the film and in the process even lifts the dialogue straight from the original. There’s no harm in the story to be predictable, the treatment and the screenplay holds the key. When you cast a new face Gashmeer Mahajani (impressive) you need to maintain some freshness in the proceeding to keep the audience engrossed but in MKDJ the film struggles to move and when it does (during the second half) then its already too late. The lead actress twinkle Patel lacks charm and talent.

Conclusion: It’s an example of wasting a good productive theme.