C Kkompany Movie Review

C Kkompany - Don’t see this company
With the number of so called comedy flicks being made at a random pace , here comes yet another one starring Tusshar Kapoor after ‘One Two Three’. This time around debutant Sachin Yadri fuses in the entire bandwagon of Ekta Kapoor’s ‘Balaji Telefilms’ and why not when the soap queen is the producer of this film.
Synopsis….
C KKOMPANY is about three individuals, all living in the 'C' Wing of a middle class housing society: Akshay [Tusshar] is a crime reporter, Mr. Joshi [Anupam Kher] is a retired accountant trying to deal with his ungrateful son and Lambodar [Rajpal Yadav] is at loggerheads with his wife over his job. These three friends share their respective plight with one another and find solace in each other's company. On one occasion, they play a harmless prank to tackle their problems. One thing leads to another and before they realize, the incident becomes big news. But things don't stop there. They put their new founded fame to good use and this in turn triggers off a series of incidents, which propel them to such heights that the three become the talk of the nation.
To begin with the film in an absolute zero on substance and originality. Neither is the humour in good taste nor are the flow of events logical enough. Imagine a bunch of geeks threatening the entire city over the phone. Also there is a huge resemblance to the Munnabhai series and this goody goody element doesn’t work anymore.
The screenplay of the film is such a bore. Looks like Hindi cinema just loves making a mockery of the comedy genre.
The music of the film too offers nothing with Sanjay Dutt and Celina Jiatley trying their best at the ‘item numbers’.
On the acting scenario, Tusshar Kapoor has a long way to go. His comic timing is poor and those sleazy dialogues of the film are plain annoying.
Anupam Kher too is just overdone. His lines just bore.
Rajapl Yadav seriously needs to look for better substance oriented characters. Encashing on his height factor isn’t funny any longer.
Mithun Chakraborthy isn’t convincing at all and is bad at comedy.
All the cameos of Balaji serial actors is just a drab.
An out and out insult to the comedy genre.
Rating : *

Rock On!! Movie Review

Rock On!! - Relive an enthralling experience of friendship and

Finally the big day has arrived. With four Hindi films at the box office this week , all eyes are on ‘Rock-On’ for the obvious buzz it has created. The surprising fact is that the most awaited film of the year doesn’t feature a ‘Khan’,’Kapoor’or ‘Kumar’ . All that hype with relatively new actors and a director whose previous film ‘Aryan’ was a wash out.
The synopsis can well defined as the journey of Aditya(Farhan),Joe Mascarenhas (Arjun Rampal) , Rob(Luke Kenny) and K.D.(Purab Kohli) who want to see their band ‘MAGIK’ and it’s music at the peak. The passionate bunch travel through various stages of life to keep their ‘MAGIK’ alive and trust me , what a journey it is!
Director Abhishek Kapoor firstly brings in a story that really hooks you in especially when it’s the journey of the underdogs and when it’s got a lot to do with music. Abhishek ‘Gattu’ Kapoor fuses in the right blend of actors to carry each role with a certain amount of conviction. The narrative transitions, the friendship, the emotions, the alleys, the instruments…. You are jut drawn into all of it.
The narrative takes off very much like Farhan’s directorial debut ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ and when you would like to believe it’s a repeat of it all, you are taken aback. You are left with the same feeling you had years back when ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ was around. What surprises you here is that there is no Aamir , Saif or Akshaye.
If ‘DCH’ was remembered for Farhan’s directorial skills, this one too is headed a long way for his acting credentials. And of course not to mention, for his share behind the music of the film. Farhan excels right through the film. To say that he was better than the rest will be absolutely unfair in a film that highlights teamwork.
Farhan delivers with ease and with a great amount of conviction. The transition in character from one phase of life to another is not just brought about in his attire but very well with his body language. Farhan’s unconventional voice works in his favour and the myth that a hero should have a heavy baritone is done away with. The sequence where Farhan breaks out into an argument with his wife (Prachi Desai) and talks about the compromises of life brings forth brilliant dialogue delivery. Farhan often reminds you of Aamir Khan from ‘DCH’ and is in no respect less competitive.
The next highlight of the film is Joe Mascarenhas/Arjun Rampal. This is no doubt Arjun’s best film till date and wonder whether you’ll ever see Arjun in such a splendid role. Arjun carries the lead guitarist, rockstar look with ease. The complexity, the inner turmoil, the passion for music is brought out so well with the moustache embedded Arjun moving around from place to place with the guitar. Arjun delivers his lines really well especially in arguments with his wife(Shahana Goswami) and the scene where he reminds the band of its rules and gets into a spat.
Luke Kenny as Rob is another revelation. Many often wondered whether Luke ever spoke Hindi and here he comes out with a fine convincing performance. Luke often acts as the backbone of the band and binds the characters well enough. His scenes with ‘Anu Malik’ are funny but realistic enough.
Purab Kohli as the ‘Killer Drummer’ brings in all that humour and all that true ‘masti’ associated with any band. He is so full of expressions and entertains you right through. He brings in those smiles even through the emotional sequences.
Shahana Goswami comes in as a revelation of talent. For her debut she does extremely well. The shades in her character from the Joe’s girlfriend to his wife plagued by problems of running a household are carried out real well.
Prachi Desai does a very decent job as the soft spoken wife of Farhan. She speaks a lot through her smile.
Koel Purie is just apt.
One person who deserves much credit is cinematographer Jason West. His job has been splendid right through. The handheld camera movements make you feel as if you were present right through the performance. The lighting is just another treat. The practice sessions, the well light cobweb filled alleys, the emphasis on the instruments-simply brilliant.
The music by Shankar Ehsaan Loy was a rage much prior to the realease. The film just enhances it even more and don’t be surprised if you are keep humming tracks like ‘Tum Ho Toh’( which hasn’t featured in the promotion of the film ) once you are done with this flick. Great Job by Shankar Ehsaan and Loy! Kudos Javed Saab!
To sum it up Abhishek Kapoor strikes the right cord with the audiences and the character are so well defined and crafted. No character overshadows the other and the ‘Magik’ is brought alive. Many believe this flick is just for the metros; well it’s for anyone who has experienced the warmth of friendship, love and got a passion for music.
Rating : ****

Chamku Movie Review

Chamku - Lost itself through the journey
Vijayta Films Pvt Ltd celebrates its 25 years in the Indian Film Industry a Silver Jubilee by presenting ‘CHAMKU’ which is scheduled for release on August 29, 2008. The banner proudly owned by the Deol family brings forth director Kabeer Kaushik of the ‘Sehar’ fame.
The film Stars Bobby Deol, Priyanka Chopra, Danny Denzongpa, Irrfan Khan, Ritesh Deshmukh, Rajpal Yadav, Arya Babbar and has apparently been inspired by a true story. The film depicts the journey of a male Naxalite from the southern interiors of Bihar, tutored under a covert governmental program & trained to kill. CHAMKU(Bobby Deol), this is his story set in real time. A brutal past Kill - or - be - killed fights, political assassinations, explosive intrigues and a chance to encounter that culminate in an epic vendetta. Kahani kabhie Khatam nahi hoti (A journey that ends where it all began)
For starters, the film takes off real well with a great amount of intensity. Director Kabeer Kaushik does well in capturing the interiors of U.P. and other naxal bound places. The intense action sequences , the gun shots , the bloodshed etc keep you really hooked on to the proceedings.
As we move on and the character of Chamku starts revealing more of himself and things get a little weary. The usual love angle accompanied with hindi cinema creeps in and undue importance is given to developing the Priyanka Chopra-Bobby love angle.
Director Kabeer Kaushik who has been so tight with the screenplay of ‘Sehar’ suddenly makes you wonder whether it’s the same Kabeer behind this flick. Chamku might know where he is headed but the poor audience is absolutely lost trying to figure out what the likes of Reiteish Deshmuk , Rajpal Yadav, Irrfan Khan are doing The journey moves from a childhood revenge to the naxal backdrop to the underworld and the world of bookies etc. To top it all there’s Priyanka who drops in with the most predictable line-‘Main Teri Bachey Ki Maa Bane Wali Hoon’.
As for the positives, it’s the cinematography by Gopal and Bobby’s performance that keeps you hooked on. Keeping aside the number of ‘Fade Outs’, the camera draws you in.
Bobby Deol excels like never before. You might have seen traits of his ‘Chamku’ performance in ‘Badal’. The film truly belongs to Bobby who with his straight face says quite a bit. If elder brother Sunny was the synonym for’ anger’ watch out for Bobby. He excels real well with his bit and his look is just so apt. He’ll surprise even more if you watched his lame act in ‘Jhoom Barabar..’
Piggy Chops/ Priyanka Chopra is just wasted. Her bit in the film comes more as a hindrance to the flow. Her part brings in some lame songs and she just moves around flaunting colours of her ‘sari’.
Irrfan Khan has a more confused bit in the film nevertheless does pretty ok. Ritesh is wasted and so is Rajpal. Deepal Shaw does a tiny bit. Danny Denzongpa is there for a glance. Arya Babbar gets his two minutes of action and his character is killed.
The music by Monty Sharma has nothing to offer. Not a single track to take back.
On the whole, Kabeer Kaushik who was so tight with ‘Sehar’, disappoints and gives way to the clichés of Hindi cinema to seep in. A let down from Kabeer ‘Sehar’ Kaushik.
Rating : **

Mukhbiir Movie Review

Mukhbiir - The desi ‘Bourne’ gets bore
It’s been a while now that ‘Mukhbiir’ has been mired with problems that have given the film a back seat. First with a series of events involving change of producers from Pritish Nandy Communications (PNC) to Color Chips and the legal money transactions to a postponement in the release date, the film has been badly hit.
Mani Shankar who established himself with ‘December 16’ and then went on to ‘Rakht’ and ‘Tango Charlie’ brings forth the story of an informer.
Synopsis…….
In the secret world of shadows where good and evil are deeply enmeshed,the dark world where fear stalks through streets, where the thin veil of sanity can get ripped off in an instant revealing the hidden face of stark terror-on that razors edge live the chosen ones, wearing masks that can never be taken off.This is a film about a young man and the many masks he wears enacting a desperate drama where forgetting the lines means instant death. This is the story of the many lives he has to live the many deaths he has to die.Director Mani Shankar would have wanted his film to take off very much the ‘Bourne Identity’ way. Though he tried to spin it a little bit here and there by asking the viewers to have pity on the informer or ‘Mukhbir’, he fails miserably.
The film bores and bores and bores. There is a complete lack of believability and connect with the storytelling. What’s with those close-ups of Samir Dattani time and again with those so called ‘Shayari’s ‘or one-liners? It’s just lame.
Samir seriously requires much more to look like that informer. His delivery is poor and his expressions are kiddish. From which angle does he act ( forget look ) like an informer?
The majority of characters have been simply scattered around without substance. Suneil Shetty just walks in and out and leaves no scope for understanding. Om puri does his bit well even though he often confuses.
Raima Sen was just a waste. Man, the way she falls in love with Mr.Mukhbir and breaks into the typical ‘Naach Gaana’ is ridiculous.
Sushant Singh does his bit of massaging the ladies and getting to do some Bhaigiri. Alok Nath too joins him on this bit.
On the whole the movie comes across as a very jaded one. With the delay and competition from former producers PNC’S ‘Ugly aur Pagli’, the film is bound to face rough waters at the box office.
Rating : *

Phoonk Movie Review

Phoonk - What the ‘Phoonk’?
Ramgopal Varma returns with ACE picture company- Praveen Nischol and Azam Khan-‘One more thought productions’ for a horror flick this time. It’s been a while since Ramu has done a horror flick unless the viewers of ‘Contract’ would love to believe otherwise.
Ramgopal Varma who excelled with ‘Bhoot’ and made people quiver , this time around dares the viewers to watch this movie alone. ‘Phoonk’ fuses in the black magic elements to bring forth some amount of fear. Well , does this flick live up to all those tall claims?
Synopsis….
Rajeev(Sudeep) , a successful Construction Engineer with a loving wife, and two children aged 10 and 8, is an atheist to the core. He scowls at God and even more at people who believe in the dark forces till one day when an evil was let loose in his happy home threatening to destroy his family and shake up the very foundations of his convictions and belief system.
To begin with , Ramgopal Varma seriously needs to look beyond scaring the audiences with gimmicks that have been overdone time and time again with his flicks such as ‘Bhoot’, ‘ Vastu Shatra’ etc. The slow movements of the camera is just not enough to scare today’s masses who in and out are exposed to films such as ‘Exorcism of Emily Rose’, ‘1048’, ‘JU-ON’, etc.
The screenplay of the film is a big setback and lacks a clear vision. Though the basic plot line may just be ok , Ramgopal Varma could have developed and executed things much better. It’s high time he does away with the focus on some lame dolls in the house and the overuse of the household maid; an attempt to scare that falls flat.
With not much movement in the storytelling, the overdone shots of the gates of the ‘Ambe Villa’ and the constant repetition of the SUV driving in and out , gets annoying.
The moment you think the film is going to get better and scarier, it just disappoints. The maid is not even close to what Seema Biswas did in ‘Bhoot’. The grandma just gets annoying with her constant head nodding and her hand stretching sequence was hilarious rather than frightening.
Lilette Dubey comes in from nowhere and gives her scientific view and justification for the proceedings. Zakir Hussain a very talented actor is quite wasted here as his body language and attire make him look really weird. There is no proper justification to his character and he is underused.
Ashwini Kalsekar starts off real well with her scary expressions and the focus into her eyes etc but eventually her laughter makes you giggle. Her character as the witch is pretty ok but the climax of the film was seriously poor on the special effects and thus was a major setback.
Kannada film’s renowned actor Sudeep does ok and the film doesn’t offer him much scope to prove his bit at bollywood. Amruta Khanvilkar is apt as the mother.
Ehsaas Channa is the best performer of the film (keeping aside the crow). One of the best things is that Ehsaas finally plays her character as a girl . She has matured as an actor and tries real hard to scare with the exorcism sequences.
On the whole, ‘Phoonk’ stands way behind Ramgopal Varma’s ‘Raat’ and ‘Bhoot’. It’s high time the director should seek a revival. He needs to win the confidence of the masses and bring back the three letter ‘RGV’ brand essence.
Go ahead Ramu and bring back some ‘Rangeela’ sort of film, you need a break from the dark side. Let the light seep in!
Rating : *

Maan Gaye Mughal-E-Azam Movie Review

Maan Gaye Mughal-E-Azam - All dialogues, no substance
This one was supposed to be one of the most awaited movies of the year for various reasons. Firstly, it brings back the ‘selective role choosing’ Mallika Sherawat alongside Rahul Bose. The two had a huge success story last year with ‘Pyaar Ke Side Effects’ and thus a repeat is expected here.
Also there is lots more value in terms of the talented Paresh Rawal , Kay Kay Menon and Zakir Hussain. Things get even better when the title revolves around one of hindi cinema’s most successful venture till date.
Maybe the title may be good enough to provide a hampering rebound effect.
Synopsis..
Maan Gaye Mughall-E-Azam is a mad, contemporary comedy about how a small town drama company gets involved in a deadly mission to save the country. Circa 1993 - The country was burning due to the Babri structure demolition and communal riots. A small town like St. Louise near Goa, where Police, CBI and RAW officers were out on high alert due to illegal activities like Rdx and Arms landing at the coastal area!
Set up in the same town is Kalakar Theatre Company, a theatre group of self indulgent dreamy actors who are always left with no choice but to perform the same age old period play 'Maan Gaye Mughall-E-Azam' every time. One fine day, they come to know that, an underworld don is planning a severe bomb blast in the country.
A funny and thrilling roller-coaster ride begins when the entire drama company designs 'A Deadly Game plan' and gets into the act to save the entire city from this blasts. Performing multiple roles in disguise, the characters make you go crazy and eventually, save the entire nation from the big bomb blast in a hilarious slapstick climax. It's a story of losers becoming winners... 'Actors' becoming 'Heroes' ...A comedy which thinks and winks!!!
‘Maan Gaye…..’ is well set within the parameters of the local theatre company and the noise produced by various characters involved with this theatre company. The movie takes off well with some really hilarious dialogues one after the other.
And then What?
There are a lot more of these dialogues with the film really not taking a step ahead. Sanjay Chel has no doubt been one of bollywood’s most successful dialogue writers with film’s such as ‘Rangeela’ , ‘Yes Boss’ etc to mention a few. Even as a director, he did well with his debut ‘Khoobsurat’ starring Sanjay Dutt and Urmila.
But, this one is seriously lame with all the focus being laid on the dialogues and the so called comedy flick getting its patriotic angle etc which is plain silly.
The film has definitely been inspired from the Hollywood flick ‘To Be or Not to Be’ starring Mel Brooks . The change here comes in the form of the shift from a Nazi environment to a riot prone Mumbai of the 90’s.
There are has been immense emphasis of Mallika Sherawat and her assets that the likes of Kay Kay , Rahul Bose and Paresh Rawal become insignificant.
What was all that undercover agent stuff and the words ‘Mulk’,’Quam’ etc doing in this comedy flick. It just made people look like clowns.
Mallika Sherawat does have some comic scenes with Kay Kay and her interaction sequences with Rahul too are funny. Mallika uses her oomph factor and brings in comedy specially cause of the support she receives from an actor like Paresh Rawal.
Paresh Rawal no doubt does well but leaves you with nothing much as the jokes and dialogues get repetitive. Kay Kay menon, What was he doing in this flick? He was so insignificant and was a cut paste of Naseeruddin Shah from ‘Sarfarosh’. It’s quite amazing that the very same Paresh and Kay Kay who were absolutely underused have brilliant roles to play in the competitor film of the week-‘Mumbai Meri Jaan’.
Rahul Bose who started his career real well on a more serious role , has now started getting commercialized. The masses did love his bit in ‘Pyaar Ke side Effects’ , but he needs to take scripts with some substance. He was fantastic with comedy in ‘Jhankaar Beats’ but in this one he falls flat and his hindi needs major improvement.
Pawan Malhotra does well and Zakir Hussain is ok.
All the naach-Gaana courtesy Anu Malik is not good enough to hold the masses except for ‘Marmari Baatein’. The music of the film too isn’t great and visuals of the songs aren’t appealing enough.
The movie requires some serious trimming and the cinematography is ok.
Chel has indeed excelled with his dialogues but not much emphasis has been laid on the script. Thus, this flick just ends up being nothing much but an overdose of one liners and witty remarks.
Rating : *1/2

Mumbai Meri Jaan Movie Review

Mumbai Meri Jaan - A beautiful heart-gripping film!
Not many had heard of director Nishikant Kamat until the accolades he received for his first Marathi flick ‘Dombivili Fast’. Later R.Madhavan and Nishikant teamed up for the tamil version ‘Evano Oruvan’. Now, comes a dream project for the director with his first commercial hindi flick ‘Mumbai Meri Jaan’ ; a film celebrating the undying spirit of Mumbai backed by the likes of UTV.
‘Mumbai Meri Jaan’ talks about the July 11,2006 Mumbai train blasts. The film explores the impact of this devastating incident on the lives of the people of Mumbai. From a brilliant broadcast journalist(Soha Ali Khan) to a patriotic corporate man(R.Madhavan); from a retiring policeman(Paresh Rawal) at the twilight of his life to a rookie cop(Vijay Maurya) at the dawn of his career; from an angry and xenophobic unemployed young man(Kay Kay Menon) to a coffee-vendor(Irrfan) struggling to survive and belong: ‘Mumbai Meri Jaan’ follows the lives of people from all strata of Mumbai’s bustling society as they tackle the aftermath of a fatal incident that brings out the best and sometimes the worst in them.
To begin with the film just transcends into another world and you are dawn right into it from the very beginning. Though the narrative moves back and forth from one character to another, it’s the well laid out shots that really draw your attention.The cinematography by Sanjay Jadhav is splendid and the camera brings you up close and personal with the happening of events.
Nishikant Kamat does a great job with this flick and fuses in the right bunch of actors with a very good technical team to bring out something as special as ‘Mumbai Meri Jaan’. Nishikant brings out the best from each actor and no actor overrides the other. And at no point does the focus shift from the script to the actors.
The characters of the film have been so well defined and sketched out. Take a look at the subtle reactions and body language that speaks a lot. For e.g. the indifference between Kay Kay Menon and the guys at the restaurant, Vijay Maurya’s expressions (which is usually just a straight face)etc.
The story, screenplay and dialogues by Yogesh Vinayak Joshi are terrific. Though the film may seem a little slow paced with the rapid edit switches between narratives nevertheless it’s impressive. The dialogues are really hard hitting especially the sequences exploring the lives of the news reporters and the policemen.
Every actor carries his part real well . Kay Kay , Soha , Madhavan , Paresh Rawal , Irrfan are absolutely brilliant. Each actors leaves behind something at the end of the film. Kay Kay’s transformation from anti-Muslim to harmony seeking individual is impressive. Soha emotes real well as the woman caught between her journalism and personal space.
The echo of the blast that resonates in Madhavan is transferred right into the viewers mind. Irrfan shocks you as the ‘Madrasi’ Coffee Wala. The transformation in his character too is splendid. Paresh Rawal leaves behind a lot of valuable lines and above all its actor Vijay Maurya who proves his bit here. Vijay seen earlier in ‘Bombay to Goa’ doing his bit of comedy , this time get you deep into reality. What a performance!
Out and out, this movie is a real hard hitting well made film. Nishikant Kamat excels with this one and is out to become one of the most sought after directors. Kudos to UTV for backing such a film! Great Job!
Rating : ****

Akasha Gopuram Movie Review

Akasha Gopuram - Lost in translation
Finally, it seems to be the time to call a spade a spade. For those who haven't read Norwegian author Henrik Ibsen's classic play "Master Builder", ‘Aakashagopuram’ - the new Malayalam movie made on it, will be a sluggish, pretentious affair that hardly offers anything to treasure. And for those who had been with the master work, the movie is nothing more than an indifferent but awkward attempt. It is too sad to say that Director K P Kumaran, in his attempt to make a very faithful adaptation of the epic play, ends up making the flick as a dull, verbose drama.
The movie which made headlines much before the release, primarily due to the international crew associated with the project and for the lavish budget that was being offered, lives up little to the expectations. The movie has Mohanlal as Albert Samson, the middle aged, and much ambitious and renowned architect. A Known master in constructing churches, his custom to climb up the completed castles to perform a dedication ceremony was always widely admired with surprises by the masses. Having reached the pinnacle of his profession, with a singular pursuit for fame and glory, he had been sacrificing his personal life and ethics. He lands up in further turmoil as younger generation under him, asks for professional freedom. Samson has already pulled down his mentor Abraham, who is now in his death bed with a last wish of seeing his son Alex, an assistant to Samson, as an independent builder. Samson has also crushed the peaceful life of his wife Alice, who is now left mentally unstable, following the untimely death of her twin children and parents. Into this hardened design of Samson's mind arrives a spirited girl, Hilda Varghese, who slowly but hypnotically prepares him to climb down the way of the ambitions, realizing the real tragic consequences.
The movie which is snailishly paced even in its one and half hour narratives largely remains as a play pictured on a film. Faltering largely to give visuals to the ibsenisque symbolisms, many of the celebrated imageries like ''Nine dolls'' and every ''curious stories'' attached with the discourses between Hilda and Samsun lay flat in the ill constructed script lines. At times the visuals move to left and right as if we view in a proscenium and the actors follow the light patches in circles and rectangles, not bettering anything than in a drama stage, with little eye for cinematic wizardry.
Even Mohanlal, who tries to portray the mental tussle of Samson, fails to deliver them with sincerity ending up lip syncing umpteeth theatrical dialogues in one go. The new heroine Nithya shows sparkle in his debut venture and lives up to the mark but is often letdown by the overly heard voice patterns of her voice dubber.
Santhosh Thundiyil is the one man who has brilliantly captured the idyllic and picturesque London and its lakes, pastoral villas and dales, to lessen the suffering of this dialogue drama. Sabu Cyril's meticulous designs go well with the movie, but with the below par direction where even a close up of the well constructed castle cannot be kept cinematically engaging and realistic, the technician's work is not perfected.
The film is sure to raise very few discussions, as it rarely matches the power of the original in depicting insatiable desires that built and destroy humans. Even with such great artists like Lal and Bharath Gopi and with more than sufficient funds, this is the golden opportunity that was missed out by the director, to carve his name permanently in the history of Mollywood cinema.

Aayudham Movie Review

Aayudham - Obviously mundane
Even after a four dozen movies with Suresh Gopi in the lead, their makers still haven't find a way out from casting him in the investigation mode. Here in his latest 'Ayudham' too, he is back to save Kerala and its citizens from the vicious terrorists. The movie as usual, a thriller aspirant, tries to portray nothing -so-new-story even downplaying the usual good supplements of a Suresh Gopi movie. And the result is as expected-another disaster that promptly challenges your intellect.
The story is so ill constructed that it can be written on the back of a bus ticket. The movie opens with a carefully engineered bomb blast that kills many in the slums at Veliyam beach to ignite communal riots. Mahendra Varma (Anil Adithyan), the commissioner is into grabbing every lay man whom he has been on the spot and is forcing them to take the blame of the blasts. He zeroes upon Anwar Abdullah (Bala), the son of the local Mukri (Murali), only due to the reason that he has got some anonymous calls on the said date from some strangers surmised to have been involved in the blast. The chief Minister of the state Madhavan (Thilakan), an aged scrupulous politician call on Rishikesh I PS, D I G Crime Branch, to have a special inquiry , and arrives Suresh Gopi, this time on a stallion to assemble the bits and pieces which lead to the invincible lunatic 'Samy'.
Except for some coincidences like the recent blasts to the official announcement of vizhinjam fishing harbor and the uncanny resemblance of the characters played by Thilakan and Suresh Gopi to some real life personalities, nothing seems to work for 'Ayudham'.
Obviously joined in the lines of the formula movies from the star,'Ayudham' offers just no escape from the mundane sequencing of incidents that can be lined up even by any regular viewer of the star. The script seems derailed to the core with the missing of some connecting sequences, punch lines and the addition of a much banal climax. Some forced scenes like the Dubai episode is totally unwarranted. Except Bala and Thilakan, every other seems to be wasted in undemanding roles. Suresh Gopi as Rishikesh repeats himself for the umpteenth time in this stereotyped role and acts in the sequences as if he is having a stray walk. He ought to shed a little more flab (a lot actually), as it prevents him from performing his stunt sequences. The only impactful work on the technical front is the good but eardrum cracking background score from Raja Mani and the aptly mixed audiography. Sanjeev Shankar who handles the camera has made visuals that aptly suit an action thriller, but with little support from the script lines he can’t make his presence felt.
Director Nishad , in his third outing to films, not only faltered by selecting a hopelessly outdated theme dating back to the stone age but even didn't bother either to give it a contemporary look or to make it appealing. If we have to look for interesting things in this cocktail of several movies, they will be hard to find.

Homam Movie Review

Homam - Different taking style from JD
Jagapatibabu proved his versatility by playing family sentiment films and also in action films. In fact, it is Ramgopal Varma who gave him a different action hero image with his film 'Gayam'. He also played a little rough characters in films like 'Antahpuram, Hanuman Junction, Brahmastram, Samanyudu and Lakshyam.' Keeping all this in view, and with an inspiration from a recent blockbuster like 'Pokiri' where the hero played undercover cop, the story of 'Homam' took shape. There are two heroes in the film. While one hero stays with the mafia though a cop, another hero plays police, though he helps the mafia.
Malli (Jagapatibabu) is a police officer. Though he is an orphan, DIG Viswanath (Pradeep Rawat) brings him up like his own son and makes him a police officer. However, to nab an international mafia gang led by Daddy (Mahesh Manjrekar), Viswanath sends Malli as an undercover cop to the mafia gang and the latter turns a trusted worker for Daddy. He almost believes Malli as his right hand. With the help of Malli, Viswanath and his team tries to corner Daddy and his gang, but could not arrest them due to lack of evidence. Malli falls in love with a doctor (Mamata Mohandas). He takes him to his ailing mother who was in the hospital. At this juncture, Daddy reveals that his person was in the police department. Chandu (JD Chakravarthy), who was a commissioner of police, is the one who was helping Daddy's gang. At the same time, Viswanath also tells Daddy that his man was also with Daddy's gang. So both the teams break their heads to find out the black sheep. But they could not do so. Malli once visits the hospital and doctors tell him that he should keep his mother happy always. Malli reveals his identity but is mother did not believe it. To prove his words correct, Malli tells Viswanath to visit his mother once. At the same time, Daddy's gang attacks the building and in the melee, Viswanath dies. After a few days, Chandu, in order to escape from the blackmailing tactics of Daddy, shoots him to death in an encounter. How Malli proved that he was the undercover cop? What kind of tricks Chandu played to hide the fact? Did Malli was able to return to his duty instead of working as undercover cop? What kind of lesson Malli teaches to Chandu? Answers to all these questions form part of climax.
PERFORMANCE:
Jagapatibabu is the perfect fit to the role. He toned up his muscles and with a light beard, he appeared a little rough and suited well in the role as a goon in a mafia gang. He is at his best in portraying different emotions in various scenes. While he was rough as a goon, he appeared quite innocent in sentiment scenes. Especially, his performance while trying to convince his mother that he is a police officer is simply superb. JD Chakravarthy is also equally good as a cop who helps the mafia gangs. He did not feel shy to stay with an undergarment before the camera and before a heroine to evoke a little laughter from the audiences, despite the fact that he himself is directing the movie. His character which has a negative shade is apt and he did justice to his role. Mamata Mohandas and Madhurima filled the glamour slot well. Perhaps for the first time, Pradeep Rawat appeared in a soft role and Mahesh Manjrekar gave freshness to the audiences in a villain's role. Other roles played by Brahmaji, Raja Ravindra and Ahuti Prasad are also okay. Prabhakar who played the hero's buddy did justice to his role.
TECHNICAL:
JD Chakravarthy, who had a passion for direction, learnt a lot from his mentor Ram Gopal Varma by working as his associate for many films by distancing himself from acting and the Tollywood. Especially, he chose a different method in the taking which resembled the Hollywood action films. He scripted the screenplay with perfection and did not lose grip on the story at any point of time. Though he made a couple of errors especially while killing the characters of Pradeep Rawat, Mahesh Manjrekar and Prabhakar and in fact he failed to establish the scenes properly. Music by Nithin Raikwar was novel. The choreography of the first song and the last song, which contains chides (thitlu), is good. The director chose a different way of shooting songs by involving both the heroes and heroines in the same song. Camera work by Bharani K Dharan suited the mindset of the director and the editing by Bhanoday is also adequate.
REMARKS:The director should have concentrated a little more in love and romantic scenes between the heroes and heroines. Another basic draw back of the film is the lack of comedy. MS Narayana failed to tickle the funny bone of the audiences with his comedy at all. As a whole the film may go well with the city audiences, and one had to wait and watch how big the film could attract the mass and youth audiences.
Cast: Jagapatibabu, Chakravarthy, Mamta Mohandas, Madhurima, Mahesh Manjrekar, Pradeep Rawat, Brahmaji, Raja Ravindra, Ahuti Prasad, MS Narayana, Dubbing Janaki and others
CREDITS: Camera – Bharani K Dharan, Editing – Bhanoday, Lyrics – Suddala Ashok Teja, Music – Nithin Raikwar, Art – Satya, Producer – Kirankumar Koneru, Screenplay and direction - JD Chakravarthy.
Banner: Shreya Productions

Sidhu from Sikakulam Movie Review

Sidhu from Sikakulam - A game on 'love or life'

Eswar, who worked as an associate to director EVV Satyanarayana for many films, got a promotion and made his debut as director through 'Siddhu from Sikakulam'. Though the title has Sikakulam, it has nothing to do with the film in any aspect. The director penned a subject with a mixture of faction and love subjects. Moreover, the film has Allari Naresh as hero. Keeping him in mind, the director prepared the script with comedy backdrop. In fact, it is a nice experiment to mix comedy with faction. However, the end result came out in a cinematic presentation and nothing more.
Siddhu (Naresh) native of Srikakulam joins a college in Visakhapatnam. He loses his heart to Sailaja (Manjari), but discloses it to her in a different method. After a couple of encounters, he pours our his heart to her and Sailaja accepts it. Before going on a vacation, Sailaja explains to Siddhu that her father Obul Reddy (Jayaprakash Reddy) was a big factionist and her marriage was settled with Bhuma Reddy's (Vijayaranga Raju) brother. She pleads with Siddhu to take her somewhere and marry her. Being a middle class boy, Siddhu says a firm no to her proposal. He thinks everything practically and tells her that eloping is a bad idea as Obul Reddy would cause harm not only to him but also to his family, which he doesn't want to happen. He doesn't want to take risk in his life. Sailaja with no option left to her agrees for separation but on a condition that Siddhu should come to her marriage and stay with her till the tying of knot by the bridegroom, that too with a smiling face. Siddhu makes his entry as Siddhartha Reddy and stays with her as her classmate in Obul Reddy's residence. From that point the love game reaches its peak. Sailaja tries to lure Siddhu, and the latter tries to avoid her. In the game another girl Nisha (Shraddha Das), cousin of Sailaja joins for some time. After a few incidents, Siddhu also realises that love is greater than everything. At the same time he doesn't want to face the life and death situation. What Siddhu did to earn sympathy from Obul Reddy and make him to ask by himself to marry Sailaja is the climax.
PERFORMANCE:
The character is just a tailor-made role for Naresh and the hero was at his usual best. Besides providing timely comedy, he got a choice to exhibit his performance capabilities through expressions. As a whole he reached the expectations of his fans and general audience. Though a debutant, Manjari, a look-alike of Keerthi Reddy cooperated well with the hero in several scenes. She not only filled the glamour slot, but also appeared romantic in some scenes. Shraddha Das appeared spicy and resorted to a lot of skin show. Comedy by Dharmavarapu Subrahmanyam, Venumadhav, MS Narayana and Kondavalasa Lakshmana Rao is adequate Ahuti Prasad sported a lazy man's role, while Jayaprakash Reddy is routine as a factionist.
TECHNICAL:
There is nothing new to talk about the film as far as the story. It has no twists and is predictable. In the absence of a crisp screenplay and due to the lengthy narration of the events, the audiences faced a little bore. The director failed to establish the love between the hero and heroine properly. There is no need for the second heroine at all. Cinematography by Dasarathi Sivendra is good, while Radhakrishna's music is normal. Choreography is not bad. The climax of the film was abrupt and cinematic, which is beyond any reasoning. Because of poor screenplay, the comedy track also went haywire and gone out of track for several times.
REMARKS:
Once again, Eswar also tried to use mind games as the basic theme of the film. However, the director's storyline based on love, life, middle-class boy's attitude, use of intelligence in convincing the bride's father to get his love married to him – is good to listen, but he failed to present it on the screen properly. The entire film ran with a commercial formula film without twists. Even many comedy scenes are unnecessary and in one way slowed down the movement of the film. Despite the best efforts of the hero to keep the film on a hit track, the poor narration left the film as an average to below average flick.
Cast: 'Allari' Naresh, Manjari and Sraddha Das, Venumadhav, Chandramohan, Dharmavarapu Subrahmanyam, MS Narayana, Jayaprakash Reddy, LB Sriram, Ahuti Prasad, Vijayaranga Raju, Kondavalasa Lakshmana Rao, Nalla Venu, Harshavardhan, Telangana Sakuntala, Surekhavani, Devisri and others.
CREDITS: Music – KM Radhakrishnan, Lyrics – Veturi, Dialogues – Raju M Rajasimha, Script assistance – Mohan, Balaram and Mukund Pande, Cinematography – Dasarathi Sivendra, Editing – Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao, Art – DV Satyanarayana, Producer – Malla Vijaya Prasad, Story, screenplay and direction – Eswar.
Banner: Wellfare Creations

Baladhoor Movie Review

Baladhoor - Poor mix of sentiment and action scenes

Working for a prestigious banner like Suresh Productions is a great opportunity and Raviteja got one such chance and pairing up with Anushka with whom he gave a hit like 'Vikramarkudu' is like a boon for him. Above all, the film has another highlight in the form of Krishna, who played an important role and he appeared on the screen after a long time especially in a full time role. On the other hand, the film has a director like Udayshankar, who earlier gave hit like 'Kalisundam Raa…' for the same banner. There were lots of expectations on the film but the audiences felt disappointed in the wake poor storyline with routine commercial formula.
Chanti (Raviteja) is a boy who did not spare anyone who resorts to injustice and who disregards women. His father is Purushottam (Chandramohan), who used to assist his elder brother Ramakrishna (Krishna) to run a real estate business. Theirs is a Rama-Lakshmana kind of relationship. At the same time, Chanti has the highest regard to his paternal uncle (pedananna) and could not spare anyone who do not respect to him. Once Chanti goes to their native village along with the entire family and comes across Bhanumati (Anushka). Bhanumati loses her heart to Chanti, when the latter thrashes goons who try to challenge Ramakrishna. Incidentally her father (Ahuti Prasad) too has high regard to Ramakrishna. Ramakrishna faces enmity from Pasupati (Pradeep Rawat) in business. The latter hatches many plans to defeat Ramakrishna but fails in every attempt. Once Chanti's sister in law faces problem with Pasupati's son and Chanti thrashes him. Irked over this, Pasupati's brother-in-law tries to attack Ramakrishna and he also gets a sound thrashing from Chanti. As a result, the engagement of Ramakrishna's daughter gets spoiled and the alliance breaks. Reacting to this, Purushottam necks out Chanti. How Chanti sets the things right? Did he able to convince the family who was supposed to accept his sister as their daughter-in-law? How Chanti thwarted the attempts of Pasupati to attack on the real estate business of Ramakrishna? Did Chanti accept Bhanumati's love? Answers to all these questions form part of the climax.
PERFORMANCE:
Raviteja's performance was not that energetic like his earlier films. However, he did his best in the hero's role. Moreover, it is a tailor-made role for him and hence there is no scope to change his body language for him. The film has his mark of instant comedy. Even the script writers too penned the scenes and dialogues to suit him well. Anushka looked quite slim and continued to expose her beauty to the maximum extent. At times, it appeared a little overdose too. The director and the choreographers chose to show her belly button and the waist to appease the mass audiences. Comedy by Sunil is okay, while the comedy track penned for Brahmanandam failed to tickle the funny bone of audiences. Krishna, who appeared on the screen in a little lengthy role after a long gap, remained a highlight for the film. Others like Chandramohan, Sameer, Raja Ravindra and Raviprakash are okay in their roles. Pradeep Rawat and Subbaraju showed their routine villainy.
TECHNICAL:
Radhakrishnan who gave the best music for 'Chandamama' failed to give catchy tunes to a mass hero like Raviteja. Except a couple of songs like 'Tella Cheera Okay…' and another song, none of the tunes were that good. The film runs in a commercial formula and the director could not perfectly match the sentiment and action scenes. The script has no novelty and the movement of the film was also not perfect. There were several abrupt beginnings and endings for many scenes. In a bid to highlight Raviteja's mass image, the script writer chose tailor-made scenes for the film which has no novelty. Even the action scenes were not that stylish and the audiences got a feel of watching a film in 80s and 90s. The romantic scenes between the hero and heroine, the timing of songs were also not apt. However, camera work by Balamurugan is somewhat good and the locations chose for the film are a little new as none of the Telugu films were shot in those locales earlier.
Remark:
With no freshness in the story, the audiences felt bored. The film appeared as a mixture of two, three films that came up on the Telugu screen earlier. But for Anushka's glamour and Raviteja mark comedy there is hardly anything to watch in the film. However, the film will have a chance of above average revenue in other centres and not in 'A' grade cities. Udayshankar's slipshod screenplay and direction resulted in a poor run of the film. Audiences were heard saying none of the songs are good and the Anushka's heavy dose of exposure is unnecessary and unwanted.
Cast: Raviteja, Anushka, Krishna, Chandramohan, Sunil, LB Sriram, Pradeep Rawat, Subbaraju, Paruchuri Venkateswara Rao, Ahuti Prasad, Sivaprasad, Sameer, Raja Ravindra, Suman Shetty, Mallikarjuna Rao, Raviprakash, Gundu Hanumanta Rao, Kadambari Kiran, Tirupati Prakash, Sumitra, Bhargavi and others
CREDITS:
Story – Lakshmi Bhoopal, Dialogues – Paruchuri Brothers, Music – KM Radhakrishnan, Camera – B Balamurugan, Editing – Marthand K Venkatesh,Presents – Dr D Ramanaidu, Producer – D Suresh Babu, Screenplay and direction – Udayshankar.
Banner: Suresh Productions

Salute Movie Review

Salute - Vishal makes perfect debut with a message
Telugu audiences are familiar with Vishaal as hero with his hit films like 'Pandemkodi' and 'Pogaru'. He impressed them with his action scenes, though he is a little dark in colour. It is a little surprise that most of his films were produced by his brother Vikram Krishna and present by his father GK Reddy. Though brought up in Chennai, Vishal, being a Telugu by origin, could speak fluent Telugu. So he decided to go for a straight Telugu film and director Rajasekhar made his dream come true with an excellent mass-oriented police subject, which had a good message that the police and the God are one at the same and both of them had the power to punish anyone who is guilty. Presence of Upendra was a surprise, while Nayanatara added spice to the romantic songs.
Satyam's (Vishal) father is a tahsildar. He is a committed government official and gets killed by a quarry contractor. Though Satyam plans to take revenge, he shuns it, following an advice from Pratapa Rudra (Upendra) a sincere police officer. Taking him as an inspiration, Satyam completes his IPS and becomes an ACP. Home Minister Kondala Rao (Kota Srinivasa Rao) aspires for CM's post and decide to eliminate all the others who were in the race. He contacts Dilli (Ravi Kale) and tells them to kill his opponents Mahadevayya (Santana Krishnan), Chandramati (Apoorva) and Punyakoti (Jeeva). Even before Dilli attacks Mahadevayya and Chandramati, they die in the hands of some others. Naturally, Kondala Rao suspects it was the handiwork of Punyakoti. Satyam tries to save Punyakoti from death but fails to do so. However, he was able to nab the killer and to his utter dismay it is Pratapa Rudra. Upon being challenged by Pratapa Rudra that the Satyam can't do anything as a police to curb the crooked politicians, he sets out a plan and arrests Dilli, but he gets out of the court casually. To prevent recurrence of such incident, Satyam arrests Kondala Rao's aide Acharya. After a few turn of events, Acharya turns an approver. When Satyam takes him to court to make a confession, he gets killed by Dilli. Before this, Dilli also kills Satyam's mother. Satyam goes behind bars on the charges of killing Acharya. In order to prevent Dilli's arrest, Kondala Rao decides to make him a politician. Why Pratapa Rudra resorted to kill the polticians? Did Satyam was able to teach a lesson to the politicians? How he made the people realize who were the culprits? Answers to all these questions form part of climax.
PERFORMANCE:
But for Vishal and Upendra who played the key roles and Nayanatara who filled the glamour slot there is nothing to boast about the film. Vishal's performance a highlight in the film. He was so cautious in appearance and built the six-pack for exclusively for the film. The surprise entry in the film is Upendra. He appeared with clean shave in the flashback scenes, but when the story comes alive he is at his usual style with long hair. His performance and his challenge were quite natural and inspiring. Nayanatara, though portrayed the role of a TV journalist, did not appear much in that job, and was chosen to shake her legs with the hero. She is quite romantic in a song and exposed overboard in that song. She appeared a perfect match to the hero.Kota Srinivasa Rao is at his usual best as a crooked politician, while Ravi Kale is okay as his aide. Sudha Chandran of 'Mayuri'-fame appeared in an insignificant role of Vishal's mother. Comedy by Brahmanandam and Senthil fails to evoke any laughter. Tanikella Bharani and Hema played the parents of the heroine.
TECHNICAL:
Like all the earlier films in his career, the latest flick of Vishal, 'Salute' is also good in technical aspects. Especially the action scenes in the films, which are the forte of the hero, were excellently choreographed with lot of power and style. Cinematography by RD Rajasekhar is good in both action scenes and in songs. Dialogues by Sashank Vennelakanti are good in parts. Especially the ones scripted for Upendra evoked good applause from the audiences. Music by Harris Jairaj is also good.Though not very melodious while listening to them, they appeared good on screen. The producer spent a whole lot of amount on the choreography of songs. One of the songs involving the children and super heroes is worth watching.
REMARKS:
Once again Vishal came up with an energetic performance in a fully loaded action thriller. He is a perfect fit as a tough cop with a well-built body. Though the storyline is based on cops, the message given by him at the end that it was the people, who had to teach a lesson to the corrupt politicians and cooperate with the police in teaching a lesson to the traitors who do harm to the society. A worth-watching film for those who love action films with police in their backdrop.
Cast: Vishaal, Nayanatara, Upendra, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Brahmanandam, Ali, Apoorva, Jeeva, Ravi Kaale and others
CREDITS: Dialogues – Shashank Vennelakanti, Lyrics – Sirivennela Sitarama Sastry, Sahiti, Chandrabose, Music – Harris Jairaj, Choreography – Brinda, Suresh, Costumes – Ramana, Camera – RD Rajasekhar, Editing – Anthony,Action – 'Stun' Siva, Effects – Craig Muhma, Art – Thotta Tarani, Presents – GK Reddy, Producer – Vikram Krishna,Story, screenplay and direction - Rajasekhar
Banner: GK Film Corporation

Saroja (Tamil) Movie Review

Saroja (Tamil) - Shines, sizzles
After a cool outing in Chennai-28, director Venkat Prabhu has come out with a taut thriller in Saroja. However, quite like his maiden venture, Saroja too is a fable of friendship, a story of emotions between pals and a tale of twists and turns.
With almost everyone of the cast and crew of Chennai-28 are there in the movie at least in a small role, Saroja takes us back to the cricket story while taking Tamil cinema front in terms of film making and story telling.
The story is so simple. The screenplay is straight forward. And the execution is honest. It starts with four youngsters Jagapathi Babu (S P Charan ), Ganesh Kumar (Premgi), Ajay Raj (Shiva) and Chinni (Vaibhav) leave for Hyderabad to watch a cricket match.
They lose their way due to a tanker mishap on the National Highway they travel and enter the 'den' of a rowdy gang, which had kidnapped Saroja (Vega), the daughter of a rich entrepreneur Vishwanathan (Prakasraj).
With Vishwanathan and his friend Assistant Commissioner of Police Ravichandran (Jayaram) taking steps to get Saroja back, the four-member team rescues her and escape from the kidnappers after all travails.
However, when they are about to reach a safe place, they are into a sudden shock, which turns entire things upside down. What's it is the interesting climax, which is interesting, gripping and of course breathtaking.
All four lead actors- Charan, Premgi, Shiva and Vaibhav have come out with their best. No need to talk about Prakashraj and Jayaram, both synonyms with apt performance. Nikitha oozes glamour while Vega emotes well.
The real strengths of the movie are Yuvan Shankar Raja's music and Sakthi Saravanan's cinematography. Both do magic from the beginning till end, not to forget about the editing by Praveen K L and Srikanth N B.
In short, Saroja shines and sizzles and undoubtedly a trendsetting movie like Chennai-28. And all credits should go to director Venkat Prabhu, who has once again proved his talent. Hats off!

Jeyam Kondaan Movie Review

Jeyam Kondaan - Sibling reconciliation
Director Kannan's debut film 'Jeyam Kondaan' from the stable of the reputed Satya Jyothi Films comes across as an entertainer sans conviction. The filmmaker has attempted to portray a young man's life weaving incidents that overtake his plans at every juncture and yet the sophisticated youth's focus is never in question. The film does boast of some slick cinematography but then every other department fails to impress much. Vidyasagar has certainly had an off day with his music. None of the songs are hummable and the background score is pretty ordinary.
Vinay is quite successful in donning a sophisticated and cool demeanor and seems to have traces of his 'naughty' expressions from 'Unnale Unnale' especially in the company of the two leading ladies Bhavana and Lekha Washinton. Kishore as the menacing gangster needs to be appreciated for his performance. The actor seems to have carried on the good work from 'Polladhavan'.
Kudos to Kannan, an erstwhile associate of Mani Ratnam for coming up with good characters in the film, but then some of the characters are wasted with quite a few loopholes in the script.
Arjun (Vinay) returns to Chennai after working in London for many years after his father's demise. With plans to start his own business in India with about 60 lakhs he had sent his father over the years, he reveals his intentions to a group of friends who get ecstatic at his plans. But the bubble bursts once they find that his father's bank balance does not support his plans. In comes a shocking revelation. His father has had another family and he had also raised a daughter (Lekha Washington) who is about twenty years old and has an insatiable thirst to study in the United States of America.
Sibling rivalry ensues over property inheritance and this is about the time director Kannan succeeds in keeping the audience interested. But then the intensity is lost with loads of contrived situations that lead the protagonist to Madurai where he intends to sell off one of his father's property which currently houses Bhavana and family. The inevitable (love) has to happen.
The film then gets rejuvenated with the entry of a local gangster Guna (Kishore). The character of the gangster's concubine keeps the intensity going as she has viewpoints that are not frequently addressed in Tamil film. She adores the gangster because he has the capacity to make people tremble with fear. Incidents build up in such a way that the concubine is killed in an accident in which Arjun is involved. Guna takes it personal and is out to get him at any cost.
Lekha Washinton's character is something most actresses who can perform well would love to don. The character has the scope of performing a plethora of expressions and Lekha has done quite well. Since this is her very first film we probably can expect a much better performances in her coming films. Bhavana though does not have much to do than except talk cute in most sequences.
With Guna expected to strike anytime, Arjun showers a lot of love and affection on his step-sister which she detests. What happens between then so that all their dreams can come true forms the rest of the story.
A very clear factor with 'Jeyam Kondaan' is that the director despite wanting the take the story forward based purely on human emotions has somehow succumbed to certain commercial elements that do not jell with the story at all. Comedy elements work well in patches with Vivek, Santhanam and V. M. Hanifa providing the laughs.

Dhaam Dhoom Movie Review

Dhaam Dhoom - CLASSY AND ENGROSSING
The first thing that has to be said about 'Dhaam Dhoom' is that the man who envisioned the project and started making things happen - master cinematographer and director Jeeva would have been a mighty proud man if he had lived to see the release of the film. Cinematography, Art Direction and the Background Score truly comply to international standards and blend perfectly well with the mood of the film.
The story of 'Dhaam Dhoom' heavily inspired from the 1997 Richard Gere film 'Red Corner' keeps the audience engrossed right from the outset. Stunning visuals of ravishing Russia, the earthly beauty of India and the choice of characters have been meticulously showcased thereby creating the right foil for the thriller elements of the film. Jeeva has been a big name when it came to highlighting emotions of young people in a trendy way. This is the first and sadly the last where he has ventured to make a thriller. 'Jayam' Ravi is probably the perfect choice to play the character of a man 'hunted' by Russian law and has to 'hunt' in order to prove his innocence. The onscreen chemistry between 'Jayam' Ravi and Kangana Ranaut is telling and works wonders for the film. Kojernikova Maria, a Russian actress, Lakshmi Rai and Jayaram fit into their characters with ease and style.
Gautham Subramanium ('Jayam' Ravi), a brilliant medical practitioner is engaged to his sweetheart Shenba (Kangana Ranaut) in a village and is all set to marry her in a matter of days when a prestigious call to represent the nation beckons him. A medical convention is to happen in Russia for a week and a few Indian doctors travel to take part in it. Once in Russia, Gautham bumps into a seductive Russian girl, Anna (Kojernikova Maria) who has a mysterious nature about her. After a brief rendez-vous in a night club the two end up in Gautham's place and the next morning dawns as a shocker to the young Indian. Anna is found dead and the police arrest Gautham on charges of murder. Completely bewildered by the sudden happenings and not understanding what the representatives of the law speak, a Russian based Indian attorney named Aarthi (Lakshmi Rai) is appointed to represent his cause. But then our protagonist gets an opportunity to escape from the clutches of the police and decides to unravel the truth with the help of Aarthi. An employee of the Indian Embassy in Russia, played by Jayaram is also sympathetic to the cause. To add a bit of romance-oriented confusion Aarthi begins to drift towards Gautham in spite of danger lurking all around.
Gautham's and the blushing bride-to-be Shenba's family wait for the return of the groom but then they get to know the dastardly events that had happened in Russia through television news broadcast.
The story has been narrated in such a way that montage sequences narrate blossoming love and dreamy scenes with immaculate hopes and then the stark reality of the protagonist being a fugitive sets in.
Harris Jayaraj's songs are pleasant to hear with 'Anbe En Anbe' taking center stage. The background score simply stuns audiences and has traces of the Hitchcockian style of tension building. Certain scenes accompany the 'Pshcho' kind of tension music and the use of traditional Indian instruments accompanying their western counterparts comes out in a breathtaking fashion.
When it comes to cinematography, the word is AWESOME. Manikandan, Rajasekhar and Jeeva himself (for some song sequences) have come out with tantalizingly creative stuff. The awesome threesome will have to thank Thotta Tharani for his brilliant art and design work. A picture they say is worth a thousand words. With each frame of the film having come out in such a pleasing way the output has semblances of poetic expressions.
Stunts have been innovatively done expect for a few rope-oriented jumps and 'Jayam' Ravi's body language and poise has been excellent. He has all the making of becoming a very successful action hero.
The film however runs out of momentum especially around the time the protagonist finds out the real culprit behind his being framed. On the whole, interest levels are sure to be maintained.
The technical brilliance and intensity the script carries has shaped out to be a true tribute to Jeeva. The hard work meted out after the director's demise is clearly showing. Good work from a good team.

Nayagan Movie Review

Nayagan - Perfect appetite for action-lovers
Director Saravana Sakthi has dished out an action-packed entertainer inspired by the Hollywood flick 'Cellular'. The movie has enough commercial elements and the fast narration of events maintains momentum throughout the film. If you can walk in with no expectations, you will very well come out quite pleased.
A young man, who receives a phone call from a kidnapped woman, takes the responsibility of rescuing her and saving her family. This forms the crux of 'Nayagan'. He is assisted by a cop to accomplish the task.
‘Nayagan’ features J K Ritheesh and Ramana in lead roles. The former plays a policeman while the latter is a jobless youth.
Ritheesh made his debut with 'Kanal Neer' and in his very second film, he is portrayed a larger-than-life hero with elements like dance, fight and punch dialogues to boot. Ramana, an actor with immense talent has been looking for the right break for quite some time now. He has played his part exceedingly well.
Sakthi (Ramana) receives a call on his mobile phone from a doctor Sharadha (Sangeetha), who has been abducted. The woman is kept in confinement and somehow manages to contact Sakthi using the loose wires of a smashed phone. The tension mounts as the kidnappers are set to go after her child next.
Sakthi understands the gravity of the situation and takes it upon himself to rescue her. He is joined by a police officer Guru (Ritheesh) in this task. Among those in the cast are Anandhraj, in a dual role and Vaiyapuri.
Sangeetha as the kidnapped woman is the scene stealer. The ease with which she performs should be applauded. Equally appreciable are the roles enacted by Anandhraj. In dual roles, he pulls off terrific performances.
Saravana Sakthi has set the pace in such a way, that one may not be able to spot logical loopholes in the film.
It is a film for action-lovers. Sit without expectations and enjoy 'Nayagan'.