Ramayana Part 1: "Exquisitely executed for most parts!!!"

On the eve of Diwali, the much awaited magnum opus by Nitesh Tiwari has hit the screens with a thunderous reception from the audience. It was always expected to have a earth shattering initial coz of the hype that it had generated courtesy of the cast & crew that had assembled in it with an estimated budget of 4000C across both parts. So were the makers able to justify the hype???

For many of us, the first exposure to this epic was Ramanand Sagar's "Ramayan" that was telecast in Doordarshan in the last 80s & from Amar Chitra Katha. Subsequently, the present generation also got a glimpse of it when it was retelecasted during the Covid shutdown. So much so, it is a story that most of us have a reasonable idea about & hence I was curious as to how Nitesh was going to draft the screenplay in the company of Shridhar Raghavan, to keep us invested in it. 

His idea to focus on the origins of Raavan was judicious as it was an area that hasn't been explored much. The character was created in such a manner that it gave it various layers rather than a single dimensional dark shade. His will power, intellect, arrogance & menacing nature was aptly written in. At the same time, Ram's section was significantly trimmed which made sense as we pretty much know about it. But in doing so, the events felt rather rushed or side tracked, and the emotional connect didn't seem well established in certain sections. At the same time, I did like the way Sita & Lakshman's characters were etched out as it was slightly different from the other versions that we are familiar with. 

Coming to the technical portions, kudos to the brilliant picturisation by Pankaj Kumar and Mahesh Limaye. The VFX and CGI was top notch with the action sequences being the stand out especially the Jatayu segment and the Airavat portion. At the same time, a bit more attention to the Rakshasas would have been better as it lacked the finesse expected. This project also saw the coming together of Hans Zimmer & AR Rahman, with the BGM having that majestic feel at times and the tracks being fine (though a couple of them seemed inspired from ARR's earlier creations). 

After the lows of "Toxic", Yash made an impactful comeback as Raavan & he was sensational at it by imparting the aura and fierceness that the character demanded. Sai Pallavi was impressive (fail to understand the trolls against her) with Ranbir Kapoor doing justice to his part. Shobhana was spot on while Arun Govil (the OG Ram as Dasaratha) & Ravi Dubey (as Lakshman) was fine. There were a plethora of other artists as well, most of whom did their parts aptly. 

Verdict: This is a must watch in theatres for its visual spectacle & deserves praise for the exceptional work done by the cast & crew. Irrespective of the eventual fate, hats off to Namit for his willingness to invest such a gargantuan amount on this movie. There are obviously some flaws (as mentioned above), but Nitesh made sure that his vision made sense & made best use of the money. In short, do check it out!!

Rating: 3.75/5

Regards...Ben

Jailer 2: "Nelson & Anirudh recreate frenzy with Rajini's aura!!!"

The much awaited "Jailer 2" hit the screens last Thursday & the box office has gone absolute bonkers as expected. The trailer & music track did create a hype prior to the release and with a couple of fresh cameos already promised, it remained to be seen whether the hype was real or whether it will die down within a couple of days. So how did I feel about it???

As in the prequel, Nelson has penned the script with the events in this happening three months later. Muthuvel Pandian (Rajini) & his family had moved to a new place with the former taking up the job of a supervisor at a local supermarket. However, his family who were unaware that Muthuvel had killed his corrupt son failed to come to terms with the loss. Due to an issue that props up, Muthuvel ends up being the driver of Moorthi (Namo Narayana), a local gangster. At the same time, Varman's friend & associate, Dileep (Suraj Venjaramood) was in search for the former's killer. Interestingly, Moorthi gets manipulated by Muthuvel to link up with Dileep via Vimal (Yogi Babu). So what was Tiger's plan???

The main aspect that I like about Nelson's flicks is his ability to marry mass moments with dark humour and it was showcased in full glory in the first half. There were both goose bump whistle worthy moments as well as hilarious sequences headed by Namo Narayana. The story is fast paced and we are treated to an exhilarating interval block. However, the second half deviates from this template with action sequences taking centre stage. There is no doubt that it is well executed but really wish that Nelson had paid more attention to the characterisation. 

In the first part, the cameos had relevance with Lalettan & Sivanna providing gravitas to the sequences with their aura and style. But over here, there were reduced to side-kicks rather than an equal with Rajini shown as the all supreme. Similarly, the Kalpak family lacked the menace while Varman had it which made the face off in the prequel more impactful. On the technical side, Anirudh was brilliant & elevated the scenes with his music, Vijay Kartik Kannan's cinematography was impressive and the action choreography deserves praise. 

This is an all out Rajini show & the veteran legend yet again proved for the umpteenth time that he is undoubtedly one of the biggest superstars that we ever had. Suraj did utmost justice to his part as he balanced the menacing nature and subtle humour. Namo Narayana absolutely rocked the first half with Yogi Babu & Kottayam Naseer doing their parts aptly. Coming to most of the Kalpak family, Mithun Chakravarthy, Vidya Balan, S J Suryah & Hakim Shahjahan were all fine, but they definitely suffered with not so well written parts. As for the cameos, even though Hrithik was given a stylish entry, it would be fair to say that his girl's team rocked the show while he was barely utilised. Similarly, Sivanna was reduced to a pawn while Lalettan was barely present. 

Verdict: It is undoubtedly a mass masala that surely entertains & that is already seen in the box office collections with it likely to breach 400C before the end of the weekend. But in terms of the characterization and the utilization of artists, this one significantly lags behind. Hope the third part takes care of this!!!

Rating: 3/5

Regards...Ben

BKU and Viswanath & Sons : "Mamitha on a roll!!!"

Over the past year or so, Mamitha has gone from strength to strength with most of her movies finding success at the box office. Her latest release , "Bethlehem Kudumba Unit" has dethroned "Lokah:Chaper 1" as the highest grossing Malayalam movie. So how did her movies in different industries turn out for me???

Bethlehem Kudumba Unit: "Girish continues to crack the box office formula!!!"

As mentioned earlier, Girish AD has created history with his latest flick as Bhavana Studios along with their partners have laughed their way to the bank. Apart from calling the shots, he has yet again joined forces with Kiran Josey after "Premalu" and the duo have created a screenplay that resonated with the audience. 

After having spend many years at Mundakkayam, Ashley (Mamitha Baiju) & her family had to relocate from there due to financial difficulties. Their new neighbour happened to be Justin (Nivin Pauly) & his family, with the former being a much sought after individual locality for his helpful nature and demeanour. Soon enough this aspect endears to Ashley & before long, she falls in love for him despite the significant age-gap between them. However, Justin wasn't sure whether he would be able to reciprocate it. 

In terms of the core theme, it is obviously the romance between two individuals with a sizable age-gap. Whenever that kind of a scenario has appeared on the screen in the past, it came across as awkward & at times, cringy for the audience. However, Girish handled it perfectly & made it quite organic, and kudos to Kiran & him for the way, they weaved the sequences with an apt mix of humour and romance. There are no evident scenes or dialogues that are squeezed in with the sole intention to infuse laughs, but at the same time, he manages to keep a smile on our faces for most parts of the movie. At the same time, there were certain sections that I felt could have been handled better such as Joel's love angle which I felt over stayed, the handling of some of the supporting artists like Srinda & Suresh Krishna who made their presence felt coz of their abilities but barely had anything meaty & the climax which came across as convenient rather than natural flow of events. 

On the technical side, pretty much all of them were impressive be it Vishnu Vijay, whose tracks were both soothing & in sync with the mood of the movie, with both Ajmal Sabu & Akash Joseph doing a fine job on the cinematography and editing. Coming to performances, it was a character that was tailor made for Nivin as it is a zone that he is extremely good at. At the same time, Mamitha deserves praise for a fine performance with almost all the supporting artists doing utmost justice to their roles be it Sangeeth Prathap, Suresh Krishna, Roshan Shanavas, Vinay Fort etc. 

Verdict: This is undoubtedly one of the most endearing movies of the year. However, I would have to admit that becoming the highest grosser of the industry took me by surprise. Anyway, do check it out!!!

Rating: 3/5

Vishwanath & Sons: "Performances make up for an average story!!!"

Interestingly, just a couple of week prior to the release of "BKU", Venky Atluri came out with his latest flick that he had penned which also looked at age-gap romance with Suriya & Mamitha headlining the project. Apparently, it had also hit the bull's eye & continued the success streak for all the three of them. 

The protagonist, Sanjay Vishwanath (Suriya) is an affluent industrialist & an Olympic Champion, who seemed to have everything in life going in his favour. However, his mother (Radhika Sarathkumar) was concerned that he didn't believe in the concept of marriage due to the marital discord that propped up in her life. She expressed concern that there would be no one to continue the lineage & that's when he decides to have a baby through surrogacy. This is where Maddy (Mamitha) comes into the picture & what subsequently happens in their lives is the crux.

After the overwhelming success of "Lucky Bhaskar", Venky opted for a family drama & it would be fair to see that the screenplay does work in many segments. The main reason is the effort that Venky had invested into the manner the lead pair react and respond to various situations. At the same time, the story as such is quite weak & average with the segment on Raveena Tandon being mediocre, and most evident of the flaws is that it came across as artificial with the art team not helping at all. On the technical side, Nimish Ravi's visuals & G V Prakash's music were fine.

The USP is undoubtedly the performances of Suriya, Mamitha & Radhika and each one of them have done utmost justice to their roles. Suriya was at ease with his restrained performance while Mamitha showcased vulnerability and charm in equal measure with Radhika providing excellent support. At the same time, Raveena was a miscast & her performance was far from desirable. 

Verdict: Even though the story was quite average & the staging lacked the authentic feel, the performances of the lead artists makes it a worthwhile watch!!!

Rating: 2.5/5

Regard...Ben

I'm Game: "DQ shoulders the movie that doesn't maximise on an interesting premise!!!"

The Onam holidays has come to a close & we had quite a few releases in that period. Even Nahas Hidhayath's "I'm Game" was also expected to feature among them, however Wayfarer Films decided to delay the release by a fortnight.  In hindsight, it seemed like a wise decision since "Bethlehem Kudumba Unit" has been on an absolute roll. But the question is, how did DQ's home coming pan out???

Dan John (DQ) was a rich spoilt brat who had no interest in his father's company & invested his time & resources into all sorts of gambling. As a result, he owed significant debts to loan sharks which eventually landed him in the hospital. However, a unique incident happened in his life which seemed to have repercussions for him as well as a few others. So what was the reason for this???

This is Nahas's second directorial venture after the popular "RDX" & apart from the story, he has also peened the screenplay in the company of Sajeer Baba, Ismail Aboobacker & Bilal Moidu. There is a fantasy element to the basic plot and kudos to Nahas & his team for keeping us invested in it. This constitutes the whole of the first half focuses on Dan's lifestyle, discord with his father & the impact of his wayward actions. In the second half, the flashback sequence take centre stage and though those scenes as such were fine, the amount of time invested for it caused a sizable dent on the interest generated early on. In effect, the interesting elements take a back seat and it becomes a typical revenge drama that we have seen in numerous other flicks.

At the same time, almost all the technical aspects were handled exceptionally. The production quality was top notch with Jimshi Khalid's frames, Chaman Chacko's editing, art department & action choreography (stunts & the authenticity in the manner the game was picturised) all deserving praise. Another major positive was Jakes Bejoy's music & BGM which was both elevating and foot tapping stuff.

The main positive is undoubtedly DQ who pulled off the role convincingly and with ease. Antony Varghese did his part aptly with Samyuktha Vishwanath also being quite solid in her part. Both Mysskin & Kayadu were average while Vinay Fort & Kathir were wasted. 

Verdict: There is no doubt that it is a one time watchable movie that keeps us entertained. However, there is no denying that it failed to maximise on the potential that it showed early on. In short, DQ like Dan will be hoping that the audience will not give up on him!!!

Rating: 2.75/5

Regards...Ben

Jana Nayagan: "Thalapathy did his part but the audience deserved much better!!!"

Finally after a prolonged wait, H Vinoth's "Jana Nayagan" has managed to obtain clearance from the censor board & hit the screens across the globe last week. Initially scheduled for release in January, Thalapathy had announced that this flick would mark the end of his career in movies as he decided to plunge into politics full time. Anyway the box office has gone gaga, but is the flick worth the hype???

As most of you will be aware, it is the remake of Anil Ravipudi's "Bhagavanth Kesari" or rather, the first half sticks to it before the latter half turns out to the political manifesto of Vijay's TVK. Interestingly, Vijay's character is named as 'Thalapathy Vetri Kondan' which is unabashedly shown as being tattooed as TVK in his forearm. It started off as a foster father-daughter relationship (Mamitha as Viji) before it took liberal diversions and ended up with Vijay the saviour for the masses.

On paper, Vinoth's screenplay might have sounded interesting as it touched upon various aspects such as girl empowerment, democracy, corruption etc. However, when he tried to execute it on screen, it seemed like a montage of various issues and that in turn took out the organic feel to it. It seemed like Vinoth referred to the TVK manifesto and put each point in it as a separate scene and made Vijay mouth dialogues that was either to boost his political image or to trounce the other parties. Another major flaw was the production quality which was pathetic to say the least as most of the sequences were shot in studios which was blatantly evident while the VFX was laughable at best. On the technical side, except for Anirudh's BGM, none of the other departments deserve a mention. 

So was it a complete washout? I wouldnt say so, as Vijay did his part quite well and was adequately supported by Mamitha, who despite being side lined in the latter half was impressive in the action sequences. Pooja Hegde also had a legitimate role & did a decent job unlike the usual trend where actresses just walk in for a song and dance. Bobby Deol's character arc hardly made sense & his performance was quite rigid as well. There were a plethora of other artists as well who were average at best. 

Verdict: If you ask me what was the best part of this movie, then it is undoubtedly Vijay who rocked & to add to the hype, the title card and end credits was both exciting and nostalgic. However, as a movie as such, it left a lot to be desired!!!

Rating: 1.5/5

Regards...Ben

Mollywood Times, Athiradi, Dridam, Madhuvidhu: "Diverse as Messi & CR7's performance in the first round of the WC!!!"

The last couple of months had me quite busy even on weekends, so much so I couldn't find the time to set aside to write in my blog after having watched the movies. Luckily, there is a change to that this weekend and I didn't have to think twice as to what I would like to do with the available time. However, unlike my other posts, this opinion piece about some of the flicks that I watched over the past month or so, will be less elaborate as most of them have already hit the OTT platform. So which are these flicks???

Mollywood Times: "Abhinav continues to impress!!!"

The second instalment of the 'Success trilogy' from Abhinav Sunder Nayak had hit the screens a couple of weeks back & it was yet another interesting dark comedy. However, it wasn't as unapologetic as his debut venture and focuses on the journey of Vineeth Madhavan (Naslen) who had dreamt to become the greatest horror movie director in Malayalam. 

Kudos to Ramu Sunil who had penned the script for the manner he had blended optimism with cynicism even as Vineeth faced hurdles at each step of the way. His unwavering self belief and stubborn nature to stick to his ideals and beliefs, saw him earn enemies in various forms be it as creative conflicts or industry politics. The thought given to the manner in which each & every character was etched deserves praise as it gave us a glimpse as to how quickly inter-personal dynamic changed as each one tried to climb up the ladder of success by hook or by crook. 

On the technical side, Jakes Bejoy's music was quite interesting and in sync with the ups & downs of the protagonist's life. The animation & voice over, which was an integral part of Abhinav's debut venture was used over here as well with equal impact. Coming to performances, this is undoubtedly one of the best performance from Naslen who handled the character shift quite well when things become tough for him. Though Sharafudeen performed aptly, I kind of felt that he was under utilised; in the sense, the character didnt quite have the heft that needed him (kind of felt the same about Vineeth Sreenivasan as well). The rest of the artists such as Sangeeth Prathap, Roshan Shanavas, Rajesh Madhavan, Gopika Ramesh etc., did justice to their parts.

Verdict: Abhinav deserves praise for the unique manner his protagonist or situations that the character is in plays out & in that way, he has created a USP for himself in just two movies. It was certainly entertaining, but felt it would have better off if it was more crisp. In short, do give it a try!!!

Rating: 3/5

Athiradi: "Entertaining action comedy!!!"

Do all of you enjoy meta references? Well I do, especially when it is done right & Arun Anirudhan has ensured that he has done that in his directorial debut which was bankrolled by Basil Joseph. Incidentally, Basil plays the lead role as Sam who had joined the college with the aim to recommence the college fest that had been cancelled for a few years which had affected his family as well. However, it was easier said than done as he unknowingly got into a conflict with a retired gangster, Sreekuttan (Tovino Thomas).

Arun had already tried his hand in penning a script with "Minnal Murali" & "Padayottam", and he decided to continue the same here also in the company of Paulson Skaria who had worked on "Kaathal". It has a typical template but the reason as to why it worked for me was the way the screenplay was written. The colours and vibe of a college atmosphere along with the characters and dialogues that gelled perfectly well, made it entertaining. The technical aspects were neatly done be it Vishnu Vijay's music, Samuel Henry's cinematography & the action choreography. 

Basil continues to shine in whichever role he appears & he has done that here also. The conflict between Sam & Sreekuttan, though necessary for the story; I felt the content as such for that character couldnt do justice to a person of Tovino's star value. At the same time, Tovino performed impressively as he handled the subtle humour and carried the aura of a feared gangster with ease. Vishnu Agasthya might had a small role but he was excellent & I really hope that he gets meatier roles in future as he is an artist with immense calibre. Jeo Baby & Shaan Rahman were hilarious, with Shelvin, Vineeth Sreenivasan & Zarin Shihab providing adequate along with Riya Shibu who was ok. The rest of the artists have all done their parts aptly, while the hype around Hashir's cameo didn't make much sense to me. 

Verdict: Certainly, one of the most entertaining Malayalam move that I had watched this year. It doesn't have any complex story to convey but whatever it had, it managed to keep me in good spirits!!!

Rating: 3.25/5

Dridam: "Slow burning procedural drama that fizzles out!!!"

Prior to the release of "Drishyam 3", Jeethu Joseph presented this flick which happened to be his assistant, Martin Joseph's directorial debut. Just like his mentor, Martin also opted for the thriller genre with the focus being on the challenges that Vijay (Shane Nigam), a newly appointed SI faces. The script penned by Jomon John & Linto Devasia introduces us to a peaceful locality before murders & robbery heightens the pressure on the protagonist who struggled to get conclusive leads.

Since the audience is treated to regular dose of crime thrillers, it is imperative that the makers come up with fresh ideas to keep them engaged. Though the manner in which this procedural thriller is staged is reasonably fine, it doesn't offer anything unique as such until the very end. So in effect, it was an average fare at best from a story telling perspective as well as on the technical side. Shane Nigam has done a fine job as he captured the body language of the protagonist extremely well. There was a plethora of other supporting artists such as Shobi Thilakan, Dinesh Prabhakar etc and they were ok.

Verdict: Except for the climax twist, it doesn't offer anything new. However, Shane has done a fine job with some credible efforts from the supporting cast.

Rating: 2/5

Madhuvidhu: "Humorous family drama that falters in the emotional segment!!!"

Over the years, Sharafudeen has emerged as a versatile artist but there is no denying that he is an absolute pro when it comes to handling humour & imparting warmth to romance, as in "Hello Mummy", "Ntikkakkakkoru Premondarnn" etc.  Hence I was more than keen to check out this flick which was the directorial debut of Vishnu Aravind.

Based on the script that Bibin Mohan & Jai Vishnu had drafted, it gives us a feel of vintage humorous family dramas ("Kalayanaraman", "Meleparambil Aanveedu") and keeps us in good spirits for most parts. The protagonist, Ammu (Sharafudeen) has been in search for a suitable alliance for quite a while but nothing quite worked out especially since there was a belief that their family was cursed. However, a change in events happens when Sneha (Kalyani Panicker) came into his life though there was still challenge in inter-family dynamics. 

Even as the humour track kept us engaged, the movie struggled when it deviated to the emotional aspect. On the technical side, it was decent with Hesham Wahab's tracks being the standout & deserved praise. As I mentioned earlier, these type of characters are in the comfort zone of Sharafudeen & he did utmost justice to it. Despite this being Kalyani's debut, she handled the romantic & light moments with ease with the chemistry with Sharafudeen being quite good. However, she struggled with the emotional scenes. As for the rest of the cast, Jagadish & Azees Nedumangad was impressive with Sai Kumar, Sreejaya Nair etc. providing adequate support.

Verdict: The humour & the chemistry of the lead pair made it an engaging watch for most parts, except for the emotional angle which unsettled the tempo!!!

Rating: 2.5/5

Regards...Ben

Drishyam 3: "Lalettan soars while the franchise stutters!!!"

The summer holidays has come to an end & the monsoon has started to slash across the length and breadth of the state. However, that didn't dampen expectations as one of the most awaited move of the year, "Drishyam 3" hit the screens last Thursday. In the lead up to the release, Antony Perumbavoor as always has proved as to why he is considered as an authority in marketing as the social media was flooded with promotional events. Well did Jeethu Joseph managed to do justice to what he claimed would be an emotional journey of Georgekutty rather than an investigative thriller.

About 5 years has passed since the events in "Drishyam 2" had unfolded & in that period, Georgekutty  had adapted the novel into a movie which made a splash at the box office. Even as he enjoyed the success, Yami (Veena Nandakumar), a journalist, relentlessly pursued the case to prove him guilty. At the same time, Georgekutty was constantly in search for a suitable marital alliance for his daughter, Anju (Ansiba). However, there were forces at play that prevented any of the prospective proposals to proceed to the next stage. So who was Georgekutty up against this time around & did he still have what it takes to stay a step ahead???

At the promotions, Jeethu made a consistent & conscious effort to tame the expectations which was obviously futile considering how popular the franchise had become. The point that he emphasised was that more than surprising the audience with twists & turns, this was more about the emotional & psychological toll that had taken on Georgekutty over the years. There is no doubt that Jeethu has crafted that aspect quite well as the audience is given insights about the missteps that the protagonist had started to make. This includes the impact that his actions had on the life of others & the price that he had to pay for it. Towards the climax, he tries to up the ante & though the core idea might have looked fine on paper, it certainly didnt translate well onto the screen. It lacked the punch or the organic feel that was felt in the earlier flicks and some of the characters just disappears without much purpose. 

With the fourth part also on the cards, it will be interesting to see how Jeethu plans to take it forward. Well the novel in the earlier part gave him the loop hole to escape. I wonder whether the climax of the movie that he made was any indication of an elaborate plan which unfolds in the next part? Anyway in  terms of the execution, it was quite average to be honest & failed to add any sort of impact to the scenes. This wasn't an issue in the earlier movies as the screenplay was quite solid, but as the latter faltered, it propped up evidently. Satheesh Kurup's cinematography was trite while Anil Johnson's music was decent. The dialogues were mediocre while the make up department marginally improves.

On the performance front, Lalettan was damn impressive & convincingly portrayed the turmoil that the character goes through. His body language, expressions & absent minded gestures were spot on, and yet again proves as to why is one of the finest ever. Meena & Murali Gopi were both fine along with Ansiba and Esther who were decent in their efforts. As for the the rest of the artists, their performances varied from average to pathetic and this includes Siddique, Shajon, Veena etc.

Verdict: If it wasnt for Lalettan's masterful performance, I seriously doubt whether this movie would have made as much of an impact at the box office which has already 200C as per the reports. Anyway do check it out for Lalettan's performance!!!

Rating: 2.75/5

Regards...Ben