Category Archives: Rating

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

Anjaan

Anjaan – is a Tamil action drama released in 2014. A Mumbai gangster seeks out revenge against a rival for the murder of his close friend.

By now many of you have read reviews about Anjaan. I had a very low expectation when I went to watch it. The core plot of the movie has some substance for it to become a blockbuster. A gangster’s revenge saga would heavily depend upon screenplay and build-up of characters but the movie totally failed in this department. There is a 20 minute block in the middle of the script which you might find engaging but the rest is so disconnected and far from the plot that it spoils the entire product. Director Lingusamy should start working with new screenwriters for fresh thoughts. He is still sticking to sequences like introducing an innocent guy and later reveals he is a violent guy when he starts bashing up all villains closing the gate. The whole unit seemed to have banked on the charismatic presence of Suriya and never bothered to shape up any other character including the supposedly treacherous villain Manoj Bajpayee who barely gets 3 sequences in the entire movie, he doesn’t look treacherous at all. Samantha who is not significant for the movie plot gets more screen time than Vidyut Jamwal and Manoj Bajpayee. The dialogues writing department has run out of creative ideas and the dialogues in the first half reminded me of those dubbed Hindi soap serials running on TV. Suriya has performed well as Raju Bhai, he looks stylish but as Krishna he is not even half convincing.

Overall this would be a movie Suriya and Lingusamy would have to forget and move on.

Can skip it

Comedy, Drama, Genre, New Wave, Rating, Reviews, Tamil Movies, Worth a Watch

Kathai Thiraikathai Vasanam Iyakkam

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Kathai Thiraikathai Vasanam Iyakkam – is a Tamil film released in 2014.  Director R.Parthiepan said it is a film without a story. How will a film without a story be what the story would deal with? He also said it is a tribute to 100 years of Indian Cinema. Well the movie is about a team of aspiring film makers trying to search for that convincing story to make their first film. Through their journey the director has conveyed how difficult it is to make a movie that is entertaining for the audience.  Making a film is not always as it is perceived by people; it is really a tough job. Years and months of hard work can be trashed by audience in minutes. A magic is only as good till the audience can guess the trick… a film is only as good till the audience can predict the flow. Finally they do realize they can create script from their everyday experiences but the final question is will a producer agree for it? How long they can run behind their aspirations with family commitments each of them have.

The first half of the movie is about the nuances of script writing and also through their discussion covers some of the amazing gems in old Tamil Cinema which has concepts and outlook that none of the modern day movies have. Due to some of the amateur actors and lack of dramatic elements of the story you would feel disconnected in the first half but the second half is very engaging. Through this R.Parthiepan has tried to experiment multiple things; he has tried to narrate a story to the audience that can be made into a film, he also broken all the grammatical rules of script writing but still the end product has come out decently.

This is not for those who search for a standard story and plot in the movie but for those who appreciate the magic of cinema in whatever form it might be. This one deserves a watch for the sincere attempt and for the love of cinema.

Thanks to all those who has the perseverance of creating good cinema and midst of so many difficulties devote their life to entertain the audience – a true tribute to 100 years of Indian cinema.

Watchable – for the love of cinema

Comedy, Drama, English Movies, Genre, Must Watch, Rating, Reviews, War

Jakob The Liar

Jakob The Liar – is an American war comedy film released in 1999. During the Holocaust in a ghetto in German occupied Poland a rumor spreads that shopkeeper Jakob has a radio. Playing along with the rumor Jakob starts telling lies to people in the ghetto to keep up their hopes. This is not the only lie he is telling but he is also hiding a young Jewish girl who had escaped from an extermination camp deportation train. Jakob soon becomes the symbol of hope for the community and he goes a long way to give everything for his people.

The movie is made from a Novel by Jurek Becker. It is a remake of the East German DEFA film Jakob der Lügner from 1975. But I felt it was tailor made for Robin Williams.The movie has a tone of the movie Life is beautiful. However here the protagonist is spreading belief and hope for an entire community and gives everything in the end for his people. A very nice tale told in the background of one of the cruel times. Robin Williams brings Jakob’s character from book to life. This is a must watch for all Robin Williams fans.

The tag line – When all hope was lost, he invented it. – how fitting it is for Robin Williams… we will miss him.

Must Watch – for all Robin Williams fans

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

Athithi

Athithi – is a Tamil suspense thriller released in 2014.  Madhiazhagan, Vasuki and their kid lead a very happy life. One day they give lift to an unknown person in their car and things take an unusual turn. They learn their daughter is being held hostage and they are held hostage in their car and are forced to do things the stranger demands.

The movie is mostly engaging in parts and the plot promises to be an edge of the seat thriller. The premise for the whole story is a very promising one and when the story reaches its main premise you would find this to be a very engaging movie and would demand your attention. However the situations leading to the main plot is not buildup well. Due to this what could have been a very engaging movie falls short. The buildup of characters is disconnected to the main plot. There have been deliberate attempts to distract the audience from finding out the motive. In the end as it is not related they seem to be out of place for the story. During the abduction episode in many places the real panic, fear and hurry is not seen with the characters which is not a natural reaction. The scene in which Nanda has to leave a suitcase in the bus stand within 20 minutes, the whole sequence is very relaxed and does not thrill. The comedy portion and songs in the movie is a wholesome distraction to the genre of the movie. Director Bharhathan has tried to stuff in messages against the economic differences in the society which is not needed. The movie needed a bold ending to create an impact but ends up with an average ending.

Overall this one is definitely engaging in parts and can be watched at home if you have nothing else to watch.

Wait for DVD/TV – for a promising premise

Drama, Genre, Korean Movies, Must Watch, Rating, Reviews, Suspense, Thriller

Old Boy

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Old Boy – is a South Korean suspense thriller movie released in 2003. A man named Oh Dae-su is abducted and imprisoned in a dark room for 15 years. In the meantime he learns his wife is murdered, he is the prime suspect for the murder and his daughter is adopted by a Swedish family. After 15 years he is released on the roof top of a tall building. He is out to find the reason why he has been tortured to this extent and vows to take revenge on his abductor.

The movie is known for its unique plot. It is strictly for mature audience for its content and it is gross in parts. The tone has been set like that to give the impact of the torturous life the lead character has gone through. As the movie progresses Oh Dae-su discovers the identity of the kidnapper and the story unfolds. The screenplay is done brilliantly and the climax would leave you dumb stuck. It is a movie that has the potential of keeping you disturbed and at the same time give a feeling of having watched a brilliant movie. The plot of keeping a man abducted in an unknown room for unknown reason has been used in various movies which had released later including the recent Tamil movie Ivan Vera Mathiri. Overall this is a must watch if you have open mindedness and have a strong heart.

Must Watch – not for the weak hearted

English Movies, Genre, Must Watch, Rating, Reviews, Suspense, Thriller

Rope

Rope – is an English suspense thriller released in 1948. Two friends commit a murder of another friend just for the pleasure of committing a murder and on the same eve with his body still in their apartment they host a party to the dead man’s family and few of their common friends. The movie is directed by Hitchcock based on a play by Patrick Hamilton

The movie has the usual element of suspense that you would see in a Hitchcock movie. But the specialty of this movie is such that the entire movie seems to be taken of a single continuous shot. There is a peculiar party thrown in celebration of a murder committed by two men. What happens through the party is the rest of the movie. The movie has some wonderful performances, great dialogues and good use of props. The set is extremely detailed. Overall a thrilling screenplay makes this movie a compelling watch.

Must Watch

Action, Crime, Drama, Genre, Korean Movies, Must Watch, Rating, Reviews

A Dirty Carnival

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A Dirty Carnival – is a South Korean neo-noir film released in 2006. An upcoming film director Min Ho has to read a gangster’s life to create the script for his gangster movie. He follows and interviews his high school friend turned gangster Kim Byung-doo to understand the life of a gangster and make his movie. When the movie is released it is so close to the reality of the crime Byung-doo was involved in that he now has to kill Min Ho to save his secrets.

Sounds similar? Well this is the movie that many of the movie buffs have compared with Jigarthanda. Only the central plot is similar but the genre, treatment, the actual conflict and where the movie heads to is vastly different. They are two different movies with different story. So stop comparing the two movies.

A Dirty Carnival is a very serious gangster movie in itself. The movie is so realistic to the life of gangsters. You would see some realistic looking fights rather than the cinematic fights with visual effects. The movie right from the start follows Kim Byung-doo who is leading the life of a gangster and struggling to make his ends meet with an ailing mother, dependent brother and sister. The story is about his rise to power, his love for his childhood friend, his interactions with Min Ho for the movie script and the final conflict he gets into where he would have to kill his friend to live free. The story is very engaging right from the start. You would have the experience of looking into the life of a gangster. The performances, character buildup have been done very well. The editing of the movie is outstanding. If you are fan of gangster movies watch this one definitely.

Must Watch – for gangster fans

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

Sathuranga Vettai

Sathuranga Vettai – is a Tamil black comedy heist movie released in 2014. It is based on a true story about a person who finds easy way to make money by cheating people. He is a by product of the economical imbalance in the society.

The movie is definitely very engaging as the script does not deviate from the main plot of the movie. It is based on the true incidents that had happened in India. The character of the protagonist Natarajan Subramaniam has been built well. The film has the tone of movies like Naan Avan Illai which is again based on fraud. There some dialogues which are very good and apt for the script. Beyond the main character the buildup for other characters seems to be a letdown for the movie. Apart from this the movie will definitely engage you and also remind you of how someone could easily make a fool out of a common man. You would have a feeling of reading a host of Junior Vikatan articles on con.

Overall this one is definitely watchable on TV or DVD and you would enjoy it.

Wait for DVD/TV

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

Jigarthanda

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Jigarthanda – is a Tamil Gangster Drama released in 2014. Karthik an aspiring film director follows a terrifying gangster in Madurai to read his life and create the script for his movie. 

The movie had a lot of promises right from the promos, posters and the trailer. The end product has turned out to be decent but the length of the movie is far too much than deserved by the script. Director Karthik Subburaj has yet again produced a script that has not been typical of any Tamil movies. Kudos to him for taking up such a plot, believing in it and making it into a full length feature film. If the length has been reduced by 45 minutes or so the movie would have been much more enjoyable. There is a drag in the movie for the first 45 minutes and the last 45 minutes. You would enjoy the parts around the intermission stage. The savior for the script is acting of Simha. Right from his introduction scene he has taken the movie on his shoulder. Siddharth has done his part well. Lakshmi menon has very minimal scope in the movie and her character does not gel well with the storyline. The background score has been done well. The shots are taken very well.

Overall the dessert (Jigarthanda) is cloying and you might enjoy it in parts would be a good one to watch in the theater.

Watchable

Animation, Comedy, English Movies, Genre, Must Watch, Rating, Reviews

The Lego Movie

The Lego Movie – is an English animation movie released in 2014.  Emmet Brickowski, an ordinary worker in a construction site who goes about living his life as per the books, falls into a situation where he would need to break the rules to save the world from freezing.

I should confess that I never thought I would like this movie as I had not been a major fan of animation using Lego toys. Hence my expectation was super low for this one. However this movie turned out to outrun my expectation. Although it appears to be a spoof of many Hollywood movies and characters there is a very deep social message in it with respect to upbringing of kids. Of course the message targets towards increase in sales of Lego toys 🙂 Still this is a must watch for all animation movie fans.

Must Watch – for all animation movie fans

Action, English Movies, Genre, Rating, Reviews, Thriller, Worth a Watch

3 Days to Kill

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3 Days to Kill – is a French American action thriller released in 2014.The movie is about an experienced CIA agent who discovers he is going to live only for few months and wants to patch up with his wife and daughter but gets involved in a high pressure CIA assignment. 

The movie has a tone of Taken. However the plot and the subject it deals with are different of a CIA agent balancing between work and life. Kevin Costner has played the role of experienced CIA agent and his performance of balancing act between a talented CIA agent and wanna be family man attending to his teenage daughter and wife. The movie sticks to this theme, the conflicts around it and moves along. The movie is not an out and out gripping thriller like Taken. If you are expecting Taken you would be disappointed but if you are able to appreciate the subject this one deals with you would enjoy the movie. Give it a shot.

Watchable

Action, Genre, Rating, Reviews, Tamil Movies, Thriller, Worth a Watch

Arima Nambi

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Arima Nambi – is a Tamil Action Thriller released in 2014. Aravind meets Anamika at a bar and they go out on a date but in the same night Anamika is kidnapped and Aravind is on the run to find her but soon he realizes that they are in a larger trap and become fugitives for gangsters and police.

Arima Nambi is seemed to be inspired from many movies with fugitive genre. The lead actors are fugitives with unknown people chasing them. Over and above they are also charged for a murder they haven’t committed. Vikram Prabhu has yet again chosen the genre of action thriller and has performed well. The screenplay is racy and also some of the locations chosen for the movie are very good. The plot however has a lot of loop holes. Some of the scenes are unreal including the first song showing Chennai Hard Rock Cafe serving beer 🙂 If you are willing to ignore all these then you would enjoy this movie.

Watchable