Over the course of a fairly high-profile career, K.S. Ravikumar has helmed a variety of entertaining features and, in the process, created a basic formula that he adheres to. This formula is fairly straightforward – lots of laugh-out-loud funny sequences, a few decent action scenes, songs inserted wherever required, and just a pinch of emotion to keep things moving. With Aadhavan, he follows the same template to a certain extent and also proves he can keep up with the latest trends with some energetic action and modern, impressive CGI work. However, while the first half has enough to hold our interest in the proceedings, starting from the beginning of the second half – where things start going downhill – he loses control and the movie moves too far into melodrama toward the end that any interest generated initially is all but lost.

The film opens with the Damakku Damakku... song followed by Aadhavan (Surya) taking out his high-profile target from underwater, leading to a variety of similar targets, making him one of the best assassins around. Aadhavan’s gang consists of mentor and father, Ibrahim Rowther (Shayaji Shinde) and elder brother, Tharani (Anandh Babu making his first big-screen appearance in quite a while). Abdul Kulkarni (Rahul Dev) approaches them with another prominent target in Judge Subramaniam (Murali), who has been poking around in the former’s business involving the kidnapping and murder of children across eastern India. Surprisingly, Aadhavan misses his target and is forced to move into the Judge’s household – which includes Bannerjee (Vadivelu), Thara (Nayanthara), Subramaniam’s mother (Saroja Devi) and the rest of the family – to finish his job. But, his reactions suggest that he wants the latter dead on a more personal level, and is not only in it for the money.

Like Ayan, Aadhavan hits its highest point, in terms of generating adrenaline, in the initial sequences itself. The foot chase that follows the failed assassination attempt is definitely as good as the African one in Surya’s blockbuster from earlier this year. Though it shows an obvious inspiration from the first sequence inside the under-construction building in Casino Royale – the fact becomes more obvious when one notes that the location is of the same type –, Surya performs most of his stunts which enables the level of awe to be maintained on our part. Since I said that this is the apex as far as stunt sequences are concerned, it should follow that the rest of the movie’s action is fairly ordinary and generic failing to involve us like this one.

It should also come as no surprise that Aadhavan is best when in comedy-mode because, time and again, Ravikumar has proved that making people laugh is his forte. This movie also gives Vadivelu a chance to redeem himself after the disappointment of his track in Kanthaswamy, and he doesn’t disappoint. Nearly every scene in which he appears succeeds in making us laugh and though it is fairly standard in terms of what we expect from the comedian – the slightly stuttered speech to show his fear, for example –, it is impossible not to laugh as his attempts at proving Aadhavan’s real identity become increasingly futile. In fact, it would be easy to argue that without Vadivelu many people might have been heading for the exit doors in the first half itself, which they might anyway be doing as we proceed into the second half.

As far as Ravikumar is concerned, I have been entertained to a variety of degrees by each of his movies, but never have I been as bored and disinterested as I was towards the end of this one. The CGI effects used to depict Surya as a 10-year old are definitely high standard for a Tamil movie, in spite of the gimmicky nature of their appearance. (Couldn’t the same sequence have been told with “any” 10-year old in it?) Though not awe-inspiring because we always “know” this is Surya (he also voices these portions), the fact that a lot of effort has clearly gone into integrating it makes us overlook the obvious flaws. However, the flashback sequence itself is so dragging that even the special effects cannot force us to think of it any differently. The amount of people sneering in the theatre when this sequence ended should be proof enough of how languid it actually is. And, the movie drags on for quite some time in order to tie up a lot of the loose ends, eventually culminating in an action sequence that makes us laugh for all the wrong reasons (including a “sticky” rocket launcher, if there is even such a weapon). It wouldn’t be any stretch to say that, by the end, I wanted to forget the entire experience.

With the career path Surya is taking, it is obvious that he is trying to emulate Kamalhassan; which is the reason for Ayan, and now Aadhavan, after the heavier Vaaranam Aayiram. The problem with Surya is that he has not yet perfected the art of “acting” in these kinds of casual, formulaic roles. So, even though he can make the comedy portions work, he fails in the serious sequences because he always wants to “act” instead of simply going along with the flow of the movie. It also doesn’t help that the respect built up for his off-screen image takes a hit when Vadivelu compares him with yesteryear greats ‘Sivaji’ Ganesan, M.G.R, Rajinikanth, and Kamalhassan.

The supporting cast is mostly expected to run through the motions. Nayanthara looks very simple and jaded, and is expected to play the standard Tamil cinema heroine, which she can adequately. Shayaji Shinde and Murali (in what sadly turned out to be his last role) are veterans in their own right and are solid, with the latter being especially impressive. Rahul Dev joins the long list of generic Tamil cinema villains. With all the hype surrounding Saroja Devi’s return, she is more or less only used as a tool for comedy, with her now famous tendency to wear too much make-up providing a lot of mileage. Anandh Babu’s return definitely did not generate as much interest as the former’s; and with good reason, because it is definitely not noteworthy. Ramesh Khanna, whose story this is, appears as Nayanthara’s would-be, and proves a decent sidekick to Vadivelu in his comedy.

Harris Jeyaraj’s songs have become very popular, but almost all of them fall into the forgettable category. Hasile Fisile... and Yeno Yeno Panithuli... are great to look at by virtue of the breathtaking locations of South Africa and Iceland on display. Vaarayo Vaarayo... and Maasi Maasi... are largely at fault for the movie’s pacing problems, though Saroja Devi’s decked up appearance as a tribal at the end of the latter will evoke a lot of guffaws. Ganesh’s cinematography deserves some mention for the former two song sequences and also for the initial action sequences.

Usually, any K.S. Ravikumar movie has a certain charm that makes it worth for television viewing, if not for a visit to the theatre. However, it is hard to imagine Aadhavan joining that category. The comedy is certainly laugh-out-loud, but is only prevalent in the first half, and what makes up the rest of the movie largely veers into the “unwatchable” territory that even a TV viewing is hard to recommend, let alone paying money for a theatrical viewing.

A.P. Nagarajan is mostly famous as the director of various epics based on historical/mythological characters or Hindu Gods that are often characterized by riveting performances, spellbinding music, and by virtue of them being based on well-known history/religion. Arguably the most popular of his movies, certainly the most entertaining, is Thiruvilayadal, which provides an account of Lord Shiva’s grace in helping his devotees through a series of episodes. Starting with ‘Sivaji’ Ganesan’s arresting performance, K.V. Mahadevan’s timeless music, and Nagesh’s legendary comedy to name a few, I would be amazed if there is an aspect that can be used to qualify film masterpieces absent here. The film has been telecasted on TV every now and then, but it has still lost none of its charm and remains one of the greatest movies in Tamil cinema history.

As the director kindly informs us through a background voice heard during the beginning, Lord Shiva’s benign and kindly nature toward his devotees has been widely written about in the form of various epics, ithihasas, and puranas. This film borrows some of the most prominent episodes from such writings and tries to recapture the same playful nature of the Lord on-screen, and is entirely successful in doing so. Throughout the course of these four episodes, which see Lord Shiva appear in various forms, the film is highly entertaining, while also conveying a variety of messages through each of them.

The film opens with an introduction for Lord Shiva (‘Sivaji’ Ganesan), followed by the fabled “wisdom-fruit” sequence. The ever-mischievous Naradha provides the God with what he calls a unique “wisdom-fruit.” The God, playing along with the former, hands it over to Goddess Parvathi (Savithri), who decides to test her two sons and give the winner the prize. The test is who can complete a round-trip around the world first. Lord Murugan takes his trusted peacock and “actually” completes the task, while Lord Ganesha completes a circle around his parents and equates it to completing a trip around the world, thereby winning the prize. Murugan gets angered on his return as he sees this as his parents favouring their first child, and abandons them without heeding calls from his mother or avvaiyar (K.B. Sundarambal) that this is also one of his father’s playful acts.

If there is a single downside in the entire film, it is that these initial sequences can be inordinately slow by any standard. The elaborate set-design and dances that accompany the Sambo Mahadeva... song which introduces Lord Shiva are good, but this sequence itself is quite long and drawn-out. And, three songs immediately follow the “wisdom-fruit” sequence, further slowing down everything to a degree where we want the actual episodes to start. However, once the “movie” itself kicks off, with Parvathi recounting Lord Shiva’s playfulness to a very furious Murugan, it never flags and keeps things moving at a decent pace.

The first episode will be the most instantly recognizable to even people who have not seen the movie. The King of the Pandya land, Shenbaga Pandyan (Muthuraman), announces a flattering amount of gold to anyone who can solve his puzzle relating to the scent emanating from a woman’s hair (in this case, his wife, played by Devika). Inspired by the prize amount, a poverty-stricken poet, Dharumi (Nagesh), does what any person in his situation with his level of talent would: pray to God - who as usual solves his troubles by appearing in humane form. The highlight of this episode (or the movie, for that matter) is of course the verbal duel between Sivaji and Nagesh which has become the stuff of legend, with many a modern movie paying homage to it in its own way. And the “Nettrikkan Thirappinum Kuttram Kuttrame” dialogue is probably one of the most famous quotes in Tamil cinema and popular culture. Notwithstanding the other episodes, the movie touches its apex inarguably in this sequence.

The second and third episodes stand to be the weakest of the four, not because they are not entertaining (which they certainly are), but because they obviously lack the visual energy that pervades both the other episodes. The former sees Dakshan (Parvathi’s father) start a yaagam without inviting Shiva, which angers his daughter. Parvathi doesn’t heed Shiva’s calls and still visits her father requesting him to put an end to this madness. When it proves to be futile, she returns to her Lord, but the difference of opinion still remains. This is probably the only episode which doesn’t have any noteworthy aspect except, possibly, Lord Shiva’s “thaandavam” which serves the singular purpose of highlighting Sivaji’s weak dancing capabilities.

The third episode, in comparison, is definitely much stronger, and sees Parvathi forget her origins and be born as a fisherman chieftain’s daughter. Though it starts off slowly with another song, Sivaji’s reappearance as a fisherman provides some much-needed energy, and the episode itself concludes with an imaginatively picturized fight sequence in water, as Sivaji fights off and defeats a killer whale to win back Parvathi.

Finally, the fourth episode has Lord Shiva return back to Madurai, this time under the rule of Varaguna Pandyan. Hemanatha Bhagavathar (T.S. Balaiah), a carnatic singer of worldwide fame, has finally made his way to Madurai to sing in the King’s presence and prove his superiority once and for all. He poses a challenge to the King that if somebody from Madurai can defeat him, his voice and talent will be laid at the city’s feet and he will never sing again. However, if that person loses, then every man in the Pandya kingdom should henceforth refrain from singing. After everybody in the King’s court refuses to oblige, Baanapathrar (T.R. Mahalingam), who sings devotional compositions in the temple is chosen. The latter, realizing that he is no match in a straight battle with the famous out-of-town singer, prays to God to find a way out of this trouble. Of course, Lord Shiva appears as a woodcutter and rewards his devotee, while also teaching a lesson to Hemanathar.

Regardless of all the movie’s minor problems or for that matter its high points, it can be watched and re-watched any number of times just for ‘Sivaji’ Ganesan’s acting alone, whose radiant screen presence and majestic voice are aptly suited for such a role. Ever since its release, much has been written and said about this portrayal, so I would like to highlight my personal favourite sequence from the movie in order to demonstrate just how good a performance this is: The Paatum Naane, Baavamum Naane song.

Sivaji was one of the very few actors who could make us believe he was actually singing the song. Though T.M. Sounderarajan’s voice and its resemblance to Sivaji’s had a big say in this, the actor’s lip movements and genuine throbbing of the throat are the main reasons. The aforementioned sequence is the perfect example of both this fact and Sivaji’s acting talent. The twinkle in the eye as he gives a fleeting look at the room in which Hemanathar is staying when he sings “Paadum Unai Naan Paadavaithene,” or the rolling of the eyes accompanied by the inimitable smile when he utters “Naan Asainthal Asaiyum Agilam Ellame,” or even the ease with which his various forms handle the Veena, the Flute, and the Mridangam – all provide ample proof as to why he is arguably the greatest actor in Tamil cinema history and why this is decidedly one his best ever portrayals.

With such a commanding performance, the only other actors who make any sort of impact are Nagesh and Balaiah. As Dharumi, the former creates what is easily one of his most memorable on-screen characters. A variety of accolades has already been heaped on the role, but what I find most impressive about it is the consummate ease with which Nagesh accomplishes the seemingly impossible task of making us take our eyes of Sivaji and fixating them on Dharumi. A hard task in any of Sivaji’s roles, but to achieve it in this movie, and to a degree where we find ourselves incapable of removing our eyes off Dharumi, is proof enough of the late character actor/comedian’s greatness. Balaiah can generally be considered as a much underrated supporting actor who can leave a mark in any movie. As the egoistic singer who thinks the whole world is beneath his talent, he puts in a terrific shift, which injects a lot of energy to the movie, especially after the slower middle episodes.

With the exception of Sivaji, Savithri has the largest amount of screen time. However, this is definitely not one of the actress’ memorable performances, though she is quite suited and adequate for the role. (It has to be mentioned that this owes a great deal to Sivaji, with whom she shares much of the screen during the movie.) Director A.P. Nagarajan makes a cameo appearance as Nakkiran in the first episode and delivers the one critical dialogue with enough zest to firmly etch the role in our minds. Muthuraman, Devika, and Manorama all have minor appearances which further serves to the highlight the significance of the lack-of-ego argument I mentioned in my review of Saraswathi Sabatham.

As is a given in all of A.P. Nagarajan’s movies, the combination of K.V. Mahadevan’s music and Kannadasan’s lyrics stands him in good stead throughout, delivering a truly outstanding soundtrack. The standouts definitely are Paatum Naane Baavamum Naane..., Isai Thamizh Nee Seitha..., and Indroru Naal Podhuma..., all from the last episode. Of special note is the latter in which Balamuralikrishna’s voice and Balaiah’s expressions contribute effectively to craft an all-time great song. The other songs that have become very popular are Pazham Neeyappa... and Gnana Pazhathai Puzhindhu... from the first episode, which sing Murugan’s praise. Podhigai Malai... is also a very melodious number, while Sivaji has a lot of fun in Paarthal Pasumaram. The other songs work well within context of the movie, but are definitely not suited for casual listening on the Ipod.

Looking back at the history of Tamil cinema, few movies would come close to providing the same level of entertainment offered by this one. In a career that has seen him direct such movies as Kandan Karunai, Thillana Mohanambal, Thiruvarutchelvar, and Saraswathi Sabatham, just to name a few, this movie can be argued to be A.P. Nagarajan’s greatest movie. If not, then it is certainly close to the top. And, combined with what can be undeniably termed as a tour-de-force performance from Sivaji at the height of his craft, Thiruvilayadal is certainly one of Tamil cinema’s long standing masterpieces.

Thiru Thiru Thuru Thuru has been unwittingly billed as a romantic comedy by some, but that is not the case. Yes, there is a cute couple at the core of this film, but for almost its entire running time, their relationship is portrayed as something very less. Love rarely enters the picture save for a couple of songs and a few scenes sprinkled throughout, both of which are worked out to provide some sparks and make us believe their pairing. However, the comedy portion of the film works, for the most part. Whether or not that it due to the lack of a traditional romance (something which was the downfall of this year’s Siva Manasula Sakthi), I cannot tell. Still, the light tone of the movie comes as a good welcome relief to the heavier fare we have had recently.

Thiru Thiru... is also director Nandhini’s first film, but she doesn’t bring anything new to the table. She follows the template set by V. Priya, with whom she has worked as Assistant Director, in her two movies so far – Kanda Naal Mudhal & Kannamoochi Yenada. Like the former movie, the lead pair in this film too bicker at each other and engage in meaningless fights (this is traditional in any rom-com), only to realize their true feelings at the very end. And, like both of the aforementioned films, there is an involvement of senior actors (in this case, only one) which undoubtedly works to the movie’s favour. Apart from that, the story is nothing to write home about and the way it is structured, we always know what we are in for right from the beginning.

Arjun (Ajmal Amir) works as an art director in Srinivasan’s (Mouli) ad-film company. He is very close to his boss, almost like a son; he constantly arrives late to office, lies for fun, is irresponsible in serious situations, and is irregular in almost every respect. Archana (Rupa Manjari), who works in the same company, is his polar opposite, i.e. perfect in every sense. When asked the amount of time remaining till a meeting starts, she replies with the exact time right to the minute; she likes everything to be kept organized and has hardly lied to her parents in all her life. With a lead pair like that, there is no surprise in how the film ends. So, what we have left is the situation these two are put in to provide some comic relief.

Their company is about to gain a big contract, which will definitely boost their status and also alleviate some of the boss’ problems. Obviously, trouble occurs when the baby supposed to act in the ads catches a fever forcing them to look for an alternative, or risk losing the contract. Arjun finds the perfect choice in the middle of the road, but as he is requesting the mother, she meets with an accident. It is not after everything is finalized that he finds out that the mother is missing from the hospital. Now, he, along with Archana who joins in on this seemingly wild ride, has to take care of the baby and find the parents in order to obtain their signature on the agreement.

By any measure, the film would have been very hard to recommend if not for Mouli’s involvement. A veteran of stage and film, his comic aptitude and versatility is known to everyone. As the absent-minded boss who has a hard time remembering names more than anything else, he gets the best lines and his delivery extracts every bit of comic juice out of them. In comparison, Ajmal and Rupa, as the lead pair, are more straightforward when playing their characters. I never could agree with popular opinion that Ajmal deserved his Best Supporting Actor filmfare award for Anjaathey. The complaint I had against him in that film was he was wooden in quite a few scenes. In this movie, he changes that opinion somewhat; and although the main requirement is good looks which he has, he shows a marked improvement in general, which is a good sign. Rupa shows none of the first-time jitters that plague new faces on-screen and is less inhibited than most others. For a newcomer, that is definitely heartening to see even though she isn't stressed too much.

Thiru Thiru... has also been dubbed as one of the first fully digital Tamil films, shot completely using the Red One camera. If that is truly the case, then its effect remains largely unnoticeable to the naked eye; but the cinematographer goes a long way in maintaining the light tone of the film with bright and crisp colours. The picturization of the Jillena Veesum... song is quite good mainly due to the colourful locations on display. Mani Sharma’s music is largely forgettable, and his background score is more or less a full-on assault on our senses.

Like many similar movies, Thiru Thiru... is not going to win any awards or have an impact on the viewer. Though not all of the comedy hits the mark, and the movie shows a tendency to fall into slapstick on more than one occasion, it achieves what it sets out to do and packs a decent level of comic punch that makes for light viewing. If you have nothing else to do and decide to watch a movie for time-pass, it should be this one.

Saraswathi Sabatham is the kind of movie that will make us reminisce about the grand old age of Tamil movies, for a variety of very different reasons. For one, it is based on the Hindu Goddesses, but doesn’t involve a child falling into a ‘hundial’ or an evil wizard trying to overpower God. It is also basically a “message” movie about the elementary qualities of life, but, unlike today’s movies, that message comes about only because of the interesting premise set up by the movie’s story. And most importantly, it features an ensemble of cast of actors and actresses who were probably in the prime of their careers at the time. Since that is something which will never happen in today’s climate, this movie works as a great reminder of a time where our top actors worked together without a hint of ego on display.

The film’s underlying premise is very simple. Which is better: knowledge, wealth or strength? In the opening sequences, we see the mischievous sage Naradha (‘Sivaji’ Ganesan) visit Saraswathi (Savithri, as the Goddess of Knowledge), Lakshmi (Devika, as the Goddess of Wealth) and Parvathi (Padmini, as the Goddess of Strength), and pose each of them with the above question. This sets up the clash between the three to see which quality is more essential. To this effect, Saraswathi provides Vidyapathi (‘Sivaji’ again), who is dumb by birth, with a voice and intelligence making him wise and all-knowing. Lakshmi makes the poorest girl in the country as the next queen to the throne, Naachiya (K.R. Vijaya), providing her with unquestionable wealth and fame. Parvathi transforms one of the biggest cowards into Veeramallar (‘Gemini’ Ganesan), the bravest and strongest man in the land, who also goes on to become Naachiya’s commander-in-chief. As the three come to grips with their new God-given gifts, they also battle each other to prove their superiority (obviously the Goddesses’ hands are involved in this also).

Notwithstanding the interesting set-up and story, the film’s biggest attraction is, of course, the cast. Not only does the movie feature two of Tamil cinema’s acting greats in ‘Sivaji’ Ganesan and ‘Gemini’ Ganesan, but also the most famous actresses of the time in Savithri, Padmini, K.R. Vijaya and Devika. When you think of the last time in recent memory that anything close has been attempted, you would probably go back to 1999’s Suyamvaram, but even that was mainly put together in order to obtain the world record. When combined with the fact that this movie is considered an ensemble for its female leads (with today’s heroines being used only for eye-candy, this is another thing to remember fondly) coming together as much as its male leads, it further drives home the fact that our yesteryear actors had little or no ego clashes coming in the way of sharing screen space.

Even with such a cast, the acting honours would obviously have to go to ‘Sivaji’ Ganesan. Of all the people who have played Naradha on-screen (and there are quite a few), none would probably come close to matching Sivaji. The mischievous glint is obviously visible in his eyes as he plays around with the three goddesses in order to obtain the obvious answer to the question. (Note him especially in the single sequence with the three in tandem.) As Vidyapathi, he also brings the dignity and ego of the knowledgeable character to life. Although K.R. Vijaya and ‘Gemini’ Ganesan are legends in their own right, the pride seen in Sivaji’s face and body language as he talks about the power of knowledge is unmatched by the former two. (In fact, such a comparison will be deemed unfair on all three by many; I just felt it is worth mentioning in the context of the movie.)

The above statement aside, K.R. Vijaya and ‘Gemini’ Ganesan are perfect for their respective roles. The self-importance of the queen, with all her wealth and fame, is skilfully depicted by the former. And since good screen-presence is the main pre-requisite for Veeramallar, the latter fits the bill perfectly. Savithri, Devika and Padmini are essentially in the background, but their sequences with each other and Naradha serve as special highlights. Nagesh and Manorama raise quite a few laughs with their separate comedy track (though it does fit in with the other characters in the movie). The actors playing Lord Shiva and Brahma are largely unknown to me, while a very young Sivakumar appears as Lord Vishnu.

Another major highlight of the film is K.V. Mahadevan’s music combined with Kannadasan’s lyrics. Agara Muthala Ezhuthellam... is the best song with each line starting from each of the Tamil alphabets in sequence, but the other songs don’t lag behind either. Kalviya Selvama Veerama... features great lyrics from Kannadasan underlining the significance of each of these qualities in life. Dheivam Iruppadhu Enge... is sung in praise of the wealth of knowledge and also sets up the straight head-to-head between knowledge and wealth. Thai Thandha Pichaiyile... has become the staple for a variety of beggary-related comedy scenes over the years, while Gomatha Engal Kulamatha... is a perfect song for the "Mattu Pongal" festival. Uruvathai Kaatidum Kannadi... and Rani Maharani... are mostly obscure remaining largely unheard outside the movie. T.M. Sounderarajan and P.Susheela are the only two voices heard in all the songs, and are the main reason why it is considered such a stellar soundtrack to begin with.

Despite all the high-praise accorded to the film, there are a few elements that can be off-putting for some viewers. Some sequences in the film do move quite slowly, but that is essentially a quality shared by all movies released at the time. The set design and costumes will also feel more akin to a stage-play than a movie; again, another aspect that is not unique to this movie alone. However, these are only worth mentioning for what they are: minor nitpicks.

Saraswathi Sabatham has become a staple for TV viewing on Saraswathi Pooja and Vijayadasami days. (In fact, I wrote this review the very next day after Vijayadasami.) And though not as good as director A.P. Nagarajan’s certain other films (Kandan Karunai and Thiruvilaiyadal, for starters), it is still a very entertaining film in its own right and is worth a watch on TV or by finding yourself a VCD.

Excuse me for a moment while I ponder over the reality of the situation: Last week I walked into a theatre to watch a little movie called Eeram with a relatively unknown cast and crew, only to come away stunned and satisfied that Tamil cinema could still surprise me with such variety sans any masala. This week I went to watch Unnaipol Oruvan, which admittedly had an all-star cast and was already a proven hit in Hindi, so there was considerably more expectation than in the former case. What surprises me about this scenario is that we can have two very good (and meaningful, especially in the latter case) movies in two vastly different genres within the span of a week. But that is exactly what Kamalhassan has provided with this film which, along with Eeram, provides the one-two punch that Tamil cinema so badly needed.

Having not seen the original Hindi film “A Wednesday,” I will refrain from commenting on how faithful this remake is. (Though two of my friends who had already watched the Hindi original acknowledged that this is a frame-by-frame remake, which is certainly good news.) Taken on its own, Unnaipol Oruvan is definitely one of the best films of the year so far and while it would be right to classify it as a thriller, to pigeonhole this movie into a particular category is to ignore what Kamal (and, to a very large extent, the director of the original Neeraj Pandey) has achieved with it.

The film begins on a seemingly casual note as it tries to establish the main players in this convoluted plot. Commissioner of Police Raghavan Maraar (Mohan Lal) is having as boring a day as any other, trying to answer queries relating to a police protection request from superstar Aravind (Sriman, in a role which has a very obvious resemblance to ‘Ilayathalapthy’ Vijay). Natasha Rajkumar (Anuja Iyer, who appeared as the whitely ghost in Sivi) is a trademark Indian journalist conducting a TV satire on Former Pakistani and American Presidents, General Pervez Musharraf and George Bush. All this (and more) happens while we also see the prime character of the movie (Kamalhassan) move around the city placing black bags in common places like trains, buses etc., and set up his comfortable perch on top of one of the city’s under-construction buildings. What happens afterward should be known to most people who have seen the trailer; the Commissioner receives a phone call from said character stating that he has placed in various locations across the city, all of which are ready to blow unless his demands are met. Watching the movie without knowing the rest of the plot is one of its biggest pleasures, so needless to say it one of the best edge-of-the-seat thrillers in recent memory.

Much of the first half is spent in a similar note to how the film starts. A host of more characters is introduced, from the Chief Minister’s Chief Secretary (Lakshmi) to a rough-and-tough cop Arif Khan (Ganesh Venkatram). Although the film moves ever-so-slowly in these sequences, they are absolutely necessary in making us relate to these characters, given the breakneck speed at which the plot moves post-intermission. As the movie reaches its final quarter of running time, we are hit in the face with a genuine twist. I would advise anybody to read as little about this movie (or “A Wednesday!”) as possible before watching, because knowing certain aspects of the movie may lead the viewer to accidentally guess (sadly, this happened to me) what happens in this key moment. However, having said that, this pivotal moment will definitely have such an impact on anybody that there is no danger of its effectiveness being diluted by accidental guesses. The twist more or less only acts as a means in making us understand the very powerful message the film is trying to convey, which is certainly very effective.

When somebody assembles a cast of this calibre, it is going to be very hard to speak about how they go about their roles, but I am going to try and do that anyway. As Raghavan Maraar, I had my own doubts about how effective Mohan Lal will be with his Malayali accent (his talent, I have no right to question). But, he comes out with a very understated and dignified performance that I could not help but vent at myself for my initial fears. His verbal trade-offs with Lakshmi are such a pleasure to watch, both within the context of the movie and in India’s political system in general, that it is now hard to imagine anyone else coming with such a subtle portrayal. Kamalhassan returns to being himself rather than being buried under sheets of make-up (though, here he is buried under a somewhat unkempt beard). Initially, he is quite soft when making his threats and demands, and remains so for much of the first half. His passion and rage constantly build up during the second half, and he peaks in the final sequences with a stunning monologue that will make everybody in the audience sit-up and listen intently. Much has been said about Naseerudin Shah’s superlative performance in “A Wednesday,” and although comparisons are unfair, I can safely that Kamal has definitely provided for a Tamil person what (I have been told) Shah did for a Hindi one. Lakshmi never fails to impress me even in small appearances and her role here is nothing more than a glorified cameo, but one she pulls off perfectly. The rest of the actors are perfectly cast (of note is Ganesh Venkatram as Arif Khan) as is required for this movie to hit all the right notes throughout.

Cinematographer Manoj Soni and dialogue writer Ee. Ra. Murugan are two of the film’s biggest strengths. The former provides some stunning shots of the entire city as seen from Kamal’s top-level perch and hardly puts a foot wrong during the entire running time. The impact of the entire film hinges on the latter, who (one would assume with inputs from Kamal) writes some of best lines I have heard in Tamil recently. Much of the impact the later sequences have on us is as much due to the dialogues as the person delivering them and for that, Murugan deserves high praise. Shruthi Hassan is making her debut as music director with this movie. The first time I heard the entire soundtrack, I was genuinely induced a headache. I am not a big fan of Indian music trying to imitate western rock and that is what Shruti tried to do. Thankfully, the two songs remain largely in the background, heard only in bits and pieces. She also does not try to upstage the onscreen happenings with her score. Neither does it make us notice her as the next big thing, nor is it too subpar that it brings down the quality of the presentation, which is a good sign.

In the end, Unnaipol Oruvan speaks with the same voice “A Wednesday” spoke with. The impact here may not be the same because we Chennaiites have been living in relative obscurity when it comes to our position as one of the top Indian cities. However, in a post 26-11 era where the whole of India is trying to come to grips with the terror threat facing the nation, that voice is very powerful. The film leaves no stone untouched with its constant thought-provoking comments. It makes us wonder why Ajmal Amir Qasab is allowed to make a public mockery of the Indian judicial system when he was obviously one of the perpetrators of terrorism in India. Also present is an obvious swipe at the headlines grabbing nature of Indian journalists which will be similar to anyone who watched any of the major news channels on that horrifying date. (Kamal also takes a thinly veiled jab at the Electoral system, which is sure to bring a smile out of anyone who followed what happened in the city on Lok Sabha Election Day.)

Whether that voice will be heard is largely in doubt. One thing that is of no doubt is the quality of this movie. Kamal has efficiently adapted for the Tamil milieu, what has been heralded as a modern Hindi classic to begin with. And, with a star-studded cast, dialogues that hit the nail on the head and a very meaningful message, Unnaipol Oruvan is a must-watch for any Tamil viewer.

Horror has been a very on-off genre in Tamil movies, largely neglected in favour of more commercial subjects. Recently, however, there has been much cause for optimism. 2007’s Sivi laid the seeds for the slow return to the spotlight for this kind of movie, and it has been on a full bloom this year with Yaavarum Nalam, Arundhatee and the dubbed-from-Hindi Bommayi. (Not to mention Naan Aval Adhu whose promo appeared quite a while ago on TV, but is yet to be released.)

Apart from the supernatural element being common in all the aforementioned movies, the treatment of the subject has been widely different. Arundhatee (and, from the look of it, Bommayi) focused on a traditional examination of the subject using grand visual effects and bodily reincarnations to grab (and spook) the viewer with on-screen images. While Yaavarum Nalam dealt with the subject in a more subtle manner, focusing on the psychological aspects of spirits and their unfulfilled desires, instead of only spooking the viewer. Eeram firmly establishes itself in the latter category and though similar to Yaavarum Nalam (and, to a slight extent, Adhu), it is still a good horror/thriller in its own right.

As the movie opens, we see the watchman complete his rounds for the night and get ready to take a breather only to be stopped by the sound of flooding water coming from one of the upper floors. He goes to investigate it and after figuring out that it is coming from the E5 home, he knocks heavily on the door to no avail. The camera at this point moves outward. Although this is only a small sequence and plays as the opening credits are rolled on-screen, it is quite important in that it establishes the emphasis of water and how big a part it is going to play in the rest of movie.

In the next scene, we are treated to a police investigation regarding the death of Ramya Balakrishnan (Sindhu Menon) who apparently drowned herself in the bathroom tub by closing the drain hole (leading to the flooding water mentioned above). The suicide note tagged to her body states that no one is responsible for her death. (Rumours around the apartment suggest the involvement of an extra-marital relationship.) Moorthy, the officer on-hand, calls for help from his police friend Vasudevan (Aadhi), who happens to be Ramya’s one-time true love from college. Vasu takes up the case immediately after it is closed as suicide. And, from this moment, the movie moves back and forth between the past and the present.

The flashbacks focus on a lightweight college romance between Vasu and Ramya which, not surprisingly, involves love at first sight. Despite the contrived nature of the beginning of this love, there is some practicality in it and I thought there were some cute scenes, which made accepting it easier. Obviously, the plot progression involves the requirement of a split between these two -- which is again clichéd with the opposing father -- leading to the marriage of Ramya with Balakrishnan (Nandha).

In between all that, what we get in the present day is a standard police procedural with Vasu enquiring about the truth behind the rumours surrounding Ramya. Moorthy is highly sceptical of his friend’s motives behind pursuing a seemingly dead case and suspects it is only because of his prior romantic relationship. But, a string of more deaths of people from the same apartment forces everyone involved to rethink their perspective. Especially since water seems to be the common tool of death in all of them.

Eeram has a very strong first half. The flashbacks do a decent enough job of establishing Vasu and Ramya’s characters and their relationship. This makes it easy to accept that the latter’s death could not have been a suicide and lends support to Vasu’s single-minded pursuit of disproving the same. Each of the subsequent deaths is built up very well and the usage of water in each of them is quite thrilling. However, the movie loses some of its focus in the second half.

In a movie like this, the moment of revealing the key plot point should come as late as possible, with the scenes before establishing all the suspense. Eeram does a good job with the establishment part of it in the second half in the portions depicting Ramya’s marriage life in the apartment. But, instead of closing everything quickly after the revelation, it dwells on some minor issues far too long. This effectively destroys the initial surprise one might have when everything is revealed. Not only that, the movie tries to provide a lot of cheap “boo” moments in these sequences, which only felt like concessions made by the director (not to mention that none of the them scared me one bit). Nevertheless, the director achieves a certain sense of closure at the end that, while not completely satisfying, is well worked out in the context of the movie.

Aadhi gets first billing and more of the screen time but only does an adequate job with it. He seems to have toned down from Mirugam and has a good body presence as is required when one dons the cop uniform, but when it really comes to emoting, he desperately falls short. It didn’t help that his face and voice reminded me of Vishal more than I would have wanted. Sindhu Menon is naturally the heart of the movie, since how much one likes the movie is dependent on how effective her character is. She looks very pretty in the romantic portions, and also provides a really strong performance in the sequences leading to her death, which makes the viewer sympathize with her character. Saranya Mohan is decent while Nandha, who should be seen more often, really improves upon his reputation as a strong actor.

With the importance this movie places on water, the weight of its success entirely falls on the shoulder of the cinematographer. Manoj Paramahamsa really proves his mettle and shows why he was picked by Gautham as the cameraman for his next movie. He neatly desaturates the screen during a majority of the movie (except the college portions), which is very effective, and also captures water in its various forms – flowing, still, falling as droplets -- quite breathtakingly. I was really surprised to find out that the plump drummer in Boys (Thaman) was the music director for this movie. Thankfully, there is only one traditional song (in addition to another which plays in some scenes) in the movie which is very average. The background score, on the other hand, is quite effective in raising the tension at quite a few places. The art director is Rembon who impressed me very much in Subramaniapuram, and again shows his efficiency in the interior scenes especially.

Clearly, this is another winner for Shankar’s ‘S’ Pictures following the success of Kaadhal, Imsai Arasan and Veyyil. (I am ignoring the existence of the very disappointing Kallori and Arai En 305’il Kadavul.) Though it just falls short of the standard set by Yaavarum Nalam for this kind of horror/thriller, it is infinitely better than this season’s most bloated and hyped movie about a non-existent superhero.

There is little doubt that Vikram is in the most critical stage of his recent film career. While his nearly one and a half year wait for Anniyan in 2005 proved worthwhile with the movie becoming a box office success, his later movies have not fared well. Majaa released in the same year was average and Bheema, his collaboration with commercial director Lingusamy, released early last year was a critical and commercial flop. With no movie befitting his place in the top-tier of Tamil actors in the past 4 years, he has put all his hopes on Kanthaswamy to restore his share of the Tamil market.

Unfortunately, that faith has proved to be misplaced. Director Susi Ganesan’s previous movies were not exactly what one could call commercial and his last movie, Thiruttu Payale, had an interesting protagonist, though the movie itself was average at best. With Kanthaswamy he has tried to move into mainstream commercial cinema with a mega-star and I have to say he is very unsuccessful in the attempt. Kanthaswamy’s story of the hero taking money from the rich and giving to the poor in order to solve their troubles is similar to every vigilante movie that has appeared before. It actually borrows liberally from a variety of similar movies like Ramana, Anniyan and Sivaji. While that itself would not have been a bad thing had the director been able to serve the old wine in a new bottle (yes it is a cliché but one that fits right in here). However, with a very uneven screenplay and an insanely long running time, the movie has very few things going for it and I definitely left the theatre feeling very underwhelmed at the end.

The plot is very basic and threadbare to say the least. By day, Kanthaswamy (Vikram) is a CBI officer working in the finance wing. His job allows him to track the financial records of almost all big-wigs in the state and conduct raids on their properties to see where their illegal money is stashed. By night, he is also a superhero taking said illegal money from big-wigs and delivering it to the needy and the poor. The people in turn believing that God is helping them write their problems on a letter and tie them up in a tree in Lord Kanthaswamy’s temple, from where our hero retrieves them and solves their troubles. This rubs the police the wrong way and the DIG (Prabhu) wants to prove that this is the work of a mortal man and no God.

Meanwhile, the CBI persona of Kanthaswamy also traps a state big-wig, PPP (Aashish Vidhyarthi), for stashing illegal money which sets him up for a direct confrontation with the latter’s daughter, Subbulakshmi (Shriya). Subbulakshmi, aiming for revenge on the person who humiliated her father, tries to woo the hero into falling for her, while the hero realizing this makes sure not to get caught in her web of love and deceit. This sets up a battle of wits between the two which looks like it will be interesting for a while, but ends up conventionally with the hero taming the heroine’s ego.

Arguably the most disappointing aspect of the movie for me was how little screen-time the Kokkarokko super-hero persona had. For a movie that had the superhero tagline during the opening sequence and has been touted as the first superhero movie in Tamil cinema, the actual character was very poorly etched and failed to give us the yearning for such a hero in our real lives (which is the ultimate success for any superhero character). The fact that the real-life Kanthaswamy had more to do than his alter-ego made me feel like I was cheated at all the hype that the movie had generated for itself and the character especially.

Still, all the movie’s flaws could have been forgiven easily had Susi Ganesan been able to narrate the story swiftly and entertainingly. However, new characters and villains are introduced at regular intervals and it feels like he is unable to keep a tight hold of proceedings as the screenplay takes weird directions. Vadivelu’s comedy track and songs arrive at all the wrong times further interrupting the pace. Yet, had the movie provided a nice conclusion and climax, the movie would have worked out better, but, with a message that feels tacked on and a rushed climax just for the sake of wrapping up everything, the director fails there too. And with a running time of 3 hours and 20 minutes, all the movie’s flaws appear magnified which make for a very incoherent and wholly unsatisfying movie.

I cannot help but pity Vikram in the movie. With the movie being as important as it is, he does look to have put a lot of effort in getting his character right. Still, his sincerity is largely wasted in a role which does nothing to bring out his talents and is pretty much like any commercial-hero type character. As I mentioned earlier, with the superhero character having such a small time on-screen, he is unable to do anything worthwhile with that too. Also the much hyped multiple roles of a woman and an old man have inconsequential (I mean they are really small, like tiny) side appearances to make any kind of impact on us.

After nearly 3 years in Tamil cinema, Shriya still cannot deliver one complete sentence without going out-of-sync with the voice-overs and that is just one minor problem I have with her. It also looks like she wants to “show” her way to the top of the Tamil cinema heroine ladder. In every song — almost nearly every scene — she appears skimpily clad in an effort to bring out her curves to the forefront and it does get boring after a while. When combined with the fact that she absolutely, positively cannot emote, her appearance does not make for a good viewing. Prabhu and Aashish Vidhyarthi sleepwalk through roles they have probably played in countless movies before. Vadivelu provides what is easily his most unfunny comedy track in recent memory and Susi Ganesan’s cameo appearance as a supporting character at the end is as forgettable as his movie.

Technically, the film is again a mixed bag. Cinematography is excellent throughout and is especially highlighted in the sequences in Mexico and in the usage of innovative camera angles during the superhero appearances. The film editor is largely responsible for the movie’s problems with sudden cuts from songs to comedy tracks to Vikram’s grand appearances. It is almost as if he cut everything and pasted them together in any way he pleased. I didn’t think too highly of Devi Sri Prasad’s songs (with Vikram’s voice to accompany it) before the movie and watching them onscreen didn’t change that opinion. The Kanthaswamy theme is pretty decent but excessive usage robs almost all of the shine from it.

Kanthaswamy follows other big-name movies with megastars in failing to live up to the pre-release hype, while we were hoping for the exact opposite thing to happen. Here’s hoping that Aayirathil Oruvan at least bucks the trend and turns out to be every bit as good as the hype it seems to be getting now.

NOTE: While I try to avoid any major plot points or spoilers in this review, for people looking for a fresh and uninitiated viewing of this complex thriller, it would be wise to read this post after watching the movie.

For any film noir/murder mystery/thriller movie to work and be successful, it has to have the following elements going for it. First of all, it has to have strong plot which draws the viewers attention to the film never letting go of it till the final credits roll on-screen. Secondly, it has to have strong characterization with a set of central characters which the viewer can identify with and care for. Thirdly, and most importantly, it has to have a very strong and cohesive screenplay which brings all the elements of the movie together and ties up all the loose ends successfully. Though it is nearly impossible to pull off all the above elements to perfection, any movie which can do so even with a certain degree of success is surely going to be a very engaging thriller. L.A. Confidential (1997) is one such movie and is probably one of the best examples of a movie where all the elements are worked out to near perfection and, for that reason, it is one of the best crime thrillers that I have ever seen.

L.A. Confidential can be primarily classified as a film noir thriller but, in my opinion, that would be desperately selling it short. Sure all the elements needed for such a movie are present such as drugs, sex, multiple homicides, prostitution etc. complete with cinematography full of diluted hues and a background score that will distinctly remind you of older noir thrillers. However, by setting the story against the backdrop of 1950’s Los Angeles, the director also explores some elements of the city we are now familiar with but were just starting out in that time period such as police & political corruption and sensationalist journalism while also focusing on the glitz and glamour of the city. This gives the movie a sense of character that few other movies have because the city is an integral part of the movie and parts of the complex story are woven directly around it.

The movie opens as the city’s biggest crime lord, Mickey Cohen, is arrested and jailed for income tax evasion leaving the spot vacant for anyone to take over. This small sequence is narrated by Hush-Hush magazine chief editor Sid Hudgens (Danny DeVito) which leads us to suspect that possibly the entire movie could be narrated by him. However, those suspicions are immediately laid to rest as the movie moves its focus to Bud White (Russell Crowe), Jack Vincennes (Kevin Spacey) and Edmund Exley (Guy Pearce) who are going to be the three principal protagonists in the movie.

Bud White is possibly the most intensely likable character of the three even though he is also the most violent. He is the kind of person who acts first and thinks later (something which certain people use against him) and is not afraid to deliver his own brand of justice if he sees it fit. He especially has a deep hatred for men who abuse women and these guys get to see him in all his fury. Jack Vincennes is the most glamorous and sleazy of the three who also works as technical advisor for Badge of Honour which is a cop-based TV show. He also cuts win-win deals with the aforementioned Sid Hudgens, wherein the reporter provides information on celebrities doing drugs and he gets to arrest them in the act while also getting his photo on the cover of Hush-Hush boosting magazine sales in the process. Ed Exley is the extremely intelligent son of a decorated ex-cop who wants to play everything by the book even if it means he is going to be an outcast in the department’s homicide division. He is the kind of politically-correct person who does most things right and follows all the rules but still can end up in the viewers’ bad books in the process.

The entire story is built around an incident called the Nite Owl Massacre, where six people (including Bud’s ex-partner) are killed in the Nite Owl Coffee Shop. The department opens up investigations in which all three are involved to varying degrees which culminates with the case getting closed and the primary accused being killed while trying to escape. However, something doesn’t feel right and each of the three open up separate investigations. Bud follows an angle involving his run-in with one of the women who was killed in the massacre. Jack is set up for arrest of the district D.A. by Sid which ends up with a budding actor being murdered forcing him to get involved while Ed Exley just has a gut feeling that he got the medal of valour for the wrong reasons and that the case is still open.

Each of their investigations also connects to a multitude of subplots prevalent throughout the course of the movie. Pierce Patchett (David Strathairn) is a rich businessman on the outside who also runs a high-class call-girl service by turning girls into Hollywood actress look-alikes. One of these is Lynn Bracken (Kim Basinger), a Veronica Lake look-alike, who was friends with one of the Nite Owl victims and who also becomes romantically involved with Bud White. Another subplot involves Captain Dudley Smith (Jack Cromwell) who uses muscle cops like Bud to rough-up gangsters from out-of-town forcing them to flee from the city.

Curtis Hanson (serving as Director and Screenwriter), along with co-writer Brian Helgeland, deserves all of the praise for a truly amazing screenplay. With so much going on, it would have been overwhelming for the viewers if we had been forced to think about them during the movie, but, by focusing our entire attention on the characters right from the first scene, the director makes sure that we don’t think much about the subplots until he is ready to tie them all together. The only thing we as viewers care about is what happens to the three main protagonists. And when the screenplay does tie up everything together neatly, with no deus ex machina or other plot contrivances of any sort, the only thing left for us to do is stand up and applaud the depth and complexity of it all.

Although Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce have become famous because of their appearances in blockbusters (Crowe in Gladiator and Pearce in Memento), both of them were relative unknowns in Hollywood in 1997; still, their acting quality shines through in this movie. With nary a hint of their Australian accent in show, their performances are one of the main reasons we are drawn into the movie and relate with their characters in the first place. Crowe certainly looks the part of the rough-n-tough cop with a bulky body and delivers a solid portrayal which allows us to sympathize with Bud White. Pearce’s intense performance is very effective in showing that Ed Exley means business in the department. Kevin Spacey was the most famous of the three in 97, yet he is also stuck with the least screen time. He still develops Jack into a charismatic person who still has some honor left in him to go and find the truth even if it means moving out his comfort zone as the slick and famous celebrity cop.

Of the supporting performances, Kim Basinger’s is the most effective, for which she won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. She portrays Lynn as a sympathetic individual who is immediately attracted to Bud White because of his kindness towards women which overshadows his rough-cop appearance. One of the best scenes in the movie is Lynn’s monologue to Ed Exley on why she fell for Bud in the first place. Senior actors Jack Cromwell, David Strathairn and Danny DeVito all provide solid and credible supporting performances.

It is hard to find fault with a movie of the quality of L.A. Confidential. All the elements required for a great movie in general are on full display here with a complex plot, a multi-layered screenplay and top-class performances. I would heartily recommend it to anyone who wants to watch one of the finest thrillers in recent memory.

There is a personal classification of movies I always maintain in my mind and it usually depends on the following three rules (except the case where the movie is truly bad or awful). If I keep talking about a movie for a day or two after I watch it and then forget about, I consider the movie to be average or good and worth a watch maybe once. Secondly, if I keep mentioning the movie in talks for quite a number of days or even a month, then I consider it to be very good and worth repeated viewings. On the other hand, there are quite a number of handful cases where I simply cannot forget a movie for a long time. Thinking about scenes from these movies always brings a smile to my face even months or years after I have seen them. The most recent movie I saw, Goodfellas (1990), definitely belongs in the latter category. The experience of watching the movie is one I will never forget and that is why I now consider it to be one of the best movies I have ever seen.

Ever since I saw Martin Scorsese’s recent movies — most notably The Departed in 2006 — I wanted to catch up with his older classics and, to be precise, his collaborations with Robert De Niro. And since I had already seen Taxi Driver quite a while ago on TV, I decided to watch Raging Bull and Goodfellas. The kind of synergy that exists between these two masters of their craft has to be seen to be understood. Taxi Driver was the beginning of their relationship and Raging Bull was arguably the most accomplished and lauded of their efforts and Goodfellas further demonstrates what is so good when the two of them combine together.

Goodfellas follows the story of Henry Hill (based on real-life gangster Henry Hill and portrayed by Ray Liotta) from a period of 1955 to 1980 depicting his rise inside the mafia family under the control of Paulie Cicero (Paul Sorvino). The movie opens with Henry saying, “To me being a gangster is better than being President of the United States” and then goes on to show how even as a 13-year old kid he wanted to be in the mafia family enjoying the respect and power that comes with it. During this period he also learns the two most important creeds of the mafia world — “Never rat on your friends and always keep your mouths shut” — which is what the entire story is built upon.

As he is gradually accepted within the family as one of their own and starts getting their support in his personal life, he meets up with Jimmy Conway (Robert De Niro) and Tommy De Vito (Joe Pesci), two people with whom he is going to be spending the rest of his gangster life with. Jimmy is not a “made man” or one of the top bosses (since he is Irish like Henry) but is generally well respected within the family. Tommy is on the same level of the gangster food-chain as Henry but is very hot-headed and nearly psychotic who can switch between being jovial to being absolutely pissed off in a matter of seconds. And thanks to the latter he also meets up with Karen (Lorraine Bracco) and ends up marrying her.

The first half of the movie is essentially a smaller version of The Godfather. It shows all the good things that can come with being a gangster and glamorizes the life much like its esteemed predecessor. However, the similarities end right there as the second half is all about how it can push you right to the edge of paranoia. The second half is set up with a killing that, while not providing the biggest jolt, is arguably the most important story-wise. Trouble starts brewing within the family subsequently and Henry and his best friends start becoming wary of each other. By the end of the movie, a lot more people have been killed and the entire foundation of the mafia world (and its two most important creeds) is brought into question.

At its heart, Goodfellas is much closer to Scorsese’s previous Raging Bull than The Godfather. That is to say, it is more of a character drama than a gangster film since almost all characters are fully-realized and not one is entirely likable for the duration of the film. Although the narrative is provided by Henry and Karen Hill and these are the two characters Scorsese want us to sympathize with, even they have shades of grey as Henry keeps a mistress and disregards his family for a while and Karen takes some not so pleasing decisions to keep her husband to herself. The actual voice-overs themselves never hinder with the movie and helps Scorsese take us into the minds of his main characters. Henry’s voice-overs are arguably the life of the movie and give us an insight into what is going through his head with each of the actions he commits for his “family”. While Karen’s voice-overs (though very little in number) serve as an interesting look into how she settles into the family as a newcomer and how by the end of the film she is almost one of them helping her husband in business matters.

Even with such a strong script and screenplay, there is only so much Martin Scorsese can do to make Goodfellas the masterpiece that it is. The main responsibility, however, falls squarely on the shoulders of the entire cast. The scene-stealing performance is definitely from Joe Pesci as Tommy for which he won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. His depiction of the split second that it takes to change Tommy’s character from being comical to purely homicidal is probably one of the main reasons why we can accept such a character in the first place. It almost feels as if Tommy has multiple personality disorder at times and Pesci does it perfectly. Ray Liotta plays it safe as Henry Hill. He is definitely very good in some scenes which require him to show Henry’s moral issues and though his performance for the part is perfect, it is not as noticeable as Pesci’s. Lorraine Bracco is especially good in scenes where she is required to battle against her husband’s attitude.

The reason I saved Robert De Niro’s performance for the last is because after seeing this movie, I have concluded that he is probably my favorite actor of my generation (something which had been on my mind long before). This performance is again very typical of De Niro. He is there in nearly as much frames as Pesci or Liotta but you don’t notice him unless he wants to be noticed. He underplays his part perfectly and that is the reason why it is such a good performance and it is what makes him such a great actor. There are quite a few scenes especially towards the end of the movie which show him in top form.

Another thing I need to mention is Martin Scorsese’s usage of pop songs instead of generic background scores in many scenes. I first read about this in Roger Ebert’s and James Berardinelli’s reviews of Goodfellas. Both had mentioned about this particular aspect in the movie and when I saw it I understood why. There are quite a few scenes in the movie where a regular instrumental score would have sufficed but by using pop songs that fit in with the scene, Scorsese draws the viewer’s attention further into the film. This is even true for some of the killing scenes where a song could be considered a hindrance but that is not the case since Scorsese meshes it perfectly with the actions on-screen.

Finally, I think what drew me into the movie most was that it is based on a real-life story. That almost all the characters in the movie shared first names with their real-life counterparts only served to further drive home that fact. Even though I mostly speak for me when I say this but deep inside us, most of us would have thought about the power and respect that comes with being a gangster, maybe not consciously but subconsciously at least. This movie serves like the anti-thesis of all that has been built by watching The Godfather and its sequel. It depicts the brutality of the mob especially in the lower parts of the food chain and is probably one of the main reasons why I was engrossed in it so much.

For those of you who have already seen it, I hope my tribute in the form of a review helped you reminisce what is so great about the movie. For those who haven’t I suggest you do so right away and watch what is surely one of the best films in the history of cinema.

Recently we have seen Kollywood produce some very good young directors who have come out with movies that aren’t your typical run-of-the mill entertainment. Last year it was Venkat Prabhu with Chennai 600028 and the Pushkar-Gayathri duo with Oram Po. These movies were not what you would have expected from Tamil cinema, say, 10 years ago. With today’s producers being ready to take risks with such “independent” films sans big stars, we are starting to see some unknown names from Kodambakkam making it big. This year, it is the turn of M. Sasi Kumar, who has provided us with the year’s biggest surprise in the form of Subramaniapuram.

Subramaniapuram begins in the year 2008 with scenes showing the Madurai Central Prison. As a man is released from jail, he is met by someone with a knife and stabbed. We are not shown who both these persons are. The movie then flashbacks to 1980 with Kasi (‘Ganja’ Karuppu) meeting ex-councilor Somu and his brother, Kanugu (Samudhirakkani) requesting help to get his friends Azhagar (Jai) and Paraman (Sasi Kumar) out of jail. They do the needful and both of them are let out. The importance of these initial scenes is that the former scene is always on the back of our minds as we constantly think about who the person released from jail is and who stabbed him and the latter scene does the important job of establishing the dependency that the three friends have on the men with all the power that make us understand their actions later on.

The movie then goes on to show the day-to-day activities of all of them. Somu is not in any kind of authority anymore and the only people who show him any kind of respect anymore are Azhagar, Paraman, Kasi and their friends. Azhagar and Somu’s daughter Thulasi (Swathi) have feelings for each other which Paraman disapproves of regularly. Soon it comes to the time when another important political position has to be handed out by Somu’s party and it goes to a rival politician which infuriates Kanugu, who then uses his goodwill with the three friends to manipulate them into killing the rival so that the route gets cleared for Somu to come back to power. It is not until Azhagar and Paraman are put in jail that they realize they have essentially been tricked in one big political game and how they exact their revenge forms the rest of the story.

The story has shades of all the recent gangster films like Pattiyal and Pudhupettai. However, while his contemporaries have chosen more modern locales with guns as the platform for gangster films, Sasi Kumar elects to take us back in time to the 1980s to tell his violent tale. It proves to be a very wise decision because that is what elevates Subramaniapuram above most other films. The authentic depiction of 80’s Madurai provides the best platform visually for such a movie with every aspect right from the slang to the dressing and especially the village locales being brought on screen vividly and wonderfully.

Another big difference between the aforementioned gangster movies and Subramaniapuram is the realization of the main protagonists. Pattiyal created a pair of gangsters that we neither cared for nor related with, while Pudhupettai chose to completely antagonize its gangster. In choosing three average Joes, Sasi Kumar has made it sure that we get connected with his heroes. The first half is largely responsible for this with scenes showing the friends looking out for each other and immediately coming to one another’s aid in case of trouble. This helps us empathize with them when they decide to take revenge for the wrongs that have been committed against them. A few dialogues also bring this to the forefront where we realize that this violent life was not one of their choosing and instead has been thrust upon them and they have to live with it if they want to survive in this brutal world.

With every other aspect of the movie falling into place perfectly, the biggest burden falls on the main actors to perform their roles well and while there are no screen-stealing performances, they do get the job done effectively. Jai shows that he still has a long way to go to reach the top with a mixed performance. He overdoes the smile in the romantic portions quite a bit and while his face isn’t suited for the role of the tough guy, he certainly produces a competent and believable performance in the second half. Sasi Kumar is as good on the screen as he is off it and comes out with a very strong performance as the guy with the soft heart inside the rough exterior. ‘Ganja’ Karuppu, whose comedy has been becoming stale recently, shows that there is more to him than just funny one-liners. Samudhirakkani’s solid performance plays a major role in realizing a truly detestable and manipulative villain. Swathi is mostly expected to look innocent with a shy smile which she provides adequately. However, a few scenes near the end of the second half show that she can emote quite well actually which is certainly heartening to see in a new heroine. The actors rounding out the group of friends also come up with decent performances and no member of the overall supporting cast is left wanting.

The off-screen crew (which contains quite a number of new names) provides wonderful support to Sasi Kumar. Cinematographer Kadhir with his effective usage of natural lighting for most of the movie is largely responsible for bringing the 1980s world to life before our eyes. Some newcomers in the form of costume designer K. Natarajan and Art Director B. Rembon are also critical in preserving the overall 80s feel of the movie and are certainly ones to watch out for in the future. Debutante music director James Vasanthan delivers one of the best melodies of recent times in Kangal Irandaal… and the picturization on Jai and Swathi with scenes accompanying the lyrics does not disappoint. Kadhal Siluvayil… contains some good lyrics toying with one’s belief in love and plays right after Jai has been imprisoned. The background score is responsible for elevating the effectiveness of the scene during many places.

In this present day where almost every movie that releases contains some well-known Tamil cinema cliché, it is surprising to note that this film almost contains none and is probably the better for it. With its unflinching portrayal of violence, wonderfully realized characters, strong lead performances and great support from the entire crew, Subramaniapuram is the best movie of the year so far and is worth a watch for anyone who likes entertaining and engrossing cinema.

NOTE: Since Aegan is obviously inspired by Main Hoon Na, I will make certain references to the latter and comparisons in the vastly different qualities of both movies. So, there might be some minor spoilers when these comparisons are made, not that it matters anyway.

Ajith is on a comeback run after a few years when all his movies were quite average really. After the blockbuster success of last year’s Billa, he has decided to put his trust on new director Raju Sundaram to keep his box office run going. Aegan borrows the basic script of a cop going undercover as a student from the Hindi Shah Rukh Khan starrer Main Hoon Na and provides Ajith ample scope for comedy and action and he doesn’t disappoint. However, Ajith’s casting is about the only thing that Aegan gets right and almost everything else about the movie is below-average at best and it is not quite the diwali entertainment that was promised.

John Chinnappa (Suman) is a dreaded criminal who is wanted by the police on a number of crimes. Ram Prasad (Devan) is his right-hand man and best friend and knows everything about John. Ram Prasad decides to split with John after the latter chooses to put the lives of innocent people in danger and surrenders to the police and becomes an approver. However, when the police are escorting Ram to the court, their convoy is attacked and Ram runs on the loose fearing for his life. A short introduction about Shiva (Ajith) follows showing his ruthless streak in dispatching criminals. Shiva is then sent undercover as a student to St John’s College where Ram Prasad’s daughter Pooja (Piaa) is studying in order to protect her as well as keep tabs on Ram if he comes to visit her.

Once undercover Shiva finds it difficult to overcome his gruff exterior and befriend Pooja and her boyfriend Narain (Navadeep). He also falls for new chemistry teacher Mallika (Nayanthara) and tries to woo her. Giving him company inside the college are the principal (Jayaram), the peon (Sathyan) and his police aide (V.M.C. Haneefa). How he tracks Ram Prasad and brings John Chinnappa to justice forms the rest of the story. Oh and did I mention that there is a side track featuring Shiva’s attempt to reunite his father (Nasser) and his separated wife (Suhasini).

What Main Hoon Na did was merge all the above elements into a wonderful whole that provided great entertainment with lots of comedy, over-the-top action and just the slightest amount of sentiment to keep the proceedings interesting. Aegan delivers only in the comedy aspect. The scenes inside the campus with Ajith trying to blend into his new surroundings and get into Piaa’s good books to keep an easy eye on her and his wooing of Nayanthara are certainly funny with Ajith proving to have wonderful timing. Even though these sequences are directly inspired by Main Hoon Na with the funny principal trying to do his best to assist the undercover cop in his mission and Ajith going into dream mode every time Nayanthara passes by, they are still funny nonetheless and certain dialogues and scenes are sure to please Ajith fans.

One of the main aspects in which Aegan doesn't deliver is with its villain. Sunil Shetty’s solid performance provided a cool and chilling villain in Main Hoon Na. Suman’s John Chinnappa is a bit of a caricature in comparison. The role has been made into a one-dimensional regular Tamil villain with unwanted comedy inserted and it is probably single-handedly responsible for bringing down the overall quality of the movie. Sriman as Suman’s right hand man does not do the movie any favors and is another big minus.

Raju Sundaram also fails miserably in tying all the loose ends up in the climax. In Main Hoon Na, the track involving Shahrukh’s quest to make his half-brother and stepmother understand his father was integrated neatly with the main storyline and added some nice sentiments to the mix. In Aegan, the track has been brought very late on in the movie and it is absolutely unnecessary and only the director can explain his decision in bringing such an angle to the movie. The story and screenplay falters horribly in the final twenty minutes of the movie and as a result, everything built up during the college sequences are wasted.

As I stated in the beginning, Ajith’s casting is spot on for the role. There are some obvious references to his past movies and usage of the world “thala” during apt sequences is intended solely to please his fans. Ajith gets to enjoy himself after a long time and his scenes with Jayaram and Haneefa are a lot of fun. Nayanthara certainly doesn’t dress like she is a college professor but looks quite hot really and that is all is required of her. Navadeep looks like he has not improved his acting from Arindhum Ariyaamalum and is not stressed too much. Piaa manages to impress as the girl who is not too fond of her father’s profession. Nasser and Suhasini are wasted in miniscule roles. Jayaram, Haneefa and Sathyan all produce decent performances to maintain the light tone of the movie throughout.

Yuvan Shankar Raja’s music is quite average really but the Aegan background score accompanying Ajith’s entry and fight sequences is good thankfully. Ajith has managed to improve his dance skills greatly and it is evident in Hey Saala… and Odum Varaiyil… both of which provide him with some fast movements and he doesn’t falter at all. Raju Sundaram has unsuccessfully tried to capture the group dance spirit of the initial college song from Main Hoon Na in Yahoo.... The stunt sequences are quite underwhelming and the climax fight especially contains some grainy shots which I am not sure Raju Sundaram intended to signify style but they are not good-looking in all honesty.

Rocky Balboa is a kind of nostalgic trip down memory lane for Sylvester Stallone. It is reminiscent of the 1976 evergreen classic Rocky in more ways than one and by Stallone’s own admission, it is the final movie in the long-running Rocky series which apparently overstayed its welcome with movies Rocky III, IV and V.

I first saw the original 1976 Rocky a few years ago and being a fan of uplifting motion pictures, I loved it. The story of a relative unknown in Rocky Balboa being given a shot at becoming world-champion by holder Apollo Creed and lasting 15 rounds and almost winning the match is still as inspiring as ever. Of course, the movie is now heralded as a classic by everyone alike and if you haven’t seen it yet, I suggest you do right away.

I decided to stay away from sequels Rocky III, IV and V when I heard they were nothing like Rocky and Rocky II. So, why make a sequel for a long-forgotten series 16 years after the last one was universally regarded as a failure and made even hardcore fans detest the series. I tend to think Stallone wanted a proper send off (as was suggested by his reaction to the reception of Rocky V) for the series and the character -- one which people will remember for all the right reasons instead of wondering why Stallone did not stop with I and II.

Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) starts with the title character living a lonely life in 2006 following the death of Adrian in 2002. His son, Robert Balboa (Milo Ventimiglia), has distanced himself from Rocky in an effort to make a life of his own instead of forever being in his father’s shadow. Rocky now runs a successful Italian restaurant, Adrian’s, telling tales of his boxing bouts and letting everyday pass by. Paulie (Burt Young) still visits his restaurant from time to time sharing fond memories of Adrian. Rocky comes across Marie (Geraldine Hughes) one day as he casually tours Philadelphia and finds someone in a very similar situation to himself. He befriends Marie and takes her son into his care and even offers her a position in his restaurant.

In the meantime, the current heavyweight champion of the world is Mason “The Line” Dixon (Antonio Tarver). And TV ads are about as to who is the better champion in his prime, Dixon or Balboa. They even go as far as to create a computerized bout between the two to see who wins. Dixon is not at all impressed with people calling Balboa a better fighter who fought through much better opponents and had the tougher bouts.

Rocky, however, cannot stop thinking about Adrian and constantly keeps visiting her grave. He realizes he has to do something he loves to take his mind off his late wife and plans of coming out of retirement and is actually granted a boxing license. Mason Dixon’s manager takes hold of the opportunity and arranges for an exhibition match between Rocky and Dixon which he sees would generate ample money and boost Dixon’s popularity in general. Of course, as is a given in Rocky movies, what follows is a rousing match where winning isn’t everything.

The movie features some of the best acting and writing Stallone has come up with in recent memory. The scene where he tells his son that he should be responsible for making his own life and not put the blame on others is a prime example of this featuring wonderful dialogues and acting. In fact, Stallone’s performance is so good that it makes you wonder why he did not choose to play more performance-oriented roles like this in his career instead of the more adrenaline-fueled action roles which we have come to associate with him. Burt Young returns as Paulie and is solid as ever. Geraldine Hughes and Milo Ventimiglia are the newcomers in Rocky’s family and provide good performances as Marie and Robert. Antonio Tarver’s Mason Dixon does remind one of Carl Weathers’ Apollo Creed; however, it is still a decent performance by the actor who is a pro boxer in life.

Rocky Balboa contains more than one nod to the 1976 classic. The scene where Balboa starts training for his final bout could have probably been lifted directly from Rocky had it not been for the fact that both Stallone and his character have aged considerably. Bill Conti’s “Gonna Fly - Theme for Rocky” is still as rousing as it was the first time the world heard it in 1976 and you cannot help but sit up and cheer as it plays in the background to Rocky’s latest training sessions. The final battle is also reminiscent of the Rocky vs. Creed match from Rocky.

Overall, Sylvester Stallone has achieved what he set out to do with this movie. As everyone (including Stallone) says a final goodbye to The Italian Stallion, Stallone has made sure that Rocky’s character remains firmly etched in our hearts. Rocky Balboa will evoke wonderful images of the path that the title character has taken from 1976 to 2006 and serves as a fitting send off to one of cinema’s most loved heroes.

To start with, if you want an entirely unbiased review of this movie that highlights all its pluses and minuses, go read this review from fellow blogger Balaji Balasubramainum. I am a very ardent Kamalhasan fan and have been expecting this movie for quite some time, so don’t expect my review to be devoid of bias.

First of all, a word to casual movie-goers: The movie has been getting a lot of mixed reviews around the web from various sources. Most of these sources are highly respected, so I am not bringing into question their worth or somesuch. All I want to convey is a regular moviegoer’s perspective. Once an online friend of mine -- who was also a movie critic for sometime -- told me that the problem with being a critic is that you watch a truckload of movies and begin to note each of them with a critical eye. He also went on to add that you go in to the theatre to get the whole view of the film and, thus, find all its flaws and somehow, sometimes could forget that moviegoing is just about having fun. Maybe Dasaavathaaram is getting hammered by critics for the same reason. It has been hyped a lot and has disappointed in some of these aspects, but, overall, it provides lots of fun.

The problem with Kamalhasan is that he can never create a movie to please both critics and regular moviegoers alike. When he released Aalavandhan, Hey Ram and Anbe Sivam, all wonderful pieces of cinema, critics praised him and the movies were critically appraised but all those movies bombed at the BO. People called him self-indulgent and that he created those movies only to appease himself (even the same critics who praised such films mentioned these flaws too). So, he comes out with Dasavatharam, a movie that is critically getting only mixed reviews but is a hit with the general public. Its story is a bit light and the screenplay is not tightly paced, but since the movie is taken with commercial intentions, it is so entertaining that the general public is having a fun time. Maybe after taking many movies where he pleased critics, this is Kamal’s time to please his devoted fans and provide some entertainment to the masses. Because that is what watching movies is all about – Entertainment. When you pay Rs. 150 of your hard-earned money, you want to come out thinking you have eaten a full-course meal, not thinking you have had only appetizers; a fact which is especially true for the B & C centers of Tamil cinema. I can certainly say that my money was absolutely well spent.

Now that the "rant" is over, we can get on with talking something about the movie itself. The story starts off in the 12^th century in the middle of an era where the Shaivites were discriminating against Vaishnavites. The King of the land, who is a Shaivite, asks Rangarajan Nambi (Kamal) to say Lord Shiva’s name to which he doesn’t oblige and ends up inside the sea along with an idol of Lord Vishnu. This sequence has no real connection to the rest of the story but still ends up being enthralling with the Kallai Mattum Kandal… song to add to it.

The movie then moves forward to the present day and follows the story of Govindarajan (Kamal), a scientist working in America in the research for biological weapons. When he finds out that a vial containing the chemical that his team has researched is extremely dangerous and is about to fall into the wrong hands, he steals it and goes on the run being chased by ex-CIA agent, Christian Fletcher(Kamal again). Revealing further details might spoil some of the fun, so it best left undisclosed. However, the way the screenplay does tie some interesting aspects together at the end is particularly satisfying.

However, since I am a Kamal fan, I could not get myself to be bothered about these aspects of the film. Since the movie does feature him in 10 different roles, that was one of the main reasons for most of the press hype (as well as personal hype). And I can safely say that the actor in Kamalhasan has not disappointed at all. He has done his bit to bring out every difference about the 10 different roles right from voice modulation to walking style to general body language to even minute details like the way the lip moves and such. There is just so much painstaking effort visible in each frame of the movie that I found it hard not to overlook certain other flaws that the movie had. So, if you are like me and were hoping that Kamalhasan has gotten the 10 roles right, then by all means go ahead and watch the movie because he certainly has.

Asin doesn’t have a whole lot do in terms of bringing out her acting talent but her great comedy timing (which one could see in Ghajini) is put to good use in the second half. However, towards the end of the movie some of her antics did get so irritating that I wanted to reach into the screen and just give her one tight slap, at the same time wondering why the hero was not doing the same (even though that is a lot of exaggeration, it does tell you how annoying the character is). And only Kamal can explain why he chose Mallika Sherawat to play a part in this movie -- a very minor one at that. As Balaji’s review aptly put it, “She does her bit (pun unintended)”. All the other actors perform their roles quite well and, overall, the acting department does not leave anything wanting.

However, the same cannot be said for the visual effects department. Even early on in the movie, in the 12^th century scenes, you can see certain aspects of the scene as being graphics clearly. The movie was hyped up to be up to Hollywood standards but fails to capture the same sense of awe and splendor. In most scenes, you can clearly make out what part of it was the responsibility of the visual effects department. With that being said, the tsunami scenes do provide a visual spectacle for the average Tamil viewer who will be used to crappy graphics in half-baked God movies and the visual effects can be forgiven for that.

There are other quirks with the film as well. The overall music is quite average saved only by Oh Oh Sanam… and the final Ulaganayagane… song which unabashedly sings Kamal’s praise. Also, in most of the getups when Kamal appears, you can make out that he is in the scene because he will be so visible because of his makeup. However, these are just minor quirks. If you want to see a great actor in top form in a good movie and want to get entertained for about 165 minutes, you could do a lot worse than Dasavatharam.

Finally, on a more personal note: Watching Kamal in 10 different roles in an above-average film is thousand times better than watching a mediocre actor in one role in a decent film. At least, that is the way it is for me.