Naan

Crime time 
 

Cinematographer - director Jeeva was a name to reckon with in Tamil cinema. Though he has passed away, his legacy seems to be continued by his protege Jeeva Shankar. The latter makes his independent foray as filmmaker with Naan starring music composer Vijay Anthony in the lead role.

A crime thriller Naan speaks about an youth who faces challenges in his life from unexpected quarters that leads him to make a s3erial of murders. The tag line of the movie is that no man is perfect in this world. And so is the male protagonist.

Besides Vijay Anthony, the movie has Rupa Manjeri, Siddharth of Ananda Thandavam fame, Anuya and Vibha in lead roles.

Karthik (Vijay Anthony) is forced to kill his mother for infidelity. He spends the rest of his life in prison and returns only to do an unexpected thing - changing his identity for pursuing his medical course. But that comes with lots of troubles. He overcomes them obviosuly with unexpected acts.

Vijay Anthony lives up to the role. But his emotional outputs are one-dimensional. He is good at action scenes. Siddharth is promising while Roopa gets a meaty role.

The movie has its lacuna but thanks to overall efforts of Vijay Anthony, it is a wonderful watch.

Eppadi Manasukkul Vandhai

Slow and steady 
 
It seems to be the season of romantic movies hitting the screens. Filmmaker P V Prasath after Kadhalil Vizhunthein has come up with Eppadi Manasukkul Vandhai, a romantic thriller which is all about a youth’s all –out action to save his love life.

The movie shares some similarities with Kadhalil Vizhunthein. For the characterisation of the hero is almost the same in both the movies. But the sequence of events makes it more engrossing.

Playing the lead role is debutant Vishwa. A promising talent, who delivers his best in a tough character. Former Miss India Earth Tanvi Vyas plays the female lead while Irfan dons the role of a college student, whose characters sets the ball rolling in the film.

Produced by director Kiccha, Eppadi Manasukkul Vandhai has music by A J Daniel, a former Harris Jeyaraj speaks about a friend turning foe for romance. He even dares to turn a serial killer to hold the hands of his beloved. Though is it soft and romantic, at places it is gruesome and bloody.

Seenu (Vishwa) a poor boy hailing from a dhobi family meets Mithra (Tanvi Vyas), a rich girl and falls in love with her. Seenu joins the college ( a fashion technology institute) where she joins. There is one Shyam (Irfan), a close friend of Mithra who stays in her house. Seenu becomes both their friends. But a fight breaks between Shyam and Seenu. The former is killed by Seenu. Fearing that he would be a hurdle in his lovelife, he kills Shyam and hides his body. He cooks up a story that Shyam had left the city after a love failure.

Seenu consoles Mithra's close friend and soon wins over her heart. Now enters a tough police office (Ravi Kale). He suspects Seenu of killing Shyam. The chase begins. What happens then is the climax. Vishwa has given his best considering this to be his maiden venture. He is cool and delivers the roe well. Tanvi Vyas has a major role to play. She has enough screen space and enjoys doing the role. She is cute and bubbly. All kudos to Ravi kale. He goes on to give a matured performance.

S D Vijay Milton's camera is the hallmark of the movie. At places the movies proceeds little slow and sadly there are some cliched sequences too. But Prasath has managed to cast a spell on screen.

Attakathi review

Entertaining fare 
 
Debutant filmmaker Pa Ranjith, who has emerged from the shoes of his mentor Venkat Prabhu has managed to a complete youth film with right packaging. Starring all newcomers, the movie bubbles with youthful exhuberance and energy all through.

Dinesh, Nandhitha play the lead roles. Santhosh Narayanan has scored the music. P K Varma has cranked the camera while T Ramalingam takes care of the art. 

The movie revolves around a youngster, his aspirations, struggles and the romance in his life. 

Set in semi-rural area, the movie revolves around Dinesh. A youngster, he is a love-lorn youth. He proposs almost all girls who comes across in his daily life.

One fine day, he meets Poornima (Nandhitha ) in a bus and starts loving her. She says a firm no and his heart breaks only till he meets another girl.

After two years, he goes to college where he meets Poornima again.

He tries to throw love arrows at her. She looks like accepting his offer. But now comes a twist in the script.

Dinesh and Nandhitha have understood their characters and given their best.

The whole team has given their best. Three cheers to Studio Green for presenting a entertaining fare.

The only lacunae is the lengthy second half. Also it ends in a predictable manner.

Naan Ee Movie Review

Naan Ee - This fly flies high !

After making his mark as a successful director who blends fantasy tales with commercial elements, directorSS Rajamouli of Vikramarkudu, Magadheera and Mariyadha Ramannafame is trying his luck in Tamil with his bilingual Naan Ee.

The movie is a perfect blend of romance, humour, revenge and sentiments. 

Three cheers to Rajamouli for making a movie that has visual effects which is on par with films made in the West. For making a movie around a fly needs guts. Rajamouli has taken it in his stride to deliver a convincing tale that is racy, riveting and entertaining.

The movie boasts of no big story. It is just about a youth, who is killed by a baddie reincarnates as a housefly and takes revenge on the killer. But the screenplay and unfolding of events and the scenes involving housefly's acts makes it an engrossing affair.

Naan Ee has richness, grandeur, fantasy, fun and everything. With a strong technical crew around, Rajamouli has pulled  it off.Samantha, Nani, Sudeep play the lead roles. Music is byMaragathamani while Senthil Kumar handles cinematography.

Story

Sudeep (Sudeep Kicha) is a business tycoon who gets everything he wants in earth with his money. He lures women and gets them in his couch. He comes across Bindhu (Samantha) who is a miniature artiste and a social worker.

In the pretext of giving her huge donation, he wants her to fall in his ambit. But she love her neighbour and a simple youth Nani.

Shocked to know about her affair, Sudeep kills Nani and makes everyone believe that it was an accident. But Nani is rebron as housefly immediately and now he is hellbent on taking revenge onSudeep. Can a housefly do this impossible act. 

Watch the movie for the rest.

Performance

Nani should be given a pat. Though he appears just half-an-hour, he does give his best. He is enthusiastic and bubbly.

Samantha hogs enough screen space,. She is no cliched heroine here running around tree and romancing and disappearing after a few scenes. her role has a major bearing on the story. But the real scene-stealer is Sudeep.

A numero uno actor in Kannada filmdom, he has gathered guts to play a baddie in this movie. His performance makes one sit up and watch.

At his best in second half, Sudeep is awesome as villain. Santhanam makes a cameo appearing in a sequence. 

Analysis

Rajamouli's Naan Ee is India's answer top the west that India too can make movies with amazing visual effects. The  housefly and its antics are captured well. The team behind the computer graphics and visual special effects deserves all pat. Maragathamani and Senthil Kumarcombines well to give their best.

PVP Cinemas should be given a pat for producing a mammoth movie that is strikingly different and entertaining. Rajamouli has added one more feather in his cap with Naan Ee.

Plus

Scenes involving housefly

Sudeep's awesome show

Maragathamani's background score

Mark : 4/5 

Maalai Pozhuthin Mayakathile Review

Coffee Toffee

Director Narayan Nagendra Raodeserves a pat for trying something unique and different what his predecessors have never tried to venture to. He had set the while movie in a coffee shop where people with different problems and travails come together.

Produced by Mayuri Sekar, MPM is a movie that is experimental in Tamil cinema. There is not many characters in the film. Neither there are action sequences nor crass comedy. MPM is an emotional tale set in pone place.

Aari of Rettaisuzhi plays the lead role with Subha as his ladylove. Subbu Panju, R S Sivajiand Balaji dons key characters. It has no run-of-the-mill stuff loaded anywhere and proceeds at a leisurely pace, that may test your patience on few occasions.

The highlight of MPM is Achu's music and Gopi Amarnath's camera work. Both contributed a lot in elevating the mood of the film.

Story

Ajay (Aari) is an aspiring filmmaker. On a rainy eveing, he chances to see Jiya (Subha) at a coffee shop and is apparently bowled over by her beauty.  Also present in the coffee shop at the time are Satish (Balaji) who comes with wife Ramya (Tejaswini) and the manager (Subbu Panchu).

The couple (Sathish-Ramya) are apparently at loggerheads and on the verge of a split. The manager has issues to be solved in his business. There is a writer (R S Sivaji) who is witness to all this.

After twists and returns, all well ends well and everyone leave the place with smile on their faces. Of course all problems sorted out.

Performance

Aari deserves a pat for playing the lead role in a entertaining manner. He brings out his disappointment, joy, sorrow well. Subha looks new to the screen and adds more fizz to the proceedings. Especially when she opens her heart to him, she stands out.

Subbu Panju and Sivaji are tailor-made for the role. Both perform with clarity. Balaji and Tejasvini as disturbed couple rock.

Analysis

The movie is well-made thanks to the stylish sophisticated handling of the script by the director. The scenes are vivid and bright. Achu's songs and background score are elevating. The camera of Gopi Amarnath speaks many words. The capturing of song sequences are beautiful and aesthetic.

With less characters, the director has tried his best to provide a different film, which he has achieved partially.

Plus
*Aari's performance
*Achu's music
* Camera by Gopi Amarnath
Minus
* Slow narration
* Lack of fizz or any excitement
Mark 2.5/5

Total Recall (2012)

By Matt Patches

The remake of Total Recall never escapes the shadow of its Arnold Schwarzenegger-led predecessor — and, strangely, it feels like a choice. With a script that's nearly beat-for-beat the original film, Total Recall plods along with enhanced special effects that bring to life an expansive sci-fi world and action scenes constructed to send eyes flipping backwards into skulls. Filling the cracks of the fractured film is a story that, without knowledge of the Philip K. Dick adaptation's previous incarnation, is barely decipherable. Those who haven't seen Paul Verhoeven's 1990 Total Recall? Time to get a few memory implants. 2012 Recall makes little sense with the cinematic foundation, but it does zero favors to those out of the know.

Colin Farrell takes over duties from Schwarzenegger as Douglas Quaid, a down-on-his-luck factory worker hoping to escape his stagnate existence with a boost from Rekall, a company capable of engineering fake memories. Quaid calls the damp slums of "The Colony" home (one of two inhabitable parts of Earth), but he dreams of moving to the New Federation of Britain, a pristine metropolis on the other side of the planet. When the futuristic treatment goes awry — caused by previously existing memories of our blue collar hero's supposedpast life as a secret agent — Quaid emerges from Rekall with lethal power hidden under his mild-mannered persona. He quickly goes on the run, escaping squads of soldiers, robots, and his assassin "wife," Lori (Kate Beckinsale) all hot on his tail. Total Recall turns into one long chase scene, as Quaid unravels the mystery of his erased memories.

But when it comes to answers and heady sci-fi,Total Recall falls short. Farrell isn't a hulking action star like Schwarzenegger, but he's a performer that can sensitively explore any human crisis, big or small. Director Len Wiseman (Underworld, Live Free or Die Hard) never gives his leading man that opportunity. Farrell makes the best of the films occasional slow moment, but the weight of Recall's mindf**k is suffocated in a series of fist fights, hovercar pile-ups, and foot chases pulled straight out of the latest platformer video game (a sequence that sends Quaid running across the geometric rooftop architecture of The Colony looks straight out of Super Mario Bros.). When Jessica Biel as Quaid's former romantic interest Melina andBreaking Bad's Bryan Cranston as the power-hungry politico Cohaagen are finally woven into Farrell's feature length 50 yard dash, it's too late — the movie isn't making sense and it's not about to, regardless of the charm on screen.

The action is slick, and the futuristic design is impeccable, but without any time devoted to building the stakes,Total Recall feels more like a HDTV demo than a thrilling blockbuster. The movie's greatest innovation is the central set piece "The Fall," an elevator that travels between the two cities at rapid speed. The towering keystone of mankind is a marvel, but we never get to see it, explore it or feel its implications on the world around it. Instead, it's cemented as a CG background behind the craze of Farrell shooting his way through hoards of bad guys.

Science fiction more than any other dramatic genre twist demands attention to the details. New worlds aren't built on broad strokes. But Total Recall tries to get away with it, in hopes that audiences will recall their own movie knowledge to support its faulty logic. The movie repeatedly prompts viewers to think back to the 1990 version, with blatant fan service that's absolutely nonsensical in this restructured version (no longer does Quaid go to Mars, but there's still a three-breasted alien?). The callbacks may have given Total Recall a "been there, done that" feel, but rarely is it coherent enough to get that far. By the closing credits, you'll be struggling to remember what you spent the last two hours watching.