The title 'Aadama Jaichomada' is inspiration of the hit-song from the album, 'Mankatha'. Ironically, the film's theme is revolved around the match fixing scam associated with the highly successful Indian Premier League cricket tournament. Though the film's content might suggest something of a B/C Grade film, but the content could surprise you and might be of good entertainment value for your time and money, spent. With an eclectic mix of upcoming artistes, can Badri pull it off, after the horrendous remake of 'Thillu Mullu' ?
The film has no particular lead protagonist nor antagonist and its nice to see that all main characters have nearly equal amount of space and importance to the script. Leading the pack of artistes is Karunakaran, who is on the roll with another decent and spot on performance. Karunakaran impresses us with his unique dialogue delivery and facial expressions. His comic timing is just near perfect and pulls off most of the jokes, effortlessly. However, he should improve his romance and dancing portions, if he is to pursue lead roles in the future. Bobby Simhaa, has a big makeover from the 'Jigarthanda' looks and plays the role of a cop, for the first time. The pretentious, over-ambitious and unintelligent cop role suits him to a T, He has the ample scenes to showcase his acting histrionics and doesn't let us down. Heroine Vijayalakshmi has done an adequate job and gets her diction and dialogues right. The other artistes such as Balaji Venugopal, K.S Ravikumar, Radha Ravi, Naren, Chetan, Gautham, Chitra Letchumanan, Abhishek and etc have delivered wacky performances in a very nonchalant way, especially with K.S Ravikumar and Naren. Its a jolly-good casting, indeed !
Action choreography is handled by Hari Dinesh, and since the film is purely a comedy, the action sequences are not meant to be taken serious too. The actions are over-the-top, but it is meant to be like that, in order to maintain the comical element of the screenplay. The usage of ropes in such obvious manner, could have been avoided though. Art director Gururaj's work lends a big helping hand for the film's production quality. Almost many sequences in the film have a set based scenario or plenty of props. Be it the interiors of the homes, the songs, police station set, control room and etc, every avenue is properly done and the set properties matched the ambiance very well. Kudos to Gururaj ! K.J Venkatramanan's editing is slick and he keeps the duration of the film short and has done managed the cuts for the wild-goose chase scenes, quite well. A little bit of pace in the first half, would have done more good for the film. Dwarakanath's cinematography suits the film's script and budget very well. His works for the chasing scenes are noteworthy and the lighting sense in some scenes, brought out the right effect, which added more credence to the comedy quotient of the script.
Sean Roldan's music works fine for the film and some of the songs are appealing even if you are to listen to it as standalone soundtracks. "Thanniyile" is montage song shot on Karunakaran and Vijayalakshmi. There are plenty of funny touches here and there's such as the dancing angels ala Bharathiraja-style. The posh bathroom set for this song deserves mention ! "Odura Nari" is a situational song and is shot on Karunakaran who is chased by Naren and his motley crew of henchmen. "Naalellam" is a folk dance number, shot on Karunakaran and Vijayalakshmi, with colorful set work, based on an Rajasthani theme. "One Day" is another situation song, shot in a nightclub/pub scene, and has good lighting effects, with the additional eye-candy in the form of an sexy Caucasian dancer. The editing for the song complements the way the song was shot. "Nalla Kettuko" appears during the end-credits and features all the main leads in an 70's retro style look, with brightly colored simple set work and some patch ups of computer graphics. Sean Roldan's background score is unique and this young composer is very fast making progress and stamping his own mark but he should be cautious in not repeating his works.
Story and screenplay, developed by the director Badri, alongside with T.Senthilkumaran has touches of dark humor or black comedy. The film's thematic contents are definitely not children-friendly but the gags are indeed humorous. Some real life issues and moments are parodied unabashedly and what helps the film is the quirky mix of idiosyncratic characters and their own bizarre scenarios or situations. Be it the foolish theater owner who produces a film deemed failure, a heroine who has some sort of a yearning for a personal bathroom, a police officer who is seen as a complete joker and a philandering but helpful bookie and etc, these sort of standalone weird characters, have their lives intertwined somehow, ensuring the sparks doesn't fail to fly. Helping Badri's screenplay is the colloquially funny dialogues, written by actor Shiva. The dialogues by Shiva keeps the film lively and can be considered the backbone of the script. What hampers the film though, are the needless songs, especially the duets ! 'The film is a breezy entertainer and a perfect light-hearted black comedy.
'Aadama Jaichomada' - An effortless winner, indeed !
Ratings: 2.75/5 STARS
BY:TAMIL
Thirrupathi Brothers's N.Lingusamy and N.Subash Chandra Bose have joined hands with actor/director Manobala in producing and releasing debutante H.Vinoth's 'Sathuranka Vettai'. Thirrupathi Brothers are on the roll with back-to-back hits with their distribution and by taking up this project, it has raised the eyebrows of many. What does this intriguing project holds for us and can H.Vinoth make a name for himself ?
Casting for this film is just perfect and the choice of ace Bollywood hot-shot cinematographer Natrajan Subramaniam alias Natty, was a brilliant stroke. He is just so apt and terrific with his screen presence and dialogue delivery and though he is not the conventional hero material, he keeps us glued to the film, with a very good performance. His body language was perfect, he could still improvise on his facial expressions but still, it was a great performance from him. The rest of the cast such as heroine Ishaara Nair, Ilavarasu, Ponvannan, Piraisoodan, Valavan, Dharani, Ramachandran Durairaj, Senthi, Vetri, Sathya, Veedu Sureshkumar and etc were perfect choices for their role and each of them made their marks in their given screen timing. Kudos to the director for the apt casting !
Rangasaamy takes care of the costume designing, and he has done a really good job with the limited budget and has taken care of the detailing for each episodes present in the film and the characters involved in each respective episodes. Jayagar Viswanathan's action choreography was functional and there were no elaborate stunt seqeunces in the film. Art direction is by K.Kathir and his work is commendable as well, especially for the multi-level marketing scheme sequence, which has some elaborate designing and set work and also for his detailing in set properties for each episodes. S.P Raja Sethupathy's editing was good in portions and his slick editing for the intense scenes were good, but he could have worked better in the transitioning from one episode to another, in which there was a sense of rush in the cuts. Cinematography is by K.G Venkatesh and his camera work was top-notch, especially for his top-angle & long trolley shots. Do check out the after court scene of Natty before the interval !
Sean Roldan's music is a big plus to the movie and the musical score brings the story forward in many moments. "Porape Nadape" is the only choreographed song, which was fully shot in a bar cum pub like atmosphere, which had a colorful set work by K.Kathir and lighting by K.G Venkatesh. "Kadhala Kadhala" is a bit song which was shot based on the heroine's moment of falling in love, and was a situational song. "Munne Yen" is a montage song, shot on the lead pair and showcased a new chapter in the lead pair's lives and their hardships in a rustic village. Sean Roldan's background score was unique as well and he shows his quirkiness with different and creative sounds for each episodes and shows his prowess in melancholic scores, as well.
A former associate of Vijay Milton, H.Vinoth's 'Sathuranka Vettai' is an interesting Indianized con-movie, with a touch of black humor. The film is interestingly structured in six different episodes and each of them are funnily titled. Each episodes are apparently based on real life scams, which took place in Tamil Nadu and H.Vinoth deserves applause for his homework done, in coming up with a neat plan and how each cons were staged. But, only the last con really stood out for its outrageous audacity taken by the protagonist and the panache in execution of the con. The rest were quite simple and was too easy too fall for, though some were brilliant schemes ! H.Vinoth's taut screenplay doesn't waste any time, apart from the songs and some melodramatic, sentimental moments but the intensity and seriousness involved in such con movies are missing here. Nevertheless, H.Vinoth's dialogues are fantastic and seeps in sarcasm and wittiness and reminds us of the Manivannan of 'Amaithi Padai' days. H.Vinoth, is definitely a talent to watch out for and with more maturity in script handling, he could reap great rewards in Tamizh cinema !
'Sathuranka Vettai' - A pretty cool movie, which could have been much deadlier !
Ratings: 2.75/5 STARS
BY:TAMIL
Fox Star Studios and path-breaking producer, C.V Kumar of Thirukumaran Entertainment have joined hands and produced an intriguingly titled project called, 'Mundasupatti'. Directed by newcomer Ram Kumar of 'Naalaiya Iyakkunar' fame, this movie is based on a short film which Ram Kumar did for the television reality show. A lot is riding on this film for Vishnu Vishal, and can 'Mundasupatti' and Fox Star Studios salvage his career ?
As for Vishnu Vishal, this is a perfect comeback for him because he is at ease in doing a full length comedy film, though it is his career first. His laid-back dialogue delivery was pretty cool for his character and his screen presence is commendable. The props which accompanies him throughout the film, complements his character, be it the Yashica camera or his scooter. Nandita too looks super comfortable in the her simpleton village belle role. Her body language and mannerisms fits the character quite well and she's pleasing presence in the film. But the two guys who steal the show is Kaali Venkat and Ramdoss, as the sidekick and an aspiring actor, respectively. Kaali Venkat scores with his dialogue delivery which has plenty of sly remarks. The actor was able to carve a style for himself and is omnipresent, throughout the film. Ramdoss, plays an eccentric but humorous character to near perfection. His unique voice modulation and dialogue delivery, with flashy costumes, makes his character to have a certain charm. Veteran Anandaraj delivers the goods, with experience backing him up thoroughly and he too holds his special moments in the film. The rest of the cast such as Gajaraj, Aadesh, Pasupathiraj, Madurai Mohan, 'Lollu Sabha' Manohar, Rahul, Supramani, Kovai Uma, Kambam Meena and etc blends into the film and its plot setting very well.
The film has slick and top notch technical works, considering that it is a medium budget film. Jegathesan handles the costume designing and his work was excellent, especially for the costumes of Vishnu Vishal, Kaali Venkat and Ramdoss, who appeared most of the time in the flashy and colorful 70's & 80's look, especially with the bell bottom pants. Complementing the costumes, is the art direction work, done by Gopi Anand. The properties, especially like the old Yashica camera, Jawa scooter and camera equipments are the highlights. Also, the village and town streets and the small stores, were very well researched and executed by Gopi. Terrific job ! Leo John Paul's editing has a smooth transition from one scene to another and there are some unique cuts in some scenes, but he could have trimmed the duration of the film, especially in the first half. 'Billa' Jagan's action choreography complements the style of the film and whatever action scenes required were neatly composed and executed. P.V Shankar's cinematography was excellent, especially with the handling of vibrant tones and colors, yet the earthy and warming feel of the script was retained. His indoor shots deserves particular mention, especially with the funeral sequences, in which good lighting and camera angles were used.
Sean Roldan's musical score was fun and groovy and it complements the quirky nature of the script. "Uchiyile Udhichavane" is the opening song, which highlights a superstitious beginning of the villagers towards a 'deity' and is a situational song. "Idhu Enna" is a beautiful melody, used as a background score sporadically, throughout the film, which can look overused for some viewers. "Rasa Magarasa" is wacky funeral cum love song, and was shot on all the pivotal characters of the film, which had a funeral scene as the story and some funny moments in it. "Killadi Oruthan" is shot on Vishnu, Kaali, Ramdoss and Nandita and highlights the plight of Vishny and Kaali, serving their 'punishment' for abusing the trust the villagers had on them. There are a few comical montages shot for this particular song. "Kadhal Kanave" is the proper duet song for the lead pair, which was entirely shot in a village setting and has plenty of montages interspersed. "Aambule Singam" plays during the end credits, which has additional scenes from the film. Sean Roldan's background score too must be commended, especially for the funny and rollicking sounds he infused, which raises the humor quotient to several notches. Sean definitely deserves credit for the light-hearted moments of the film !
Debutante Ram Kumar makes no bone about his intentions in coming up with a clean comedy film and he has succeeded to certain extent. The wacky story-line, which has many silly elements infused into the script, tickles our funny bones. There's nothing pretentious with the script and story and the film is meant to be enjoyed as a silly film. Ram Kumar's idea is simple and he weaves a wacky situational comedy around the idea, with the peppering of humorous dialogues and apt characterizations, which were neatly performed by impressive artists. There is no logic nor any believable element with the story, but that should not be the hindrance in enjoying the film ! The intermission sequence was a rip-roaring episode and Ram Kumar keeps the momentum going on with more memorable sequences in the second half. The final 20 minutes of the film is pure fun and comedy, which keeps us entertained non-stop. The length of the film is a concern though, and since the original idea was a short-film, the strain in stretching the film's duration for more than 2 hours, is evident here and there, especially in the first half. Nevertheless, 'Mundasupatti' will make sure that you finish watching the film, with a smile on your face.
'Mundasupatti' - A sure-shot winner for Fox Star Studios and C.V Kumar's Thirukumaran Entertainment !
Ratings: 3/5 STARS
BY:TAMIL
Balaji Mohan simply oozes quirkiness and wittiness in his writing and with the runaway success of his debut, he is back with an intriguingly titled film, 'Vaayai Moodi Pesavum'. The trailers and teasers spelled a fun rom-com, with a young cast and crew and a stylish presentation idea, can Balaji Mohan pull it off for the second time ? Can Tamizh cinema-fans expect a jolly, good ride with 'Vaayai Moodi Pesavum' ?
Making his Tamizh cinema debut is Dulquer Salmaan, the son of Malayalam Superstar Mammootty breezes through his role as the cherubic and talkative sales agent. Building upon the confidence of his Malayalam films' success, Dulquer makes a fantastic debut in this film and is also nearly flawless with his Tamizh pronunciation and dialogue delivery. A definite talent to look out for and hope Tamizh cinema utilizes his acting capability more and better. Nazriya Nazim was simply too good as the beautiful but introvert medical doctor. She perfectly nailed her character and shares good vibes with Dulquer. Madhubala or Madhoo makes her comeback to Tamizh cinema and my word, she looks gorgeous even after all these years and her experience speaks for her, with those minute and fabulous expressions, she gave ! There's a brigade of character artistes in this film and all of them are just wacky personalities. From the mumbling politician R.Pandiarajan, his wise-cracking assistant Kaali Venkat, the foul-mouthed Arjunan, the crazy 'Nuclear Star' John Vijay and his die-hard fan Ramesh Thilak, the always-drunk 'Robo' Shankar, the grumpy and wealthy, old Vinu Chakravarthy, and finally, Balaji Mohan himself as the wily newscaster, made their marks as each one of them has their own different sub-plots in the film. Besides them, there are a few more artistes like RJ Balaji, Nakshathra Nagesh, Abhinav, Satya Priya, Kamala Krishnaswamy, Abhishek, Mime Gopi and etc in the cast. Cool casting, indeed !
Niranjani Ahathian takes care of the costume designing and her work adds more color and charm to the film's presentation. The characters looked lively and colorful thanks to the vibrant costumes, especially for the gorgeous ladies, in the film ! Art direction is handled by A.R Mohan and his art work seamlessly blended with the natural surroundings. The indoor set-up of the lead characters' homes and rooms, were well detailed and had a sense of stylishness to them. Abhinay Sunder Nayak handles the editing, and though his cuts were smooth and easy on the eyes, he could have trimmed some scenes of the several sub-plots of the film. Some episodes become tiresome after a while and is only there for the funny-gag quotient. Nevertheless, it was still a clean and neat work from him. S.Soundar Rajan's cinematography was excellent, especially with the way he projected Munnar, as the cool and beautiful hill station, with his color tone and lighting pattern. Besides that, his camera movements add more zing and fun into the screenplay and complements Balaji Mohan's writing.
Young and fresh music composer Sean Roldan, popular within the independent music album circles, makes his debut in Tamizh cinema. The light-hearted touches and also the groovy touches he gives to his track, has its own charm and effect for the songs. "Shut Up" is the title track and appears during the beginning credits, which has a plain color palette based animation. "Podhum Ini" is the first track and is shot on Dulquer, with plenty of cut-shots, well put together by Abhinay and Munnar's green hillsides were beautifuly captured by S.Soundar Rajan. "Kadhal Ara" is the funky love track, which has mini fantasy episodes in the song, which had simple set works and interspersing of the original story track. "Udaigiren" is a slow, pathos number, which was shot on most of the main characters, especially with the lead pair, in their sad moments, which were shot and shown in montages. "Maatraparavai" becomes a sort of 'happy-endings' song for the characters which were facing separate dilemmas, in their respective sub-plots. The theme tracks such as "Mr.Fix-IT", "Beedhiya Kelappa Jazz" and "The Sound of Silence" appear sporadically, throughout the film, and feature prominently in the second half. Sean Roldan's background score in the second half, adds a good deal of impetus for the film's screenplay, since everyone goes 'silent' in the film. A very good debut !
What works in Balaji Mohan's 'Vaayai Moodi Pesavum', is the simple message of how important and pertinent communication is to each and everyone, and how people take granted of it, being presented in a very fun, and quirky format ! The sub-plots, though has their own respective agendas, are simply funny and very well written by Balaji. Adding more credence to the fun-factor are Balaji's minute and creative ideas, be it the bulletins running during the prime news, the epic YouTube mash-up of R.Pandiarajan's mumbling act, the 'censoring' idea of Arjunan's foul-mouthed ramblings, the spoof and satire of cinema artistes and their real life antics, and etc, etc. Balaji has a proper structure to his screenplay and the second half, falls perfectly well, in which the message was articulately presented. The styling and overall look of the film, be it music, color, picturization, fonts and etc, complemented the script very well, and turned 'Vaayai Moodi Pesavum' as a cool and breezy, up-market entertainer of the year, thus far ! The second half slackens in the pace category, especially with the sentimental episodes, but nonetheless the scenes, were handled maturely. As mentioned earlier, the characters were very well written, keeping in mind the comedy element, and helping the artistes to make their characters stand out, are the humorously written dialogues, which had plenty of witticism, in them. Balaji Mohan has definitely set out a trend in light humor genre, and that too with a dash of fiction in it. This is what you call a whiff of fresh breeze, in Tamizh cinema !
'Vaayai Moodi Pesavum' - Eccentricity woven into the script, with tenacity !
Ratings: 3.25/5 STARS
BY:TAMIL
