K. Balachander: Not an ordinary mortal

The Legacy of your life is your work. A man who worked for nearly 50 years and directed 100 movies. Prolific work indeed.

For a man who used the power of cinema to help an ordinary man think beyond himself and spare some thoughts for the society, KB stands tall. 

Much as he attempted at creating societal impact, I think his hundred movies must have contributed to the best music the film industry will ever produced.

While he did introduce quite a few stars, we must be eternally thankful for helping us to savor the best of Nagesh!!!! Could have there been a greater blessing in our lives?

And I will eternally be grateful to KB for adapting or remaking “Satyakam” into “Punnagai”,  a movie of timeless relevance.

Unless a man is at peace with himself, he could never be so productive. You have earned it KB. Rest in Joy!!!!

As a lay man, here are my top ten favourites which will have KB enshrined in my memory forever

1. Punnagai

2. EthirNeechal

3. Thaneer Thaneer

4. Achamillai Achamillai

5. Apoorva Ragangal

6. Sindhu Bhairavi

7. Unnal Mudiyum Thambi/Rudra Veena

8. Vaname Ellai

9. Azhagan

10. Maro Charitra

Pisasu(Ghost), Tamil Film: A horrific making of a horrorless horror film

We have come so much to expect from Myskin, that it is very difficult to dissociate expectations before watching his movies.

As the first twenty minutes unfold, you get a feeling you are going to see the best work of Myskin so far. You are spell bound about everything, including the lone song and specifically the violins in the background have you in vice like grip elevating you into a trance and you do get to levitate for a brief period.

And then Myskin unfolds the recipe of how to make a horror less film infusing predictability with extraordinary zeal. You can be rest assured that Pisasu has all the ingredients to be in Guiness Book of records for successfully eliminating even an iota of surprise leave alone a trace of tension and fear.

Every director, who make horror films want to play around with the viewer spring a surprise in the most unpredictable situation and then have the whole theater come on to their feet. Successful horror films have audiences make strange noises trying to scare the wits out of fellow audiences or neutralize their own fear.

Myskin carves out the first “Whatchamacalitit”(What(ever) you may (want to) call it) genre, toggling between supernatural, lament, comedy, revenge, love, sentiment, kids and martial arts. Well it would be a crime if Tony(Leung) is not imported all the way from Hong Kong( Looks like Bala has deep pockets) to showcase a rehash of his stunt choreography which seem to fall into the category of “Shabbah”( A Tamil slang of extremely clichéd and tiresome).

Myskin also has you guessing who the Pisasu is since the protagonist face is almost invisible(A one eyed hero?? The face is perpetually in a downward tilt with the other eye covered, “Pirate of Kodambakkam?”) or is he the antagonist?

I would still give it to Myskin and Bala(the producer) for an experiment that may have gone awry rather than rehashing the same formula for three or four decades for the fear of loosing money(Shiva Sambo!!!)

Given their eccentricity, audacity and intellectual arrogance, I am sure Myskin(and Bala) will try new things, but Sir, can we have the blind people, the protagonist and/or his cohorts springing like sprinters as soon as they decide to walk, flower vendor or the basket of flowers, the mandatory martial arts fight all take a vacation at least for a few films.

Despite your comical interludes, I am not giving up on you and I hope to catch up watching your next film on the first day night show.

P.S:  Radha Ravi was brilliant, reminding Nagesh in Nammavar.

Why I am giving Lingaa a miss?

Why does a die-hard Rajini fan like me for nearly forty years, since his debut, decide to give Lingaa a miss?

While Rajini seems to be invested in his Producers what about true fans like me who reserve the goosebumps only for him and have endorsed him all these years. Fans like me who have traveled far and wide to urine infested bylanes in B and C centre theatres to catch a glimpse of him on the first day(just because tickets were not available in Chennai), jumped queues as a teenager braving the lathi charges of not only Chennai but also in my later days in Dubai. Yes, on the first day night show, at Al Nasr in Dubai, there was a Lathi Charge for "veera" and so much so far Baasha as well. As a student in Delhi, I travelled all the way to Paschim Vihar(a long way from my home in Delhi ) to catch up a stupid movie like Meri Adalat(I am not sure even if Rajini remembers that he acted in it).

If Sivaji Ganesan, as an actor was abused and improperly used by the industry, Rajini should pass of as the most underutilized actor abused by the industry. I think for the love and affection that he has enjoyed, he has a responsibility to the fans like me who still stay invested in him all our life. Maybe Rajini's risk averse nature may also have contributed to it.

There are roles. Would love to see Rajini, taking up roles, suiting his age, like Grand Torino or Buddha Hoga there Baap, or may be an adaptation of "Its a wonderful Life" as the eldest brother of the family.

There is money. Money is more easily available then ever it was is the history of the earth.

Thalaiva, in a world of crowd funding, Lucia, I understand is crowdfunded production, with a brand like yours, you do not need RockLine Venkatesh.

You are so good at packaging yourself and carrying yourself

And you have been constantly preaching that money itself is not very important.

And is it not true that you have been also preaching that you should not like to forget the past and the people who have supported you in your journey.

Then you must reciprocate the love of Fans, the art, Cinema which has contributed to all your glory by acting in some meaningful roles and cinema.

If money is not everything in life you must take risks. With so much of love and affection does "Risk" really exist?

I am giving Lingaa a miss, as mark of protest for taking the audience for granted.

I was converted into a full fledged fan(atic) when I saw Kali, in Mullum Malarum. I hope you hear, the desire the demands on an ardent fan(atic) and satisfy us with roles like Kali, that can bring the real Rajini that all of us want to savour.

We want some more!! We want some more!!!

On Raj Kapoor's Birthday: A Slice of Unforgettable Magic

While so much of Raj Kapoor's work can be discussed in great detail, for me the turmoils of the adolescent  Rishi Kapoor, his crush for his teacher Simi Garewal , her dilemma and the ensuing approach of her fiance Manoj Kumar in the first story of Mera Naam Joker stand out.

Adolescence could not have been understood and dealt with so much of sensitivity. 

A most beautiful lesson for all parents and teachers.

Highly recommended.

We remember you Raj Saab!!!!

P.S: Incidentally I have not seen the rest of Mera Naam Joker, my recommendation is only the first story which may last for about first half hour(Last viewing was in 2000, so unable to recollect the duration)

Exodus: Gods and Kings: Moses is Human, Ridley is Divine

The story of the brothers has been made by a brother, Ridley Scott for his brother Tony Scott.

For those of you who are familiar with the opulent, colorful and grandiose Ten Commandments, you would be advised to remove any of those images from the farthest corner of your brain, should you decide to see the movie. Ridley has gone the extra mile to make sure that there is not an iota of resemblance of Ten Commandments. The imposing Nile and the magnificent pyramids that are symbolic of Egypt though betray him.

Bright Colors that were resplendent in Ten Commandment take a back seat, the conflict to ascension of the throne is a non-issue, Nefreteri’s love for Moses seem to be non-existent,  The standoff between Moses and Rameses is muted, all elements of conflict and drama in Ten Commandments seem to take a backseat. The Red Sea does not part but recedes!!! And there is right for the messiah to disagree with the Ten Commandments before it is rolled out!!!

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Why then is Ridley’s work fascinating?

For his ability to conjure an edgy, restless, dark, and thought provoking work(without any resemblance to TC), the amount of thinking that has gone into the making, must have been mind boggling. It certainly does not make for easy viewing.

The setting is dark, Ridley ensures that there is a perpetual haze and liberal doses of dark fumes that keep adorning the skyline of Egypt. The choice of colors are dull. The Slave workers live in pathetic conditions. A sense of realism in creating the environment in which the Hebrews lived adds a definite authenticity to the narrative.

Moses is more human, a rationalist, and acts more as a call from within like Siddartha. Moses, bereft of his staff(unlike Ten Commandments) takes on the mighty Rameses and his empire like a Freedom Fighter, struggling to find a way to liberate this brethren. It is then left to God  to unleash the wrath and hurtle Egypt and Rameses into abyss before Rameses finally relents.

It would have been nice to see Moses identify himself with his Hebrew brothers and their problems. He seem to be more attached to his Egyptian brothers. This could have significantly added to the experience. And Rameses seems to be not such a bad guy at all!!! The conflict quotient between Moses and Rameses made up for absorbing drama in TC. Nefreteri had a fair share in the drama, especially driving Rameses to chase Egyptians before the Red Sea parted in Ten Commandments. Exodus could have done better with better characterization of the principal characters.

Back to Exodus, I particularly liked the way the Ten Commandments was introduced symbolically. And the discretion given to Moses to agree or disagree with the Ten Commandments!!!

This is movie is certainly for the discerning viewer.

A lovely way to dedicate a film for a brother.  Ridley, Tony would certainly have approved of your effort.

KaaviyaThalaivan, Tamil Film: The earnestness of being Vasantha Balan

Many years ago when I watched one of Vasantha Balalan’s  early films, “Veyil”, I was seething with anger. The excessive violence put me off and for some strange reason it evoked memories of the melodramatic Sivaji film” Rajapart Rangadurai”.  I also found it be loud.

And when VasanthaBalan came up with “Angadi Theru”, his audacity and ambition started surfacing. Here was a film maker using Cinema to both introspect and celebrate the indefatigable human spirit.

When he had the vision to adapt a slice of , Su. Venkatesan’s Sahitya Academy award winning novel,  “Kaaval Kottam”, set in 18^th century Madurai  into “Aravaan”, he carved a place a unique place for himself.  “Aravaan” is an unsung classic of Indian Cinema. If you are lover of cinema, you will feel the movie draped  with the sweat, blood and resolve of Vasantha Balan.  Only wished that Vasantha Balan had done away with a couple of misplaced song sequences on what would have been an otherwise perfect experience.

Digressing a bit, Back in 1989/1990(not sure but some time around that time), watching Bharat Ek Khoj(Discovery of India) at 11 Am on Sunday morning for 52 weeks was unalloyed pleasure. I always remember, Shyam Benegal, who brought Nehru’s vision of the rich Indian cultural heritage to your doorstep. If my memory serves me right,  Nitish Roy had done a great job as an Art Director and there was the beautiful Pallavi Joshi donning multiple roles along with other very capable actors.

I remember getting asphyxiated with the richness of our cultural heritage. It made me proud.

Time and again it is important to remember the real treasures of our civilization.

Vasantha Balan, captures the glorious years of the Tamil Theatre of the early twentieth century in “Kaaviya Thalaivan” and recreates the period with its rich music, culture and heritage. I could not but get overwhelmed by the riches.

There are several magic moments that will send you into raptures. There are several lessons of excellence that could be learned and used at your work place.

One can see the heart and soul of all the technicians who have recreated this culture fest.

And A.R Rahman, and Nirav Shah(Cinematogapher), need special mention for competing with the actors Siddarth, Nasser, Prithiviraj and Vedika  for the top honours.

I only wish the courageous, Vasantha Balan would have been more courageous. He still seems to be prisoner of the constraints of making a movie commercially successful. While the movie borrows the premise of the rivalry between Mozart and Salieri, Salieri’s character has possible been configured to suit Indian (casting?) needs, thereby reducing the juice in the conflict between the two principal characters.  Also the imposition of the Indian Freedom movement into narrative is very ineffective and an unnecessary digression.

Despite the disappointment and dissatisfaction quotient, Mr. Vasantha Balan, I only fervently hope that your quest for attempting new topics continue.

Hats off to the entire team of Kaaviya Thalaivan and a special thanks to the producers for making an important film happen.

Interstellar Movie, Galactically Stale

A big bore.

As the expedition lands in a place, we are being forewarned that every one hour spent in that place was equivalent to 7 years of once life time. 

As you restlessly sit through the two hours and forty nine minutes of trying to unravel the mysteries of physics, you just thought hundred and forty nine years of your life time whizzed past.

You may want to catch up with this if you have stale time. 

Interstaller?

Gone Girl: As taut as it can get

Amongst the many God Given gifts to Ben Affleck, is an impermeable wooden face.

Many times we have had trouble trying to appreciate him as an actor who could emote. That did not dishearten, dear Ben, imposing himself on us as an actor, in several initiatives of his, where he has dazzled as a Screenwriter and Director. One always wondered how such gifted directors could come under the influence of Narcissus, and take the risk of harming their own good work.

And then comes another exciting and cerebral, director, Mr. David " Adrenalin" Fincher, in his infinite wisdom casts, Mr. Affleck, as one of the protagonists for “Gone Girl”, a masterstroke that imbues the narrative with infinite possibilities and sets the tone of for this poetic journey of suspense(Hitchcock would have been proud).

Ben, after all, you just had to be cast in the right movie. The right man for the right job.!!!

Of course the casting will not make a difference until the characters are etched like the clear waters of a stream and the writing is solid.

While Mr. Fincher packaged Social Network , a drama like a thriller, he toys around with the viewers this time, deceives us with his unhurried pace(reminds you of Vertigo), which he uses smartly to make us restless, wanting to discover what lies ahead.

Mr. Fincher uses mystery and suspense to examine the grey corridors of modern evolution, the sarcasm and the lament of the social commentary, all of which effectively add up to tension before getting submerged in no holds barred psychological war.

Every perfectly executed shot of yours, Mr. Fincher, pushes us to the boundaries of ecstasy.

Take a Bow, Mr. Fincher, may the tribe, who pursue excellence, flourish and increase.

Lincoln: Remembering on the day of the TV Premiere

Lincoln is being aired on TV today at one PM and Nine PM. In case you have not watched it you may not want to miss it.!!! One of the greatest Biopics made. Recommended for professionals and students. I am taking the liberty of producing my review on Lincoln. Lincoln What happens when the world's greatest director and the world's greatest actor come together? Results in a movie that is extraordinarily evocative and sublime. What hits you hard is not what you see on the screen but what really went behind the screens. The clarity of Spielberg is stunning. The biopic does not focus on Abe's life but a slice of his life. The drama behind passing the 13th Amendment in the US constitution which will abolish slavery. We therefore get to see the empathy and the emotional intelligence as a human being, the deep convictions, the Machiavellian instincts of a politician, the shrewdness of a practising lawyer, the vision and responsibility of a leader, the strategic intent, the awareness of the powers available at his disposal and the urgency to get through with the amendment. Daniel Day Lewis(DDL) Converts Speilberg's vision into reality. DDL, must have literally starved his way into the role. With sunken eyes and no fat around the cheeks, with a drooping shoulder, a calm voice that resonates from deep below, DDL recreates Lincoln with authenticity that blanks out any images of the angry characters in either Left Foot or There Will be Blood. Yes there is the occasional regrettable slap or the pounding of the table exerting himself as the President, but, DDL breezes through a historic personality emoting a innumerable emotions with extraordinary ease. Most importantly this is a must watch for every student and professional. This is an object lesson in communication. Whether it is the vocabulary, diction, effective usage of words, putting forward a point of view, debate or disagreement. To understand this movie completely, multiple viewings are recommended. This movie is strictly for the serious and discerning movie goer!! .

Jeeva: Shallow, Convoluted, Prejudiced, Distasteful and Unfair

I belong to the Parthasarathy Community. Suseenthran is convinced we are all wicked, cruel, disgusting and inhuman.

Despite being from the Parthasarathy community, I have a great admiration for Suseenthran. Unconditional love for his work is evident in my facebook timeline posts. I never could imagine somebody adapting Juno and improving it. That was an evidence of great sensitivity to mankind in itself. I was extremely happy that Suseenthran made Azhagar Samiyin Kuthirai and won the best film for the best entertainer of the year competing with films like  Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. I was bowled over by Pandia Nadu. I celebrated Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu, with all my employees at work and truly believed that Suseenthran had the capability to make a great Sports film at some point of time in his career. Suseenthran has displayed versatility and exhibited an phenomenal sensitivity.

I belong to the Parthasarathy Community. Will this adulation for Suseenthran be acceptable to him?

The normal rule in Cinema and Especially Hollywood and Bollywood is that when a person from minority community is shown in bad light there would be another person in the same community shown in good light. Also the general rule of Sports films are to make feel good films, where human spirit prevails over adversity and constraints. Inclusiveness is an integral part of Sports films and generally drives home the merits of unity. There are films like Remember the Titans, which very clearly address, the importance of judging people by the soul of them, rather than the look. They stress the importance of mingling with one another so that they can shed the baggage that people carry about others.

I belong to the Parthasarathy community. Suseenthran  may want to validate what I have just written.

Distortion of facts to incite emotions is a cheap way to sell a film. Fourteen of the Sixteen Players in the last twenty years have only come from the Parthasarthy community is a distortion is an assertion in the film

What is the fact?

I suppose Robin Singh, Hemang Badani, Lakshmipathy Balaji, Subramaniam Badrinath, T Kumaran, five people in all are certainly not from the Parthasarathy Community. IN addition I do not think Ravichandran Ashwin, Dinesh Karthik and Laxman Sivaramakrishnan are from the Parthasarathy community.

If the Parthasarthy community has been instrumental in damaging the prospects of bright sports people in this State, there are atleast a hundred other sports and events which do not have the existence of Parthasarathy community in any of the endeavours. What is the track record  in all the other sports, given that the Parthsarathy community has no influence in any of them. How many gold medals have been won in this Asiad and how many Olympic medals have been won in the last twenty years? Our entire Gold tally this years in Asiad is a mere single digits.

By the way, there was distinct involvement of the Parthsararthy community in building CSK and putting Chennai on the world map, which all of the Chennai and TamilNadu is proud of.

I belong to Parathsarathy community. Suseenthran may want to validate these details as we could be malicious in our intent.

As a matter of fact, human being who pursue all other religions, Sikhs, Muslims, Christians and Hindus except Brahmins are virtue personified.

A sample and a quick look at the unabated trend in Tamil films…..

1.       Jeeva: The Parthasarathy community

2.       Poriyalan: The Brahmin as the crooked villain

3.       Vidiyumunn: The Brahmin in austere clothes, outside the Srirangam temple hooting in bad taste as a lady drives by

4.       Cuckoo: The Brahmin Shown as the most insensitive human

5.       Thangameenkal: A person from the Parthsarathy community, in a Christian school(that is what I call detailing!;) ) as an administrator, as the most insensitive person

6.       Mayakkam Enna: Narasimhan, from the Parthasarathy community, being again portrayed as insensitive

7.       Viswaroopam: The famous Parthasarathy and the first son of Tamil Cinema, asking the Pappathi(A Brahmin Girl) to taste the meat and certify the authenticity of the preparation.

The list could go on and on…….

There are good people and bad people in every community. Our founding fathers of our constitution have always prided them with inclusiveness which means that the Parthasarathy community and the other Brahmins are all a part of this great country.

This tirade against Tamil Brahmins is highly unwarranted since there is an extraordinary amount of integration happening at all levels in this country.

Moreover in a world driven by the mammon and identities are getting lost by the second, language, religion, caste, nationality are all bound to become irrelevant, is it not time for all of the wake up and stop carrying a baggage that is really not necessary.

I have been a vocal proponent of Tamil Cinema and the great progress that it has made especially in the last four years.  When most of the film makers do not come from the Brahmin community and have made extraordinary contributions, why is there still an inferiority complex and identity crisis?

For people who are secure will never make fun of other communities. It is the cheapest form of vilification.

And one small clarification about who I think I am, I may be born in the Parthasarathy community, my identity remains that of a human being . I am guided by the philosophy of Sarvappali Radhakrishnan, I would like to absorb what is the best in the east and west.

I protest ridicule and insensitivity in any form.