USTHAD HOTEL
Anwar Rasheed's 'Ustad Hotel' is a richly textured fable, the emotional power of which is bewitching. Engaging and entertaining at once, it is undoubtedly one of the finest films to have come out in Malayalam in recent times.
Feyzee (Dulquer Salman) hopes to be a chef, much against the aspirations of his dad (Siddique), who is a business tycoon. As circumstances would have it, he lands up at 'Ustad Hotel', a small beachside restaurant at Kozhikode, renowned for its scrumptious Biriyani. Working at the hotel along with his grand dad Karim (Thilakan), who is fondly called Ustad, Feyzee unearths a real world that exists beyond the sea and its shores.
Structurally the film sticks to conventions, all the while retaining an introspective query right at its heart that prompts each one of us no doubt, to reflect on what we have been doing with our very busy lives. We live, bustle around, work hard, mint money, get married, make children and if lucky a few grand children, and on retrospection finally comprehend that possibly it could all have been done a different way. Or better still, that we could have made a difference.
The film is lined with bravura moments through out, and as a terribly confused Feyzee learns to tackle life, he discovers in the process true love as well. This is gentle story telling at its best, and the steady pace and delightful realism works wonders.
It isn't every day that a movie comes along with an exhilarating message as the one in 'Ustad Hotel'. I should admit at the cost of sounding sexist, that the positivism that abounds in the film has a delightfully feminine charm to it. That Anjaly has been inspired by the real life story of a man who chose to live for the less fortunate makes the blend deeply humanistic. In doing so, she keeps shopworn stereotypes at bay.
This is a film that entirely belongs to the director however, and Anwar's visualization of this invigorating script is transcendent. The sparks that we had got a glimpse of in the short but incredibly sweet 'Bridge' of the 'Kerala Cafe' anthology make way for a stunning fireworks display in 'Ustad Hotel' that dwells on something called Kismat, and those several other unknown forces that govern our lives.
Feyzee doesn't offer extreme challenges to Dulquer as an actor, but he is good, and I mean incredibly good at what he does. There is an arresting simplicity to this young man whose acting is almost pitch perfect, in that he delivers exactly what his character demands him to; not an ounce less, not one more. Nithya Menen is amply supportive, and excels as Shahana. No surprises in store though, when it comes to Thilakan, who is as usual, purely fabulous.
The atmospheric brilliance that Lokanathan's camera offers transforms the hotel into a Jannat. Here is a heaven that has the dampness of the sea surf in the air, where Sufi dancers in long flowing white attires twirl around casting their shadows across the sands; where agile acrobats do somersaults as the sun decides to dip in the sea once again. The striking musical score by Gopi Sunder adds to the delectable whiff of the Biriyani that is all ready to be served.
Feyzee, sipping a Sulaimani along with Ustad, as the cold beach breeze blows across, asks in a subdued tone as to what it is that makes the drink taste so special.Mohabbat, answers the old man. Now that I think about it, perhaps it is this very special ingredient - mohabbat - that Anwar and Anjali have added on in profusion that makes this exemplary film an out of the world experience! This one, folks, is sheer poetry on screen!
GRANDMASTER
 | Movie Grandmaster |
| Director B Unnikrishnan |
| Producer UTV Motion Pictures |
| Music Deepak Dev |
| Cast Mohanlal, Priyamani, Narain |
UTV Motion Pictures marks their entry in Malayalam with Grandmaster, directed by B Unnikrishnan. In the lead role, Mohanlal plays almost his age without much high voltage action sequences and the film turns out to be a pretty engaging one.
Chandrasekharan (Mohanlal) is an IPS officer who lives some kind of a lonely life after being divorced from his wife, Deepthi (Priyamani), a leading criminal lawyer. As the head of the Metro Crime Stopper Cell, Chandrasekharan is entrusted with the investigation of a series of murders.
Kishore (Narain) and Rasheed (Jagathy Sreekumar) assist him in the investigation. The cops soon find that there are some intriguing links that connects the murders and they start tracking the culprits.
The film has a real shaky start with a rather meek first half but things get interesting in the second half. The writer-director has succeeds in keeping the viewers almost clueless about the suspense, until the last moment.
The narration is pretty old fashioned and the lines often sound clichéd, but there are some real nice moments in between.
Grandmaster may have been partly inspired from the Agatha Christie novelThe A.B.C. Murders or its movie version The Alphabet Murders (1965), directed by Frank Tashlin with Tony Randall playing the popular Christie detective, Hercule Poirot.
If you start mulling over the storyline and the contents, there is nothing great to rave about, but with slick visuals and good style, the director packages the film in a fast paced manner. The music is pretty fine and goes with the narration.
In a matured style, which has not been seen for a while, Mohanlal shines as the soft-spoken cop. Most of his co-stars including Priyamani, Narain, Jagathy Sreekumar, Anoop Menon and Roma have comparatively limited roles to play, but they have done their parts well.
In the end, Grandmaster easily turns out to be an engaging watch. Watch it, if you appreciate such honest attempts.
Verdict: Good
DOCTOR INNOCENTAANU
| Movie Doctor Innocentaanu |
| Director Ajmal |
| Music Santhosh Varma |
| Cast Innocent, Sona Nair |
There are certain films that pretentiously present some irritatingly simple and boring stories in a more serious way than it actually deserves. Like, director Ajmal’s Doctor Innocentaanu.
Dr. Bharghavan Pillai (Innocent) is a gold-hearted homoeopath, who is hesitant to charge fees from his patients. This nature of him irks his wife Subbalakshmi (Sona Nair), who is miffed that he earns too little.
She spends her time ruing about all the fortunes that she doesn’t have, even after being a doctor’s wife. Things go from bad to worse as a rich couple starts living in their neighborhood. She then spends most of the time watching the neighbor’s jewelry, using a binocular. To make his wife happy, the doctor does certain things that eventually become a bit too much for him to handle.
Then there are some other characters like a man who hasn’t returned from the Gulf as he is working hard to build a house and to get his sisters married. His ailing mother and wife wait for him with tears in their eyes for his return.
Ajmal has packaged the whole film in a highly amateurish way. With melodramatic scenes that never seem to end, the film makes you cringe in the seats. Considering the shoddy production values and the causal way in which the actors have performed them, it is obvious that the scenes were just botched up as per the availability of certain saleable stars.
Innocent repeats his trademark style while Sona Nair overacts in a big way. Actors like Jagathy Sreekumar, Suraj Venjarammoodu and Harisree Ashokan make their appearance in a couple of scenes and disappear soon.
Remember Thalayanamanthram, which had Urvashi as a nagging wife who makes life hell for her husband and also his family? When similar themes were spectacularly made more than two decades before and the DVDs are available now, do you need to waste time on this one? Of course, it’s your decision, after all.
Verdict: Avoidable
JOSSETTANTE HERO
| Movie Josettante Hero |
| Director K K Haridas |
| Cast Anoop Menon, Kriti Kapoor |
Sometime back, Kalabhavan Mani used to have a faithful fan following and his films as the lead star were lapped up by the audiences pretty well. But his surprisingly bad choice of films made the going tough for him.
Anoop Menon, who is one of the promising actors in the business, seems to be repeating the same mistake now.
In director K K Haridas’ Josettante Hero, which is a film that lacks any merit, Anoop just mocks the viewer, with a performance where he seems to be mimicking his own usual style. The film would have reached the theatres mainly based on his merits and he seems to have taken the approval from the viewers, pretty lightly.
As we have often seen in the past, when Malayalam filmmakers run out of story ideas, they tend to make movies on the happenings within the film industry. Here Josettan (Vijayaraghavan) is a struggling film producer who is going through real tough times. He has a last chance to make it big once again, when top south Indian heroine Haritha (Kriti Kapoor) agrees to give him dates for a new project.
Haritha and the current superstar Ravi (Asokan) have been launched in movies by Jose, in the past. But when Ravi backtracks at the last minute, still photographer Sajan (Anoop Menon) is made the hero. As anyone would predict, certain issues crop up and the end titles start rolling after Josettan successfully make a hit!
It has been a shameful trend in Malayalam to make a film with some saleable stars eyeing at the satellite rights and also showing some of the recognizable names in a scene or two. The projects become profit earners but the viewers are being fooled in the whole process.
Josettante Hero is one such project, which has been made in a shoddy way, with no sincerity at all. The film lacks even the basic requirements, which include a credible storyline, and the viewers will definitely feel cheated, watching such movies.
The script by Ansar Kalabhavan and Sathyan Kolangad is amateurish at best and director K K Haridas has done nothing to make it look even decent.
The performances are below par. Kriti Kapoor, a Miss India participant and the female lead here, looks totally out of place. Suraj Venjarammoodu makes his appearance in one or two scenes, which have no real significance. Even the usually dependable Sudheesh lets you down with his presence in a horrible scene. Less said about the rest of the cast, the better.
Josettante Hero will find a place among the worst films released during recent times. What a waste of time!
Verdict: Avoidable
22 FEMALE KOTTAYAM
| Movie 22 Female Kottayam |
| Director Aashiq Abu |
| Music Biji Bal, Rex Vijayan |
| CastRima Kallingal, Fahadh Faasil |
Director Aashiq Abu’s 22 Female Kottayam is a brave attempt, packaged in a stylish way. The film talks about the journey of a nurse Tessa K Abraham that takes some unexpected turns, after she falls for a wily guy, during her stay in Bangalore.
The film’s title lists three inspirations (conveniently shown as ‘filmography’) – Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill, Sriram Raghavan’s Ek Hasina Thi and N Sankaran Nair’s Cabaret Dancer. Tessa K Abraham (Rima Kallingal) is a young nurse, who hails from Kottayam and is now working in Bangalore, hoping to find a job abroad. Her parents are dead and she has a younger sister, studying in Kochi. She lives with two other girls, one of whom is having a cozy relationship with a married older man, DK (Sathar).
Tessa’s life changes abruptly after the meeting with a young man named Cyril Mathew (Fahadh Faasil), working in an immigration consultancy. She falls for his ample charms quite easily and even moves in to his apartment as she waits for her visa. But as she learns soon after, fate had different plans in store for her.
Well, there is an honest attempt to make a genuine film here. It has been presented very well, especially with top-notch visuals by Shyju Khaled and superb music by Rex Vijayan and Biji Bal.
But the problem is with the film’s script, written by Abhilash K Nair and Shyam Pushkaran, which is full of contradictions. Though it is being projected as a female oriented theme, things ends up as ‘male chauvinistic’, at times. The whole story has been set in a modern backdrop but search deep and you find that the modern world is being shown nothing more than one of booze, sex and hypocrisy.
The areas that needed more focus have been handled with in a less serious way. The character of Tessa itself is rather half-baked, with her nature fluctuating quite abruptly. At times she is naïve and gullible, but moments later she can be smart and even bold. Her transformation from a weak hearted simple girl to a tougher woman perhaps holds the key to the proceedings later on, but the focus is not really on her during those scenes. The strengths in ‘Ek Hasina Thi’ ends up as less effective, in this version.
More details about all these could take away the fun and we would just leave it at that. There are flaws, yes. The film could have been more gripping, yes. But that doesn’t take away the sincerity with which the film has been made. The film is way ahead of some of those celebrated and more successful films that we come across in Malayalam.
After ‘Nidra’, Rima Kallingal comes up with a spectacular performance, yet again. She has poured her heart into her character and it needs to be appreciated. Fahadh Faasil is really good and so is the film’s other recognizable actors like Sathar, Prathap Pothen and T G Ravi.
22 Female Kottayam may be far from perfect, but it is a movie in the right direction. Such efforts should be well appreciated, as it is a step that leads to better cinema.
Watch this one!
Verdict: Good
COBRA
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Two non-identical twins, Raja (Mammootty) and Kari (Lal), who are wealthy and stupid, continue announcing their love for each other and are in search for two sisters to become ‘co-brothers’ after their marriage.
If your idea of comedy goes on these lines, Cobra can work for you in parts. In their efforts to make the viewers laugh veteran actors Mammootty and Lal (known as the ‘Cobras’ in this film) does virtually everything that they can from yelling out lines after lines of buffoonery, dancing, drinking, romancing and even, boxing. Joining them in this endeavor are their security men, played by Salim Kumar and Maniyanpillai Raju.
A little later the ‘Cobras’ start wooing Sherly (Padmapriya) and Annie (Kaniha), the daughters of a businessman named John Samuel (Lalu Alex). The villains make their appearance soon after and there are some surprises in store as well, but how effective is it will perhaps decide your level of intelligence.
With a wafer thin storyline and shaky script, Lal manages to stitch together a rather meek entertainer that lacks much fizz. The story is a rehash of some of the earlier hits like Thenkasippattanam, Thommanum Makkalum and so on. Venu’s visuals are good and Alex Paul’s music perhaps suits the mood.
Mammootty tries hard to look funny but isn’t it pretty odd to imagine him playing a chronic bachelor in search of a bride? Lal repeats his trademark antics. The rest of the cast, including the heroines, too does their parts in a predictable manner.
‘Cobra’ is evidently a botched up version of the conventional recipes, which have long been regarded as the necessary ingredients for a hit. But the problem is that this one comes at least a decade after such patterns have gone out of the viewer’s interests.
This one is perhaps tailor made for hardcore Mammootty fans only!
Verdict: Average
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MAYAMOHINI
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Director Jos Thomas’ Mayamohini, is light and easy and enjoyable for the most part, as Dileep plays Biju Menon’s wife. In a fast moving storyline with plenty of twists and turns, Siby K Thomas-Udayakrishna scripting pattern never really expects the viewer to think too much.
Balakrishnan (Biju Menon) and his friend Lakshmi Narayanan (Baburaj) are venturing into certain ambitious projects, to rake in some quick moolah. They deal with a number of persons in the process and eventually end up in a terrible mess.
The initial sequences with the two actors who are the bright spots in the film which entertains the viewers. Baburaj, whose knack to tickle the funny bone has been discovered especially after Salt N’ Pepper, is top notch in the entire film. His lines can leave the viewers in splits, big time.
Biju Menon too ably gives him good company and the two manage things in a humorous way, until Dileep makes his entry.
With his innate comic timing, Dileep has succeeded in making his transformation into a woman convincing. His character is that of a north Indian girl named Mayamohini. Things look hunky dory until the first half, after which the sequences get more serious.
The story tends to get a bit shaky from then on, but then there are some nice moments in between that make the going interesting. A lighter storyline, especially in the second half could have perhaps done wonders here.
Director Jos Thomas has perhaps intended the film as a wholesome entertainer, which need not be taken too seriously. Anil Nair’s visuals and Berny-Ignatius’ music mostly suits the mood.
The film's real trump card, however, is Dileep who has taken real pain to present his character in an impressive way. The jokes comes flying at you from all directions, and it's hard not to break into laughs when Dileep participates in the silliness. His scenes with Biju Menon and Baburaj are easily the highlights of the film. Lakshmi Rai and Mythili have limited roles to play. The rest of the cast has done their parts in a fine way as well.
With a briskly paced first half and a more serious second half, Mayamohinistill turn out to be a nice option, for the summer holidays.
Give it a chance, you'll come out smiling.
Verdict: Comedy Caper
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OUTSIDER
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Director Premlal, who directed Athmakatha before, narrates an interesting theme of a stranger wreaking havoc in the life of a commoner in Outsider. But beyond this basic concept there is nothing much exciting about the whole film and it needs real patience to sit through this one.
Sivankutty (Sreenivasan) is a boat driver in Thekkady and lives with his daughter, Manju (Ganga Babu). His neighbor is a local troublemaker and a drunkard named Mukundan (Indrajith), whom he hates.
There has been a terrible incident in Sivankutty’s life in the past, where he lost one of his kids, for which a criminal named Komban Lawrence (Pasupathi) was responsible. Now, to the horror of Sivankutty, Lawrence resurfaces!
In Athmakatha, Premlal had narrated a poignant tale of a visually challenged man and the agony that he faces when he realizes that his daughter is losing her eyesight as well. But Outsider rarely has such nice moments and most scenes look plain amateurish and even boring.
The average performances never help to improve things either. Sreenivasan is not in his best form and the usually fine Indrajith seems to mimic everyone from Mohanlal to Lalu Alex. But the real disappointment here is Pasupathi, who in an attempt to add shades of ‘Joker’, ‘Gabbar Singh’ and so on, makes his character look unintentionally funny.
The visuals by Sameer Haq are fine but it gives the feeling that some of those scenes have been shot in certain picturesque locations just for an effect, as they have no real connection to the storyline.
With a wafer thin storyline, Outsider needed a rock solid script to make things work. But no such luck here and the film ends up as surprisingly ineffective. Better luck next time, guys!
Verdict: Below Average
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MASTERS
| Movie Masters |
| Director Johnny Antony |
| Music Jinu Abraham |
| Cast Prithviraj, Sasikumar, Piaa Bajpai, Ananya |
Director Johnny Antony’s Masters has been packaged as a taut investigative thriller, where a cop tries to find the link to a couple of murders. Though the narrative style is rather outdated, the film has its moments. Even then things start looking silly once you begin searching for logic in the storyline.
Cop Sreeramakrishnan (Prithviraj), a firebrand IPS officer, and journalist Milan Paul (Sasikumar) share a close friendship, right from their college days. The film begins when an infamous womanizer, played by Vijayaraghavan, gets killed by a young engineering student named Daksha (Piaa Bajpai).
Sreeramakrishnan is assigned to investigate the crime and he is finding the going tough initially as Daksha had sets her own car ablaze, after killing her target. Now more killings follow and after a while, the cops find a startling pattern to all these mishaps.
It is virtually impossible to explain the flaws of the film without disclosing some of the suspense elements and we leave you to figure out it all. The ‘trendy pattern’ used for the killing is the key to film’s storyline and in all fairness, it is pretty interesting as well, but ends up as a rather unconvincing one.
The cops never really use their brain to solve the mysteries and it is more of brawn that is made to use here, instead of brain. And sadly, that is the main problem with the film as well. The whole focus is on Prithviraj’s heroism and that takes away the focus from the actual investigation.
Still, director Johnny Antony has managed to make the film in a pace that never lets the viewer think too much. Rewind the story once again after coming out of the theatres and you will start realizing the weak links.
Scenarist Jinu Abraham, who makes his debut with the film, shows promise but only in parts. Madhu Neelakantan’s visuals are mostly good and Gopi Sundar’s tunes are rather ordinary.
Prithviraj looks impressive but there is nothing much about him that we haven’t seen before. Sasikumar looks totally out of place and the poor dubbing take things from bad to worse. Piaa Bajpai, who shot into fame with the Tamil film Ko has been wasted in a rather inconsequential role. In fact, most of the characters in the film have nothing much to do. Biju Menon, even in his brief role, looks good.
Masters (will someone responsible please explain the relevance of the title?) is not entirely bad and it is modeled on the kind of films, which were popular some two decades back. But then it can at be a watchable fare especially in the first half. But the second half and the climax disappoints big time.
Verdict: Average
OUTSIDER
| Movie Outsider |
| Director Premlal |
| Cinematographer Sameer Haq |
| Cast Sreenivasan, Pasupathy, Indrajith |
Director Premlal, who directed Athmakatha before, narrates an interesting theme of a stranger wreaking havoc in the life of a commoner in Outsider. But beyond this basic concept there is nothing much exciting about the whole film and it needs real patience to sit through this one.
Sivankutty (Sreenivasan) is a boat driver in Thekkady and lives with his daughter, Manju (Ganga Babu). His neighbor is a local troublemaker and a drunkard named Mukundan (Indrajith), whom he hates.
There has been a terrible incident in Sivankutty’s life in the past, where he lost one of his kids, for which a criminal named Komban Lawrence (Pasupathi) was responsible. Now, to the horror of Sivankutty, Lawrence resurfaces!
In Athmakatha, Premlal had narrated a poignant tale of a visually challenged man and the agony that he faces when he realizes that his daughter is losing her eyesight as well. But Outsider rarely has such nice moments and most scenes look plain amateurish and even boring.
The average performances never help to improve things either. Sreenivasan is not in his best form and the usually fine Indrajith seems to mimic everyone from Mohanlal to Lalu Alex. But the real disappointment here is Pasupathi, who in an attempt to add shades of ‘Joker’, ‘Gabbar Singh’ and so on, makes his character look unintentionally funny.
The visuals by Sameer Haq are fine but it gives the feeling that some of those scenes have been shot in certain picturesque locations just for an effect, as they have no real connection to the storyline.
With a wafer thin storyline, Outsider needed a rock solid script to make things work. But no such luck here and the film ends up as surprisingly ineffective. Better luck next time, guys!
Verdict: Below Average
THE KING AND COMMISSIONER
The Renji-Shaji combo, well-known for socio-political masala films, is back with their trademark theme and trenchant punch lines. A multi-starrer lead by Mammootty and Suresh Gopi, ‘The King and the Commissioner’ depicts the modern socio-political scenario as perceived by the protagonists. Advertisements even refer to it as a film with an extra bone!
The film begins with the plot hatched by Major Rana, a confirmed enemy of India, to kill the Prime Minister of India and unsettle the nation. The major has connections within the Indian State such as police officer Shankar (Devan) and Veerabhadra Chandra Moulishwara Maharaaj(Saikumar) a fake godman. The conspiracy was accidentally uncovered by Nedumudi Venu and his assistant and they had to pay the price for their discovery by death. To solve the mystery of the murder, Joseph Alex IAS and Bharath Chandran IPS, known for their efficacy and courage are deployed. The constant struggle between the evil and the good and the final outcome form the rest of the story.
The story revolves around 2 honest and brave officers battling the system from within. And the main protagonists are not names unfamiliar to us; Joseph Alex IAS and Bharathchandran IPS, popular creations of Renji Panicker in his earlier movies ‘The King’ and ‘Commissioner’.
After a 17 year gap, Renji and Shaji Kailas are back with a bang and this definitely reflects in their movie too! Thrilling and dialogue driven, the movie is sure to set audiences on fire!
The movie is based on communal and commercial politics wherein the main characters, Mammootty and Suresh Gopi, come together to investigate a crime.
Mammootty looks young and charismatic in his role as Joseph Alex and his dialogues are indeed gripping.
Suresh Gopi, always popular for his dialogue renditions, upholds his reputation with his hard-hitting screenplay and intermittent flare-ups.
Saikumar, the anti-hero deserves a special mention here too. He is fantastic in his outright negative role. His personality and the kind of arrogance he mirrors on screen, makes him an award-worthy performer. It's no wonder then that he's so spectacularly introduced in the movie on screen.
Devan has also been given a good performing role and he has done complete justice to it.
All the actors including Samvritha Sunil,Jayan, KPAC Lalitha, Kunjan and Spadikam George have been aptly cast and they have done a neat job.
The dialogues written by Renji are crisp and showered with English one-liners to add the extra punch!
Camerawork by Sharavanan, Shaji Kumar and Bharani K Dharan truly helped bring realism and dynamism to the action-adventure sequences. Samjith's cuts and Rajamani's background scores have also complemented the main theme and feel of the movie.
The chemistry between the leads is striking in ''The King & The Commissioner''.
Here’s a warning; the movie might look a little slow to begin with. But that’s only a temporary illusion. Once the story takes on, you may want to fasten your seatbelts and get ready for the roller-coaster!
An extremely compelling political drama and thriller, the movie is indeed a powerful comeback for the Shaji Kailas - Renji Panicker team.
Verdict: Mass Entertainer.
ORDINARY
Director Music Cast
Sugeeth Vidyasagar Kunchacko Boban, Asif Ali, Biju Menon, Shritha, Ann Augustine
There are two striking aspects in debutant director Sugeeth’s Ordinary. One is a largely unexplored and beautiful land called Gavi. The other is ‘the KSRTC bus service’, which whether we like it or not, is part of our lives. But the problem here is that this backdrop has not been developed into a gripping storyline or script.
Eravikkuttan Pillai (Kunchacko Boban) has joined KSRTC as a conductor in the only bus that connects Pathanamthitta and Gavi. The driver of this bus is Sukumaran (Biju Menon), who speaks in an accent, which is different from everyone else in the film.
Now the rest of the characters are being introduced almost in the routine format, as we usually see in most films of this genre. Asif Ali is Bhadran, an unkempt looking pump operator, Ann Augustine is a post woman named Anna and then there is Kalyani, played by debutante Shritha Sivadas, who does a variety of jobs to take care of her family. A retired teacher (Lalu Alex), a drunkard (Baburaj), a priest (Raghavan), a young school teacher (Jishnu), a teashop owner (T P Madhavan) and his daughter (Vaigha) include the supporting cast.
The entire first half is a painfully long build up to a more serious incident happening just before the intermission. The jokes are funny in parts, at best. Some of the characters appear at regular intervals to crack jokes and disappear quite conveniently. Like for instance, Baburaj, who disappears after a while.
The same applies to the KSRTC bus as well, which is operated only when the conductor and driver have nothing else to do! Though the film has been set in Gavi, only parts of that beautiful land is being shown on screen.
If you are not too keen about the pattern, styling, script or characterization in a movie, chances are that ‘Orindary’ can turn out to be a watchable entertainer. With an ordinary script and a rather conventional narration, director Sugeeth too seems to be aiming for nothing big. Faisal Ali’s visuals are good and Vidyasagar’s tunes, though there are too many songs than what one would have liked, are okay.
But the highlight of the film could be a spectacular performance by Biju Menon, who just stands out from the rest of the actors. With a show that is a delight to watch, he displays his true credentials as a powerhouse performer.
Kunchacko Boban, who is some kind of an actor with a branded style though devoid of much surprises, does his role with all earnestness. Asif Ali has only a limited time to show his talents and he proves yet again how overrated he is, with a horrible outburst and drama, perhaps modeled after some of those brilliant acts by certain eminently gifted artistes.
Newcomer Shritha is disappointing, to say the least, and Ann Augustine makes not much of an impression either.
In fact, there are quite a number of characters, which have no real relevance in the story, like the ones played by Jishnu, Raghavan, Dharmajan, Archana and Vaigha.
In the end, Ordinary turns out to be a just-about-ordinary movie with its meek script, clichéd dialogues and leisurely pace. It’s a pity that the director didn’t use the resources well to make it into an extra-ordinary journey!
Verdict: Average
KARMAYOGI
Director Music Cast
V K Prakash Ouseppachan Indrajith, Nithya Menen, Padmini Kolhapure, Thalaivasal Vijay
Director V K Prakash`s Karmayogi is an adaptation of William Shakespeare`s classic play, Hamlet.
The director and the scenarist Balram Mattannoor have mainly replanted the tragedy from Denmark, where it originally happened to a small area in northern Kerala, keeping the basic premise intact.
Well, the question is, shouldn`t the filmmakers need to have something to say of their own when they go for adaptations?
Rudran Gurukkal (Indrajith) is living in agony after the death of his father and the subsequent marriage of his mother Mankamma (Padmini Kolhapure) to her husband`s younger brother Bhairavan (Thalaivasal Vijay).
The main characters belong to a clan called Yogis, who are believed to be the descendants of Lord Shiva. The rituals of the group and the art form called `Kelipathram` have been used in the film quite well.
If Rudran Gurukkal is `Hamlet`, Bhairavan is `Claudius`, Mankamma is `Gertrude`, Moonnumani (Nithya Menen) is `Ophelia`, Kidathan (M R Gopakumar) is `Polonius` and so on.
Balram Mattannoor had earlier scripted Jayaraj`s Kaliyattam, which was quite an interesting version of Shakespeare`s Othello. Of course, there is an inherent honesty about this film that makes it entertaining. R D Rajasekhar`s camera and Ouseppachan`s music are good.
Though he looks convincing, Indrajith maintains almost a single mood for almost the entire length of the film. Padmini Kolhapure has a rather brief role and Thalaivasal Vijay is good. The rest of the cast has come up with decent performances.
Karmayogi is a nice effort but why do we need some okay versions, when we have the original, which has been exciting generations one after the other for so long. Let`s say, this film is a delicious idea but ends up as a half-cooked dish!
Verdict: Average
MELVILASOM
Melvilasom ( The address), is an astonishingly gripping court room drama narrated in real time with no frills, and no distractions It is a brilliant narrative of a closed-door army court martial starkly told. The military discipline does not camouflage the undercurrents of bravery and betrayal.
For a debut director, Madhav Ramadasan has effectively displayed his control over the art of film-making in this hundred-minute film, terse and brutally concise. The monotony that could creep in such mono-chromatic narrative has been skillfully avoided. A story honestly and competently told without larger-than-life presentation or glamourous stars and exotic locations.
Madhav Ramadasan in his maiden attempt has rewritten the dynamics of film making with just six characters and no women incredibly shot within a set. The director has found the right address in ‘Melvilasom’. This ‘address’ has fetched him this prestigious award and is likely to bring in many more.
The film was selected from 23 nominations from across the country in many languages including Hindi, Malayalam, Bengali, English, Tamil, Marathi, Assamese and Kannada. The jury consisted of Sri Singeetam Srinivasa Rao, Sri Krishnan of Kavithalaya and Ad Film Maker Smt. Latha Menon. This is the 15th year in a row, where the Best Indian Directorial Talent in feature films is being recognized by the Chennai based foundation. The award comprising of a cash prize of Rupees One Lakh fifty thousand and a memento will be presented at a glittering ceremony to be held on 12th August 2012 in Chennai.
SHIKKAARI
Movie
Shikkaari
Director
Abhaya Simha
Music
Harikrishna
Mammootty, Poonam Bajwa
The first thing that comes to your mind while watching director Abhay Simha’s Kannada-Malayalam bilingual Shikkaari is that it has a promising pattern, which could have looked fine, if it was made well. But no such luck here and the film ends up as a painful experience.
Abhilash (Mammootty) is a ‘young’, unmarried software engineer. One day he happens to listen to a manuscript of a novel titled ‘Shikkaari’, taken from a library by his friend. It was set in that period when India was still ruled by the British.
As per the story, in a place called Manjinadukka, a wealthy landlord named Rudranath Shenoy, seeks the help of a British warrior named Sir Andrew, to kill a menacing tiger that often attacked the hapless villagers.
Soon after, a brave revolutionary named Karunan (Mammootty, in his second role) comes to the village to attack the British, as part of the freedom movement. Karunan soon becomes the darling of the villagers and Shenoy’s daughter Renuka (Poonam Bajwa) falls in love with him, almost instantly.
Totally fascinated by the story, Abhilash goes to the village to find the missing portions of the manuscript or to meet any of the characters from the story who are still alive. He meets the writer’s daughter Nandita (Poonam Bajwa, again) and starts living in her house, as there are no hotels around.
Okay, you would have guessed by now what happens next. The two starts having a liking for each other. A fantasy like tale gets intertwined with a rather ordinary plot and things are being presented in a more serious way than it deserves.
Abhay Simha, who won a national award for his debut movie ‘Gubbachchigalu’, comes up with a rather amateurish looking experiment this time. With a flimsy script and ordinary execution, this one ends up as a big disappointment.
The only surprise from Mammootty here is his decision to be part of this film, which could easily find a place amongst his forgettable movie-list. Poonam Bajwa does not make much of an impression. Innocent, Tini Tom and Suresh Krishna have perhaps been added to have a Kerala flavor. The trio have nothing much to do, but Innocent’s accent is just irritating even in this brief appearance.
It’s fine for superstars to look beyond their home turf and make their presence felt in other languages. But Shikkaari won’t do any good for an actor of Mammootty’s stature. Catch any of his gems from the past instead of wasting time on this one.
Verdict: Below Average
THATSAMAYAM ORU PENKUTTI
Movie Director Music Cast
Tatsamayam oru penkutty T K Rajeev Kumar Sharreth Nithya Menen, Swetha Menon, Unni Mukundan
Malayalam filmmakers are trying to look chic with newer experiments these days. In the process of packaging movies in modern styles, they tend to ignore certain basic things like an engaging script, crisp editing, good performances and so on. The example is director T K Rajeev Kumar’s sorry looking mess called Tatsamayam oru penkutty.
Here, an innocent girl named Manjula Ayyappan (Nithya Menen), who comes from a modest background, becomes the first contestant in a live TV reality show. Sareena (Swetha Menon) is the brain behind this concept and the programme is called, you guessed it right, ‘Tatsamayam oru penkutty’. Ravi Kumar (Siddique) heads the channel while Thomas (Baburaj) is Sareena’s rival there.
A couple of cameras start following Manjula for a month and all hell breaks loose as people keep glued on to their TV sets. The scenes are so ridiculous that certain characters like a guy on a treadmill, a group of friends who have come for shopping and an NRI couple watching the show with a glass of wine are shown doing the same for the whole month!
At almost three hours, the film is a real test of your patience. Of course, there is a genuine storyline here, but it has been made on to the screen in a pathetic way.
T K Rajeev Kumar, who has done some fine films in the past, has floundered big time here. Sunny Joseph and Manuel George have written a screenplay, which is amateurish to the core and lacks any merit. Vinod Ellampilly’s visuals and Sharreth’s music are okay.
The usually dependable Nithya Menen comes up with a rather average show this time, perhaps due to the absence of a convincing script. Swetha Menon does a decent job in a role, which is nothing great. Unni Mukundan, in a brief role, shares no chemistry with Nithya on screen. He looks good but the performance is rather ordinary. Siddique’s contrived style of dialogue delivery may often irritate the viewer.
Tatsamayam oru penkutty is based on a current concept, which is familiar especially with the ‘Bigg Boss’ series and some of those family related reality shows. Those behind this film perhaps found inspiration from films like Ron Howard’s EDtv or Peter Weir’s The Truman Show but didn’t know how to cater it to the viewers here.
If you are still interested, watch this one at your own risk!
Verdict: Below Average
NIDRA
Movie Director Cinematographer Music Cast
Nidra Sidharth Bharathan Sameer Thahir Jassie Gift Sidharth, Rima Kallingal
It’s never easy to remake a movie and have the director’s signature on it. In the new version of Nidra, originally made in 1981 by Bharathan, his son Sidharth Bharathan takes you on a rather captivating cinematic experience.
Raju (Sidharth), the younger son from a wealthy family marries his childhood sweetheart Aswathy (Rima), who is in fact the daughter of their former driver. He lives in a world of his own, away from all the business deals and money, unlike his elder brother Vishwam (Jishnu Raghavan).
Aswathy is aware about the fact that Raju had to go for some psychiatric help, after his mother’s death. But she is determined to get him back to life with her love. She almost succeeds in it, but the people around them were not so bothered about compassion, tender human emotions and selfless love.
It’s a journey into the minds of two innocent lovebirds that makes the film, truly special. Sidharth Bharathan and Rima Kallingal come up with the best performances in their careers so far and there are some brilliant moments in the film that would haunt you even after getting out of the theatres.
Still, at just around 100 minutes, Nidra gives the feeling that it is a bit too fast paced than one would have liked and events happen, at times in an undisciplined manner. The build up to the initial scenes, where the couple meets and their marriage happens, has been hastily done. A more competent script and a detailed narration could have really worked in the film’s favour.
In the current form, you feel being served a nice snack, when you were in the mood to have an elaborate meal!
Among the highlights of the film are Sameer Thahir’s topnotch visuals, Prashanth Pillai’s excellent background score and Jassie Gift’s melodious tunes. The performances of the rest of the cast including Jishnu Raghavan, KPAC Lalitha, Thalaivasal Vijay and Sarayu are impressive as well.
Nidra shows the emotional journey of a couple, who understands each other perfectly well, in a nice way. It’s one film that should be appreciated for its inherent sincerity. Get ready to go on an emotional trip, when you buy a ticket for this one!
Verdict: Above Average
EE ADUTHA KAALATH
Director Arun Kumar Aravind has come out with his second venture “Ee Adutha Kalathu” and the screen play is written by Murali Gopi for whom this is a second endeavour as well. The movie comes to the theaters today and narrates the strange realities of life in a big city.
Vishnu, the protagonist, played by Indrajith is an all purpose utility man: he collects rags, he is in great demand by cricket teams for his unorthodox hitting, he is an errand boy and many other things. He is also a loving husband and an indulgent father. Ramani, his wife, played by Mythili, does not think too highly of him and justifiably so. He has an ailing mother and two charming daughters. In short, they are the typical struggling family living in the city and off the city. And trying to keep the wolf from the door! In the process, they have to fight off the loan sharks as well.
The movie is full of interesting characters who are unveiled as in a fashion show. Madhuri (Tanushree), an ex-actress with a few B-grade Bollywood movies to her credit, lives with her husband Ajay Kurien(Murali Gopi) and eleven year old son Ayur. Madhuri maintains her stunning good looks even now. And she is a kind soul. Ajay Kurien is a self-made person coming up the ranks and presently working as the Chief in a city hospital. He learned his trade in Mumbai and is proud of his feat and knows how to get around in a city. Ayur is mad after cricket and spends time trying to solve the puzzle of the Rubik’s cube.
A serial killer is lurking in the streets stalking his prey. Rustam (Nishan) has come to the city on a contract and lives in a rented room among the migrant workers. He is dashing, drives around in a bike and speaks Malayalam in bits and peaces. He is a dazzler and a scoundrel.
Anoop Menon is Tom Cherian, the Commissioner of Police. He is an aspiring cop bent upon earning name and fame and for him, the end justifies the means. And his love Roopa, played by Lena, is equally ambitious as a no-holds-barred journalist.
“Ee Adutha Kalathu” revolves around these characters and how they cope with the strange realities of life in a big city.
Indrajith is subtle and classy and Murali Gopi is as good in his acting as in his script writing. Anoop Menon confirms his rising stature as a star, with a scintillating performance. Jagathy Sreekumar has done justice to his role. Nishan is impressive. Among the female stars, Tanushree with her glamorous looks and lucid expressions has left an indelible impression. Mythili as the fiery wife and Lena as the journalist have portrayed their characters vividly. Gimi George and Baiju have not disappointed.
Arunkumar Aravind has created a different movie, relevant, yet attractive and the technical excellence has to be appreciated. The visuals by Shehnad Jalal are of high quality and helps in improving the quality of the film. Art by Jothish Shankar tasty and refined. Gopi Sunder’s music is pleasing and catchy as well. The same could be said of background music.
As the story unfolds on the screen, we watch the people helplessly caught up in mazes and puzzles in their journey through life and trying to unravel the mysteries. Joy and sorrow, anxiety and humour, fear and courage, we witness the different emotions and the different ways of dealing with them. There are plenty of loops and turns in the story but there is an element of credibility in them all and the viewer’s intelligence is taken seriously by the film maker. Coupled with the all round performance of the actors, “Ee Adutha Kalathu” is a remarkably refreshing and sensitive movie making a candid statement of life in the cities.
Verdict: Excellent !
Father's Day
| Movie Father’s DayDirector Kalavoor Ravikumar Music M G Sreekumar Cast Revathy, Lal, Vineeth, Shaheen, Indu Thampy |
In writer-director Kalavoor Ravikumar’s Father’s Day, one of the characters says during a scene, “Even after going through all these, it is surprising that you didn’t get mad.” Now, is this dialogue aimed at the hapless viewer, who is trying hard not to get affected by some of those terrible moments watching the film?
Jokes apart, this film has a simple storyline, which can at best be told in a few minutes. But it is when things go on and on unendingly and the makers try to present it more seriously than what it is worth that we feel really bored. Add some really bad performances and this film falls flat, after a rather normal first half.
Seethalakshmi (Revathy) is a lecturer in a college and she is staying in a bungalow with her niece, Neenu (Indu Thampy). Seetha is particularly close to her brother Gopan (Vineeth), an architect.
The story moves ahead without any particular direction during the first half and things go really bad with the focus shifting to Joseph K Joseph (Shaheen), who is seen following the lecturer wherever she goes. Then there is a gang of four friends, played by Shankar, Suresh Krishna (with a dreadful wig), Edavela Babu and Vijay Menon, who have some connection to the rest of the characters.
Oscar winner Resul Pookkutty’s presence in the film was much mentioned in the media but he is limited to a single scene, doing a cameo. Lal is an old college mate of Seethalakshmi, who approaches her with a marriage proposal.
Though it may not be a sensational one, Father’s Day would perhaps have worked, if narrated in a more competent manner. Instead, Ravi Kumar’s old school treatment of the theme makes the scenes too melodramatic and the dialogues, trite. Shaheen has been cast in a role which needs a better performer and that makes the second half, a test of your patience. The visuals and the music are fine.
Though she repeats her branded style, Revathy enacts her character in a convincing way. Lal has nothing much to do. The rest of the cast is just about okay.
Father’s Day is meant for those addicts of tearjerkers, who are fine watching excessive melodrama. But the second half could be a real tough one even for them to appreciate. Want to try this one? At your own risk please!
Verdict: Below Average
Mullassery Madhavankutty Nemom P O
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A film producer, who had ‘retired hurt’ from the industry after some really bad experiences, makes a statement on these lines in director Kumar Nanda’s Mullassery Madhavankutty Nemom P O.
“Films are like a beautiful girl. She can be a girl friend, wife or a prostitute. Since it is a business, I would prefer to treat her as a prostitute.”
If this is the kind of wisdom that you look forward to, on screen, this film has a few of them. No point in mincing words, amateurishly written and lazily executed films like Mullassery Madhavankutty Nemom P O have been made aiming at the satellite rights. That explains the presence of a few well-known faces who appear on screen for a while and then disappear soon after.
Madhavankutty (Anoop Menon) is a soft-spoken government clerk, who lives happily with his mother (KPAC Lalitha), wife (Sonal Devraj) and daughter. He has no big dreams in life, except perhaps to build a new house, but things takes a different turn when his former classmate provokes him at a club. To teach him a lesson, Madhavankutty decides to produce a film!
If you have seen at least a dozen Malayalam films in your life, the rest of the story can be predicted quite easily. The various issues that he faces as a producer and the effects of all those in his family life, how he tides over all those setbacks and the final triumph, well, all these happens as you wait for the end titles to roll.
The question is, how detrimental is this trend where the viewers are made virtual fools as the filmmakers churn up movies, solely eyeing at the satellite rights? As only already known faces command a price, actors like Suraj Venjarammoodu and Bala make brief appearances
Evidently, scenarist Swathi Bhaskar and director Kumar Nanda have not made this film with any kind of seriousness or honesty. The visuals are pretty ordinary and the music is fine in parts.
The usually dependable Anoop Menon almost sleepwalks through his role and disappoints after shining really well as a scenarist, actor and also as a lyricist in the recent Beautiful. The rest of the cast has nothing much to perform.
When moviemaking becomes less of a passion and is seen only as a profit-making venture, films like these gives the viewer a feeling that they have been taken for a ride. Why should one pay for the ticket to watch such lousy stuff, wasting two precious hours? If you seriously love movies, you will definitely feel cheated after watching Mullassery Madhavankutty Nemom P O.
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UNNAM
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Malayalam cinema has always been a difficult terrain for remakes as the story lines structured for audiences elsewhere, often found it difficult to gel with the tastes of our viewers. Even though that is the case, the recent years witnessed a lot of remakes in Malayalam, with very few of them making an impression among the spectators. 'Unnam' is the latest one to add to the list, and this being the first of the remakes by the veteran director Sibi Malayil, there were lot of expectations on it breaking new grounds in Mollywood.
And first things first, hats off to the director for proudly proclaiming in the opening titles that 'Unnam' is an authorised adaption of 'Johny Gaddhar'-the original brilliant Hindi thriller by Shriram Ragahavan. For all others who are ripping off other films without acknowledgement, please remember giving right attribution to the sources had never taken away the appreciation due to well made movies.
'Unnam' is all about a gang of five, composing of Sunny (lal), an ex-gangster living in the memories of his dead wife who was a singer, a greedy Tommy( Prashanth Narayan) who runs a bar ,Murugan (Nedumudi Venu)a failed gambler , Basheer (Noushi) a smuggler and Aloyshie (Asif Ali) a bar singer who maintains a secret relation with Tommy's wife Jennie(Rima Kallingal). On an unexpected call from a Police C I Balakrishna(Sreenivasan) from Bangalore, who wants to sell a bag of heroin worth five crores in the market at half its rate, Sunny decides to revert to his long abandoned ways and alerts the other four about the prospects of making easy money . They brings in 50 lakhs each in the expectations to double it in another couple of days, once they are into the deal. Things go fine until one of them decides to jeopardise the plot, double cross the others and take flight with the entire money they had raised collectively. Not just that, the traitor also manages to settle back in the gang without anyone suspecting him of treachery.
The movie sticks to its original in the course of events, and the scriptwriter Swathy Bhasker has wisely placed the events in the backdrop of Kochi, though his dialogue writing is no way exceptional . But what is missing from the original is the mood and treatment of the thriller and pace at which it unfolds. As dead bodies pile up and the vengeful partners try to find out the cheat, the execution of murders are no- where brilliant and believable as with the original.
Once again, the director seems to be the culprit, who couldn't bring any thrilling aspects or technical wizardry including good BGM's or editing patterns. The sets of bar and even the flat looks artificial with props and designs projecting all over. May be a case of failed mis-en-scene, the movie also doesn't feature any intended gags in its screen time of 130 minutes.
Talking about the performances, Asif Ali is reasonably better than his 'Asuravithu', but his drawbacks are once again visible in sequences that demanded heavy emoting. The star of the film is undoubtedly Prashanth Narayan. His performances as a dreadfully ravenous youngster,and especially when he realizes the shattering double-play in the climax lead was perfect. His dubbing was excellent at times but in the opening reels and a few other instances failed to make an impact. Lal, Shwetha Menon, K P AC lalitha and Reema kallingal were good in their roles though Reema's hairdo was a bit weird. Nedumudi Venu and Sreenivasan - the definite miscasts in their roles, tried to make their performances believable, with little success.
The songs and BGM in the movie were not up to mark, with the lyrics even worse. Ajayan Vincent in camera and Bijibal in editing just managed create a mediocre work.
All in all, 'Unnam' misses its target by a margin, though it is a rare genre of movie in Mollywood. Not a badly done film for most who haven't seen the original.
Njanum Ente Familiyum Review
K K Rajeev's directorial debut in feature films 'Njanum Ente Familyum' talks of an extramarital relationship that goes awry, and ruins a marriage in the process. Despite solid performances from the leading cast, the source material and the odd decisions in the script weaken the film totally.
Dr. Dinan (Jayaram) is a renowned cardiac surgeon, who ahs been busy running a hospital and a sweet family that comprises of his doctor wife Priya (Mamta Mohandas) and two kids. A chance encounter with Sophy (Mythili) whom he was once in love with rekindles smothered emotions with in Dinan, and along with her goes on a journey from which there is no return.
The human mind does make up interesting material for a writer to dwell upon, and this is exactly what Kalpakavady has in mind when he sets out to take a closer look at the heart of a cardiac surgeon. Where he loses out on, is that not much light is shed on none of the relationships in the film, precisely since the characters appear half-baked.
I do agree that the change in scenario past the interval comes as a surprise, but somehow this is the kind of a surprise that takes down a film with it. Its here that the film starts losing ground, and in no time you start wondering where it's all headed.
The other woman as always, is doomed for disaster, and 'Njanum Ente Familyum' takes it a step further with a shocker twist that makes her disappear from the film as if in a magical act. Come to think of it, perhaps the scenarist felt that this was the best way in which things could finally come to an amicable settlement.
Of the three characters in the film that make up the triangle, Sophy is the only one that has got some flesh and blood, while the other two remain perfect stereotypes. And what's more, Priya suffers most from the onslaught of the writer's pen. Stripped of an identity, she comes across as a baffled individual who doesn't have a clue as to what she should do, when she realizes that her husband has been cheating on her.
The screenplay does remind you of similar films that you had seen in the past; better written ones that had left a mark. How could we forget the IV Sasi - Suresh Gopi film 'Aksharathettu' or even Ranjith's own 'Paavakoothu' that ironically had Jayaram himself playing a man caught between two women.
The acting is uniformly good, and I should say that Jayaram does a remarkable job of playing a man who makes his life miserable with a wrong choice that he makes. Of the women, its Mythili who scores this time around, and the young actress excels in at least a couple of scenes, assuring us that more solid performances are on the way. Mamta does a decent job, as always, of what she has been offered, and establishes further that she is an actress par excellence.
This one is a film that could have turned out to be a compelling drama, had the script been tauter. As of now it merely remains a cluster of clichés that keep bumping into each other in a vacuum.
Spanish Masala Review
In Lal Jose's new film 'Spanish Masala, for starters, you have an officer of the Spanish embassy, traveling back to his homeland after years of service in India, along with his young daughter and her Indian governess. At the farewell event, the Spanish girl, trained by her ayah, renders 'Omanathinkal Kidaavo..', suggesting that her ties with India are not to be severed that quick.
And hence the main menu card has the girl blossoming into a beautiful Camille (Daniela Zackerl) who has already found and lost the love of her life. Her dad doesn't take too kindly to her romance with the governess's son Rahul (Kunchacko Boban0, and hence sends him across to Portugal on an assignment, where we're told, he was killed in a car crash.
For desserts, of course arrives Charlie (Dileep), a mimicry artiste-turned-chef who specializes in churning out delicious dosas at a road side restaurant in Madrid. And one fine sunny evening, Camille, who drives past is enamored by the magical odor of his Spanish Masala Dosa. In no time, he's appointed as the master cook in her palatial bungalow, and with Charlie and Camille together with the dosa in between, can love be far behind?
It's here that Lal Jose's new film starts fizzling out into a total non-happening. Its dessert time, folks, and you would be surprised to find that it isn't even half-time as yet. There is almost an hour to go still, and with the banquet table having been wiped clean, where do the guests go?
Benny P Nayarambalam's script, in all fairness, does have a Spanish Masala Dosa quality to it, in that it's crepe thin. As Charlie says, you need to break an egg on top of it, and add up the special masala filling that would lend it that extra zing. How I wish they had thought of something similar to pep up the plot.
They call it the 'taste of love', and forget the taste, where is the love? And coming from a director who has given us some real charming love tales, this one is a royal let down. I never could make it when it was that love struck Charlie, though it's much more obvious as to why Camille starts reciprocating his feelings.
When you first see Fernando, Camille's cousin on screen, you make a mental note, that this is the white guy who is soon gonna be given an opportunity to realize the true power of the dark Indian man. Along comes a sequence, when he is taught a lesson, for being the kind of chap who insists on being trained.
Camille, on her part, is less of a Spanish woman of substance, and more of a coy Indian village girl, when it comes to her demeanor. She does shout once in a while, trying frantically to establish her presence, but is mostly hapless when it comes to taking a decision, and is often awfully late when she finally arrives at the right one.
There is little earth shattering about the performances in Spanish Masala, except Nelson's. The man is indeed a true revelation, and given the right roles, he could perhaps bring in some freshness to the highly stale comic scenario. Dileep is comfortable in a role that has been tailor made for him. Daniela, looks pretty, but seems totally ill at ease at times, having to mouth awkward Malayalam dialogues.
This masala mix is littered with quite a few wrong spices, be it the dreary dialogues, cardboard characters or the uneven pacing. It's very unlikely hence, that you would go for its flavors; at best (or perhaps worst) you might sneeze. That's it.
Second Show - This 'Second Show 'is impressive
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'Second Show' was touted as the most eagerly awaited movie of the year, mostly due to it being the launch pad of Dulqar Salman, the son of Megastar Mammootty. And all eyes were on him to rate his potential to persist in a competitive movie career. But after seeing the film, we will say more about the crew and the director, who has amazed us much more than its cast, delivering one of the venturesome and cheeky boy's films to date in Malayalam. A verbally explosive comical crime-caper, the movie succeeds due to its smart screenplay and witty dialogues, which survives its beaten-to-death formula, and not so polished making.
The movie's story lines are pretty old as the Himalayas, where a small time reckless gang lead by Lalu alias Harilal who lives on with their shady deals with sand mafia, shortly turn a quotation gang and ganja carriers, ultimately to evolve as the top players in the business. But the highlights of the movie are the breath of fresh air and authenticity that goes into its making. Here no attempts are made for a star launch; the characters are real with 'Hindi speaking characters' actually speaking a polished Hindi and night scenes conspicuously dark.
The narratives moves at its own pace with the unflinching approach of debutante director Sreenath Rajendran definitely on top, inspired from Indian and foreign gangster films including the RGV flicks. But he has deliberately mixed up the' desi' flavour, with characters very keralite and on the face and sardonic humour- equally desi without any airs. Aimed squarely at the youth brigade, there is never a dull moment in its undisguised enterprise.
The screenplay by Vini Viswalal is such that it keeps you estimating as to what's going to happen subsequently, with a subtle love track and bonding between friends. This film speaks a language that the youth would instantly connect with and the wits differ from the humour- laden films that we've been subjected to of late.
The inventive soundtracks by Nikhil and Avial are well worded and tuned. Foot tapping' 'Aiyyo' and Thithithara stands out as the anthem of the youth. 'Ramayana Koottil ' is peppy and energetic though all songs merely play in the background and gels well with the movie. After 'Chappa kurisu', Rex Vijayan also impresses with the BGM most of the times, though that sarcastic BG track while dealing with Lalu's family chores were never rightly recognised by the viewers.
The locales and Papu's cinematography in undersized places, like tiny dwellings and shrunk spaces with plenty of handheld shots, and sometimes amateurish looking frames only add to the authenticity and crude looks of the movie. A word of appreciation must also go to editors Sreekanth and Praveen, for slicing the movie to interesting proportions and also to the makeup man Bijubhaskar Sami.
On the flip side, a film like 'Second Show' may not be savoured and relished by everyone, especially the 'family audiences'
And, for that big question of performances.... Dulqar Salman seems to have adequate physique and potential and shows it in the later reels with a controlled performance. His voice seems to be his biggest positive, but needs to work on his modulations and a little bit on histrionics. His selection of this role as his launch vehicle is really exceptional and that itself proves him to be a ' thinking actor' in the making.
But the actor who stole the entire show was Sunny Wayne as 'Kuridi' who has been exceptional most of the times. We were never made aware of the little drawbacks of the lead star whenever Sunny was on screen, sometimes overacting but taking the film ably in his tender shoulders. Sure to see this wonderful performer more in Mollywood scenes in the coming years. Gowthami Nair was just ok as the 'murapennu' of Lalu but the seasoned actors like Baburaj, Sudesh Berry, Kunchan and Rohini managed to keep the proceedings moving in a realistic scale.
Overall, 'Second show ' though with its share of little negatives, is an honest effort that deserves to be encouraged. Of course, it may not be the most persuasive film that portrays an issue, but at least it moves on a untapped and brand new terrain of presentations, ably helped by little known actors.Definitely a must watch for those who love experimental movies that also entertain.
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