LJP...literally lost for words to describe his craftsmanship!!! Ever since "Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam" premiered at IIFK in December, it has captured the fancy of the audience. Finally on the basis of the overwhelming response from the audience Mammootty Kampany in collaboration with Amen Movie Monastery decided to release it in theatres last Thursday. As expected, the audience responses has largely been positive & being a Mammookka-LJP flick, I was more than eager to experience the magic they had weaved. However, it would be curious to see whether Ranjith's statement regarding the footfalls in the theatres would prove to be true in the long run as the box office returns hasn't been as healthy as expected.
Based on the story by LJP, the screenplay is prepared yet again by S Hareesh as the duo joined forces for the third movie on the trot after "Jallikattu" & "Churuli". The movie unfolds in Velankanni where James (Mammookka) along with his extended family are on their way back from the pilgrimage. After a sumptuous lunch, everyone dozes off in the bus until James wakes up in between & makes his way to a house located in a nearby village. So how did James know the area & whose house was it especially since it apparently seemed like he was in this part of the region for the first time.
For the benefit of those who haven't seen the movie, there are bound to be some spoilers in this particular paragraph. With regard to the basic plot, as in "Churuli"; LJP has left the climax open ended so that it could be perceived in any manner that the audience had inferred it. The transition of James to Sundaram could either be the result of the former's dream or might be supernatural & maybe even other view points also. LJP gives us a hint of what he has in store for us with the Thirukural verse that is mentioned by the lodge owner to James & the latter's response to it. Well I'm not going into the details of that aspect as I feel it is better that you don't be swayed by what I think. In effect, it is a slow paced flick but still keeps us engrossed in it with its emotion sequences and quite a few really hilarious situational humour.
On the technical side, it is top notch be it in the sound department or cinematography. In one of the interviews, Mammookka had mentioned that the maximum amount of money was invested in getting the audio rights of the numerous Tamil songs or movies that are played in the background. This is the first time that I had witnessed anything like that where the dialogues or songs in the background either from the TV, tape recorder or theatre is in complete sync with the happenings on the screen. Kudos to Deepu Joseph in ensuring that all of this gelled well & maintained the apt pace with his editing skills. Another major positive is the cinematography that was handled by Theni Eshwar who has done a fantastic job with the wide angle static frames which in most instances could have turned out to be boring if it wasn't for LJP's ability to engage the audience.
Last year, Mammookka was a revelation with the choice of scripts that he had chosen which gave him the scope to perform. The new year has started off in a similar manner as the legend yet again proved as to why he is still considered as one of the pillars of our industry even after four decades. The ease with which he does the transition between the two characters was fantastic & as always he rocked in the emotional scenes. Though the rest of the cast might not have had much screen space, they also did utmost justice to their roles such as Ashokan, Rajesh Sharma ( as driver), Vipin Atley, Ramya Pandyan (as Poovally) etc.
Verdict: Well the King of Chaos has helmed a movie that is quite the opposite of it with a flick that is quite the other end of the spectrum. So be mindful of the fact that it is a slow paced flick which might not work for some. Apart from that, dont miss it!!!
Rating: 3.75/5
Regards...Ben
No comments:
Post a Comment