Reviews

Another V K Prakash film hits the celluloid milieu. This time around he has got a good writer, Anoop Menon, in his kitty. The script and movie is on a floating level just above the reality status. The decision to shoot the film with digital camera also plays a major role to achieve this feel. The underlying theme of the story is that every relationship or connection is based on the fact someone expects something from the other or vice versa. With this set, a paraplegic (Stephen), an outsider/stranger (John) who befriends the paraplegic and a home nurse (Anjali) for the paraplegic are thrown in. Many sequences and lines delivered by Jayasurya brings out his thoughts about being bed-ridden. And most of it just kind of zereos in on the sensual part of life. And it doesn't come as a surprise that the home nurse is either always drenched in water or wet. The story keeps moving in and out of the main theme and sometimes it runs the point right through to the heart. Other than that, I would say that the script is not that strong but I felt compelled to watch the whole movie unfurling with every shot. This may be attributed to the positive attitude that is maintained throughout the movie. The use of digital camera and some crisp editing brings in some of the best rain sequences ever witnessed in malayalam movies. And the BGM is also something that stood out really well. Overall this is not a stellar movie but it is worth spending 2 hours for the effort.

Interconnecting different story lines and characters are kind of a craze in the malayalam industry now. While things haven't really gone bad for this genre with so many people jumping aboard, in fact a lot of other genres are being brought into the mix in this genre and things are looking good in the form of a Cocktail. There are so many characters in the story but the film advertises only six of them. And each of these six characters are vibrant and colorful human blueprints. How these humans make their decisions and what kind of an impact it has on the others - that is the basic core of the movie. And in order to the set the ball rolling, the director takes his own time. It gets frustrating after a bit but I sit patiently thinking that everything happens for a reason. And voila, the inevitable twist happens and then it is on a roll. By the climax, how things lock down has been brilliantly done by the director and the writer. What struck me was the inclusion of dark comedy in the second half. It is just a minor level entry but was done very nicely. Performances by Indrajith and Murali Gopy was good. BGM was average. Acting by Tanushree and Mythili was pathetic. It doesn't quite bring out the pathos experienced by the characters to the forefront. Overall a good attempt. Rustic over here and there. It doesn't bring about euphoric moments but worked around quite well for me.

Follow your Heart. I got to know about the tagline after watching the movie. When you have the director doing what the tagline refers to then there is nothing that can go wrong! The story revolves around Karthik (Dhanush) whose passion is photography. He is blatant, weird, and jobless. He has a group of friends. In comes Yamini (Richa) who is dating one of his friends. Things get complicated when she connects with Karthik. Their tumultuous journey forms the rest of the movie. The movie moves at its own pace. It touches on many basic aspects of life in a subtle manner. Dhanush has done an exceptional job. Richa outshines Dhanush by miles. She is a revelation. The only thing that was a downer was the BGM which was so out of place in many of the sequences. Selvaraghavan never makes an attempt to connect with the audience. He has made a movie which will please him at the end of the day. And those are the products which will have the best quality. This movie is not a crowd-pleaser. Watch it alone or when the cinemas are empty. Else you will have a lot of boos and whistles distracting you.

I can say proudly that there is a tamil version of Lynch or Kubrik now. Just follow your heart and believe.

Imtiaz Ali tries a Jim Morrison with an Indian back-up story to add it all up. But when the back-up story takes a free-float equation with horrible acting from the female lead even rock-n-roll, sex, or drugs won't help the story to take a flight. The starting sequence takes a tremendous leap and sets everything on fire. From there the movie leaps to a flashback. The flashback is a sine wave to be precise where crest is when Ranbir fills the screen and trough is when Nargis takes over. Post-interval the director gets a grip on things but still falters here and there but in the end gives up for regular rom-com commercialization. Even the sequences where Ranbir goes all crazy and shouting I just can't understand how he must have reached that point when the relationship that he had with Nargis showcased in a shallow manner. The only factors that makes this movie watchable is Ranbir Kapoor and music By ARR. Ranbir shows great maturity in some of the sequences. But I feel he has more potential.

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn I am bedazzled! It was a ride alright. Even the Ferari roller coaster ride in Abu Dhabi wouldn't make me this dizzy. Yes...Tintin makes his arrival in a visual extravaganza.

Some say 'Looks can be deceiving'. And I say 'I have been deceived!' The visual detail is so engrossing that it gave me goosebumps every other second that the story got lost in the milieu. Then by the time I regained my consciousness I was in the middle of some desert being attacked by Pirates of the Caribbeaniesque(Part 3) hallucinations. Have I gone nuts! Apparently not.

Well this is what I have to say. The basic story of the movie is taken from three Tintin comics and it stays loyal (Edgar Wright was part of the Screenplay team \m/). The adventure is something along the lines of Indiana Jones with no Pit-Stops whatsoever. Jump-Run-Hit-Swim-Cut-Copy- Paste goes the format. Since Tintin is an iconic character, there is no much demand for showing the type of character he is. But present it to someone who doesn't have an inkling of who Tintin is...Alas, the characters come across as cardboard cut outs with a shady plot-line that is hard to keep up with.

Andy Serkis proves that he can act as a normal human being also and that too with absolute perfection.

All in all...it is visual romp with sprinkles of Tintin and Serkism added to it.

Well well well...I am quite surprised! The movie is quite entertaining but one needs to set a few ground rules before watching the film.

a.Once the first half an hour passed by I decided to suspend my search for logic and not to question everything. Because if I need to find the answers I will need to refer to other movies and video game(s) {read..'Infamous'}. Daunting task I say! So quit as early as possible.

b.Now this is a movie that SRK basically wanted to dedicate to his children and it can seen in many shots and dialogues. So this is for kids with some naughty jokes. While some of them click. Some of them backfire really badly. So basically... this calls for loosening up the attitude a little bit more.

c.Sit back and relax. You are in for a ride sans the pulsating adrenaline rush(except when Rajni makes his entry), strong characters and a original story.

Once this is done...well this movie is a breeze and it is an enjoyable ride. The much boasted vfx adds up to about 45 minutes in which some of sequences resemble that of a game environment or of a cartoon. But the scenes that has come out well are extraordinary. Really appreciate that. It is proof enough that under good guidance Indian films could go on a sparring duel with Hollywood. All said..this is paisa vasool entertainment. PS: I liked it better than Endhiran PSS: SRK ...please avoid comedy...your comedy is borderline buffoonery!

I just cannot put down the thought that Venkat Prabhu's climb to this position is somewhat similar to the twists and turns that he has orchestrated in 'Mankatha'. Starting his directorial career with an 'out-of-nowhere Chennai 600028' and later on flirting with various other genres but putting on his trademark stamp to each film, he has finally broken into the A-grade list with this Ajith-starrer and he has done it in style. Even with this film, money takes the centre stage. Then we have the good guys gone bad. From the word go, this one goes on a ride that is typical Venkat Prabhu. Ajith plays a cop gone crazy for money who is on suspension. Then there is this bunch of youngsters who are all for easy cash. And to fill in the gaps there is money coming in right to them.

The first half of the movie moves at a languish pace setting the pawns for an exciting latter half. While the trailer projected an adrenaline pumping heist sequence a la mode Fast Five, the actual heist lasts about 10 minutes and gets over when you think that it has just started. But up to that point, Venkat Prabhu had a lot of time and he uses it up like he always does bringing in his creative side to each and every shot. It is really nice to see someone put a start to a heist sequence in the tamil films.

The second half is more like a guessing game, fast paced and the part where Ajith ups his form. Any person who is well versed with Venkat Prabhu's style will know how the ending will go. All said and done, the movie is an entertainer all right. But there are a lot of flaws. The need for 3 mainstream actresses is unwarranted for. The roles done by them could have been essayed by anybody. And Venkat Prabhu is a guy who excels in situations rather than characters but once Ajith's character starts showing frustration and this extra-ordinary thirst for money in the second half, the cards start tumbling down. How did this character evolve into this monster all of a sudden? And were any of the deaths meant to be taken seriously. Yes it is a known fact, that a death in a Venkat Prabhu comes wrapped with a tinge of comedy. But this, what was the intention?

The pros would be Ajith's acting even though his character was not quite up to the level of his acting. Next would be the decent manner in which the action scenes were handled (it means nothing went overboard). And of course, Premgi. Without him this would have been a dry event.

Songs by Yuvan was decent but unwanted at many places. Editing was fit. All in all, a decent entertainer but not quite there as promised.

The movie starts off in a pretty off-beat manner. If only the same bit of off-beat attitude was maintained for the rest of the movie, this movie would have been a better experience for me. The director treats the viewer the same way he is treating Vikram's character.

The movie is very simple and laid in a format that will connect with a majority of the audience. Hence the only part where the movie really steers away from the regular path is the performance department. Both Vikram and Sarah has done a brilliant job. In fact, I have fallen in love with Sarah's acting. It is just amazing. And Anushka is doing something other than flaunting her beautiful curves and she pulls it of brilliantly too.

And moreover being an inspiration from I am Sam (which I haven't watched), there will be a lot of comparisons. But viewing this as a single movie without comparing it, I would say it was a decent movie. Watchable once with minor episodes of boredom.

The movie is an illustration of contrasts and balance in life. It is a showcase of different shades of life and how people from different strata react to life in general. There are basically four different story lines running parallel to each other. The narration is one of the types that have never been tried in the industry. The whole movie is a like a collection of short stories. For each story the script has a reference point and the narration follows a pattern where each story line is followed until they reach that particular reference point. And when a segment gets over, the characters would have added themselves a new layer or a wing and they would be flying around or crawling about. Prithviraj(Jyothilal) plays a character where his wooden frame-set is perfect. He plays a muscle and friend-in-need for his rich friend. Then we have Rima Kaliingal(Surya Prabha) playing the character of a cine artist who has to face horrors from the past and present of her life. She has done a decent job with her character. Then there is a NRI wife, Viji(Swetha Menon), whose husband is murdered by Jyothilal and co. Her revenge forms her story. And final group is a set of Tamil workers settled in Kochi. A love story set in the midst of unconventiality. All these four story lines keeps converging and diverging. And these converging and diverging keeps the interest level stable. The screenplay does not have any clearly defined acts. And therefore the peak which the movie tends to reach before interval and towards the climax does not have much of an effect. The shaky-handy cam feature reaches Malayalam industry with this movie. It lends a much needed realistic touch to the movie. The BGM which gets hiked up in the climax sequences shows the true classy nature of the director. This movie is an experiment. It will not work with the commercial audience as there are no commercial elements to satisfy them. But this is a movie to be noted down for future references. Solid characterizations, a different format for narration, and a bold script.

This was a movie with huge expectations running all over it. This was because of K V Anand's previous venture 'Ayan' and his cinematography credentials and (to an extent) his stint as a journalist. The base story is something which is common in all his movies. What is interesting here is the premise that he had selected for depicting that. Journalism and Politics are two separate things. They are like water and oil. But the exact opposite is what is presented in this story. It runs somewhat parallel to RGV's 'Rann' but with lesser attitude and with more commercial elements. The director could have enjoyed his status of being a smart-ass with this movie also but alas everything falls apart with the first act itself with half-baked characterizations, poor chemistry for the love track, lackluster sound track, average performances and some sloppy direction. Instead he turns out to be just smart and a brilliant ass with this one. The story is solid. The same did not get transferred to the treatment. There are constant ups and downs throughout the movie. As with all the commercial movies this movie is also ridden with cliché's and with a running time of approximately 3 hours it becomes a bit itchy. All in all…it is a commercial movie in a suppressed format in all ways.

A commendable film with a close-to-perfect script, some timely performances from the artistes and technical wizardry that is on par with the rest of the regional language films. All said, this movie also gives an insight about the history of Kerala which was unsung of. The story of a young hero who gave all he had to save his land from the Portuguese. And another factor which is quite apt was running the the present world and the old version in parallel.

All said and done, the writer had a source material to rely on and he showered enough fictional characteristics to the story. In spite of that the script lacks a cohesiveness especially until the third act. Some of the dialogue's were sloppy and did not reflect of that of that particular time period. Other than that this was a fine effort. Santosh Sivan's camera-work: there needs no special mention of his work here. Everything is picture perfect. Some scenes evokes a plethora of feelings and it just stays even after the movie gets over. But there were points and sequences where a bit of a pause could have helped a lot in making things look and feel much more better especially in the war scenes towards the end.

Performance-wise I would say all have done an exceptional job especially Prabhudeva, Nitya Menon, Jagathi. Prithviraj's wooden voice is a big letdown though. He shows no sign of variation through the movie. But he got to save his face towards the end with some classic performance and expression variations. Nitya Menon was the perfect seducer. Never seen such a good seducer in our industry. Her eyes speak volumes.

Music by Deepak Dev was different in this. His usual themes were all gone. It was a good thing he went in for a re-invention. Good songs and average BGM. The BGM that plays when Prithviraj courts Genelia is pure awesomeness but again there is huge familiarity with the tone there.

All in all this was a good movie. Definitely worth a watch at the cinemas. Go for it. It is a different experience all together.

A movie for the "Call of Duty" generation where the sound and special effects take the center stage while drama and emotions take the back stage. So it is quite okay to assume that the story and all the other associated aspects will play a minimal role. With that in mind this movie is a great spectacle! Though at times it is like an assault on the ears and the eyes.

The movie makes it clear right from the start that it is not going to be the one that feeds with the answers for the happenings in the story. And also with the constant comings and goings of different characters it is also evident that the story-writer and the director never had the intention to develop their characters nor was there space to include a lot of cliché sequences.

Performance-wise Aaron Eckart has put in a decent effort. The rest are all the usual characters that can be seen in several of the other movies of the same genre. What makes this movie different is that the humans are capable to hold on to the invasion and the aliens are not all that powerful but they are smart in some ways.

With this movie there will be two factions that will come up. One who will be hardcore fans this movie and the old-schoolers who will rant endlessly about the lack of a solid script, stupid characters and below average special effects. Yes am talking about none other than the greatest critic alive on this earth now...Mr Roger Ebert. Mr. Ebert you are a guy who used to write scripts for semi-snuff films for Russ Meyer. And of all the people you complain about a stupid story for such a movie. Old man if you cannot handle all the noise and mayhem on the screen better sit back at your place and please do some thumb-sucking! Period!

OK now this does not mean that I belong to the former group that I mentioned in the previous para. I am creating a new platform between the two distinctions. I stand on neutral grounds. I enjoyed the movie for what it was and I loathed the movie for the lack of emotional quotient which could have raised the stakes for this one.

All in all ...a decent flick where you go in leaving behind everything...your brain, your heart and head outside the cinemas. Just take in our eyes and your ears.

It is a "Call of Duty" game without a controller to hold in you hand!

PS: About the Ebert blast. That is my own personal one-sided vendetta.

Finally, I got the time to write a review for Endhiran. To start with, this is a good attempt. Highest budget in the Indian film history and it is for a science-fiction genre. The best technicians in the world, the best talent support on-screen, and a derived story from an acclaimed tamil novel. What can go wrong here? Absolutely nothing! But for me it was otherwise. Everything went haywire! The foundation-setting for the movie is done brilliantly and the impression it sets is really good. Rajnikanth has done a brilliant job with Robo-Chitti (Good Robo) but there is nothing to write home about here. Though Aishwarya forms the crux of the movie there is nothing much for her to do other than to don some designer clothing and do some little acting. The problem starts with the second half, when the action starts and things look just like a page out of any tamil movie. Except for here that this was touted to be a mega-project and some scenes lack the quality that was expected. And one gets to see Rajni in his vintage-glory during the black-sheep segment. If some of the action sequences in the second could have been trimmed, things would have been better for the movie. While the movie claims to be derived from a tamil novel, a robot story will always have many things in common. And it is not different here. The story seems to be a mix of A.I, i-Robot, Terminator and The Matrix. This is just a movie meant for entertainment and nothing more. Nothing ground-breaking here. It is Rajni all the way. Even if you hate the guy, you can give this a try.

'Jayam' Raja returns after 'Santhosh Subramanian' hiatus and 'Jayam' Ravi returns after his critically acclaimed 'Peranmai'. Both are high in spirits and it can be seen from this movie.

Raja being the master of remakes makes sure that the essence of the original is not lost. The story revolves around a lad who will do anything to get a 'Kick'(read as Adrenaline rush or something close to that). He will quit job for that. He might even put himself in dangerous situation to have fun. This character is what makes the movie so different from other films belonging to the same genre. What follows is how he falls for a girl and how that girl falls for him with an interesting interval twist and a sudden turn in the sequence of events from there-on.

Ravi has tried his best to emulate what Ravi Teja had done in the telugu version. But he will never quite reach the crazy standard Teja had set. Overall, 'Jayam' Ravi made a good attempt and he was full of energy for most of the time. The good thing in the tamil version is Tammana. Skimpy clothes were something that 'Jayam' Raja avoided in all his films. But in this one he steps on the gun and it is sure to give a titillating effect. :) Vadivelu's comedy again is something below par as compared to what Bramanandan essayed in the original.

Another factor that needs a special mention is the star cast. Prabhu, Suhasini, Santhanam, Radha Ravi, Ganga Karupp....et cetera et cetera. Next one is the clothing design. Colorful and Vibrant. But could have toned down a bit on the 'Colorful' part.

Picturization is also good especially the chase scenes and the song ' Sol pesu'. I think at some point 'Jayam' Raja got obsessed with Robert's Zoom effect.

All in all, this is a quality entertainer but it never reaches the original standards.

6.5/10

A movie these day seldom makes one think about it once we exit the theatre hall. This one does. And never does any movie makes its viewer go back through the reels while in the hall this many times. Yes, this is by far the most intellectual film I have ever seen. Story is very simple. It is about an extraction master who needs to do the exact opposite of his profession: Plant an idea in a person's mind to bring about a favorable result for his client. What follows is a heist thriller that is complex, thrilling, and high on steroids. It is like a web. It is very easy to get entangled and create a mess in your mind. But Nolan has executed the order of scenes in such a manner that the viewer gets enlightened slow and steady. It is like sitting in a class where one gets taught the basics of everything. Once this is done it is application of these theories to reality. That's when the real test starts. If the basics didn't get through into your mind, it is a daunting task to get what is going on in the application stage. It is a beautifully designed web actually. I understood that on my second viewing. With added visuals, Hans Zimmer's background score and the grasp of the going on's gives goosebumps. It is one hell of a ride and this is the effect that is similar to what one gets after smoking a joint. Your mind goes on a ride with no limits. It is like looking in the mirror in a barber shop:Dream within a dream. There is immense scope to go to any places with this story. But the success of this movie lies in the fact, that Nolan never took the action sequences over-the-top like all the blockbuster's try to do these days. He wanted to make us go 'wow' just by the sheer brilliance of what is coming out of his mind. Yes he had the intentions of playing with our mind. And he has done that very masterfully. This is the work of a genius and it should not be missed at any cost.

A movie centered in a single room,it always brings about excitement if it is a thriller. But I was sadly disappointed with this one. I had watched the other old movie which was very similar to this one, El Metodo. I was quite impressed with the drama in that movie.And when I heard of this movie and saw the trailer I had expected some intelligent out-of-the-box thriller movie. But this is not the case. The movie started off well with some intelligent stuffs. But halfway through the director starts going in the drama direction, interaction between the characters, et cetera. He did not know as to how deep to dwell into that. And the intelligent stuffs go to zilch after the first 30 minutes. The performances by the actors are below par. All in all, don't watch this with high expectations..else you will be disappointed.

Right from the start this one is a winner. The new Dreamwork animation is a happy-go-lucky kind of animation with a serious story to it. The makers never took themselves seriously or lightly, they were somewhere in the in-between (:P) and that is where their victory lies.

Getting down to the story… A Viking Tribe lives close to the seas and what do they have to worry about in their calm lives – DRAGONS. And the stubborn vikings fight, fight, fight but with no end result. And among these there is ,Hiccup, the only child of the chief of the tribe who is different. He is not strong as the others neither does he have good Viking skills. But one fine day he shoots down one dragon by luck. He traces it down and it is one of those dragons that is considered to be the most dangerous by the tribe. There are strict orders to kill it on sight. But the little kiddo never had it in him to do that. He cuts it loose and then the bondage starts between them. And the rest of the story is about how the kiddo and the dragon change the path of the lives and minds of the the tribe.

This is by far, the best movie of the year. The animation is stunning. Some of the wide angle shots and sweep shots are brilliant and the detail is also amazing. Action sequences are another treat. It is a goose-bumping experience. And the story is also good as it tugs at the strings right at the bottom of the heart. And there is lot to laugh as well. Brilliant one-liners that go well with the movie. "Death by the Dragon, is an occupational hazard here"….something on that line.

The voices by Jay Baruchel and Jonal Hill were good. And believe me, some scenes brought me to tears, some scenes had me jumping out of seat out of excitement. No wonder, the animation won the Heartland Truly Moving Picture Award. And Pixar can learn some valuable lessons from this animation.

All in all, this is great and a must watch.

9/10

The return-to-form vehicle for Emmerich. This movie delivered exactly what was promised through the trailers and promotions. Get some good stars to play the roles, get some visual specialists, put in chaos everywhere. There....bang for buck for the director as well as the audience. The visual effects were pushed to the maximum in this one. But the movie had a lot of lagging moments especially in the middle parts. And I was happy to see someone putting out a message like "We are the children of our Earth" in a movie. All in all..this movie must be a relief for emmerich after his debacle 10000 BC. Good entertainment and bang for buck :).

A brilliant movie with emotions perfectly emoted by characters very well etched by the writers. That's what I would like to say about this movie in one word. The director has blended all the factors into one...be it the shots, the music, the characters, the story...all into one. And he has done it in a brilliant way that I felt that I was with those characters living with them. Clive Owen, Laura Fraser, Nicholas McAnulty, George Mackay all did a wonderful job. I did not have any expectation while going into the cinemas to watch this...and when I got out i was feeling very refreshed... A good movie...I recommend it to all.

Pixar's Up is a visual treat for both the kids and the adults. But other than that the movie fails to convince me that it is the best out there. there is a very common thread that is running through both Wall-E and Up...Loneliness. The main character in both the films are undergoing severe loneliness and it is heart-breaking to watch it. My heart went out for Ed at times. But after sometime I got depressed and that is when I thought about Wall-E. It was the same thing I felt in that movie. There is a limit to how much Isolation I can handle :). Other than that the movie was a visual breeze. The animation was far too good and I felt as if I was in heaven while watching some scenes. The bird in the movie was fantastic. I just hope for the next Pixar movie there will be no isolation themes.

I always respected Vishal Bhardwaj...not by watching his movies but from the reviews that I got of his movies. I am not much of a Hindi movie buff. But I do watch good Hindi movies once in a while and that is where I happened to pass across this movie through the media coverage and word of the mouth. And when I realized this was Bhardwaj I wanted to grab this. And after watching this movie...I am like blow me down...can this happen in Indian cinemas...no spoon-feeding for the audience(to an extent), A proper full-scale shootout like in the Hollywood...blow me down. The movie has got a touch of Ritchie & Tarantino films. But the comedy here is very different from that of Ritchie films and so is the way of treatment. This film is entirely different from them and I appreciate Vishal for not following someone else. Acting by all the protagonists especially Shahid Kapoor...the scene where Guddu tries to explain he is not Charlie in the police station is just amazing...have not seen such intensity and reality in the acting department anywhere in the near past. Kudos to Shahid and to Vishal for extracting the talent from him. The love story between Guddu and Sweety was treated in a good manner. So is the relation between Guddu and Charlie. Amol Gupte also did a spectacular job. All in all this movie just took me for one hell of a ride.

One thing I would like to state before I start with my review is that I am a big fan of G.I.Joe cartoon and the action figures when I was a kid... I use to worship them...So, when the movie was announced I was excited...But when the posters and the trailers got out I went "Oh, What the hell".... I went in for the movie with zero expectation. But boy was I blown. It is a fast-paced out and right action film. Those of you who expect a good story can pack up and avoid this. The G.I.Joe cartoons never had any story...it just had the frequent fights between Joe's and The Cobra....So I was not let down by the lack of a solid story. And the acting was the typical type that can be found in such popcorn summer flicks. And I am happy Sommer's has tried to keep some of the core stuffs of G.I.Joe intact while changing other stuffs for better viewing. The CGI is a bit of a let down at some points...but I stopped thinking about that after the non-stop action started..... This summer was a big let down in terms of wolverine, transformers 2, et al...this is a better outing than all of those.... Just watch it with the right mind set and anybody can enjoy this flick.....