Thrill Movie Review

Thrill - A bad excuse for a film

How can “boring" be an adjective, that applies to a film titled ‘Thrill’?

A poor excuse for a film, that got wrapped out in just one hour and twenty five minutes, ‘Thrill' is a supposed to be a crime story, that just doesn't thrill. An intended suspense thriller, the movie seems to be the one made without making any kind of home works for a thriller.

‘Thrill' can be stated as ‘‘bad’’ on so many levels. Starting from the inept handling of the subject, to the tiresome direction, poor cast and dull acting, the entire first half of the movie was bad in a bad way. “I even remember to have counted a thirty seconds for the passing of a jeep, out of the screen. Though an occasional wide angle shot and heavy background scores tries to infuse a life into the proceedings, the second half also turned things around and offered a lot more laughs than thrills”.

Based on many of the movies of the heist genre, ‘Thrill' has Rahul (Satya Prakash), leading three of his female co-workers at the computer centre, to loot a truck which carries hot cash to be dispersed as salaries to the workers of a plantation. Rahul is in need to raise lakhs of rupees for the surgery of his only sister while the other three are also facing similar appalling situations in their life. Motivated by a shared desire for money and revenge, they join forces for a robbery and influence the driver of the truck, offering a big share of their seizure.

Rahul and his gang thus accomplish their first venture of grabbing money with success, leaving very little clues. But when super cop Aneesh Thampan lays vigilante on the highways with hawk eyes, the four men army are forced to drive on to a lonely cottage amidst the woods, with the ten crore money in their bags. The movie then moves on to the regular horror to the b grade chills, before finally ending up in a miserably done climax.

A thoroughly outmoded presentation, with all new names in the cast sounded more like a dreadfully done mini screen drama, than a movie.And the couple of songs that appear at intervals gives a shock of despair than anything that bring back the interest. The most uninteresting highlight of the film is that 'thrill' is the only Mollywood film that I had witnessed with a second half length of below half an hour. That itself will say much about the planning that could have went to shape up the movie. These kinds of movies are the ones that signal the viewer to avoid every kind of small scale movies in Mollywood. And I surmise, those who had been with the movie will however, keep away from these kinds for at least a year, trying their luck with Kollywood and Hindi movies for that time.

About all associated with the film, be it in the technical side or on screen, exudes a type of coarseness. In the acting front everyone except Anoop as the C I, looks ill placed while the protagonist Sathya Prakash seems so brittle to carry the film in his shoulders.

If you are wholly prepared for the amazing, unrelenting horridness of a movie, just have a watch. It will certainly better your patience levels, with the ample display of stupidity and lunacy .

Veruthe Oru Bharya Movie Review

Veruthe Oru Bharya - Offers interesting watch


‘Veruthe Oru Bharya’ is the unassuming title for a movie, narrated with intensity and integrity, from the very beginning to the end. It is one of the best films of recent times, dealing with domestic marriage discords resulting from mismatched characters of two people who stick to their incompatible agendas. It may hit too close to home for some; others might not key in on the psychology, but find it as a digestible fun-filled drama with light hearted moments.

The movie will definitely introspect at least some men who finds a glimpse of them on screen. Presenting Jayaram in a solid workable character, ‘Veruthe Oru Bharya’ accomplishes to bring out the emotional chaos created by broken marital relationships on the victims and their children, somehow sidestepping all the related cliches.

The film focuses on the lives of a very few characters - Sugunan (Jayaram), an overseer with the electricity board, his wife Bindu (Gopika) and their teenage daughter Anju (Nivedita), Sugunan's colleagues and Bindu's family, comprising of her parents and her brother Ramesh (Madhu Warrier). Sugunan is a typical egoistic and ever complaining husband, who has his core of stipulations to his ever submissive wife. Sugunan considers Bindhu just as a person who is obliged to meet all the pressures in managing homely affairs. Neither he acknowledges his wife's efforts in maintaining the peaceful atmosphere at home nor does he help her in any of the related matters. He is more a hypocrite who never allows his talkative wife to engage with her friends or relatives or attend public functions. Never do Sugunan takes his wife for leisure to have a break from her routine pressures.

Having lost the ardor of a love they once knew together, the growing discord between Sugunan and Bindu leads to a point for Bindu, to break the cycle. She decides to take a break from their strain of their disagreements and return to her father (Innocent) leaving her husband to take care of her daughter. Sugunan takes it as another chance for a fight and tries to manage things, but in vain.

The highlight of the movie is that, a man and woman who have lost intimacy and passion in their marriage and their mild-mannered approach to dealing with themselves may feel uncomfortably familiar to most of the viewers. Well, there are light and humorous moments but it's a serious subject handled seriously. The tightly paced writing from K. Gireesh Kumar, the convincing directorial from Akku Akbar and acting are uniformly excellent. The only down points are the later half which drags a little at times and the complete preachy dialogues in the climax which makes melodrama seem mellow.

Akku Akbar in his first independent venture in direction is a revelation. With a heavily loaded script that take its principal characters to extremes situations, ‘Veruthe Oru Bharya' about confrontations, revelations and self-discovery, does feel particularly truthful. The director has immensely succeeded in creating the pitch-perfect "emotional atmospherics’" for the story to happen.

Jayaram, after a long gap, scores heavily in a role that is tailor made for his capabilities. He invites claps as never before, when imitating the singing styles of all heroes from yester year, Prem Nazir to today's Mammootty. Gopika looks evidently younger that what the role demands, but make better by convincing act in her complex title role as Bindu. She makes a poignant cake walk through the role, delivers majority of the dialogues and at times appear strong and scared at alternate scenes. Nivedita also shines as their daughter. Rahman and Ganesh kumar appear in short cameos.

A word of mention must also be made of Suraj Venjaramoodu, who once again has repeated his magic of creating a laugh riot, when ever on screen. He maintains his flourish in the act without tarnishing with the integrity of the character, he is in.

Shaji’s evocative location cinematography is used to greater effect; the shadow -laden frames, actually becomes a character in the film-appearing somehow lovely and wistful at the same time. Art director Saloo K George excels with his sets while Ranjan Abraham in editing also does his bit to finely shape the movie .Popular album musician Shyam Dharman's songs are immensely popular, which very well suits the mood of the film. The only low point in the post production is the not so effective background scores.

All in all, ‘Veruthe Oru Bharya’ is one of the best thought provoking family movies, surfaced in recent times.

Well recommended for viewers who are ready to share a glimpse of the maturely narrated entertainers.

Kabadi Kabadi Movie Review

Kabadi Kabadi - A mindless comedy


After quite some time, we are again into a mindless comedy which is targeted for an audience who is prepared to laugh on every silly occasion. ‘Kabadi Kabadi’, a presentation from a debut director duo Sudheer Manu, doesn't shows much promise than being another close rehash version of a decade old movie 'Makkal Mahatmyam'.

‘Kabadi Kabadi' also includes many familiar sequences that we had been to in many older comedies. But the film may not sink in the Box office only because we are of late into much larger tragedies that this movie.

‘Kabadi Kabadi' tells the story of Vijayan and Madhavankutty, stepbrothers who are at loggerheads due to plenty of old scores. Sons of the late police officer Mampilly Rajashekharan, Madhavankutty is the only son of Rajashekharan's legally married wife, but Vijayan, the illegitimate son was given the right to light the funeral pyre during his father's death. From there, Madhavankutty who refuse to acknowledge Vijayan as his brother, singles out every opportunity to irk and denounce Vijayan and his mother who are now considered as his sworn enemies.

The Annual Kabadi Championship in memorial of their father is one such event where the brothers come up for cat fights. Vijayan has Biju and Komalan as his senseless croonies, while Madhavankutty roams around with Ramesan and Basheer in a jeep named 'Mambully-Original’. It could be a point of interest and engagement for you, to count exactly how many times these pair of idiotic aides gets beaten up by virtually everyone in the frame in their attempts to bring in some sort of laughs. Chitrangadan, the former Panchayath President and his wife Sarala the present Panchayath President, are the two who adds oil to the fire, igniting new skirmishes, campaigning for and against the brothers in arms. This do-or-die Kabadi game for both brothers suddenly turns irrelevant, with the arrival of Pooja and Sneha, twin daughters of Judge Viswanathan, to the village. Madhavankutty and Vijayan falls for each of them, but don't recognize them as twins. This results in them seeing the other as rivals in love also. How all of this chaos leads to further tortuousness and subjects of forced humor, forms the rest of the movie.

The basic plot has promises of a bigger comedy flick with adequate space for action, humor, songs, romance and sentiments. But the makers fails to milk any sensible use of the plot. They frames the age old lines of narratives with comic one liners from the crew of Suraj Venjaaramoodu, Jaffer Idukky, Harishree Ashokan and Indrans. While the former two does their part convincingly, Ashokan and Indrans have a lame walk over a chance comedy riot. With plenty of loose ends in the script by Shani Khader, the movie at times turns unconvincing and nonsensical with forced sequences for generating chuckles. And in some sequences we can even predict the next ludicrous action to follow. The cat and mouse race and fights in the end are pretty matuerish, seen in hundreds of Mollywood movies before.

Mukesh and Kalabahavan Mani repeat the roles that they are always into for the whole last decade, with bulky bodies and over the top reactions. Both look a little jaded being presented again and again in roles and expressions that are beaten to death. Rambha in a twin avatar seems ok but don’t seems logical as girls from Bangalore who instantly falls for the village guys who don't even calls for admiration from the viewers. Producer Mani C Kapan dons a lengthier role as the Judge convincingly. Bheeman Reghu as Chithrangadan is another pick from the lot who tries to deliver something different.

Nadirshah’s debut into music direction doesn’t show any immense promise but one song "Minnaminungey..." is quite good. And the technical side has not much for any special comment.

All in all, this old fashioned movie can be a time pass for those who love to laugh even for hollow wits. 'Kabadi Kabadi' can be your film of the week, if you have got nothing much of any importance to do.