Enga Nee Kootti Pora?

Debutantes hailing from cinema families. Arvind Swamy returning after 13 years. Arjun in a negative role. An amazing team of technicians. The grand brand name, Mani Ratnam. Colossal hype. That was the public emotion towards Kadal, starring Gautham Karthik, Thulasi Nair,as it hit screens last week.

Bergmans, vows to take revenge against goody-goody Sam who gets him 'thrown out' of his seminary, for his misbehaviour. Sam, who moves on with life, becomes the priest of a small fishing hamlet and takes up the young orphan Thomas, an outcast, under his wing. He meets Bergmans again in a twist of fate, and how the life of these three men get intertwined in a battle between light and dark, forms the rest of the story.

Arvind Swamy is back, and how. More than a decade since he appeared on screens, and the man has still not lost his touch, as he wows audiences with his performance. Paralleling him is Arjun, who delivers a power-packed performance as the sinister Bergmans. Gautham, and Thulasi have performed commendably enough in this dream debut of a film, but they still have a long way to go. One of the very few pluses in this film, is the cast, where each and every person fit their role to the optimum.

There are only a handful of composers who can be credited as magicians, rather than musicians, and definitely, by all means, A.R.Rahman is one of them. With a completely wonderful album, he takes the movie to a different level, by means of his background score. While the experimental treatment of 'Adiye' seemed a bit ridiculous, the songs have undergone a beautiful visual treatment. 

This is not a Mani Ratnam film. No, it does not have his class, it does not have his usual delivery. But this is Rajiv Menon's masterpiece. The cinematography in this film has been exemplary, and several interesting angles, and frames make it a complete delight for the viewers. 

The film, is snail-paced, a fact that could be attributed more to the slow screenplay than Sreekar Prasad's editing. The movie goes places, and puts the audience in a conundrum, as it does not portray a clear picture of the story. The dialogues, though interesting, sounds very alien, and adds to the confusion. While the movie is worth a watch, it is sadly, a disappointment from the legendary Mani Ratnam.

Aditya Baskaran

Power dhaan da.

In 2011, Tamil Cinema found an actor who set a standard for himself, by vehemently creating a satirical image for himself that the very effort he put in for it brought him a 'tremendous' fanfare. And thus, expectations are/were high as self-titled 'Power Star' Srinivasan teamed up with the man reigning over the Tamil comedy scene, Santhanam to bring out Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasayaa, starring Vishakha Singh, Sethu, VTV Ganesh and several others.

KLTA is a modern adaptation of K.Bhagyaraj's 1981 Indru Poi Naalai Vaa. Three friends fall for the same woman, and it leads them to follow the formula 'Every man for himself'. Who succeeds in the comic battle for love forms the rest of the story.

Comedy is the word. Santhanam, who has both produced and scripted this film, carries it on his shoulders, and overshadows newcomer Sethu and the Power Star. Sethu, has a long, long way to go in the industry. Vishakha, whose last Tamil release was the forgettable Pidichirukku five Pongals back, manages to impress the audience with her acting. VTV Ganesh, Kovai Sarala, Devadarshini and Sivashankar Master all add to the comedy quotient in their supporting role.

It is relieving to know that the Power Star has finally found his place as a comedian in the industry. His ability to make anything look and sound funny, and the way that he has carried his character through the film - one highly inspired by his real-life personality (and playfully also made fun of in the film, at a large scale) deserves appreciation.

M.Rajesh's opening voiceover comes as a warm surprise to everyone, and the movie, in itself, reminds you a lot of his style of film-making and screenplay : A movie that doesn't carry much of a story, and is totally dependent on the fun factor, complete with the use of old Tamil songs to support the comic sense of the scene. STR, in his cameo, plays an important role in film. The editing and camerawork are neat, and S.Thaman's work in this film is just apt.

So. This film is, the family entertainer for this Pongal. But unfortunately, this movie doesn't live up to the hype it created. Though a rib-tickler, it is not exactly the Santhanam-class that has left the viewers in splits. But what will make you watch this film, is one man - Power Star Srinivasan, for the weird form of grotesque entertainment this man provides, is simply not available in any other regional film industry anywhere. Anywhere.

Aditya Baskaran

Not Again.

The amount of promotion this movie got, made people look up to its release, as Alex Pandian hits screens this Pongal, starring Karthi, Anushka, Santhanam, Milind Soman and several others.

So, what's new about this film? Absolutely nothing. The film opens with a hurt heroine being chased by a gazillion gundas, and the hero, as usual beating all of them up, but this time - on top of a moving train. Next, the comedian walks into his place to find the hero as his sudden "guest", and what continues is a whole half of pointless attempts at comedy and violence until the heroine makes an appearance again at the interval, after which it is revealed that Alex Pandian is a small-time crook who had kidnapped the heroine for the villains, and now after a change of heart, was opposing them. How he got to her, and whether he succeeds in saving her is what the movie is all about.

The movie has a tiring number of villains - 5, to be precise. The movie's pace is lethargic - the first half is filled with Karthi and Santhanam, who though share a wonderful chemistry, do not keep us engaged. Suraaj, known for the comedy quotient in his film, saw a decline with Mappilai, which has continued into this film as well. The second half, finally brings about the crux of the story, and the beating up of another million gundas and the villains.The haphazard and almost ridiculous placement of songs worsen the movie's pace. The acting department, though upto mark, sees a wide number of good artistes wasted on minor roles. Santhanam, who is now Kollywood's most-wanted USP, livens this movie up a bit, but even his performance, sadly, is not all wonderful. The cinematography, by Saravanan, brings to us some interesting angles. Music, nothing fresh.

Suraaj, who brings to screens, masala-action films, which though completely illogical, tend to keep audiences entertained, struck gold with Thalai Nagaram and Marudhamalai. Things began to dampen from Padikkadhavan, and Alex Pandian has turned out to be a disappointment as well. Tamil cinema has seen a thousand such films, and while some have managed to make it big at the box office, a slow, mediocre screenplay has let this film down.

This movie is only for die-hard fans of Karthi, and those masala-movie buffs.

Aditya Baskaran

Definitely Not Your Golden Dream.

Television anchor Gopinath, once remarked that Gautham Vasudev Menon was one director who had the fanfare that paralleled a mass hero. A rather honest remark, considering his wonderful contribution to Tamil Cinema, with films like Kakkha Kakkha, Vettayaadu Vilayaadu, Vaaranam Aayiram, Vinnaithaandi Varuvaya, and even the infamous Nadunisi Naaygal, that put him at a position of high esteem. And thus, in his dream-come-true collaboration with the Isaignani Ilayaraaja, he brings to us Neethane En Ponvasantham, starring Jiiva, Samantha, Santhanam, and several others.

NEP, (as the movie's teasers, and the opening slide emphasize very well) are "moments" from the love story of Varun and Nithya. A cute, sensitive girl falls head-over-heels for a childhood friend, a handsome, mature-acting, Ilayaraaja-loving, English-speaking guy - Your typical Gautham hero. (But yeah, Surya from VA was a bit immature, running off to countries with his guitar, but we still found that good.) They get together, things go awry, they split. And after some years, they meet again, and rekindle their love. And again, things go even more awry, they split. And after some(read: 3) years, they meet again, but a clash of their egos ends in them not getting together - while a mental tug-of-war plays within both their heads. Do they finally join, and live happily ever after, or not, forms the rest of NEP.

Perhaps the only positive aspect of this film is Santhanam, who manages to keep us smiling whenever he's on screen, which is, unfortunately, for a short period of time. The legendary Ilayaraaja, has pulled out an album which, though decent, is not Maestro-class enough, but the exceptionally haphazard placement of songs during the movie's runtime, have made listening a rather irksome process.

NEP, goes on forever. Literally. The screenplay of the film, is snail-pace, only to quicken up during the climax. Everything goes to and fro, to and fro, for such a long time, that it really tests the patience of the audience. The cinematography is haywire, not exactly impressive. The actors, of course, perform their best. While Jiiva is neat with his subtle playing, the movie actually revolves around Samatha, who delivers a worthy performance. 

A weak script, a drag of a screenplay - it is shocking that Gautham Menon delivers this disappointment. Another downer, is the similarity of nature between every Menon romance film, and the ideological repetition has perhaps reached its tolerable limit. No train scene this time, but yeah, hero singing Ilayaraaja (voiced by Menon himself, as usual), night rides to forget his love life, retracing the past of love life by visiting romance hangouts, we've seen that quite a few times from him now.

And thus, this gooey loves story might win the hearts of diehard romantics, but other than that, it miserably fails to live up to its expectations.

Aditya Baskaran

Mahout Mushy Morbid.

Mynaa, one of 2010's best films, pushed Prabhu Solomon into the limelight, and won many accolades for him. And thus, it is natural that his next outing, gets all hyped up. Vikram Prabhu, a third-generation actor, coming from the house of the legendary Sivaji Ganesan, and Prabhu, makes his debut with this movie. Hype builds up. But does this film deliver?

Set deep within densely forested hills, the village of Aadhikaadu, steeped in anarchy, cultural discipline, and archaic notions of honor, is terrorized by a rogue elephant nicknamed 'Komban', and they set out for a 'kumki' to help solve their troubles. Bomman, a mahout, lives a nomadic life along with his uncle Kothalli, his assistant Undiyal, and Manickam, a gentle, untrained elephant that works as decoration for festivities. Unforeseen circumstances puts Team Bomman in place of the kumki of Aadhikaadu, where Bomman falls head-over-heels in love with the village headman's daughter Alli. Does Bomman succeed in winning her heart, and is Aadhikaadu rid of its animal horror? That is what Kumki, also starring newcomer Lakshmi Menon, National Award winner Thambi Ramiah, Aswin Raja (from Boss (a) Baskaran), is all about. If there existed a heaven, I believe Chinappa Devar (The man behind Thevar Films) would be quite happy about the films that have released this year.

Pluses. The locations are simply exotic, and Aadhikaadu has brought to screen in an excellent manner. The movie transfers us to a village of minimal technology, a village set back 200 years in its thought and behaviour. Cinematography, by M.Sukumar, is splendid indeed, and some shots are breath-taking. Vikram Prabhu, and Lakshmi Menon deliver commendable performances, but they still have a long way to go. The film rides on the shoulders of Thambi Ramiah, who delivers a performance of class, and of rib-tickling nature, and he is well supported by Aswin Raja. D.Imman's music is pleasant, and so is his background score, but the album, and the film itself on the whole, remind you too much of Mynaa.

Downers. The screenplay runs amok for a long while till the movie finds some grip to move forth, thus the movie moves as a pointless drag, till the peak in the second half. The movie makes use of a lot of CG - the effort is appreciable, and worth mention. But to audiences who've watched their Hollywood showcases, or atleast Tamil dubs of Avatar, and Life of Pi, it's, well.. not up to the mark.

Prabhu Solomon, is now making his film style a trademark. Unshaven heroes, shabby clothes, forests, waterfalls, love trances and morbid closes. We saw that once, we seem to be seeing it again. Kumki, on several levels draws similiarity towards Mynaa, and while the morbid close worked well for the latter, Kumki's climax leaves audiences in a state of perplex confusion, while shedding light on a dark sense of justice. Nevertheless, team Kumki needs special appreciation, just for the tremendous amount of work put forth in shooting in such locations and conditions.

Kumki, might not live up to its hype. But, it is a movie, worth a watch.

Aditya Baskaran

The Search Within.

The wait is over, as Aamir Khan returns to screens, a year after his last outing Dhobi Ghat (overlooking his cameo in Delhi Belly), as he joins hands with Ritiesh Sadhwani and Farhan Akhtar, 11 years after their first combo hit, the classic Dil Chahta Hai, to give us Reema Kagti's Talaash, also starring Kareena Kapoor, Rani Mukerji, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and several others.

A film-star ends up as fish chow after his car crashes into the ocean, under mysterious circumstances. Inspector Surjan Shekhawat (Khan), a man scarred by the death of his 8-year old son, under huge emotional, mental and perhaps even physical strain, owing to his sleepless nights, with his marriage on the rocks, takes this case up. While facing blanks on all sides, he is aided by the elusive sex worker Rosie (played by the bombshell, Kareena), with whom he forms a bond. How Surjan manages to crack this case, while battling his inner demons and saving his life from complete collapse forms the rest of the story.

The film has huge, huge names involved - Aamir Khan, Farhan and Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap, what more? Performances are crystal clear, (come on, you just read the names above.) as everyone fits the bill, right from Aamir as the troubled Inspector, the gorgeous Kareena as Rosie, Rani as the broken mother, to Siddiqui as the slimy crook Tehmur, with love in his heart.

The movie, with its ups and downs, does have a racy feel to it, shifting between characters, building momentum, as it takes you thinking down several tracks, but the mega-twist, turns out to be a wee bit disappointing, being illogical of sorts, and also almost-predictable. It is something that you wouldn't probably expect from a team of this stature, but whether or not the movie satisfies you is a personal opinion, in case of Talaash.

The background score, is apt, while the songs, while setting a mood through the movie, are quite forgettable. Ram Sampath struck gold with Delhi Belly (Bhaag DK Bose, people.) , but takes a backseat with Talaash. Cinematography and editing, keep the film taut, and help the movie gets its interesting pace.

Conclusion - Talaash is worth a watch, and perhaps one watch only.

Aditya Baskaran

Soaring High.

2010's Thenmerkku Paruvakaatru was a surprise sleeper hit, that put director Seenu Ramaswamy on cloud nine, fetching National Awards to its lead actress Saranya Ponvannan, lyricist Vairamuthu, and the director himself (for Best Feature Film in Tamil). And now he returns, on a more grand scale with Neerparavai, produced by Red Giant Movies, starring Vishnu, Sunaina, Saranya Ponvannan, Samudhirakani and several others.

An aged woman, lives on the shores of a coastal village all alone, waiting for her husband, who left to the sea 25 years ago. Her son tries to convince her to come to the city with him, but she refuses, citing that her husband will definitely return. He and his wife notice her strange ritual of praying at her backyard in the night, with a funeral song, and they decide to find out what lies under. And to his extreme shock, it is the body of his father. Who is this woman, and why has she kept her husband's death a secret for so long? That is what Neerparavai is about.

Performances, performances, too many good performers nowadays. Vishnu sinks his teeth into his meaty role, but the winner of the day are the women. Sunaina, as the younger heroine, Nandita Das as her elder version, and Saranya Ponvannan as the caring mother of the hero are simply wonderful. Sunaina, finally gets a worthy role, while actresses like Nandita Das, and Sarnaya, well, they've proved their calibre times enough. Poo Ram as the father, is quite moving with his silent performance. Azhagam Perumal as the Bishop of the village church, Vadivukkarasi (back on the big screen after quite sometime, I guess), as the illict arrack seller, Samudhirakani, as the boat-builer, Arul Dass, as 'Siluvai', are all commendable. 'Black' Pandi, and Thambi Ramiah, play character roles, and fuel the comedy quotient of the film.

N.R.Raghunathan, whose work was appreciated in Thenmerkku Paruvakaatru, repeats a similar finish with this one as well. His background score, neat. Since the legendary Vairamuthu, struck gold last time with the same team, listeners are piqued to pay keen notice to the lyrics, and as usual, he doesn't fail you. Balasubramaniem, brings some interesting angles forth, and his work along with Mu.Kasi Vishwanathan's editing gives a very classic feel to the film.

Seenu Ramaswamy weaves out a poetic story, one of love, rehabilitation, and determination, with political injections here and there, which takes up centrestage at the climax. Nevertheless, it is a film, based on a rather unusual backdrop, and while it sounds like a cliched storyline, the movie has spice enough to have you sit through it. Good job.

Aditya Baskaran