Film Review: PONNIYIN SELVAN 1

Pic Courtesy: https://www.ottplay.com/

I recall the time when Ponniyin Selvan, written by Kalki (Kalki Krishnamurthi) used to be published as a weekly series in the magazine Kalki, sometime in my teens. This was the second round that the novel was being published. I tried reading it, but stopped after the first few chapters for whatever reasons. I have tried taking it up again a couple of times, but failed. 

When I heard that it was being made into a movie (2 movies), I was too damn thrilled. I thought that finally I would know what the story was all about.  

My husband and I have been following a lot of pre-release videos on YouTube and Sunnext platforms regarding Mani Ratnam’s magnum opus. What’s even better is that AR Rahman has created the music for this movie and he has outperformed himself. 

Yesterday was my birthday and I was truly excited that my husband and I could watch the film at Carnival Cinemas, Wadala.

What do I think of the movie?

POSITIVES:

1. It has a stellar star cast: Prabhu, Prakashraj, Sarathkumar, Parthiban, Jayaram, Nassar, Nizhalgal Ravi, Mohan Raman, Jayachithra, Rahman and a few others from the older generation. While the younger generation include Vikram, Karthi, Jayam Ravi, Aishwarya Rai, Trisha Krishnan, Vikram Prabhu, Aishwarya Lekshmi and more. Most importantly, each one has played his/her role to absolute perfection. I think Mr Mani Ratnam deserves a standing ovation for this, definitely.

2. Music by AR Rahman is to die for; absolutely refreshing and different from what he has delivered before now.

3. Cinematography: Aah!!!!! Amazing, Awesome, Splendid! I am simply running out of adjectives here. Fantabulous!

4. The sequences, background, scenes, dialogue: Magnificent!

5. The novel runs to about 2200 pages. Has the scriptwriter/director done justice to it? Absolutely, yes. The film is crisp, concise, and hits the nail on its head. 

6. Vikram was stupendous as Aditha Karikalan. Karthi mesmerizes the audience as Vandiyathevan. Trisha appears and behaves as the true royal she is as Kundavai. As for Aishwarya Rai, she makes for a beautiful, but wicked Nandini with a lot of plans. Jayam Ravi is excellent as Ponniyin Selvan (to become Rajaraja Cholan in the future). The rest of the cast have all done superbly well too. 

NEGATIVES:

1. The songs from the film are all out there on YouTube, while the movie does not give us everything. Disappointed? Yes, I was. Especially, when the “yele yelelo” song was cut short. The scene, portraying Aishwarya Lekshmi (what little they showed on YT) was so damn sensuous. It was really cruel of the editor to chop off the best chunk of it is what I feel.

2. As a viewer/movie buff, I need to feel connected to the characters. Usually, it’s the one character or maybe two. Rarely do I feel connected to a 3rd one. This is where I am not sure how the audience will receive this film. I wanted to connected to Vandiyathevan (Karthi), but he was there in barely 10% of the film. Vikram as both the war lord and the emotional lover was superb. But there was so little of him in the movie. I can go on and on, but well, the first part of the magnum opus ran for 2 hours 47 minutes and there is only so much one could pack in it, I presume. But that still doesn’t make me want more of it!

IN CONCLUSION:

I will not compare this film to Bahubali, but to the Harry Potter series. Let me tell you why. Bahubali was scripted to be made into a movie (or 2). Whereas, HP was written as a series of books to begin with. The smartest thing Hollywood did was to make 8 films out of the 7 books. Even then, the fans of the book series felt cheated to some extent. Despite all the opinions running amok, the films were superhits. I loved each one of them too!

This is where I see the flaw in PS 1. Five large books comprised into two films. It seems hurried, with the characters were not given enough opportunity to perform. It’s a wonder that such big names agreed to be a party to this one. But then, that’s probably the magic of Mani Ratnam.

I will go with 4 stars instead of 5 for this. Yes, I will watch it at least once more on the big screen. And will definitely catch it half a dozen more times on Amazon Prime. It offers a lot of rich research material for the historical romance story teller in me. 

VERDICT: If you are a movie buff and enjoy historical fiction, especially with most of the characters who had actually lived in India’s history, you should definitely watch this one.  

Film Review: O KADHAL KANMANI (ஓ காதல் கண்மணி)

If you like romances, you should not miss this one! 

Cast: Dulquer Salmaan, Nithya Menen, Prakash Raj, Leela Samson
Director: Mani Ratnam

The Film

Aditya aka Adi (Dulquer Salmaan) arrives in Mumbai to take a new job in a computer games company. His dream is to move to the USA and earn in dollars. He’s from a middleclass family and has been brought up by his elder brother. Adi moves into Ganapathy’s (Prakash Raj) home in Girgaum as a paying guest. Ganapathy lives with his wife Bhavani (Leela Samson) who suffers from Alzheimer’s.

Adi attends a friend’s wedding where he meets Tara (Nithya Menen). Tara lives in a ladies’ hostel and works for a private company. The two get along like a house on fire and realise that neither of them believes in marriage. They decide to get into a live-in relationship. Ganapathy is conservative and refuses at first to allow Tara to move into Adi’s quarters. But soon, the young couple manage to persuade him.

The story goes on to show the relationship between not just Adi and Tara but also their equation with the older Ganapathy and Bhavani. But can Adi and Tara continue with their live-in relationship? She has a mother who is rich and powerful and wants her daughter under her thumb; while he has a brother, sister-in-law and a school-going niece. Will they accept them for what they are? And what will happen if Adi moves to the US at the first opportunity?

My Perception

Mani Ratnam has directed a number of films over the past few decades. While most of them were successful, there were a few duds too. One can never be sure what to expect from his films. I like his film Guru the most. So, when O Kadhal Kanmani (also known as OK Kanmani) was released, I didn’t show too much interest in seeing it – until my neighbour and friend told me that it’s a light and breezy romance. That’s when Venkat and I decided to see the film. I was surprised to see the number of North Indians in the theatre. Luckily, the film had subtitles making it easy for them to understand what was happening.

Dulquer Salmaan (Actor Mammooty’s son) is a well-known star in the Malayalam film industry I believe. He looks handsome and he can act too. His role as Adi was a walk through and couldn’t have been more naturally portrayed. Kudos!

Nithya Menen as Tara is too cute for words. She’s another actress who’s as natural as can be. She has acted in a lot of films in Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil and Kannada. Nithya’s perfect as Tara – as the daughter who’s doing her best to be independent of her dominating mother; as a career woman; as a lover; as a caring person who has befriended an Alzheimer’s patient and her husband. Congrats!

Leela Samson plays the role of Ganapathy’s wife Bhavani who is suffering from Alzheimer’s. This film is her debut. She’s simply awesome as the lovely woman who adores her husband; confused when she keeps forgetting things. Excellent role play!

I have saved the best for the last. Prakash Raj – I have seen him in so many different roles over the years – as a villain, as character actor, as a father, as an uncle and even as a God. He is a born actor. As Ganapathy, he is a strict disciplinarian when he takes Adi in as his paying guest. But you can see him thinking from his heart when the young man is able to swing him with his arguments. His love for his wife of more than four decades is commendable and it shows in every gesture of his. Amazing performance indeed!

The storyline is pretty simple and presented in an uncomplicated fashion. Yeah, as someone mentioned on facebook, there is no conflict. So what? O Kadhal Kanmani was a joy to watch with beautiful music and songs that don’t distract you from the flow of the film. The songs –lyrics by Vairamuthu and music by AR Rahman – were all lovely and pleasing on the ears.  Running for 2 hrs and 18 minutes, the film was a breeze.

VERDICT: It’s a must watch you are fond of romances.

*Silly
**Shaky
***Smart
****Snazzy
*****Super

Film Review: EK MAIN AUR EKK TU

Has Bollywood finally arrived!!!!!!!!!! A simple, short film with not too many songs

Cast: Imran Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Boman Irani, Ratna Pathak Shah, Ram Kapoor
Director: Shakun Batra

I know it’s been a while since I wrote film reviews. While I could not write a review for Rockstar as I left for Chennai some hours later, I did not feel like talking about Don 2 and Agneepath as the violence in both films almost did me in.

Seeing the promos for Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu had put me off watching the film totally. My husband was not keen either. But I noticed that Mumbai Mirror had given it four stars. I did not read the review as I did not want to know the story, etc. I waited the week out for Vini to be free to watch it with me today. Am I glad I went!

THE STORY: Rahul Kapoor (Imran Khan) is the only child of his parents (Boman Irani & Ratna Pathak Shah). He has led a repressed life from childhood and his life has been chalked out completely by his parents. Rahul has accepted his way of life without fighting it. He lives in Las Vegas while working for a big firm. Unfortunately for him, he loses his job due to recession. But Rahul is unable to admit the fact to his parents who are actually visiting with him at that point. He pretends that everything is hunky dory until they leave. Soon after, he decides to go to a psychiatrist and his path crosses with Riana’s (Kareena Kapoor). Almost 27 to his 25, Riana has a tremendous impact on Rahul’s life. She is the exact opposite of what he is. And thus begins the romance…..

MY PERCEPTION: The film is simply superb with just two songs that do not distract you away from the script. Do not go by the promos. They don’t give you a clue about how the film actually is. And better still, the film runs for just about an hour and 40 minutes. Can you believe that?

I just loved the story and was very happy with the ending. It is not just one more romance from Karan Johar and Ronnie Screwvala. Ok, I just realized my mistake. I did not know that Ronnie Screwvala was one of the producers. I would have watched the film without any hesitation if I had. And I also need to congratulate debut director Shakun Batra. Way to go, man!

I am never sure whether Imran Khan is a good actor or bad. I suppose he is both depending on his director. Well, the actor did very well in this film. Kudos!

Kareena Kapoor was also excellent in her role as Riana. Keep up the good work, Kareena.

Boman Irani and Ratna Pathak Shah as Imran’s abominable parents did great work of their roles.

VERDICT: A fun watch with an unexpected but perfect ending. I would say a must watch if you like light films.

RATING: **** Snazzy

* Silly
** Shaky
*** Smart
**** Snazzy
***** Super

Just giving a brief verdict on the other films that I watched but did not write about…

ROCKSTAR ***** Super
Ranbir Kapoor rocked as the hero. I would go so far as to say that Ranbir has proved that he is the best in all four generations of the Kapoor Khaandaan. The music was amazing and the editing simply superb. AR Rahman deserved all the awards in the world for this one. I am proud to be walking the earth in the same times at this gentleman. Mohit Chauhan’s voice is liquid gold.  Need I say more?

DON 2 ** Shaky
The one question that I wanted to ask SRK after watching this one was “why this kolaveri kolaveri kolaveri da?” I am amazed that Farhan Akhtar made this film. Over and above that, SRK received the Zee Critics Award for Best Actor for his performance in this film. Wonder how much he paid for that one? Mr. Khan, please take a sabbatical of may be 2-3 years and come back to filmdom with a fresh outlook. Happy holidays!

AGNEEPATH **** Snazzy
I still did not want to write a review. Hrithik Roshan proved yet again what an excellent actor he is. Sanjay Dutt was a class apart. I don’t think I have ever seen Rishi Kapoor play a negative role. He was simply superb! But the first prize I will give to Kanika Tiwari who played Hrithik’s sister. She was so cute and acted so well, despite talking very less. As you can see, I have not mentioned Priyanka Chopra – well, she is not worth a mention here.

Film Review: ENDHIRAN, THE ROBOT

Endhiran, the Robot

Cast: Superstar Rajnikanth, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Danny Denzongpa, Santhanam, Karunas
Director: S. Shankar

This is the Tamil version of the film I am writing about here.

The Story: Vaseegaran (Rajnikanth) is a robotics scientist who has been conducting an experiment for ten years before he completes his latest project – an android. His girlfriend Sana, (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan) is quite bugged with him for his lack of attention but is quite happy when she meets ‘the robot’ (also Rajnikanth). Vaseegaran has two guys (Santhanam, Karunas) assisting him in the project. Vaseegaran updates his robot with a keen knowledge of just about everything – music, dance, a variety of fighting techniques and more. The robot is able to scan books by the hundreds and absorb their information. Vaseegaran gives it the name of Chitti.

Everyone is enamoured with Chitti and its antics. Chitti is good at anything it does. It can cook, it can draw and paint, it can fight when necessary, drive a car and whatever. Vaseegaran is keen to use Chitti for the military and protect the country. But every time he tries to get his project approved, there is one person who stops it from happening. And that is the bad guy (Danny Denzongpa) scientist who used to be Vaseegaran’s mentor. Jealous of his disciple’s success and worried of losing out on all the income, the villain does his best to sabotage Vaseegaran’s chances.

The film goes on to show how the villain manages to convert the helpful Chitti into a maniacal and destructive robot. Whether Vaseegaran is able to realise his dreams forms the rest of the story.

My Perception: The film was simply superb with fantastic animation and a lot of research has gone into robotics to give an authentic presentation. Kudos to S. Shankar for the idea, story and its execution! A fantastic dream that spans about a decade has come true for the director from what I hear. It is totally worth all his efforts. My son is a staunch Hollywood fan and insisted on watching the film. He went through it with an eagle eye to find faults and was amazed that he could not find any. I go by his word that the film has been perfectly made.

The music by Rahman, sound by Resul Pookutty and cinematography by R. Rathnavelu were nothing short of amazing.

Danny Denzongpa had a good role that seemed to have suddenly been cut short. While he has done his part well, I did expect a bit more from the character and not the abrupt end that it had.

Rajinikanth as Vaseegaran had a very ordinary role – nothing that you would expect from the Superstar. But words cannot describe him play Chitti the Robot. It was fantabulous, to put it mildly. One has to see the film to understand the magnitude of the role and the 61-year-old who is playing it. Amazing!

Aishwarya Rai – don’t quite know what to say. A woman was required in the role. And of course it helps to have a Bollywood star if the film is being sold to both the south and north of India. And then, Miss. World definitely adds more glam. But all these will help sell the film. Will it make the film improve in quality is for the viewer to decide. I did not find anything fascinating or special about Aishwarya’s role as Sana. It was too ordinary and could have been way shorter so that the film had a tighter fit.

With Santhanam and Karunas on board, I definitely expected some more comedy. That was quite disappointing, especially considering the earlier Rajini and Shankar flicks that had way more comedy timing.

To this end, I would have given the film four and a half stars.

But I have a bone to pick at this point. The film is 2 hrs 45 min long. Filmmakers in India, especially those in the South have to mature way more in the sense, they should get out of the myth that quantity is more important than quality. To give that extra 45 minutes, the director has compromised on the quality of the film.

The film is awesome – the story, the music, the cinematography, the direction and whatnot – they all were just perfect. But every time the story took off in a promising direction, Rajni and Aishwarya would jump into a song and dance sequence. By God, that was simply horrendous and totally irritating. It kept interrupting the flow of the film and made one want to scream.

A tight script with the focus on robotics is what we went for and what we would have loved. The film will definitely run extremely well as we kind of excuse the S&D and see the movie anyway. But I hope the director understands that these have made his “stupendous and extraordinary film” into “just a very good one”.

Verdict: You definitely have to watch this one. Tamil Sci-fi has gone global. Superb one by Shankar & the Superstar!

Rating: *** ½ (you know why :( )

*Silly
** Shaky
*** Smart
**** Snazzy
***** Super