Kadal review

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3.5 / 5

Mani Ratnam’s movies are known for dreamy visuals and mesmerizing music. Kadal delivers both and it is a terrific audio-visual experience. Rajeev Menon and A.R.Rahman have definitely brought their A-Game to the movie and Rahman’s BG soundtrack is also grand to say the least.

Rajeev might garner some awards for his work in the movie and the seaside has been captured in its entire splendor. Even seemingly ordinary objects get a different perspective thanks to Rajeev’s lens.

The movie also has some strong performances from Arjun and Arvind Swamy. Arjun spews rage and aggression while a beefed-up / bulky Arvind makes a good comeback. His screen presence is still handsome and classy. Both the actors have tried their best to pronounce the dialect well.

Gautham Karthik makes a spirited debut and he can emote well. The guy is wiry, has a good physique and is bound to go places. Thulasi Nair is bubbly, spontaneous and plays the typical Tamil film heroine who acts like a child, along the lines of Laila and Genelia. The director also throws a psychological disorder angle to her character graph thereby mocking the age-old characterization of Tamil cinema heroines.

The movie’s story is basically one of settling old scores between the characters played by Arjun and Arvind Swamy. While the former is a cold go-getter who goes against the Church, the latter is a pious Christian father. Their ideologies clash and both of them experience their fair share of pain due to the other.

Gautham Karthik is a pawn between the two main players and he is caught between their two ideologies. While Arjun uses him as an aggressive player, the ‘godfather’ like Arvind wishes to see him lead a peaceful life after a really disturbed childhood which leaves him homeless.

Gautham also has a love angle with Thulasi, as expected and she is also part of the main scheme of things, as we are later told.

The movie is predictable and doesn’t have any spikes. It moves at a leisurely pace and you can’t expect anything racy. The climax is very thrilling though thanks to the superb VFX. A ship-wreck on a stormy day has been authentically portrayed.

Among the songs, Magudi is the best. The title credits are a really memorable experience thanks to this techno track which is also used to show Gautham Karthik’s character progression. Chithirai Nila is another mesmerizing composition rendered beautifully by Vijay Yesudas. This song is also used very well in the movie to support poignant and emotionally-heavy scenes. Nenjukulle and Moongil Thottam come in quick succession and both seem to have been shot at the same place. Adiye has been shot like the Nenjinille number from Uyire. Expected more from this song! Elay Keechan is a happy treat and introduces Gautham Karthik on screen. Anbin Vasale puts the movie to a closure.

Mani’s expertise at using child artistes is legendary and the boy who plays the ‘growing up’ Gautham Karthik is superb. The way he emotes in the scene where he speaks his heart out to the radio is unbelievable. The kid who plays the ‘really small’ Gautham Karthik is also very likable. Nice casting for sure with these two lads. The director has also used the radio very well as a device in his narrative. Lakshmi Manchu has a predictable cameo and in fact both the twists in the movie can be foreseen.

To sum up, Kadal is a typical Mani Ratnam movie in the audio-visual sense. The story is simple and doesn’t have any major highpoints. Ultimately, the quality of the film-making lifts the movie and makes it watch-worthy. The second half is also bound to be appealing to the normal cine-goer who seeks a potboiler.

David music review

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4.5 / 5

A late but latest music review of Bejoy Nambiar's David, starring  Vikram, Jiiva, Tabu, Nassar, Isha Sharvani and many more.

Iravinil Ulavavaa - Shwetha Pandit and Naresh Iyer, composed by Prashant Pillai ... CHEERS
This one has a 90s Rahman sound. The sweet whistle sound is a recurring delight throughout the song along with the gentle tambura-like baseline of the song. Shwetha Pandit is a refreshing presence with her free-flowing vocals. A native violin piece towards the end is a fitting finale to this topnotch composition.

Kanave Kanave - Anirudh, composed by Anirudh ... CHEERS
The sounds of thunder and whistles at the beginning set the atmospherics for the song. Anirudh’s expertise in using the violin and flute is proved yet again though he needs to watch out against such stereotyping. His angst-ridden voice is perfect for the pathos mood of the song. The tune has a heavy ‘Moonu’ hangover but the song works big-time. You might dismiss the song at first labeling it as a leftover tune from ‘Moonu’ but the song will seep into you once you give into it. The veena like piece in the first interlude is blissful and the ending orchestra of strings is again expertly done. No wonder, this one is a big favorite among the lovelorn youth.

Light House Symphony - Remo Fernandes, composed by Remo Fernandes .... CHEERS
This one is a cool beach theme driven by the guitar and whistles in the beginning and later by the samba and salsa style beats. The moment the theme picks up pace, Remo Fernandes gets into top-gear and lets out an uninhibited performance. The versatility of the man is appreciable as his voice can be both soothing as well as rasping. It takes a lot of imagination to just amble on with some babble as Remo proves in the latter half of the theme.

Machi - Sanjeev Thomas, composed by Modern Mafia ... CHEERS
This is a Bhaag DK Bose style song, punk rock as they say. The song is racy, energetic and groovy to a fault. The lyrics give an idea of the dicey situation that the song would come in. The boyish voices work big time while the guitar and percussions are prominent as well. Special mention to the eccentric spoken-word segments that are a part of the song.

Maname - Karthik, composed by Prashant Pillai ... CHEERS 
Percussions are on overdrive in this song, thumping would be an understatement. The lyrics are inspirational and have an underlying aggression. The vocals have a revolutionary as well as a comforting tone to them. We also have a vociferous ‘konnakol’ portion towards the end. On the whole, Maname is an uplifting experience indeed.

Maname Dubstep version - Karthik, composed by Prashant Pillai and Dub Sharma
The dubstep version of the song sounds like how it is meant to be. There is a start-stop pattern to the song replete with quirky sound effects and mixing gimmicks. The song might be too noisy for the majority of the crowd but it is an interesting attempt. This version is nowhere near the original though.

Maria Pitache - Vikram and Remo Fernandes, composed by Remo Fernandes ... CHEERS
Vikram turns in an uninhibited performance in this song which is a jolly celebratory beach number. It sounds like the famous Surangani song thanks to the similar framework. It borrows from styles like salsa and samba. The chorus proclaiming ‘Maria Pitache’ is catchy to a fault, one must say. Vikram’s terrific spirited drunken babble towards the end really lifts the spirits of the listener too.

Theerathu Poga Poga - Nirali Karthik and Joyshanti, composed by Maatibaani ... CHEERS
This one is a creative fusion piece with a string driven baseline. The contrast between the carnatic style vocals of the female singer and the foreign language utterances of the male singer is enjoyable. The pace of the song never dips one bit, and kudos to the entire team for pulling off a difficult number such as this with ease.  

Vaazhkaiye (The Theme of David) - Siddarth Basrur, composed by Bramfatura
The buildup to the start of the theme is haunting and intense. The unhurried beats support the song all through. The vocals express the pain and anguish in the lyrics pretty well. Ultimately the grim treatment of the entire theme and the beats are the highlight.

FINAL WORD: Such a varied collection of songs with so many new sounds ... David is a once in a blue-moon musical experience.

Race 2 review

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1.5 / 5

There are two templates that Bollywood has been following religiously over the past few years or so. One is the South Indian style mass masala movie and the other is the so-called slick and stylish Hollywood style action movie. ‘Race 2’ falls in the latter category and we already have the earlier ‘Race’ template which is filled with twists, turns and unpredictable happenings.

So director duo Abbas Mustan’s ‘Race 2’ is a loyal follow-up to the earlier ‘Race’ with the aforementioned Hollywood elements like eye-catching locations, nicely executed action scenes, bikini babes, macho lead men and rich production standards. Shiraz Ahmed has written the movie which is basically a game of revenge and calculating moves set in the backdrop of casinos and billions of money. It also gets predictably unpredictable, like the earlier ‘Race’.

‘Race 2’ has Saif Ali Khan and John Abraham as the lead players with Anil Kapoor playing the cop with questionable virtues. Deepika Padukone, Jacqueline Fernandez and Ameesha Patel keep the men company in their sizzling costumes which reveal their assets in ample portions. Saif and John have their ‘ishtyle’ moments as well thanks to some good styling and scenes which give them a larger-than-life positioning.

All the lead players have more shades of black than white and things like one-upmanship, betrayal, changing sides etc. are like second nature to them. As the tagline says, ‘Betrayal is survival’ for them. Ameesha Patel is the only harmless soul but she is more like an ‘item’ attraction with her dumb questions and plunging necklines.

Saif Ali Khan has nothing much to do save look stylish and deliver some punchy lines. John Abraham is a limited actor as we know and he is typically robotic in his performance. He flaunts his incredible body in one irritatingly long fight sequence with another man-mountain. Deepika Padukone looks fab and ups the sizzle quotient several meters high. This leggy lass doesn’t have any qualms in exposing her USP. The wild Jacqueline Fernandez reacts as if she is ready to devour the men who stand opposite her. Anil Kapoor and Ameesha Patel are the typical ‘fruit and nut’ combo as Deepika calls them. They have one scorching scene together as well.

The movie has some painstakingly done action scenes, choreographed by Peter Hein, thanks to healthy doses of inspiration from movies like the Mission Impossible series, Bourne Ultimatum and Casino Royale to name a few. But the action in the climax reaches the heights of silliness and has the potential to become a viral joke. Sample this. Saif Ali Khan launches himself out of a burning airplane from a supercar within and later, parachutes spring out from the car and save it from crash landing! You have to experience how audiences are reacting to this scene.

The songs by Pritam are all in party mode and may act as good stress-busters on MTV or 9XM. None of the songs have any role in the movie’s narrative though. They are just like music videos with glamorous film stars.

Ravi Yadav’s cinematography packs a lot of aerial shots to give an impression of grandeur. He has definitely done well. Istanbul is the major spot where Race 2 was shot.

After a fairly bearable first half, the second half peters out and boredom sets in, big-time. To top it all, we have the above mentioned climax action block as well. On the whole rich production values, a glitzy star cast and the technical crew’s hard work can only save a movie that much.

FINAL WORD: This one isn’t racy and the oodles of glitz and glamor are mere ‘showoff’ elements.

Inkaar review

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2 / 5

With the increasing presence of women in corporate offices, they are at an equal footing as the men. But as an offset to this emergence of women, issues like sexual harassment, office politics, scheming against women, male chauvinism and the resulting ego hassles, insecurity issues are also predominant. Director Sudhir Mishra has taken these issues and set them in a happening ad agency by the name KK & Doyle.

The main protagonists happen to be two really attractive individuals, named Rahul and Maya, who initially start off as mentor and protégé respectively but slowly become attracted to each other more than mere bed-buddies. But as human emotions get mixed with office dealings, things don’t continue to be smooth between them for long and beyond a point Maya throws a sexual harassment case against Rahul.

As an aftermath, an inquiry commission is held at the office, chaired by a subject-matter expert, and the hearings are spaced out over a couple of days. The movie goes back and forth in time frequently as we are shown the initial romance between the two and later their frequent run-ins, politics, insecurity issues and ego hassles. How this entire commission culminates is the resolution to this flick.

The insanely handsome Arjun Rampal is at ease playing the glamorous CEO of the ad agency. He is majestic, authoritative and his voice is a major plus. The smoking hot Chitrangada Singh looks fabulous and dresses like a top corporate person would. She overdoes her reactions at times though. Chitrangada also rips open her top and exposes her boobs in one of her vulnerable moments in the movie.

The chemistry between the lead pair is intense with some making-out scenes thrown in. But most of the movie is devoted to the constant egoistic one-upmanship battles between them. The other characters in the movie are all minor pawns and they are all involved in the inquiry commission as witnesses and as people who testify. Vipin Sharma makes a mark among these actors with his sly entertaining remarks.

The workings of a top ad agency have been shown pretty well. The research and discussions involved, the jingles, designations like copywriter and creative director etc. add to the overall authenticity. But one wonders if the normal ad agency employee can have such a flashy lifestyle.

The film also has some nice dialogues spoken by Arjun about the difference between flirting and sexual harassment. Chitrangada’s dialog about being an alpha woman in the presence of so many alpha men is again scathing.

   

Most of the movie happens indoors, either inside the hearing room or within a poshly decked room. Beyond a point you start feeling tedious as the hearings don’t seem to have a proper resolution in sight with both the protagonists giving their own versions of the story like in Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon. Thanks to his single-minded pursuit of his subject, the director has inadvertently given room for some monotony and tedium in the normal viewer. The ending also turns out to be a cinematic compromise.

The music by Shantanu Moitra doesn’t have much room in the scheme of things save the odd montage song here and there. The cinematography is also pretty basic as most of the movie is set indoors and the few shots of Mumbai are also what we have seen in plenty of movies before.

In all, the issue visited by the director is very relevant and current but his execution isn’t razor sharp. One feels that the movie won’t find takers in the mainstream entertainment market.  

FINAL WORD: Inkaar is a pertinent issue based movie but it doesn’t jolt or grip you. 

Superbad (2007)

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Superbad is one of those really cool films which give you a dose of the life that American high school-ers experience. There is friendship, love, lust, crushes, fun with booze and a whole lot of things that would give you a nice feel-good quotient at the end of the movie.

The movie is basically the efforts made by Seth, Evan and Fogell to make a party, memorable. They feel that booze is the X-Factor that would get them laid with the chicks and make the party a remarkable one. Fogell gets a fake ID with the name McLovin to get the required booze. But on his adventure, he gets caught up with a couple of madcap cops, Slater and Michaels, who just want to have some boyish fun.

Seth and Evan also do their part to get the booze - they make an appearance at an adults' party and it is another crazy ride for them. They go through one helluva ride to finally make it to the party organized by Jules, Seth's crush. Becca and Evan also have a little thing for each other. At the party, Fogell also gets his share of tits and ass, well almost ...

In the end, the movie is as much about the intense friendship between Evan and Seth as it is about their natural growing process filled with fetishes toward the females.

The movie also introduces us to some classic terms like cock-blocking, guiding the cock and such. The screenplay is such a ride that you just can't help coming to the edge of your seats and travelling along with the main leads. You will actually envy the life that these kids are living. Hollywood party movies are always such an escapist ride. You just can't have such parties in your daily lives.

Jonah Hill, my man, he is such a natural. An uninhibited performer who goes all out and doesn't mind playing the fool. We can feel the intensity of his friendship when he carries his friend in the end to escape from the cops. That scene in the end, when the two friends lie down beside each other and repeatedly tell "I Love You" to each other is gay though. Hill's stunt-double actually takes some nasty falls as he is knocked over by cars on more than one instance. The scene when he dances with a girl who is in her monthly period and the efforts that he makes to remove the resultant blood stains from his pant are absolutely crazy. The way he walks around with beer in a couple of big cans is also pretty weird.

The scenes, when McLovin and the two cops go around the town painting it red with their antics, are again delightfully funny and escapist.

Among the other actors, Michael Cera is damn girly and delicate as Evan while Christopher Mintz-Plasee is a dude in his own nerdy way, as Fogell. The cops, played by Bill Hader and Seth Rogen (also one of the writers) give the boys a run for their money with their antics. The girls in the movie are all pretty and hot.  

FINAL WORD: An all-time classic in the 'boys comedy' genre, meant for the hormone driven youth.

Puthagam review

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1.5 / 5

We are introduced to the lives of three thick friends - Mohan, Anthony and Radha. They aren't well-off and depend on the meager money that Anthony and Radha earn, to make it through the daily rigors of life. But, the trio is chilled out to the core in their mansion. Mohan also has a super cute girlfriend by the name Divya, a daredevil TV reporter who goes all out to bring the truth out. She pisses off a few politicians in the process.

The main plot of the movie revolves around crores and crores of money. The friends somehow manage to get hold of the money and they use it to improve their impoverished ways. But trouble isn't far away. The friends are soon chased by goons and the likes, as the source of this money is a politician with shady dealings and contacts.

How the friends manage to free themselves from the mess is Puthagam's resolution.

• Rakul Preet Singh is a girl with huge potential. She is cute, hot, talented and much more rolled into one. Stuff of dreams ... Her lip sync is perfect too. The romance portions are breezy thanks to her reactions and natural portrayal. 
• The hero Sathya is one huge dud. He doesn't know to emote.
• We have some old fashioned bonding between the friends and also lot of sentiment scenes. The friends are pretty realistic and their antics are half-enjoyable.
• The movie begins interestingly with the mansion playing the narrator and the core idea of the movie is also interesting. But too many characters, slow pace etc. play spoilsport. 
• James Vasanthan's songs and BGM score are decent. But the placement of songs leaves a lot to be desired. 'Mella Poopukudhe' and 'Money is so funny' are good songs, no doubt.  
• Jagapathy Babu sometimes overdoes his 'dude' act with a toothpick in mouth, always. He looks debonair and comes out fairly unscathed. His sexy side-kick played by Rachana Maurya is passable. 
• There are a plethora of TV artistes to support TV actor turned director Vijay Aadhiraj. Goodwill huh! In fact, the film has too many characters.
• The director has also tried too many things in the same movie - friendship, romance, thriller, sentiment etc. He could have had more focus and clarity

FINAL WORD: Decent plot but badly executed. Rakul Preet Singh may be a solid reason to see the movie though.

Samar review

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2 / 5

Vishal is back on screens after quite a while with director Thiru with whom he has already worked on Theeradha Vilayattu Pillai a few years back. Trisha and Sunaina are the female leads while J.D.Chakravarthy, Manoj Bajpai, Sampath, Sreeman, Jayaprakash and John Vijay complete a formidable support cast.

Pre-release, there were talks of Vishal having done his first dual role in his career. The movie also made it to the news for its long release related issues. Finally, it has made it today for Pongal without much fanfare.

The movie begins with Vishal being introduced as Shakthi, a forest ranger in Ooty who is required to fly to Bangkok to patch up with his estranged girlfriend Roopa (Sunaina). He meets Maya (Trisha) on his way to Bangkok and they hit it off quite well. Once he lands in Bangkok, he is lured into a maze of events as he is mistaken to be a Bangkok billionaire (obviously a lookalike) who also has the same name, but spelt as Sakthi.

Men and machine don’t seem to mind the fact that our Indian Shakthi signs with an ‘h’ but still their signatures are passed off to be the same.

After an interesting and gripping first half, the second half answers questions like why is Shakthi caught in this situation, what’s the basis of all this and how he manages to set himself free from the people who lead him into this. 

The movie sadly loses fizz once we get to know the seed idea of it all. The villains turn out to be a big downer with their contrived and clichéd dialogs. The seed idea of the movie also seems to be too farfetched and childish, though it is an idea based on fantasy. A few noted Hollywood flicks have towed a similar line before with great success. Their names aren’t being revealed for fear of being spoilers.

The tall and handsome Vishal rocks in the action sequences as he puts his height and physique to good use to perform even Parkour routines. His performance leaves a lot to be desired though. He maintains the same stoic pose throughout the movie and seems to lack the all-important screen presence. Trisha has more screen time than the normal commercial heroine and looks ravishing despite knocking on the doors of 30. Sunaina’s is more like a guest appearance limited to the beginning and the ‘Azhago Azhago’ number. The rest of the aforementioned actors are all part of the movie’s main core and some of them fall way short.

The movie has been shot very well by Richard Nathan who also has a small role in the movie. The aerial shots of Bangkok are awe-inspiring and the ‘Poikaal Kuthirai’ number has been interestingly shot and placed very well too. Yuvan’s BGM score seems to have borrowed heavily from his score for another movie set in South East Asia, Ajith’s Billa, but it still sounded apt for the suspense actioner genre of the film. Among the songs, his score for the ‘Azhago Azhago’ track is melodious.

The action scenes choreographed by Kanal Kannan are among the other highlights. Each half has one solid fight sequence to talk about. When Vishal bashes people and sends them flying all over the place, it looks believable.

The movie doesn’t have any comedy track and the director ought to be appreciated for not bowing down to such commercial demands that too in the current scenario when the likes of Santhanam are almost a must for any mainstream movie. This lack of mainstream elements in the movie might also turn off the general masses that just come for some popcorn entertainment.

To sum up, director Thiru has given a movie which begins well and incites your interest at the halfway point. But, once the knots are untied, the end feeling isn’t one of satisfaction.

FINAL WORD: A half-baked suspense flick which fizzles out towards the end. It’s still watchable though.