Listed as one of the most eagerly expected Indian film of 2014 by Forbes India Magazine, the long awaited second film of Karthik Subbaraj gets released ! 'Jigarthanda' is said to be the first script of Karthik Subbaraj and eventually it was 'Pizza' which got made first. With a fantastic cast and crew, can Karthik justify all the expectations created and fulfill the expectations of Tamizh film connoisseurs ?
Siddharth is a fantastic choice by Karthik for the lead role, and he is ultra-convincing with his performance. As the meek and opportunistic budding film director, he was just very good with his composed expression and nonchalant acting. His dialogue delivery too was excellent and he nailed his character to perfection. Lakshmi Menon was adequate and carries a role with a morally ambiguous nature, very comfortably. She has limited scenes, but she impresses in where ever she gets her space. Karunakaran rocks with his comic timing and the informal and casual approach to his role, works very well. His antics in the second half are just pure rip-roaring comedy. A super star comedy artiste, in the making ! But the film definitely belongs to Bobby Simhaa, who was just simply terrific as the antagonist 'Assault' Sethu. Right from his deadly & electrifying introductory scene, he was simply a class act and made complete justice to the role and belief of Karthik Subbaraj for casting him. This is definitely a lifetime performance from Bobby Simhaa and one should expect a shower of awards for his acting, in the coming year. Take a bow Bobby Simhaa, you have truly arrived ! The film has a big cast which includes Ramachandran Durairaj, Naren, Guru Somasundaram, Soundara Rajan, Ambika, Sangili Murugan, Delhi Ganesh, Vinodhini, 'Munnar' Ramesh, Bala Singh, Rajkumar, Bagavathi Perumal, Sudha, Ajay Rathnam and etc and most of them were just perfect for their roles. There are interesting cameos from Nassar, Vijay Sethupathi, Nalan Kumarasamy and Vetrimaaran. Do not miss the awesome cameo sequences of Vijay Sethupathi, especially !
Natraj and Satya takes the responsibility for costume designing and they have done a very good job. The designing for Siddharth and Bobby Simhaa's costumes are noteworthy and highlighted their lifestyles, perfectly. Action choreography is handled by 'Billa' Jagan and this is one of his best works so far. There are no heavy action blocks with elaborate stunt movements, but the neatly executed action scenes, do deserve some mention. The action scenes drip with heavy violence, but they are essentials to such scripts and fulfills the demands of the story. Raju is in charge of art direction and though most of the film was shot in live locations, Raju's detailing work for the interiors of the Madurai homes, needs to be mentioned. The detailing for Karunakaran and Bobby Simhaa's home setting stands out in the first half, and the shooting spot setting for the second half were brilliant. Vivek Harshan's editing was very neatly done, and the connectivity between each sequences were just smooth, in spite of the rough and rugged nature of the sequences. Yet, he could have trimmed the film, especially in the second half which takes its own sweet time to conclude. Cinematography is by Hariharan, who was credited as Gavemic U Ary in the film. His work elevates the film's screenplay to the next level and he his outdoor and night shots, especially the rain sequence just before the intermission, was brilliant ! His lighting and color tone for the indoor shots, deserves special mention as well. The film is littered with brilliant compositions, camera movements and framing by Gavemic U Ary, and he is definitely a top class material in Tamizh cinema ! Vishnu Govind and Sree Sankar's sound effects and design work was top-notch. Their work stood out in scenes which had no background score and the action sequences bears their hallmark.
Santhosh Narayanan continues his trailblazing form and once again proves that he is a wonderful talent. Most of the songs are played in the background and each one of them aptly complements the nature of the script. "Ding Dong" has montages of Siddharth and Karunakaran tracking Bobby Simhaa and serves as another perfect setting to showcase Simhaa's character's antagonistic nature. The one particular action block involving a car, has fantastic lighting work from Gavemic and an even more fantastic editing by Vivek Harshan ! "Kannamma" was shot on Siddharth and Lakshmi Menon and has montages of them getting together in love. "Baby" is a fun song which appears twice in the film and serves as a background song. "Paandi Naatu" is the only choreographed song in the film and it was shot in a deep and water drained well and had all the lead characters performing. The lighting by Gavemic was very good for this particular song and finally "Jigar" plays during the end credits. Santhosh Narayanan's background score elevates the script to another step up and the vibrant nature of his work complements the screenplay very well. The swag and quirkiness element in the background score, adds more fun quotient to the film. Way to go, Santhosh Narayanan !
What works for us in the film, is the fantastic characterization of the lead artistes and the extraction of performance from them by Karthik Subbaraj. But what's strikingly good in the film, is the quality of writing and the transfer of the output from a bounded script to a feature film. The unabashed nature of Karthik Subbaraj's script and dialogue writing deserves applause. The film does not fit into any specific genre, but still its highly entertaining with an equal amount of intelligent artistry, combining very well. The film has wonderful stretches of comedy portions and all of them are fresh, innovative, quirky yet splendidly humorous ! Also, one should take note of Karthik Subbaraj's smart writing where he cleverly insert's elements of meta-cinema and it gels well with the script's original story-line. Karthik Subbaraj makes a scathing mockery of the practices and people of current Tamizh cinema, in a very succinct manner. Karthik Subbaraj should also be applauded for his uninterrupted screenplay, though there are non-linear narration used in the film. What may irk some film-buffs is the changeover of the film's purported genre in the second half. The first half was all drama in its full glory but the second half was more of like a black comedy/dark humor satire. The transformation of Bobby Simhaa's character paved the way for the comedy quotient in the second half, but the necessity for such a changeover for that character is definitely a question mark, indeed with some cinematic liberties taken. Also, the basic plot and idea of the film has a striking similarity with the critically acclaimed 2006 Korean neo-noir gangster flick, 'A Dirty Carnival', directed by Yoo Ha. Nevertheless, 'Jigarthanda' is still one of the best films to come out in 2014 and Karthik Subbaraj's artistry and craftsmanship, must be appreciated.
'Jigarthanda' - A sip too hard to resist !
Ratings: 3.5/5 STARS
BY:TAMIL
A trend-setter in 2012, Karthik Subbaraj's 'Pizza' won the fans and critics alike, and its no surprise that the producers want to cash in on its name, by turning it into a franchise. 'Pizza - II : Villa' is directed by newcomer Deepan Chakravarthy, and please make no bones about it, it is definitely not a direct sequel to 'Pizza'. Then what else it could be ? The namesake, purely for profitable purpose ? One has to think about it after watching the film, rather than making assumptions before a viewing.
Ashok Selvan, who made his debut in 'Soodhu Kavvum' plays the lead role here for the very first time. Though he looks confident, the acting was not exceptional, and definitely there were plenty of room for improvement. His expressions could have been better and more intensity in his portrayal would have done great justice to the role. Still, Ashok tries his best to give you the 'writer-look' and with his nearly apt body language. Sanchita Shetty, performs an extension of sort of her 'Soodhu Kavvum' performance, minus the humor. The pair has no proper chemistry between them and the romance sequences, actually fell flat. Though the lead pair has rendered their best, its still an injustice to the potential of the script and scope of acting. Keep improving, folks ! The rest of the cast such as Nassar, Kaali, Jayakumar, Vegan Rajesh, Veera Santhanam, 'Pizza' Venkatesh, 'Boys' Rajan, Ramanathan, Anjali, Aaryan, Sarath, Vinoth, Jith, Ram and etc were adequate in their limited screen timing and presence.
Technically, the film has some very good output from the relatively, young and talented crew of technicians. First of all, congratulations to the sound department for its brilliant work. Arun Seenu with the effects, Vishnu Govind and Sree Sankar dealing with the designing and the experienced M.Gita Gurappa taking care of the Dolby Atmos mixing, the sound engineering is riveting, especially in the second half. Kudos to the sound department ! 'Billa' Jagan handles the action choreography, and whatever action sequences present, were neatly executed. Production design by Maayan Ela's sufficed the needs of the script, though the budget was quite tight. Good detailing work with the props of the villa and also for the interiors of other plot settings available, interiors especially. Leo John Paul should be credited for the tight editing, and ensuring the screenplay is racy, especially with a slow-moving type of story-telling involved. The climax was well put together, though the end could have been little more smoother in scene transitions. The man who the director should be really thankful, is the cinematographer Deepak Kumar Padhy. Deepak's framing, and the quick camera movements in the second half created the perfect mood and feel of the script, added with Maayan's well set ambiance. Deepak, experiments with indoor lighting and he comes out with flying colors, in his attempt. The eerie and chill factor needed was justified by Deepak's work !
Santhosh Narayanan, rocks once again with his musical score. "Kaanum Gnanam" is a perfect soundtrack for this script and was used as the introductory song of the villa, featuring Ashok exploring the indoors of the villa for the first time. The lighting and framing for this song by Deepak, was really good ! "The Villa" and "Varaipadam" are background scores and were well used for the appropriate situations. "Boomiyil" is a melodious number shot on the lead pair, with many montages used for the song. Leo's editing was smooth for this song. "Pa Pa" was shot on Ashok on his venture of fact-finding and also had plenty of montages. Santhosh's background score was fabulous and his contributing to the script, is immense. This man is certain for great heights, provided that he's got talented directors with good scripts.
First of all, kudos to the producer and director for launching the idea of a 'Pizza' franchise. Let's clear the air, first. This is no direct sequel to Karthik Subbaraj's film. The similarity ? Both are thrillers. The difference ? The first installment was a supernatural/horror thriller with a twist, whereas the second is more of a psychological thriller. Its evident from the opening sequences that Deepan Chakravarthy has crafted the script in such a way that, it does not scare or fright you with atypical horror movie tricks. Deepan creates an eerie atmosphere throughout the screenplay and its more about the characters' dilemma and their understanding of what's happening around them. Deepan should be appreciated for his research and scientific explanations about paranormal activities, which are very interesting, in Manikandan.K's dialogues. But there are flaws in the direction, where the extraction of performance from the lead pair is below par, and the intensity needed for such scripts, missing. For some audience, this film can bore you, till the climax is reached. But the director made up for it, with a sucker punch of an ending, which has a promising prospect for a direct sequel.
'Pizza - II : Villa' is a neatly executed film, but a more matured writing, direction and performance could have done wonders to this flick.
Ratings: 2.75/5 STARS
BY:TAMIL
'Pizza', an uniquely titled film, has been evoking interests among Tamizh cinema audiences for its refreshing package and interesting knot by the debutante director, Karthik Subbaraj, a former contestant of 'Naalaiya Iyakkunar' series, which involves the supernatural element. Tamizh cinema has a mediocre record when it comes to the horror genre, but well-made films such as 'Eeram' and 'Yaavarum Nalam', gave hopes for the horror-loving folks. Produced by C.V Kumar who churned 'Attakathi' before this has retained the entire team which worked in 'Attakathi' sans the director ! So, is this movie worth the watch ?
Vijay Sethupathi's ticket to the bigger league in Tamizh cinema is this film, and he has taken his chance very well. A very good performance, it must have been quite arduous for him to perform alone in the frames and he pulls it off, effortlessly. Watch him being vulnerable and frightened in the bungalow scenes ! With more challenging projects, this man will definitely climb the ladder of fame and success in Tamizh cinema. Remya Nambeesan, plays a girl-next-door role with modern approaches and she does her part quite well, ably assisting Vijay Sethupathi. The entire supporting cast including Naren, Karuna, Jayakumar, Simha, Pooja, paint artist Veera Santhanam, Kavithasri were very realistic in their portrayals.
Karthik Subbaraj should be applauded for capitalizing the talents of fantastic technicians. The sound designing, which is a very integral part in a horror genre, was brilliantly done with Vishnu Govind and Raja Krishnan doing the mixing and designing. But the main attraction of the sound designing, was the incorporation of Studio 301 Inc, which is based in Australia and also the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. The contributions of Sandro Costantino, Phil Hartl, a master violinist, and Leon Zervos, the sound mastering engineer, whom, have several Oscar and BAFTA nominations as well as several Grammy awards to their credits, that too on a 7.1 surround sound system ! Dhilip Subbarayan's stunt scenes, be it the one shot in the bungalow or on the street-side was very realistic and natural. T.Ramalingam's art work was very neat and contemporary, be it the interiors of the bungalow house or the small-spaced quarters of the lead pair. Leo John Paul's editing is a big asset to the film, because he keeps the screenplay riveting and suspenseful. The transition during the dark, haunted portions were smooth and non-disruptive to the flow of the film. Gopi Amarnath's cinematography was wonderful. His framing for the romance portions were very subtle in nature, but his real talent was evident during the haunted portions, which has no lighting except from the emanated from the torchlight ! Also, the camera movement was smooth and not dizzying, which was a relief for the viewers. Great work by Gopi !
Santhosh Narayanan, who shot to fame with 'Attakathi' tries different genres of music in this film. "Mogathirai", a very blues type of song was well picturized, capturing the romantic moments of the lead pair, and the framing of the camera by Gopi Amarnath during the rain portions were beautiful, with slow motion technique. "Rathiri" and "Engo Odugindrai" were used more of like a background score, with the former appearing during the first half and the latter during the climax. 'Gaana' Bala pulls of a song which is total alien to him, genre-wise which has a very jazz and blues feel to it, which is titled "Dhinakku". The song features as a ringtone in the film and is also played during the end-credits. The background score was very subtle and fresh from Santhosh Narayanan and he efficiently uses the creepy silence factor during the scary portions.
Karthik Subbaraj's, screenplay was a little slow during the first half, which takes its time to introduce the viewers, to the characters and their dilemmas. But the sequences were penned in an interesting manner, with subtle comic situations and pleasant romance scenes. But he showed his talent and capacity in handling the scary portions very, very well and the shocking climax portion, which has a major twist for the audience, is a true sucker punch ! Brilliant screenplay writing by Karthik !! Though the story, written together with Prasad Ramar, was very simple, but the screenplay was very smartly written by Karthik, which brings a sigh of relief and also smile to the viewers ! The chemistry between the lead pair though, lacks the fire in it and the overall movie leaves a short-film like feel to the viewers, but these are just minor weaknesses in the film, which can be overlooked.
'Pizza' is definitely a must-watch for the audiences and Karthik Subbaraj is a talent to look out for !! The smart screenplay leaves us guessing in the first half, which leads us to a relieving but shocking climax ! Welcome to Tamizh cinema, Karthik Subbaraj !!
Ratings: 3.5/5 STARS
BY:TAMIL
