Pani: "Apt casting & neat execution proves that Joju knows his pani!!!"

For any aspiring artist, Joju George is a name that is bound to inspire them to reach for their dreams. From a junior artist who was one among the crowd to emerging as one of the most talented actor in the industry is no mean task & it is a testament to his hard work, passion & unwavering belief in his ability. Hence when he had announced that he was venturing into direction, it had created headlines for obvious reasons. Finally after more than a year into its making, the movie have hit the screens & to be honest, it was certainly a credible effort.

Giri (Joju George) & his buddies were the main players in the Thrissur mafia syndicate who stuck with each other through thick & thin, so much so they were literally a big family. The movie unfolds with two youngsters, Don (Sagar Surya) & Siju (Juniaz) who worked as mechanics make an entry into contract killing with a murder right in the middle of the city. Soon enough, they cross paths with Giri who beats them up for misbehaving with his wife. This sets off a series of events which literally puts the city into high alert. 

Apart from calling the shots, Joju has also penned the script which had the template of a typical cat & mouse revenge action drama. Even as the story was quite normal, what made it truly unique was the attention that he had given to each main character & the emotional equations involved between them. So much so, we absolutely detest the antagonists & root for the opposite side to have their vengeance. The manner in which Joju has executed the whole thing gives it the feel of Joshy's directorial style. The technical aspects were top notch be it Venu & Jinto George's cinematography, Manu Antony's excellent cuts which made the action sequences thrilling & music by Vishnu Vijay, Sam CS & Santhosh Narayanan that blended well with the mood. 

Kudos to Joju's choice of artists was a mix of freshers & known faces and his selection was spot on as most of them did complete justice to their roles. The best among them is undoubtedly the brilliant performance showcased by Sagar & Junaiz who were so convincing in their body language & expression that it was literally hard not to hate them. Joju as usual was top notch along with Abhaya Hiranmayi and ably supported by Bobby Kurian, Seema, Prasanth Alexander etc. 

Verdict: The USP of the movie is undoubtedly Sagar & Juniaz who has given exceptional performances. It also proves Joju's ability as a film maker who gives an engaging flick which was technically well executed. Do check it out!!!

Rating: 3/5

Regards...Ben

Bougainvillea: "An engaging psycho-thriller with an underwhelming climax!!!"

Whenever I hear about 'bougainvillea' the first visual that flashes through my mind is the numerous bougainvillae that we had in my school, Infant Jesus Thangassery. I still remember the day when one of its thorns pierced into my scalp when I was playing around it with my friends. These memories came back to me when I read that Amal Neerad's latest flick also had the same name. As a movie buff, I have been a fan of his film making skills ever since he burst into the industry with the stylish "Big B".

Based on Lajo Jose's "Ruthinte Lokam", the focus is on the couple, Reethu (Jyothirmayi) & her husband, Dr. Royce (Chackochan) who met with an accident eight years back. As a result of that, Reethu was diagnosed with retrograde amnesia though Royce made sure he took utmost care of her to ensure that they led a happy and contented life along with their two kids. Things take a turn when ACP David Koshy (Fahadh Faasil) turned up at their doorsteps as Reethu was the prime suspect in the disappearance of a minister's daughter. So was she actually involved & it seemed all the more trickier for both the parties involved to prove their point considering her medical condition.

As I haven't read Lajo's book, I had no clue as to what the story was about prior to watching it though I presumed it would be as close an adaptation as possible as he had worked on the script along with Amal. The film takes its sweet time in establishing the characters & their routines and that is essentially what wewitness in the first half. The mood & ambience is set & the mystery and intrigue is slowly yet steadily taken up by notches with each passing minute. However, in the process of this engaging build up, a couple of pointers is given to the audience which kind of drastically reduced (atleast for quite a few) the impact of the surprise element in the latter half. So much so, the back story segment, the menacing nature of the character failed to provide the sucker punch that was expected & in a way, some of the elements that Amal had used in the climax sequence reminded me of "Varathan".

At the same time, as expected from a Amal Neerad movie, it was technically well executed. The choice of location was apt and the technical team has done complete justice to all the aspects involved. This includes Anand Chandran's fantastic frames & Sushin Shyam's BGM and music as well as Vivek Harshan's editing. It's been more than a decade since Jyothirmayi have made an appearance on the big screen & she more than made up for that absence with a brilliant performance as Reethu. It was a character that demanded her to be emotionally frail & unpredictable and she was spot on. Chackochan did a fine job as well in a role that gave him ample scope to perform though I still felt that it could have been written a bit more better while Srinda provided able support. Veena Nandakumar was just about ok as her dialogue delivery could have been better. However, I fail to understand as to why the makers wanted Fahadh for this role except for attracting more footfalls to the theatres. It was an insignificant role that barely had anything for him to do & the same also goes to Sharafudeen, who was equally wasted. 

Verdict: Coming on the back of "Kishkindha Kaandam", it also had a well constructed build-up but unlike the former it had quite an underwhelming climax. On the technical side, it was well made with fine performances from Jyothirmayi & Chackochan. In short, you can give it a try!!!

Rating: 2.75/5

Regards...Ben

Vettaiyan: "Stuck between theme & stardom, manasilayo!!!"

Dussehra marks the victory of good over evil & to celebrate this festive season we have one of the most awaited anticipated flick of the year hitting the screens. It is none other than T Gnanavel's "Vettaiyan", which has quite an enviable star cast headlined by Big B & Rajini with Fahadh in a supporting role to name a few. I was quite curious to check out the flick primarily because I had loved Gnanavel's "Jai Bhim" & see as to how he was going to do justice to his story without being forced to celebrate their stardom. It was definitely not going to be an easy task. 

The theme of the story is pretty much set in the opening sequence as Justice Satyadev (Big B)in a lecture to aspiring officers makes it vehemently clear that he abhors the idea of encounter killings & the celebration of such officers as heroes. It was essentially a reference to SP Athiyan (Rajini), encounter specialist who had recently busted a drug mafia ring in Kanyakumari with the help of his informer, 'Battery' Patrick (Fahadh) a thief/tech genius on the basis of a complaint from a school teacher, Saranya (Dushara Vijayan). As usual, Athiyan manages to get scot free much to the chagrin of Satyadev. However, things take a turn when Saranya is murdered & Athiyan is called in for the investigation. 

Recently, I had come across an interview clip of  director Tamizharasan who stated that that the characters in his "Lubber Pandhu" was inspired from Sachi's "Ayyappanum Koshiyum". In a way, it seemed like Gnanavel must have been inspired by Dijo Antony's "Jana Gana Mana" which dealt with a similar theme. In an industry where killings are glorified especially when the protagonist is a police officer, Gnanavel's effort to put in a moral compass to that was appreciable. It was essentially an anti-thesis to Rajini's previous release "Jailer". However, in an effort to establish his cause & still satisfy the Superstar's fans, he is invariably stuck in a place that is in between both of them. This was not the case in "Jai Bhim" where he used the star power of Suriya to push the topic he wanted to convey. But then we have to accept that pulling off something similar with the stature of Rajini is easier said than done. In the end, we are left with a movie that is neither able to convincingly establish his relevant topic nor give us genuinely goosebumps evoking mass moments.

On the technical side, it was average at best with Anirudh Ravichander's music being quite ok though 'Manasilayo' track is a chart buster. Except for a couple of scenes, his BGM failed to elevate most of the mass moments. Thalaiva was as always has done utmost justice to his part & does the heavy lifting even when the screenplay failed. The choice of Big B made complete sense & he provided the aura that the character demanded, however the impact that his face off with Rajini lacked the punch & that was another example of the flaw in the writing. In terms of who actually provided the cheers, then it goes to Fahadh who rocked even in the supporting role with Dushara Vijayan doing a fine job as well. As for the rest of the cast, Manju Warrier did what was possible in a rather insignificant role, Rana Daggubati was the victim of a poorly written role while the others were ok.

Verdict: Despite the shortcomings, it is still a decent movie that is worthy of  one time watch. However, there is a good chance that it might falter at the box office if the fans go with the expectation of watching another "Jailer"!!!

Rating: 2.5/5

Regards...Ben

Kondal, Bad Boyz, Nunakuzhi, Vaazha, Footage, Paalum Pazhavum: "Most of them failed to engage!!!"

With many of the movies getting released on the OTT platform much quickly than in the past invariably meant that we end up watching more Malayalam movies. In that list, there were quite a few that I happened to watch over the past couple of months & since there wasn't much to do this weekend apart from watching the Women's T20 World Cup & Jon Watts's "Wolfs", I thought to pen about those flicks that I presume all of you would have watched as well.

Kondal: "Interesting premise & performances let down by an average screenplay!!!"

This Onam saw Ajith Mampally make his directorial debut with his own script that he had penned along with Roylin Robert & Satheesh Thonakkal that focused on a revenge drama that unfolds in a boat in the middle of the sea The movie unfolds in Achuthengu, a fishing hamlet where the people were facing a lot of heat from the public due to rotten fish being sold. Incidentally, the issue was caused by a small company in their village & Manuel (Antony Varghese) got involved when the former refused to accept the blame and manhandled the villagers. The brawl spirals out of control & Manuel is forced to leave the village for a few days during which time he takes up a job in a fishing boat that was set for sail. What subsequently unfolds was the equation among the people in that boat.

On paper, it was that typical generic revenge drama but what made it interesting was the premise that Ajit had chosen. The tension is created but for a significant amount of time, it was just people looking at each other suspiciously with hardly anything happening. The makers ought to have been more smart when it came to keeping the audience interested by providing tit bits right throughout until the reveal. Not to mention, they left way too loose ends at times be it certain characters or sub plots which just disappears abruptly. What made it engaging for me to a certain extent was the performances and the technical aspects which was decently done. 

The cinematography was impressive as it is not easy to keep the audience interested considering the confined space & both Deepak Menon and Jithin Stanislaus deserves praise for that. The VFX was also quite well done to the extent that I felt it was far better than "Devara". Another team (Vikram Mor, Kali Kingson & Thavasi Raj) that deserves special mention is the action choreography with Sam CS providing the apt BGM for it. For Antony, it felt like a role that was within his comfort zone & he has done justice to it though he does struggle with the accent. Raj B Shetty's extended cameo role provided punch while Shabeer Kallarakkal, Nandu & Pramod Veliyanad did their parts well. Both Sarath Sabha & Rahul Rajagopal had roles which was quite different from what they had done in the past & it was fine. 

Verdict: Ajit certainly had a proper idea in terms of the settings but lacked the same in the screenplay!!!

Rating: 2/5

Bad Boyz: "Indeed bad!!!"

"Why would you even bother watching this?, you deserve this...haha", I am pretty much that this would be the statement that I would hear from majority of the people. To be frank, though hesitant I decided to give it a try in the hope that Omar Lulu wouldn't make anything worser than "Nalla Samayam" & rediscover some of his form from "Happy Wedding". In addition, the presence of Rahman in Malayalam after a hiatus was a factor that tempted me to watch it. 

Trying to give a gist of the story (did Omar even write anything?) is no mean task as there is no proper structure to it with Sarang Jayaprakash's screenplay being equally abysmal as the spoofs failed to land & the jokes were like from mediocre skits. It is essentially about Antappan (Rahman) & his men, getting caught in the crossfire of the drug mafia after they unintentionally attack Vettukad Benson (Babu Antony), the leader of the drug syndicate. None of the aspects were worth mentioning & hence it would be unfair to blame the artists since there is nothing much they can do with such poorly written roles. 

Verdict: I came across a video where Omar was abusing one of the online reviewers. Well I dont know what that reviewer has said, but there is no denying that this movie was quite pathetic!!!

Rating: Forget it

Nunakuzhi: "Solid performances makes it a worthwhile comedy entertainer!!!"

This Independence Day saw Basil Joseph feature in two flicks with him headlining in Jeethu Joseph's "Nunakuzhi". Though Jeethu has done humour in the past with "My Boss", this would certainly be the one where he has gone all out as Krishna Kumar who after "12th Man" & "Kooman" has given a laugh riot against the backdrop of a crime. 

Eby Zachariah (Basil) had recently taken up the reins of his father's company following the latter's death, though he was far from equipped to lead it. Things take a turn when an IT raid happens in the company & as part of the procedure, they seize his personal laptop which had personal videos that threatened to wreck his marriage. Left with no choice, Eby goes in search of the IT officer, Bhamakrishnan (Siddique) who had orchestrated the raid. But it led to a comedy of errors that saw many other characters getting entangled in it. 

The main strength of the movie is the manner in which the situations are blended with humour & requires the audience to accept the fact that the performances are required to be over the top. In typical Jeethu style, the mystery aspect is all thrown into the proceedings & all of it makes it a reasonably hilarious affair. The story pattern had that typical Priyadarshan flair where there a couple of parallel narratives before everything comes together at the end. On the technical side, it was neatly done thogh it doesn't warrant special mention. 

Such movies primarily work on the ability of the artists to pull it off convincingly & in that sense pretty much every artist have pulled their weight. Basil continues to shine in whichever movie he features & this was no exception. As I mentioned in one of my earlier reviews, I personally rate as the Grace Antony as the most versatile among the present generation & she was impressive. There were quite a few of the senior artists as well such as Siddique, Baiju & Manoj K Jayan & they were fine, while the rest also did their parts aptly.

Verdict: A pretty clean comedy entertainer that works for most parts due to solid performances!!!

Rating: 2.75/5

Vaazha: "Emotional moments, athane athinte beauty!!!"

When the trailer of "Vaazha" was released, it felt more like an extension of Vipin Das's "Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil" as many of the artists featured in both the flicks. Later on, it became evident that the reason for that was that Vipin had penned the script and had also partially bank rolled this project. The movie belonged to Anand Menen who had earlier made "Gauthamante Ratham" & his latest movie belonged to the comedy genre drama that was enjoyed by many. 

As it was clear in the trailer, it is about five buddies who were together right from their school days & traces their journey until their late 20s. With academics not quite in their agenda, they vile away their time in merriment & invariably found themselves in troubles much to the chagrin of their families especially their fathers. In terms of the story, there isn't much to talk about but rather it is a take on the various experiences they had over the course of their lives. The makers intended to connect the audience in that aspect whereby a significant number will be able to relate with what those characters went through. Personally, the humour didn't have him laughing out loud except for the occasional chuckles. However, the emotional sequences worked well especially the ones that involved the fathers. 

On the technical side, Kannan Mohan's seamless editing was a stand out along with Babu Pillai's production design that captured the time period well. When it comes to performances, though the younger lot were the protagonists, Jagadish, Anees Nedumangad, Kottayam Naseer & Noby Marcose rocked in  the emotional segments. As for the youngsters, Joemon Jyothir (as Moosa), Siju Sunny (as Ajo), Amith Mohan (as Vishnu) etc. did their parts aptly with support from Basil in a cameo along with Hashir. 

Verdict: Unlike the humour, the emotional sequences were the ones which worked for me!!!

Rating: 2.25/5

Footage: "Saiju's effort is commendable but the story isn't!!!"

Found-footage genre is not something that has been explored much in Malayalam & hence when talented editor Saiju Sreedharan announced his directorial debut through this genre, it certainly attracted attention. Apart from calling the shots, he has also donned the cap of a co-producer & in collaboration with Shabna Muhammed has written the story about a vlogger couple & their experience. 

The movie unfolds during the pandemic where a vlogger couple, (Vishak Nair & Gayathri Ashok) documented pretty much every detail of their lives including intimate moments, not to mention such moments of other couples as well. Their main topic was obviously exploring urban legends, though their latest interest was unravelling the mystery of their neighbour (Manju Warrier) who seemed quite secretive & eccentric. 

There is no doubt that Saiju has done a fine job in creating the ambience which was a blend of suspense & tension. As an audience, we are hooked onto the thrills expecting some sort of horror to unfold since we have been conditioned to such kind of subjects in this genre courtesy of "The Blair Witch Project", "Paranormal Activity", to name a few. This is where I felt Saiju & Shabna did a smart move but they weren't able to build on it convincingly. so much so, despite it's short run time, I still felt it was a tad too long as they didnt quite have the content to justify it. The manner in which Sharath George has captured the frames was impressive coupled with Saiju's editing skills & well conceived action choreography sequences makes it a technically sound movie.

Both Vishak & Gayathri had a palpable on-screen chemistry & did their parts reasonably well, though I felt the latter did struggle in the tense sequences while Bhanumathi Payyanur did a fine job as the maid. Manju has an important role though she doesn't have a dialogue as such & gave a decent performance, but I cant help thinking that the role required someone more imposing or intimidating. 

Verdict: It was technically well made but the story lacked in content especially to keep the audience invested in it in the latter half.

Rating: 1.75/5

Paalum Pazhavum: "Neither the humour nor the execution worked!!!"

When I first heard this title, it reminded me of Ganpathi's character rattle this continuously as a song in "Vinodayathra". Incidentally, that movie had Meera Jasmine in the lead where she was at the top of her game. Unfortunately, since she commenced her work after a hiatus, her choices has failed to do justice to her talent & her own performance has been far from convincing. Well the fate of this movie also headed in the same direction. 

Based on Ashish Unnikrishnan's script, one of the protagonist was Sumi (Meera) who was denied the opportunity to have a teaching career & become independent when her mother was left bed-ridden due to a freak accident. The other one was Sunil (Aswin Jose) who was least bothered about a career & was on the lookout to get settled in life courtesy of getting married to a girl with an affluent background. After years of frustration, Sumi eventually finds herself a job in the bank & that's when her colleague introduces her to the world of social media. This is when she got acquainted with Sunil on FB, both of whom had changed their respective ages to make it more appealing to the other. The direction to which this relationship takes them is what this movie is about.

It's been quite a while since we have seen a worthwhile flick from VK Prakash & seems like the wait for that is likely to last much longer. Though VKP & Ashish has looked into the lives of both the protagonists in equal measure, some of the aspects failed to make much sense be it Shanthi Krishan's attitude, Meera's decisions regarding her career, the hasty decisions etc. However, the intention of the makers to point out that the female being much elder to the male in a relationship do not require eye brows to be raised, was commendable. But that didnt quite translate onto the paper & what we are left with are scenes that make us grin at times but more often than not make us shift frustratingly in our seat. On the performance front, both Meera & Ashwin were ok while the rest such as Nisha Sarang, Rachana Narayanankutty etc. were fine. 

Verdict: It fails to engage the audience and tests our patience at times!!!

Rating: 1.5/5

Regards...Ben