Mamannan, Tamil Film

Dogs, Underdogs, Pigs, and the lovely little piglet

Metaphors, Metaphors, and more metaphors. 

Guess what, you do not want to complicate your experience by trying to analyze the metaphors and the ideology.

Sit back, relax, and enjoy the filmmaking, Mari Sevaraj is in sublime form for the first 60 percent of the film.  

A flashback segment narrated in black and white, followed by the Nenjame Nenjame song made my eyes moist. I was in awe of all the shots in this black-and-white segment. I thought this was the high point of the film followed by the spectacular interval block.

Just wondered how Mari Selvaraj became almost brain-dead in the second half. He runs out of ideas, diluting the experience. 

No harm done, but you may still want to watch it not only for Mari Selvaraj's craft but Vadivelu's majestic screen presence, his gaze, and sheer effortlessness with which he goes about. Vadivelu and FaFa elevate the film by several notches and keep the second half alive with their sheer screen presence.

One specific scene stood out for me in the second half, Vadivelu observing that Child is the father of the man and his own realization that he no longer remained Mannu but is actually Mamannan(The king of kings)

Pariyerum Perumal is a gold standard, which Mari Selvaraj must aim to beat in his next outing. It is only natural that our expectations are high.

When was the last time anybody's heart went out to pigs? That is Mari Selvaraj's signature.

By the way, the lovely little piglet will always be etched in our memory. That is the power of art, it can erase a firmly imprinted impression of a filthy animal.

P.S: With all the craft at his disposal. the film maker could have easily created the impact without explicit violence

AIR(Movie)

A shoe is always a shoe until someone steps into it.

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon team up again to narrate a fascinating tale of Nike’s effort to revive its Basketball shoe division. It is also a tale of Michael Jordan’s pivotal or career defining decision to team up with Nike that would ultimately revolutionize the sneaker industry and establish him as one of the most iconic athletes in history.

The screenplay is dexterously woven around Nike’s principles, not necessarily in that order.

There are several riches to be savoured.

How would you identify who is the right person for reviving the fortunes of a division? To what extent will you go to woo that person? How creative can you get in the whole process to pip past the competition?

Can the shoe be a physical manifestation of the individual, rather than the individual as an emblem of the corporate entity?

AIR traces the birth of AIR JORDAN, a shoe(line) built around Michael Jordan tapping deeper into his identity. Jordan is the shoe and the shoe is JORDAN.

Conviction and courage drive this taut narrative with rich lessons in talent acquisition, marketing, branding, selling and negotiation.

Matt Damon’s pitch to clinch Jordan is as profound as it can get. Interestingly, it is just not Matt Damon( Nike’s representative) believes so, but also Jordan’s mother.

Quote

We need you in these shoes not so you have meaning in your life. But so that we have meaning in ours. Everyone at this table will be forgotten as soon as our time here is up. Except for you, You are gonna be remembered forever because somethings are eternal. You are Michael Jordan. And your story is gonna make us want to fly

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AIR is streaming on Prime. You may want to catch up with AIR this weekend.

Por Thozhil

Diligence at its heart

This diligently told crime thriller, is thought through in great detail and written expertly. The narrative is logical and coherent. There is not one single shot that is wasted. Vignesh Raja is a talent to watch out.

Sarathkumar is as young as I saw him about 35 years in Kann Simittum Neram. When I saw his interview with BR, Gallatta Plus, I was reminded of an interview he gave before Vedan. The energy levels have not diminished one bit.

I am so happy for Ashok Selvan, who admirably teams up with Sarathkumar to warm our hearts. Ashok Selvan is one actor, who can fit in a wide range of roles. Hoping to see the best of Ashok Selvan,

The last time I saw Sarath Babu and Sarath Kumar was in Vedan. SarathBabu in another important role, makes us wonder why he has probably not been used properly all these years. Did not follow his obituary when he passed away recently. However, I think, Uchakattam, 1980 was probably one of his best roles. 

I would have preferred much quieter background music.

Two interesting observations:

1. The motive for the crime is probably more important than the evidence.

2. Responding to a crime. When a crime is happening, do you remain indifferent to it?

The Police have an important role in Nation Building like the army. We are able to freely move around the city. What would we do without the Police?

There is a hint of a second part. The sequel of Por Thozil will be most welcome.

PS-2

Kalki Krishnamurthy’s Ponnniyin Selvan morphs into Mani Ratnam’s Aditha Karikalan

There are plenty of riches to be savoured. And I suppose the whole world has discussed the acting, music, art, cinematography and other technical aspects.

The innumerable details are angelic. It is the tiny details that reflect the artistic integrity of the film. 

That brief smile on Kishore’s (Ravidasan) face reflecting the satisfaction of accomplishing the mission, Makararand Deshpande, introducing, Madurantaka Devar with right intonation and the body language(goosebumps guaranteed), Prabhu’s posture on the horse (the swag that shows PS and Vandiya Thevan as lesser mortals), Vinodini checking out on Aishwarya(Nandini) if she has not lost her balance( A scene straight out of Dil Se) and the lady leading the Pandya rebels on a mission to try and assassinate Sundara Chozar. Wow. One can go on and on, raving about such finely etched details that sculpt the movie to perfection.

I am sure had Sivaji Ganesan seen the movie, he would have given Vikram the tightest hug possible.

I had a chance interaction with Thota Tharani on Nilgiri Express, 1992. I quizzed him, what would he rate as his best film on that date. He averred, that he always believes that the best was yet to come. 31 years later, I would think, the work that he has done in PS universe will be difficult to beat

We will all do well to be inspired by Rahman to constantly reinvent ourselves.

What can we learn from Mani Ratnam?

Mani is so adept at making love stories that he decides to play to his strengths.

The tone of the movie is set expertly by introducing the Aditha Karikalan and Nandini’s childhood crush. 

Infact the movie begins with Nandini emerging from a body of water and would have been perfect if it ended with her vanishing away under the body of water. 

Mani, I do not think anybody can make a love story better than you do. Can you make a Web series of the world’s greatest love stories? That will be a treasure for posterity to preserve!!

Yathisai, Tamil Movie

A Stunning Achievement

The movie delivers an extraordinary experience.

7th Century Tamil Nadu has been reimagined with relish!!!. Thamizh as spoken in the 7th century sounded so much more beautiful, pure and intoxicating.

The elaborate thinking, research, and preparation executed on a wafer-thin budget are probably what Guts has to be all about.

To be able to conceive this film and execute it with confidence and conviction should inspire a zillion other aspiring filmmakers.

There is supposed to be a sequel and I guess this franchise should find the necessary support from big production houses.

All the action sequences are gruesome and therefore this is certainly not for the family audience. 

Lovers of good cinema and discerning viewers are bound to treasure this film for its ambition and audacity. 

Take a bow, Dharani Rasendran.

Viduthalai, Part 1

A convenient universe to discuss recurring conversations

I had a feeling that there would intersections of themes between Visaranai and Viduthalai and I saw Visaranai before seeing Viduthalai today.

While watching Visaranai when it was released, I was switched off, and thought that the topic of systemic malignancy  was not 

something new.

When I saw Visaranai today, I was spellbound by the perfection of filmmaking and I thought the writing was almost successful in creating a face of the system itself. The smallest of the small characters were chiseled to perfection. Conscience stood tall amongst the ruins. A redeeming attribute that could bail humanity.

IN Viduthalai, Vetri creates a universe conveniently to discuss the recurring themes on class, caste, oppression, power, politics, corporates, greed…

While conscience stood tall in Visaranai, Innocence stands tall in Viduthalai. The protagonist is innocent refusing to compromise in a big bad GREY world.

The first part of Viduthalai is thoroughly enjoyable. This sumptuous tale  is exuberantly served amidst backdrop of lovely mountains. Multiple layers of conflict are introduced to add the tautness to the story. The battle lines have been clearly drawn. All set for Viduthalai Part 2 to have engaging conversations. 

Hopefully we should be seeing Soori in different roles with depth. 

All acting performances are top notch with all round technical brilliance.

Thanks Vetri for a satisfying film. With the level of craft at your disposal you could have created an impactful film without the repulsive violence

Bheed (Crowd) , Hindi Movie

History that we may never want to forget

From the opening sequence which is poignant and hard-hitting, this taut and grim narrative takes us through an essential slice of Indian history.

Despite the 'Bheed' of characters, the narrative is devoid of clutter and cleverly observes the equations of modern India.

Despite the seeming helplessness of the situation, there is always hope lurking around the corner. 

Two important takeaways for me:

If we cannot help one another who can really help us?

We are prisoners of our mindset. If we can break free, that is probably the first step in liberating ourselves.

Watching this movie becomes a responsibility for all of us who have been lucky to have survived the pandemic.

It is important for all the students to watch this film.

Throughout the film, I was reminded of Karthik Tmk and the help that he had extended to migrant workers during the pandemic. 

A big salute to millions of people across society who helped this country battle the pandemic.

Take a bow #AnubhavSinha for your brand of meaningful cinema.

Ayodhi, Tamil movie

Essential conversations on Empathy

Ayodhi, is an emotionally surcharged experience. It is written and directed neatly.

Empathy has to be the defining attribute that can  bail us out of our troubles. We could all do with some kindness and compassion.

Empathy helps us to rise beyond, our perceived and petty identities of language, region, caste, or religion.

The narrative was taut, tense, riveting, and ultimately liberating!!. 

I enjoyed the movie thoroughly with moist eyes!!

Preethi Asrani, is stunning and steals the acting honours.

Yashpal Sharma as the father is as irritating as the story demands.

Sasikumar, with his sheer presence, brings so much authenticity to the role.

N.R. Raghunathan's music and background score are brilliant.

Thanks to Manthiramurthy, whose effort reminds us again that there is no end to fresh and relevant content if we sit down and think. Movies are such a powerful medium and there are zillions invested in the medium, why not leverage the medium to encourage conversations that need to happen.

By the way, I just loved the way the director uses a sequence from 12 Angry Men. That underlined the possibilities of creativity.

Getting to meet Sai Vignesh Ramakrishnan was a lovely bonus. He certainly looks like the boy next door, but when he sings, he is in a different zone. Incidentally, he has sung a number for this movie.

A must-watch film for those genuinely interested in good and meaningful cinema!!

Malikapuram

Malayalam movie streaming on HotStar

I saw Malikapuram yesterday. Experienced divinity. Not very sure if  Swami Ayyapan was able to invoke it, but the innocence of a child, her unshakeable belief in the lord, and the bliss she experienced on being able to reach the sanctum sanctorum and getting the Darshan was sheer exhilaration!!! You are bound to have goosebumps.

After seeing the movie, I had a blissful night's sleep after a long long time.

Just like Swami Ayyapan whose followers are across religions, here is a movie for everyone who still cherish good old values.

Take a bow, Deva Nanda for being as lovely as you were in the movie.

The Fabelmans

Exploring A mother's infidelity

Spielberg's choice of subjects makes him versatile and at the same time reflects an earnest human being within. It gives insights into his persona. 

The film is a semi-autobiographical story loosely based on Spielberg's adolescence and first years as a filmmaker.

I went with certain expectations to see The Fabelmans, and since I had not read anything about it, I was initially disappointed. 

It took several hours to sink and then the movie started growing.

Wonder how many of us would have the courage to explore the troubled lives of our parents, especially a mother’s infidelity 

Spielberg does it beautifully and does not pass any judgment. 

His evolution as a filmmaker in the movie seemed to be less interesting and probably less convincing!!! 

Spielberg had conceived the project as early as 1999, with his sister Anne writing a screenplay titled I'll Be Home. He had reservations about exploring his family's story because of concerns that his parents would be hurt, and the project was withheld for 20 years.

The film is dedicated to the memories of Spielberg's real-life parents, Leah Adler and Arnold Spielberg, who died in 2017 and 2020 respectively.

I am sure Spielberg will continue to surprise with his choice of subjects.