Indian Cinema: 2011

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Siruthai Review

Siruthai-Review

Movie
Siruthai

Director
Siva

Producer
Studio Green

Music
Vidyasagar

Cast
Karthi, Tamannaah, Avinash, Santhanam

It may look easy, but the most difficult thing is to make remakes work. Karthi’s Siruthai directed by Siva is almost a scene by scene, dialogue by dialogue remake of Ravi Teja’s Telugu SS Rajamouli’s Vikramarkudu (2006).

First and foremost, SS Rajamouli’s Tamil remakes have not met with the same kind of success in Tamil, like the original in Telugu. Secondly, Ravi Teja’s unique style of comedy and action is very difficult to imitate.

The makers of Siruthai has a disclaimer in the beginning of the film which clearly says story takes place in Andhra, but characters will speak in Tamil! Rocket Raja (Karthi) is a petty thief and along with his buddy Kattupoochi (Santhanam) make merry. A rich girl Shwetha (Tamannaah) falls head over heels in love with our hero.

Suddenly out of the blue, a 5-year old girl pops up claiming that she is Rocket’s daughter and all hell breaks loose. The twist in the tale is a look-alike of Raja in the form of Retnavel Pandian (Karthi) an honest ‘Dirty Harry’ type of IPS officer who had cleaned up a lawless town in Kurnool held to ransom by Bhavuji (Avinash). The rest of the film is all about how Rocket Raja turns a good guy in uniform and takes care of baddies.

This is one of those mindless and stereotype mass entertainers we have seen in 70’s and 80’s, which will not appeal to the current generation. All the clichéd masalas associated with this genre- hero in a dual role, huge cardboard mansions, a rich pretty educated girl falling for an illiterate uncouth pickpocket, songs in foreign locations, loud crass comedy, item number, villains who ham throughout with funny wigs and a predictable climax.

Not that such genre comes with an expiry date, but a five-film old Karthi is no Chulbul Pandey (Salman Khan in Dabangg)! And after doing sensible films till now, can’t figure out why this talented young actor chose such an old-fashioned film masquerading as an entertainer. Vidyasagar’s music makes you snore. Technically there is nothing to complain or talk about.

The performances by Karthi and Tamannaah are embarrassingly over-the-top. Our heart goes out to Tamannaah who is reduced to a mere caricature with too much of skin show. We really hope that she chooses projects in future that play up her strengths. The villains, Avinash & Co hams to the hilt. Santhanam is the only saving grace.

On the whole, Siruthai doesn't have a shred of intelligence, and it suffers big time with a lame script.

Verdict: Test of endurance

AADUKALAM MOVIE REVIEW

Starring: Dhanush, Jayabalan, Kishore, Tapasee
Direction: Vetrimaaran
Music: GV Prakash Kumar
Production: Kathiresan
The Polladhavan combination of director Vetrimaaran, music director G V Prakash and cinematographer Velraj with Dhanush and Kishore is back once again in one of the first releases of 2011. In Aadukalam, Vetrimaaran takes to Madurai backdrop and rooster fights to tell his story in a distinct manner which makes his enterprise stand out tall and high from the rest of the crop.

Resorting to rural milieu is not something uncommon in Tamil cinema but the director has justified the usage of his premise ably. Having said that, he has employed myriad human emotions like unquestionable trust and the breach of it, loyalty, pain, anguish, manipulation and remorse to convey his tale.
Rearing roosters, maintaining them and using them for fights is a way of life and a matter of honor and lifeline to many people. In such a tenement, Pettaikaarar (Jayabalan) leads a very respectable life with his key aides Durai (Kishore) and Karuppu (Dhanush) along with others. His main adversary in rooster fights is Rathinam, the police inspector. Pettaikaarar is known to have an impeccable track record of successes when it comes to rooster fights especially with Rathinam’s.
In an unexpected situation, Pettaikaarar challenges Rathinam to a cockeral fight which witnesses Karuppu violating his mentor Pettaikaarar’s word but emerging successfully with enviable proceeds. This results in the swelling of his status among his folks which plants the seeds of animosity in the minds of Pettaikaarar. Rest of Aadukalam travels on an unexpected path with twists and turns highlighting on the way the multiple layers of human emotions with sense playing truant.
The major plus point of Aadukalam is its strength in characterization. Nowhere in the film will you find the characters oscillating. Vetrimaaran proves that he is after all an adept raconteur with an eye for details. Every scene substantiates his efforts. The amount of detailing especially pertaining to the roosters needs plaudits which incidentally justifies the long period in making.
It will be an understatement to say Dhanush steals the show as the actor has lived the role of Karuppu. What a multitude of expressions in a single twitch of muscle or in a raised eyebrow? It is a visual treat to watch the talented lad perform be it the love that he feels towards Tapasee or the rambunctious jive he breaks into when she declares her love for him or the pain he feels when Jayabalan treats him badly or his regret when he loses his mom or the anguish on discovering betrayal. Dhanush is a revelation and makes you wonder if anyone else could have done justice to this role.
Jayabalan, the Tamil poet as the Pettaikaarar delivers an effective portrayal. With the right kind of expressions and body language, he demonstrates a new type of villainy and Radha Ravi’s voice adds strength to his role. Tapasee Pannu as the Anglo Indian girl Irene is adequate and portrays her role in a respect-worthy fashion. Kishore as Durai with Samudirakkani’s voice is valuable. Besides these, there are many small characters that make their mark like the Pettaikaarar’s young wife, Karuppu’s friend and so on.
G V Prakash’s music elevates Aadukalam and intensifies the effect over the audience. Songs are rightly placed and none of them are contrived. While Otha sollaale makes the audience boogie, Ayyayo and Yathe Yathe’s melody enthrals them. His BGM during the pre-interval rooster fight slowly reaching the crescendo adds up to the suspense quotient and the spiralling frenzy. The action sequence in the climax is realistic and credible. Velraj’s camera travels to nook and corner of Madurai areas and sucks in the audience to the film.
On the flipside, the film is a tad lengthy in the first half and there are patches of slowness but they are few and far between. It is evident that the director has resorted to graphics for rooster fights to abide by the rules of animal welfare board.
In all, Aadukalam is an attempt that requires appreciation where the director has hacked his way through the path less trodden with aplomb. Aadukalam reiterates that Vetrimaaran belongs to the league of film makers who has understood the semiotics of film making perfectly.
Verdict: A winning rooster!

Veppam A First Look At Veppam

Director Gautham Vasudev Menon is known to do things in style. Photon Kathaas, his home banner, is producing Veppam, which promises to be different in presentation and narration. The director is Anjana, his former assistant, while Nani from Telugu and Karthik Kumar play heroes. The film is a rugged, city-based story. The lead heroines are Bindu Madhavi and Nitya Menon. The camerawork is by Kalavani fame Om Prakash.

Pathinaru Review

Pathinaru

Movie
Pathinaru

Director
D.Sabapathy

Music
Yuvan Shankar Raja

Cast
Siva, Madhu Shalini, Abhishek

Director Sabapathy’s Pathinaru is all about romance that fails to blossom. The subtle message he wants to convey is that falling in love is easy but there are too many obstacles in the way of true love ending in marriage.

Rich industrialist (Abhishek) only daughter Indu (Madhu Shalini) falls in love with Siva (Mirchi Shiva), her senior in college. Girl and boy secretly want to get married. The girl’s parents fiercely oppose the marriage. Girl’s mom asks them to read a novel Pathinaru.

As they read the novel together, in a flashback, the audiences are told about the circumstances that made the author write the autobiographical story. A boy and girl coming from different strata of society in a village milieu fall in love from their childhood.

The girl is obstinate that under any circumstances that she will only marry the boy. Fate intervenes and separates the lovers. The identity of the village lovers is revealed which forces Shiva and Indu to have a rethink about their marriage plans.

The film is under two hours, but Mirchi Siva has hardly 15 to 20 minutes in the film. It looks as though he is doing a cameo. The entire focus is on the village love story, and most of the happenings lack logic. In the climax Shiva tracking down the old lovers including the author of the book to Kodaikanal is hard to digest.

The only silver lining in the film is Yuvan Shankar Raja’s music. The film does not have storyline strong enough to hold viewers interest post interval and it looked like Sabapathy was in a hurry to end it.

Verdict- Average

In 3 Idiots Again Vijay ! How ??

Gemini Film Circuit and Shankar had initially signed up Vijay to do the Tamil version of the blockbuster Aamir Khan's Rajkumar Hirani directed 3 Idiots.
Later Vijay walked out of the film sighting 'date reasons' and rumours of Shankar not happy with the star's reluctance to go for a new look.

At that time, Suriya was roped into the project by Shankar. Suriya's only condition for doing the film was his salary (rumoured to be Rs 12 Crore) plus the Telugu dubbing rights (today's market rate Rs 8 to Rs 10 Crore).
GFC was not willing to give the dubbing rights as they hold the 3 Idiots remake rights for Telugu and was planning to do it with Mahesh Babu.

Meanwhile Shankar started the shoot of the Tamil remake in Ooty and also said he will break the deadlock with Suriya who will join the shoot in February end.
Bur Shankar-Suriya talks broke down as the actor insisted on Telugu dubbing rights, which Shankar knew would make the project unviable.

It was around this time that Shankar started renegotiating with Vijay. Vijay who against all odds was able to release Kaavalan also decided not to dabble in Tamil Nadu politics for the time being.
His father SA Chandrasekhar in an interview to a national daily kept the door open for his son's entry into politics by saying 'Vijay will enter politics when he is 40'.
It was the badly needed breather for Vijay as channels which were opposed to his entry into politics started showing Kaavalan trailer and songs.

Assuming that Vijay does not enter politics for the next three years (he turns 40 in 2014), he has to give hits. Kaavalan's success has proved that Vijay has a solid mass base and if he does good family movies, he can win over the lady audiences. And there is no better director than Shankar to reach the masses and classes alike.
Vijay has now signed the film and will join the film end February after he completes Velayudham.