Review: Irandaam Ulagam (2013)

Selvaraghavan's Irandaam Ulagam could have been a path-breaking movie in Kollywood. It did have a great potential to do so. It could have made Hollywood, Bollywood and any other wood turn back at us in awe. It could have proved that innovative film making is possible even in India. It could have made director Selva a legend. 

Enough of could haves, coming to reality, Irandaam Ulagam is a test of patience. Anyone could become restless. The main flaw of the movie is not the pace but the screenplay, not the story but the execution. If you understood all the could haves in the previous paragraph, you would understand why Irandaam Ulagam miserably fails.

It is not a commercial entertainer nor is it a no-brainer, it has immense creativity and this movie would have looked world class on a whiteboard but the way it was shot and the way it was funded has sunk the movie. 

Selvaraghavan is a genius no doubt but he needs someone to teach him "how to make a movie". You can't shoot a movie with a plot straight from a scribble book and expect everyone to like it. Of course, with the current viewing public, all you need to give them is entertainment. With movies grossing in hundreds of crores and new milestones reached, a "different" movie is bound to fail in terms of collections. 

I know many will question my expectations and some self-proclaimed critics will laud the movie for its innovative and bold execution, I would take my own stance. This movie is not worth the treatment. It deserves more. Selva has thought ahead of time, he has imagined something which no one had. Although, he derives a lot of inspiration from Cloud Atlas (in plot) and 300 (in fight sequences), he still has brought a difference. Few months ago, he gave an interview where he lashed upon the current movie makers for succumbing to such poor cinema. He said people look for money rather than making a nice movie. He said he wants to make a movie which others will look up to, His aim is right and he did go in that direction in Irandaam Ulagam but he has failed big time.

Background score by Anirudh was great in the starting but slowly goes back to his "3" hit tune and becomes annoying. Songs by Harris Jeyaraj are nice to hear but are cliched from his own work. (I don't know how long he will survive by repeating the same tunes again and again). The re-recording was abysmal. The graphics, although very amateur, were great for a low budget movie beating Kochadaiyaan by miles (considering its huge budget). The editing is pathetic and the scene-to-scene transitions are abrupt at places.

Irandaam Ulagam is definitely a movie ahead of its times. Too hard for a producer to do justice to the director's amazing imagination. Some learnings from Hollywood can help, George Lucas shot the last 3 parts of Star Wars first because the first 3 demanded resources that were unavailable that time. He waited and made a mark. Irandaam Ulagam is a movie worth an enormous budget. I was imagining this to be shot by James Cameron and this would have won an oscar. Such was the movie's capability.

Usually, I end my review with a line which would help you take a decision on whether to watch a movie or not but with this review I would leave it up to you. Watch it if you want to fund the producer. Spending money here is a lot better than spending it on crappy movies which earn 100+ crores.

If you are looking for entertainment, don't watch this movie. If you are looking for a masterpiece, don't watch this movie. But if you want to appreciate creativity or if you want to test your patience, go watch this movie. Anyone who comes out of this movie without a bit of irritation would have relished the creative and innovative thinking of Selvaraghavan and would be satisfied by that. I was one of them. Were you?

Rating: 2/5 (only for his thought process)

Irandaam Ulagam: Miles short of a masterpiece!

Review: Aarambam (2013)

Probably one of the biggest year end releases in Tamil cinema and with multiple star power Aarambam created sky high hype and to add to it the distributors/theatre owners decided to screen innumerable shows in Chennai. Imagine 91 shows for a movie in just one multiplex. Totally Insane!

Getting straight to the point, as expected, Aarambam did not live up to that hype. The movie had a lot of potential. The first half was very exciting and for a change I thought that I would give a good rating to this movie. But a boring and dull second half left me un-engaged and think of other things during the show.

If I had to point out one best thing in the movie, it would be the cinematography. It was stunning and world class. Om Prakash needs a pat on the back for taking us through some amazing and never before seen visuals and camera angles. Apart from this, if something scored, then it was surely Ajith. He pulls it off with ease and class.

All the other departments failed. Editing was below par, songs were totally unhearable (better to hear just the background music - Young tamizhachi was a good and stylishly shot number but with a straight rip off party prelude), acting by others were passable, graphics were very amateurish.

Arya makes a fun of himself throughout the movie, Nayantara follows his path. Tapasee, on the other hand, was cute in certain areas and her delivery was different from the others. Rana Daggubati was utterly useless. No scope for him.

None of them in the cast knew how to dance. Choreography was like aerobics. 

At a high level, the film looks like a stylish hollywood flick but frequent hiccups in the screenplay, logical fallacies and other minor errors brings down the overall quality of the movie to a level lower than expected.

For a movie of this scale, errors like "using mouse on a non-clicking interface", "tamil dubbing characters starting to talk directly in tamil" and "location errors" should have definitely been avoided. Also, the director could have avoided a lame joke on Ajith's namesake enemy Vijay by not letting a Vijay look-alike come and do some unwanted gimmicks in one of the scenes which involved the character coming out of a theatre playing Rajini's Sivaiji.

To sum it up, I would say Arrambam is not that bad it does have its own ways to work, but the negatives along with a cliched storyline lets down the viewer. After a decent first half, I began to think if this is one of the best Ajith flicks in my list but at the end this thought ends up in the trash.

A swing and a miss is Aarambam but still is definitely better than Billa 2. Watch if you want to have some timepass and definitely watch if you are an Ajith fan.

Rating: 2.5/5

Aarambam: Could have actually made it simple!

Review: Rush & The Lunchbox (2013)

 

It is all about emotions!

 

First, I've been feeling very low about everything around me in recent times. I watched a movie called "Stuck in Love" at home yesterday and couldn't control myself. It was so emotional and touchy.

 

Today, Me and 2 of my roomies decided to watch 2 movies back to back. Both of which we were very sure will turn out to be great entertainers. And we were not mistaken.

 

It started with "Rush", a true story of one of F1 racing's greatest rivalries. The movie was so intense that never did anyone of us felt bored or even looked into the phone (which people usually do). Whatever be the rivalry, there was an emotional connect between the 2 stars. The way they acted was so real. The editing, the music, the cinematography was bang on target. This could easily be one of the year's best movies.

 

Next up was "The Lunchbox" by first timer Ritesh Batra and produced by some heavy weights. The trailer struck a chord with everyone who watched it. Everyone knew that they were going to be treated to some Oscar-worthy cinema. We did get what we expected until the climax. I would agree if it was left open-ended with some vantage point but on the contrary it just ended abruptly. If there is anything that did not please me that would be this thing. There was a lot of scopefor this movie and this could be one of the reasons why "The Lunchbox" is not India's entry to the Foreign Film Category in this year's Academy Awards.

 

The common aspect of both these movies was that both had something to do with human emotions. That is what made them click. That is what made them likeable. While "Rush" was thrilling, "The Lunchbox" was dramatic. Both did not miss out on the smallest details. Both movies would definitely make up anyone's day.

 

Rating: 3.5/5

 

You may think of them as David and Goliath but both won my heart!

 

P.S. This attempt of reviewing is a little different from my usuals. Please let me know your comments.

 

 

Review: Madras Cafe (2013)

Most of the reviews of "Madras Cafe" would start off by saying how this movie is a game changer in bollywood. Yes it is one.

Shoojit Sircar's Madras Cafe is a top notch action thriller that every movie goer should watch. It is so well made that it fails your eyes to catch any flaws. There were some here and there but then I didn't care so much. The intense detail to which the movie conveys the story is one of Shoojit's many plus points. The way he has changed his cards from a movie like "Vicky Donor" to weave Madras Cafe is definitely noteworthy. Prior to Vicky Donor, he also directed "Yahaan" which was again an army based movie but both of them are completely different from each other.

"Madras Cafe" throws light on Rajiv Gandhi's assassination indirectly. One could well connect this to the original happenings. The movie ends logically and throughout the whole of the film there is absolutely no nonsense or any kind of heroism involved. 

Talking about characters, everyone plays an important role and everyone does with brilliance. Shoojit's cast is so relevant to the story that you end up believing that they are the original characters. Siddhartha Basu was a surprise. I mean, his acting was brilliant. His voice is so interesting to the ears (It always was ever since his Mastermind India, a BBC show, days). Nargis Phakri and Rashi Khanna play their parts well. Just wanted to mention their names here. What I also noticed was that most of the characters were taken from tamil movies. This shows how much detail Shoojit wanted on the screen. 

The background score was brilliant. Perhaps, this is one of those very few movies where background score will take special notice as there were no songs at all. Not one bit except till the end when the credits roll out.

Exceptional movie I must say. Please watch it in the theatres. This one is sure to grip you to your seats and captivate your thoughts. I watched it totally with my eye brows forming wrinkles.

Rating: 3.5/5

Madras Cafe: Absolutely Gripping!

Review: Thalaivaa (2013)

Riding high on the success of Nanban and Thuppaki, Vijay and Director Vijay would have expected their latest venture Thalaivaa to do well too but unfortunately, it is yet to see a release in TN and Puducherry with some miscreants playing spoilsport 2 days before the release. However, the movie released elsewhere (rest of India and worldwide) and that gave way to a pirated version circulated over the internet. So now we know that the pirated copies are made outside TN only. 

I obviously had access to the pirated version but I decided to drive to Gurgaon to watch it during my Holiday at Delhi. 

I must say that overall I was disappointed with the movie. There wasn't much to go "Wow" over. The movie started with some comedy sequences and then slowly turning serious and then going the revolutionary way. The plot was simple and the ending could be predicted as the second half started. There wasn't much for the director to take credit except for few brilliantly lit shots with the help of the cinematographer.

Coming to the acting department, Sathyaraj and a lot of his closely connected characters had to underplay from what we'd seen of them. They had done pretty well. Especially Manobala whose dialogues peak the equalizer. The villain and lot of Mumbaikars spoke in tamil with a north Indian touch (which seemed natural because of the plot setup). Santhanam's comedy was good. It brought some smiles often (though not always) and some were scripted totally to make fun of Vijay. It was good of Vijay to have accepted such a comedy track. Vijay was at his usual best. A total freak out character in the first half and a direct opposite type of a character in the second half. The transformation was good. Amala Paul dubbed herself and she did a pretty good job. She looks good too. The character sketch of a lot of artistes kept losing its path midway. 

Music by GV Prakash was great and his background score played well with the pixels too. The intro song choreography was good. Melody "Yaar indha saalai oram" was well thought of while capturing the video and did not require travel to any ice capped mountains or a green garden. The song and dance teams score full marks in this movie.

A lot of technical glitches coupled with a poor storyline and some weak character sketches make "Thalaivaa" an "Arrow missing the bull's eye by a mile". Watch it for Vijay, Santhanam and the songs but watch it in the theatre as the team has already lost a lot of money (It hasn't got released yet + the pirated version is out).

Rating: 2.5/5

Thalaivaa: A Swing and a Miss!

Review: Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

Star Trek (2009) was one of my favourite movies that year. I loved it so much that I was waiting every day for its sequel to release. May 10 saw the release of a film that quickly got added to my all time best list. Star Trek Into Darkness is one hell of a ride...

J.J. Abrams. I don't have enough words to appreciate him. I never knew that character bonding could be a strong point to a movie of such huge stature. Star Trek Into Darkness could very well be termed as the epitome of an emotional/dramatic/action packed adventure.

Right from the first frame, there is action and there is hope for something better in the next frame. Never is a scene that disappoints. Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto are 2 such artistes who bare the weight of the movie. Every character is so well etched into the storyline that you love them all. Benedict Cumberbatch, the infamous Sherlock, plays anti-hero. If you'd watched his Sherlock, you would not have liked the fact that he was going to be the villain of this movie. But as you get in, he takes you on a totally different ride altogether.

Music by Michael Giacchino adds further value into the frame. His legendary Star Trek tune is what I'm humming while writing this review. I would love to watch the movie once again.

Some movies are solely made for IMAX 3D viewing and Star Trek is one of them. Watch it in the best possible quality available and you are sure to love it.

As a famous RJ says, it was an awesomatic of the movie experience. Will never forget this ride.

Rating: 4/5

Star Trek Into Darkness: Ultimate!

Review: Bombay Talkies (2013)

 

Before I get to writing about the movie, I have something for you to read.
It's been long since I've blogged. I don't have any particular reason as to why there was such a gap. My last post was 3 months back. Something kept me away from writing and I sincerely apologize for people who waited for my review for so many movies (in vain). This post is something special. What was I waiting for my 100th blog post? To tell you my experience of watching a tribute to 100 years of Indian Cinema...

The poster above the first paragraph has 3 big names. I haven't counted it wrongly. Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee and Anurag Kashyap need no introduction. They are the industry's finest and most established. Amit Trivedi and Zoya Akthar are budding artistes. While the former's music is out of the world, the latter's direction sees naturality.

Bombay Talkies is about 4 different stories told one after another without any thematic or character connections between them.

Ajeeb Dastaan Hai Yeh
Directed by Karan Johar

The movie opens with this segment. Probably this is the director's portrayal of "his" own life. Karan Johar, who lately lost his image after Student of the year, tells us a bold story. A story which brings Rani Mukherji (the yesteryear budding actor), Randeep Hooda (the next Emraan Hashmi, both in terms of serial kissing and a hearthrob among women) and Saqib Saleem (the actor from Mere dad ki Maruti and Mujhse Fraandship Karoge) together. Just by reading Karan Johar with 3 characters, one might feel that this would be the usual love triangle. It is...but with a twist. Great acting by all 3 of them. Rani fits the character so well that her body succumbs to the character.
Bold scenes and double meaning dialogues with still cameras makes this segment set the base for more emotions...

Star
Directed by Dibakar Banerjee

This segment is probably the best of Bombay Talkies. An emotional journey in an ordinary man's life who chases his dream of becoming a Star. Nawazuddin Siddiqui brings tears to your eyes. I've told this before but just reiterating the same, he is an upcoming legend. With great finesse, he lives the character. I was in serious awe.
Nawaz steals the show here and you don't expect anything more..

Shiela ki Jawaani
Directed by Zoya Akhtar

A simple story of a middle class family with 2 kids. A boy who dreams of becoming a dancer while his dad forces him to be a "man" and play sports. Story seems simple but the storytelling is compelling. A story which teaches you to go after dreams. One might wonder that this is something which has become common but watch it to realize how to achieve it. As the name suggests, Katrina plays a cameo and here unlike an item song she reveals something that everyone should think about and not just watch her shake and go.
Cute expressions by the kid and a great supporting role by her sister makes this segment give strong competition to the previous one...

Murabba
Directed by Anurag Kashyap

Anurag, to me seemed a guy who makes dark movies. He captures my attention with his execution of this yet another simple story of a guy wanting to meet a superstar (Amitabh Bachchan). Unlike many other characters where they go behind a star to get a chance to act, this one is different. A very emotional and strong tale of a journey beyond troubles. Well played by Vineet Kumar Singh.
Vineet's common man antics gain him more respect..

There is no common theme as such but each story puts your emotions to test and your minds to deep thinking. A brilliant tribute to Indian Cinema, I must say! All the bollywood stars come together at the end for a song that takes you through these 100 years. This song has clips from so many movies with all the legends singing parts of this song. (What great lip sync!) A brilliantly directed piece.

I have a disclaimer though: As I was watching this movie with great interest, a lot of people in front and behind of me did not like the way certain things were shown. I certainly do not want to categorize these people. It is their money and their views at the end of the day. They were booing, they were making "mmch!" sounds and facepalming. I do not care!

My opinion and out of my interest, I would like you to watch this movie not to give tribute to Indian Cinema but to understand what it can do to you!

Rating: 3.5/5

For those who missed me, Sorry to keep you waiting..Will be back with more...Soon...

Review: Vishwaroopam (2013)

Third time lucky! After 2 failed attempts (screening stopped due to court order) to watch Vishwaroopam, I got lucky the third time. And then...

 

Vishwaroopam is a great movie experience. It has its own best and worst sequences with the former overpowering the latter. To start, Vishwaroopam doesn't boast of a brand new story. It is a usual terrorism based film packaged in a fresh manner by the maestro himself.

 

The movie starts off artistically with a brilliantly choreographed classical song marking the entry of the legend himself. Great camera work and I was in total awe. I knew from this very frame that I'm in for an artistic treat.

 

Later, the story takes its own time to weave and it does get boring at times. The editing could have been a bit more sharp to make it a slick entertainer.

 

Despite being a fictional movie, there is a lot of intelligence and humor. Kamal has toyed with the dialogues even in tense moments to bring a smile on your face. His acting needs no comments. He clearly shows why we call him a legend.

 

What amazing execution! Any filmmaker would be in awe after seeing the technical aspects. The sound, the audio clarity, the shadows, the blood, the fight, the gunshots, war scenes, explosions...everything seemed so real. Great work by the visual effects and the props team. Although, there were a few instances where the frames looked computer generated, it still was a good attempt.

 

The editing gets sluggish towards the end just to make some room for a part 2 which is sure to be more interesting the way its been marketed.

 

The acting by co-stars Pooja, Andrea, Rahul Bose and Shekhar Kapur is good but their struggle to pronounce tamil in order to lip sync with their dubbing artistes makes it a little odd to watch. Their pronounciation however cannot be commented on as the story demands them to talk in a particular accent.

 

Cinematic excellence could be a phrase to describe Vishwaroopam concisely. I was very impressed particular in scenes with the New York backdrop.

 

For a person who goes in with huge expectations, you might not be very impressed and even if you did go with no expectations at all, the initial part of the movie raises the bar and sets your expectations so high that you tend to expect more brilliant stuff and in the end you get a little less than that.

 

There is too much of violence. Wondering how it escaped with just a U/A. I thought it should clearly be an A certificate but then if it is classified as A, you can't show it on TV so DTH fails.

 

For Kamal fans (and also a few others), my review might sound a bit negative but my final rating should make up for it. The movie is a fantastic attempt. It is one of Kollywood's commerical best.

 

Again, story wise its similar to any terrorism based flick but what does the trick for Kamal is his Midas touch and inclusion of certain intelligent and creative aspects to story telling.

 

Do not miss Vishwaroopam to witness the living legend in action!

Go with an unbiased mindset and you will definitely be entertained.

 

Note: There is nothing derogatory against Islam. However, there is a lot of Islam in the movie throughout right from the way the title is introduced.

 

Pluses: Kamal, Camera, Sound, Music, Story telling, Dialogues, Stunts

Minuses: Sluggish screenplay, edgy editing

 

 

Rating: 3.5/5

 

Vishwaroopam: Artistic Excellence!