Totally Filmi

Mosayile Kuthira Meenukal (dir. Ajith Pillai, 2014) (Malayalam)

 

I had a feeling watching the trailer for Mosayile Kuthira Meenukal (Swordfishes of Big Tides) that it would be my cup of tea.  Starting with the cinematography by Abinandhan Ramanujam – I fell in love with his work in Lijo Jose Pellissary’s 2013 film Amen, where he made me long to visit the backwaters around Kumarakom.  Here he does the same for Lakshadweep and Andeman – I can’t imagine a more beautiful setting and Ramanujam makes it look ethereal.  It’s probably no surprise that I also feel the same way about the film’s music – hello, Prashant Pillai, also of Amen fame (The film’s music deserves a post of its own, so beautifully does it support the film). 

What I didn’t expect, however, is that Ajith Pillai’s film would totally bowl me over like the billowing ocean waves of the film’s title.  I watched with some trepidation, just waiting for the moment that would spoil it all.  And it never came.  My heart just kept swelling with the happiness of watching the stories of Alex and Akbar Ali; of Akbar Ali and Isa; of Alex and Deena play out on the screen.

When we first meet Alex (Asif Ali), he’s making yet another attempt to escape from prison – he quickly fills us in on his history as he prays for some help to get him out of the dark tunnel he’s got himself seemingly stuck in.  Alex is the 14^th son of a father who comes from a large family himself – in fact, his is a family that prides itself on the number of its offspring.  The irony, of course, is that despite coming from this enormous extended family (Alex’s nephew, ten years older than he is, is the warden of the prison he’s escaping from), Alex finds himself alone, leading a dissolute life, doing nothing except drinking and partying, and trusting the wrong people altogether, the latter of which lands him in the prison he keeps trying to escape from.

 

Did I mention that Alex is the 14th child?  Irony.

 

Alex’s saviour comes in the form of Akbar Ali (Sunny Wayne), also trying to escape from prison at the same time.  Akbar Ali is a man with a mission, and that mission is to get back to Lakshadweep to divorce Isa (Swati Reddy) before she heads out to a fisheries job in Singapore.

 

 

Alex discovers, however, that his name has ended up on the list of prisoners to be pardoned on the upcoming Indian Independence Day.  In order for that to go ahead, his nephew the prison warden insists not only that Alex return to prison so that his escape can be covered up; as well, Alex must return with Akbar Ali, so as to keep the prison’s record intact (in one of the film’s fine details, a fellow prisoner tells Alex that only two people have managed to escape from this prison – a man named Jeevan and some foreigner, a reference to the Mohanlal film Season, as well as to the Shawshank Redemption).  This leads Alex to follow Akbar Ali to Lakshadweep.  On the boat journey there, Akbar Ali tells him the story of how he met Isa and how he married her – or, rather, how she asked him to marry her.  Before Alex can learn more, Akbar Ali has literally jumped ship.  Alex, in an attempt to find Akbar Ali, seeks assistance from the newly arrived post office employee, Deena (Janani Iyer) – Alex and Deena have met on the boat to Lakshadweep, where they both arrive on deck suffering from seasickness and try to help each other through it.

 

 

Alex eventually tracks down Akbar Ali, where he learns the rest of his story with Isa.  Turns out Isa had been divorced from her first husband, Hashim (Nishanth Sagar), and having decided they made a mistake and want to remarry, tradition demands that she can only remarry after she has married and been divorced a second time.  That she asks Akbar Ali to marry her turns out to be less romantic than it seems – she wants Akbar Ali to help her so that she can remarry Hashim.  Isa’s father grudgingly agrees to this, but only if Hashim pays a mahr – and in order to do that, Hashim asks Akbar Ali to help him illegally catch and sell a whale to raise the amount.  The police come to get Akbar Ali in the middle of the ceremony performing the divorce from Isa – and Akbar Ali decides that instead of letting Isa remarry a man who clearly isn’t worthy of her, that he’ll give her the divorce when he’s released from prison.  In the meantime, Hashim, who proves Akbar Ali right, abandons Isa a second time; but Isa finishes her studies and gets a job in Singapore.  Because of that she needs to leave before Akbar Ali is released from prison, so he escapes in order to give her her freedom as she moves on to her new job and her new life.

 

 

Mosayile Kuthira Meenukal is, I would argue, a most perfect example of New Gen Malayalam cinema at its best, with lessons that span the generations.  Even its title harks back to the Golden Age of Malayalam cinema, with its poetic and metaphoric film titles, such as Padmarajan’s Thoovanathumbikal (“Dragonflies of the Spraying Rain”).  And although it represents the realities of a younger generation of Malayalees, it also holds the past in high regard, referencing that Golden Age of cinema most obviously with Padmarajan’s cult film Season; in fact, clips of Mohanlal’s escape attempt from that film are intercut with those of one of Alex’s attempts to escape from prison. As well, it pulls from the best of world cinema – that Shawshank Redemption reference cannot be accidental – using the language of cinema to tell a story unique to Kerala.  It’s fascinating to see how the framing, in particular, shifts as the film progresses.  The first half of the film, focussing on Alex’s time in prison, and his escape, is all shot in ways that emphasize the fact that Alex is trapped, confined, that he needs to break out.  This shifts dramatically at the interval – just before the interval card goes up, Alex and Akbar Ali are shown at the doorway to the ship’s stern.  They step out onto the deck, and view the expanse of water as the ship leaves for Lakshadweep.  Freedom awaits them, as do events that will change both their lives.

 

 

Ajith Pillai’s film is, in essence, a study of human nature, of selfishness, of self-interest, and, ultimately, of sacrifice and selflessness.  It is, as well, an exercise in redemption, at least for Alex, and of the redemptive power of a place like Lakshadweep.  Akbar Ali tells Isa of a foreign tourist he guided once, who told him that he was lucky to be from such a beautiful place; the two of them agree, they live in the most beautiful place on earth. Alex’s journey is like a rebirth, out of the drainage tunnel under the prison, out to Lakshadweep, on the way meeting first Akbar Ali, and then Deena.  From Deena he learns that one of the secrets to life is making others happy; from Akbar Ali, he learns the importance of love and self-sacrifice.  Akbar Ali’s nickname on Lakshadweep is “swordfish”, like the swordfish of the film’s title.  Swordfish, Alex is told, are selfish fish, thinking only of themselves.  And although it looks as if Akbar Ali is acting in his own self-interest, by making Isa wait until he’s out of prison to deliver his talaq (divorce), Alex learns that, in fact, everything Akbar Ali does is to ensure Isa’s happiness – even if that means sacrificing his own relationship with her, even if it means going to prison.

In the end, Akbar Ali’s friend Sulaiman (Jijoy) makes the most important observation about human nature:  everyone, everywhere has moments when they are selfish, when they look out for their own self-interest.  At some time in our lives, we are all like the mosayile kuthira meenukal, those selfish swordfish, and really, in the end, what is wrong with that?  Nothing, as long as we balance it with the advice from Deena’s mother: that the most important thing we can do is to make others happy along the way. 

 

This post is part of the Beach Party Blogathon hosted by Speakeasy and Silver Screenings.

Chemmeen (dir. Ramu Kariat, 1965) Malayalam

 

This post is part of the My Favorite Classic Movie Blogathon in celebration of National Classic Movie Day (May 16th). Click here to view the schedule listing all the great posts in this blogathon.

 

There is a moment in Kamal’s 2013 film Celluloid when the noted film journalist Chelangatt Gopalakrishnan (Sreenivasan) is drinking a soda outside a shop.  On the radio, the news is shared that Ramu Kariat’s film Chemmeen has just won the National Award for Best Feature Film.  Gopalakrishnan watches the figure of an elderly man walk away – a man who turns out to be J.C. Daniel, the long-forgotton director of the first Malayalam language film.  Gopalakrishnan later shares the news with Daniel and his wife Janet that Chemmeen has run for 100 days (even today, the number of days in a film’s run is celebrated in Malayalam cinema) and has won awards. 

It’s a moment that serves not only to root the film firmly in the mid-60s, but it also serves as a  poignant contrast with Daniel’s situation – a man forgotten, his film lost, yet,  some 35 years later, Malayalam cinema finally makes its mark on a national stage.

Chemmeen was adapted from Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai’s novel of the same name, which explored the folk myth amongst fishing communities in coastal Kerala that the fate of a fisherman depends on the chastity of his wife.  Chembankunju (Kottarakkara Sreedharan Nair) is a lower caste Hindu fisherman whose ambition is to own his own boat and net.  His eldest daughter, Karuthamma (Sheela), is in love with a Muslim fish trader, Pareekutty (Madhu), and asks him to lend her father the money to purchase a boat.  Pareekutty agrees, on the condition that Chembankunju give him his fishing haul until the amount of the loan is paid back. 

 

Oh, Madhu.  So beautiful.  So pining.

 

 

The flush of success, however, turns Chembankunju’s head, and he refuses to keep his promise to Pareekutty, becoming increasingly greedy and heartless not only to Pareekutty and his plight, but to others in the community as well.  He ignores the fact that his daughter is distraught at having asked Pareekutty to lend her father the money for a boat, that she is well aware that Pareekutty did it because of his love for her.  Even worse, when Karuthamma’s mother Chakki discovers her relationship with Pareekutty, she warns her to keep her distance from him.  Everywhere, Karuthamma is reminded of the wrath of the sea goddess when it comes to unfaithful women who carry on affairs, especially with someone of a different faith – a wrath that can affect the entire community.

Worse still, Chembankunju decides to marry Karuthamma off, ignoring her wish to be with Pareekutty; his daughter cannot and will not be married to a Muslim.  Instead, he marries her to Palani (Sathyan), an orphan from another fishing community, whom he wants to live with his family so that he can take over the fishing business, and allow Chembankunju and Chakki to enjoy life.  Knowing she has no choice in this matter, Karuthamma agrees to the marriage, on the condition that she and her new husband will leave for his community immediately after the marriage.  When Chakki falls ill the day of the wedding, she insists that her daughter leave, knowing that it will be dangerous for her to stay where Pareekutty is.  Chambankunju is furious – he believes his daughter should stay and look after her mother – and he disowns Karuthamma.  Chakki eventually dies, and Chambankunju takes another wife, a widow with a son.  His actions result in Pareekutty going bankrupt; but in turn, his own luck turns, and he ends up bankrupt and alone just like Pareekutty, going mad in the process.

 

I am like Sheela, always crying when I watch Chemmeen.

 

Karuthamma, meanwhile, makes the best of her situation, trying hard to be a dutiful and affectionate wife to Palani, eventually giving birth to a daughter.  The rumours of her relationship with Pareekutty, however, follow her to her new home.  First Karuthamma is ostracized by the other women in the community; eventually Palani is as well, when the other fishermen refuse to take him with them, likely fearing that his wife’s supposed behaviour will cause their misfortune as well as his.  Karuthamma gives Palani her mangal sutra (wedding necklace) so that he will have enough money to buy his own boat.

One day, Palani heads out to sea alone, and is baiting a shark when he ends up caught in a whirlpool – not inconsequentially, it is at this time that Karuthamma and Pareekutty finally meet again, and embrace.   Palani disappears into the whirlpool.  Karuthamma and Pareekutty are found together, dead, on the seashore; near them is a baited shark.

There are many reasons that Chemmeen remains a classic, from its beautiful cinematography (by Marcus Bartley and U. Rajagopal), to its luscious score, and its gorgeous music (with music by Salil Chowdury and lyrics by Vayalar) – not to mention editing by Hrishikesh Mukherjee (probably best known for his own films as a director).   Three of the films four songs feature K. J. Yesudas (who has won a National Award for his singing a record seven times, and whose son, Vijay Yesudas, is also a popular playback singer); the fourth, "Maanasa Maine Varoo", features the Malayalam debut of playback singer Manna Dey (and is one of only two songs he ever sang for Malayalam movies), and although I adore all the music in the film, it’s this song that tugs at my heart the most:

 

 

Nightengale of my heart, please come to me, and provide sweetness in me.

Whom are you searching in your own beautiful garden?

In the land of moonlight, when flowers are blooming,

Did you forget your playmate?

The waves in the sea and desires in the heart,

Are not going to stop, my dear.

 

It’s the song that best exemplifies the relationship between them, an almost siren song for Karuthamma, who cannot resist the pull of it; and of the pining of Pareekutty for her, all of his longing held just in those few beautiful lines.

I understand that Chemmeen’s central premise represents something far from a feminist ideal – Karuthamma allows herself to be exploited by her parents for their own gain, at great expense to the unfortunate Pareekutty.   As well, she becomes a victim of a society that places weight only on women’s fidelity – it’s only the transgressions of women that unleash the wrath of the sea.  However, while Karuthamma marries Palani out of duty, her relationship with him is shown to be affectionate, something which surprised me.  Palani, too, trusts Karuthamma and believes her when she tells him that nothing has happened between herself and Pareekutty – at least, he does until the rumours about him not being the father of Karuthamma’s daughter completely overwhelm him.

And it’s this that is the great tragedy of Chemmeen – that communal differences serve to separate Karuthamma and Pareekutty, that the community Karuthamma and Palani move to only spread rumours that drive a wedge between them.  There is no point hoping for a happy ending with Chemmeen; such a thing is impossible in this place, in this time.  There are only tears, and more tears.

 

 

 

Up & Down: Mukalil Oralundu (dir. T.K. Rajeev Kumar, 2013) (Malayalam)

 

 

On the busy day of a celebratory function in an apartment building, nine people end up stuck in the building’s elevator.  All of them are, in some way, connected with a mysterious woman (Meghna Raj), who ends up dead on top of the elevator.

 

Okay, so that sounds like a bit of a spoiler, especially since we are not sure what has happened to the mysterious woman in question until just before the interval, when an attempt to escape from the stuck elevator reveals her unfortunate presence atop it to everyone inside (including her own son, who thinks she’s just sleeping).  But to be honest, Up & Down doesn’t really get moving until the discovery of the dead body – it’s at this point that the Commissioner of Police, Siyaad (K. B. Ganesh Kumar, whose son, Devamaran, plays the little boy), begins an investigation into the death from inside the elevator.  It’s an interesting premise, and one that allows the confinement in a small space to play a part in helping peel back the layers of the mystery.  Each person’s story of how they knew the woman and where they were prior to her disappearance and subsequent rediscovery plays a part in piecing together our understanding of who she was, and why she was such a frequent visitor to the building.

 

I’ve read that T.K. Rajeev Kumar decided not to include songs in the film (apart from a promotional number that appears in the film’s closing credits) because he didn’t want to break the rhythm of the film.  It helps, but doesn’t completely deal with the problems of pacing in a film that doesn’t really find its rhythm until after the interval.  Problematic, too, are the attempts to insert humour into the film, which mostly fall flat -- Kochu Preman’s drunken lift repairman could have, actually, provided the occasional welcome break in the tension if it had been directed with a more deft hand.  A scene in which the writer Edathil (Prathap Pothen) is supposedly talking to the mystery woman whilst on a bus is totally ruined by allowing the antics of his seat neighbour to take our attention away from the conversation (true confession:  I totally wanted to smack the actor pretending to sleep and crawl all over Prathap Pothen and tell him to dial it down a notch.  Rarely do I feel so annoyed watching a film.)

 

And if I’m frustrated by stuff like this, it’s because, mostly, there are some good actors in this film, who mostly deliver good performances, and who are let down occasionally by the director’s decisions.  That said -- just when I thought I’d figured out what was going on in Up & Down, the film delivered a serious plot twist that was just brilliant.  And, then, it proceeded to do it a second time.  Add to this Jomon Thomas’s beautiful cinematography – you would think that wouldn’t be something you’d particularly notice in a film shot mostly in a plywood box lined with metal, but Thomas’s work is outstanding, particularly in one of the film’s key scenes, where he manages to make a brutal moment incredibly beautiful at the same time.

 

Up & Down is one of those films that fell into my “mandatory Indrajith filmography watching” basket, and he doesn’t disappoint.  His lift operator, Thampuran, is in the perfect position to know everyone’s secrets, but through his interactions with the mystery woman, we come to learn that he has secrets of his own, and, he’s not as well versed in the secrets of others as he thought he was, a mistake that could prove costly.

Good, Bad, and Ugly (dir. V.R. Rathish, 2013) (Malayalam)

 

 

 

 

Good, Bad, and Ugly has a running time of about an hour and forty-five minutes.  I think it's important for me to mention that, because it took me about an hour of that (a spot well past the interval break) to figure out why it didn't work.

Because it takes about that long for any of the characters at all to have much in the way of motivation.  Up until that point, they are just a bunch of characters, most of whom I don't like, and don't really carry about.  There isn't anything about the film that comes together as a cohesive story. 

Essentially, the plot, such as it is, is this:  on a hartal day, a bunch of guys get a lift in a car driven by Suraj Venjaramoodu.  It's unclear to me why it's important that it's a hartal day, except that, perhaps, it's the only way to justify Suraj Venjaramoodu's character giving them all a lift.

There's also a young woman who has a sister who needs an operation, but they don't have the money for it.  She's (the young woman, not the sister) in love with one of the guys in the car, but he can't round up the money to help, so she agrees to marry someone else who will provide the money for the sister's operation.

One of the guys (who is trying to get some money for something else, but I'm confused as to whether he's the guy that ran into trouble with the health deparment over selling bad shwarma to a customer, or if that's the *other* other guy) steals a phone from the glovebox of the car driven by Suraj Venjaramoodu.  On it is something that makes a big businessman nervous, enough that he pays up some blackmail money.

In the meantime, the guy who couldn't help out his girlfriend gets a job with the businessman's company, and he's asked to take care of the blackmailer.  Nudge nudge, wink wink, here's your gun.

And the whole time I was watching this, I was getting more and more irritated that I couldn't remember any of the character's names, or what they did, but essentially, the film doesn't make it easy.  It's a series of scenes and events stitched together, but in no way do they make a cohesive whole. By the time that you can figure out what's going on, how everyone is connected, the film is all but over.  And at that point, there's an awful, awful rape scene.  And right on the heels of that, an item number in a club.  Up until then, I was trying to piece everything together.  After that, I no longer cared.

I'm not going to make the obvious joke using the film's title.  I'm not going to say, "I watched this so you don't have to."  But I did.  So you don't.

 

MouchoPrema: Sometimes the Universe Hands it to You on a Platter

 

I was mulling over what I would possibly contribute to MouchoPrema -- I had made a few notes of things in various films, but couldn't find where I'd put the screencaps I'd made.  Then I just happened to watch the Malayalam film Mayamohini, which I'd been meaning to get around to watching for a while now, and I hit MouchoPrema gold!

In the film, Balakrishnan (Biju Menon) and his friend Lakshmi (Baburaj) go to Mumbai to work out a deal with rich businessman Patella.  There, they meet Patella's daughter, Maya, with whom Balakrishnan becomes smitten.  This, of course, leads to Lakshmi giving his friend some advice on North Indian girls:

 

 

So, Balakrishnan asks his friend:

(Words which we'll remember later in the film -- more on that in another post!)

Balakrishnan looks at himself in a mirror:

 

And makes a decision:

 

However!  Maya, who has been in the hotel restaurant with friends, spies them there, and comes over to talk to Balakrishnan (with whom she is also smitten!), and to tell him (in Hindi, which Balakrishnan does not understand):

 

As well as not understanding what she's said, Balakrishnan misunderstands her gesture:

 

Lakshmi clears things up for him:

 

Whew!  Mustache crisis averted!

 

 

Prithviraj: an introduction through song

Not surprisingly, my Twitter timeline was a-buzz this morning with the release of the trailer for Aiyyaa, which stars Rani Mukherjee alongside Mollywood star Prithviraj (playing a Tamil in the film).

And also not surprisingly, searches for "Prithviraj" have been leading people to my blog.  So I thought I'd start by putting together some songs from some of his films.  These are from Malayalam films only, no Tamil ones this time (which will explain the absence of Raavanan as well as the other Tamil films he's been in).

First, from his debut film Nandanam, the lovely song "Aarum".  I will admit, I adore this film, but I adore it more for the delightful Navya Nair, as well as a small appearance by Aravindar, than I do for Prithviraj, mostly because Prithvi's character, Manu, spends a lot of the film being mopey.  This song, though, is totally sigh-worthy:

 

 

 

Next "Kathirunna Pennalle" from Lal Jose's film Classmates, another film that is a favorite at Casa Totally filmi:

 

 

 

 

I almost hestitate to add a song from Pokkiri Raja, but it's a good example of Prithviraj in his "Young Superstar" mode.  The film's USP, of course, was that it paired the "Young Superstar" with the "Megastar" of Malayalam movies, Mammootty.  The result was, for me, a bit of a romp.  I'm going to avoid the trashy club song "Chenthengil Ponnilaneeru", which is totally cringeworthy, and "Kettile Kettile" (which I rather like), to share my favourite song from the film, "Manickya Kallil", which introduces us to Prithviraj's character, and which also features a special appearance by another fave, the lovely Shweta Menon. It's the perfect example of the kind of "Southern Masala" the film Aiyyaa is referring to, no?

 

 

 

I would also be remiss if I didn't include something from the film Anwar, an excellent film about terrorist recruitment.  "Kizhakku Pookkum" is a gorgeous song that has become one of my faves:

 

 

 

 

Okay, admittedly, the song is mostly about Mamta Mohandas and Nitya Menon, so I'll also share another song from Anwar, "Kanninima Neele":

 

 

 

Finally, from the breathtakingly beautiful Santosh Sivan film Urumi, there is the breathtakingly beautiful "Aaro Nee Aaro":

 

 

 

 

Malayalam Movies 2012: August 29th

Only one film, but a biggie, just in time for Onam.  Mohanlal is back, this time in Joshiy's Run Babby Run:

 

 

I actually liked Joshiy's 2011 film Christian Brothers, and I'm hoping this will turn out to be another decent action-thriller.  I will say that, as usual, I'm a bit put off by the Mohanlal-Amala Paul pairing, but it looks like their giving her more to do than just be a simpering, too-young love interest.  Fingers crossed.

Malayalam Movies 2012: August 18th and 20th

A big weekend for releases, and we're not just talking Ek Tha Tiger here!  Eid and Onam fall quite close together this year, so there will be a number of big releases over the next two weeks.

 

On August 18th, there's director Lijin Jose's Friday 11.11.11 Alappuzha starring Fahadh Faasil (who is quickly becoming a Totally Filmi Casa Fave) along with Manu, Nedumudi Venu, Tiny Tom , Vijayaraghavan,  Ann Augustine, Asha Sharath, Prakash Bhare,Salu Kuttinad, Dinesh, Narayanan Kutty, Sasi Kallingal, Seema G. Nair, and Nimisha Suresh:

 

 

Needless to say, this is my pick of the week.  Love the colours in the visuals.  Love the music.  Love the actors.

August 18th also sees the return of Dileep with Mr. Marumakan, directed by Sandhya Mohan:

 

 

I have to say, I tend to blow very hot or very cold with Dileep these days, and this trailer pushes me to the "very cold" end of things, with one exception:   KHUSHBOO!   And for some reason, I'm betting when I see this film I'm going to feel the need to point out that KHUSHBOO! is actually younger than Dileep.  Just a feeling.

And finally, this weekend, (the 20th instead of the 19th, because they still have to get an Animal Welfare clearance, apparently), the Megastar is back, with Thappana, directed by Johny Antony:

 

 

And although I'm thinking this may be one of those Mammootty films that just doesn't appeal to me, I have to confess, I sort of love the song "Oorum Perum Parayathe", which is due in no small measure to its singer, Vijay Yesudas:

 

 

 (Okay, I'll confess, the cute moves that attempt to get the Megastar to do something related to dancing also touch a chord with me.)

 

Malayalam Movies 2012: August 10th

Two movies set to release today.

The first is Simhasanam from director Shaji Kailas, and starring Prithviraj.  Now, I have to admit, the first Shaji Kailas film I ever saw was Chinthamani Kolacase, a legal thriller starring Suresh Gopi as lawyer seeking a kind of vigilante justice.  It wasn't a great film, but it was a little bit cracktastic, and my second venture into his films (Baba Kalyani) only served to make me think that Kailas has a distinct style that is well suited to this big, kind of overblown action thriller films (see also his other 2012 film, The King and the Commissioner, starring Mammootty and Suresh Gopi).

I don't know much about the film, but I do know Prithviraj could probably use a hit right about now.  Who knows if this will do it for him:

 

 

However, my pick this week is Mohan's award-winning Gramam, a film that did well at festival screenings:

 

 

I'm sure Simhasanam could prove to be a bit of a romp, and I will confess that I don't love the trailer fro Gramam, but I just have a feeling that it could prove to be more my cup of tea.

 

 

Grandmaster (dir. B. Unnikrishnan, 2012)

 

“You play dominoes very well, I believe.”
Mr. Cust was a little flurried by this.  “I – I—well, I believe I do.”
“It is a very absorbing game, is it not, with a lot of skill in it?”
“Oh, there is a lot of play in it – a lot of play!  We used to play a lot in the city, in the lunch hour.  You’d be surprised the way total strangers come together over a game of dominoes.”

From The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie, featuring Hercule Poirot.

 

 

 

In this loose re-working of Agatha Christie’s classic story The ABC Murders, Mohanlal stars as Chandrasekhar, the recently appointed head of Kochi’s Metro Crime Stopper Cell.  Equal parts herogiri and Hercule Poirot, Chandrasekhar draws the attention of the mysterious Z when he solves the abduction of three young women by a psychologically troubled man, Jerome (Riyaz Khan, the go-to-guy for creepy loser roles).  Z sends Chandrasekhar a note congratulating him on the arrest, but chiding him for spending ten years wasting his talents while dealing with the aftermath of his separation from his wife, Deepthi (Priyamani).  What Z proposes is a bit of a game, something that will appeal to the chess player in Chandrasekhar – whose chessboard is given a place of prominence on his desk, where he plays against an imaginary opponent.  Z proposes a date and a place, and challenges Chandrasekhar to solve the murders he is about to commit.

Chandrasekhar is reluctant to take up the case, feeling that this feeds into Z’s plans somehow – but his superior (Devan) insists he do so.  Accompanied by two of his officers on the Crime Stopper squad, Kishore (Narain) and Rashid (Jagathy Sreekumar), they set out on the trail of the mysterious Z.

 

 

It’s always difficult to take a classic work like The ABC Murders and adapt it in a way that seems fresh and engaging to an audience.  I’m never opposed to writers adapting material and changing it to suit a new audience or to give us a fresh perspective on the story, but I was left largely unconvinced by what Unnikrishnan was proposing.  On the one hand, the idea to connect the dates of the murders to events in Chandrasekhar’s private life is an interesting one, and it forces Chandrasekhar to face his problems head on instead of constant running from them.  But for me, many of the changes only served to diminish the dramatic tension of the story.  Christie’s tale was never a crime thriller, and neither is Grandmaster.  Christie’s mysterious salesman makes an appearance in the film, here as Victor Rosetti (Babu Antony) an itinerant cosmetics salesman, but he’s introduced far too early, given a face too early in the film, so that it practically screams, “I’m the beard!”.  Unnikrishnan then places the spotlight of suspicion on several other characters, including the psychiatrist played ably by Anoop Menon, allowing us to check them off the list of suspects.  The idea to provide a connection between all the murders is also interesting, and although it doesn’t necessarily diminish Christie’s premise (that seemingly connected crimes are, perhaps, not what they seem), it does serve to make the new ending unnecessarily melodramatic.  The main problem, I think, with Grandmaster can be summed up by the words of Hercule Poirot:  “(I)f the victims are alphabetically selected, then they are not being removed because they are a source of annoyance to him personally.  It would be too much of a coincidence to combine the two.”  Unnikrishnan’s script, then, requires me to believe in too many coincidences.

Perhaps my inability to enjoy Grandmaster as much as so many others have (the film was a hit, after all) is that I read a lot of mystery novels.  I have certain expectations of how things should proceed.  I stand firm in my conviction that the reader/viewer should have all the information at his/her disposal at the same time as the investigator/detective, and should be able to solve the mystery at the same time as the detective does.  Grandmaster doesn’t allow me to do that – Chandrasekhar seems to be more of a Jedi Grandmaster than a chess one, channeling the Force to help him get inside the mind of his opponent, often relying on that rather than on his (considerable) investigative skills to solve the murders.

 

 

However, I think that there were also several things that kind of infuriated me about Grandmaster, and that served to interfere with my ability to just sit back and enjoy the film.  First, the whole question of mental illness and madness, with the criminal characters considered to be madmen and social deviants.  The film goes so far as to suggest that Jerome’s problems stem from the fact that he was raised by a single mother.  Victor, as we discover, is schizophrenic.  Add to this the fact that all these mad characters make liberal use of Christian ritual and symbolism in the course of carrying out their crimes, and you’ve got a combination that only serves to make me less engaged in the film.

Also, the female characters in the film, with a couple of small exceptions, are generally – how shall I put this diplomatically – unsympathetic.  No, face it, they’re all bitchy.  On the plus side, they are all successful.  They include Susan (Rajshri Nair) a police commissioner who covers for her cousin Jerome, and tries to undermine Chandrashekar’s investigation.  To top it all off, she’s just generally unpleasant.  There’s Beena (Roma), a famous rock singer, who is portrayed as a kind of tease, and who is just generally nasty. And there’s Deepthi (Priyamani), Chandrashekar’s ex-wife, who is described as having abandoned her family to pursue her career, and who betrays Chandrashekar to further one of her own cases.  The tight slap Chandrashekar delivers to her when he discovers her betrayal only served to cement what made me uncomfortable in the film.

 

 

But it’s not all bad news.  A second viewing of the film permitted me to set aside all these things that irritated me and focus on what the film has going for it.  There are some lovely moments, many of them stemming from the interaction of Chandrashekar with his daughter Dakshayini (Sreelekshmi), and his two coworkers, Kishore and Rashid – in fact, I’d really love to see these three together again in film, investigating another mystery. 

Mostly, though, it comes down to Mohanlal, who delivers an understated and intensely interesting performance.  Grandmaster is kind of a workmanlike effort.  All the ends get tied up at the end, but what Unnikrishnan asks me to believe as a viewer leaves me unconvinced.  Mohanlal’s performance, however, raises it to a film worth watching. 

 

Grandmaster is the first Malayalam language film to be streamed on Netflix, and that's the reason we finally broke down and gave the service a try.  I know that it's there because of the UTV connection (the film is UTV's first foray into production in Malayalam), but I really hope that this is the start of a trend that will see other films added to the service.

 

Malayalam Movies 2012: August 3rd

So, it seems to be a slow week, release-wise.

There's Last Bench from director Jiju Asokan:

 

 

There's Naadabrahmam from Dr. Biju Lal:

 

 

But the big news is that Santosh Pandit is back, this time in Superstar Santosh Pandit!

 

 

Malayalam Movies 2012: July 27th

 

Two films opening this week.  The first, Cinema Company,  is from director Mamas, whose debut film, Pappy Appacha was not well reviewed, but was a hit, and even made the list of top ten grossing films for 2010 (it came in at Number 8).  I've been seeing some teasers for Cinema Company on the Asianet channel, and a story about friends who dream of making a movie really sounds like my cup of tea.  Here's hoping the film lives up to that -- but what does it say that the thing that intrigues me most about the trailer is the reference to Paolo Coelho's The Alchemist (I'm guessing it's the whole "finding one's destiny" thing that's key to the movie, as it was in Coelho's book)? :

 

 

But my pick of the week is definitely P. Balachandran's Ivan Megharoopan, apparently based on the life of Malayalam poet P. Kunhiraman Nair, known for his wandering, Bohemian lifestyle:

 

 

I've said it before:  if this releases to DVD without English subtitles, I will cry.

 

 

Malayalam Movies 2012: July 19th and 20th

 

July 19th saw the release of director Rajppa Ravishankar's Ajantha.  It is, apparently, a multilingual film (Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam), and the Tamil version (starring Ramana) released in 2009.   The Malayalam version stars Vinu Mohan -- and Wikipedia suggests that it was his debut film, shot in 2006, and the release was delayed.  Six years.  Take that for what you will.  Here's one of the teaser trailers (there were a slew of them):

 

 

On July 20th, there's Perinoru Makan from director Vinu Anand.  I don't know much about it, but there are a lot of my favourite supporting players in the trailer, and I just get a good vibe from it.  Not a great vibe, a good vibe, as if the film will turn out to be precisely my cup of tea, even if it's not everyone's:

 

 

And finally, there's my pick of the week, Akasathinte Niram from Dr. Biju, starring Indrajith, AKA "the film I wlll cry over if the DVD is released without English subtitles":

 

 

Kerala State Film Awards 2011

Thanks to Vipin who left a comment that reminded me that today marked the announcement of the Kerala State Film Awards for 2011:

Best Film:  Ranjith, Indian Rupee
 
Second Best Film: P. Balachandran, Ivan Megharoopan
 
Best Director: Blessy, Pranayam
 
Best Actor: Dileep, Vellaripravinte Changathi
 
Best Actress: Shweta Menon, Salt N' Pepper
 
Second Best Actor: Fahadh Faasil, Chaappa Kurish, Akam
 
Second Best Actress: Nilambur Ayisha, Oomakkuyil Padumbol
 
Best Comedian: Jagathy Sreekumar, Swapna Sanchari
 
Best Child Artist: Malavika, Oomakkuyil Padumbol
 
Best Story: M. Mohanan, Manikiakkallu
 
Best Cinematography: M. J. Radhakrishnan, Akasathinte Niram
 
Best Screenplay: Bobby-Sanjay, Traffic
 
Best Lyrics: Sreekumaran Thampi, Naayika
 
Best Music Director: Sharreth, Ivan Megharoopan  (All Songs)
 
Best Male Singer: Sudheep Kumar, Rathinirvedam:  "Chembakapoonkattile"
 
Best Female Singer: Shreya Ghoshal for Rathinirvedam & Veeraputhran -- "Kannoram Chingaram" & "Kannodu Kannoram"

Note that several of these films (Oomakkuyil Padumbol, Ivan Megharoopan, and Akasathinte Niram) did not get theatrical releases in 2011.  Oomakkuyil Padumbol was released in February of this year.  Akasathinte Niram is slated for release this week, July 20th, and I believe that Ivan Megharoopan will be released next week, on July 27th.  And a note to the makers of all three of these films (and most especially Ivan Megharoopan)  -- if you release your film to DVD without English subtitles you will make me cry. 

 

 

Malayalam Movies 2012: July 12th and 13th

 

Two films this week.  First up, from director Aneesh Anwar, Mullamottum Munthiricharum.  Apparently the film is not wonderful, but Indrajith's performance makes it worth watching:

 

 

I suspect that Mullamottum Munthiricharum is the pick for this week.

 

The second film opening this week is a children's film from director L. Rajendran, Little Master:

 

 

The only thing I can say about this?  Casa Fave Lal is in it.

 

 

Malayalam Films 2012: July 5th & 6th

Three films this week -- note that the release of the Prithviraj starrer Simhasanam has been delayed once again (financial reasons cited, and I've also heard it's been pulled "indefinitely", which honestly doesn't surprise me*), and apparently space that was booked for it has been given over to S.S. Rajamouli's Eega. 

 

So first up, from director Hari Narayanan, there's Baburaj in Naughty Professor:

 

Well.  As much as I like Baburaj, I'd say that really doesn't look like my cup of tea (and some of the early reports I'm hearing suggest I'm not alone, that the film is already considered a flop).

There's always G. Ajayan's Bodhi, right?

 

 

 

I know precious little about the film beyond the fact that it's a historical drama, so if anyone can tell me more, I'd appreciate it. 

However, I'd guess that the film to watch this week is Thattathin Marayathu,  the second venture from Vineeth Sreenivasan.  I liked much about his debut film, Malarvaadi Arts Club, so I'm keen to see what he'll do this time.  Early reports I'm hearing suggest the film has opened well.  I'd say it's probably my pick for this week:

 

 

*Edited to add:  I'm also hearing it was just pulled to make more space for Eega,  and will actually now release on August 10th.  I'm still not impressed with the trailer -- seriously, what is up with those Harry-Potter-ish fonts?  Actually the whole mish-mash of fonts is what draws my attention, not the film.  And since the last two Shaji Kailas films I've seen have been Chinthamani Kolacase and Baba Kalyani,  I can probably safely say I'm likely not the target market for the Kailas brand of action film.

Malayalam Films 2012: June 29th

Three films this week, and I am very, very excited about one of them.  Let's save that one for last, shall we?

 

First, there's Namukku Parkkan, from director Aji John.  I'm actually quite curious about this one, because some of the press I read about the film (which tells the story of a man who dreams of building his own house) suggests it's inspired by the classic family dramas of the 1980s.  I'm always interested in a good story, simply told, and I'm hoping Namukku Parkkan will be one of those films:

 

 

 

Also opening this week is M. A. Nishad's No. 66 Madhura Bus, apparently involving lust, love and revenge.  Possibly not my cup of tea at all:

 

 

Finally, the film I am most excited about this week, and which I can hardly wait to see:  Anwar Rasheed's Usthad Hotel (which features a story and screenplay by someone whom I'm sure will not be long in becoming a Totally Filmi Casa Fave, Anjali Menon), the second film for actor Dulquer Salmaan:

 

 

Once again, I can hardly wait for the DVD release.

 

SIIMA: Best Film (Malayalam)

The nominees for Best Film are:

 

Salt N' Pepper ( Sadanandan Rangorath & Debobroto Mandal / Lucsam Cinema )

 

Melvilasom ( Muhammed Salim / Mark Movies )

 

Indian Rupee ( Prithviraj, Santhosh Sivan, Shaji Natesan / August Cinema )

 

Adaminte Makan Abu ( Salim Ahamed Ashraf Bedi / Allens Media )

 

Traffic ( Listin Stephen / Magic Frames )

 

You know how sometimes, you look at the Best Film category at certain awards functions, and you wonder how some of those films got there?  Not this time.  Five absolutely terrific, top-notch films.

These five films easily made my list of Top Ten Malayalam films for 2011.   A couple of these films easily could take top spot as my favorite film of the year. 

The problem?  They are all so good, that one minute, I think one is best; another minute, another film.

So, if you're looking for good Malayalam films to watch, you can do no worse than any one of these five.  Though I'd probably suggest you start with Salt N' Pepper.  Or maybe Traffic. 

No, seriously.  Go watch them all.  But I won't be surprised if Indian Rupee ends up winning the SIIMA for Best Film.

SIIMA: Best Lyricist (Malayalam)

The nominees:

 

Mullanezhi for "Ee puzhayum" from Indian Rupee

 

ONV Kurup for "Paattil" from Pranayam

 

Anoop Menon for "Mazhaneerthullikal" from Beautiful

 

Rafeeq Ahmad for "Premikkumbol" from Salt N' Pepper

 

Engandiyoor Chandrasekharan for "Theeye Theeye" from Chappa Kurishu

 

This is a category for which I don't feel comfortable having an opinion, simply because I can only judge the songs based on the subtitles.  I will say this though -- of all the songs nominated, "Mazhaneerthullikal" from Beautiful  was probably the most beautifully and poetically translated.  I'll be curious to see which of these songs wins the award.

 

SIIMA: Best Cinematographer (Malayalam)

 

Madhu Ambat for Makaramanju:

 

Santosh Sivan for Urumi:

 

Satheesh Kurup for Pranayam:

 

Jomon T. John for Beautiful:

 

Shyju Khalid for Traffic:

 

Holy cats, what a beautiful set of films.  Every single one of them is striking and deserving to win.  I can't help but note a certain irony in the fact that Madhu Ambat was not nominated for Adaminte Makan Abu (for which he won a National Award), and is nominated for a film that stars Santosh Sivan.

And novice Satheesh Kurup is up against a powerhouse veteran like Santosh Sivan, but his film is just as deserving.

Jomon T. John's nomination is for the beautiful Beautiful, but it could easily be for another film in contention for a SIIMA this year (in the debutant director category), Chappa Kurishu.  The same could be said of Shyju Khalid, who was also the cinematographer for the lovely Salt N' Pepper.

So.  Who will win?  I'd guess Santosh Sivan, and although the fangirl in me wouldn't  be unhappy with that, and Urumi was truly a very beautiful film,  I think it would be interesting to see it go to Madhu Ambat or Shyju Khalid (the latter partly because after watching the trailer again, I remembered just how much I loved Traffic and its crisp visuals).

 

SIIMA: Best Playback Singer (Female) (Malayalam)

 

Another set of truly lovely songs:

 

Sujatha for "Anthimana" from Indian Rupee:

 

Manjari for "Chimmi Chimmi" from Urumi:

 

Gayathri for "Nin viral Thumbil" from Beautiful:

 

Shreya Ghosal for "Paattil" from  Pranayam:

 

 Pushpavathy for "Chembavu" from Salt N' Pepper:

  

 

I suspect Shreya Ghosal will win this one, and I wouldn't disagree with that.  I love all these songs -- the adorable "Chimmi Chimmi" is a particular favorite -- but I think if I really had to choose one, I'd choose Pushpavathy for "Chembavu".  That song just hooked me right into the film, and I love them both.

 

SIIMA: Best Playback Singer (Male) (Malayalam)

 

Probably the best way to judge this character is just to listen to the nominees, right?

 

P.  Jayachandran for "Premikkumbol" from Salt N' Pepper:

 

 Vijay Yesudas for "Ee puzhayum" from Indian Rupee:

 

Hariharan for "Amruthamayai" from Snehaveedu:

 

Unni Menon for "Mizhuneer Thullikal" from Beautiful:

 

 

KJ Yesudas for "Aaro nee" from Urumi:

 

An exceptionally difficult category, no?  All the songs are beautiful, quite honestly.  But I think my pick has to be Vijay Yesudas, his voice is just awesome, and that song makes me want to melt.

Malayalam Films 2012: June 15th

Today, a couple of heavy-weights face off at the box office!

First, the much-anticipated (by me, anyway) Ranjith film Spirit, starring Mohanlal as a journalist whose personal and professional life is affected by his relationship with the titular spirit.  There were three trailers for the film, and it's worth looking at all of them -- you can see Ranjith's sensitivity and sense of humour at work here:

 

 

 

 

And if a new film from Ranjith wasn't enough this week, there's also Bachelor Party, from director Amal Neerad (of the most excellent Anwar).  Asif Ali!  Indrajith! Rahman! Kalabhavan Mani! Vinayakan! Nithya Menen! John Vijay! Ashish Vidyarthi! Padmapriya! Ramya Nambessan! Jinju Joseph! LENA! Sunil Sukhada! Prithviraj!  As the film's Wikipedia page states:  "This movie has the potential to have a cult status in malayalam film industry."

 

 

Overshadowed a little bit by these two mammoth releases are a couple of films -- first, Kalikalam from director Reji Nair:

 

 

 

And, from director Syed Usman, there's Silent Valley:

 

 

Malayalam Films 2012: June 8th

Quick post (as I'm not at home):

 

Navagatharkku Swagatham, directed by Jayakrishna Karnavar, starring Mukesh:

 

 

Snake and Ladder, directed by V. Menon:

 

 

 

Vaadhyar, directed by Nidheesh Sakthi, and starring Jayasurya:

 

 

 

Malayalam Films 2012: June 1st

 

One film today:  Veendum Kannur, a political thriller starring Anoop Menon and directed by Haridas Keshavan.

 

 

I love political thrillers, but I'm willing to bet the DVD won't have subtitles.  We'll see.