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.