SARKAR MOVIE REVIEW (TAMIL)

Production: Sun Pictures 
Cast: Keerthy Suresh, Radha Ravi, Varalakshmi Sarathkumar, Vijay, Yogi Babu 
Direction: AR Murugadoss 
Screenplay: AR Murugadoss 
Story: AR Murugadoss 
Music: AR Rahman 
Background score: AR Rahman 

Cinematography: Girish Gangadharan 
Editing: A Sreekar Prasad 
Art direction: T Santhanam 

மிகப்பெரிய பன்னாட்டு கம்பெனியின் சி.ஈ.ஓ-வாக இருக்கும் விஜய், தனது வாக்கினை செலுத்துவதற்காக இந்தியா வருகிறார். ஆனால் அவருக்கு முன்னரே அவரின் ஓட்டினை போட்டு விடுகிறார்கள். இதனைத்தொடர்ந்து தனது வாக்கினை செலுத்த விஜய் போராடுவதும், அதற்காக அவர் எதிர்கொள்ளும் பிரச்சினைகளுமே 'சர்கார்'.

 

டயலாக், டான்ஸ், வசனம் என எல்லா ஏரியாவிலும் விஜய் வழக்கம்போல புகுந்து விளையாடி இருக்கிறார். பழ.கருப்பையா, ராதாரவி, வரலட்சுமி மூவரும் தங்களது கதாபாத்திரத்தை எந்தக் குறையுமின்றி சிறப்பாக செய்துள்ளனர். கீர்த்தி சுரேஷ் வரும் காட்சிகள் மனதில் ஒட்டவில்லை.சர்கார் என்ற பெயருக்கேற்றவாறு அரசியல், நாட்டு நடப்புகளை படத்தில் காட்சிகளாக இயக்குநர் முருகதாஸ் வைத்திருக்கிறார்.

 

ஏ.ஆர்.ரஹ்மானின் இசையில் சிம்டாங்காரன், ஒரு விரல் புரட்சி இரண்டும் மீண்டும் கேட்கத் தோன்றும் ரகம்.பிரமாண்டம், சண்டைக்காட்சிகள் என அனைத்திற்கும் தேவையான ஒளிப்பதிவினை கிரிஷ் கங்காதரன் சிறப்பாக அளித்திருக்கிறார். ஸ்ரீகர் பிரசாத்தின் எடிட்டிங் படத்துக்கு பக்கபலமாக இருந்தாலும், இன்னும் சில காட்சிகளுக்கு அவரும்,இயக்குநரும் ஸ்ட்ரிக்ட்டாக கத்திரி போட்டிருக்கலாம் என தோன்றுகிறது. ராம்-லட்சுமணனின் கோரியோகிராஃபியில் சண்டைக்காட்சிகள் சிறப்பு.

 

டான்ஸ், நடனம், ஸ்டைல், சண்டை என தனது ரசிகர்களுக்கு வெரைட்டி கொடுக்க விஜய் தவறவில்லை. காதல் நாயகன், ஆக்ஷன் நாயகனிலிருந்து அரசியல் நாயகனாக விஜய் இப்படத்தின் வழியாக ப்ரோமோஷன் பெற்றிருக்கிறார்.

 

RATING - 8.4/10  || 163 min

AAAAH MOVIE REVIEW

CAST AND CREW

Production: Shankar Bros 
Cast: Ambuli Gokulnath, Bala, Bosskey, Meghna, MS Bhaskar, Simha 
Direction: Haresh, Hari 
Screenplay: Haresh, Hari 
Story: Haresh, Hari 
Music: K Venakt Prabhu Shankar 
Background score: Sam CS 
Cinematography: Satish G 
Editing: Hari Shankar 
Art direction: Logu 
Stunt choreography: Ramesh T 
Dance choreography: Sandy 

Aaaah is a full-fledged horror film, a tried and tested genre in Tamil cinema. There have been numerous films on this theme in the past and there will be many more, but the whole conceptualization of Aaaah looks different.  After a successful scientific thriller, Ambuli, which still remains the only full-length live action 3D film to be made in Tamil, directors Hari and Haresh are back together to make the first ever horror anthology movie in Tamil.

 

The story line looks pretty simple, a bet on existence of ghost which leads to five different adventure rides all capsuled in 138 minutes. Each adventure ride looks like an individual short film, though that is exactly how the directors want it to be.

 

Unlike any other recent horror films that were more dependent on the comedy quotient, Aaaah is more horror centric with couple of well scripted terrifying scenes that will keep the audience at bay. 

 

Bobby Simha brings in the face value for the film but he does not have a meaty role to prove himself. “Ambuli” Gokulnath plays the male lead in the film. Unlike the normal run of the mill movies, the hero here does not have a lady love which looks unique, however the hero seems to have underplayed his role throughout.

 

Balasaravanan has been given a prominent role after ‘Pannaiyaarum Padminiyum’ which travels from the scratch to the finish. He probably is the pick of the actors who scores high with his simple and subtle expressions. Other notable actors like Bosskey and M.S. Baskar have played their small stint at screen with ease and élan.

 

One of the most important facets of any horror film is the music, which helps the narration and increases the fear level and tension. Sam CS scores the music for Aaah and is pretty competent. 

 

Considering the budget constraints in mind, the directors’ effort to bring in the concept of horror anthology into the foray of Tamil cinema is laudable. Probably with better production values the movie could have worked even better. The fifth episode being the climax episode, becomes a little over the top, compared to the other four and this doesn’t help the movie finish off as well as it was built up initially.

  2.5/5.0

KAAVIYATHALAIVAN MOVIE REVIEW

CAST AND CREW

Production: S Sashikanth, Varun Manian, Ynot Studios 
Cast: Anaika Soti, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Siddharth, Vedhika 
Direction: G Vasanthabalan 
Screenplay: G Vasanthabalan 
Story: G Vasanthabalan 
Music: AR Rahman 
Background score: AR Rahman 
Cinematography: Nirav Shah 
Dialogues: Jayamohan 
Editing: NB Srikanth, Praveen K. L 
Art direction: T Santhanam 
Dance choreography: Raghuram, Raju Sundaram, Siva Shankar 
Singers: Haricharan 
Lyrics: Na Muthukumar, Pa Vijay, Vaali 

“Life is a theatre show and we are all actors and actresses”- staging the essence of this statement, director Vasanthabalan in Kaaviya Thalaivan brings out the lives of artists in a drama company Sivadasa Swamigal Naadaga Sabha in Tamil Nadu during a time when British ruled us. 

 

Siddharth (Kali), a destitute and Prithviraj (Gomathi) grow up and get trained under the tutelage of Nasser (Saami), a doyen in stage drama, in his drama company which is quite popular and well known. The relationship between the two forms the base for the story of Kaaviya Thalaivan which slowly gets unfurled taking in its course some losses and few gains. 

 

The director has also aptly interspersed the freedom struggle movement and records the change in themes from mythological to social in those days in the field of drama. 

 

The setting may be theatre, grand, colorful and bygone, but Balan has actually narrated a story of trust, betrayal, jealousy, love and the varied human emotions using this as the milieu with his characters. 

 

Technically very sound, Kaaviya Thalaivan is marked by excellent performances and production values. Balan has brought alive in front of us the stage, the makeup, the color and the myriad other things that go into a drama production of those days.

 

Kaaviya Thalaivan unabashedly belongs to Prithviraj and Siddharth who with their range and prowess play it straight and true. If the sequence when Siddharth curses his guru Nasser will stamp the actor of his histrionics, Prithviraj’s confrontation scene with Vedhika expressing his love will earn him brownie points. In the first half when the slot opens up for the rajapart, the gleam and glint in his eyes clearly prove what a talented artist he is. For Vedhika, it’s a role of substance as Vadivambal and the big eyed actress has utilized her opportunity completely. Her traditional face comes handy in Kaaviya Thalaivan.

 

Once again Nasser establishes that he is an actor par excellence. Although Anaika’s role is limited the girl delivers it decent. The peripheral characters are well etched out and Thambi Ramaiah, Singam Puli, Ponvannan, Kuyilee give out a performance of standard.

 

Kaaviya Thalaivan as promoted, certainly belongs to A R Rahman and his brilliant tracks. It is also to the credit of Vasanthabalan that the songs travel well within the framework of the script and none of it is forced. As the film is all about stage play at a time when music dominated, the film renders a rich musical experience. The opening number ‘vaanga makka vaanga’ stands out for its brimming energy and enthusiasm and portrays the way the plays are promoted those days.

 

Lensed with amazing rigor and in sync with the theme, Nirav Shah brings out the feel of the period with perfect lighting and angles. With ample scope, Santhanam the art director’s hard work is evident throughout.         

 

Credits are definitely due to Vasanthabalan for his efforts to showcase the tradition of performing arts in a bygone era to the whatsapp generation. Kaaviya Thalaivan sure is a different viewing experience, give it your time and patience.  

  3.0/5.0

HAPPY NEW YEAR MOVIE REVIEW

CAST AND CREW

Production: Red Chillies Entertainment 
Cast: Deepika Padukone,Abhishek Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan 
Direction: Farah Khan 
Screenplay: Farah Khan 
Story: Farah Khan 
Music: Vishal Shekhar 
Cinematography: Manush Nandan 
Distribution: Yash Raj Films 

Farah Khan is back with her favorite star, Shahrukh Khan in Happy New Year (HNY), a film which has come out 2 months before the actual New Year's Day. SRK is known for his regular Diwali box-office bonanzas and this time he also has the reigning lady superstar Deepika Padukone for company, along with more established actors in the form of Abhishek Bachchan, Boman Irani, Jackie Shroff and Sonu Sood. There are some cameo appearances as well, with Prabhu Deva and Anurag Kashyap being prominent ones.

As Farah is a famed choreographer as well, she has chosen dance as a main element in the film. Basically it is a Hollywood-ish heist film and an over-colorful mainstream Bollywood dance-musical rolled into one. A motley gang goes all the way to Dubai to loot some diamonds, with the leader Charlie's personal revenge motive acting as the driving factor.

None of the gang members can dance well, and they are 'trained' by a bar dancer Mohini. But this being a commercial Bollywood movie, the team manages to maneuver their way to the so-called WDC (World Dance Championship), despite their mildly amusing antics and crass moves. They obviously achieve all their motives and win it all. In the end credits, we see the film's crew taking part in another WDC (this time 'W' being Worst) with Farah Khan judging their capabilities. The end credits is actually among the few better parts of the movie, and we also get to see SRK's cute little baby AbRam and Farah's young triplets.

HNY is a grand production in every aspect but the extravaganza of colors in the costumes and art direction is jarring on the eye. We see yellow, pink, red, green, orange and every other color there is. Glossy and glittering never felt so bad on screen, despite Manush Nandan's good work in capturing all the magnificence on his camera. When the director is from such a school of thought, a DoP can do only that much.

The actors have all gone overboard as required by the script and they have been given a free hand to indulge in theatrics. Abhishek Bachchan is to HNY what Uday Chopra is to Dhoom, while Boman Irani continues his famed '3 Idiots' dialogue delivery here too. Sonu Sood gets a few scenes to show off his stunning 'bod' while Jackie Shroff commands such a menacing screen presence even after all these years.

SRK is the lone subtle factor and the over-flashy nature of his costumes and styling, is compensated by his casual underplay in most of the scenes. After so much experience and years in the industry, this global superstar with an incredibly sculpted body and an endearing swagger, can definitely opt for better scripts and present a better picture of the Indian film industry as he wields such an influence and is seen as Indian cinema's poster-boy in most of the overseas markets.

Deepika Padukone is seen in gaudy and vulgar attires but the lithe nature of her body enables her to carry off even such clothes. After a classy Finding Fanny and the big media controversy surrounding her, HNY does nothing to add to Deepika's 'acting' resume.

For a musical, super-hummable songs are a must, but here Vishal - Shekhar have just delivered some passable peppy stuff which would become popular due to their sheer rotation in all media forms. Among the lot, 'Manwa Laage' is the best and stands out as a quality composition.

All said, HNY was always expected to be a predictable no-brainer and was just intended to entertain. But the entertainment factor is pretty low as there is nothing fresh on offer. Sadly, it seems like a conglomeration of all Bollywood cliches. We have scenes spoofing some popular movies of the lead actors, below-the-belt comedy, elaborate fight sequences which just don't grip, dance numbers which are monotonous, an 'as old as the hills' flashback story to establish the protagonist's motive, mushy sentiments, a non-happening romance track and more stale elements throughout. Even though the heist scenes offer some action, it isn't something which Hollywood hasn't ventured into. And towards the end, the film turns manipulative, as the lead players suddenly turn all patriotic!

With bare minimum expectations, you can just about sit through this 3 hour long affair.

 3.5/5.0

POOJAI MOVIE REVIEW

CAST AND CREW

Production: Vishal Film Factory 
Cast: Jayaprakash, Radhika, Sathyaraj, Shruti Haasan, Soori, Vishal 
Direction: Hari 
Screenplay: Hari 
Story: Hari 
Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja 
Background score: Yuvan Shankar Raja 
Cinematography: Priyan 
Dialogues: Hari 
Editing: TS Jai, VT Vijayan 
Art direction: K Kathir 
Stunt choreography: Kanal Kannan 
Dance choreography: Baba Baskar, Brindha, Dinesh 
Lyrics: Na Muthukumar
PRO: Johnson 
Distribution: Vendhar Movies

Loud and fierce men, flying SUVs and shimmering billhooks are a package that comes with all the movies of Hari and he himself has always been confirming that this is indeed his style.  

 

 

Poojai has it all and this time Vishal, after experimenting a tad with his performances in his last two outings, has come out with an out and out commercial action movie, just to treat his hardcore fan base, this Deepavali.

 

 

Poojai is a story of Vasu (Vishal), who accidentally comes in the way of a contract killer Anna Thandavam, well played by Mukesh Tiwari. The misconceptions, coincidences and the consequences make Poojai.

 

 

Vishal brings in his macho image back and his energetic performance, tough looks and subtle expressions are the biggest strengths of the movie. Shruti Haasan, as Vishal’s love interest, plays a good-natured, jaunty girl next door and also oozes with glamour in the song sequences. Satyaraj, Radikaa Sarath Kumar, Prathap Pothen, Thalaivasal Vijay, Jayaprakash, Kousalya and Sithara bring experience to the table. 

 

 

Though forced, the comedy sequences do work decently, thanks to Soori, Pandi and Imman Annachi’s comic senses and timings.

 

 

Yuvan is functional in the background music and songs. Like in all Hari movies, cinematographer Priyan and editors VT Vijayan and TS Jai have delivered rapid visuals, which at certain stunt sequences don’t present us opportunities to question about its implausible nature. At the same time, the stunt choreographer must be appreciated for his work in the pre-interval action block. 

 

 

As for the noticeable minuses, the film has a torrent of juvenility in terms of scene design, particularly the intro sequences of the central characters. However, once the main story gets going, all is forgotten and the director takes us through a roller coaster in the first half. But it feels like Hari loses the grip post interval a bit and the film plods in the second half, with misplaced song sequences and repetitive action blocks. 

 

 

All said and done, Poojai is still a watchable entertainer to spend time on, with your family on a festive day. 

 2.5/5.0

KATHTHI MOVIE REVIEW

CAST AND CREW

Production: Lyca Productions 
Cast: Neil Nitin Mukesh, Samantha, Satish, Totta Roy, Vijay 
Direction: AR Murugadoss 
Screenplay: AR Murugadoss 
Story: AR Murugadoss 
Music: Anirudh Ravichander 
Background score: Anirudh Ravichander
Cinematography: George. C. Williams 
Dialogues: AR Murugadoss 
Editing: A Sreekar Prasad 
Art direction: Ilayaraja 
Stunt choreography: Anl Arasu 
Dance choreography: Satish 
Lyrics: ‘Hip Hop Tamizha’ Aadhi, Madhan Karky, Pa Vijay, Yuga Bharathi 

After tasting massive Diwali success in 2012, Vijay and A.R.Murugadoss are back with their second outing together, Kaththi. The film features Vijay in two contrasting but physically 'identical' dual roles, Kathiresan and Jeevanantham. While Kathir is a crook who is on the run and one with 24 previous visits to the jail, Jeevanantham is a sober, educated activist who strives for the betterment of his impoverished village where water is a big concern. Their paths cross very early in the movie and the film is set in motion.

 

Vijay has used this opportunity to play diverse roles in the same movie and proves his experience as a performer and as an entertainer. While Kathir is high on theatrics and is the Vijay that we have enjoyed on screen in many mass entertainers, Jeeva is fresh and non-Vijay in every aspect. Kathir is bound to be a fan favorite while the audiences are likely to empathize with Jeeva and his motives. In that aspect, Kaththi is a strong movie for the actor Vijay.

 

Coming to director A.R.Murugadoss, he has touched upon many issues close to his heart such as rampant corruption, farmer suicides, the plight of senior citizens, water scarcity, the workings of the sensational news-hungry media and also goes on to vilify the corporates and their aggressive expansion plans without considering their CSR (corporate social responsibility) initiatives. The one scene late in the second half, when Vijay delivers an intense monologue on the above mentioned issues, is a definite highlight in the overall scheme of things. But it does try to get a little manipulative as the director has played to the gallery to win the audience's sympathy towards farmers and make us root for his protagonist.

 

One feels Murugadoss could have gone a step forward and tightened the screenplay. The placement of all the songs leaves a lot to be desired, specially the much talked about 'Selfie Pulla'. 'Aathi' is delightfully shot whereas 'Pakkam Vandu', though a different exercise doesn't make an impact. But the dancer Vijay sparkles effortlessly in all these songs. Kaththi doesn't engage consistently as some sizzling moments are interspersed with moments of restlessness. The length of the movie is another drawback. The Thuppakki hangover continues in Kaththi to an extent. If Thuppakki was an ode to the Army, Kaththi is dedicated to the farmers of the land.

 

Anirudh as usual adds lot of strength through his BGM score. If you hear the theatre roar for some of the strong scenes, the major part of the credit should go to him. The other youngster on board, DoP George C Williams makes a smooth transition to the big commercial space with some solid work on the visuals, the lighting patterns and the angles.

 

Among the other performers, Neil Nitin Mukesh is a new addition to the list of suave, stylish villains. His voice and the dubbing elevate his overall performance. Samantha is sadly what you may call the 'typical commercial cinema heroine' who appears in the songs, few romantic scenes and stands in the background while the hero takes charge. 

 

All the actors who play the pivotal senior citizens are convincing. Sathish as Vijay's buddy makes a mark as well. Speaking of Anal Arasu's stunt choreography, it should be a delight for Vijay's fans and the star's celebrated screen presence and agility come to the fore in these extended treats.

 

To sum up, Kaththi is a grand production which rides on Vijay's dual roles, the social interest angle and some impactful scenes which are part of the mix.

 3.5/5.0

ARANMANAI MOVIE REVIEW

CAST AND CREW

Production: Vision I Medias 
Cast: Hansika, Lakshmi Rai, Sundar C, Vinay Rai 
Direction: Sundar C 
Screenplay: Sundar C 
Story: Sundar C 
Music: Bharathwaj 
Background score: Karthik Raja 
Cinematography: U K Senthil Kumar 
Dialogues: Sundar C 
Editing: Srikanth NB 
Distribution: Red Giant Movies, Sri Thenandal Films 








When you know you are going for a horror movie, you tend to make sure that you take as many people with you as possible. And when the horror film is directed by Sundar C, the movie watching experience turns out to be a gala fest.

Aranmanai sets the horror mood up straight away with the unanticipated appearance of the beautiful hand of the ghost (obviously has to be the hand of one of the three beautiful ladies in the movie), before the title comes up.

Like any Sundar C movie, the screen is packed with colour, humour, glamour and entertainment - and when these elements are mashed up with horror, the exuberance goes higher.

First things first, the leading ladies, Raai Lakshmi, Andrea Jeremiah and Hansika Motwani are all over the film, with each one of them having a sizeable role to play unlike the usual Tamil cinema pattern for heroines.

Raai Lakshmi’s glamorous and cute look, Andrea’s sensual yet laudable performance and Hansika’s charismatic appearance make the audience have their eyes and ears focussed on the screen.

Although the script and the elements attached in it to excite the audience are run of the mill, the humour package offered by Santhanam, Kovai Sarala, Swaminathan, Mano Bala and the others are fun and engaging to an extent. The comedy in the movie has worked more than the horror, and there are portions in the film where you would not know if you should laugh or shout out of fright.

The flashback sequences in the second gets a little too draggy - Hansika’s charming looks being the only saviour.

The director has made sure that the graphical elements that appear in the film are not tacky and the climax shot that swirls the possessed woman high up in the air with the diminishing solar eclipse in the backdrop is something that is worth a watch.

Its definitely not a full fledged Santhanam laugh riot, if you are expecting one. The logic of the predictable story does go for a toss. And the length should have been shorter with songs not helping the cause. Sundar C could have easily avoided the intro fight he has brought upon himself.

In short, Sundar C is back with his typical commercial, fun filled entertainer that has all elements that will keep you engaged all the way, making you overlook those “not-too-glaring” flaws. Like every horror movie, there are few disturbing visuals for the young aged audience that the parents might want to keep a check on.  

Produced by Vision i Medias and distributed by Red Giant Movies and Sri Thenandal Films, Aranmanai would appeal to the masses.

  2.5/5.0

AAL MOVIE REVIEW

CAST AND CREW

Production: Shoundaryan Pictures 
Cast: Hardhika Shetty, Viddharth 
Direction: Ananda Krishnan 
Screenplay: Ananda Krishnan, Rajkumar Gupta 
Story: Ananda Krishnan, Rajkumar Gupta 
Music: Johan 
Background score: Johan 
Cinematography: N.S. Udhay Kumar 
Dialogues: Ananda Kumar 
Editing: M Ramesh Bharathi 
Art direction: Vijay Anand 
Stunt choreography: MAGESH 
Dance choreography: MAGESH 
Lyrics: Madhan Karky, Na Muthukumar, Vaali 
PRO: Johnson 

What does it do to a common man when he puts patriotism above his family? Aal is one such story. Ameer, a professor at Sikkim is having the time of his life, but one fine day, just like any other story, he's put in a fix that could go awry either ways. He just doesn't have a choice to save himself from a check-mate. One wrong move can kill his family.

 

Vidharth plays the role of Ameer quite convincingly. His act of somebody on the threshold of going through a stress-burst looked genuine and acceptable. Heroine Hardhika Shetty just comes for a song in the first half and is then left alone crying for the rest of the movie.

 

Script like this needs a gripping screenplay with lots of suspicion and mind-play. Aal goes low on such elements that could have taken us on a roller-coaster ride with thrilling elements. A superb premise to play with, but the director has failed to impress with a beating around screenplay and functional visuals. Sikkim portions lacked soul and Chennai was plain. The protagonist is on the go throughout the story, so BGMs have a big role to play. Johan's songs weren't head turners but the re-recording definitely added pace to the narration. 

 

Aal is an unadulterated remake of Hindi film Aamir, which is a remake of a Filipino film Cavite. 

 

Aal does have nail-biting sequences, but they come after some disengaging moments. A Tamil movie to have been shot near Parrys corner after almost forty years and the climax being shot at Anna Salai after 20 long years. 

 

There is this moment in the climax that does instigate patriotism in us. A bit song in the background does all the magic. Best part of the whole film comes when you actually think the movie is almost over. A replica of a famous frame freeze effect by a high profile advertising company high on VFX is breathtakingly remade here, showing the after-effect of the film's climax. Wait for it and get surprised. Special mention to the brilliant graphic designers.

 2.5/5.0