Grandmaster review

Finally, I managed to watch a Malayalam movie, that too in a cinema hall and that too featuring the best Malayalam star, Mohanlal.

Grandmaster is pretty riveting. It is an investigative thriller where a maverick senior cop (Chandrashekhar) goes about digging the truth behind a series of murders that are apparently by a serial killer. The victims have their names in alphabetical order starting from A through to C. The person up next is Deepthi who happens to be the divorced wife of our supercop. He succeeds in stopping this killing and also gets to know the real motive behind these killings. The killer is also not who we are led to believe since the start. 

The final portion of the movie where all the mysteries are solved is pretty interesting and well knit. If only, the English dialogs spoken on screen had been pronounced correct, the scenes could have been more authentic. 

The rock song that comes when the action is really gripping is a big downer. Other than that the BGM score by Deepak Dev is a major plus point for the movie. Of course Lal has arresting screen presence, majesty and grace to pull off this serious cop role with ease. He is the single most compelling reason to watch the movie. His struggles in the action scenes are evident though. 

Then we have the trim and smart Narain, a serious looking Priyamani and an embarrassingly bloated Anoop Menon to complete the cast. Babu Antony's makeover is pretty dirty and badly done. Scenes showing the correlation with the chess board remind us of 'Mankatha'

VERDICT: On the whole, this one is pretty interesting and doesn't have major compromises with respect to the central premise. Watch-worthy for sure.

The Butterfly Effect (2004)

A terrific mind bender that makes a lot of demands on your mental faculties and your concentration levels. There are certain parts of the movie that make you go crazy. You wonder why the director and the writer had to make it all so twisted and complicated. This one is certainly not your regular popcorn fare though there are some entertaining scenes.

Evan Treborn is a guy who gets blackouts at certain points due to extreme stress and then he wakes up not remembering what happened. There are 4 particular episodes of Evan's blackouts which are shown. Each is significant to the movie's flow as later Evan finds a way to revisit these instances and he tries to alter the sequence of events post that particular episode. A journal that Evan maintains, helps him to revisit these 4 episodes. Evan realizes that reading the journal entry leading up to a blackout, he can go back in time to that moment

After each time that Evan revisits the episodes, the events in the present are altered. Evan isn't satisfied by the present day events each time and he tries to go back to the very first episode to change the sequence of events altogether. Evan keeps jumping to these episodes in a random manner which is confusing beyond a point.

In the end, there is another crazy twist thrown into the mix. Later, this dubious link helped me make sense of this movie. http://www.themoviespoiler.com/Spoilers/butterflyeffect.html

The one I saw is the director's cut which apparently has a totally different ending compared to the theatrical version, and I must say that this ending is truly crazy and bewildering.

VERDICT: Appreciable attempt but be ready to get mind-fucked in no small measure. 

Classic: Cinderella Man (2005)

Inspired by the true life story of James Braddock aka The Cinderella Man, this movie is extra-ordinary to say the least. The human emotions, the struggles during the Great Depression, the subsequent rags to riches story and some of the most brutal boxing fights shown on the cinema screen make this Ron Howard movie a once-in-a-lifetime experience

Russell Crowe teams up with Ron Howard for another classic after 'A Beautiful Mind'. That both these movies are inspired by true life heroes, is more than a mere coincidence. He is top class to say the least. His talents need no further explanation. Another milestone for the Australian superstar

There are solid support roles for Renee Zellweger as the wife of James, Paul Giamatti as the manager/ringside coach of James and Paddy Considine as James' friend at the dock

Some of the dialogs induce goose-bumps particularly, the dialog that Mae tells James before the final bout. For more such dialogs check this out http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0352248/quotes

The fights are all real, particularly the Lasky fight and the final Baer fight. Such intensity and such detailing that they suck you into them. The final bout gives you the same feeling as watching a Federer-Nadal grand-slam final.

More than the fights, it's the human interest element that makes this movie a classic, be it the relationship between the father and his 3 young kids or the lovely mature husband-wife relationship or the entire community looking up to the Bulldog of Bergen / The Pride of New Jersey for hope and courage during the Great Depression.

VERDICT: Must watch for any movie buff and more so for sports movie buffs.   

Thadaiyara Thaakka music review

2.5 / 5

Thadaiyara Thaakka (2012)

Cast: Arun Vijay, Mamta Mohandas

Directed by: Magizh Thirumeni

Music by: S. Thaman.

After an extended gap Arun Vijay has a release. Directed by Magizh Thirumeni and co-starring Mamta Mohandas, Thadaiyara Thaakka has a very catchy title. Bollywood heroine Prachi Desai was supposed to be in this movie and her subsequent withdrawal made sure that this movie garnered some eye balls. Now, after a lull, the movie’s audio has released. Let’s analyze if Thaman’s golden run can lift this Arun Vijay movie to the ‘hit’ status. 

Kelamale Kelamale Vazhkirai

Aalap Raju, Rita

A very typical Thaman offering with synthesized vocals and an easy ring to the ears.  He can consider patenting this template as he keeps churning out such songs in almost every film of his. Sounds good and upmarket-ish, but nothing new.

Naan Poondamalli Than

Arun Vijay, L R Eswari, Solar Sai

The much hyped item number featuring the evergreen L.R.Eswari takes off from where Kalasala left off. This short song will be a hit in all probability for the very same reasons that Kalasala struck the bull’s-eye. The trailers have already shown what to expect from this song. It is interesting to see Arun Vijay’s name on the credits. The Déjà vu feeling creeps in but doesn’t matter for this genre of song.

Kalangal Kan Mun Paranthada … THUMBS UP

Chinmayee, Javed Ali

A melodious duet which has a touch of melancholy running through it.  The instrumentals and Chinmayi’s humming in the interludes are top notch. Javed Ali pitches in beautifully towards the end with his rendering of the ‘swaras’. On the whole, Chinmayi lifts this number that has a slight Yuvan touch.

Kelamalae (Unplugged)

Rita, Thaman

An unplugged version of the first song with heavy usage of the synthesizer yet again. Would be interesting to hear Thaman’s voice in its natural mode as he always prefers to mix his voice to give it a heavy echo feel. Both the versions rate equally. Rita deserves a special mention for giving these songs a freshness and charm.

Theme Music

The way the title of the movie is pitched into the instrumentals is impressive. The theme gives a haunting and mystic feel to the listeners thanks to the high pitched female chants. Inspite of all this, somehow the theme sounds disjointed.

VERDICT: A decent effort from Thaman that passes muster. Nothing new or out of the world but, the songs do no harm either.

Training Day (2001)

A rookie cop Jake Hoyt, with about 19 months experience in the police force is assigned to the narcotics department. His training officer is Alonzo Harris, an unconventional cop with his methods bordering on madness. Alonzo is even corrupt without any inhibitions and his methods shock Jake to say the least. In a single day, Jake goes through so many dangerous experiences that put his life at risk. By the end of the day, Jake knows about the true colors of Alonzo in no small measure and decides to put him behind bars. But Alonzo's trouble with the Russians comes back to put an end to him for good, in a bloody climax.

Denzel Washington won the Academy Award for this performance and his acting in the climax and the scenes when he mimics the rooster & the wolf, are terrific. His ruthless ways shine through. Ethan Hawke's voice is his biggest plus in this role which requires him to play second fiddle for most of the movie. Eva Mendes is a mouthful in the few scenes she comes in. A fully nude Eva is a worthy add-on to this tense and taut movie.

Since the entire movie happens within a time span of 24 hours, it is unwavering and very gripping. It travels on a very focused path and takes us on a thrilling journey.

VERDICT: Tense and gripping stuff 

Jannat 2 review

2.5 / 5

Emraan Hashmi is back with his trademark brand of emotionally engaging cinema accompanied by beautiful music and a hot female lead. It has released in 1975 screens making it his biggest release till date. Produced by Vishesh Films and helmed by Kunal Deshmukh, Jannat 2 arrives with fair amount of hype and expectations, thanks to the success of Jannat and Emraan’s star status. Does it fulfill them? Read more to find out.

Sonu Dilli (Emraan Hashmi) is a street-smart youngster who deals in illegal arms. He believes that this is his way of ensuring parity in the society. As expected he falls in love with an independent doctor Jhanvi (Esha Gupta) who is looking for funds to save her hospital. Then we have ACP Pratap Raghuvanshi (Randeep Hooda) who wants to put an end to this illegal arms racket at any cost. He has a personal reason as well that drives him. Just as Sonu wishes to mend his ways and be a straightforward person for the sake of his lady love, Pratap gives him a chance to work as a police informer and to help him in nabbing the bigwigs in the business. Sonu takes it up and what follows next is the crux of Jannat 2. 

The scenes in the second half when Sonu is caught between his boss at the guns factory and ACP Pratap have shades of ‘The Departed’. Since the movie is set in the streets of Delhi, there are overdoses of profanity which incite more than a mere chuckle from the audience & alcohol literally flows on the screen as Pratap is seen in an inebriated state in scene after scene. The ending of the movie is unconventional but somehow the feeling at the end of the movie isn’t wholesome.

Among the cast members, Emraan Hashmi and Randeep Hooda light up the screen with their earnest portrayals. Both of them have matched each other. The actor who plays Dilli’s friend Balli also has a substantial part. The heroine Esha Gupta resembles Angelina Jolie and she is hot to say the least. Her emoting skills just about pass muster. The songs by Pritam are the biggest plus in the movie. They are all melodic and have just about been accommodated in the screenplay. The entire movie is set in Delhi and the frames have that energy and street-smart quality that one associates with the Indian capital.

In spite of some good acting by the 2 male leads and some excellent songs, Jannat 2 falls short of being an emotional potboiler due to the laborious pace and the largely insipid villains who just look menacing.

On the whole, this movie is worth a look for the positives that have been outlined. It won’t bore you as such and even though the movie has all the ingredients of an engaging movie somehow the feeling of having a full course meal is missing.

VERDICT: Falls short of being a wholesome potboiler

Billa 2 music review - FIRST ON THE NET

Movie: Billa 2 (2012)

Cast: Ajith Kumar, Bruna Abdullah, Parvathi Omanakuttan, Vidyut Jammal

Direction: Chakri Toleti

Producers: Sunir Kheterpal, Suresh Balaje, George Pius

Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja.

Label: Sony Music

On Thala Ajith’s birthday, the audio of Billa 2 has released with tremendous buzz and expectations. Sony music has done a great job in marketing the audio release as a huge event with their proactive presence on the social networking space. Now, straight onto the audio review of this Yuvan musical.

Madurai Ponnu

Andrea Jeremiah

A song with Arabic shades and a genre which is pretty familiar to Yuvan. He is a past master at such seductive yet rustic item numbers. ‘Theepidika’ will definitely come to mind. BGM bits from Mankatha surprisingly make an appearance at more than a few instances in this song which is apparently set in the backdrop of a brothel. Can expect to see some gyrating moves on screen thanks to the foot tapping ‘tavil’ beats and the bevy of item dancers, supposedly in this song.

Billa 2 theme … THUMBS UP

Yuvan

The legendary theme of Billa 2007 has been taken and made more intense with usage of heavy instruments. Suits the larger than life screen presence of Thala and the character of David Billa. The theme has a haunting as well as a pulsating quality to it, with the ending whistles taking the cake.  

Yedho Mayakkam … THUMBS UP

Yuvan, Tanvi Shah and Suvi Suresh

A club song that can be predicted to set the dance floors on fire with its naughty and endearing quality, thanks to a super peppy effort by Tanvi Shah and Suvi Suresh. The native ‘nadaswaram’ touches to this song are admirable. It would be interesting to see how Thala grooves to this super youthful song as such songs have been the trademark of the STR-Yuvan combo. Can expect this song to be on the playlist of all city slickers for some time to come. The pick of the album, without a shade of a doubt.

Gang Gang Gang … THUMBS UP

Yuvan and Stefny

The first teaser song that was released to tremendous response and as expected, its full version is terrific as well. The trance, hip-hop and techno touches to this song are typical of Yuvan. The lyrics expectedly reek of heroism and these are already in the hearts of all Thala fans. The tune revolves around the legendary theme music.

Idhayam … THUMBS UP

Shweta Pandit

A mellifluous melody that has a haunting mood to it thanks to the tasteful usage of tabla, flute and veena. This song is sort of a female reprise to ‘Engeyo Paartha’ from ‘Yaaradi Nee Mohini’. Shweta Pandit will probably put up stiff competition to the likes of Shreya Ghoshal. Such is her rendition in this song. Would be interesting to see the romantic side of Ajith in this song.   

Unakkulle Mirugam

Ranjith

This song talks about the animal that resides in each human being and the philosophies of David Billa, the man. The treatment of the song is hardcore ‘Rock’. The theme music makes a guest appearance as part of the instrumentals of this song as well.

VERDICT: The songs have given even more push to the pre-release buzz that has already been hitting the peak. The Thala Yuvan combo continues to rock with another youthful album. Until the next biggie comes around, Billa 2 will stay on top of the charts merrily.

3.5 / 5