Salt n Pepper review: "Lips will be licked for more of the scrumptious feast!!!"

Indian food is one of the most sought after cuisine in the world mainly due to the simple fact that its so varied & vast that each state itself has been blessed with their own distinct palates. Our very own Kerala, "God's own country" has such a huge spread which keeps changing from Trivandrum to Kozhikode like paal payasam to Aleesa. Interestingly, the Malayalis love for food is what has been chosen as the basic theme for Aashiq Abu's latest venture "Salt n Pepper". The question now is, will the dish be lapped up by the audience or will it go down the drain???

The moment the credits starts rolling, we are witness to a wide array of heavenly dishes that our salivary glands starts working over time. Kalidasan (Lal) who is the protagonist of the movie, is an archeologist by profession whose interest lies in unraveling the secrets of different cuisines rather than in historic relics. Assisting him in this quest for ultimate food glory is his talented cook, Babu (Baburaj). However things start changing in his life following a wrong number from Maya (Shweta Menon), a dubbing artist. What then follows is the budding of a relationship; but as one knows, life is a labyrinth of twists & that's what forms the framework of the movie.

After the debacle of "Daddy Cool", Aashiq Abu is back with his latest venture which has got food as its basic theme which is both refreshing & inadequately tapped territory. This tasteful delight has been penned by the new duo of Syam Pushkaran & Dileesh Nair. Though the story isnt path breaking, it's the treatment & screenplay that sets it apart. Another major plus point has been the situational comedy which is totally in sync with the events rather than been forced down the throat of the audience. Shyju Khaled has to be lauded for the fantastic savory visuals which will have the eateries earning extra bucks than usual during the interval. The music by Bijibal also deserves a word of praise especially for the track "Kaanamullal" rendered by Shreya Ghoshal & Ranjith. Last but not the least, the impressive promos & unique poster designs has gone a long way in creating an interest in the audience.

Official launch of the movie marked by making dosa by producer Naushad

In the performance department, I have no qualms in admitting that Baburaj was simply outstanding & easily the very best among an impressive star cast. Having always seen him as a rogue police, this was a delectable change & he has done total justice to the character. Lal & Shweta as always comes up with a winning performance yet again; while the youngsters, Mythili & Asif Ali seems to be picking up the tricks of the trade pretty fast.

Verdict: Definitely one of the best movies to have come out this year & Aashiq Abu has without doubt nailed it this time. The best clean situational comedy to have come out since "Pranchiyettan & the Saint", with the box office bells going to ring crazy for the next couple of weeks. In short, dont think twice, watch it without fail...with just a word of caution, kindly have your food before you watch the film or you will be swallowing your saliva the whole time!!!

Regards...Ben

Three Kings: "Hilarious initially but torturous subsequently!!!"

July heralded us into the second half of the year & thankfully owing to some entertaining movies in the first half the public has been flocking to the theatres irrespective of the climate, which translated into the Malayalam industry being in good health. So it remains to be seen whether the trend continues, as this week witnessed the release of "Three Kings" directed by V.K Prasad whose "Gulumaal" & "Mullavelliyum Thenmavum" had garnered decent response. With Chackochan, Indrajith & Jayasurya coming together, his latest venture promises to be a no brainer laugh riot. So will the promise be fulfilled or will the audience groan at the antics???

As Prasad has admitted, the film is inspired from Stanley Kramer's classic "Its a Mad Mad Mad Mad World", which was remade in Hindi as "Dhamaal". Anywaz the film talks about the relationship of three cousins, Bhaskar (Indrajith), Ram (Chackochan) & Shankar (Jayasurya) who are the heirs to Krishnapuram family which had unfortunately lost all its glory of yester years. To make matters worse, they have been at loggerheads ever since their birth. It is at this juncture that they stumble across a person who tells them about a lost treasure that rightfully belonged to their ancestors. As expected, all three of them embark in search for it, but the question is will they locate it & if so, who will reach there first???

The film has been packaged as a no-brainer full on comic entertainer & as expected the plot doesnt seem to have much of a significance here. There are many sequences in the first half of the movie which are hilarious causing the film to more or less breeze through. However, once the second half starts the comedy fails to evoke laughs & it tends to drag, making us cringe in our seats. The music by Ousepachan was average though the picturisations of "Paara" & "Chakkaramaavin" will have the audience in splits.

Coming to performances, all three protagonists have done a decent job with Indrajith being the pick among the lot. The female leads essayed by Ann, Samvritha & Sandhya were meant to be dumb but it more or less bordered on being irritating rather than tickling the funny bone. Suraj has only a few sequences but his different get-ups evoke laughs, while Ashokan does manage to get noticed with his antics.

Verdict: The film has already created an image of being an out out laugh riot, so that will have the audiences interested. It should be able to hold its own for a fortnight or so, which should be enough to reap benefits for the producer. In short, though the second half pales in comparison, it should still keeps your spirits in check provided you dont carry any hopes!!!

Regards...Ben

Delhi Belly: "Aamir strikes gold with this entertaining adult comedy!!!"

Aamir Khan productions has always come up with movies which more or less dealt with clean realistic social issue movies. Interestingly, ever since "Delhi Belly" was announced, there has been wide spread rumours that Aamir was taking an outright risk as the content of the movie was likely to damage his reputation. Anywaz that itself upped the hype & its impressive promos seemed to be the apt appetizer as it wetted the appetite of the audience even more. So was this all a publicity stunt or has Aamir again struck the jackpot???

"Delhi Belly" takes us into the life of three bachelor living in one of the most dingiest pads possible. They are the lads of today who mouths expletives as part of their normal lingo. These so called characters are Tashi (Imran Khan), a struggling journalist along with his photographer room-mate Nitin (Kunal Roy) & the cartoonist Arup (Vir Das) who has recently been dumped by his girl-friend.  Tashi is about to be married to Sonia (Shenaz Treasury), who in the opening sequence asks him to deliver a package on behalf of her friend. Little did they realise, that all hell was going to break loose due to this, as Arup misplaces the package for Nitin's stool sample in the clinic who suffers from the worst case of Delhi Belly imaginable after having chicken from a street vendor. It seems they had unknowingly become the couriers for the gangster essayed by Vijay Raaz, who threatens them of dire consequences unless the package was returned. So how will they get out of this mess???

Undoubtedly, this is the best adult comedy to have come out from Bollywood. The biggest plus of the movie is its excellent script by Akshat Verma who gets the incidents interlaced in an engaging yet hilarious manner. The lingo is very much in sync with the youth of today & it doesnt give the impression that humour has been painstakingly incorporated into the film. Abhinay Deo has hit the bull's eye this time around after his not so successful debut "Game". Without doubt this film is likely to be the pioneer of thrilling adult comedies, as this genre has never been adequately explored in our country. Another USP of the movie was Ram Sampath's music which was totally hatke & had the charts scorching with "Bhag DK Boss", "Nakkhadwale Disco" & "I Hate you" being the most prominent among an interesting array of songs. 

Coming to performances, all three of them were awesome with their wavelengths being pretty much in sync. However, the show stopper has to be Kunal Roy who gets you into splits until your sides ache. Vir Das was impressive & Imran Khan comes up with his best performance to date. Vijay Raaz as the gangster was outstanding while the female leads by Poorna Jagannathan & Shenaz provides the boys with adequate support.

Verdict: Aamir's brand name & catchy promos will have the public rushing to get their tickets. Though very much bold in language, it doesnt feel obscene at all as it feels totally apt for the situation. I believe this is likely to be a trend setter & going to add yet another hit to Aamir's career graph. In short, I would suggest that you guys not to miss this one!!!

Regards...Ben

Bbuddah Hoga Tera Baap: "Big B relives his angry old man image with panache!!!"

Big B is without doubt one of the most popular actors in the world & its reiterated by the fact that he is virtually worshiped in places as obscure as Mongolia. Despite being close to 70 odd years, he still packs a punch whenever he appears on screen with his meticulous acting skills. This is the very fact that makes him a favourite among the public & a director's delight. This week witnessed Big B gracing the screens with his latest offering "Bbudah Hoga Tera Baap", directed by a self confessed fan, Puri Jagannadh who is one of the most sought after directors in Tollywood with hits such as "Badri", Pokkiri" etc. in his kitty. So can he replicate his success in Bollywood with his idol???

Mafia is undoubtedly one of the most dreaded terms with which we are very familiar. Similarly here too the Mumbai mafia headed by Prakash Raj creates havoc in the city with his incessant attacks. The Mumbai Police under the leadership of ACP Karan (Sonu Sood), takes upon himself to clean up the city of its scum. Being frustrated with his relentless attacks on the gang, Prakash Raj decides to finish off the ACP but to no avail. Finally, Viju (Big B), a former Mumbai gangster & sharp shooter who comes down from Paris is entrusted with the task. So will Viju maintain his track record or is there any other hidden agenda as to why he takes up the assignment???

Puri Jagannadh has liberally lifted the legendary dialogues mouthed by Big B from his various iconic films & incorporated it here. The film is basically a tribute to the awesome Big B where the audience is given a taste as to the original angry young man. Actually, neither the wafer thin plot nor the characters has much of a say here as from beginning till the end its meant to focus only on Big B. In short, the film has the flavour of a typical Telugu film coupled with excellently choreographied action sequences by Vijay. As for other technical aspects, the music by Vishal Shekhar was hip with the title track rendered by Big B & “Go Meena Go” rendered along with his son being already a rage.

There are no doubts regarding the caliber of Big B & he seems totally at ease essaying the loud and flamboyant Viju. His swagger, baritone & smooth talk are spot on which would have put colleagues half his age to shame. As for the remaining cast, Sonu Sood doesn’t seem to be overawed by Big B’s presence & delivers an impressive performance. Hema, though not given much screen space does manage to create chemistry unlike Raveena Tandon who was unbearable. Prakash Raj as the bad man wasnt offered much of an opportunity to display his wares but seemed apt for the role while Charmee offers some comic relief.

Verdict: The impressive promos & catchy music will ensure a good opening which will go a long way in recovering the costs to making it into a hit. In short, though the plot doesn’t offer anything of substance, it provides Big B in ample measure. So if you are a Big B fan do check it out as he can still give the Khans a run for their money!!!

Regards…Ben

Avan Ivan review: "Brilliant performances but sloppy storyline!!!"

In the last few years, the Tamil film industry has been carving a niche for itself in terms of meaningful, hard hitting realistic movies. There has never been a dearth of performers in their industry with audience lapping up the daredevilry of their demi-gods. However, with time the audience has showed signs of being responsive to more meaningful cinema which led to the rise of a new set of directors & technicians. Prominent among them being  director Bala, who is said to have revolutionised Tamil industry with his brand of films like "Sethu",  "Pithamagan" etc. So naturally there has been a lot of anticipation & expectations surrounding his latest release "Avan Ivan". The question now is whether he will be able to maintain his lofty standards...

Bala's movies has always dealt with the most obscure of characters that one would come across in society. Here too, the trend isnt different as he has created two half brothers, as different as chalk & cheese. The story happens in the landscape of Theni, where these two siblings hails from a family notorious for being thieves. The two siblings are always at loggerheads & trying to outdo the other with encouragement from their foul mouthed mothers. Walter Vanangamudi (Vishal) is the squint eyed who detests robbery along with being absolute crap at it but harbours the dream of becoming an actor. His half brother, Kumbudren Samy (Arya) though is street smart & humorous, with a panache for the family trade. Inspite of their lineage, they were the dear ones of the zamindar (G.M Kumar) popularly referred to as the Highness by the community for his support & concern for the people. The film basically tracks the relationship between these three characters & what all events unfolds in the two hours.

The USP of Bala's movies has always been its strong storyline backed up with some brilliant characters. However, the same couldnt be told in this, as the biggest bane here is the lack of a credible storyline. The movies basically lingers around for the whole time with hardly any events happening except for one right at the very end which culminates in a very predictable but stunning climax. There are however a few positives as well with the main point being the protagonists having well etched characters giving them ample scope for performance. As opposed to previous ventures, Bala has chosen to tackle the comedy genre & has been successful to a extent also. Coming to other technical aspects, the visuals by Arthur Wilson were awesome backed up with some equally proficient editing by Suresh. Another major plus point has been the impressive BGM by Yuvan Shankar Raja which was completely in contrast to what he has created until now. 

It's common knowledge that Vikram, Surya & Arya all came into prominence after their performances in Bala's films. This time around, the dice fell upon Vishal & he has given a killer performance. Its his best performance to date with all likelihood of getting an award as well. Arya, though not given as much scope as Vishal has been more than capable to meet shoulder to shoulder with him. G.M Kumar also deserves praise for his performance. As for the remaining cast, the female leads had poorly etched characters & didnt impart much to the story.

Verdict: Bala's track record & the star power of Vishal- Arya will ensure an outstanding initial for the movie, which will go a long way in making it a hit. However, the lack of a credible story might deny it to have a sustained run. In short, its Bala's weakest movie to date with a very sloppy story, however there are some brilliant performances due to which I feel you guys should give it a try!!!

Regards...Ben

Rathinirvedham review: "Focusses more on titillation than subject!!!"

"Old is Gold" is one of the most oft used proverb especially in the film industry. This proverb seems to have attained a status of being colloquial in the past few years, with the industry being flooded with sequels, prequels & remakes.  Invariably, this trend creates a great deal of responsibility & pressure on the shoulders of the younger generation who tries to live upto the standards set by the yester year greats. Incidentally, this week witnessed the release of "Rathinirvedham", which is the remake of the cult classic by the same name made by the legendary duo of Bharathan & Padmarajan. So will the remake be able to do justice to the classic???

The original was released around 30 years back when the society looked upon many sexual issues as taboo & having a relationship with a older female was one of them. In those days, it was definitely a path breaking subject; but with time it has become acceptable & much in vogue also nowadays. It might be due to this very same fact, that T.K Rajeev Kumar has based this movie in 1978. Pappu (Sreejith Vijay) is on the doorstep of adulthood & awaiting his pre-degree results. Just like any youngster, his raging hormones entices him to explore his sexuality. This eventually leads him to be infatuated with his sensuous yet older neighbour, Rathi (Shweta Menon). The plot then basically goes on to explore his advances & her corresponding response.

Padmarajan's script is no less than a master-piece as he had touched upon a topic at a time when it was cringed upon by the society. With a equally brilliant companion in Bharathan who expertly portrayed it onto the celluloid, it finally developed into one of the greatest movies of all time. Without doubt, T.K Rajeev Kumar who himself has some decent credentials with efforts like "Chanakyan", "Pavithram" etc., has taken upon a huge risk of remaking it. Frankly speaking, I wont deem his effort as worthless but nevertheless it wasnt able to capture the essence of the story also. The first half of the movie seemed to be more like a soft porn with the camera seemingly interested only on capturing the sensuous parts. As opposed to the original, where the scenes seemed to be more natural & in sync with the plot; here it seems the scenes were created first & accordingly the plot was lazily laced onto it. However, the second half could be considered to be a worthy comparison to the classic; with the climax from my perspective being much more impactful.

Among the present lot, in recent times Shweta Menon has come up with some laudable performances in "Palerimanikyam", "City of God" etc. & without doubt one of the boldest actresses as well. Considering these two aspects, there could be no argument that she was the rightful choice for essaying the title role. She has definitely performed well though in the initial sequences she seemed to be rather amateurish. To add to that being blessed with a voluptuous figure, Shweta Menon has used it to good effect & has overshadowed Jayabharathi's act to a certain extent. As for Sreejith Vijayan, who had a forgetful debut in Fazil's "Living Together", has done a decent job but wasnt able to impart the innocence & insecurity to the character as much as Krishnachandran. Coming to other technical aspects, the music by Jayachandran was note worthy though the choreography was suspect at times. The visuals by Manoj Pillai is going to create ripples in the theatres with his liberal focus on skin.

Verdict: Having created a huge hype, the film is going to have a thunderous opening at all centers with even the rains also unlikely to create a dent in the collections. With no huge stars & lots of oomph, this is going to be a run away hit within this weekend itself. In short, if you havent watched the original & like some titillation, then give it a try!!!

Regards...Ben

Shaitan review: " The Dark & Reckless Generation Next!!!"

With changing times, its really encouraging to notice that the new age directors are showing the guts to try out something different from the staple Bollywood pattern. Though it's true that it might not exactly rake in the moolah always, but still it exposes the audience to diverse genres making them yearn for films of substance. Now coming to think of it, Anurag Kashyap is one such film maker who has always gripped the fascination of the audience & critics alike be it for his script in "Satya", "Kaun" etc., or direction in "Black Friday", "Dev D" etc. This time around, he has come up with "Shaitan", which is under his production & directed by debutant Bejoy Nambiar. So will this latest venture garner the applause of one & all???

It goes without saying that the first impression that we get on reading the title "Shaitan", is that it's a dark movie just like his previous ventures. As a matter of fact, the film talks about the reckless lifestyle of the present age teenagers whose ultimate aim in life is pleasure with utter disregard for morals. Amy (Kalki), Dash (Gulshan), Zubin (Neil), Tanya (Kirti) & KC (Shiv) are the modern day, cool & hip youngsters who relishes anything that gives them a high be it drugs, sex or speed. On one such wild night, they mow down a couple of people on the roadside with their Hummer & what then follows is the decisions that they make to cover up their actions. As one would expect, one crime leads to another & it eventually spirals out of control. To take toll of the situation arrives the no-nonsense upright Inspector Mathur (Rajeev Khandelwala), who himself is in turmoil with a suspension & a failed marriage. So how does Mathur go about his duty & is there no path for redemption for the youngsters???

Just as in the case of any good movie, the kudos for the decent effort definitely goes to the script writer duo of Megha Rangaswamy & Bejoy Nambiar. Inspite of being a debutant, Bejoy Nambiar has been successful in creating a sense of flutter in the minds of the audience as the events pan out. The film doesnt take much time to get into the plot but rather than the situations been created, its more of how & why the erratic young minds works out those situations. There are a couple of sequences in the second half involving the escape of the youngsters & a shootout between the police & gangsters which are shot pretty exquisitely & will get the pulse racing. However, since we are used to seeing some goodness in movies, the persistent negative shade is likely to create a sense of uneasiness & at times boredom.

Coming to performances, Rajeev Khandelwala who is one of the well known actors of the silver screen has come up with a fantastic performance as the Officer who is forced to carry out his responsibilities while fighting with his inner demons. Kalki was equally proficient with her enactment of Amy who looks for sources of pleasure outside her estranged family. The remaining cast were equally apt in their roles as well. Another major plus point has been the excellent cinematography by Madhie & an awesome background score by Ranjit Barot which is completely in sync with the mood of the movie.

Verdict: Without doubt "Shaitan" deserves a word of praise for a different take on the life of youngsters, which is hard hitting & disturbing at the same time. It will have the critics singing praises for attempting something different. However, I do have my reservations regarding the audience response, as I believe its meant only for the Multiplexes. In short, its dark & different but unlikely to be palatable for many!!!

Regards...Ben