KO MOVIE REVIEW

KV Anand's ambitious film Ko was raising eyebrows from the initial days of announcement, thanks to the peculiar title (still in doubt why the film is named as such) and for the casting of Simbhu for the protagonists role who was fresh from the success of Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa. Things took a change and Jiiva was roped in to the film. Anand's last, Ayan was a blockbuster and automatically the expectations were sky high and that too with a young and chic cast. Jiiva was in need of a hit to establish his name as one of the top performers in Tamizh cinema and it is a delight to say that he made the absolutely right choice.

Jiiva was at his best in portraying the role of a photo-journalist and also in his looks. His body language and his passion to cover the hot news with stunning pictures was very well brought out by him and no one else could have done justice to his role. His dialogue delivery is impressive and his emotional expressions were in place. Kudos to KV Anand for projecting his hero in such a way and for also utilizing the camera as his 'weapon'. Ajmal was another apt choice for the role of a young aspiring politician and his looks and and dialogue delivery too was very much perfect. Debutant Karthika Nair make a decent entry to Tamizh cinema. She has the looks (beautiful eyes), physique and talents as well . It will be better if she can dub for herself after improving her Tamizh though Chinmayee has once again done a brilliant job for the dubbing. Piaa Bajpai takes the cake for the best performance among the female artists as she was the live-wire in the film. As a bubbly and enthusiastic reporter, she has delivered a natural, spontaneous and chirpy performance and also provided the comic relief for the audience. Veterans Prakash Raj and Kota Srinivasa Rao and Bose Venkat as well had very limited screen presence although both of them did their roles to perfection. All the supporting cast in the film has done justice to their role and helped the film to move forward. It was also good to see people behind the camera to make an appearance in the film such as art director Kiran, writers Suresh-Bala and editor Anthony too.

On technical aspects, Ko boasts some of the best in the industry and all of them delivered their best. Starting off, cinematographer Richard M. Nathan did a wonderful job in capturing intense moments of the film very aptly with the climax fight sequence (close-ups') and the bomb blast scene. His camera movement in the bank robbery scene was first class and the use of Phantom Flex camera for the high resolution capture of action scenes in the climax was a splendid job. Besides that, he has captured the beauty of Norway and Harbin in the song sequences very well and it was an absolute treat to the audience. Art director Kiran's sets especially the bank and the press office was near perfect and looked very authentic. Costumes by Swetha Srinivasan was cool and chic which really gave the lead casts the classy and stylish looks especially Jiiva's apparels and Karthika's saris. Anthony could have trimmed some scenes, although the cuts in the climax was class and the arrangements of photos in the title credits was very creative. Lakshmi Narayanan's sound designing was realistic especially in the climax and bank robbery scenes. Choreography should have been much better by Dinesh, Brindha and Gayathi Raguram. Not to forget, Peter Hein's stunts was no-nonsense especially the climax fight sequences which was pulsating but he could have avoided some cinematic liberties in the initial bike chase scenes.

Coming to the music, Harris Jeyaraj has delivered what KV Anand wanted needless to say most of the songs has been chart-busters especially the 'Ennamo Edho' and 'Venpaniye' being the pick of the lot. His background music was very much in tune with the film and thankfully it was not loud. Lyrics especially by Madharn Karky for 'Ennado Edho' was beautiful with the inclusion of unheard chaste Tamizh words. Although songs were good, the concept behind the picturizations behind few songs didn't really match the mood the songs create. For example, 'Ennamod Edho' was picturized exactly like 'Vizhi Moodi' though this is a even more melodious and haunting number where group dancing and interspersing of normal scenes would not really bring out the feel of the song, though Anthony's editing was good. For 'Amali Thumali' picturizing on exotic locations was not a matching option as it is a peppy song where group dancing would have done added more zing to it but nevertheless, locations were simply breathtaking. 'Venpaniye' and 'Gala Gala' was done aptly but 'Aga Naga' was a total disappointment. When a big celebrities list (Abbas, Adharva, Bharath, Ganesh Venkatraman, Harris Jeyaraj, Jai, Jeyam Ravi, John Vijay, Kannan [director], Karthi, Krish [singer], Madhan Karky [lyricist], Narain, Peter Hein, Sasikumar, Shakthi, Siva, Suriya, Anjali, Anuja Iyer, Reema Kalingal, Sanjana Singh, Sona Heiden & Tamannah) was present, the director blew off the chance of making an awesome video music. Besides that, what was it with the graphic censoring by the Censors'? That was totally unnecessary and was a hindrance in the video. Come on Censor Board members, that was ridiculous. Overall, songs were good to listen but sadly they were the actual speed breakers of the screenplay.

KV Anand must be commended for coming up with a realistic film within the commercial formats. He gives respect to the intelligence of the audiences and came up with a interesting and smart script. Being a photo-journalist himself, his experiences has come in handy. He has portrayed the moments behind the publication of each breaking news in newspapers and how the scenario of a press office will look like especially the portrayals of other characters in such offices. Besides that, KV Anands has strongly portrayed how journalism and politics go hand in hand in Tamil Nadu and how intense situations can change of a single news publication. Writers Suresh-Bala should be applauded for coming up with very contemporary and simple dialogues which are not cinematic but at the same time catchy and quirky.

Overall, Ko delivered the promises it made and engages us throughout the film especially with the unpredictably stunning climax which catches the audiences with surprise. Kudos to the whole team for coming up with an entertaining film and Simbhu blew off a big chance to do a good film. Make wise decisions next time, buddy.

Ratings: 3.5/5 STARS

BY:TAMIL

PONNAR SHANKAR MOVIE REVIEW

Prashanth, the man brought up with a silver spoon during his teenage years in terms of cinema expertise as his father Thyagarajan gave him all he needed to become a movie star. Dance classes, martial arts, gymnastics, fencing, horse-riding, and etc etc. Of course Prashanth had a brilliant opening with Vaigasi Poranthachu and subsequently delivered hit movies and that too under distinguished directors like Mani Rathnam, Balu Mahendra and K.Balachandar as well. After a lull period he came back with a massive hit in Jeans under Shankar's direction earning credits for his complicating double role performance as Visu and Ramu. Things were expected to look good for him but nearly 25 films after Jeans, sadly only a couple of them were good movies. For a star who has worked with big directors and good talents, he came up with countless of useless films and to make situation worse he had a torrid personal life as well. After 5 years, he's making a comeback with this big budget film Ponnar Shankar which raised some eyebrows with the trailer.

There was a great deal of expectations on the film with Prashanth donning double roles once again and plus a big star cast which includes, Jeyaram, Prakash Raj, Nasser, Napoleon, Raj Kiran, Prabhu, Khusboo, Sneha, Riyaz Khan, Vijayakumar , Ponvannan, Delhi Ganesh, Ponnambalam, Seetha, Sukumari, Santhana Bharathi, Lakshmi Ramakrishnan, Bose Venkat, and etc. With such a cast, audiences will expect a power packed performance from all but most of the characterizations were weak and don't really leave any deep impact with the viewers. Should say almost, all of the talented performers were wasted. Prashanth, showed all his extra skills and was apt for the roles of Ponnar and Shankar but he has very less dialogues to speak. Besides that the only artistes who were given scope to do some commendable acting were Nasser and Raj Kiran. Nasser oozes confidence and utters each dialogue with utmost care which shows the amount of experience he has. Raj Kiran delivered some power packed expressions which was luckily not over the top. Rest of the cast only has a few scenes between themselves just to carry the story further. Heroines, Divya Parameshwar and Pooja Chopra were just there for bringing 'colors & freshness' to the scenes (though we should be very jealous of Prashanth for being extremely lucky with heroines throughout his career having had plenty of good looking Mumbai heroines; and the two heroines in this film were former final round participants of Miss India).

Technically the movie was OK and art director Muthuraj should be appreciated for creating so many wonderful sets although films nowadays deliver even more realistic settings. Still he should be given a round of applause for a great job especially for the royal courtroom, song sets (the first song) and war zone sequences. Shaji's camera is adequate with some good aerial shots and slow motion capture (especially the solo song of the heroines). Don Max did well with the editing and stunts by Kanal Kannan and Ravi from Mumbai is OK except for some over-the-top flying and jumping which could have been done better and so too the graphics which was under the supervision of Prashanth. The big disappointment was Isaignani Ilaiyaraja. None of the songs sticks to our mind and the re-recording is just so and so. A huge letdown from the maestro

Coming to the captain, Thyagarajan should be appreciated for putting this film together considering the logistical nightmare of handling so many people in the film as thousands of them were involved in the fight and dance sequences. No matter how grandeur the film is, the script and screenplay is the main point of any film and Kalaingar's script is not powerful and should say quite weak. It doesn't leave any impact on the viewers which is a negative aspect considering that this is a historical script. Dialogues are very simple and direct but doesn't match with the story as most of it sounds very contemporary which won't gel well with historical stories.

Final verdict, it's a good attempt in Tamizh cinema but not quality enough in terms of a solid and powerful package though all of them should be appreciated for trying out something honestly.

Ratings: 2/5 STARS

BY:TAMIL

MAPPILAI MOVIE REVIEW

Dhanush kick starts the summer releases of Tamizh movie releases for the year 2011. Among the huge bunch of young heroes in Tamizh cinema, he is one of the most profitable and hot in the trade, whether critics or viewers like it or not. Most of his recent movies were successful or at least managed to recoup back the cost of production. His last flop was Parattai Engira Azhagu Sundaram and that was way back in 2007, 4 years ago !! Over the duration of all these years, Dhanush has really improved and matured a lot as an actor and the recent classic Aadukalam was a testimony to this statement. Coming back to this Maappilai, it is the second time Dhanush is joining hands after the success of Padikkathavan and this time it is a direct remake of his father-in-law's super hit classic. It is a great pressure for Suraj to remake a Superstar's film and that too with the real life son-in-law of Rajnikanth, so comparisons are bound to happen. Judging by the final product, it looks like Suraj has let us down with a below average film which only sparkles in bits and pieces.

Coming to the performance, Dhanush is the pivot of the whole film and he has excelled in his character. Be it the bashful and temperamental guy in the flashback or the soft-natured boy next door personality in the current track, he did a commendable job. It is evident that he has grown into a very good actor (and it was cheeky by Vivek to say that in the movie itself!!) and his comedy timing was fantastic. Not only in comedy but he oozes class and calmness when the scene demands of his character and he had brought out those expressions effortlessly. Be it his marriage hall-intro scene or his confrontation scenes with Manisha Koirala, he pulled of the job well. The biggest disappointment in the film is of course no one else other than the veteran Manisha Koirala. A favorite among the elite directors, Suraj should be given the thumbs down for giving her a poor character which looks only like a dumb caricature in the end. How can he create such a weak characterization for a great performer? The true essence of the original was the interesting and intense confrontation scenes of the mother-in-law with her son-in-law and this movie fails to create even 10% of the zing the original had. Besides that Srividya was too good in the original with her voice modulation and body language. Hansika Motwani has nothing to do other than look like a mini-Kushboo and muster a few dialogues. Vivek with his bunch of friends such as Cell Murugan, Sathyan and Balaji evokes laughter in some scenes and tires us in certain others though the veteran comedian rocked in the second half of the film. Manobala as usual makes a clown out of himself, though the "Yen Uchi Mandayile" episode was hilarious. Ashish Vidyarthi, another talented actor was also wasted here.

Technical wise the film has nothing much to boast about. The editor should have done a better job in cutting down some unnecessary scenes. Mani Sharma dished out average songs with Aaru Padai and Ennoda Raasi being the pick of the lot but the songs picturization were poor although Dhanush has danced really well. Too bad Mani Sharma is churning out the same type of fast beat "thullal isai" songs and even though he can deliver really good melodies (songs of Shahjahan & Youth) and his background music was too loud and clichéd.

Suraj has to take the blame for coming up with a low in quality masala film and how in the world he can take the credit for story when everyone knows this is a remake?? Although he did come up with funny and naughty one-liners for Dhanush especially in the second half, the overall script was bad with many loopholes and also short in logic, particularly the climax (though it was funny).

Final verdict is Suraj made a pretty bad remake of the original Maappilai and it only sparkles in bits and pieces. Without Dhanush, it would have been a total time waste.

Rating: 2/5 stars

BY:TAMIL

KULLANARI KOOTTAM MOVIE REVIEW

Actor Vishnu who's one of the decent performers of the current young batch of Tamizh cinema made a good debut in Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu and also showed he's quite good adapting to comedy in Bale Pandiya. In Kullanari Koottam, he has joined hands with a débutante Sri Balaji who happens to be an assistant of Suseendran in Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu. Almost all of the cast who made an appearance in Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu has a role to play in this movie as well. It had a decent trailer and promises to be a typical Tamizh cinema rom-com based in a Madurai milieu devoid of all the sickles and gang war elements.

Coming to the performance of the artistes involved in the film, the male lead Vishnu has dished out a decent performance but still he has a lot to improve in facial expressions and timing of his dialogues. He has the capacity to turn out into a decent actor. Meanwhile the female lead Ramya Nambeesan was the surprise packet as she took the best role of the film of a middle class orthodox girl. She has essayed her role finely. Besides this the variety of other characters including the hero's family, friends and the heroine's friend did a decent job. Suri and Appukutty as well as the heroine's roommate delivered the laughs with good one liners and comedy timing.

On the technical front, this movie has nothing much to boast about. Music by Selvaganesh of has the Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu hangover. Songs are hummable like the Vizhigalile and Aadugira Maattai tracks. Song picturization of the former was also neatly presented. Other than that no other department really stands out. Coming to the captain of the ship which is Sri Balaji in this case, has divided the film into 2 halves. First half belongs to Vishnu and Ramya throughout with all the sweet and lovely moments between lovers, typical of any rom-com. The second half takes a more serious tone, with majority of the scenes taking place in the police selection interview process. Although most of the characters are depicted as down to earth type, in the latter half they turn out to become the cunning foxes and hence the title. The problem is the script which wanders aimlessly in the second half after a pretty good first half. Kullanari Kootam had the potential to be an entertainer but the ends abruptly in a whimper. Sri Balaji should have made corrections in the second half to keep it more engrossing and entertaining.

Overall, this movie was a decent film with no item numbers, hardcore villains, loud and jarring music or double entendre dialogues. If only the director had polished the script, it would have been a real winner.

Rating: 2.5/5 STARS

BY:TAMIL

Amudha by Deepan

Amudha is a well made horror short by Deepan. It is definately one of the few shorts that lingers in your mind a while. The basic premise is a very interesting one. I would not wish to reveal the details here as it would spoil your viewing experience. The story seems inspired from elsewhere, but the execution is where it stands tall.

There has been many horror shortfilms esp in Tamil. This particular genre, every filmmaker wants to try. Its one of the hardest genre in filmmaking i believe. Deepan shines where other filmmakers fail. He is able to direct the feelings of viewers.

Verdict: Must watch.


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NADUNISI NAAYGAL MOVIE REVIEW

One of the few directors in Tamizh cinema with a high success ratio, Gautham Vasudev Menon comes up with a experimental and daring movie after scoring with his Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya big time. He has chosen the psychological thriller genre which is quite a rarely chosen one in Tamizh cinema.. Many comparisons have been made with the ever green Bharathiraja classic Sigappu Rojakkal before the release of this movie. After watching the movie, there's only one verdict and it's DISAPPOINTMENT. It's no where near the Sigappu Rojakkal and Gautham did not deliver on his promise of a thrilling movie. The movie fails to do that so and there are quite a number of loopholes which questions the logic of the screenplay.

On the acting front, there aren't much of characters here as the whole movie is focused on the lead artiste. Newcomer Veera has delivered a very good performance as the psychologically affected teenager who also happens to suffer from multiple personality disorder. Gautham has done a good job by extracting the best from Veera and his body language and tone was perfect though at times he tends to shout too loud. But kudos to him for balancing the act of 3 different personalities. Sameera Reddy as the tortured 'prisoner' did a fine job as well and she really conveyed the emotions wonderfully. Swapna as the caretaker of Veera was brilliant be it in the flashback and also as the 'illusion-ed' Meenakshi Amma.. Deva as the police officer was an average act as he did not really fit in to the role as he looked amateurish in a police uniform.

Gettin on to the technical department, the usual Gautham's team is behind all the work and except for the absence of the music director. Manoj Paramahamsa did a good job with his handling of the camera with many top angle shots especially in the scenes focusing the perimeters of the house and zooming into the face of the characters and most of the duration of the film has been filmed at night. One particular shot which really deserves plaudits for the director and the cinematographer is the opening shots of the credits where the firing of the police officer with a gun shot takes place. That slow moving and water splashing end to reveal the title credits was simply superb. Rajeevan has come up with simple house sets and mostly depended on Gautham's favorite colors of white and blue. Anthony's editing was fast and sharp with the transition of scenes with the viper effect being the highlight. Nalini Sriram has little work to do as there's not much of scope on costumes since every character has to be dressed like an ordinary person. Coming to the captain of the ship, Gautham should be appreciated for coming up with a movie which dwell on the psychological thriller genre there must be some suspense element in the film which was really missing since it really fails to thrill the audience. It only made some of them to squirm in their seats. It was a novel attempt from Gautham to come with a film without any sort of music but that decision did not really work in favor of the film. A sudden silence together with raw and natural sounds in a film can elevate the thrilling moments in a film with has good background score but a whole film with only live sounds will actually take out the eerie feeling created by haunting music. Though it is chilling to know that this movie was based on a true story of a psychologically affected person, Gautham failed to create a tight and engaging screen play as sometimes the movie tends to drag. By the way it was cheeky of him to come up with a scene where the characters in the movie goes to the cinema to catch a movie of his own with the title "Abaayam" which also happens to be a thriller with the poster of Veera!!

Overall, Gautham should have done a better job in coming up with a more convincing and gripping thriller and it was a heavy disappointment to see him fail in that aspect. Technically the movie is of high quality and international standard but then the main criteria is weak. Hope Gautham comes up with a better package next time.

Rating: 1.5/5 STARS

BY: TAMIL

PAYANAM MOVIE REVIEW

Prakash Raj as a producer has delivered some feel good breezy movies all under the baton ship of Radha Mohan and they've joined hands once again. But the only difference is that, this time they've gone for a thriller and that too of a flight hijack. This is something new and unattested in Tamizh cinema and it was interesting to see how much they've captured the essence of the theme and also to see how Radha Mohan has come out of his soft and mellifluous themed movies. Moreover Telugu major star Nagarjuna is back to Tamizh cinema after a very long gap.

Radha Mohan has dished out a pretty good decent thriller. Though the films picks up the pace only after Nagarjuna's character was introduced, Radha Mohan has ensured that the screenplay doesn't deviate from the main theme with unnecessary elements. He deserves a pat for underlining the ineffectiveness of the elected government who are more interested in holding to their power, the selfish acts of media people who goes to certain extent just to sensationalize issues by giving false statements and even endangering the lives of others just for the sake of higher TRP ratings. As the case in Unnaipol Oruvan, the common man's anger and frustrations on political and religious issues are also highlighted well through Gnanavel's dialogues which are hard hitting at certain times. The best part of the film is definetly the last 20 minutes of the film which is laced with suspense. Technically the film is good, with Guhan's camera capturing well the interiors of the hijacked plane and also of the airport. But the real hero of the film is the art director Kadhir who has done a really fabulous job in the art department. The detailings on the flight and also of the Tirupathi Airport was near perfect. Kudos to him. Praveen Mani's rerecording is passable thought the only title track was good.

On the acting front, Prakash Raj and Nagarjuna has done their roles as the bereaucrat and commando respectively, in a very dignified manner. Prakash Raj's best must be the scene where he bursts in anger and could no longer be patient with the demands of the terrorist. He poured his anger our, literally. Nagarjuna did a cool role with no heroism although the dubbing voice didn't really elevate the originality feel. Other than these 2, the big supporting cast are the main pillars of the movie. The variety of characters, Kumararaja as the patriotic unemployed youth, Manobala as the popular TV astrologer, Prithviraj as 'Shining Star' Chandrakanth and Sams as his big ardent fan, Thalaivasal Vijay as the Rte Colonel, Rishi as a doctor and Sana Khan as the ordinary teenage gal, MS Baskar as the priest and a whole lot more of them. Each and everyone of them performed to their best and was really convincing. Sams and Pritviraj episodes was really hilarious but the scene stealer is the actor who impersonates as Yusuf Khan, terrorist role.. He was simply awesome with the scared to death kind of role and together with Brahmanandam, they rocked the scenes. MS Baskar has done a serious role this time with conviction. Overall each one of them delivered they're best..

On the whole, Radha Mohan has dished out a different movie which appeals to all section of audience. Hope this movie succeeds to spur on more good films in Tamizh cinema. Let the journey continue on.


Rating: 3.5/5 STARS

BY: TAMIL

YUDHAM SEI MOVIE REVIEW

Mysskin is back with a crime thriller once again after the emotional journey portrayed in Nandhalala. Comparisons may arise with Anjaathey as both involves nearly the same theme but Yudham Sei has no light moments and is very dark and morbid. An added attraction is the presence of Cheran as the protagonist as well a speacial appearance from Ameer and Neetu Chandra.

The main problem of the film is the pace of the narration. Although the scenes done in a compelling and thrilling manner, but the screenplay is quite slow for a crime thriller genre. It may test the patience of some viewers but for those who forgo the slow mode, this film is a fine take on the angst of the general public on the social perverts and scoundrels.. What makes the film good is that it purely sticks to it's genre and there are no unwanted elements like romance, comedy or songs except for the Kanni Theevu Ponna track. Certain investigative methods shown in the movie do remind us of the style used in the popular CSI series though it was shown realisitically. The linear narration helped us to not get confused and the suspense maintained until the climax was the highlight of the script.

When it comes to performance, Mysskin always brings out the best from his artistes. Cheran as the CBCID officer in search of his missing sister and the officer in charge, is very realistic. The way he was shown didnt invoke the sense of deja-vu or imitation of previous film based police officer roles. His hidden angst and pain was well brought out by Mysskin. YG Mahendran and Lakshmi as the husband and wife couple proved that they're seasoned artistes of high degree of calibre. They're performance was riveting especially in the climax scene. Jayaprakash was stunning as the pathologist and he's proving to be one of the sought after character artiste. The others are casted appropriately.

Technicians behind the movie has worked in tune with the mood of Mysskin. Cinematographer Sathya has captured the night sequences very well and his top and low angle shots help to create the right mood for the film. The usual Mysskin touch like as the camera movement which follows the character in low angle, the stilled position for certain scene are aplenty and is not something to be complained about. Music director K has done a good job with the background score with haunting music but then in some scenes the music is a little out of sync and sounds too melodramatic. There's only one song featured in the movie in which Ameer and Neetu Chandra, who appears as Mysskin's popular yellow sari-clad item gal for songs.

Mysskin should be appreciated for bringing a crime thriller with painful human emotions depicted in the right manner and for showing what the public general thinks of the crime of violence against human. Yudham Sei is filled with pain, anger, hatred and is shown in a morbid manner. It's a good movie but not the best from Mysskin.

Rating: 3/5 STARS

BY TAMIL

KAAVALAN MOVIE REVIEW

After facing numerous problems and hurdles, Vijay finally managed to release his eagerly awaited Kaavalan at one of his most crucial moments in his career. He's facing a crisis with back to back super flops considering that he's a super star. He has teamed up with Siddique after the super success of Friends and remaking a Malayalam film which was originally written keeping Vijay in mind. To be honest, Vijay must be thanked for giving a clean movie with no ridiculous stunts, over the top heroism, lame punch dialogues, crass villains but delivering a cool, sweet and cute movie which shows that Vijay is just not a star but also an actor.

Watching Vijay performing in mellow and cute love scenes is a big relief for the normal audience considering all the rubbish he threw out for the past few years. This movie is a throw back to the 90's era where Vijay was popular at the time for being a ladies man with soft and cute mannerisms. It's seriously nice to see him enact emotional scenes with aplomb and at the same time holding the audiences' attention with his screen presence. His transformation as a stiff and strict bodyguard with a touch of humor to the soft and love-struck guy was smooth and touching. The scene in the park where he was about to meet his 'lover' was truly touching and sweet where he portrayed the emotions of tense and calmness at the same time was a truly subtle acting from him. It shows the years of experience he has in the film industry. Added to that his dressing sense was pretty good in this film with most of his costumes looked contemporary and neat which presented him as a smart looking guy. Not to forget his emotional acting in the climax and as well his famous comedy timing, Vijay gave a very good performance as an actor this time. Asin is back after a small gap and she just sleep walked through her role. It took a few moments for her to deliver her histrionics as an actress of substance although in certain scenes she looked bad with the make up and the chemistry between she and Vijay is missing this time. Vadivelu was a riot in certain scenes especially with his 1 liners like "Private Number/Parvathy Nambiar" and the "Paavam Avare Confuse Aayittaru" dialogues being the best and the best scene would be the one where he gets bashed up in the womens hostel and how he complaints it to the others was an absolute laughter. Other than tat comedy scenes were pretty lame. Other cast members did their role as it was needed.

Technically the film doesn't deliver anything big. Stunts by Siva complemented well with Vijay's fighting style and it wasn't over the top. NK Ekhambaram's camera was just nice with the last fight scene being the highlight of his work. Vidyasagar gave a couple of hummable tunes like Step It Up and the Yaaradhu songs but should have done better with the BGM as it was too melodramatic at times. Song picturizations were not impressive though except for the starting part of the Pattam Puchi song involving the graphic works.. Siddique should have tweaked the first half of the film as until the interval, the movie doesn't show of anything promising and where it is heading to. Although the ending was touchy and sweet it could have been changed to something more realistic as it would have been more poignant.

Overall, Kaavalan is a decent film from Vijay after a very long time and it was just nice to see him do some real acting and deviating from his usual masala action movies. A cute, sweet film with a touching end is what Kaavalan is all about. It's not a great film but the same time not a bad one either. Only disappointment is the decision of Vijay opting out of 3 Idiots remake which would have helped him sustain the good momentum given by Kaavalan on his path to redemption. Hope more directors approach Vijay with simple and realistic scripts to help him show his histrionics as an actor.

Rating: 2.5/5 STARS

BY: TAMIL

AADUKALAM MOVIE REVIEW

One of the most eagerly expected movies of the year. After the big success of Polladhavan, the Dhanush-Vetrimaaran duo is back once again with this rooster-fight based film and what a show it was!! Vetrimaran has surely cemented his place as one of the finest contemporary directors of Tamizh cinema and thank GOD, Polladhavan's success was not a fluke. Making a rural based film is not new to Tamizh cinema, considering the fact that after the success of Paruthi Veeran and Subrmaniapuram, more Madurai based films have come out with it's share dose of violence and bloodshed. But what makes Aadukalam stand out is the different backdrop it's based on and the realistic portrayals of the human beings involved in such backdrop, in this case the playing field of rooster-fights. Definitely this is an international class film which makes us to be proud of.

One man which makes this movie so commendable is the lead hero Dhanush. What a performance from this guy who proved all the naysayers that he's a hero with substance and for breaking the stereotypical mould of a hero. This is certainly one of Dhanush's best performance after Kadhal Kondein and Pudhupettai. Vettrimaran has done a fantastic job of extracting the best from Dhanush after Selvaraghavan and Balu Mahendra. Every single movement, emotion and dialogue delivery of Dhanush is so life like that we must say that he has lived as Karuppu. No matter which scenes they are, from the joy he showed hearing the heroine loves him, the disappointment he faces learning the bitter truth, the loyalty he shows towards his mentor, the emotional scenes after the death of his mother and the determination of keeping his rooster still in the match, Dhanush has simply lived the role and his performance was mind blowing with the fluent accent of Madurai, delivered flawlessly. Certainly he's on the list next year for the best actor's awards nominations list. Literatuer Jayabalan as Pettaikaaran was a revelation with stunning body language and emotions conveyed through his eyes and not to forget the almost perfect dubbing of Radha Ravi for him.. Simply marvelous. Kishore once again was a powerhouse and the dubbing for him done by Samuthirakani was apt with the slang but it would have been much better if Kishore spoke in his own voice which would have been more impactful. New gal Tapsee carried the role of and Anglo Indian quite well but she still has a lot of catching up to do. All the small roles done by junior artistes were real and life like.

Technically the film is top notch with Velraj's cinematography being the important backbone of the film. All the small details of the ring side of rooster fight, the small and dingy houses and the shots of the roosters was awesome. The night effect shots was beautiful as well with minimal lights giving the surreal feel. The color tone used for the film is well matched with the theme of the movie. GV Prakash once again struck big time with his songs especially Yathe Yathe and Aiyaiyo Nenju being the highlights. The BGM adds weightage to the films quality. Art direction was perfect with every minute details drawn out from the ring side, the farm houses, the bar sets and also the Anglo Indian houses. Stunts by Rajasekhar was realistic with the last fight scene being the best of all the fight scenes in the film. All credits should go to Vetrimaaran the director for doing intense research and presenting the audience a totally different world of rooster fighting with sheer quality in presentation. The only drawback in the script is the slow second half where the screenplay takes time to unravel the reasons behind the riveting climax.

Final verdict, Aadukalam is just a touch of class and hope Vetrimaaran continues to present us with different themed films in the future with more quality in mind. A big thumbs up to him for making Tamizh cinema proud..

Rating: 4/5 STARS

BY: TAMIL