Category Archives: Drama

Action, Can Skip it, Drama, Genre, Rating, Reviews, Tamil Movies

Poojai Review

Poojai Review – is a Tamil action drama released in 2014.  Thandavam a finance company head runs a huge network for contract killers. He is growing into a unstoppable force in the city. Vasu a local money lender crosses the way of Thandavam while trying to save a honest cop from his men. The life of Vasu is not the same any more as Thandavam vows to Vasu and his dear ones. Will Vasu be able to save his dear ones is the plot of Poojai.

Director Hari is still within his safe perimeter for the story line. Villain gets up taking bath in a temple pond, hero has to save his family from the villain, everyone in the heroes family rely upon him as the savior and dare devil who can with stand any opposition than any other law and order force. Hari should realize that his perimeter is a small one and there is only so much you could do within it to make a new story. Just by changing the lead actors cannot guarantee you a new film.

For Poojai, I guess Hari had run out of steam very quickly. For me the movie ended much before the interval block. But he had created a entire big family for the hero to move the story past interval block and make it a very tiring long movie. The villain doesn’t look fearsome at all. The reason is that Vishal is able to knock him down anytime he wants. I still didn’t understand why he forgives him every time till the climax.

Vishal is pivotal to the movie and he is comfortable in his home ground. Sathyaraj has performed his role well and the way he walks around in the police costume is very commendable. But he is underutilized in the movie due to the ensemble of star cast. Shruthi Hasan is there just to decorate the screen. She has to improvise on her dialogue delivery.

Yuvanshankar Raja’s music is forgettable. Very few positives in the movie the comedy track by Soori and Paandi combo trying to do a spoof of Koundamni and Senthil is enjoyable in parts. The stunt choreography is definitely good as in other Hari’s movies.
Overall Poojai is a mixture of Saamy, Singam, Arul and few other movies directed by Hari. It has nothing new to offer and the story definitely seem to be decade old.

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Action, Classic, Drama, Epic, Genre, Must Watch, Rating, Reviews, Tamil Movies

Thalapathi Review

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Thalapathi Review – Thalapathi is a Tamil action drama released in 1991. The movie is an adapted version of the mighty king and warrior Karna from the great Indian epic Mahabharata. Surya born as an illegitimate child is abandoned by his Mom and left on a basket in a goods train. He is then raised by lower caste people living by a river side. He grows up to become a loyal friend and henchman for gangster Devaraj. Both of them run parallel government in the city while the lawmen await an opportunity to take them down.

Diwali of 1991 is unforgettable for me. I was down with flu and was sad for not able to go out to watch the much awaited release of Thalapthi which went on to become a cult classic and a blockbuster. The movie’s release expectations soared sky high with Director Maniratnam and Rajinikanth coming together for the first time. Popular actors like Mamooty and Amrish Puri sharing screen space.  The soundtrack of the movie was already a super duper hit with the Ilayaraja’s violin orchestra starting off the ever famous “Raakamma Kaya Thattu” song which later went onto become the 4th most popular songs of all time in a BBC worldwide service poll across the world. The ticket reservations began a week ahead of the release and the tickets for the first time I had seen did not look like a movie ticket but looked like a mini poster with Rajinikanth and Sonu walia’s dancing still. Finally once I got well I couldn’t wait but rushed to the theater to watch movie which was already declared to be a hit with repeat audience thronging the theaters.

Director Maniratnam is a brilliant story teller. He has taken the story of Karna and made it into a cult classic. Although the movie has been told so many times as part of the epic but still Thalapathi was a very compelling watch for the screenplay, the treatment, acting performances, star cast, music, cinematography and direction. Everything was set so perfectly for this movie that made it an evergreen hit. For the first time the Tamil audience saw a very different performance from Rajinikanth. Although the story had much of the commercial elements that you would want in a Rajini movie, this one had everything in a very convincing fashion and the scenes brought out various emotions from Rajini. Be it fighting with rage, shouting out emotionally to his girlfriend, caring for his best friend, melting for his mother’s love Maniratnam got the best out of Rajinikanth after K.Balachander. He rediscovered the actor who was lost in the color of commercial cinema. The dialogues of the movie are of top notch. The sequence where there is meeting between the collector, SP, Devaraj and Surya is impact full with circular tracking shot. The movie released in 70mm which made everything on the screen look magnificent. There is never a dull moment in the movie.

Overall the movie is a feast for all movie lovers and still stands the test of time.

Must Watch – Epic

Drama, Genre, Malayalam Movies, Rating, Reviews, Worth a Watch

Vellimoonga Review

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Vellimoonga Review – Vellimoonga (Barn Owl) is a Malayalam political drama released in 2014. The movie revolves around the life of a middle aged man Mamachen who is still single and actively involved in politics. He aspires to setup his family and also rise up in politics but it is not easy as people who are jealous of him try to play spoilsport.

The movie had released without making much noise and is a very engaging drama. There is no unnecessary song and dance in the movie. It is filled with some neat performances, humor and dialogues. As the plot is drawn on a political canvas every character in the movie talks a lot. Hardly will you find any silent sequence in the movie. Biju Menon is a great choice for the role and he has carried out his role with perfection. His acting and his unique mannerisms would make Mamachen character loved by the audience. The way he always finds a way to ride in the front seat of the jeep, never pays for his ride  and his mom says that he never travels in an auto as it does not allow him to sit in the front are great examples to develop a character. Aju Varghese is very successful in making us laugh yet again. The rest of the characters in the movie are also developed well and help in moving the story along. Director Jibu Jacob has presented an engaging political drama that is fresh and satisfying. The election preparations and processions have been done well. He has also very well portrayed how the meaning of Khadi clothes has changed over time from Gandhiji to the current politicians. It has now become a trademark of Indian politics. Usually for political drama Chanakya would be used as a symbolism, but the use of Barn Owl as a symbolism in the movie is very creative.

Overall the movie is a very enjoyable affair. If you like movies with political background you would definitely enjoy Vellimoonga. There is never a dull moment in the movie and it entertains you throughout.

Watchable

Drama, Genre, Rating, Reviews, Tamil Movies, Wait for DVD/TV

Jeeva Review

Jeeva Review – is a Tamil sports drama released in 2014. Jeeva is a talented cricket player and aspires to play for India. But community based politics prevent him from getting selected for the national team.

Director Suseenthiran comes up with a sports movie after his much acclaimed Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu. In between he had focused more on action and romance genre in between and his previous outing Pandianadu was a smashing hit. Jeeva is an emotional journey of an upcoming cricketer with amount of things he has to sacrifice in life and the difficulty to get a break due to highly political nature of the selection committee. In the era where people are watching a lot of cricket and many cricket tournaments run with empty stands due to too many matches to be played; it is very difficult to make a movie on cricket and keep the audience interested. Suseenthiran has tried to break this by bringing in the romance angle to the plot. This works well in the first half but makes the script slow during the second half. The length of the movie could have been trimmed to 90 minutes to make it more engaging. Overall Suseenthiran has come up with yet another neat film. It may not be as good as Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu but deals with one of the less spoken community based politics in Tamil Nadu cricket board. The movie deserves a watch for the plot. But due to the slowness of the script you might enjoy watching this at home.

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Action, Drama, Genre, Must Watch, Rating, Reviews, Tamil Movies

Madras

Madras – is a Tamil political action drama released in 2014. Maari and Kannan are rival political party leaders. Kannan’s party has a big painting of Kannan’s father and his political party on a wall in the middle of Maari’s locality. In the pretext of bad omen no one is daring to change the wall painting. Anbu the dedicated party worker of Maari’s party along with his friend Kaali is waiting for an occasion to change the wall painting.

Right from the first shot I enjoyed everything about this movie. After some really bad outings for Karthi, Madras is a very welcome change. After Attakathi, Director Pa. Ranjith has created a very engaging commercial drama. The movie doesn’t go much outside of the North Madras housing board for its entire length but for a few shots. The first half of the movie is just brilliant. If you have lived in a housing board this would bring back some nostalgic memories. The director has dealt with most of the walks of a lower middle class life like the small houses, getting water from common pipe, lack of space for intimacy between couples, young men proposing to girls, football ground, dance groups and many more. One of the most striking things is how the characters are built. At the end they all have a part to play in the story. There are so many of them yet they all have their unique tone and voice. The use of wall as a metaphor to drive the social message of current state of power and politics is brilliant. The screenplay is engaging throughout. It just slacks down a bit in the middle of the second half but soon gets back on track. Santhosh Narayanan’s background score is apt for the drama. Madras is a welcome change in the times where all leading heroes’ movies are not doing so well. If you like political drama and gang fights go and watch Madras for sure.

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Drama, Genre, Rating, Reviews, Tamil Movies, Thriller, Wait for DVD/TV

Burma

Burma – is a Tamil thriller released in 2014. Paramanandam alias Burma is a skilled car thief. He works for a financier to seize cars whose due amounts are not settled. While doing one of the car seizing he crosses line with a criminal gang and he has to save the car, his girlfriend and himself.

The movie has a very interesting plot of car theft which is not usually handled as a central plot for a movie. Director Dharanidharan should be lauded for the effort put in here. Believing in a script and making it into a movie is not an easy effort for a new comer. But due to sufficient lack of scale for the project the production quality of the movie suffers to a great extent. Atul Kulkarni and Sampath Raj’s role is not as it is depicted in the trailer, in the movie they have very minimal role to play. The background score is very disconnected which makes the movie disengaging in many places. Overall the movie definitely has some substance in it. If you are willing to see this as a first timer’s effort you would enjoy this movie for the interesting plot it has.

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Comedy, Drama, Genre, Malayalam Movies, Rating, Reviews, Worth a Watch

How Old Are You

How Old Are You – is a Malayalam coming of age drama released in 2014. Nirupama Rajeev an ordinary stereotypical wife, a mother from a middle class family is losing her identity within her family and then the society. She has to turn her low point around to establish her identity back.

This one is a nicely crafted coming of age movie for a wife, a mother of thirteen year old in a middle class family. Director Roshann Andrews also has used the importance organic food produce and how every household can achieve this right on their terrace as a backdrop for the movie. Particularly after his success of Mumbai police this one is a very different subject and equally very appealing. The use of foreshadowing  sequence where in the lead actress is in a traffic block waiting for the president’s convoy to pass by is very effective. Manju Warrier has done an excellent job with her role and is a very fitting choice. Overall this one does not have a single dull moment and engages throughout.

Watchable

Action, Drama, Genre

Irumbu Kuthirai

Irumbu Kuthirai – is a Tamil action film released in 2014. Prithvi becomes very quiet and disinterested after his father’s death. He meets a beautiful girl Samyukta and falls in love with her but to win her heart he would need to come out of the shell and take up motor biking he dreads to do.

The first trailer of the movie was very impressive and captures one of the best shot sequences. Apart from that there is nothing much left. Right from the start you see the hero riding the bike slow until the climax sequence. The screenplay is also follows this and overall makes this a very tiring watch. The bike chase sequence has been filmed well and lot of efforts has gone in. However the situations surrounding this are not very interesting. If the movie had focused on its core theme of bikes and bike races rather than romance and all song and dance this would have been an interesting product. Overall it is a slow race.

Lousy Watch 

Can Skip it, Comedy, Drama, Genre, Hindi Movies, Rating, Reviews, Romance

Khoobsurat

Khoobsurat – is a Hindi romance drama released in 2014. A fun loving and spontaneous physiotherapist is invited into a highly disciplined and a highly formal royal family to treat King’s paralyzed legs.

Disney princess stories no matter how many times it has been told is an evergreen success formula. But Khoobsurat has taken the fairy tale and made a below average Bollywood romance drama.  They had tried to adapt the 1980’s Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s film for this romance drama.  Kirron Kher plays the role of Sonam’s mother, Manju; if you remember Rekha played the character of Manju a young fun loving girl in the 1980 movie. Were they trying bring in  connect back? The platform for a nice princess story had been set very well, choosing Jaipur as a backdrop is an excellent choice but the screenplay gets derailed in the first 20 minutes of the movie and the writers seem to have run out of ideas and they started to adapt sequences from many Hollywood romance dramas to fill the rest of the movie. The characterizations are weak; they seem to run out of breath very quickly. Sonam Kapoor looks cute and pretty but when it comes to acting her expressions are between A and B.

Quickgun Murugan seems to be a much better outing for Shashanka Gosh compared to this one. You can give this one a skip.

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Finding Fanny

Finding Fanny – is a bilingual (Hindi and English) movie released in 2014. In a small Goan village Pocolim, the old post master Ferdie receives an undelivered letter which he had written 46 years ago to Fanny proposing to her. Ferdie embarks on a roadtrip along with a young widow, her obnoxious mother in law, an old painter who is looking for inspiration for his last painting and an egoistic mechanic go to find Fanny and convey his love for her.

After the commercial outing with Cocktail, director Homi Adajania is back to his home turf creating a off-beat cinema with an ensemble of popular star cast. The movie does not have any strings attached. You should watch it for what it is. None of the situations are dramatized nor dragged to evoke emotions. There is subtle and intelligent humor one would enjoy (if you like such humor). Naseeruddin Shah and Pankaj Kapoor dominate the screen. Deepika looks so lovely, simple and beautiful like the script itself. Dimple Kapadia has done a very interesting character like the one she did in Being Cyrus. The characters based on Goan Catholics gives a very fresh look to the movie.
The movie is a road movie with some dysfunctional people who through their journey rediscover love. Although there is a slight slowness in the script post the interval it makes up for it in the end. You would walk out of the movie hall with a smile on your face. This movie may not appeal to everyone. If you love movies like Little Miss Sunshine then you would like this movie as well.

Watchable 

Drama, Genre, Rating, Reviews, Romance, Tamil Movies, Worth a Watch

Amara Kaaviyam

Amara Kaaviyam – is a Tamil romance drama released in 2014. A high school student Sathya meets his classmate Karthiga and conveys that his friend Balaji is in love with her, but Karthiga tells him that she is in love with Sathya and not Balaji. They fall in love with each other but when their families come to know about this they try to keep them away from each other.

There was an era in the early 80’s in Tamil Cinema when there were movies based on teenage love story. Movies like Alaigal Oivathillai, Paneer Pushpangal, Kilinjalgal became block buster hit. Director Jeeva Shankar has tried to reproduce the magic of that era in Amara Kaaviyam. He had used the 80’s period to convey the movie as well. The first half of the movie seemed like modern version of Paneer Pushpangal for me. However the second half turns into an emotional melodrama ultimately leading to the climax which is much different from those movies. The first half of the movie is very engaging but the second half falters a bit with a sudden shift in the behavior of the lead character. I felt like his role having shades of the lead protagonist from the director’s previous outing Naan.

The new comer Sathya has acted well in parts of the movie. The credit goes to the director. Jeeva Shankar’s cinematography and Ghibran’s music are great plus for the movie. Each shot is like a painting on a canvas. The pace of the movie is a big drawback for the movie. As the movie is headed to its climax you would be able to predict what is going to happen next. A little bit of increased pace in the screenplay and maintaining the suspense a bit tighter would have made this one a very compelling watch.

If you had liked the teen love stories like the ones I had mentioned before then you might enjoy watching this or else you would be waiting for the movie to get over.

Watchable – for all those who love 80’s movies based on love at adolescence

Crime, Drama, English Movies, Genre, Must Watch, Rating, Reviews

Scarface

Scarface – is an American crime drama released in 1983. Tony Montana, a criminal in Cuba arrives to the United States along with the Cuban refugees. He becomes part of a criminal gang and rises to power due to his arrogant, aggressive and brutal attitude.

Although the movie has been shot in 1983 it is still one of the best gangster movies. Right from the start till the finish you see street fights, gang wars and shootouts. Al Pacino has set a great role model for any gangster role in movies that would be made. Many of Indian gangster movies have been influenced by this one. The recent one is Billa 2 starring Ajith. As the movie progresses you could see a remarkable transition in Al Pacino’s character, mannerisms and style. All these have become iconic now. If you love gangster movies this one is a must watch. Strictly not for kids for the violence it has.

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