Thalaimuraigal Review from Rediff!!

After more than four decades in the film industry, ace filmmaker Balu Mahendra, who has given us some memorable films in Veedu, Sandhya Ragam and Moondram Pirai, makes his acting debut in Thalaimuraigal. He has also written, directed, edited and wielded the camera for the film.

This is the first time that the 74-year-old director, who started his career as a cinematographer, has shot a film in the digital format with a still camera, the Canon 5D DSLR. Thalaimuraigal is produced by M Sasikumar`s company, Film Productions, and he also makes a cameo appearance in the film.

The film stars Ramya Shankar, Vinodhini, S Sashi and Master Karthick. Ilaiyaraaja has composed the music for the film. The story opens with a phone call to Dr Siva (Sashi) from his childhood friend Govind, who informs him that his estranged father is recovering from a massive stroke.

It is 12 years since Siva has last seen his father Subbu (Balu Mahendra). Siva was thrown out of the house by his orthodox father for marrying a Christian girl, Stella (Ramya Shankar).

Though deeply upset at the news, Siva is in a dilemma as he is not sure that his father will accept him back. Stella, however, convinces him to go and Siva makes the journey to his village to see his ailing father. Subbu is rude and overbearing initially, but he cannot hide the joy and pride at seeing his son, a successful doctor.

Stella, who is very keen to give their son Aditya (Master Karthick) an opportunity to know his grandfather, also joins him after a couple of days.
At the very first glimpse of his grandson, Subbu is overjoyed, and all the anger and hatred just seem to melt away. Even the contempt for his Christian daughter-in-law vanishes.

Subbu is now just an old man trying to understand his grandson, who does not speak a word of Tamil. Unfortunately, Subbu not only does not understand English, but even hates the language.

Is there a common meeting ground? Can they break the strong barriers of caste, religion and language and find love and respect for each other? All this is revealed with a lot of sensitivity and simplicity in the second half of the film.
Balu Mahendra’s effortless performance in Thalaimuraigai proves that acting is yet another skill to be added to his already long list of accomplishments.
He plays an angry father, who eventually comes to regret his orthodox beliefs; his perception of caste and language differences are changed by his grandson and daughter-in-law.

Despite all the differences, the underlying love and pride between the father, son and grandson is brought out beautifully. Master Karthick plays the bright and intelligent grandson, whose curiosity and earnestness will definitely make you smile. All the others too, have excelled in their respective roles.

There are no songs to mar the narration and the background score by Ilaiyaraaja remains inconspicuous, subtly bringing out the depth and intensity of the film, while enhancing the natural sounds of the singing birds and the flowing water. Balu Mahendra is a master of cinematography and his love for shooting in natural light is evident throughout the film.

Director Balu Mahendra's Thalaimuraigal is a heartwarming tale of a grandfather coming to terms with his own conservative values and beliefs, while at the same time instilling in his grandson, a sense of pride and appreciation in his language and culture.

Rating:***1/2

http://www.rediff.com/movies/report/review-thalaimuraigal-is-brilliant-south/20131223.htm

Ezhu Sundara Rathrikal Reviews from Rediff!

Everything goes wrong in the first 30 minutes of Malayalam film Ezhu Sundara Rathrikal, and the people involved in it try their best to salvage the situation. Finally, everything gets untangled in the last 15 minutes and the audience goes home happy. There are a few guffaws, a couple of heartaches and one or two action sequences punctuating the narrative. This description is suffice to summarise Lal Jose's Ezhu Sundara Rathrikal, with his actor friend Dileep in the lead. Aby (Dileep), a hotshot ad-maker, decides to finally get married. He has a painful history, where the girl he had loved left him just days before their wedding.

After getting intoxicated in his own bachelor’s party, Aby decides to invite his old flame Sini (Rima Kallingal). When he reaches there, she is alone and both boast about their respective life partners. Sini is married to a boxer called Tyson Alex (Murali Gopy) and Aby is engaged to one of his models Ann (Parvathy Nambiar).

Their meeting results in complications that compel them to meet again and again. How they do it dodging their partners and their large circle of common friends before the hell breaks loose, is what the film is all about.So, this is the story of seven beautiful nights from the day of the bachelor’s party to the day of the wedding, penned by James Albert (who had first scripted Classmates for the director). The narrative goes back and forth every now and then.

Tyson Alex is presented as an uncouth person, who seriously is a threat to Sini as she tells Aby once that their relationship exists only because they have a child. The rest of the ensemble cast that includes Harisree Asokan, Tini Tom, Vijayraghavan, Sreejith Ravi and others provide comic relief at a sporadic interval. Parvathy Nambiar, who makes her debut in this film, has an angelic smile that makes up for any deficiencies in her performance.

Rima Kallingal, who has to look distressed in her post marriage scenes, is good as nothing much is demanded of her. Dileep has to have two distinct looks as a young photographer (which he does with a wig of shoulder length hair and stubble) and his age today as a matured ad-maker. Wishing for any other distinction in his character would be asking for too much. Ezhu Sundara Rathrikal may have been an attempt to look at the fickleness of relationships in today’s times in a humourous way but it does not have the desired effect.

Rating:**

http://www.rediff.com/movies/report/review-ezhu-sundara-rathrikal-falls-flat/20131223.htm

Veeram Review from Rediff!!

After the huge success of Aarambam, expectations were sky-high for the Ajith starrer Veeram. Directed by Siva, who gave the commercially successful Siruthai in 2011, the film is produced by Vijaya Productions, the prestigious banner of the late producer B. Nagi Reddy.
Set in a rural backdrop, Veeram is a slow-paced family drama that revolves around Vinayagam (Ajith) and his four brothers Vidharth, Bala, Munish and Suhail Chandhok. All of them are known to be extremely violent and get into fights at the slightest provocation.
Vinayagam has brought up his brothers single-handed and is determined to stay unmarried as he fears that bringing a woman into the house will disrupt the family and cause a rift among the brothers.
The brothers, however, have other plans.  Two of them are already in love and believe that the only way to make Vinayagam approve would be to make him fall in love, too.
On a mission to find an ideal match for their brother, they zero in on Kopperundevi (Tamannaah), who is part of a group that restores old statues in temples.
Along with Santhanam, who is their lawyer and friend, they devise several plans to bring Vinayagam and Kopperundevi together. After a few hiccups, the two do fall in love, but now there is a decided twist in the story.
Will it be Vinayagam’s violent past that destroys his chance at happiness or will Kopperundevi and her family’s past come to haunt them? All this in the second half that seems to be just as slow as the first.
The film seems to pick up momentum only during the action sequences. 
Ajith sports a different look in the second half, reminding us a little of the good old boy-next-door Ajith of Vaali and Villain.
After Billa, Ajith seems to have acquired this all-powerful indestructible image that seems to have struck a chord with the audience, and all his directors seem to be bending over backwards to nurture this image.
Though his dark glasses, black T-shirts and expensive suits have been replaced by a snow-white dhoti and shirt, he still maintains his larger-than-life persona in Veeram and effortlessly destroys the enemy with his power-packed punches and equally powerful dialogues, guaranteed to send his fans into a mad frenzy.
Tamannaah is totally unsuited to this sad, saree-clad boring character and has little to do in the film.
Santhanam lacks his usual spark, but Thambi Ramaiya in the second half provides some laughs. 
There are no terrifying villains in the movie either; their sole aim seems to be getting bashed up by Ajith.  The action sequences choreographed by Silva, however, do deserve some credit.
The song Nalavannu Solvanga has become quite popular, but otherwise there is nothing remarkable about Devi Sri Prasad’s music in Veeram.
Though there is no denying that the super cool, ultra stylish Ajith can carry off any movie on his broad and powerful shoulders, there is nothing remarkable about Siva’s Veeram. 
With an ordinary story line, an average screenplay and characters that are all overshadowed by one man, the film seems like an ode to Ajith and should be dedicated to all his fans.

Rating:**1/2

http://www.rediff.com/movies/review/review-veeram-is-a-treat-for-ajith-fans-south/20140110.htm

Silence Review from Rediff!

Paresh C Palicha says Silence is the first attempt at serious film making from the writer-director team of Y V Rajesh and V K Prakash and have made a decent attempt.

Watching Mammootty play a legal eagle is always interesting. May be because he is a qualified lawyer in real life too. Director V K Prakash seems to know this fact well and uses it to his advantage in his new film Silence.

Written by Y V Rajesh, this legal thriller has taken its inspiration from a couple of Hollywood films to make a highly watchable film.

Arvind Chandrasekhar (Mammootty) is a very successful lawyer, who is appointed judge in the Bengaluru High Court. He is the youngest person to achieve this distinction. Before taking the oath, he visits his parents in Kerala. There he is harassed by an anonymous caller, who says he is not fit to be a judge. At first he thinks it’s a prank played by some friend or a rival.

But things get serious when his wife and children face dangerous situations supposedly created by the same caller. So he tries to dig into his past to see if he has made any mistakes or unintentionally hurt anyone.

He uncovers the mystery in the beginning of the second half and sets out to correct his past mistake before assuming charge as a judge.

The first half moves at break neck speed. But the momentum is lost in the second half as Arvind goes on a fact-finding mission to find his mistake and correct it.

The film borrows heavily from the Richard Gere starrer, Primal Fear (1996).

Among the legion of supporting actors is Anoop Menon who plays a high-ranking police officer and a batch mate of Aravind’s in law college. He had a crush on Sangeetha (Pallavi Purohit) who later married Aravind.

Jayaprakash Kuloor is a Malayali priest and Joy Mathew plays Markos who wanted the judgeship that went to Aravind.

Mammootty gives a controlled performance as Aravind. His greying sideburns and moustache somehow add to his vulnerability.

Silence is the first attempt at serious film making from the writer-director team of Y V Rajesh and V K Prakash after low-brow comedies such as Gulumaal and Threekings.

It is notches above the previous attempts and highly watchable.

Rating:**1/2
http://www.rediff.com/movies/report/review-mammoottys-silence-is-worth-a-watch-south/20131209.htm

Drishyam Review by Rediff!

Mohanlal steals the show in Drishyam says Paresh C Palicha Mohanlal was endearing in roles where he played the common man. But, as his stature grew, we saw less of the kind of roles that had brought him stardom.

As a big star, he played those ‘larger than life’ roles that had the fans clapping and whistling at the superhuman feats of their idol.

The subtlety that was the hallmark of his earlier films became increasingly rare and the sly sense of humour gave way to a louder variety.

In his new film Drishyam, director Jeethu Joseph focuses on the endearing persona of the actor by casting him as Georgekutty, an orphan who had dropped out of school after the fourth grade.

He has come up in life by tilling his land. Now he is businessman running a cable TV service in a rural area. He is married to Rani (Meena) and they have two beautiful daughters.

Georgekutty is stingy and does not like to spend money on anything beyond the basic necessities. His only interest in life apart from his family is watching films. He spends most of his time in front of the TV in his small office.

He is so obsessed with movies that he takes every major decision in life by subconsciously taking an example from some film he has seen.

These details are revealed in a humorous manner in the first half of the film. There’s an obvious twist just before the interval. Georgekutty’s teenaged daughter gets photographed in the bathroom at a nature camp by a hidden cell phone.

The culprit Varun (Roshan Basheer) is the son of an inspector general of police, Geetha Prabhakar (Asha Sarath). Varun is accidentally killed by Rani and her daughter when he comes to blackmail them. It is up to Georgekutty to protect his family from the long arm of the law.

Jeethu Joseph makes this into an ‘edge of the seat’ thriller in the second half by making Georgekutty stay two steps ahead of the investigators.

Georgekutty prepares his family to face the torturous interrogations. He also makes sure that his family does not psychologically break up in the face of coercive police tactics.

Mohanlal is spellbinding in this film. That is too simple a statement to describe the magic he has created on screen.

He plays a semi-literate man who is nevertheless intelligent. He is conversant in many languages, a skill that he acquired watching all those films on TV.

He was mischievous as a teenager, and when he flirts with his wife, but is incredibly mature when dealing with dire circumstances.

Meena as his wife Rani is a middle-class woman who aspires for a better lifestyle and social standing. She holds her own opposite Mohanlal and is one of the highlights of the film.

Kalabhavan Shajon who usually plays the comic sidekick of the hero, has made a successful transition to a villain in this project. He plays a corrupt police constable who has some animosity against Georgekutty. Drishyam can be credited for bringing Mohanlal back to form and pushing director Jeethu Joseph into the big league as he has made a cracker of a thriller.

Rating:***1/2
http://www.rediff.com/movies/review/review-drishyam-is-mohanlals-film/20131220.htm

Dhoom 3 Review by Raja sen!

Dhoom 3 is a children’s film made for children who’ve never seen a film, writes Raja Sen.
Twenty minutes into Dhoom 3, reeling from the assault of cinema so amateurish it’s hard to believe it was put together by grown men, I began to ask myself precisely what this film was trying to be.

There was an annoying kid borrowed from the melodrama of Subhash Ghai movies, complete with a moist-eyed Jackie Shroff. There were the cheesiest of dialogues, Kader Khan in Dickensian mode.

There were stunts seemingly executed in slow-motion and shown to us even slower, resulting in yawnworthy chase scenes. There was Aamir Khan running down the side of a building for no apparent reason. Everything -- repeat, everything -- looked too goofy to be either thrilling or realistic or compelling or even plain fun.

And then it hit me. Dhoom 3 is a children’s film made for children who’ve never seen a film.

How else can you explain this famine of originality? How else can you possibly justify the lack of a single interesting scene right up to the intermission? And how, after that, can you account for Aamir Khan’s blatant exploitation of yet another Christopher Nolan masterpiece that the actor (by his own admission) doesn’t understand?

Look here, I liked the first and second Dhoom films. The first was brisk enough to breeze by, the second was sheer masala but presented well, an utterly preposterous but very good looking film. The reason I’ve been looking forward to this film, however, was the fact that I was one of the half-dozen people on the planet who actually liked the director’s first film, Tashan. All I wanted from Vijay Krishna Acharya’s third installment, then, was a film that made like a firecracker and went boom -- even if it didn’t make sense.

But this is a Christmas debacle.

We start with Chicago in the year 1990, though it may as well be a hundred years ago. An old magician (Shroff), his labrador-brown eyes eternally wet with tears, runs a circus housed in a massive structure the size of the New York Public Library. The bank moves in to cut off his loan and Shroff, instead of perhaps leasing out the place and moving to a humbler venue, decides to kill himself. For how dare the evil bankers remain unmoved by his clown-nose wearing son? 

Said son grows up to become Aamir Khan, a frequently shirtless man who sleeps in corduroy trousers. Oh, and robs banks, since banks = evil.
American police seem ill-equipped to handle things (The Rock must have had the month off) and thus, naturally, help is imported from back in India. Where Uday Chopra’s Ali spends several minutes talking up his boss to goons -- in “Don’t you know he’s Dirty Harry?” vein -- before the aforementioned boss shows up flying through the air in an auto-rickshaw with stickers of Salman Khan film optimistically on either side. 
Abhishek Bachchan’s Jai Dikshit seems a nice enough fellow, if somewhat surly, but he happens to be a remarkably incompetent police officer. (I mean, if not from Dad, at least take some pointers from Iftekhar Uncle’s movies, Abhishek?) Here’s a fellow who, when he traps a fleeing motorcycle on a bridge, helpfully tilts it up to offer the fugitive a convenient ramp. The rest of the time he scowls. 
Ah, and then there’s the girl. Apparently all the “hot Asian ladkiyan” in Chicago have been auditioned for Khan’s Great Indian Circus act but none has enough “liquid electricity,” whatever in innuendo’s name that means. Enter Katrina Kaif, all stuntwoman-flexible and whippety hairdo, looking like a million bucks and speaking, disconcertingly enough, like a 12-year-old. 
The rest of the film is, essentially, a dumbed-down version of Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige, arguably the greatest movie ever made about magicians. Aamir Khan, who claimed Ghajini was a great story but that he didn’t understand Nolan’s groundbreaking Memento, will probably say some such about this bit of shameless pilfering as well.
Oh, and he uses a Joker sign too, to boot. (I can already picture ambitious young screenwriters lining up outside Khan’s bungalow with easy-to-understand song-filled scripts titled Sapne Mein Sapna.) 
The other thing in this film is The Face. If you’ve seen the trailer or the songs or the posters, you know what I’m talking about. It’s the perplexingly weird expression Aamir sticks onto his face throughout, and the smugness with which he wears the A-Face makes me wonder if we’re all -- inadvertently and inescapably -- seeing his vinegar strokes over and over again. If we’re eskimo brothers now, Aamir Bhai, must say you messed up. Big time. 
Not that Khan’s acted badly. Oh no. Outside of The Face, he’s pretty solid and has the charisma to power this film through, especially when he’s being all summery: i.e. all cutesy smirks and grins and chortles, a happy part of his repertoire the actor seemed to have left behind awhile ago. He also deserves credit for being a massive superstar who has agreed to look, occasionally, like an Oompah-Loompah; he’s been shot most unflatteringly. It is purely because of Khan that the (three) dramatic twists in this movie have any heft at all, but even he can’t help the vacant nothingness that engulfs the script before and after those stray moments. 
But, you might persist, having already bought into the exorbitantly priced weekend tickets, aren’t the stunts good? Or IMAX-worthy? Well, the locations aren’t bad. It’s mostly shot in Chicago, and some of the vistas used as backgrounds for the bridges look pretty awesome.
The stunts themselves, however, are both pointless and badly edited. Khan’s bike (which is a Transformer, for some reason) is flung around excitably enough but hurling action figures isn’t the same as choreographing an action set-piece. So much time is spent in slow-motion, and so long do we linger on each shot, that the chases appear sluggish. There is no sense of urgency. At one point, stationary police cars randomly start to do cartwheels, perhaps only to indulge Acharya’s inner Rohit Shetty. Like I said, if your child doesn’t know what movies are, he might be amused. For a bit. 
The trick, of course, is on us. Shroff might have called his act The Box In The Box, but producer Aditya Chopra goes one better, knowing we’ll show up to watch a Dhoom film if only to laugh at it. This time around, Aamir’s The Boy In The Box Office.

Rating:*1/2
http://www.rediff.com/movies/review/raja-sen-reviews-dhoom-3-its-dumber-than-the-first-two/20131220.htm

Dhoom 3 Review by Rediff!

Dhoom 3 continues the tradition of extravagance in adventure and expenditure by roping in the fastidious Aamir Khan as its latest star antagonist, writes Sukanya Verma.
The Dhoom brand has always been about the bad guy. It may not necessarily glorify evil but glamourizing its illegal and implausible actions takes precedence in the Yash Raj produced series.

If Dhoom worked John Abraham’s Fast and Furious energy for a renewed take on the classic thieves versus cops theme, Dhoom 2 upped the ante with its scale and a smoking chemistry between Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.
Dhoom 3 continues the tradition of extravagance in adventure and expenditure by roping in the fastidious Aamir Khan as its latest star antagonist.

Realistically, of course, Dhoom is a fun albeit dumb franchise that is unapologetically nonsensical, intellect proof and relies on the shenanigans of its smooth, superficial villains and their hot pursuit at the hands of police officers -- deadpan Jai (Abhishek Bachchan) and dummy Ali (Uday Chopra).

Only this time Vijay Krishna Acharya (of Tashan fame) takes over Sanjav Gadhvi as director.

Ever since its first promo came out, know-alls drew visual comparisons to The Dark Knight, Now You See Me and The Prestige. They aren’t too off the mark.

Let’s just say, the crucial plot points/imagery of these fine films left a lasting impression on Acharya and Aditya Chopra, sharing the credits for Dhoom 3’s story, which revolves around a circus showman (Aamir Khan) and his dramatic connection to two publically executed bank heists in Chicago. 

Filmed extensively on location in the US, Windy City’s towering landscape lends Dhoom 3 a unique ambiance, which Acharya cleverly showcases through his mercurial screenplay. 

Unlike previous Dhoom devils who burgled for the thrill of it, Aamir Khan’s ambitions are driven by one of Hindi cinema’s most emotional, most enduring stereotype embodied with appealing emotionality by Jackie Shroff. 
High on crackling chases, curious get-ups, transformable bikes, somersaulting vehicles, theatrical flashbacks and Tom and Jerry sensibilities, Dhoom 3 alternates between sentimentality, scheming, spectacular ‘song and dance’ spectacle and slo-mo effects.
Even though it doesn’t dwell on subtext and there’s no background provided for any character apart that of Aamir’s (with some help from a sparkling Siddharth Nigam as his younger version), Dhoom 3 loads up enough ammo to fire through its nearly three hours long running time. 
And this is the part where the ‘mostly a dumb brand’ remark rings true. The big reveal pops up at interval point. Ten minutes later, it’s universal knowledge for pretty much everyone in the movie. Still, the makers choose to extend the (non-existent) suspense with a silly explanation and concoct a few more complications. Or perhaps I am just nit-picking in a film where the cops could have caught the thief in the first reel itself if they only bothered to note down his bike’s number plate, where US government calls upon two local Mumbai cops to nab an American robber of Indian origin (and there’s no outrage on television), where a chase begins in Chicago and ends in Switzerland and where, oh well, never mind.
There are two vivid reasons I indulge (and enjoyed) this I know-that you know-that I know (classic Abbas-Mastanism) is
a) because of the cunning and conviction in Aamir’s delivery. 
No matter how much he bares his gym-honed torso, he doesn’t have the physicality of John Abraham and Hrithik Roshan. But he has a knack for making even the trivial seem significant. His studious, serious approach works well in the role of a man orchestrating every single event of his life. It’s like getting inside his head and eavesdropping on the conversations inside. Talking too much about his role would amount to a spoiler. It also saves him his only criticism. 
b) Katrina Kaif. She’s the greatest special effect of Dhoom 3. Styled to perfection, the lady moves like silk -- smooth and effortless. Her stupefying acrobatics are highlighted in Vaibhavi Merchant’s magnificently choreographed sequences, which include one of the most graceful, yes graceful, stripteases I may have seen on big screen. 
Action and humour are the mainstays of the series. Though conspicuously low on the latter (no thanks to Uday Chopra’s tired jokes), Dhoom 3 lives up to its title with all the over-the-top daredevilry at display. 
Whether it’s a BMW bike doing a Batmobile or riding over a thin rope like you thought only Rajinikant can or a groovy jousting moment atop a two-wheeler and that striking, unforeseen (to me at least)) climax at the majestic Verzasca Dam, there’s plenty to keep the whistles blowing.
What isn’t is Dhoom regulars -- Abhishek Bachchan and Uday Chopra’s much jaded jodi in buddy cop mode. Bachchan’s sluggish tenacity and Chopra’s doddering comedy stands out all the more in this start-to-finish Aamir Khan show. It’s absurd to think they had any chance of outwitting Aamir even in their own franchise. 
Can’t help thinking the final scene is Aamir’s idea of blowing a raspberry in their direction, in character or out of Dhoom. Mazaa Le! 

Rating:***
http://www.rediff.com/movies/review/sukanya-verma-reviews-dhoom-3-mazaa-le/20131220.htm

Vishudhan Review Rediff!

Rating:**

Director Vysakh, known for his mass entertainers, has tried to surprise viewers in his latest venture Vishudhan, a dark emotional drama with Kunchacko Boban in the title role.

The film opens with the camera focusing on gore all around and a voice-over intoning biblical phrases. Sunny (Kunchacko Boban), a young priest, is put in charge of a church in a rural area. The people there are faithful but poor. The church runs an old age home which is sponsored by the only rich man in the area, Vavachan (Hareesh Peradi).

There Sunny meets Sister Sophie (Mia George). The two working sincerely in the old age home and in the process discover the motives behind Vavachan's philanthropy. He has an agreement with the home that he gets the unclaimed dead bodies for the medical college run by his son (Krishna Kumar), which is always short of cadavers.

When he is threatened with exposure, Vavachan begins a smear campaign against Sunny and Sister Sophie that gets the sister, an orphan, thrown out of the church on the charge of having an illicit affair with Sunny.

Sunny then leaves the priesthood to be her protector. They get married and eventually come back to the same place to live and prove that they have not done anything wrong. The story is wafer-thin and we cannot help feeling that director Vysakh has taken this sensitive subject just to prove that he is a serious filmmaker, but somehow he misses the larger plot in the process.

His bad guys and good guys are clearly distinct as black and white. The villain is over the top as far as acting goes.

Kunchacko Boban has been trying to do serious roles that suit his age for a while now.  Mia gets a role that is on an equal footing with the hero and she pulls it off. Vishudhan, director Vysakh's attempt to get into the league of serious filmmakers, turns out to be clichéd to put it mildly.

http://www.rediff.com/movies/report/review-malayalam-film-vishudhan-is-cliched-south/20131125.htm

Vidiyum Munn Review Rediff!

Rating:***1/2

Artist, photographer, visual designer, writer, director and producer, Balaji K Kumar is a man of many talents.  This Chennai-born, Los Angeles based filmmaker is already a name to reckon with in Hollywood.  His Twelve twisted tricks won him the Golden trailer award in 2002; while his film 9 lives of Mara, a cult classic,received a tremendous response and went on to receive a host of awards.  

Balaji makes his debut in Tamil cinema with Vidiyum Munn starring Pooja Umashankar and child artist, Malavika Manikuttan. 

Vidiyum Munn is a suspense thriller that revolves around a sex worker who puts her life in danger to protect an innocent 12-year-old from the clutches of pimps and prostitution. 

Rekha (Pooja Umashankar), a professional sex worker, is brainwashed by her pimp Singaram (Amarendran), into getting hold of a 12-year-old to service a high-end client.  Though reluctant at first, she is lured by the money and the prospects of a better life.

But even as she escorts an unsuspecting Nandhini (Malavika Manikuttan) to the client, she is filled with guilt.  Her conscience troubles her so much that she decides to save the girl and escapes from the city with her, but not before something goes terribly wrong.

Now a bunch of ruthless killers want to hunt them down.  Who are these men and why are they chasing two hapless females is what forms the rest of the story.

Pooja, who was last seen as a blind beggar in Bala's Naan Kadavul makes her comeback in Tamil cinema after a four-year hiatus.  She once again proves her versatility by her realistic portrayal of a seasoned sex worker who is resigned to her fate.

But it is young Malavika Manikuttan, who steals the show.  Her character is quite complex, requiring her to be bold, street-smart and defiant, while at the same time appearing vulnerable and innocent too. 

There are no dramatic flashback scenes to explain how Pooja and Malavika Manikuttan are caught in this dangerous web, but their quiet acceptance of the most horrifying events perhaps reveals even much more.

Vinoth Kishan, as Chinnaiah, one of the villains, appears absolutely terrifying with his compelling eyes and just a handful of monosyllabic dialogues.  Then there is Mani (Muthukumar), Devanayagi (Lakshmi Ramakrishnan) and John Vijay as Lankan, every one fits into their role perfectly and the results are impressive.

Music by Girishh Gopalakrishnan is sensational; it helps create the atmosphere heightening every emotion, and maintaining the suspense and thrill.  Cinematographer Sivakumar Vijayan, a debutant, has shot most of the scenes at night in dimly lit locations that intensify the story and provide the right ambience.

The only minus would be the length and the lack of pace, despite of the deadline of 24 hours, you don’t feel the clock ticking, the sense of urgency is missing.  But that takes nothing away from the anticipation and thrill you feel as each scene slowly unfolds itself.

Director Balaji undoubtedly is at the top of his game, narrating a tale filled with emotions; greed, lust, fear and desperation set in the backdrop of a cruel and aggressive world, where people only look out for themselves, it is either kill or be destroyed yourself.

The stark simplicity of the dialogues, the well-etched characters, the intriguing plot, the captivating music, the cinematography, but most of all the brilliant twist at the end makes Director Balaji K Kumar’s Vidiyum Munn a must watch.

http://www.rediff.com/movies/review/vidiyum-munn-is-brilliant/20131130.htm

Khatarnaak Kanada Movie Review from Rediff!

Rating:**1/2
Kannada film Khatarnaak lives up to its name but is devoid of entertainment, and is violent and gory’ writes Srikanth Srinivasa Dialogue writer and lyricist Malavalli Sai Krishna has directed a film for the first time with Khatarnaak.

Umesh (Ravi Kale) is a budding criminal who enjoys the ill-gotten wealth that his mother encourages him to bring home. What started as a lark soon becomes a habit. Umesh grows up to be a serial killer and a rapist.

The film shows stark images of heinous crimes. Umesh is a cop. His victims are heavily bejewelled women who he has sex with and then murders so he can make off with their jewellery.

He has a penchant for collecting the women’s innerwear in his bag which gives enough clues to the police about his involvement in the crime. Umesh gives the police the slip many times but not before narrating to them how he committed the crime.

Ravi Kale has lived his role every bit as the dreaded criminal. Shobha Raghavendra as the mother excels. Rupika as the college student is adequate and so is Sharath Lohitaswa.

Sadhu Kokila is wasted but his background music score gels well with the narrative. M R Seenu’s camera work is exceptional. Khatarnaak is devoid of entertainment or any elements that entertain. It is violence, sex and gore. But, the movie is a wake up call for vigilance in our neighbourhood

http://www.rediff.com/movies/review/review-khatarnaak-is-violent/20131122.htm 

Singh Saab The Great Rediff Review.

Sunny Deol is reason enough for most of us to watch Singh Saab The Great, writes Paloma Sharma.

It must be understood that Singh Saab The Great is Sunny Deol's comeback vehicle. So if you're not a fan of the dhai kilo ka haath, this film is not for you.

However, if you (much like myself) have the entire tareek pe tareek dialogue memorised, then you will regret missing out on Singh Saab the Great. It was nice to watch a Bollywood film that's not a Hollywood film in disguise, starring an Indian star cast. One can appreciate that the director of the film, Anil Sharma, at least had a vision for his film -- even if it was a confused one. Singh Saab The Great attempts to tell the tale of a collector, who valued his honesty, integrity and pride more than anything else, and the price he had to pay for telling the truth.

The film starts off quite well. Amrita Rao, who plays a pesky, truth-seeking journalist, documents her experiences with Singh Saab (Sunny Deol).

Singh Saab is a social worker of sorts, who is spearheading an Anna Hazare style movement called People's Beat and trying to change things at a grassroot level.

While touring villages in North India, Singh Saab comes to a quaint little hamlet ruled by the ruthless Bhudev, where some dark secrets of Singh Saab's past are buried.

Singh Saab's character finds strong roots in Sardar Shivsingh from Premchand's Sajjanta ka Dand and Deol brings great intensity to the role. However, it becomes a tad awkward to watch him romance his teenage bride Minnie (played by Urvashi Rautela).

Rautela, on her part, does nothing but glance seductively, laugh at her husband's silly attempts to woo her and get mad at him for pretty much everything. She also makes sure she's showing enough back for Deol to kiss every two minutes in the first half of the film. Although she's the motivation behind all of Singh Saab's trials, she gets reduced to a glamourized prop.

Amrita Rao's Hindi heartland accent is downright annoying.

For the first time since Singham, Prakash Raj has shown that evil spark. Although his character Bhudev is very similar to Jaykant Shikre, he brings a different flavour to it. Bhudev is absolutely despicable but you soften up to him when you see his attachment to his daughter.

The first half of Singh Saab the Great is enjoyable but overshadowed by the loud, sometimes nonsensical music. The other half is unnecessarily gory and overshadowed by even louder and more nonsensical music.

Although I appreciate that the makers of Singh Saab the Great tried to make a socially conscious and relevant film, they got pulled into giving a sermon instead.

Singh Saab the Great's tragic flaw is that it preaches against crimes that stem out of the two things out of which its morals stem -- religion and patriarchy.

On one hand, Singh Saab beats the living daylights out of villains who adulterate food, and on the other, he tells a man who was about to disfigure a girl's face with acid to woo her with love if he truly loves her. So your friendly neighbourhood acid attacker goes scot free.

Meanwhile, Singh Saab who slaps Bhudev for suggesting that Singh Saab's sister, Guddi/Simar, go into prostitution, Singh Saab has no issues dancing with (and how I hate to use the word) an item girl to a song with lyrics that go something like 'khaike palang tod paan tune le li meri jaan'.

But it's not over yet.

Brace yourselves for a long-ish soliloquy about religion and righteousness as the hero slays the villain.

Singh Saab the Great has its moments. But more importantly, it has Sunny Deol and that is reason enough for most of us to watch this film.

Rediff Rating: **

Actual Review

Gori Tere Pyaar Mein Rediff Review!

Gori Tere Pyaar Mein is essentially two different films separated by an intermission, writes Paloma Sharma.

On the poster of Gori Tere Pyaar Mein, Imran Khan and Kareen Kapoor Khan sit on opposite sides of an unfinished bridge with the words ‘Only love can bridge the gap’ written below them. If only the director had been able to perform the same function.

Gori Tere Pyaar Mein is essentially two different films separated by an intermission, with a few, weak common threads between the two.

Sriram Venkat (Imran Khan) is a US-returned architect who cares about no one but himself. He has no ambitions in life other than living comfortably.

Dia Sharma (Kareena Kapoor Khan) is a Punjabi 'charity worker,' who has devoted her life to bettering the world.

Sriram is shallow. Dia is an inch away from enlightenment. Their paths cross.

But is it meant to be?

The first half of the film begins with some glycerin-induced tears and less than two minutes later, your senses are assaulted by Imran Khan and Esha Gupta (yes, random famous people also show up here) making out in a club to the lyrics of a song so absurd that I won’t care to repeat them.

The torture continues.

Sriram’s parents decide to marry him off in order to make him more responsible (because, hey, that’s the sensible thing to do). This is where Sriram goes from architect to serial flashback-er. He tells his bride-to-be, Vasudha (Shraddha Kapoor), about his relationship with Dia -- which is a most appropriate thing to do, especially since Vasudha is in love with someone else.

The flashbacks go on and on, even though they weren’t needed. An hour and half into the film and you’re still waiting for it to start.
However, if you can survive the first half of it, you’re in for a time-pass treat.
The second half of the film is like Karan Johar’s version of Lagaan -- villages are pretty, villagers are prettier and everything is sparkly clean. However, at least the story is intriguing, even though it does remind one of Ramaiva Vastavaiya.
Despite being a little corny, Sriram’s transformation and his search for a deeper meaning to his materialistic existence is an enjoyable watch. Add to that a couple of gags here and there, Anupam Kher as a corrupt collector and the lovely Naina, sung by Neeti Mohan and Kamal Khan, and you have an entertaining combination.
The trouble with Gori Tere Pyaar Mein is that this film seems like you’ve seen it somewhere before. It feels like a spin-off of Ek Main Aur Ek Tu with a different setting but similar characters and a similar story.
Imran Khan plays Imran Khan (again) and not Sriram Venkat. Khan is awkward unless he’s giving you his chocolate boy smile or looking forlornly into the distance.
Kareena Kapoor Khan is several shades better. She’s believable for the most part except when, being an activist, she does a dance number whose lyrics describe how lovely her derriere is in quite a few analogies.
Anupam Kher is fabulous, as usual, as is the little boy who kept trying to steal Sriram’s sunglasses every chance he got.
The soundtrack, especially the lyrics, is best not spoken about except for Naina (which I’m playing on loop ever since I’ve watched the film).
Gori Tere Pyaar Mein is two hours and 28 minutes long and follows a non-linear narrative. This was absolutely unneeded. Despite all the flashbacks, the story was predictable and the first half could have been cut down significantly. This film is a case of shoddy editing, writing and direction.
Gori Tere Pyaar Mein’s saving grace is that it is a love story and the second half will manage to melt your heart, if only slightly. It’s the classic opposites attract story and hey, if you’re into that kind of thing, this might be your kind of film.
Rediff Rating: **1/2

Actual Reviewer