Sajan Bakery Since 1962: "This cream bun is both stale & bland!!!"

How often do you visit bakeries? I guess the answer for most of us would be 'rather frequently', as bakeries have always been an integral part of our food habits. I used to visit it pretty often especially during my school time on the way back from tuition to hog on the puffs, cutlet, lime juice etc. Even now when I am back in my hometown, Kollam; Supreme Bakers still remains to be one of my favourite places. Incidentally, "Sajan Bakery Since 1962" is the title of Arun Chandu's directorial debut & it was interesting to know as to what kind of a dish did Arun prepare for the audience.

Sajan Bakery is one of the oldest bakeries in Ranni which was managed by Betsy (Lena) & Bobin (Aju Varghese) along with their uncle, Cherian (Ganesh). Even as Betsy invested her heart & soul into their family business, Bobin lacked passion for it & was keen on migrating to Australia in search of better job opportunities & lifestyle. This was a constant thorn in their relationship & to make matters worse, Betsy was on the verge of divorce. Will the constant tussle between the brother & sister, mark the end of their relation and business???

If it wasn't for the COVID situation, this movie would have hit the screens close to a year back. Anywaz just like how a food item becomes stale with time, the same also seems to apply here except that in this case the reason was the lack of a credible storyline. The blame doesn't lie solely on Arun as he was assisted in the process by Aju & Sachin Chandran. The conflict between the brother-sister, efforts to patch up Betsy's rocky marriage or to keep their business afloat, none of the events manage to keep the audience hooked. If at all there was one aspect that really interested me, it was Merin's fourth wall breaking narration which brings a smile to our face. Unfortunately, it didn't bring any change to the overall mood of the film. All the technical aspects were average at best with Vineeth Sreenivasan's rendition of 'Thora Mazhayilum' being soothing to the ears.

Though the movie is essentially about the relation of a brother-sister, I didnt quite feel that vibe between Lena & Aju (obviously, the characters are in conflict but still you would expect some connection). Lena did her part aptly while Aju also did justice to both the avatars that he donned but the idea to cast Ganesh as their uncle deserves praise as it worked really well. However, the pick among the lot was Ranjita Menon who was both charming & lively.

Verdict: Apart from the title, there is nothing unique about the movie as it drags aimlessly for significant amount of time. Hopefully, "Sayanna Varthakal" will bring smiles on Arun as his present delicacy is unlike to whet the appetite of the audience. In short, wont hurt to give it a miss!!!

Rating: 1.5/5

Regards...Ben

Operation Java: "Engaging take on the operations of the cyber cell!!!"

In 2016, Abrid Shine's "Action Hero Biju" gave us a glimpse about the events that unfolds in a police station. It was a refreshing take as Abrid had shown it in an organic manner rather than resort to daredevilry that majority of the film makers had done in the past. Taking cue from that, Tharun Moorthy has focused his lens on the cyber cell with his directorial debut "Operation Java". Though that unit of the law & order department are mentioned pretty regularly in the news, we haven't had a full fledged movie that focused on it. So there was more than ample reason to be excited about it.

Alphonse Puthren's "Premam" had released & it was making waves as the public flocked to the theatres. But the makers were faced with the problem of piracy, as someone had leaked the print of the movie in torrent. The cyber cell swiftly moved into action & they nabbed the culprits with the technical assistance of Antony (Balu Varghese) & Vinayadasan (Lukman). Both of them were in search of a job & their competence made the cyber cell induct them into their fold as interns. In due time, the duo gets assigned with bigger & tougher challenges and how they deal with it forms the crux of the movie. 

Apart from calling the shots, Tharun had also penned the script & deserves praise for an engaging story that takes the audience through various cases. It provides a perspective as to what exactly the cyber team deals with and how they are an integral part of the police force. Another main point they have looked at is the pressure that the temporary work force goes through & how it can be so unrewarding at times despite the best of efforts. On the technical side, each of them deserves a nod of acknowledgement be it Faiz Siddik's varied frames, Nishadh Yusuf's editing & Jakes Bejoy's music which blends well with the movie.

In "Unda", Lukman impressed with his performance & he continues to do so here as well with a natural act. Giving him competent support is Balu who got to showcase his skills in a role that is different from what he usually does. As for the rest of the cast, Irshad (do check out his awesome first look poster in "Andal"), Binu Pappu, Shine Tom, Vinayakan etc have all done justice to their roles.

Verdict: It is both engaging & a refreshing take on the day to day happenings at the cyber cell. It looks like a different version of "Action Hero Biju" but still has a uniqueness of its own. In short, do check it out!!!

Rating: 3.25/5

Regards...Ben

Drishyam 2: "Befitting sequel that is on par with the steep expectations!!!"

Sequels are never easy to be made & it turns out to be a humongous task especially if the prequel is a blockbuster like "Drishyam". Jeethu Joseph decided to embark on this strenuous mission  a couple of years back when he decided to pen down the script for "Drishyam 2" which was undoubtedly a risky move as the expectations were sky high & more often than not, it's hard to please the audience. Though quite a few movies has made its way to the theatres, Aashirvad Cinemas decided to stick onto the OTT platform & released its movie on Amazon Prime last night. Despite a long hectic day yday, I couldn't stop myself from checking it out as soon as it was beamed on my laptop.

Six years has passed since Georgekutty (Lalettan) & his family went through the ordeal of Varun's missing and subsequent investigations. Life has moved on & with time, the family prospered financially as Georgekutty moved onto to open a theatre & harboured dreams of making a movie. However, the fear of their guilt being caught constantly worried the family especially Anju (Ansiba Hassan) who suffered from seizures coz of post traumatic stress. Even the good will that the family had among the public gradually started to wear off as more people believed that there was more to the truth than what meets the eye. In the meantime, the police continued to pursue with the investigation but to no avail. However, IG Thomas Bastin (Murali Gopy) & his team found a chink in the armor of the family. Was it the end of the road for Georgekutty???

In 2013 when "Drishyam" released it created box office history as both the public and critics were floored with the manner that Jeethu had constructed the plot. The second part can be termed more as a family drama/thriller as he has brilliantly captured the emotional trauma that they go through on a regular basis. There is no doubt that the first half might turn out to be tedious for quite a few as Jeethu has taken his own sweet time to set the stage for a captivating latter half or rather the last half an hour. There are surely a couple of questions regarding certain characters who had screen space but then faded away & some procedural anomalies as well, that will arise in the climax. But then as Georgekutty says, the hero can also get lucky in certain scenarios. Kudos to Jeethu for his choice of his artists which includes newbies like Sumesh Chandra (as Sabu) & Anil Koothattukulam (as Jose), all of whom delivered as well. On the technical side, pretty much everything were impressive be it Sathish Kurup's visuals, Anil Johnson's music & Vinayak's editing. 

What do I say about Lalettan? Give him a meaty & meaningful role and he mesmerizes the audience with ease. If at all there was something amiss, it was with regard to his expressions (in certain segments) especially his eyes which seems to have lost some of its grace. I guess it might be the botox but it is evident ever since that forgetful "Odiyan" had happened. Standing up to Lalettan on screen is no mean task & Murali Gopy has done just that with a praise worthy act. Is it the rebirth of Murali, the actor...only time will say. As for the rest of the cast, Meena, Esther, Ansiba, Saikumar, Siddique etc have all done justice to their roles.

Verdict: The movie has lived upto expectations as Jeethu captivates the audience with his elaborate plans. It certainly has its pitfalls however it is trivial on the broader sense as it does not affect the viewing experience. So will there be a third part? Hmm..maybe or maybe not... but make sure you watch this at the earliest!!!

Rating: 3.75/5

Regards...Ben

Vellam review: "Jayettaaa....take a bow!!!"

Finally the theatres have opened & we have Malayalam movies making its presence felt after close to ten months. The first one to hit the screen was Prajesh Sen's "Vellam" & from the trailer itself it was evident that we were in for another brilliant performance by Jayasurya. It deals with the topic of alcoholism & how it alienates the person from his family and society. All of us would have seen such individuals at close quarters either within our own family, friends or neighborhood. We have laughed at memes saying that alcoholics ensures that the coffers of the State Govt isn't drained, though the fact is that it is indeed true. This movie is about one such alcoholic who almost went to the point of no return.

Murali (Jayasurya) was a chronic alcoholic who had immersed himself in it to such an extent that he couldn't even pay heed to the pleas of his family. He had lost all sense of control over his life and each day was spent in the hope of getting his hand to the next glass of alcohol. Incidentally, this movie is the biopic of Murali Kunnampurath, a successful businessman who is truly an inspiration for all of us. After a well crafted "Captain", Prajesh joined hands with Jayasurya for yet another winner. Rather than the storyline, it is the manner in which Jayasurya captures the mannerisms of the character that mesmerizes the audience. However, there are certain portions that didnt quite work with me such as the climax which I felt was way too lengthy and lacked the realism of the earlier segments though I do accept that the real Murali did scale heights of success. Bijibal's music was soulful but it felt overloaded towards the latter half while Roby Raj's visuals were impressive.

What do I say about Jayasurya??? The man has grown in stature with each passing movie be it "Njan Marykutty", "Captain" and similar others and this one was just brilliance personified. It would be an absolute challenge for anyone even on a National level to upstage Jayasurya for the next year's best actor. Samyukta has surely done a decent job though I felt Shivada Nair would have been a better choice while the rest of the cast have done their parts aptly be it Siddique, Sreelekshmi etc.

Verdict: There are no other words to say except that Jayasurya has just nailed it & you definitely got to check it out!!!

Rating: 3.5/5

Regards...Ben

Tribhanga review: "Lacked the uniqueness of its name!!!"

After having watched "The Great Indian Kitchen", the next movie that caught my eye was Renuka Shahane's "Tribhanga" for a couple of reasons. First & foremost, it sounded pretty weird for me (since I have no clue about Odissi) & secondly, coz of the cast and crew involved in the project. From the trailer, it was evident that it was about the tumultuous relation that three generation of females shared with each other. There are obviously going to be issues like generational gap, but would it make relationships as sour as this? It would be interesting to know whether the movie was as refreshing as Renuka's radiant smile.

Acclaimed novelist Nayanthara (Tanvi Azmi) had sought the help of biographer Milan (Kunal Roy Kapur) to pen her memoir. Despite the literary honours that she had garnered over the years, she was aware that the personal decisions that she had taken, unknowingly affected the life of her children, Anu (Kajol) & Robindro (Vabhav Tatwawaadi). This left a deep scar in their relationship & she had hoped that her children will forgive her for the mishaps. However, things take a turn when she has a stroke & goes into coma.  

This is the second directorial venture of Renuka Shahane after the Marathi movie "Rita" which was adapted from her mother, Shanta Gokhale's novel 'Rita Welingkar'. This time around she has opted for her own script & it certainly did have a credible thread. However, it did not materialize as well on screen as we dont quite empathize with the characters despite the tough times that each character had to go through. Hence the whole movie feels rather slow & does not manage to attract our attention. The only character that could have added more depth to the proceedings was that of Nayan but she is in coma for most parts. 

When it comes to performances, Tanvi Azmi was the pick among the lot as she had the grace & the looks of a strong female who would stand by her principles which the character required but she did not come across as self centered. It might sound surprising to quite a few but Kajol was just over the top in many sequences. It's understandable that she is portraying a star who is arrogant, even then it doesnt across as natural. Mithila Palkar (as Masha) has given a mature performance though she wasn't given much scope despite being the third protagonist on focus. Kunal Kapur definitely looked awkward as Milan while Vaibhav & Kanwaljeet Singh (as Raina) did their parts aptly.

Verdict: There is no doubt that the movie could have been much better if more justice was done to the thread of the story. It felt as if Renuka wasnt sure whether she wanted the emotional or the light hearted quotient to take predominance. In short, it doesnt rise to expectations!!!

Rating: 2.25/5

Regards...Ben

The Great Indian Kitchen review: "Stark portrayal of reality that at times many fails to realize!!!"

One of the most oft mentioned statements that most of us would have come across is "The way to a man's heart is his stomach". However, it does not emphasize on the point that the hard work that the women put into plating up such delicious dishes is pretty immense. None of us are oblivious of the long hours that our mothers & grandmothers have spent in the kitchen and though with time, things have started to change; the script has remained the same in many household even to this day but to varying degrees. This is what Jeo Baby have tried to portray in "The Great Indian Kitchen". So was it able to stand out among the women empowerment movies that has come out in recent times???

The film unfolds with a couple (Suraj Venjaramood & Nimisha Sajayan) having tied the knot entering a new phase of their life. The girl with the guidance of her mother in law, gets acquainted with the house hold chores. The responsibility of the household falls on her shoulders when her mother in law had to move to her daughter's place to take care of her during the maternity period. Despite the inexperience, she invests wholeheartedly in her responsibilities but the callousness of her husband to her concerns & rather rigid adherence to customs started taking a toll on her. 

The last time around Jeo Baby came out with a directorial venture was in 2018 with "Kunju Daivam" which had endeared to both the critics and the public. In his latest celluloid creation, he has focused on the topic of patriarchy & that too in an organic manner, to the extent that many of us would feel that it could be any typical kitchen. This point is emphasized through the fact that the lead pairs are not addressed with their names, meaning it could be any one of us depending on which spectrum we look at it. Quite a few would feel that it is way too monotonous & nothing much happens in the kitchen (which in itself is a character). Interestingly, that is what Jeo wants to stress upon that many of the females lead a similar monotonous life that doesn't look beyond attending to the whims & fancies of their families. The major positive is the fact that it does not adopt a preachy pattern & ends in an impressive manner whereby it is upto the audience to decide as to on which side they stand on. 

On the technical side, the sound department has done a fine job as it had nothing apart from the sounds that we usually hear from the kitchen. Among the female leads that has come into the industry in the past decade or so, Nimisha is undoubtedly one of the finest among them. She was spot on as the protagonist & giving her perfect company was Sooraj who continues to dazzle the audience whenever he is given a role of substance. The duo deserves an applause for their impressive performance just as  in "Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum". The rest of the cast have also done their parts aptly be it Siddharth Siva, the in laws etc.

Verdict: At less than 1 h 45 mins, Jeo puts across his points emphatically & shows us that at times it essential that we do introspect as to whether we practice what we preach. There is no doubt that it has a lethargic pace with hardly anything happening & for those who is looking for an entertainer, you would surely be disappointed. But if you ask me, it's a movie that needs to be watched!!! 

Rating: 3.5/5

Regards...Ben

Master review: "Cracking combo that could have been much more impactful!!!"

After close to a year, the Govt has finally given permission for the theatres to be opened albeit 50% occupancy. However that in itself was music to the ears but it remains to be seen how confident people would be to venture into the halls coz of the COVID situation. Anywaz the first movie to hit the screens in this Pongal is Lokesh Kanagaraj's "Master" which featured Thalapathy Vijay & Vijay Sethupathy. Can there be a more mouth watering combination in this festive occasion? But the question is whether Lokesh managed to do justice to the star value that was on offer. 

Nagercoil, 1992 was the day that Bhavani's (Mahendran) life changed forever as his parents became victims to the wrath of the rivals in the truck association. With time, he ended up in the juvenile home & things moved from bad to worse as he was constantly tortured. This made him into a ruthless gangster & he became a dreaded name in the underworld. Elsewhere, JD (Vijay) was an alcoholic Prof who was loved by his students though the management didnt warm up to his unconventional way of dealing with issues. It is at this juncture that JD is asked to take charge of the inmates of the juvenile home. This essentially set the stage for the clash between the dynamic duo.

After the resounding success of "Kaithi", Lokesh is a well known name among the public & a much sought after director. He has already given us glimpses of his next venture "Vikram" with Ulaganayagan & that seems like a cracker as well. In "Master" he pulled off an absolute stunner when he casted Sethupathi as the antagonist after all the impact of the protagonist could be elevated only if he matched in all levels by his opposite. In that sense, the last time, Vijay had someone as good as that was Vidyut in Murugadoss's "Thuppakki". Scripted by Lokesh, the backstory for Bhavani was interesting but apart from that there was hardly anything that was unpredictable or got us excited. That essentially was the weak point as it neither had a solid story to narrate & still lasted for close to 3 h. Even the choice of numerous supporting characters made no sense as they barely had much to do and this includes the female lead as well. 

However, there were quite a few aspects that I enjoyed such as the nod to movies like "Gilli", "Premam" etc especially the reference to Kamal Hasan's character Prof Selvam in "Nammavar" (not surprising after all Lokesh is a self confessed fan of the legend). On the technical side, the stunt choreography, the colour tone Satyan Sooryan used for the frames & Anirudh's music were fine. Thalapathy was cool as ever & has done a fine job but my personal favourite was Sethupathi who oozed confidence & charisma in equal measure apart from the fact that he performed naturally as always. Malavika Menon did her part aptly along with Arjun Das, who seemed poised to be in the industry for some time. As for the rest of the cast, most of them barely had much to do but the kid who helps Malavika's character was pretty impressive.

Verdict: If it wasn't for the Covid situation, it would have shattered all sort of industry records as both the lead actors has given a cracking performance. Unfortunately, Lokesh's writing ought to have been much more imaginative & that is surely a significant let down which gets amplified even further coz of the length of the movie. In short, despite the shortcomings it does provide adequate entertainment!!!

Rating: 2.75/5

Regards...Ben