Dasavatharam - Magnum Opus of Kamal

"It requires wisdom to understand wisdom: the music is nothing if the audience is deaf." - Walter Lippmann

Disclaimer: This is not a movie for the ordinary. You got to be able to think a bit to understand and appreciate the movie. If you cannot or do not want to think for a movie, please don't waste your time. Neither Kamal nor his serious fans care about you.

It was a unique experience to try first day first show - am sure not possible if I were in Chennai or anywhere in Tamil Nadu. But worth every cent of $15 as I should say honestly that I enjoyed 95% of the movies. All roles of Kamal are carefully chosen and well imagined. The plot is ingenious for Tamil movies and the screenplay is done well.

The story is around a chip that is highly dangerous bio-weapon causing huge damage that can be nullified with heavy amounts of NaCl. Its a cut though chase and as the hero (Govind, a scientist that worked on it and knows the details) travels with the chip, so do we do. We see several characters in the movie in this chase and 9 more of Kamal too each having a significant role. Of course the story starts with 12th century where Ramanuja Nambi is thrown into the sea with the idol of Vishnu. This looked disconnected with the mainstream movie until the very end where the idol appears again from Tsunami. Neither the movie nor the director/actor explains why but left to the audience to think over. The very thought that "If we could imagine Tsunami this way also" needs tremendous appreciation. It takes lot of courage to take this kind of movie - to imagine, to execute and to succeed. Hats off to Kamal and Ravikumar and Ravichandran.

The movie is definitely world class for several reasons: Camera - be it bringing 12th century or the streets of Washington DC or Chidhambaram or Las Vegas Casino - it brings you as close to reality to your eyes. So are the graphics and art direction. Not sure if any other movie brought Tsunami to our eyes so far. The best thing is that they are part of the movie and not noticeable unlike Shankar's movies where they at times look as added explicitly just to make it grand. These are big advantages and ideally should be the case for any movie. Sameway the songs, even though ordinary and nothing catchy or ringing in our ears, blend with the movie and kind of ok. Another good thing is that you can watch the movie with family - nothing vulgar or obscene at all.

Kamal's acting - lot of opportunities as he 10 roles in the movie although some of the facial expressions are limited with the heavy make-up. But its just not facial expression alone that matters in acting rather the whole body language, mannerism and voice and Kamal has not compromised on others. Every role tried to do it differently not only in the make-up but also on voice modulation and style. I can't see any role superior or inferior but few remains with us forever - Ex-CIA Fletcher, RAW officer Balram, Singer Avatar Singh, Dalit fighter Vincent Bhoovaragan, Japanese martial artist, the old lady, tall Muslim guy and Nambi. Even though it looks 90% Kamal movie, the other actors also used their opportunity very well. Be it Asin or Kabilan or Vayaburi or MS Baskar or Santhana Bharathy - they used their small roles to exhibit very well.

Finally the movie is a real magnum opus for Kamal - for the 10 roles he played and for the intelligent plot. But I am sure he will give more in his upcoming ventures - Marma Yogi and his dream project Marudha Nayagam. Now that his 10 min of 12th century in this movie brought lot of attention, he will be more motivated to do them soon.

Lessons learnt - Kamal, please read: While it is understandable that it takes a long time to make this movie owing to the make-up time and reshooting to cover all roles, movies should not take this long to produce as the expectations are more from audience and will lose interest if prolonged for long time. Don't spend more than 6 months for any movie and disappoint the expectations to the audience. Also leave it to the expert for the expertise: like for example music. Even though background music was good and kind of compensated for the very ordinary songs, could have elevated the movie higher if had gone with A.R.Rehman or Vidhyasagar. Its not worth taking a risk with a new music director for a movie of this kind. Perhaps Kamal would have thought we do not need songs for such a packed movie but remember the thought A.R.Rehman said to the movie Kannathil Muthamittal: Mani, we do not need songs for this movie but Rehman experimented a new kind of music with this movie that not only helped the movie but also fetched national award for him. Such is the power of music in Indian movies.

Vettayaadu Vilayaadu - English Movie in Tamil?

It was like watching an English movie in Tamil - no exaggerations and I am not trying to say in a negative way too. Gautram clearly proved that he can be compared with Hollywood directors. Be it the narration of story telling, or the timestamp of each incident or the songs freezing in black and white... every bit of the film told in a very different way. The love between Kamal and Jyotika - very matured and aligning with his age too and is very gentle and matured ('I am not ready for another relationship yet' and 'Good, go to the airport and cancel the ticket' are some apt examples in dialogs too).

I am not going to tell the story as the movie ran for 100 days - a blockbuster hit and most would have seen. I just wanted to share that such good movies are there and that we have grown a lot and proved from story and also technology point of view. There are several good aspects in the film -

• Story Telling/Direction: Gautam does wonder. Very different and gripping; narration of the execution of Prakash Raj and family is a classic example
• Editing: Great work by Antony and was the highlight for the thriller; the title song and Vennilave are bonus
• Music: Harris Jayaraj sets novel tunes for all songs (Vennilave, my favorite) but best was the background music; great help for the thriller
• Photography: Ravi Verman is amazing. Honestly I felt Keeranur was more shining than New York; vivid photography
• Acting: Perfect; not a penny more or less - Kamal does the job perfectly. Police role is not new for him but he has given his best in this. Jyothika is another word for perfect here.
• Extras: Sub-titles in tamil for the Anderson's English dialogs is a very good approach. Especialy helps for the thriller movie

To tell the truth, I have not seen this kind of movie in Tamil so far. Thanks to people like Gautam and Kamal, we are able to think of Hollywood.

Cannot avoid wondering why such a great film was delayed so long. With great crew, great story and great concept, not sure why folks had to think so much. The Himalayan victory sets a great example. More than that I liked the fact that such movies also are welcome and appreciated very well.

Hats off to Gautam, Kamal, Harris Jayaraj, Ravi Verman, Antony & Seventh Channel Narayanan!

Anbe Sivam - movie of the class

I would have seen this movie several times and everytime I discover something unique about this movie. But this weekend when I saw the movie again in Sun TV, I thought I need to share about the movie.

The movie gets some inspiration for the hollywood movie Trains, Planes and Automobiles but this one is a bit serious though a subtle humor is always present. It was a bit dissappointing to hear old style themes like Rs.910 wage but thats probably the only one. Rest all make this a great movie.

At times it feels that Madhavan outperformed Kamal - but may be you find it special Madhavan doing it. Its natural for Kamal anyway. Also its unfair to compare. But so are many other characters in the movie - the nurse that gives life to Kamal, Sandhana Bharathy, the short guy in the saha gang to mention a few.

There are several pluses in the movie - the brilliant photography, great acting, extra-ordinary art/settings (the rain filled railway station and the roads, the train accident aftermath scene, the huge painting and the concept, the impromptu painting with the spilled food and so many others), excellent music (all songs are great), clever direction and a nice concept. With all these good things, still the movie lacked something that - may be the screenplay or the thoughts of Kamal? I heard from folks that Kamal is dumping his ideas through movies. After all, thats what movies are for, right? One should appreciate the intellect in the movie and the reference to Tsunami or the awareness to rare blood group or the need for donating. Kamal is sure a genius.

I was so influenced by the amazing photography in the movie when Kamal and Madhavan sit in the railway station waiting for train. The below picture is an attempt to take a similar one :-)

ABCD - Not the usual movie

Recently got a chance to watch the movie, ABCD, in Tamil. Shyam, Sneha and couple of new faces giving some of the best performance. Shyam felt funny with his serious face and base voice but tried to be different. Sneha for sure gave her best performance. But her father was the best of all. (Good to know that the director acted as the bad husband and his father as the innocent father-in-law)

Though the movie felt serious at times and like the movie of 70s and also a touch of K.Balachandar at times with extreme characters and all women in the movie loving the hero. The movie made the difference when the hero tried to convince all the women that loved him except the one he loved. Very special. Wow, the one that acted as Bharathi was so pretty with a neat face though chubby.

All along the movie, the onething that impressed the best was the solo song adding effect to the seriousness of the movie. Excellent work music director/singer. The one other song by Saindhavi was another classic.

Good movie for a change not following the usual formula. Good work director!

Microcosmos & Winged Migration

Recently watched two of the amazing documentaries thanks to Netflix. Microcosmos and Winged Migration. Both are from the same producers and have one thing in common. Excellent photography and a great treat for eyes.

Microcosmos - as the name suggests talks about the tiny wonders captured in big screen. There is no right word to describe the great macro photography. Even ants and smallest insects appear so detailed and are perfectly captured. Another interesting thing is the background score – instead of a boring narration, they left us to enjoy the sound of nature and some great piece of music at relevant places. But be careful, you might doze off at times as there is no music at times.

Winged Migration is a different subject and talks all about birds that migrate. I have never ever seen anywhere in such closeup birds flying. With vivid photography, the birds’ flight looks splendid but with zero or minimum information, it was kind of boring to watch birds just fly. The bonus materials was more interesting on how the movie was captured. It took 4 years for them to shoot the 2 hr video and they had to several techniques to make the birds fly. Imprinting was interesting to learn.

While both movies are a treat to eyes, I did not find much educational value for seeing a documentary. Very minimal information and the focus was only on photography and lacked clear purpose. In case of Winged Migration, what is the challenge? Viewing the birds fly in closeup and different backdrops? Or knowing why they migrate, how they migrate and where they migrate to? It would have been more interesing if we had followed a single bird – not sure if possible but that’s really challenging.

Rashomon, the harbinger

Ever since I watched the spanish movie Midaq Alley, I was fond of the variety story telling. Couple of movies in Tamil also came in (perhaps the Tamil geniuses Kamala Hassan and Mani Ratnam thought of exploring this technique too). Virumaandi and Aayuda Ezhuthu were sincere attempts but I heard Rashomon as the forerunner for all these. But in my opinion, I preferred in this order:

1. Virumaandi
   
2. Midaq Alley
3. Rashomon
4. Aayudha Ezhuthu

Rashomon is excellent for its variety story telling - breaking from the conventional story telling. Hats off to Akira Kurusawa for his attempt. Its amazing that he stayed as an inspiration to Hollywood directors and the movie won an Oscar for best foreign film. Till end, the camera or audience act as judge and the judge never shown. The movie also amused me for its creative camera. Greatwork!

I liked the movie Midaq Alley for its bold story apart from the above style. The story talks about reality and different folks in the same street viewed different. Salma Hayek is a great plus and has acted wonderfully. The author of the story is a Nobel Prize Winner and the movie is a masterpiece. No wonder it won 49 awards internationally. A must-see.

Aayutha Ezhuthu was a loser among these movies. May be the weak story line that was a big minus for the failure but the big stardom or great music did not help either. It felt very ordinary compared to the mega Virumaandi.

Virumaandi was my favorite. For the excellent narration, deft direction, great acting, Kamal deserves more than an Oscar. Few experiments like live sound and new actors are extra bonus for us and add new dimension to the movie. There were some concerns about the violence in the movie but as Kamal justifies, if the story warrants, we need it to portray that way. People should realize that not all movies are for families. With the lack of a rating system, audience should be prudent enough to choose and wach.

DUEL - A perfect Chase

I am serious fan of Steven Spielberg and he did not dissappoint in this movie. I have been wanting to see this movie for a while but could never find in Blockbuster. Thanks to Netflix, I could enjoy watching it at last!

The story is around a simple plot, car chase in a US highway, but very cleverly taken. The beginning itself starts innovatively where the moving car is shot from driver's perspective (the house moving) and the creativity never ends. The chase was gripping all throughout although it felt bit boring couple of times. Tthe truck is the real hero in the movie - Dirty, huge and with an anonymous driver.

The only thing that upset me was the ending. It felt as it its abrupt and meaningless with the reason for chase untold. May be I am not a smart audience but I could not make out why all the chase happened.

A great movie to watch - don't miss it!

'Anniyan' Review: Grandiose = Sankar?

One of the best movies in Tamil I have watched in the recent times. Multiple-personality is a new theme to Tamil Cinema and it is well handled by Shankar. Talking too much technically would not attract mediocre audiences and Shankar has done his best to tell it simple and carefully in perfect blend.

Can a person have several dimensions to acting? Vikram has proved it far and beyond. Clearly he is the best in Tamil after Kamala Hassan. Innocence, Anger, Romantic, Helplessness, Defeated, Pride and what not - this National Award winner is sure to grab another one for the exemplary performance.

Be it the mammoth tulip garden in Amsterdam or the long bridge fully decorated or the painted roads in mountains or the big stadium - we could see Shankar shining. The fight sequences are very new to Tamil Cinema - of course could have been shorter to reduce the 3 hr long movie. But the length was never noticeable - thanks to the excellent screenplay. Right from first scene, we get into the movie and no scene seems irrelevant. And the graphics appropriate and not too much unlike few of his other movies.

Background music needs a special mention - for an action packed thriller like this, music director has helped a lot - the music while changing from Ambi to Anniyan to Remo is the best of all. Songs Sugumari and Iyengaru Veetu remain in our ears for long time. The carnatic background needed for the story background also is appropriate and pleasing.

Vivek's comedy helps bring lot of laugter to the serious story. 'Indha Poonayum Paala Kudikkumannu Parthen but Beere Kudikkaraye' is the best of all. Not sure when Prakash Raj would stop overacting. (Perhaps the only movie where he acted normal is Iruvar?)

Its the dialog that makes the movie gripping all along. I am really surprised at this 60+ year old Sujatha how he could write such youthful and in-vogue dialogues. From Garuda Puranam to Yo-Yo - only he could write so intellectually. Having read his several novels, I could not avoid finding some traces from 'Nirvana Nagaram'

Cinematographer and Art Director also deserve credits to show Chennai so beautiful. Sadha is slim and beautiful although not much to play.

With another grandiose movie, Shankar confirms that he is the only guy who can think (really) big in Tamil Cinema. Wow! his imaginations are unimaginable. While we have several Ambis and Remos existing, we need an Anniyan for sure to question and punish?

Worth watching and appreciating the effort of the director - Don't miss it in big screen.

Matrix Reloaded

With lot of expectation I had watched this movie but came back with disappointment. Read my review in Amazon.

I heard that the producers are planning to release the IMAX version of the same soon. It would be real fun to watch in biiiiiiiig screen I am sure.

No one can beat the special effects of Matrix!

Astitva - A wonderful movie

Had a chance to watch a movie called Astitva in Hindi. Simply put, a great movie indeed for Hindi film industry. The director has dared enough to take a movie that revolves around a down-to-earth story.

Tabu is married to Shri for 25 years - happily? Tabu with a lie behind and Shri too. The moment they come to know their lies, problems start. Well, it starts when Tabu receives a huge will from her Music Guru. Shri does little investigation and has questions that concern Tabu's loyalty. Well, Tabu has been having an illicit son that Shri did not know. Shri goes for divorce quoting his vanity but Tabu is the real hero when she puts the answers.

Wonderfully crafted - no questions. Male chauvinism is well exemplified. Nothing to complain but for some logic. Only in movies, people will not be allowed to explain things; only in movies people will work on assumptions and presumptions. Why is it like that? Why not a movie that makes it completely realistic? Why should we quit just because we found fault with others? Is there a not a thing called compromise that we could get by talking out?

I remember about a case I read once; wife asking for divorce at 65. When asked why she said, I have been waiting all along for my kids to get married and now that they are married, I am happy to get away from him. Imagine what kind of husband he should have been. But I appreciate all the dependent wives of the community.

Great performance by Tabu. I guess she won the national award for best acting in this movie.